A WINNING COMBINATION
Let's examine some ways the four points we have discussed work together to put the odds in your favor. To begin with, the benefits of hard work should be evident. If you don't spend the proper time scouting, you may never in your hunting career find that one tree that the buck of a lifetime will walk under. If you get lazy, you may leave that one tree stand hanging in the shed that you could have used to kill your best buck ever! If you get up at 3:30 a.m. instead of 3:00 a.m. in order to make the mile-long walk to your stand, you may arrive just after daylight and spook your target buck. If you don't work extra hours at your job or business, you may not have enough time to hunt when the rut rolls around, and this "time crunch" could affect your chance of success. If you don't drag your aching body back out tomorrow you may be lying in bed or sitting on the couch when the best buck of your life walks by your stand. A lazy hunter seldom kills mature bucks on a regular basis. He might kill one during his hunting career, but it'll probably be because of luck and not because he earned it.

Now let's consider how the odds work for us when we hunt the rut. I believe the percentage of mature bucks that are up and moving about during daylight hours outside of the rut is very small. In fact, this percentage is probably under 5 percent. (I'm referring to animals that are at least 4 1/2 years old.) On the other hand, I believe that around 85 to 95 percent of mature bucks (with the possible exclusion of very old bucks) will do some moving around during daylight hours during the breeding season. By concentrating your trophy hunting during the rut, you can see how your odds of success will increase.

STAND LOCATION -- AVERAGE OR GREAT?
Let's assume that you plan to hunt a travel corridor four hours each day for at least 10 days during the rut. By doing this, do you think you'll get an opportunity at a mature buck? You might, but the odds of killing him are not in your favor, especially when you consider that it may take two or three encounters with this wily creature to finally to kill him.

Now let's see how the odds improve if you hunt in a funnel. First, you should make every effort to find a funnel where at least three travel corridors come together. The same buck may use all three corridors at different times. What's more, two or more mature bucks may travel the same corridors. In either circumstance, you increase you odds threefold that you'll encounter a mature buck. Surely you can see the benefits of hunting this kind of funnel!

Next, let's assume that you make a lot of sacrifices so that you can hunt 20 days during the rut instead of 10. This would double your chances again. The odds are getting better! But what would happen if you found a way to hunt 12 hours a day instead of four. What will this do for your odds? I believe the single most important thing you can do to improve your chances of shooting a mature buck is to spend more time in a tree!

I am no mathematician, but simple third-grade arithmetic tells me that by applying these principles, you can raise the odds in your favor enough to give yourself a reasonable chance to shoot a mature buck. Since all mature bucks have individual personalities, no amount of trickery, strategy or planning will increase your odds of success any better than working hard, hunting during the rut, hunting a funnel where at least three travel corridors converge, and hunting long hours. These four points -- if you're determined enough to apply them -- will truly put the odds in your favor!

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
To purchase a copy of Bobby Worthington's highly acclaimed book Bowhunting Trophy Whitetails -- An Advanced Approach To Taking Mature Bucks.

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