Both Boone and Crockett and Pope and Young deemed these bucks "unscorable."
We recently told you the stories of four whitetail deer that controversially missed out on being world records. Two of the bucks missed out on the record books because of single points officials deemed non-typical.
But for today's #WhitetailWednesday, we're going to showcase four big bucks with antlers so freaky, Boone and Crockett and Pope and Young completely rejected them!
The Heath Buchanan Buck
Heath Buchanan's 2014 whitetail may very well be a top contender for the title of ugliest buck ever taken by a hunter. Buchanan got trail camera photos and watched this cactus buck he called "Joker" for four years before finally getting a shot in the early part of bow season.
As is often the case with nearly all "cactus bucks," the buck's testicles were either injured, or it was born with a rare condition known as cryptorchidism. Whatever the case may be, it appears the buck never shed its antlers and they just kept on growing from year to year. It's definitely one of the most unbalanced racks of all time. The left side is significantly larger than the right.
While 12 of the buck's points were determined to be at least an inch in length, this buck was quickly deemed "unscoreable" because of the freak nature of the antlers.
The Thad Cartwright Buck
This awesome, non-typical buck fell to Kentucky hunter Thad Cartwright in 2012. Unlike some of the other bucks on this list, this one isn't believed to be a cactus buck, although it is believed to have been shot by another hunter one year prior. The theory is that the buck survived, but the injury possibly produced the strange antlers seen above.
However, you won't find this 50-pointer in the B&C or P&Y record books, simply because neither book accepts a buck still in velvet. Without a score in either book, the story of Cartwright's buck still remains relatively obscure. It's a shame, too, because this was a world-class animal.
The lesser-known Buckmasters' trophy records did ultimately score deer at 273 2/8 inches. Assuming the buck scored similarly with B&C or P&Y, it would make him one of the largest non-typicals any hunter had ever harvested had buck shed its velvet first.
The Sammy Walker Buck
Sammy Walker knew he'd shot a strange-looking buck during a deer drive in Louisiana back in 1958. But until he walked up on the buck, he had no idea how weird it was.
The buck, now also known as "The Louisiana Freak" has antlers that are quite simply a mess. It's a mishmash of tines going in all directions. According to the story, the buck looked even weirder after it was first shot. In addition to still being in velvet in January, it also had mud and twigs stuck in its strange rack.
It is worth noting a B&C official scored this buck at 291 3/8 at one point in time. But with no obvious main beams or a typical frame, it's unlikely the buck would ever make it through a panel scoring without the club rejecting it. Even though the buck has no place in any record book, it's still achieved fame as perhaps the most famous cactus buck ever shot.
The Barnacle Buck
Lionel Crissman stumbled upon this one-of-a-kind, 128-point buck dead in a swamp during the fall of 1989 near Youngstown, Ohio. Yes, you read that right, 128 points! And, that's just the ones that are long enough to be counted!
At first, it wasn't obvious to Crissman how special this find was. The carcass was nothing but bones, and the antlers were still in velvet. It wasn't until a few days after the find he actually cleaned the dried velvet, grass, spider webs, moss and even dried leaves that were still clinging to it.
It was then that he realized he had something special on his hands. Much like the Sammy Walker buck, a B&C scorer measured the buck in a process that took over seven hours. He ultimately came up with a score of 257 4/8. But for reasons unknown, B&C ultimately rejected the score, and the buck never went into the books.
Once again, enter the Buckmasters' scoring system. The Barnacle Buck eventually took over the top spot in their record books with a score of 336 1/8 inches.
For those keeping track, that's almost 3 inches bigger than the famous "Missouri Monarch," the current No.1 B&C non-typical found in St. Louis in 1981.
It's also worth nothing the Buckmasters' system gives no credit for inside spread. Factoring that into the Barnacle Buck's score, he tallies an unbelievable 351 7/8!
While none of these bucks made it into the two most popular record books, there's still incredible to look at.
NEXT: #WHITETAILWEDNESDAY: CHECK OUT 20 MORE INCREDIBLE VINTAGE HUNTING PHOTOS
https://rumble.com/embed/u7gve.v3tohd/
