Texas’ Greatest 8

David Stroud with his state record eightpoint buck from Uvalde County.

Many hunters consider mature eight-pointers “cull bucks,” inferior misfits that should always be removed from a well-managed herd to allow bucks with more desirable antler traits to do the breeding. There was a time when David Stroud of Waco thought more points was better. But that’s not the case anymore.

In December 2020, Stroud brought down a free-ranging 4x4 buck in Uvalde County that’s truly a buck for the ages. It’s hard to imagine such a cool story about a truly remarkable Texas whitetail falling through the cracks for so long. But that’s exactly what happened with the Uvalde County whopper Stroud brought down 10 days before Christmas.

“It wasn’t a secret or anything, but I just didn’t run around telling a whole lot of people about it,” Stroud said. “That’s not the way I am. Obviously, the few people I did tell didn’t say much about it, either.”

I first learned about the buck in early September in a phone call from one of Stroud’s long-time friends, Sean Willis of Huntington. Willis is a Texas Parks Wildlife Department wildlife biologist based in Lufkin. Stroud contacted Willis shortly after a taxidermist rough scored the incredible rack on that pleasant afternoon last fall. After hearing the measurements, Willis’ instructions to Stroud rang loud and clear.

David's buck is the highest-scoring freeranging eight-point ever reported state wide.

“He told me not to take my eyes off those antlers for a second,” Stroud joked. A monster eight Willis’ hint to keep the big rack close to the vest came because it’s truly something special. In fact, as trophy whitetails go, Stroud’s buck may be about as close to killing a pink elephant or unicorn as you can get. “It’s the buck of a hundred lifetimes,” Stroud said. A slick eight-pointer, the deer registers a gross Boone and Crockett score of 1806⁄8. The official net score on the typical rack is 1753⁄8 inches after deductions for lack of symmetry. That’s well above the 170 minimum required for entry into the B&C All-Time record book in the typical category. B&C records chairman Justin Spring said the official net score was adjusted upwards by 1⁄2 inch after a mathematical error was discovered in a review of the score sheet, which originally listed the buck at 1747⁄8 net. It takes a magnificent set of antlers to run up such a tally. That’s especially true for a slick eight-pointer, which is a buck with four points on both antlers. Stroud’s buck has plenty going for it, including main beams longer than 28 inches, exceptionally tall tines, and more than 40 inches of mass. The buck, believed to be 71⁄2 years old, has an inside spread of 17 3⁄8 inches. According to Spring, record book David received recognition at the Texas Big Game Awards for his big eight-point buck. eight-pointers aren’t unheard of, but they certainly don’t come along very often.

“They are very rare,” he said. “This is an exceptional buck. I can’t say for sure where it will rank nationally, but it’s definitely one of the top-scoring clean eightpointers ever killed in North America that is in the record book.”

As Texas typical records go, the buck is the highest scoring free-ranging eight-pointer ever reported statewide. Only one other Texas 4x4 is listed in the most recent edition of B&C’s “Records of North American Whitetail Deer,” a 674-page hardback that chronicles North America’s biggest whitetails. Thomas Burell shot that buck in 1999 in Frio County. The net score on the Burell buck is 1723⁄8.

A fairy tale encounter

As good as Stroud’s buck is, the story behind how it all came together may be even better. Think fairy tale book. Stroud, 67, is in the asphalt sales business. One of his customers owns a massive low-fence ranch spanning 40,000-acres in Uvalde County.

Stroud helps guide deer and turkey hunters there during hunting season. One of the perks is he is allowed to kill a “management” buck each year. Management deer are bucks removed from the herd because they have one or more undesirable antler traits. Mature deer with eight or nine points are frequently considered culls on most managed properties. The cull grade is a tad higher on this particular ranch.

Stroud said the property gets very little hunting pressure in the big scheme of things and it produces tall numbers of high-quality bucks. All the hunts are by invitation only—just friends, family and customers of the landowner. “The place gets hunted hard for about one week out of the season and that’s about it,” Stroud said. “They kill some really nice bucks, but there are a lot of deer out there that die of old age. No doubt about it.”

Stroud was returning to the lodge with two hunters about noon on Dec. 16 when he rounded a corner in a pick-up and saw two bucks standing at the end of a dead-end sendero, about 200 yards away. One of the deer looked significantly larger than the other. “He made the other one look like a dwarf,” he recalled.

Stroud said he stopped the truck and slipped quietly along the edge of the brush, hoping to get a better look at the deer. When he peeped around the corner, the buck saw him and bolted into the brush. Unaware that he’d just laid eyes on the biggest eight-pointer in Texas, Stroud got permission from the landowner to go back to the area in hopes of getting a better look at the deer before his afternoon guide assignment. He grabbed a set of decorative antler sheds off a picnic table at the lodge on the way out.

“It wasn’t the best time of day to rattle, but I decided to try it anyway hoping I might get lucky,” he said. “I’m glad I did.” It was about 2:30 p.m. when Stroud arrived back at the sendero. He climbed into an old box blind situated near a small opening surrounded by dense, low-cut brush.

Stroud said he clashed the antlers together a few times before ducking inside the blind. The idea was to simulate the sounds of a buck fight and hopefully entice the big deer to investigate. Moments later, he got a text message from the ranch manager.

David's B&C score had a mathematical error. The official score was adjusted for the correct score of 1753⁄8.

The message indicated his guide client had arrived and he needed to be back at camp in about 30 minutes. With only 10 minutes left to hunt, Stroud said he reached for the rattlin’ horns one last time and pounded them together as hard as he could. That’s when something magical happened. “Just as I lowered the horns, that big son of a gun came striding out with his hair bristled up right in front of me,” he said. “There was no questioning it. I could tell it was a really heavy eight-pointer, maybe a 160-inch deer.” Stroud easily made the 35-yard chip shot with his custom rifle, but admittedly had no idea how truly remarkable the buck was until later that night when he returned from the afternoon hunt. That’s when he opened the door of the walk-in storage cooler filled with quality bucks that had been shot by the landowner’s friends over the past few days. It was a sight to behold. “I’ll never forget it,” he said. “There were 26 other bucks on the floor, scoring between 140 and 160, and then there was mine. He looked like cantaloupe in the middle of a plateful of grapes.” Adding to the mystery of Texas’ new state record eight-pointer is the fact it occupied an area of the ranch that typically sees a significant amount of vehicle traffic by ranch employees, yet it had never been seen before by anyone. “They run a bunch of game cameras, too, and nobody had a single picture of this buck,” Stroud said. “It was just sheer luck that I killed him. I just happened to be right place at the right time.”

Jason finally achieved his dream of taking a trophy Kansas whitetail buck.

Ihad first heard of large Kansas whitetail deer back in 1989 at a bow shop in north Dallas. The guys discussed how Kansas was known for having very large whitetail bucks. This really interested me as a young bowhunter who had not been in the sport very long. I was so eager to learn and understand not only how to bowhunt, but where to do this as well.

They told stories of seeing monster whitetails and a couple of the guys were lucky enough to have even taken some nice bucks there. I read some great articles in the Texas Trophy Hunters magazine about some bowhunters shooting great bucks in the incredible land of Kansas. It definitely felt like something out of a movie and reminded me of the “Wizard of Oz.”

My journey towards a hunt like this was clearly years away from me. I was learning how to shoot a bow and just grasp the basics of this cool sport outdoors. In my early years I focused on Texas and hunted mostly in the Hill Country in Mason, Goldthwaite, Jason with Danny Hawkins. and Llano. I’ve shot many does, Texas Hill Country bucks, hogs, and even some exotics like rams, blackbucks, and aoudad. But a large trophy whitetail buck was not in the cards for me for a long time.

I had always hoped one day I would have the opportunity to see—or shoot—a 200-inch whitetail buck with a bow. Hunting in Kansas rang in my ears and throughout my thoughts as I watched many hunting shows and read many stories about bowhunters taking great trophy deer in this country.

These Kansas legends once again stirred my mind, heart and soul. I became obsessed about hunting in Kansas. Many more stories were shared with other hunters and outdoorsmen at hunting stores in North Texas about this magic land.

I did my research and came upon Danny and Laura Hawkins who owned OzSome Big Game Hunts in Burlington, Kansas. I talked to them and learned about their place and was so impressed by what I heard, their website, and the pictures of their deer and land. I booked a hunt for Kansas to try and shoot a Kansas legend.

In October 2020 I headed to Burlington, Kansas. On October 10, 2020, I got up early and drove straight through to the Hawkins ranch. Danny, Laura and their son, Nick, greeted me and were so gracious as they welcomed me in their home to stay and hunt these mystical Kansas whitetail bucks. Danny and I woke up early the next morning and hunted from a treestand he had set up on a trail. It was not long until deer were moving around at daybreak. The morning air was briskly cold, but my heart pumped hard as we saw three different and very nice bucks, including a 180-inch buck and many does, but not the type of deer we were looking for. We had an amazing morning, but we went back to eat and prepare for the next hunt. That afternoon we decided to hunt from a tree stump blind. It was amazing as we had deer all around us at 5-10 yards. The deer had no idea we were inside the tree stump stand. A very nice 170-inch buck moved in near us to check some does and feed. We saw numerous does, yearlings and nice, but young bucks. The evening hunt wrapped up and we headed home for dinner, fellowship and a rest for the evening. The next morning, a cold front blew in and the wind howled. It was blowing 25-40 mph, so we decided to hunt in the tree stump stand because the wind was too strong to even attempt using a treestand. We did see lots of deer again, but not what we were looking for. We decided to head back as the

deer activity closed off for the morning hunt and many of the deer were bedding down because of the wind.

We slipped out and started to head back, but Danny felt like we should glass the area with our binoculars because he suspected there might be bucks bedded down because of the wind and approaching storm. Boy, was he right! We located an enormous Kansas buck bedded down in the tall weeds. This was a 200-inch monster typical buck!

We developed a plan of attack. Our plan was to slowly stalk towards the buck because the wind was blowing 25-30 mph gusts hard into our faces. We hoped if I could get close enough, the buck would stand up and allow for a shot, if I could get within 30 yards.

Five minutes into the stalk, the giant 200-inch buck stood up and started to walk away from us. We had to act so I used the tree line, brush and cover and wind in my face to get to the lower creek where the buck would cross. He crossed at 25 yards from me but would not give me a clear shot as he walked away into the woods. I looked back at Danny and he gave me the green light to go stalk the buck.

I stalked this beast for 45 minutes and stayed behind him as he moved deep into the wooded cover. The wind howled into my face and nearly pushed me over. The old buck moved into a lower wooded area and bedded down with his back towards me. This gave him a better front view of any danger coming his way.

I carefully stalked within 20 yards of the bedded and beautiful whitetail. Leveraging the tree line, I ensured I had trees and cover between me and him. I stood against a tree and pulled back my bow a couple of times and had my pin right on the buck. But I could not shoot because it was a back shot, a shot I could not take.

I could clearly see his giant rack. He was an amazing whitetail deer with a massive spread and kickers coming off some of the tines. I waited for 15 minutes, but it seemed like an eternity until the trophy buck stood up from his bed. I acted quickly as he turned and gave me a quartering away shot. I placed the arrow well and watched as my arrow soared through the windy air and struck my target. A complete pass through! But the buck stood still as if he wasn’t hit and slowly walked off. What happened? Had I actually been deceived in my adrenaline filled moment and missed the trophy of a lifetime? I waited until the beast walked down into the dry creek and then went to the area. I saw no blood but I did find my arrow in the leaves. I’d clearly hit him. I decided to give him some time and went back to get Danny. We discussed the hit and agreed to go back to the house to eat and give the beast more time. We went back a few hours later and started to look for the whitetail, but had no luck. We found no blood and no signs at all. We gridded off the area and found nothing. Saying I felt dejected is an understatement. After almost an hour of looking we found the monster in the creek bed where he apparently walked that whole time until he reached far back in the dry creek where he expired. I had finally shot my 205-inch Kansas trophy whitetail. He was a main frame 10-point but had 21 scoreable points, including a palmated left brow tine like a Caribou “shovel.” I was elated and we all hugged. I cannot thank my hosts enough for this amazing experience.

Hunting with strong wind gusts of 25-30 mph made Jason's hunt more challenging.

BASS FISHIN’

BY WILL LESCHPER

Bass fishing can be the most exciting form of angling around, but on the toughest of days, it also can be the most aggravating. Finicky fish can be frustrating, and rightly so this time of year on lakes that are still in winter slumber. Most anglers expect their tried-and-true methods to boat big loads of bass, but sometimes things just don’t go as planned. However, there are numerous ways to stack the deck in your favor. Here are ways to wake up those bass!

Give it the finesse touch: Changing up your rig can be the difference between catching fish and striking out. A couple of ways to alter up a variety of lures include the wacky rig and shaky head rig. Wacky style is simply a different way to present a worm, Senko or other similar soft plastic lure. You bend the lure so the ends touch and slide a hook right down the middle of the bend. This rig will cause the ends to flutter and drop as it’s pulled through the water, which will entice a hungry bass in most situations. The key is that your presentation looks like a wounded critter. Lure companies market a plastic O-ring that you can put on a worm to hold the hook rather than sticking it into the plastic body, which will prolong the life of your baits.

Shaky head refers to a style of fishing a plastic worm or other straight lure on a jig head designed to keep it upright. The technique typically can be used in a number of situations when you know where bass might be, but they won’t take another lure. You flip your lure rigged on a “shaky head” jig to where fish might be and allow it to hit the bottom, typically keeping the line slack. The key to the tactic is to wiggle the line just enough to make the lure look like a critter feeding on the bottom while keeping the jig head stationary.

Drop in: The drop-shot rig has been around for a while on the tournament circuit, notably producing big fish for those looking for a big payday. Another “finesse” technique, drop-shotting typically is used with lighter line, though dirty water allows anglers the chance to bulk up their braid.

The key with this technique is to leave your lure in the strike zone as long as possible, dancing it like a live critter

Blake Cockrell landed this 14.36-pound largemouth during a February trip to Lake Alan Henry in the Panhandle and provided the fish in good shape to the ShareLunker program.

Tanner Spurgin landed this 15.27-pound largemouth during a winter tournament last year on Lake Fork. The fish was donated to the ShareLunker selective breeding program.

that a finicky fish simply can’t resist. The basic rig includes a small hook tied on above a tag end of anywhere from a foot to two feet of extra line. A stout weight is tied at the end of that extra space, allowing an angler to bounce the whole rig near the bottom or around timber and other fish-holding cover while the lure flutters near fish that may not necessarily be in the mood to eat.

Use the real thing: Anglers from coast to coast and everywhere in between long have learned the value of using live bait, including such notable critters as crawfish and waterdogs (larval salamander) for lunker largemouths, and for good reason: Even a lethargic bass hates intruders— especially live ones—and will act accordingly. And sometimes, live bait simply outfishes imitations during other times of the year depending on the situation you find yourself in with bass that are particularly choosy.

The ubiquitous nightcrawler gave birth to the artificial worm industry and probably is responsible for more fish caught than any other offering, but don’t overlook all the other good live baits out there: shiners, minnows and shad; sunfish and bream; and even crickets and grasshoppers.

Knock on the door: Bass are equalopportunity squatters and will inhabit a variety of underwater terrain, so you simply need to know where to look for that lunker. Among the known yearround haunts of lunkers are docks, pilings and other man-made structure, but you shouldn’t overlook the other natural cover that’s so appealing to bass: weed mats that rise from the bottom, offering premium hiding and ambush spots; lily pads that hover over prime fishing real estate; floating vegetation that drift and ebb into new areas such as coves, bringing lots of bass with them; standing timber and stumps, generally the bigger the better, including those with lots of exposed roots and eroded areas where fish can lurk; and especially submerged brush, which can harbor untold numbers of fish that burrow into every nook and cranny of a downed tree or floating anchor of branches from where they can ambush prey.

Another area to focus your efforts all year is around riprap, which can be found on almost any decent-sized body of water. The rocks, rubble and debris used to armor shorelines from erosion is fantastic habitat that will hold huge numbers of big bass, especially when the rocks warm from the sun in periods of cooler weather. While riprap and rocky areas often are large, sometimes only a few particular areas will be appealing as fish-holding cover so don’t just expect to head to the rubble and catch fish all day, but if you find the right spot, you’ll likely discover a bunch of fish.

TIPS FOR SAFELY PHOTOGRAPHING BIG BASS

4 Wet your hands before touching the fish. 4 Using your dominant hand, grip the fish with your

thumb inside the mouth and your fingers locked on the outside of the mouth.

4 Support the rear of the fish with your other hand

placed beneath the fish just ahead of the tail.

4 Do not hold the fish by the lower jaw with just one

hand in a vertical position. This can dislocate or break the jaw, putting a death sentence on the bass.

4 Handle the fish only when putting it into a livewell or

holding tank. Do not keep the fish out of the water or keep removing it from the water for photographs.

4 If you must handle the fish, try to do so out of the

wind and keep it out of the water as little as possible. Wind can dry out the eyes and gills quickly, resulting in further damage.

4 More information: tpwd.texas.gov/fishboat/fish.

C.J. Oates boated this 13-pound largemouth last year at Lake Austin, one of the best big bass locales near an urban center in Texas.