1st Black Powder Shoot

Went to my 1st black powder shooting yesterday with my friend who is on the USA black Powder shooting team. Carried 1 1858 44 cal and a 1851 navy 44 cal. My load was 20grains of FFFG Goesx then a lubercaed wad then then ball. Shooting at 25 yards my shots were everywhere. hit targret several tmes but not any groups. My friend said 20gr was good wad ok but needed to add corn meal to bring ball to top and then lube.
Do any of yall shoot like this. He was constanly hitting black at 25 yards.

I suspect that practice had a great deal to do with hitting the target.

Yes, there is a good solid basis of support for the use of corn meal or cream of wheat to help fill the chamber. The theory is that by having the ball closer to the end of the chamber, there is less of an acceleration before the ball is forced through the forcing cone in the barrel. The short jump leads to a better engagement of the ball to the lands giving consistent spin. Consistency leads to improved accuracy.

I still think practice has a lot to do with accuracy along with building muscle fitness to hold the sights on target through the firing process.

When I shot with the N-SSA in handgun competition, I loaded my 1858 Remington with 18 grains of FFFg, topped with corn meal (leaving just enough space at the top for the .457 round ball, then lube to seal the chamber. The pistol could hit 9 and 10 rings at 25 yards all day. My sights were set for a 6 o'clock hold at 25 yards and center of bull at 50 yards.

ADK Bigfoot

While I agree that filling the chamber with something like Cream of Wheat is a good thing to do, I think perhaps the shooter might be part of the problem.
If the shooter is an accomplished pistol shooter my apologies for saying that but shooting a pistol accurately is a very hard to do.

The slightest wiggle of the body, the chest, the arm, hand or even a small jerk with the trigger finger can cause the gun to change where it's pointed at when it fires.

Looking at the target's bullseye when aiming can also cause the gun to miss. Concentrating on the rear sight is another thing that can cause problems.
The only thing that the shooter must concentrate on while aiming is the front sight. Not the target. Not the rear sight. Only the front sight.

As a departed friend who was an excellent pistol shooter said, "It is impossible for the human eye to focus at more than one distance at the same time. The front sight is the only thing that tells you where the gun is pointing. If you don't watch it while you take your shot there is no telling where the shot is going to hit."

Pistol shooting takes a different set of muscles and skills than rifle shooting. Gripping the gun with one hand firmly enough for a steady hold and just loose enough to squeeze the trigger with the finger take some muscle conditioning that comes only with practice. Then too is a proper stance that minimizes fatigue and provides a steady base for standing without unintentional sway. Loading a partial charge of powder is always problematic. The ball jumps too fast into the forcing cone and ends up deformed. Several shooters I know are indeed better with a full charge of powder than trying to combine a target charge and then supplement with filler.