The Record Bow Buck Known As “Lucky”

Growing up as avid hunters, we all dream about getting a chance at a buck we saw on the cover of GON or on television shows like Buckmasters or Midwest Whitetails. I cant count the number of times I’ve sat in a deer stand dreaming about a giant buck stepping out of the woods resembling the ones I’ve seen on a magazine cover or TV show. The fact that I have actually achieved this lifelong goal and dream of mine and was able to harvest a deer of this caliber on my own farm is still surreal. The story of this deer will forever stay with me. With over three-plus years of history with this deer, the only way to tell this story is from the very beginning.

Matthew and his buck made the cover of GON for the November 2024 issue.

A few years back my wife and I purchased our new farm with the mindset of building our dream home and giving our children the opportunity to grow up on a farm like we did. When it came to purchasing and then transforming the property, whitetail habitat that would produce big deer was at the top of the priority list. As I have progressed through my hunting “career”, I’ve become obsessed with land management and growing mature deer. As an avid bowhunter, I have fallen in love with the chase, targeting a specific mature deer and playing the ultimate “chess match”. It’s never been about the total inches or the kill but about the thrill of hunting a mature animal. The kill and inches are the icing on the cake.

Within a day of closing on the property, food plots were going in and cameras were being hung. That first season was more so used as a chance to learn the property. I wanted to gain a good understanding of overall deer herd quality and how they were using the property. I hung several non-invasive stands and stayed out of the areas I deemed as bedding or sanctuary. What I was able to observe that first season was very promising and learned that the new farm had a ton of potential. The next couple of years was dedicated to working and turning the property into what I wanted it to be. Going into the summer of 2022, I felt good about the property and habitat improvements and the total deer numbers and quality were evidence of that. I invested a lot into my alfalfa fields which would serve as the cornerstone of my property habitat and deer management. In my opinion, it is the absolute best food source in terms of both attraction and nutrients that you can plant. Bean, clover, and corn fields were strategically placed throughout the property for additional food and hunting purposes. Areas of the farm were left thick and untouched to serve as bedding and sanctuary. I also implemented a supplemental protein feed program and heavily fed Antler Xtreme products to provide additional nutrients, vitamins, and protein and noticed an immediate improvement in overall rack size. I dedicated as much of the property and my resources into making the farm an ultimate whitetail property.

The summer of 2022 was the first year this specific buck came on to the scene.

Trail-camera picture of the buck in 2022.

I made a promise to my younger brother that if he bought a bow, I would let him come hunt the farm to get his first bow kill. My intent was to let him hunt an area of the farm that was easy to get to and was non-invasive. I had several good bucks on camera in my primary locations that I was hunting and didn’t want to send him in there to kill a doe. I hung a camera and stand on the edge of my dove field only a couple hundred yards away from the barn. As I expected, several doe and little bucks were feeding, but one specifically stood out. Little did I know, this accidental discovery would begin an absolute obsession over the next few years and eventually lead to the highlight of my hunting career. This buck would soon be given the name “Lucky” after one of my neighbors stated that “he would be lucky to get to the age of five because of how big he already was.” Our best guess put Lucky at 3 years old based on his body characteristics. At the time he probably weighed somewhere around 140 pounds and had a rack that more than likely would have grossed 125 to 130 inches. At this point the neighboring landowners and I realized that this specific deer had very good potential, and if kept alive, could be something special. I want to emphasize at this point the importance of good neighbors with the same mindset and goals when it comes to managing a deer herd and growing big deer. I would be willing to bet 95% of the hunters in the state own and or lease land to hunt on that is not large enough to fully encompass a deer’s overall territory. Due to this fact, the actions of both your neighbors and oneself in terms of deer management have a very influential impact on adjacent properties. In my case, I was fortunate enough to have neighboring landowners with the same mindset and goals.

From the summer of 2022 and on, I was hunting Lucky. I was hunting this deer not with the intent to harvest him, but with the intent to learn him. I knew in a few years he would be a very good buck and on the hit list, so I wanted to take the time then to learn everything about him. I wanted to know things like where he fed in the summer, what his preferred bedding areas were, what trails he liked to take, where his favorite scrapes were, his rut patterns in November, and what his personality was like. The reason I love to bowhunt is because of the challenge involved in getting a deer within bow range and everything it takes to do so. With a mature buck, the challenge is drastically amplified. As stated earlier, it is the ultimate chess match with an animal that has mastered the art of detection and elusion. Any and all information about this deer that I gathered could potentially give me even the slightest advantage when it came time actually harvest this animal. All the information and data, the thousands of pictures, and hours of watching and studying him from the stand would build the blueprint of how I wanted to hunt this deer when he reached maturity. I’d venture to say I saw him within bow range 15 times that season. He frequented food plots and feeders often in the daylight and was very active during the rut. Again, all tale-tell signs of a 3-year-old.

In 2023, Lucky kept much of the same habits and patterns. His body characteristics confirmed our age estimates, and we believed he was 4 years old at this point. Best estimates would put him around 170 pounds with roughly a 155-inch rack.

“Lucky” during the 2023 season.

As a 3-year-old, he was very easy to watch without any temptations. Watching him as a 4-year-old from the stand was a little different. To this day, I still remember the rush of adrenaline I had every single time he stepped out in 2023. By most accounts, a 150-plus in Georgia is an absolute stud and would by far be my personal best. Knowing he was only 4, I had to remind myself that it takes a good deer to make a great deer, and to quote renowned deer biologist Dr. Grant Woods, “Dead deer don’t grow.” It also made it considerably easier to pass this buck knowing that the two other landowners who knew about this deer agreed that we needed to at least get him to 5 years old. I found it harder to get Lucky in bow range during the 2024 season but still managed to see him several times. His movements through the woods were deliberate and slow. At his point, he knew every inch of the property and knew where he was safe and vulnerable.

The summer of 2024 rolled in with much anticipation. This would be the first year Lucky would be on the hit list, regardless of size. The fields were planted, feeders filled, stands and cameras hung, all based on the data and knowledge gathered over the past two years. I still remember the exact moment in time when I received the first summer 2024 picture of Lucky. Like clockwork, he appeared in the same spot I first got a picture of him back in 2022. I honestly could not believe what I was looking at. At that moment, I was looking at a picture of the largest deer I’ve ever personally gotten a picture of and estimated him out to be in the mid 170s. Over the next few months, I tried to do everything humanly possible to monitor his movements and to create the most ideal situation on my property in terms of habitat, food and pressure.  Over the summer, he kept his normal feeding patterns. He frequented all of his traditional areas, and the neighbors were also getting pictures of him. In August, however, he did something he had never done before. He locked down onto about a 5-acre block of woods that bordered one of my fields planted in corn, beans and sunflowers. This was the same place I had first gotten him on camera which was an area I initially deemed a non-invasive doe-killing spot only a few hundred yards from the house and barn. I would estimate that there were more than 30 cameras spread out over several hundred acres looking for him, and he was only showing up on one of them. When analyzing why he chose that spot, it all made sense. He had food, water and cover, and the location gave him a vantage point to view much of the farm. He could watch the house and the barn and know when and where I was on the property. Leading up to the 2024 archery opener, he fed every afternoon in the cut corn and beans. I was studying how he entered the field and at what time. The stage was set as the 2024 archery season rolled in.

As the bow season opener approached last year, there was no doubt it was time to try and get “Lucky” into bow range.

The emotions I had climbing into the stand on opening day were overwhelming. Years of work and preparation were coming down to this moment, and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. It’s amazing what a deer can do to a grown man. As I settled in and played different scenarios through my head, deer started to filter into the field. Opening day always reminds we of how much I love to hunt and sit in the stand. It is a tranquil time, and watching the deer and other wildlife is therapeutic.  With about 30 minutes left of legal shooting light, I slowly stood up and watched the area of the field I believed he would come from. There were probably 15 plus deer feeding in the field, so the movement was good and the wind was in my favor. I felt good about my chances and just needed him to read the script. As the minutes ticked by and light slowly began to fade, I grew anxious. With minutes left in legal light, I watched a large body slowly work through the pines. Every deer in the field picked their head up when he stepped into it. He worked his way right to me and stopped at 17 yards completely broadside. I drew back and held behind his shoulder like I had envisioned and practiced hundreds of times over the summer… but… it was just too dark. I could see him clear as day, but when looking through the peep, it was a blur. I reluctantly elected not to shoot and let down. This deer was too special to me to take a risky and questionable shot. I stood holding my bow for another 30 minutes while I waited for him to leave the field so that I could get down. I walked back to the house sick and in disbelief that I was so close to something I’ve always dreamed about but just couldn’t get it done.

The following day I watched the weather and the wind. It was not as ideal as the day prior, and as most hunters in the southeast know, just because the weather says one wind direction, you will more than likely get everything but that. One thing I’ve had to learn over the years is you can do more harm than good hunting when the situation is not right. So, as I stood at the barn looking up toward the stand, bow in my hand, deliberating on whether to go or not, I decided to roll the dice. I climbed up in the stand and sat for about 15 minutes analyzing the wind before accepting defeat and acknowledging how stupid I was for trying to hunt a swirling wind going right to his bedding area. I slowly climbed down and went to another part of the farm to hunt another 7-plus-year-old deer I had on the farm. The trail-camera photos that evening confirmed that he showed up again right at dark. Over the past couple of weeks I had kept an eye on his times, and what I noticed was he was trending later by a few minutes each day. Because of this, I decided to stay out of the woods for a few days until he started trending earlier again. I had my eyes on a forecasted cold front coming in a few days that might bring him back out earlier. In my mind, he wasn’t going anywhere unless I gave him a reason to leave. The last thing I wanted was to be climbing out of the stand at dark while he was coming in.

A few days later, the forecasted cold front showed up. With it came a steady northwest wind that was not ideal but could potentially work. Eager to get after him, I decided to roll the dice again. The cold front was a welcomed surprise for September, and both the deer and I were thankful for it. The field was active early, and deer continued to pile out of the woods. When Lucky stepped out into the field a hundred yards away an hour before dark, I just knew it was going to happen. All the other does and young bucks came straight out into the field regardless of wind, but not him. He slowly worked his way back into the pines and walked the edge of the field toward me in order to wind check the entire field. When I realized what he was doing, my stomach dropped. As expected, he got to within about 50 yards from me and froze as soon as he walked into my wind. I had been beat, and the game was up. I felt nauseous as I watched him turn around and sneak off into the pines and brush. Trail cameras would confirm my ultimate fear that evening. For the first time in almost a month, he did not show up at all that night.

Over the next few days, Lucky had vanished. I had pushed the envelope hunting a marginal wind and got caught. It took several days before he finally showed back up, but even so, it was all at night. I painfully learned a lesson and decided I would not hunt him again until the conditions were absolutely perfect. As life would have it, hunting took a back seat for a few days as something by the name of Hurricane Helene was developing off the coast of Florida. Most early projections had middle Georgia directly in its path, so much of that week was spent planning and preparing for the worst. To our good fortune and to the terrible fortune of east Georgia, the hurricane pushed further east. When the storm came through on Sept. 26, we received relatively strong winds and heavy rainfall, but very little damage was done.

The morning of Sept. 27 I woke up to assess the storm damage, which turned out to be very minimal. The day was beautiful and the weather was perfect. I didn’t get a single trail-camera photo from the night before, which wasn’t surprising given the fact we just had a hurricane come through. I knew that afternoon would have the conditions I had been waiting for and that I would need to be in the stand. I climbed up that afternoon with high hopes and optimism. It was early in the afternoon when the first few deer stepped out. A couple of young bucks were feeding in front of me. Thinking it was still too early, I decided to stand up and practice drawing on the young 8-pointer that was standing in front of me. While I had my pinned buried behind his shoulder, him and another young buck went rigid and threw their heads up facing the woods. I slowly let my bow down and looked up. I’ll never forget that moment, as it is seared into my memory. Lucky walked into the field and the sunlight was lighting up his rack. My knees immediately went weak, and heart felt like it was going to come out of my chest. From that moment on, I never looked at his rack again in an attempt to control my emotions. As he fed toward me, I literally closed my eyes and put my head up against the tree. In a desperate attempt to control my nerves, I took deep breaths and said a little prayer. When Luckily saw the other two bucks, he came directly to them, and in doing so, came to within 17 yards of me. He fed for several minutes with his head down but was quartering to me. A quarter-to shot is less than ideal, so I forced myself to be patient. At that moment, a noise came from the barn, and all the deer picked their heads up and looked down the hill. Panic set in for I knew at any second the deer could potentially spook and another opportunity would have slipped through my fingers. With him looking away from me and down at the barn, I drew back. Because he was still quartering to, I put my pin as close as possible to the backside of the shoulder in an attempt to get as much penetration into the vitals as possible. I took a deep breath and squeezed my release. The next 30 seconds all seemed like such a blur. All I can remember is watching my arrow go through him and bury into the dirt. He took off into the direction he came from, and as I am watching him, a thousand thoughts are running through my brain about my shot placement and if it was good enough. As he was running into the woods 80 or so yards from me, his back end started going out and his legs started to wobble. At that moment I exhaled in relief and knew that I had done it.

Someone I don’t often give enough credit to in dealing with my hunting obsession is my wife, Hanna. She has been with me through the very beginning of this journey, and the one thing that she asked was that she be the first person I call if I shot Lucky. I called her and then made several other phone calls to family and friends to let them know that the story of Lucky had finally reached its conclusion. Despite knowing I had made a good shot, we elected to give him a few hours because there was guts on the arrow. Something to expect on a quartering-to shot, but we all wanted to play it safe. After a few hours, friends and family helped me track a deer of a lifetime, and within roughly 120 yards of my stand, we found him. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined putting my hands on a deer of that caliber and on my own farm in middle Georgia. Lucky was officially scored at 193 3/8 gross and 187 6/8 net as a non-typical and deemed the new Houston County No. 1 all time.

Houston County Best Bow Bucks Of All-Time