Big Buck Tales

Travis Cockburn Buck

Travis Cockburn Buck

By Jason Hoffard

Travis Cockburn winced whenever he heard a gunshot during last November’s firearms season in Illinois. He, his brother and father weren’t the only hunters in Williamson County who knew a very large buck was hanging around their 80-acre hunting spot near Johnston City. The Cockburns knew because Trent, Travis’ brother, had decided... READ MORE

Brandon Alday Buck

Brandon Alday Buck

By Mike Handley

Brandon Alday's 4-year-old son, Hayes, nearly choked him when the yelling commenced. The boy was getting a free ride on his father's shoulders when Brandon’s flashlight beam fell across the buck he was convinced he’d either missed or maimed. "I started screaming like a little girl, which scared my son half to death," Brandon laughs. "H... READ MORE

Ricky Caldwell Buck

Ricky Caldwell Buck

By Greg Hicks

“There’s no place like home.” Dorothy said it in “The Wizard of Oz” in 1939. Louisiana’s Ricky Caldwell spoke those same words on the Tensas River National Wildlife Refuge in 2012. Ricky was born and raised not far from what would eventually become one of the best public hunting tracts in North America. Under his... READ MORE

Troy Henderson Buck

Troy Henderson Buck

By Troy Henderson

I’d intended to spend opening day of Kansas’ 2009 firearms season babysitting the south end of a heavily wooded draw where I’d been seeing a very nice, tall and wide 14-pointer. The buck with the striking white rack usually left the area in the early morning and returned an hour or so before sunset. The temperature plummeted the n... READ MORE

David Laster Buck

David Laster Buck

By Mike Handley

You might not find David Laster’s name on the speakers’ list at any deer hunting seminars, but don’t be surprised if you see the 28-pointer he shot last year hanging shoulder to shoulder with Mississippi’s finest whitetails. The buck didn’t make a big splash outside of the 57-year-old’s hometown of Columbus, Miss... READ MORE

Ralph Postin Buck

Ralph Postin Buck

By Ed Waite

Ralph Postin of Lewistown, Ill., knows that the buck he shot more than a decade ago isn’t much to look at. He calls it the “Rodney Dangerfield” of whitetails because, while it breaks the 200-inch mark, nobody would’ve guessed it. In other words, the Fulton County specimen doesn’t get any respect – not in a state ... READ MORE

Kody Skinner Buck

Kody Skinner Buck

By Kody Skinner

My girlfriend, Chelsey Keylor, and I spent the evening of Oct. 30, 2010, in an elevated box blind, watching a food plot. We’d barely settled in when three does came onto the field and began browsing. "Do you want me to record them?" asked Chelsey, who was operating the camcorder on her very first time in the deer woods. "No, that’s ok... 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 e... READ MORE

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Copyright 2020 by Buckmasters, Ltd