That afternoon, there had been little deer activity. But shortly after sundown, Green saw a doe coming through the woods, heading toward the field. And trailing not far behind was a large buck. The doe passed by the concealed archer and continued on out into the field. But the buck remained near the tree border, seemingly unwilling to leave the surrounding cover of the woods.

The light was fading, and Green was unable to get a completely clear view of the buck. Yet there was no doubt the deer carried a sizable rack.

Eventually, the buck approached to within 15 yards, and the hunter readied himself to draw. But at the last second, the big deer hesitated and began to turn back.

“The distance was a little farther than I normally prefer to shoot,” Green said. “But at that point, the deer’s body was completely in the open, and I quickly drew and released.”

To the hunter’s amazement, the buck flipped into the air and fell to the ground, almost where it had been standing. Not knowing whether the deer was down for good, Green quickly put a second arrow into the big whitetail.

“As it turned out, my first shot had been just a little high and clipped the spine,” the hunter noted. “No one could have been any more surprised than me when the deer immediately dropped.”

Later that evening, after closely examining the buck and its near perfect 6x6 rack, both brothers readily agreed it was the same deer they had previously sighted during the summer and early fall. Although not exceptionally huge, the buck was big, weighing 187 pounds field-dressed, which would place its live weight near 240.

Other than sheer size, the rack’s most outstanding feature is its nearly perfect side-to-side symmetry between the right and left antlers. Antler statistics include 25-inch main beams, an inside spread of 16 6/8 inches, and six antler tines that measure between 8 and 11 inches. Antler mass is also impressive, with 5-inch basal circumference measurements that taper only slightly to 4 inches midway along the main beams.

After grossing an impressive total of 174 3/8, minor asymmetry deductions drop the final net score only slightly to 169 4/8 typical P&Y points. This also qualifies the buck for B&C’s Awards record book.

Green’s great buck stands as the biggest bow kill ever recorded for Trigg County. At this writing, it ranks as the state’s top typical bow kill of the 2006-07 season.

“All things considered, I guess it was just my day,” Green laughed. “Seldom does a hunt play out as perfectly as that one did. But I’m certainly proud to have taken such a great buck.”

(Editor’s Note: Be sure to see next month’s issue of Kentucky Game & Fish for Part 2 of the state’s top bow kills from last season. Great trophy bucks from Crittenden, Fayette, and other counties will be profiled.)

Find more about Kentucky fishing and hunting at KentuckyGameandFish.com.