5-year chase ends with wide-racked 9-pointer

9-pointer eluded the hunter for 5 years

Jason Auman of Seagrove, N.C. downed a big 9-pointer he’d been chasing since 2016 on Nov. 23, 2021 at 8:50 a.m. He killed the deer in Montgomery County. The buck had a 21 3/8-inch inside spread.

“I’d hunted this deer since 2016. He was a 6×5 with double brow tines and a drop tine in 2018. I had not seen this deer in the flesh until the day I shot him,” said Auman. 

Auman was hunting from a box stand and looking out over an open area when the 9-pointer showed up. When the deer presented a shot at about 60 yards, the hunter pulled the trigger on his .270 Winchester. The shot was true, and the buck fell after a 10-yard run.

Auman said the past 5 years have been a bit of a cat-and-mouse game with the buck. And the deer was special to him for many reasons, including how long he pursued it. And as rewarding as laying his hands on the buck was, he said it was also bittersweet. 

“I have a great friend I hunt with and he lost his wife this year from Covid. He would always call her on the way home and tell her we didn’t get the old wide one,” said Auman. “I said a little prayer to her on the ride home saying we finally got the old wide one. This deer was a very special deer for me. 

“I shed tears when I finally put my hands on his rack. It was 5 years of cat and mouse. It was sad to see his reign as king come to an end,” he said.

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