Chatham County Bow Buck Lands At No. 1

Phillip Johnson, of Wilmington Island, with a buck that is tied for the No. 1 bow spot in Chatham County.

On the afternoon of Oct. 23, 2024, Phillip Johnson, of Wilmington Island, decided to knock off from work a little early to make a mad dash for the deer words. Little did he know, that pivotal decision would set in motion events that would lead to him crossing paths with the buck of a lifetime and result in him earning a place in the GON Georgia Deer Records (https://gon.com/georgia-deer-records).

“That morning I was getting pictures of a buck we called Big John,” said Phillip. “We had thousands of pictures of him over the past couple of seasons but only a few from daylight hours. I got him walking through the woods on several of my cameras around 8:30 a.m., and I knew he would likely be trying to slip back through that afternoon before dark. I run an irrigation business so it’s hard for me to break away from work sometimes and hunt in the afternoon, but that day I had my lead guy on the job to finish things up where I could make it to the woods in time to try and cut him off.”

Phillip drove to the roughly 100-acre Chatham County property that’s situated within the city limits.

“It’s a warehouse property that I’ve hunted the past couple of years with my good buddy, Austin Garrett,” said Phillip. “Our plan had been for Austin to try and film the hunt, but with him working that day, we weren’t able to make it happen.”

Phillip slipped into the woods and silently made his way to the area the big buck had passed through earlier in the morning. Originally planning to hunt one of his regular stands, a gut feeling led to Phillip deciding to climb a tree he had never hunted before.

“I had hung a climber in that spot earlier in the season but hadn’t hunted there. I don’t know what made me decide to hunt it that day, but I felt like it was where I needed to be,” said Phillip.

Phillip quietly climbed the tree to a height of approximately 30 feet to try and combat the wind that wasn’t blowing to his favor. After getting situated, Phillip settled in for the hunt as the afternoon sun slowly began to fade in the distance.

“I was kind of down in a really low area, sort of like a mountain holler, watching over a ditch canal that runs through there. I wasn’t in there too long before I heard a commotion down the canal and I could see two smaller bucks that had gotten up from their beds,” said Phillip.

The young bucks worked their way through the woods, and suddenly a doe appeared to Phillip’s right only 20 feet or so from the tree he had climbed. Phillip watched the doe until she disappeared, and then he slowly scanned the terrain around him.

“I caught a glimpse of the back end of a big-bodied deer about 40 yards behind me. I wasn’t able to get a good look, but I felt like he was a good buck,” said Phillip.

A couple of minutes later, noise in the bushes to his right once again caught his attention.

Expecting to see the doe again, Phillip shifted his eyes to his right. This time at only 20 feet, Big John had appeared and was on the move. With the big buck quickly moving away, Phillip stood and prepared for a shot. A lone tree offered a chance for him to draw back as the buck’s head passed behind it.

“He wasn’t stopping for nothing. I hit him with a maaaaa, then again I did it louder, and that didn’t work. Finally I yelled at him, and he finally hit the brakes,” said Phillip.

Ready for the moment, Phillip gently clicked his release and sent his Swhacker Levi Morgan broadhead at the buck that was quartering away slightly just 25 yards away.

“I hit him a little farther back then I wanted. The arrow got him right behind his ribs. It worked out real good for me though. With the angle he was at, the arrow took out his liver and made a pass through his lung,” said Phillip.

The buck took off, then turned, eventually falling only 25 yards away from where the broadhead had made contact. Phillip called Austin, who was working about 15 minutes away to share the good news.

“He was pumped. He actually made it to the property before I had climbed down. When we both got to the deer, we couldn’t believe just how big he was. I knew he had to be some kind of record. I wasn’t sure what kind, but I knew he was a record deer,” said Phillip.

After the required drying period, the buck was officially scored at a gross of 139 7/8 and netted 136 5/8, earning its place as a tie for the all-time best bow buck for Chatham County. The deer is a main frame 8-pointer with a 17 1/2-inch inside spread and 22 and 21 inch main beams and 5 1/2 brow tines.’

Chatham County Best Bow Bucks Of All-Time