Kevin, until you try it both ways with several dogs you have no grounds on which to base disagreement.  Both ways (just stopping the dog and stopping then setting back) "work."  Bill says setting back does not speed the steadying process over just stopping.

All I'm doing is passing on some of the finer points of the game from the hard earned experience of a 30 year veteran pointing dog trainer who has trained between 2 and 3 thousand dogs (including 14 Labs.) manners on birds.  He's made FCs including National Champions of at least two breeds and achieved many FT placements.  You won't find that experience in any books.  You wouldn't find it here but Bill is an exceedingly generous person and he told me to go out into the world (so to speak) and show folks what he does.  I don't know any other group of dog trainers as free with their experience and techniques as the West sytem trainers, especially Maurice and Bill.  I took Bill at his word and try and share what I saw and learned whenever it seems appropriate.  Sometimes I get more doo doo over it than it's worth.

Jere