Life and Shooting with Phillip Velayo: Legendary Long Range Shooter [ZEROED IN]

Two principles helped define Phillip Velayo’s life and guide him to where he is today: Keep your head up, and keep your face on the gun. The second has become an acronym he has shared over the past several years. Its literal meaning speaks to the ability for an individual rifle shooter to track a shot downrange, note the impact — or lack thereof — and make a correction, if necessary.

The larger meaning alludes to accountability, accepting there may not always be a spotter beside us to help us dial in, that we — and we alone — are responsible for our hits, and our misses.

It requires focus. Eyes on target. A goal. Refusing to blink, even when mind and body grow sore.

The initial principle is simpler: Keep your head up. Never quit, no matter how hard it gets. Challenges present themselves externally, but also internally, as one works to overcome personal obstacles, including self-doubt.

In April 2014, following his first competition, the Winston P. Wilson (WPW) Championship, Velayo returned to his bunk at Camp Pendleton and lay awake repeating the phrase to himself: “I don’t know sh*t.”

Prior to the event, Velayo had completed four tours, served as squad leader, chief sniper in his platoon, and had started working formally as a marksmanship instructor for the Marine Scout Sniper course. But the number of shots he had dropped at the competition? The scoresheet told the story.

He took a hard look in the mirror, then took his phone and turned the camera on himself. What started as a way to review tape on his technique turned into something he considered worth sharing. Footage became chapters — glimpses both into his personal journey as a precision rifle shooter but also the lessons he was discovering and disseminating, the social-media curriculum he was pioneering.

His handle on YouTube and Instagram: @Velayo_0317 (dropping the underscore on Facebook). The 0317 code referenced his Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) in the U.S. Marine Corps: Scout Sniper.

Over the years, his followers grew, comments piled up, and so did the emails from both active-duty and retired Scout Snipers inquiring, “How can we be a part of what you’re doing for this community?”

Then, in late 2023, the Marine Corps disbanded dedicated Scout Sniper Platoons within infantry battalions and eliminated the 0317 Military Occupational Specialty (MOS). The decision was driven by the Force Design modernization initiative, which restructured the Corps to prepare for future maritime and littoral combat. Long-range precision and reconnaissance capabilities were decentralized, transferring specialized sniper roles to reconnaissance units.

Many Marine Scout Snipers felt displaced. The community, over a century’s legacy, had come to an end. But so many were left seeking purpose, asking the question, “How do we ensure the principles that defined 0317 are not lost?”

Some reached out to Velayo, and the conclusion of one large collective chapter would help shape a new narrative — one not exclusive to military but rather any soul who cares to shoulder a rifle and asks the question, “Could I be better?”

GROWING UP

Velayo grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, in an immigrant family who valued traditions and hard work. His mom worked as a chef and his father took on various jobs to support the family. His older sister, two years his senior, served as a mentor. The family spent portions of summer fishing, catching reds (sockeye salmon).

Velayo excelled in school, got straight As, was proficient in math — a skill that would translate seamlessly to precision shooting — and took pride in assisting other students via study groups.

The family moved from Anchorage to Las Vegas when Velayo was a freshman in high school. When his sister graduated high school, she joined the Navy. During his junior year, Velayo’s parents got divorced, an event that shook his world. He started to miss class. His grades slipped. He was at risk of not graduating on schedule, or at all.

“My counselor, Mrs. Burns, she essentially saved my ass,” said Velayo. “She was empathetic to my situation and helped work with my teachers to get me back on track.”

Upon approaching the age of 18, Velayo was looking at joining the U.S. Marine Corps. His sister’s boyfriend was also his best friend at the time and had joined the Marine Corps the same year his sister joined the Navy.

It was 2006, the height of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT). Velayo’s parents pleaded with him to not join as infantry. Communications, motor transport — anything other than infantry, they begged.

That December, prior to Velayo leaving for MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station), Velayo’s sister returned home for leave and provided some advice that would shape Velayo’s military career: “Don’t do anything that you’ll wake up and regret in two to three years.”

So Velayo chose infantry. He shipped out to boot camp on July 23, 2007.

A PIG’S LIFE

Velayo, due to school and a heavy work schedule, did not follow recruiter-recommended workouts ahead of Marine Corps Boot Camp. As a result, he struggled.

“At that point in my life, boot camp was the hardest thing that I've ever done,” he said. “Not so much mentally, because I knew there was gonna be separation from my family. I think I was ready for that. It was just like, more physically, I wasn't prepared for it.”

But he kept his head up, never gave in. For his MOS, he chose 0311 — rifleman. Five days prior to graduating, Velayo was told he was joining 1st Battalion, 4th Marines, and headed to Camp Pendleton. When he arrived and got off the bus, his platoon sergeant informed him, because of his scores in boot camp and SOI (School of Infantry), he had met all the prerequisites to go to Scout Sniper School.

The next phase was INDOC (indoctrination process).

“It was the f*cking hardest five days of my life,” said Velayo. “It was worse at that point than the 13 weeks of boot camp that I did. I was not physically in the shape that I should have been. I was just like putting one foot in front of the other, and I was just too stupid to quit.”

It was a mentally and physically exhausting five days consisting of back-to-back events—fitness test, classroom exercises, mind games — with perhaps two hours of sleep per night. In the end, nine recruits out of an original 18 — including Velayo — were still standing.

When a Marine joined a sniper platoon but before going to Sniper School, he was referred to as a PIG (Professionally Instructed Gunman). Velayo spent the next nine months of his PIG life undergoing a pre-deployment workup. He spent days training for communications, reconnaissance, surveillance, stalking, fieldcraft, but, as he recalls, only fired 20 rounds through a sniper rifle prior to deploying to Fallujah.

“I wasn't a sniper at the time,” said Velayo. “I was a radio operator for my team, so the likelihood of me shooting somebody was very small. I was just to be any type of support needed for my team.”

In Fallujah, Velayo assisted in security and overwatch missions as allied forces were in the process of transitioning responsibilities to the Iraqi police. Toward the end of his deployment, while gearing up for patrol one day, he received a phone call from his first sergeant, letting him know he was now a father to a baby girl.

Velayo returned home spring 2009, was selected to attend Sniper School. The night prior to attending, during a series of text and phone call arguments with his daughter’s mother, Velayo turned off his phone, which was meant to also serve as his alarm for the next morning. He overslept and missed the morning’s ruck movement and was immediately dropped from Sniper School.

“I was the lowest of low with regard to who I was in the eyes of my unit,” Velayo said. “I essentially had to like start from ground zero earning my respect with my platoon.”

His team leader fought for him to stay in the unit. His next deployment in May 2010 was in the Pacific Ocean, still a PIG, still a radio operator, serving in a MEU (Marine Expeditionary Unit). He returned in December 2010. He had re-enlisted during his deployment, extending his contract for another four years, so to have another shot — albeit a long shot — at Sniper School upon returning home. But before vying for a second chance at Sniper School, Velayo attended Squad Leader’s Course.

“That actually ended up becoming probably one of the most important schools of my career just because it allowed me to actually understand how the infantry operates,” said Velayo. “It's because of that I think that I was a successful sniper team leader as a result of going through that course.”

GRADUATING TO HOG

After a change of command following deployment, the new leadership recognized Velayo’s determination and passion for instructing. “At this point I'm a senior marine,” said Velayo. “I'm a corporal and he essentially gave me another shot to go to Sniper School for a second attempt as soon as I got back from the Squad Leader's Course.”

“I didn’t f*ck up the second time, which is good,” said Velayo. “I started to kind of figure out I had a knack for shooting.”

Velayo graduated Sniper School on October 11, 2011. His platoon set up an instructional package, a five-day course, with Jacoy Bynum of Rifles Only.

“This is kind of where I heard about the Precision Rifle Series, but I think there was just so much overwhelming information I didn't really understand,” said Velayo. “I didn't know that he hosted these matches. I just think he's like, ‘Hey, if you ever want to come out to a competition.’

“I didn’t know who he was in the industry or the community,” said Velayo. “I just knew that Jacob Bynum was a phenomenal teacher.”

After graduating Sniper School, Velayo was promoted to sergeant and became a team leader. He deployed for a third time, this time as a sniper, a HOG (Hunter of Gunmen), spending most of his time in Okinawa, Japan, with some training exercises in the Philippines and Thailand. He returned home June 2012 and his new platoon sergeant, Andrew Sullivan, asked Velayo to be the platoon’s Chief Scout.

“This is mentally where I realized this is what I want to do with the rest of my life,” said Velayo.

During that year’s pre-deployment workup, Velayo attended and graduated from Mountain Sniper and Urban Sniper courses. In August 2013 and his team deployed to Djibouti, Africa. Upon returning home, Velayo helped development curriculum and training for junior Marines entering INDOC. His platoon sergeant, Sullivan, said to him, “I want you to put in a solid D-Day training. Even if we don't select some of these Marines to join because they quit or whatever, I want to make sure they still get the best five days of training that they ever get in their career.”

It's a training philosophy and approach to education that has forever stuck with Velayo. No white space — just making every minute an opportunity to learn and grow.

In 2014, Sullivan asked Velayo if he had any interest in becoming an instructor at Sniper School. Velayo put in a package for combat instructor, which is considered a B billet. He extended his contract for another two years. He graduated Instructor School in December 2014 and started his first class as an assistant marksmanship instructor in January 2015.

TRIAL BY COMPETITION

In April 2015, following the conclusion of his first class serving as a marksmanship instructor, Velayo joined a senior instructor at the Winston P. Wilson sniper competition in Arkansas. The senior instructor had won it the year prior, but Velayo struggled.

“I was just getting straight murdered on these courses,” he said. “I was barely getting impact. They were very like complex forces of fire. But I was like, ‘Oh, I don't even know why I'm here, carrying a sniper rifle.”

It was also at the WPW competition that Velayo learned about PRS (Precision Rifle Series) from a fellow instructor, who informed Velayo, “Civilians do this for fun.”

“And I remember looking at him and asking, ‘Civilians shoot sniper rifles?” Velayo said. Up until that moment, Velayo had never heard the term “precision rifle.” To him, it was a sniper rifle or a bolt gun. He also learned about a cartridge called “6.5 Creedmoor.”

“I said, ‘What the fuck is a 6.5 Creedmoor,’ because all we knew was 308 or 300 Win Mag.”

Velayo’s team still took second, but Velayo was far from satisfied. He returned to Camp Pendleton and picked instructors’ brains, getting input from guys who had also been competing for years. He searched the Sniper’s Hide forum for further advice and available gear. He purchased his first personal precision rifle — comprised of a Remington 700 action trued on a 26-inch Bartlein Barrel with an APA Fat Bastard muzzle brake, a Gen I Vortex Razor, Timney Trigger, a Badger Ordnance bottom metal, and a Manners T4 stock in OD green — chambered in 308 Win, of course.

“I knew I wanted something very similar to the M40A5 series sniper rifle,” said Velayo. “Cause that's just what I knew. I didn't know anything else.”

He also started shooting locally with a group of guys who called themselves the SoCal Precision Rifle Team. “Mind you, these guys are a lot older than I am,” said Velayo. “I was in my mid 20s. They already had their careers. They've got families, and one of the things that I really appreciated about them was not only their focus on helping me become a better shooter, but an instructor, but also being a better father.”

It was also around this time that Velayo turned the phone camera on himself and started filming and sharing footage on social media. “It was mainly checking myself,” he said “because I said, ‘I wonder if I'm doing these things that I'm yelling at my students.’”

Velayo served as a marksmanship instructor at Camp Pendleton’s Sniper School for three years, instructing and mentoring approximately 350 snipers. In spring 2018, instead of re-enlisting and heading to the East Coast—which would have put him thousands of miles from his daughter, for whom he was sharing 50-percent custody—Velayo instead accepted a job with Gunwerks in Cody, Wyoming.

Also in spring 2016, he attended his first two-day national-level PRS match. A year later, April 2017, Velayo won his first two-day national-level NRL match. Then, in December 2018, he won the PRS finale. “I cleaned day two of the match,” he said “That's what actually led me to win the finale that day.

“It was my first finale, to see how well I would do amongst the nation's competitor,” he said. “Because I didn't think that I was a top-level competitor yet. I thought I was still upper- or mid-pack.” 

MODERN DAY SNIPER

Velayo instructed at Gunwerks for two years. He was also introduced to backcountry hunting, discovered a passion for hunting giant bull elk, competed both locally and traveled for national-level matches. But something was missing.

“I've missed too much of the, quote-unquote, operators,” he said, “you know, the military, law enforcement. That was the kind of mindset that I just wanted to get back to teaching.”

“So, I felt like I was not really teaching people that were serious about the craft of being a precision rifle shooter or rifleman. And so that's what kind of ultimately catapulted into me standing up Modern Day Sniper with Caylen Wojcik.”

Over the next four years, Wojcik and Velayo together developed a curriculum, an education and mentorship platform, providing both online masterclasses and in-person training in precision shooting for military, law enforcement, and civilians. They also were one of the firsts to host a precision-rifle podcast, further garnering notoriety and respect for their abilities in the precision-shooting space.

Both continued to compete, each podiuming at various competitions throughout the country. They hosted approximately 200 in-person students over the course of approximately 40 classes.

Velayo discovered a passion beyond just instructing: storytelling, sometimes just through a precision-rifle lesson online.

“There wasn't really much of an algorithm yet,” he said. “At the time, this was a new type of content. And I don't want to say I was a pioneer of precision rifle content in terms education. But I know that for short-form content, I definitely was one of the first because it was initially on YouTube.

“I have a bad ADHD brain. I can't sit and do long-form stuff. I would just knock out these quick 60-second videos, whether it's a video of me running a stage or, you know, a picture, and I break it down from a fundamental standpoint, because I realized no one else was really doing that in the space of precision rifle shooting.”

During the start of his social-media content, Velayo was still instructing at Sniper School, looking to peel back the layers of what he was teaching, starting to question his methods, his techniques, what he was actually doing in competition.

“Understanding the types of trigger control errors or just all these things such as pressure of my face behind the gun,” he said, “and then being able to spot my own impacts and then really the biggest thing that that I took away was the rifle-to-shoulder connection.”

He dissected everything. Taught what he learned. Filmed what he learned. Shared it. Zero gatekeeping.

Velayo’s passion for storytelling and videography prompted the idea of his own videography agency. That, combined with wanting to stay closer to home, near family, was what led to Velayo parting ways with Wojcik and Modern Day Sniper.

“It was us, as personality instructors. That’s how I earned a living,” he said. “It became directly tied to how many classes I would teach a year. And especially as a now-single father at the time — my daughter is going through high school — I was just on the road too much. And I just needed to take a step back from that, that essentially lifecycle.”

THE CURRENT CHAPTER: THE CADRE 

Velayo used his education credits to attend film school and graduated in June 2025. The same year he started film school, the U.S. Marine Corps officially disbanded Scout Sniper platoons in infantry battalions. The idea of The Cadre was born in summer 2024.

“[Matt] ‘Solo’ [Solowynsky] and John [Bumpus] said, ‘I want to put a team together of guys to be able to answer the call if and when snipers come back, to be able to provide training to these snipers, not just from a technical standpoint — this is how I teach you how to shoot — but because we're all snipers.’ How to also mentor the Marines to navigate the different levels of leadership as a sniper, to be able to relate to them.”

“If I could teach you how to shoot from the eyes of a competitive shooter,” said Velayo, “but also mentor you to make sure you're making the right decisions when it comes time to be a sniper in combat, not just pulling the trigger — that is where The Cadre wants to serve.”

During film school and potentially pursuing starting his own videography agency, Velayo came to a realization: He missed teaching. He missed those “lightbulb” moments with students.

“One of the biggest things I enjoyed about my time as a Marine was mentoring and leading Marines,” he said.

In December 2024, Velayo, Solo, and Bumpus hosted private, mock classes with Marine Scout Snipers as instructors to local students in Cody, Wyoming. It was somewhat of a qualifier, in terms of teaching, to see if a potential instructor was a right fit for the team. The Cadre team was coming together, and they hosted their first paid class in May 2024.

Today, The Cadre is considered a world-class training outfit that specializes in precision-rifle via various disciplines. It also works with companies in consultation capacity to develop products for not only the industry but the modern-day Marine or modern-day warrior. Velayo hopes to eventually provide some sort of accreditation for precision shooters looking to best understand at what level he or she can execute.

From a personal side, Velayo’s bolt-action rifles collection has grown from that first purchase off Sniper’s Hide to 20 different precision rifles, each with its own story and purpose.

“I’ve built two companies focused on precision rifle training from nothing,” he said. “The growth goes beyond hardware and business — it’s about understanding what makes a precision shooter tick, knowing how to communicate what matters when it counts. Now I can take someone from zero experience to confident shooter.”

Excellence breeds hunger, Velayo says. His goal is to take elite performers and forge them into master instructors, ones who can both run the gun and pass on their craft to students who are just as hungry.

“One thing a decade in this craft has taught me: you can’t teach obsession,” he said. “You either have it or you don’t.”