Antler Scoring

Category: scoring-aging
Topic keys: antler-scoring

Current guidance

As of 2025-09-07, the most recent claim on this subject.

On antler scoring, Terry has said a four-by-four buck topping 160 inches counts as a toad, and later added that an eight-point crossing 160 to 165 inches needs exceptional mass, tine length, spread, and beams. Don tracks individual bucks with estimates: he guessed Babe would come in under 200 inches, then settled around 180, down from the mid-180s the prior year, with more mass but fewer points, and expected another clean four-by-four without stickers to score around 170. They also cite Mel, who scored 216 inches at three and a half despite doubters, and the Texas buck taken by Tarif Al Khatib, noted for split brow tines, heavily curled beams, a wide frame, and good tine length.

How the guidance evolved

2019-11-10 Don had predicted the fork tine buck would score around 170 inches, but the six-year-old buck actually scored 167. 9:15 — Episode #6 - Don Kills 2 Booners on Back to Back Hunts
2020-11-23 Terry states the buck he harvested ended up scoring about 148.5 inches. 8:22 — Episode #38 Terry Kills a Illinois 8 Pointer and Don gets wound up on some industry topics! REALLY WOUND UP!
2021-03-28 An older gentleman told Don that historically in the captive deer industry, a buck scoring 140 inches at two years old or 170 at three years old had very good odds of eventually breaking 200 inches. 73:06 — Episode #58 - Burning Native Grass Tips and Great Questions from 3rd Master Class
2022-10-10 Don said the old buck lost about 20 inches of antler compared to his best rack at seven and a half years old but remains a trophy at nine and a half. 11:25 — Episode #138 - Hunting the Full Moon
2022-12-11 Don recalled that a buck named Mel scored a 216-inch rack at three and a half years old, though people doubted it at the time. 46:35 — Episode #147 - Winter Buck Inventory… More Important than Summer?
2023-07-03 Don guessed Babe’s rack will score under 200 inches this year. 34:12 — Episode #176 - Don’s Advice for Battery High Prices
2023-08-06 Don estimated Babe would score around 180 inches this year, down from the mid-180s last year, with more mass but fewer points. 9:06 — Episode #181 - What is new with Asio Gear?
2023-08-06 Terry stated that any four-by-four buck scoring over 160 inches is considered a toad. 10:28 — Episode #181 - What is new with Asio Gear?
2023-08-06 Don mentioned he has another clean four-by-four buck with no stickers that he expects to score around 170 inches. 10:46 — Episode #181 - What is new with Asio Gear?
2023-12-03 The Texas buck Tarif Al Khatib harvested had at least 12 points. 14:03 — Episode 198 - Buck Traveling Long Distances After The Rut
2023-12-03 Terry noted the Texas buck had both brow tines split, heavily curled beams, a wide frame, and good tine length. 14:09 — Episode 198 - Buck Traveling Long Distances After The Rut
2025-09-07 Terry noted it’s difficult for an eight-point buck to score over 160-165 inches without exceptional mass, tine length, spread, and beams. 57:44 — Deer Velvet Shedding & Fall Buck Shifts: Don Higgins Responds to Rumors | Chasing Giants Ep. 289

Questions on this topic

Jeremy Melville asked whether Don lets family and friends shoot three-to-four-year-old eight pointers to give them opportunities, or to remove deer unlikely to score high later. 58:54 — Episode #92 - Don in Facebook Jail?
Garrett asked whether it’s plausible that a wild-killed 250-plus-inch deer could really be aged at only three and a half years old by tooth analysis. 43:06 — Why Some Hunting Properties Work Instantly… And Others Fail - Chasing Giants Podcast #319
Will Don make any bold predictions this year and call his shot again like he did with a buck named Babe? 37:13 — Episode #227 - Science Behind Summer Solstice and Whitetail
Joe asked whether Don said the buck was a 180-inch eight-point, four-by-four. 9:46 — Episode #181 - What is new with Asio Gear?
Terry asked whether the buck has around 10 inches of nontypical antler. 10:12 — Episode #181 - What is new with Asio Gear?
Brett Petty asked whether Don regrets shooting Babe given this year’s excellent antler growth, and whether Babe might have scored over 200. 37:51 — Ep. #226 - Mineral Site Placement and Predator Activity Special Memories of Fathers on Father’s Day
Kyle Bliss asks why Don wouldn’t consider shooting a buck that’s regressed from one-seventies to one-sixties inches this year. 41:33 — Episode #84 Don Choice - Iowa or Illinois for Opening Day?

Unofficial fan project. AI-synthesized from public episodes; may contain errors.