When Tommy Sears of Lily, Kentucky, went to his father’s house in Clay County to help look for the buck the elder had shot at the previous day, he opted to first spend a few hours in a ladder stand.
His dad, Thomas, had fired at the running buck while hunting his neighbor’s 50-acre cornfield on opening day of rifle season. The field is across the road from his home.
He’d seen the deer earlier in the year, and Tommy’s trail camera – set near a scrape – had photographed it at night.
“Its rack was big, but I couldn’t really tell how big,” the younger Sears told Dale Weddle, who’s writing the story for Rack magazine.
After his dad called with the news, they agreed to return to the property the next morning.
“I asked if it was the big one, and he said he wasn’t sure,” Tommy said. The whitetail was moving too fast, and Thomas had barely enough time to raise his gun.
The guys headed afield early on the cold Nov. 21.
“About 10:00, Dad called and asked if I was ready to go look for the buck. I told him to go ahead and search for signs of a hit, and I would stay on my side of the river in case he jumped something and it ran back my way,” Tommy said.
That decision might be the best he’s made since he began hunting deer.
Sure enough, less than five minutes after his dad disappeared into the cover where he’d last seen the fleeing buck, the unscathed deer burst out of hiding.
“The buck crossed and stopped about 35 yards short of the field to check things out,” Tommy said. “When it did, I shot.”
The deer ran 40 yards and fell in the field.
“It just pitched over,” Tommy said. “I screamed, yelled, cried and punched the tree. Then I called Dad!”
The previous day’s bullet had only grazed the animal’s back.
The 22-pointer is a mainframe 4x4. Irregular points account for a third of its BTR composite score of 206 6/8 inches.
— Read Recent Blog! No More Deer Drought: David Fischer / BTR Composite Score: 212 4/8