I think a lot of times an individual deer is way over pursued, sending him nocturnal.

How many times have you heard of a farmer seeing a big buck during harvest, than one hunter seeing him early season, and then every guy hunting the property is hanging stands right on top of where the deer was last spotted, paying little attention to winds, overhuntingor entry/exit routes, only to have the same deer livethrough year, or to never be seen again? Judgment gets clouded when a big deer is spotted multiple times, whether it be in person or on camera.

My theory when in a situation as originally described: stick to your gameplan that you had set up before season started, hunt the stands you hung before seeing Mr. big, and if it happens, it happens. To many mistakes are made by hunters trying too hard.