Stephen Ward’s Wilson County buck

Wilson County buck is Ward’s biggest ever

Stephen Ward of Sims, NC killed a Wilson County 9-point buck on Nov. 12, 2022 with a 120-yard shot in a soybean field. He shot the buck around 5:15 p.m. He’d never laid eyes on the deer, but he did have two trail cam photos of it.

“This is a deer we saw on camera back in teh summer. We dediced he was the trophy of the farm, and the one we really wanted,” said Ward, who hunts the 50-acre farm with his brother and best friend.

His brother and friend weren’t hunting that day, so Ward joked with them through a group text about killing “Granddaddy,” which they’d named the buck.

“We labeled him this because we can tell a couple of other bucks on the farm are from his bloodline,” he said.

But before Granddaddy showed up, Ward contemplated shooting a doe.

Ward shot the buck with a 6.5 Creedmoor

“About 5:10, I had six does come out in the field. I started looking at them, trying to decide which, if any, of them I wanted to harvest. But about 20 yards behind them, I noticed a set of antlers peeking out from the wood line,” he said.

Once that deer stepped into the clearing, Ward knew that’s the one he’d be taking a shot at.

“He immediately made a direct line for the doe of his choice. Thankfully, he turned broadside almost immediately, giving me a clear 120-yard shot. My 6.5 Creedmoor did its job. He fell over at the edge of the field and wood line,” he said.

It’s Ward’s biggest buck.

“This is the biggest buck I’ve ever harvested, and one that I consider to be a buck of a lifetime, especially in Wilson County. I give all the glory, honor and praise to God for blessing me and allowing me to harvest this amazing animal,” he said.

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Bag A Buck

Congratulations to Ward, who is now entered in our Bag-A-Buck Contest and in the running for these monthly prizes and the Grand Prize package:

Monthly winners will receive:

•  MAGLITE XL50 LED Spectrum Red Flashlight
• 1-year subscription to Carolina Sportsman Magazine

The Grand Prize winner will receive:

• Cherokee Run Hunting Lodge 2-day, two-man deer/hog hunt
• Seneca Dragon Claw airgun/arrow gun combo from Pyramid Air
• Barnett Hyper XP 405 Crossbow
• MAGLITE Field Ops Bundle
• Grey Man Tactical Vehicle Hunting Gun Rack RMP Package
• 3-year subscription to Carolina Sportsman Magazine

You can be in the running for these prizes too by sharing your story and photo in our Bag-A-Buck gallery.