Gimme a Mulligan

[Boogieman1]

If you could take a mulligan and turn back the hands of time and do any hunt of the year over this far. Which would it be? What did u do wrong? What would u do diff?

For myself I have one that has been haunting my dreams for awhile. A few weeks ago the whitetail gods tossed down a gift from above and I just monkeyed it all up. Had been a heat wave for over a week right during prime time. When the front came it came with a gusto, dropping temps more than 40 degrees. Heavy rain came with the front and lasted all night and let up right about shooting light. Cloudy cold conditions with sporadic drizzle lasted the rest of the day. The perfect storm!

What did I do? Hunted all day at a relatively low odds spot. Doah!! I have gotten a pic of a absolute giant at the spot I was hunting 2 years in a row around the same time with same wind and cloud cover. I took a long shot I really wish I could have back. I’m not even sure that buck survived. And In the previous 2 years I only got one single pic of him. Wish I would have put myself in a more high odds of success situation.

Live an learn.....,

[Jmitch]

November 1st. Had the perfect wind for my favorite terrian rut funnel. 9 am had a doe come by without a care in the world relaxed and walking didnt seem like she was being harrassed at all. Thought that was wierd but figured there was nothing behind her. 5 minutes later had a 140s 10 running down her trail like he was on fire and I'm just sitting on my but. He was only 30 yards or so away coming hot when I first saw him and He blew thru multiple lanes before I got standing a grabbed the bow. Had one more opening and I couldn't get the release hooked on the string. This was also the first time I wore gloves this year and I strapped my release too short where I normally would without gloves making it almost impossible to hook on the string but also never tried or practiced that morning. Needless to say he walked off without a shot even tho he passed thru at least 4 different openings coming as close as 15 yards. That was by far the biggest buck I had a legit opportunity on this year. Hindsight is easy to second guess but having another go at that morning would be nice.

[mheichelbech]

Almost the whole season...at least all the hunts on the property I paid to lease with other guys....turned out to be way over hunted. I’ve seen more deer in 2 site at other places than I did there all season.

[Uncle Lou]

I'd like a mulligan on the whole season. Total disaster. When I did get to hunt forced too much

[Tennhunter3]

Theres definitely things I would change but I've learned so much this year by messing up alot.

In several cases I would have liked to have stopped before I got too close and jumped the bucks. Though if I had not have bumped them I wouldn't know exactly how close I can get.

This season has definitely been the best of my hunting life .
While mulligans would be nice I am very happy with the mistakes I made that were a learning experience.

[Twenty Up]

The morning of November 3rd, no question.

A two year cat & mouse game in the mountains of a Georgia WMA almost came to a close at 12 yards. I’d of rather not even seen him than go through that emotional and physical roller coaster.

Blood dog jumped him 80+ hours after being shot. Grid searched 16 miles total a week later, 9 trail cameras out... Nothing.

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[Jackson Marsh]

November 4th...a buck stopped between two trees that looked open between them, so I shot and hit twigs. Had I waited I potentially could of had a slam dunk shot on a dandy buck.

[Autiger]

November 5th. Got to the field and had does everywhere. Slept in the Jeep until the sun came up. Headed back to the island I had in mind and was almost there when I heard grunting and branches breaking, I froze up and he stepped out at less than 20 just staring at me. If I could rewind, I would have kneeled down and drawn back almost immediately after hearing him grunt and break the branches. The marsh grass would have concealed me enough to get him to come in closer or I would have been ready for the first opportunity. Only mature buck encounter I had all season. Way down on encounters this year. But it’s not over yet, I’ll be out in SE WI until Jan 31.

[live2hunt]

Earlier in the season I had time to glass some fields. I found a shooter coming out at a water way and working a scrape in a blown down tree along the edge of a bean field. I couldn’t pin down exactly where he was entering the field but figured it was from the tall grass and willows in the waterway. I wanted to be down wind of the scrape. So I planned my access and was going to follow a fence row around the field out of sight of the waterway. Had the wind at my back blowing down the fence row and planned to j hook to the scrape. Anyway 400 yards down the fence I jumped him from under a tree in the middle of the two fields. He saw and smelled me. I was in the low spot that ran across the field to the scrape and had just seen large tracks. Right before he jumped I thought I should set up in this tree over these tracks but didn’t because I was fixed on that scrape. Anyway I learned he was using the low spot in the field to get to the scrape and popping up where it looked like he was coming from the thickest cover. I’d set up in that little tree with my mulligan and the wind would have been just off so he wouldn’t have smelled me but in his face enough he still would have used the low spot.

[Noreast10pt]

We had an early October snowstorm so I went out to try knock something off my hunting bucket list, track down and shoot a deer from the ground with my bow.
I came into this clearing (yellow dot was me) and seen a 6 point buck (red dot) feeding with the wind at his back on the other side, I made a judgment on the distance which was 35+ yards. I shot and clean missed...

I was shooting baseball sized groups at that range into a target but I didn't take into account how much a 17-20 mph wind would move the arrow and I also should've used the wind noise and quiet snow to get myself 10 yards closer to the deer that had no clue that I was there.

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[mauser06]

November 16th. The LAST day of our archery season.



I missed an absolute toad at like 6-7yds.


Was hunting out of my Viper because it's easier on my back and my back needed a break. I don't use the Viper very often. A couple hunts a year tops. At some point, the zip tie that holds on the bottom of the right arm cushion broke. Never in my life did I think that would cost me a buck.....but it did.


I drew off the front of the stand predicting the buck was going to go to my left. Well, he didn't. He kept coming nearly right at me. As I saw this, I swung to my right to get ready for the shot...while at full draw. He hit the last opening before hitting my ground scent and I sent it. No joke it went atleast a foot or 2 over his back.


When I moved from the front to the right side of the stand at full draw, the string followed the rail....the loose cushion ended up in front of the string.


Still flips my stomach to think about it. I don't usually get shots at bucks of that caliber....heck...most guys in Pennsylvania will probably never kill a buck of that caliber.


Fuels my fire. Gotta be on top of my game and don't be lazy. Check my gear and stay on top of it. Stay in the game and keep scouting and learning.

[Boogieman1]

November 16th. The LAST day of our archery season.



I missed an absolute toad at like 6-7yds.


Was hunting out of my Viper because it's easier on my back and my back needed a break. I don't use the Viper very often. A couple hunts a year tops. At some point, the zip tie that holds on the bottom of the right arm cushion broke. Never in my life did I think that would cost me a buck.....but it did.


I drew off the front of the stand predicting the buck was going to go to my left. Well, he didn't. He kept coming nearly right at me. As I saw this, I swung to my right to get ready for the shot...while at full draw. He hit the last opening before hitting my ground scent and I sent it. No joke it went atleast a foot or 2 over his back.


When I moved from the front to the right side of the stand at full draw, the string followed the rail....the loose cushion ended up in front of the string.


Still flips my stomach to think about it. I don't usually get shots at bucks of that caliber....heck...most guys in Pennsylvania will probably never kill a buck of that caliber.


Fuels my fire. Gotta be on top of my game and don't be lazy. Check my gear and stay on top of it. Stay in the game and keep scouting and learning.

Man, I can totally relate to this one. I’ve had many blunders over the years. But one would be very impressed with how many of em came within 10 yards. From missed shots to all kinds of other failures those close ones sting. I mean when I replay them in my head and could have legitimately hit em in the temple with a rock those missed opportunities hurt. I’m sure u will get him next time, thanks for sharing.

[treeroot]

I'd have left well enough alone and never called the eco on my infected buck.

After that I'm still trying to figure out what happened. The deer vanished and i spent 2 weekends trying to find one. Sign everywhere was dead. I saw more drives this year than I've seen in years. Even the thickest brushy areas I marched into were dead. I jumped to several different properties and it seemed the same. I think something changed food source wise combined with above average pressure and I failed. So looking back I'm at a loss. This has happened in the past and I couldn't figure it out then either. I've been out scouting and sign has returned, bumped 4 bucks and a pile of doe.

[Buckshot20]

Opening weekend, first hunt. Nice racked buck for my area and muffed the shot at 40. I got 2 in another state but the ones in my back yard are different

[Dewey]

No question about it I wish I could do my Halloween hunt over again. Ended up being the only buck I drew on all season. Had a big one hang up just before my shooting lane and back out because he knew something wasn’t right. I was a full draw for a few minutes when he stopped waiting for the shot that never happened. In hindsight I would choose a different tree where I would have easily had a clear shot and that would have ended much differently.