Do you have this "game" all figured out?

Today I was thinking about a quote I remember hearing from a world class poker player (Daniel Negranu)....he said something to the effect, "poker isn't really challenging any more, the challenge is more against myself". He went onto explain that he has "figured out" the game of poker in terms of what tactics to use and when, and how to read/manipulate his opponents, like it is second nature to him. He says that motivating himself to succeed these days is what he needs to do to be successful, not learning any other tactics or skills.

So do you think you have this "game" all figured out in terms of your tactics/technical approaches to the sport of hunting? Could you take a 5-10 year break from hunting and just jump right back into hunting without much of an effect on your overall success? For those of you who answer "yes" or close to "yes" on having the "game" of hunting figured out, I will not take your comments as bragging. Thanks.

 

nope im far from figuring out this "game". i dont think its possible to master this "game" because you situations are never the same anytime you go out. there is always something different from the last time you went out. so unless you know how to deal with any and every type of situation. i dont think you have masterd it?

well thats my thoughts anyways

 

Far far far far from having this thing figured out. Every year i add something to my arsenal.

2006 was devoted to just seeing deer (check...killed 2)
2007 was devoted to getting closer to deer (semi check...took a doe at 8 yards, but no shots on a buck)
2008 was devoted to seeing more/bigger bucks (check...first Freak Daddy encounter, ended up passed 14 bucks from stand)

2009 is all about strategies. I want to get better at reading terrain and finding funnels, pinch points, bedding areas and BUCK trails. I also want to pattern a buck for the first time.

In my 3 years i have learned all about tree selection and cover, shooting lanes, entry routes and distance ranging. But there are some little things i need to work on. The biggest being wind. I have never deployed to much effort into hunting the right stand for the right winds. This is something i need to take serious from now on.

 

lol, I only wish...

 

Yep, as long as I stick with the same species... that's why I don't stick with the same species. But knowing how to hunt a critter and being successful at hunting that critter aren't always the same thing. Even for the best (which I'm far from being) there's some luck involved and the need for persistance.

 

Jeff, i know this has probably been asked before,

But, do you think if you were given a random 300 acres, say here in NE Ohio for giggles, and 3 years to kill a mature buck, that you could? I know that you have been very succesful in taking deer from your chuck of land, but i want to know if YOU think you could get it done somwhere else, without any help.

 

I know what you mean. My response was more like, yes I know what they do... but I don't feel like I'll have it all "figured out" until I can execute on what I know more times than not. And until there aren't questions I can't answer about the game, I don't feel like I'll have it all figured out.

I'll say it... IT'S NOT THAT HARD!!!:d

 

Nah, I'm still learning.

 

I've been deer hunting for 25 years and sometimes I find it comical how little I really know about it. Sure, the big components are easy to figure out, its the subtle things that I am fine tuning. The "why" is what intrigues me now and keeps me searching for answers.

 

Game figured out? Nah. Tactics enough to be successful? Sure.

The luck part is what will eat your lunch and send you home hungry though.

That being said, Good Luck, cause one day you will need it. The game is still in the deer's favor until you have him in the picture with you.

Bobby

 

Not even close :d but I'm having a hell of a good time learning how to play it, and improving every season

 

Untill I can kill a mature buck whenever I feel like it, I don't have it figured out. If I roll out of bed one morning and say to myself I think I'll kill a mature buck today and do it at will whenever I want to then maybe I can say I have it figured out. To kill a deer, I agree isn't very hard at all. I can pretty much say I can do that at will.

p.s. I'll never have golf "figured out" until I shoot a round of 18

 

I still have a lot to learn, even about the basics. I feel I still make "rookie" mistakes some days in the field, while on the other hand I make pretty strong/intelligent moves on other days in the woods. So I am pretty far from having it figured out.

And Jeff, I actually thought of baseball hitters last night when making this post. Some of them definitely have their style of hitting figured out. I just think sometimes that people are hesitant to say they have deer hunting figured out b/c of the fear that people will judge them as being egotistical. I believe some people do have this game figured out....just not me

 

Everyone's ideas of successful hunting is different...
Meaning, meat for the freezer or just shooting as many deer as possible or the biggest rack or the heaviest weight, etc.

Everyone's areas of the country are different...
Meaning Iowa, Kansas, WI, Ill, OH, etc.. Have spots that are considered "outstanding",
at least reading about them, never had the chance yet... Hint-hint

In saying this, you need to know the potential of your hunted area to judge your potential, itself, if you desire??

NH is not known as a "WHITETAIL" hunting state, unless you want big bodied buck's with decent racks and ample woods to hunt.
Out of the few dozen hunters I've hunted with, I know of two that are "big league" hunters, with dozens of large NH/MA deer on their walls.

I now realize that I am just a "Single A" player, making it through the ranks into "Double AA" league.
Those two guys I mentioned are in the pro's, per say...
They may not be the "Ted Williams" level of a pro, but a starter in the big leagues with many home runs!
So many levels of the game...

So when someone talks about "how easy it is", it really makes me think of what type of baseball player they are...
I have a few acquaintances that have played in semi-pro sports, in the two categories mentioned.
Every time I've talked to these folks, they tell me stories about the "hey-days" and their professional careers, but always follow it up with "I never made it to the big leagues"...

Hitting a Baseball is easy too..
You watch a ball come in your direction, you swing at the correct time with good contact,
and a home run appears as it leaves your bat.
Do some of us play still play T-Ball, it sure feels it sometimes??!!

 

My opinion, is that TED Williams (I chose him because of that whole steroid thing, not A-Rod or Manny or Bonds...)
equivalent in the hunting world is GregH (the smoke has been blown)

 

I am with Gmmat on this one I could take off 5-10 years and be right back at it. Does that mean I have it all figured out NO-WAY I pitty the fool that says he has it all figured out because if there is one thing I have figured out is those big bucks will humble you real fast and I mean real fast!!!Walt

 

Do I know how to deer hunt? I suppose I do

Do I have it ALL figured out with nothing else to learn? Absolutely not

 

No way. I hunt different land alot, that in itself makes "the game" too dynamic to have it all figured out.

 

Simple answer, nope!!!!! It's surprising what you forget when you haven't done something In a while.

 

I think in 5 yrs. Jeff's thoughts on it will change. Reason being, I "thought" I had it all figured out at one time too. Killing deer ain't that hard, but figuring them out is difficult, especially when what you know about them today will be different in 3-4yrs. Their patterns change, a piece of land gets forested, and then it's all about figuring it out again, you get a piece of land "figured out" and then it gets sold or leased and you're off to find a new piece of land to figure out, and on and on....

Jeff,
I think in the few short years you've hunted, you are VERY ACCOMPLISHED, now when something changes, the deer stop responding to calls, the deer change patterns, or whatever, how you adapt to continue to be successful determines how well you really have it figured out. 12-15yrs ago, all you had to do was clank a couple horns together in my area, and you'd have bucks all over you, nowadays, they won't even respond to them. Doe in heat urine used to be the same, nowadays, I won't even use it because it seems that I see less deer when using it than I do without. I "thought" I had a couple places figured out, then we got a BIG kill from that EHD breakout in this area, and back to the drawing boards, because their whole patterns changed. I think just when we think we have them figured out, something changes, and it's back to the drawing board again.