Beginners Luck

[Boogieman1]

I'm sure everyone has heard of atleast one person who knows nothing about hunting, wonders aimlessly through the woods, picks a tree for whatever reason and slays a giant. But this stuff happens so often, there has got to be something to it lol. The only thing I can see happening is the guy strolls through the woods prob gets to a hard edge and figures he's not gonna be able to see in there so he climbs a near by tree along that edge and prob lucked into a crosswind scenario. The buck gets out of bed, takes the edge and runs smack dab into Greenhorn Gary. Does anybody else know how this happens cause it baffles me

[UofLbowhunter]

I would say, its kinda like a first time sit. No pressure in the area till " That guy" strolls in there and eyeballs a rub or something and sits. Basically "IMO" LUCK!! I know a few people like that on everything they do and have no clue whats happing!

[JSnake]

I think most of the beginners luck cases are 1. with a rifle and 2. during the rut when anything can walk by. Wider effective killing zone + erratic deer movement = much higher chance of striking gold.

I think cases of Greenhorn Gary going out blind with a bow and bagging a P&Y class buck (at least here in the south, where they are certainly not around every tree) first time out are exceedingly rare.

[Dewey]

I think beginners luck happens because they do something different than what everyone else does mainly because they don't know any better. Can't tell you how many times some new or very inexperienced hunter killed a nice buck in spots I would never even consider hunting. Really opened my eyes to how effective hunting overlooked spots can be.

[bigwoodshuntn]

You hear about this a lot especially with kids. There is almost always a reason for it too.

IE: put the new guy over in such and such a spot that no one ever goes to so he doesn't mess up any of our "good" spots type of thing.

[tgreeno]

Realistically you only hear about the lucky big buck stories, because it's a big buck.

You'll never hear about the 100's time "Gary" goes out and and see's nothing.

On here we share the non-successful hunts also, to maybe help other to not make the same mistakes. People like "Gary" only tell people about a success.

Just like someone who gambles. You only hear about the times they win money. They don't tell you about all the times they loose money.

[Boogieman1]

Realistically you only hear about the lucky big buck stories, because it's a big buck.

You'll never hear about the 100's time "Gary" goes out and and see's nothing.

On here we share the non-successful hunts also, to maybe help other to not make the same mistakes. People like "Gary" only tell people about a success.

Just like someone who gambles. You only hear about the times they win money. They don't tell you about all the times they loose money.

Good point! Makes since I personally don't know anyone else that hunts so it was always 2nd hand hearing these stories that always had me scratching my head. If sharing non successful hunts is something everyone enjoys y'all are gonna be in for a real treat this season lol I go dang near everyday of the season and will rack up enough unsuccessful hunts for the whole site.

[creepingdeth]

I think beginners luck happens because they do something different than what everyone else does mainly because they don't know any better. Can't tell you how many times some new or very inexperienced hunter killed a nice buck in spots I would never even consider hunting. Really opened my eyes to how effective hunting overlooked spots can be.

X2

[Edcyclopedia]

Kid I went to high school w/ as a Junior goes out all day and sees nothing...

He's scared of the woods in the dark, so he heads back toward his house and sits on a stone wall to have a cig.

Wa-La, 10 point 210lb buck!

He didn't realize he emptied his father's 30-30 @ the deer.
Shot one side of his rack off in his frenzy...

Here's Your sign...

Never shot another deer in 5 years after that - go figure...

[Jhand]

I guess you could say I had beginners luck. I didn't grow up hunting, my dad never deer hunted. I decided when I was 25 that I wanted to bow hunt, never shot a bow before this point. Bought a used bow off craigslist for $80 went to Cabelas bought arrows, broadheads and a release. Got my hunting license in the very end of November. I had one small piece of private that the owner let me setup a shooting range at so when I decided I wanted to hunt I asked him if it was OK if I hunted and he said yes but told me there was also one other guy that hunted there. Well by chance I ran into the other guy when I was shooting my broadheads, we talked and he told me I could use his one stand he had setup since he didn't plan on hunting it. Well the next morning I went out to hunt it, walked into the woods with my bow and a flashlight. Made a ton on noise getting to the stand. Got setup in the stand a few minutes before daylight. Saw 9 deer that morning, 3 year and a half bucks and one mature buck that I ended up killing the following year. I was too nervous to shoot anything that morning. I thought to myself damn hunting is easy I don't know why people say it's hard. The following morning I was back in the stand. I shot the very first doe that came by. 20 yard shot, deer ran 50 yards and that was it. Waited an hour tracked it and it ran right to the access trail that I drove my jeep down to the shooting range. Flipped it over to field dress it and was shocked to see that it was a buck. Very first time shooting a deer thought it was a doe but was really a button buck. Backed my jeep right up to the deer and watched YouTube videos on field dressing as I cut open the deer. That very first sit seeing 9 deer had me hooked ever since.

[Octang]

My first deer was killed hunting the corner of an empty field I would never choose to hunt as an adult. Not only did I kill my first buck there, earlier in the morning I had my crosshairs on a doe too that I never pulled the trigger on. Looking back I feel like I could hunt that spot 100x and not see a deer 99 of them. Maybe I knew more when I knew less.

[Bogle]

I think a lot of "beginners luck" is beginners trying to avoid others as a new Hunter. They go to the spot that others don't in an effort not to mess them up while learning. In return, they are doing the same thing the deer are doing. In addition, a lot of beginners don't typically pay for a lease or go jump in to the thick of things on public land. It seems more like they set up on Grandmas 40 acres that no one else has hunted. I also think we tend to talk more about the big deer killed by the beginner as opposed to the doe.

[nor' easter]

When I was 11 my old man's buddy set me up on the ground watching a scrub field way away from everyone else. No one hunted there because there was "no deer on that side of the road". 15 minutes into the sit I had a nice 10 pt follow the stream edge straight toward me and cross 50 yards behind me. I didn't get turned around in time to shoot. They had sat me there to keep me out of the "good" stands on field edges on the other side of the road. I told them what happened and they didn't believe me, so I took them to the stream edge and showed them the tracks. We poked around in there and bumped alot of deer out of beds. That was 20 years ago, these guys are still hunting their same field edge stands on the other side of the road, and no one is hunting that spot they sat me in.

[dan]

I have discussed this subject many times. Even did an article about it. Its not so much the case now, as it was when I was growing up. Now you have parents coddling kids and making sure they have success, and special seasons for kids. When I grew up, hunting was a male adult dominated thing. When kids became old enough to hunt they did not get a great spot. Each "spot" or stand was owned by someone. You would be told as a kid, thats Dad's spot. Thats uncle Jacks spot, etc. Nobody is hunting in that brushy corner by the road, go hunt over there and don't bother us till lunch time. And guess what? the kid was sent to the over looked spot where no one goes...

Now-a-days this happens more with adults who take up hunting but know little about it and are just looking to get out hunting. They just wander out and find a spot where no one hunts, and get a 1st time sit out of it... I have said it many times. Tossing a dart at a map and sitting where ever it sticks will get you more big bucks than sitting the same spots over and over. And the guy with no knowledge or confidence is basically tossing the dart.

[Jdaukontas]

My first ever hunting experience was right behind my house in an apple orchard. I walked out the night before with a log and set it in the tree line. Next morning I walked in about 5 min before light and 20 minutes later had a giant 10 walk past at 60 yards. I have never seen a buck of that size that close since

Big bucks are amazing creatures and live in the places no one thinks they live. The hard part is the voice at the back of your mind telling u that traditional hunting spots are better, at least for me.