While this is a great final score, there is a very good possibility it will ultimately be increased to 197 1/8. The reason is the buck broke a 3-inch drop tine off the right beam when it collided with the tree shortly after being shot. A recent policy adopted by the Boone and Crockett Club states: "If the broken parts of an accidentally damaged trophy can be repositioned in their original configuration to enable an accurate measurement, the damaged trophy material may be included in the measurements." In this case, the broken drop tine fits this criterion perfectly and the process has been initiated to officially adjust the rack's final score.

The original score had already qualified the deer for B&C's Awards record book. Should the score be adjusted upward, the buck will also qualify for the Club's All-Time record book.

THE RANDALL BENTLEY BUCK
Hart, Ohio and Henderson counties also produced outstanding non-typical bucks last season. A truly awesome 17-pointer was taken near Mammoth Cave National Park in Hart County by Randall Bentley of Bonnieville.

At first light, on the morning of Nov. 21, Bentley knew a very big whitetail was somewhere nearby. A big cedar tree, within sight of his stand and previously untouched, had been recently rubbed to nearly chest height. Although there was little activity early that morning, the hunter had no inclination to leave the stand. Finally, the buck he was waiting and hoping to see, walked out of the woods, 175 yards away.

From an appearance standpoint, the rack is awesome, with great height and mass. Outstanding features include main beams of over 28 inches, 7 4/8-inch brow tines, and four additional tines that tape between 13 3/8 and 9 6/8 inches.

The 9-point typical frame grosses 175 4/8 and nets 165 7/8. Add on 25 5/8 inches of abnormal points (8), and the rack's final non-typical B&C score is 191 4/8. This qualifies the big deer for the Awards record book.

THE MARK SIMMONS BUCK
In Ohio County, Mark Simmons of Hartford began the season on property his family has been hunting for over 25 years. Positioned in a stand near the middle of an old field, he had an excellent view of the surrounding woods.

Late on Sunday afternoon, the hunter spotted a buck working a scrape in the far corner of the field, about 150 yards away. Two smaller bucks had been sighted in the same area a little earlier, but this was obviously a much larger deer.

"I was actually preparing to leave and was standing up in the stand when I spotted the buck," Simmons related. "Initially, I thought it was one of the bucks I had seen earlier, but when I looked through my scope, I could see the rack extending well out past the deer's ears."

Realizing that any second the buck could step into the woods and be gone, Simmons quickly maneuvered into a shooting position and fired. At the shot, the buck bolted into the woods, but within seconds, he heard the deer crash to the ground.

The buck's rack has an awesome combination of width and tine length. The 26-inch main beams form an antler spread of 24 2/8 inches outside and 22 4/8 inches inside. There are 14 scorable points, four of which measure between 13 1/8 and 9 6/8 inches.

The basic 9-point typical frame nets 154 6/8. After adding in the five abnormal points, totaling 35 3/8 inches, the final non-typical B&C score is 190 1/8, qualifying the buck for the Awards record book.

THE KELLY WOODS BUCK
In Henderson County, Kelly Woods of Robards took a heavy-antlered 14-pointer. The rack exhibits great tine length, including 7 4/8 inch brow tines (G-1s), plus four additional tines that tape between 11 7/8 and 10 1/8 inches.

The 11-point typical frame grosses a great total of 179 4/8, and nets 169 3/8. The rack also includes 14 3/8 inches of abnormal points, which brings the final non-typical B&C score to 183 6/8.