What kind of sacrifices does one make to kill big deer? I have killed big/mature deer (for my area) and I did it the same way I kill other deer. I pattern the deer and try to predict their movements as best as possible, pick some good stands and watch the wind/weather. When the rut comes I watch the sign and try to predict some key areas bucks will be cruising more frequently and hopefully catch one of the bucks I have been seeing in the summer slipping and although I am not always successful I put myself in a position to be successful on those bigger deer. The only real sacrifice I see to hunting only big racked bucks (aka mature bucks) is being willing to only kill does (eating your buck tag/s)if that big boy you have been after gives you the slip for the entire season. Now there is nothing wrong with that if that is what you want to do but it doesn't necessarilymake a person some form of elite hunter because they pass smaller racked bucks.

Someone in IL might pass 130" deer up, that same hunter would be foolish to do that in Southeast VA or NC. Not that the bucksdon't getthat big herebut more so it takes them longer to get bigger.

Ifa hunterkills a 120"4 year old buck in VA and another hunter kills 160" 4 year old in IL, does that make the guy in IL a better hunter? Not necessarily it just means he killed a bigger buck based on antlerinches and too many hunters feel that the measure of the antler inchesequates to how the hunter measures up and I personally don't agree with that. I know too many great hunters (in my eyes) that are not trophy hunters but great hunters none the less to buy into that theory. Just my opinion.