Bobby Johnson's Kansas Buck Tops 220 Inches

Hunter: Bobby Johnson

Buck: 226 1/4-inches

Location: Council Grove, Kan.

Time of Year: Oct. 29, 2011

Weapon: Bow

Bobby Johnson, an avid reader of Realtree's Rack Report, is not new to killing deer. The 58-year-old has taken more than 400 deer over the years, about half of those taken with a bow. To say he’s experienced is an understatement. Johnson hails from northwest Alabama, and has taken most all of his deer from there. But he has his heart set on a giant Kansas buck.

“In northeast Alabama there are lots of numbers of deer, but the size of them is not that great,” he said. “That’s why I decided to try out a different location.”

In 2010, Johnson hunted in Council Grove, Kan., with Trophy Class Outfitters. While on a hunt he happened to see one of those famous monster Kansas bucks, but luck was not on his side and he didn’t get the opportunity to get him. But in October 2011, Johnson went back.

“I went back to the very same place I was last year, and I got him,” he said. 

On the first morning of the hunt, Johnson sat in a treestand and began calling. It was 26 degrees out and he wasn’t sure how the deer would respond. After about an hour and a half, he got a response. A small buck came in from about 200 yards and hung around his treestand.

“When I got aggressive with the calling, he came right to me, like he was supposed to,” he said. “But I heard another one across the woods. So I then knew I didn’t want to take the small buck. I wanted to see what was across the woods.”

Across those woods was an absolute monster of a buck. The giant walked closer to Johnson, searching for the source of the calling. The buck slowly closed to within 35 yards and as it postured at the smaller buck, it turned just enough to give Johnson a broadside shot for a moment. And a moment was all Johnson needed to draw, aim and shoot. He hit the deer in the crease of the shoulder and the arrow zipped through cleanly. The monster ran about 50 steps and fell to the ground.

There just happened to be a Boone and Crockett Club official scorer at the camp Johnson was staying at, and he was quick to put a tape to the buck. The monster amassed an incredible 226 1/4 inches and had 27 scorable points – the biggest, by far, Johnson has killed.

“The G3 was split, kind of like a mule deer, on the right side, and he had a 6-inch drop tine on the left side,” Johnson said. “There were lots of sticker points too, and even the main beam had some stickers. It is truly a once-in-a-lifetime deer.”

Johnson submitted his monster buck story to Realtree's Rack Report -- and you can too. To submit your story for consideration, just E-mail a few details about your buck along with photos to rackreport [at] realtree [dot] com.