North American Whitetail Online Staff - November 22, 2011

Illinois Monarch: 202 7/8-inch Trophy Buck

A look at the Randy Schultz trophy buck taken in southern Illinois.

After conferring with guide Todd Poe, the plan was set in motion to rehang a stand where Schultz would have a shot at the buck the next day.

The avid whitetail hunter had taken several nice bucks over the years and had his heart set on taking a wide 10-point buck that would have gone 165-170 inches that he spotted by a small woodlot just off a bean field on November 12th.

Randy Schultz has an appreciation for big midwestern whitetails. The Manassas, Virginia resident makes an annual pilgrimage every year to Illinois to hunt with River To River Outfitters, which is set up in southern Illinois.

The massive buck is a mainframe 12-point and grosses 202 7/8 inches typical!

On the 13th, Schultz was greeted with 45 mph winds that were constant and knew that he was going to miss his morning sit. The weather forecast showed the winds dying down later in the day, so it was decided that Schultz would head out around 2 p.m. to the pre-arranged spot to see if the big boy would step out.

The buck was staggering as Schultz put another arrow in the deer just to make sure. The big monarch piled up 40 yards away.

Shortly after 2 p.m., Schultz was in his treestand, getting set up, when he noticed a set of legs 60 yards away. Peering through his Leica binoculars, he was able to see that it was a buck€¦not the big 10 he had planned on hunting, but a massive mainframe 12-point that was truly a buck of a lifetime.