My 3rd season buck

WHT_MTNMAN

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One week before the hunt I saw a voucher come available and after having a tough hunting year with no tags, extremely busy work, daughter getting married in the middle of my hunting season I decided to pick it up.
I found this buck the day before season and wanted to pass it, but after talking to a few locals and people that knew the area and them recommending me to shoot the buck, I decided to try opening morning. Being by myself and with quite a few others in the area I got a lucky and got it done.

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Why would you ever pass a buck like that? He's a stud! Is it the voucher that turns into $50K if you don't attach it to any antlers?? If not, I'd say you did well.
You can't kill 200" by killing 180" that is the only reason I thought about passing on this buck.
But as you can see I didn't look a gift horse in the mouth either..
Not sure about the $50k comment
 
Outstanding buck by my standards. Guess it's like "what's a lot of money"? All depends on how much you have. :)
Great buck!!
Congrats
 
You can't kill 200" by killing 180" that is the only reason I thought about passing on this buck.
But as you can see I didn't look a gift horse in the mouth either..
Not sure about the $50k comment
Meaning the only reason you wouldn't hang a tag on that buck is if it went unfilled you'd get $50K. By that I mean that buck you killed was well worth it. :) Congrats again.
 
I can't figure out if guys just like to say they considered passing a big buck to try to sound cool or what the real reason is ?‍♂️ nice buck either way.
Probably thought of passing because that back left fork is a bit shallow. :) Kidding, of course.
 
I can't figure out if guys just like to say they considered passing a big buck to try to sound cool or what the real reason is ?‍♂️ nice buck either way.
Yeah just wanted to sound cool...that's it. I thought about passing because I had a CO tag. We kill quite a few 170-185 type bucks in my area of AZ but we don't have the genetics or deer #s to get many over 200". But yeah it's all about sounding cool. I've killed a bunch of critters but mule deer tags are few and far between, when I get one I sure don't want to cut the hunt short on the 1st day if there are chances for better. But again as you can see, after talking with everyone I knew about the area I didn't pass him...
I actually saw him the morning before the hunt, left him for 6 hours scouting more of the unit and getting service, but went right back at dark to find him for the next day.
If you have never thought about passing big bucks, you probably haven't killed very many.
 
Yeah just wanted to sound cool...that's it. I thought about passing because I had a CO tag. We kill quite a few 170-185 type bucks in my area of AZ but we don't have the genetics or deer #s to get many over 200". But yeah it's all about sounding cool. I've killed a bunch of critters but mule deer tags are few and far between, when I get one I sure don't want to cut the hunt short on the 1st day if there are chances for better. But again as you can see, after talking with everyone I knew about the area I didn't pass him...
I actually saw him the morning before the hunt, left him for 6 hours scouting more of the unit and getting service, but went right back at dark to find him for the next day.
If you have never thought about passing big bucks, you probably haven't killed very many.
You are correct I've only killed a few big bucks and by big I mean 180" deer. Nice buck man I wasn't trying to sound like a prick it's just a pretty damn good buck in my eyes to be considered passing up.
 
You are correct I've only killed a few big bucks and by big I mean 180" deer. Nice buck man I wasn't trying to sound like a prick it's just a pretty damn good buck in my eyes to be considered passing up.
Thanks...sorry I got a little upset with your comment I hunt for myself not for others. I actually told myself I would be ecstatic with him but had no idea the quality I would see and selfishly I wasn't sure I wanted to end the hunt opening morning.
 
For me he'd be a no-brainer... He's got a gnarly look to him as a non-typical. If you have harvested bucks of this class regularly, you are a very blessed individual. There are very few places to even see bucks like this regularly, let alone harvest them. Thanks for sharing your success.!!
 
For me he'd be a no-brainer... He's got a gnarly look to him as a non-typical. If you have harvested bucks of this class regularly, you are a very blessed individual. There are very few places to even see bucks like this regularly, let alone harvest them. Thanks for sharing your success.!!
Nope I haven't harvested bucks like this regularly. In fact I only have 2 over 180 and 1 at 190. I'm not sure when I'll get the opportunity to have another tag in my pocket though and like everyone I dream of the 200" Hopefully someday.
 
That's an awesome buck, I get what you mean by not being sure whether to tag out on the first day or not, but I'd say you made the right call. Depending on the unit I'd bet you would be hard pressed to find a bigger one.
 
Thanks...sorry I got a little upset with your comment I hunt for myself not for others. I actually told myself I would be ecstatic with him but had no idea the quality I would see and selfishly I wasn't sure I wanted to end the hunt opening morning.
Ya he's got an awesome look too him especially in the live video of him raking the tree, congrats again.
 
I completely understand the thought behind hoping to find something a size bigger. Passed a very similar buck in this year on day 2 of my hunt. It wasn’t easy and I started second guessing myself almost immediately. Hunted for a few more days and never found a better one, so I found him again on day 6 and ended my hunt. While happy and content, I still wonder if I settled too soon.
 
Nice buck. Glad you didn’t pass on him. I remember the good old days when everyone dreamed of killing a 30” buck. 25 years ago, if you told someone you were looking for a 200” buck, they would probably ask you where a 200” wide deer lives.
 
Solid buck. To add to the twist, I had a year where I passed up some really nice bucks in the 170 and 180 range on a Colorado Reissue tag. 2 reason I chose to do it.... 1. Earlier that fall on WY general tag I killed a 182 typical. 2. The tag I got had the potential to pop a 200" buck (slim, but possible).

I saw the reissue tag as a gift, and had absolutely no pressure to fill my tag. It was weird place to be, but I arrived there by circumstance. When I look back at that hunt, I sometimes wish I would have killed a couple a different bucks, but at the same time it is really cool saying I watched a buck over 180 and decided to let him walk along with 1/2 a dozen 170ish bucks.

Just some thoughts to add, as we all have different goals. One guy I know has not shot a buck in several years because he wants one that will tape an inside score of >30". He has passed some pretty nice buck looking for that magic 30" mark. Different goals for different people...
 

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