Photo: Tim Phillips/KFVS 12
The story of this monster buck is even more incredible than its final score. This 39-point buck required years of effort and countless hours spent in a stand to make it happen. To top it all off, two other hunters had shot it beforehand—one of them, the final hunter’s father, just nine days prior!
Tim Phillips of St. Charles, Missouri, went hunting for the buck that had been dubbed “the St. Paul giant” on Veterans Day. He told CBS affiliate KFVS 12 that he took the deer about 5 p.m. after grunting to it, ironically, five times. It gross-scored a whopping 243 inches thanks to its more than three dozen points.
The buck was first shot by a female hunter in 2014 but survived to grow its incredible set of antlers. Phillips’ dad actually arrowed the buck earlier this month, but after more than a mile of tracking with dogs they had to give up the chase. The buck appeared on trail camera footage every day following the hunt, so Phillips knew it was still alive and kicking when he headed to the stand Saturday.
According to Phillips’ Facebook page, he and his family have photos of the buck dating back to 2012 and estimate the buck to have been at least 7 or 8 years old. Phillips’ wife, Monica, deserves much of the credit for this buck: Phillips hunted more than 200 times for this buck over four years before it finally came to fruition.
