To each their own. Each type has it's own attributes that individual hunters might find more alluring than the other.
I have hunted both traditional and modern/compound. I consider myself to shoot 'above average' with either bow style. I prefer modern/compound. Here's my breakdown:
Modern:
- Easier to ensure repeatability of aiming: peeps and pins are a better metric for aiming than 'feel' or sighting down your arrow
- Easier to ensure repeatability of release: mechanical release vs fingers
- Easier to ensure repeatability of draw/power: Solid backstop = same draw length every time
- Easier to hold long draw longer with compound let off
- Faster arrows for the same draw weight: cams enhance draw curve, trad limbs have approximately linear power curve, i.e. 70lbs at 28.5" is faster with the same arrow from a compound than a traditional with 70lb 28.5" draw.
Traditional:
- Easier to use (draw and release)
- Easier to set up
- Higher degree of satisfaction for overcoming difficulty of use
Undeniably, it is easier to shoot better, at longer ranges with modern equipment. That's not a great excuse, but it does make a difference in which bow a hunter chooses. No Nascar driver wants to race in a car that handles like a big rig, and similarly, hunters that prefer traditional equipment are NOT doing so for quantitative, objective reasons.
So I shoot Modern/compound unless I'm looking for an 'experience' beyond that of the typical hunt. For example, taking a big buck with a compound is far more satisfying and rewarding TO ME than taking a 'meat in the pot' average doe with a compound, so to up the ante on a meat hunt after the trophy is already knocked down, I'll drag out the recurve.
Similarly, if I'm just going on a meat hunt during firearms season, I often take a revolver and leave my rifle at home. It'd be amazing if all of the stars would align and I'd drop a record class deer with a revolver or with a traditional bow, but leaving less to chance by taking a compound bow or a rifle when I might have a once in a lifetime shot at a huge buck helps me sleep better at night. More power, more range, and easier tendency for accuracy, that's what I'm looking for if I get a chance at something I may never see again. The heartwarming stuff (revolver, traditional bow, open sighted levergun, etc) is just a great way to turn 'average hunts' into a 'great hunting stories' in my book.