LOS OSOS, California - Jerry Miculek has missed just one International Revolver Championship which probably explains why he's only won the match 18 of the 19 times it's been held.

The Team Smith & Wesson shooter, and Princeton, La. resident, again won the Open division championship, leading the field of 86 division shooters through the entire match and outpacing his nearest competitor by just over 35 seconds with a final winning time of 225.56.

"There are hardly enough accolades to accurately depict how good Jerry is with a revolver. Year after year, without fail, he demonstrates what it means to be the best in the world and ICORE is honored to once again, and for the 18th time, name him our IRC champion," said Art Leach of ICORE.

The real battle in the Open division was for second place where just 4.07 seconds separated the shooters finishing second through fifth.

Moving up from his third place finish in 2009 was Neil Hogue of Paso Robles, Calif. Hogue won the third of 12 stages in the match, and one of the seven stages Miculek did not win, to help him finish with in a final time of 260.59.

Todd Crow of Antioch, Calif. improved on his fifth place finish in 2009 to take third this year with a final time of 260.64, barely missing second place by a mere 0.05 seconds.

Last year's runner-up, Rich Wolfe of Escalon, Calif., placed fourth with three stage wins and a time of 262.58. Rounding out the top five was Team Smith & Wesson shooter David Olhasso of Holland, Penn., who took fourth in 2009. He finished fifth this year in a time of 264.66.

In an exciting finish to the women's Open division match, Team Smith & Wesson scored another victory as team captain Julie Golob of Glasgow, Mont. claimed the top spot for the second year in a row by coming from behind on the final stage.

Despite winning four stages, Golob trailed throughout the match overtaking the leader and fellow Smith & Wesson team member, the 13-year-old up-and-comer Janae Sarabia of Lompoc, Calif., with her final shots of the match on a stage where accuracy is paramount.

The final stage is the standards stage and consists of targets as far out as 50 yards. Shooters have to put six rounds into a four inch x-ring to avoid time penalties, making the stage the literal 'make or break' point in the match.

Golob's winning time of 404.59 represented her third major victory of the 2010 shooting season and one of nine titles that her shooting team captured at this year's IRC.

"I go into the IRC with a fresh outlook, expecting to be challenged. Since I don't routinely shoot revolvers in competition, and I only put a couple hundred rounds downrange in practice, coming out this match with another women's title is pretty special," said Golob.

Claiming second was Flora Yang of Cerritos, Calif. who won three stages, including the all important standards stage, and posted a final time of 413.87.

After falling out of the lead on the 12th stage, Sarabia finished third among the women competing in the Open division. However, her final time of 417.83 won the Junior Open title and gave Smith & Wesson its third title in the division.

"I was pretty happy with how I shot the match. I've been improving all year long and and feel a big sense of accomplishment taking third and ecstatic that I finished as the top junior," said Sarabia.

In the senior categories, Miculek's win also claimed him the Senior title while Ron Williamson of Thousand Oaks, Calif. captured the Super Senior title with a time of 358.88.

Organized by the International Confederation of Revolver Enthusiasts (ICORE), and held this past weekend in San Luis Obispo, Calif. at Hogue Action Pistol Range at the San Luis Obispo Sportsmen's Association, the IRC drew more than 200 top revolver shooters, representing 22 states and six foreign nations. Titles were awarded in the Open, Limited or Retro divisions with scoring based on time and accuracy where time penalties are accrued for misses and shots outside the x-ring.

For further information on ICORE and the 19th Annual Smith & Wesson International Revolver Championships, or to find a club near you, visit www.icore.org.