Lopsided Nine
I killed my first deer when I was 12 years old, and I haven’t missed a deer season since. I’ve been fortunate enough to kill a lot of deer during that time. Now at 42, I finally killed a buck that has eluded me after almost 30 years of hunting. It’s crazy how things work out sometimes.
I’ve seen a lot of nine-points throughout the years, but somehow I’ve never been able to shoot one. With each passing season, it became my mission to kill one worthy of being my first nine-point. I had two good chances back in 2010 that I really liked. The first one was a big-framed nine, and the other one was a heavy-wide nine. As the season opened I had my mind made up that the wide nine was too young, so I decided to hunt the big-framed nine. It wasn’t until a week into the season that the big-framed nine showed himself to me. He walked right into my set-up and was within bow range. I was shocked and hesitated for a second. I remember I couldn’t make up my mind to video first or get ready for the shot. Suddenly he became alert, looked my way, and eased back out. He was gone, and I was left there trying to figure out what happened. I was crushed. I still think and talk about that buck on a regular basis.
The 2015 season had arrived. I’m very selective on what I chase each year. I try to give as much thought as possible about a buck before I go after him. The lease where we hunt is low fenced, but it’s in some great country. I’m very blessed to hunt with a great group of guys and to have such an incredibly generous landowner. Our group consists of six members who hunt on a pretty good-sized chunk of land. We each have two personal areas to hunt, but we are spaced out at a fairly big distance from one another. Most of the guys have one spot in the North Pasture and another on the east side of our South Pasture. My two bow blinds are on the west side in about a 640-acre corner section of the South Pasture. I set up on each end of a big draw system, with a water source in the middle. My favorite spot there is called “Pump Jack.” I’ve made a lot of good memories there in such a short time, so it’s a special place to me.
As deer season approached, I was faced with taking a buck I’d been waiting on for a very long time. I knew he was the one. I went back and forth on figuring out his age and thought he was either a 4 ½- or 5 1/2-year-old buck. I talked with a few guys on the lease, and I made up my mind it was time to relax a bit and just have fun. Nothing is ever guaranteed, but this buck was on my mind a lot and I hoped everything would work out. But on Oct. 5, my quest came to a close.
I asked my friend Jeremy if he wanted to ride out to the lease with me and watch my hunt from the gun blind, with high hopes of seeing the buck, nicknamed “Lopsided Nine.” It didn’t take long to get set up for the evening hunt. My spot is fairly easy to get into, and not a far drive from the main road. The gun blind is on the edge of a pad next to a pump jack, and my bow blind is down in the draw not far away. About an hour into the hunt, I got a text from Jeremy saying, “He’s 50 yards behind you trying to get your wind.” I remained motionless in my bow blind, trying not to move or make a sound. I was hoping he wouldn’t come in from that way. Soon I caught movement out of my side window. It was the buck! He stood about 14 yards away, being real cautious. I tried to remain calm, but I couldn’t take my eyes off him. I will never forget that vision of him standing there. He was the perfect buck. He finally made his way in, and that’s when I got ready. I grabbed my bow, came to full draw, and then aimed at Lopsided Nine. I waited until he quartered away, and I buried the arrow into that offside shoulder. It was all over in seconds as he crashed within about 70 yards. All my emotions took over. I fell to my knees thanking God for everything and the ability to just spend another day out in His creation. I was very thankful! It took me about 10 minutes to calm down. I was so happy! I couldn’t wait to get my hands on that buck and to tell my wife that I got him. I bet she has heard me talking about this buck a thousand times over the last few months. Jeremy, still able to see the buck, verified Lopsided Nine was down for sure and hadn’t moved. It didn’t take long for me to gather up my stuff and go look. Excitement usually gets the best of me, but this time I had a peace I can’t explain. Though I had a storm of emotions, I was calm as I approached my buck. As Jeremy looked for my arrow, I knelt down to give thanks to God one more time. There is just something special about walking toward your deer and seeing that rack sticking up out of the grass. I was overcome. It was a very special hunt to me, and one I’ll never forget. I know it’s just deer hunting, but I can’t put into words how much this old buck means to me. He was well worth the wait! Lopsided Nine scored 146 6/8 and is jam-packed with a lot of good memories that I look forward to reliving for a long time.
