Aaron Flinchum’s buck of a lifetime

Flinchum’s buck of a lifetime green scored 155 inches

Aaron Flinchum harvested a big Stokes County, NC buck during an evening hunt on Sept. 12, 2023. The buck has been green-scored at 155 inches.

Flinchum said killing the buck with his bow was a dream come true.

“It was a buck of a lifetime for me, getting to take the shot with my Hoyt Ventum 33,” he said.

Because of some of the unique characteristics of the deer’s rack, Flinchum and his brother named it Splits.

With a busy schedule and some nasty weather, Flinchum had little time to hunt. And a long list of others to thank for helping him get a shot at the big buck.

“I can’t thank my brother Andy enough for putting me on this deer we named Splits. I only had a small window of time to hunt between work and being on the ball field 4 days a week,” he said.

He was able to get in the woods on the 10th and saw the buck, but couldn’t get a clean shot at it.

“I watched him Sunday eat for 15 minutes with a bachelor group of three other bucks, never getting a shot. Having to watch him walk away was dejecting to say the least,” he said.

Poor weather almost spoils it

Then on the 12th, bad weather ruled the day. But he decided to go anyway.

“I wasn’t going to go due to the weather. I ended up taking the 15-yard shot in rain, thunder and lightning,” he said.

He’s thankful for the buck, and considers the hunt a team effort.

“I have so many people to thank for this opportunity, and I’m grateful to have harvested the buck of a lifetime. With two kids, job, coaching baseball and everything else, my life is a whirlwind sometimes. And I would not have been in this situation if it wasn’t for my brother Andy helping out so much.

“And I want to thank my mom and dad for watching the boys so I could chase this dream so much, my wife Lis for listening to all the deer talk, thousands of trail cam pics, YouTube videos, an embarrassing amount of money spent on batteries, cameras, Wright Whitetail Minerals, etc. over the past who-knows-how-long,” he said.

He also gave credit to Jonathan Brown at Boneyard Archery.

“And my buddies Matt and Brandon for always listening to me talk hunting or give me advice. And last but not least, the good Lord for giving me the undeserved opportunity to fulfill a lifetime dream,” he said.

Flinchum wishes for the same success for everyone, regardless of their personal goals.

“I hope everyone who has a dream or goal gets to achieve it. I hope that you never give up on chasing that dream. And I hope that everyone gets to feel the way this hunt made me feel at least once in their life,” he said.

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Bag A Buck Contest

Congratulations to Flinchum, who is now in the running for our monthly prize of a free 1-year subscription to Carolina Sportsman Magazine, a Mini Maglite, an 18-ounce Yeti Rambler, and other prizes, as well as our Grand Prize, which includes a 3-year-subscription to Carolina Sportsman Magazine, a 2-day two-person hunt at Cherokee Run Hunting Lodge in Chesterfield, SC, and other prizes to be determined.

See all the bucks entered so far, and upload yours at carolinasportsman.com/bag-a-buck-2023, or email photo and detailed info to images@carolinasportsman.com.