Big Buck Tales

Wayne Zaft Buck

Wayne Zaft Buck

By Kevin G. Wilson

It seems fitting that Alberta, Canada, the birthplace of Buckmasters' Full-Credit scoring system, has yielded the new No. 1 Typical in the BTR's compound bow category. The five-year reign of the Sam Collora Buck from Iowa came to an end on Oct. 8, 2001, when Wayne Zaft of Spruce Grove, Alberta, arrowed a 205 7/8-inch 13-pointer during an impromptu ... READ MORE

Tom Hamel Buck

Tom Hamel Buck

By Mike Handley

It might be impossible to determine the extent of one deer’s effect upon the economy in Republic County, Kan., a couple of years ago, but there’s no doubt a substantial amount of cash changed hands when photographs of the animal hit the Internet. An influx of nonresidents hungry to lease hunting ground is never appreciated by those who... READ MORE

Brad Heuvelmann Buck

Brad Heuvelmann Buck

By Brad Heuvelmann

While hunting after a heavy snowfall about 10 years ago, I ran into an older gentleman dragging out a once-in-a-lifetime whitetail. He had taken the buck early that morning and had been struggling to get the huge deer to his truck. It was about lunchtime, and he was only halfway to his vehicle. I was happy to give him a hand, just for the opportuni... READ MORE

Larry Reece Buck

Larry Reece Buck

By Mike Handley

Larry Reece was desperate. With shooting light quickly fading and a "decent" buck almost within range (at least it was before it disappeared into a pine plantation), he glanced at the grunt tube in his hand. The 57-year-old deer hunter from Benton, Miss., considered the little gadget long on hype and short on magic. He'd never had a deer respond to... READ MORE

Michael Rothman Buck

Michael Rothman Buck

By Mike Handley

Michael Rothman knows cold. So convinced that, no matter how early his arrival, he was spooking deer out of a cornfield en route to his shooting house, the deer hunter from Bonnieville, Ky., decided to just spend the night in the box blind. It wasn’t as if there were a Scotty, a Samantha or a Jeannie who could beam, nose-wrinkle or head-bob h... READ MORE

Audrey Sharp Buck

Audrey Sharp Buck

By Audrey Sharp

I didn’t sleep well on the Friday night before Indiana’s 2011 firearms opener. My husband, Jerry, had agreed to stay home with our daughters so I could go hunting with my dad, Tim Ostrander, and I was excited. I awoke at 4:30 a.m., got ready and was at my parents’ home an hour later. Dad asked me if I wanted to skip hunting and j... READ MORE

Blake Voltz Buck

Blake Voltz Buck

By Mike Handley

The only sound worse than the steel-on-brass click of a firing pin punching a dud primer is the raucous laughter of the deer gods, one of whom is surely named Murphy. Just ask Blake Voltz. That’s precisely what happened to the deer hunter from Columbus, Ga., back in 1997, when he was staring through crosshairs at the biggest buck he’d... READ MORE

Richard Gates Buck

Richard Gates Buck

By Peter Schoonmaker (2008)

The existence of a trophy whitetail is no accident. They possess superior genes. They are surrounded by bountiful nutrition. And their realm possesses several varieties of protective cover. Limited access or private agricultural lands will allow a buck to achieve full body growth and possess a true trophy rack of antlers. And some of these whitetai... READ MORE

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Copyright 2020 by Buckmasters, Ltd