I'll leave the distance discussion for another day, for some 700yds is a long shot. For others 300yds is long, so that's a matter of semantics.

My question or more actually concern I suppose was shot placement. I personally didn't feel the shooter made a good shot on that buck. He hit it halfway back thru the spine! 2" high & it would've been a miss. 2" lower & it was a gut shot! Sure all the "proper talk" was given with regards to distance, drop & wind age but the bottom line was the shooter did NOT put the bullet thru the vitals but instead "drew blood" & only by blind luck did the bullet strike the spine & render the animal immobile. I personally think the shooter was "in over his head" taking that shot! Simply drawing blood does not a successful shot make.