Buzz, I think you've either got hold of the wrong target, or the wrong size pellet.
If I place a pellet in the center of one of the 5 diagrams on the
Air 7 card, I can clearly see the white 9 ring all the way around the pellet. That's how to score a 10.
More than around 1mm from dead center - the pellet will break the 9 ring. Scoring a 9.
As Zooma says - the rules is OUTWARD scoring. He should know, being the competition organiser.
HTH, but if you're still confused, take a photo of yours. And if you like, I'll take a photo of mine