The official New York State Whitetail Deer & Bear Records.

Celebrating the tradition, heritage, and achievement of New York’s whitetail hunters.

The New York State Big Buck Club honors hunters who have taken outstanding whitetail deer across the state, recognizing both the skill and dedication it takes to pursue New York’s most iconic game animal. Through accurate records, fair-chase principles, and a shared passion for the outdoors, we preserve the history of great deer and great hunters for generations to come.

Whether you’re here to submit a trophy, explore record bucks, or connect with fellow sportsmen and women, you’re part of a proud tradition that keeps New York’s hunting heritage alive.

Brief History

The New York State Big Buck Club was founded in 1972 but the true beginnings go back to the 1930’s. 

During the 1930’s and 1940’s Clayton B. Seagears, of the State Conservation Department started locating, measuring, and publicizing the big racks taken by New York hunters. Seagears used the system developed by the Boone and Crocket Club and his friend (Grancel Fitz) to record the trophies he found.

Perhaps one of the two biggest things Seagears did to stir interest in the whitetail was to publish a pamphlet to be sold with all big game licenses in 1941. This pamphlet told hunters how to measure their buck, and asked them to respond if their buck was unusually large. The response to this request was overwhelming. The second thing he did evolved from the pamphlet information when he put together photographs of New York’s ten best heads and published it in the 1946 issue of “The Conservationist”. In 1952 and again in 1963, “The Conservationist” kept the sportsmen informed by displaying updated listings of the state’s ten best heads. Although Seagears did not realize it at the time, his efforts were laying the foundation for the Big Buck Club as we know it today.

After Seagears retired from the department, the interest in New York’s whitetails dwindled. Nearly ten years went by before a man with a dream of forming a big buck club came to the scene. Bob Estes, a dairy farmer and Boone and Crocket measurer, from Caledonia, picked up where Seagears left off. Bob started locating new racks, as well as holding seminars and county displays, publicizing New York’s big bucks.

It took Estes five long years to get his vision off the ground but with the help of interested sportsmen and John W. Brown, a newspaper writer, he was able to succeed. In March 1972 Estes, Herb Doig and Wayne Trimm of the D.E.C. met in Delmar, N.Y. The details of how the club would operate were finalized and the New York State Big Buck Club was born. At the same time Wayne Trimm, world renowned wildlife artist, offered to paint a portrait of the largest buck taken in New York State each year.

Since 1972 the Big Buck Club has branched out to every corner of the state. There are now 40 dedicated measurers to score and assist in the recording of trophy whitetails. The club also sponsors many seminars, rack scoring days and booths in various county fairs throughout the state each year.

The yearly highlight of the big buck club activities takes place each September when the club holds its annual banquet. It is at this banquet that the coveted Wayne Trimm paintings are presented to the hunters of the top bow and gun kill from the previous hunting season. The banquet is held in a different city each year to enable sportsmen from around the state to have the opportunity of seeing the outstanding displays and hearing various knowledgeable people on the whitetail.

The Big Buck Club has come a long way since that March day in 1972. There certainly is a story to be told about the quality of deer hunting in New York, and since 1972 the Big Buck Club has done its part to tell this story. With the capable people the club now has, it will continue to grow with each coming year, and the sportsmen of New York can be assured that all the successful programs of the past will continue to be used in the future. 

Charles Alsheimer, 

July 1978

Measurers

Measurers are located all over NY State. Click Below to find a measurer in your County.

Measurer List

Ready to take the next step and become a NYSBBC measurer?

Contact: Kevin Frankie | mosbuck@aol.com

Email

“To hunt is to understand the delicate balance of life and death and our role within it.”

— Fred Bear

 FAQs

  • Any deer can be entered in the NYSBBC if it meets the following criteria: 

    • It must have been taken legally. 

    • It must have been taken in NY. 

    • It must meet the minimum score required for its specific category. 

    This means that any buck taken or found in New York that meets the above criteria is eligible for entry in the NYSBBC regardless of age. The buck that grandad took or found back in the 1930’s that has been hanging in camp since you were a little kid, is still eligible for entry. 

  • Non-Typical points are those abnormal in location (such as points originating from a point or from the bottom or sides of main beam) or extra points beyond the normal pattern of points. 

  • For NYSBBC, if your deer has 12 4/8” or more of Non-Typical points it must be entered in the Non- Typical category. And, if it has less than 12 4/8” of Non-typical points, it must be entered in the Typical category. * This is a NYSBBC rule only, other clubs use different rules to determine Typical/Non-typical placement. 

  • To be counted as a point, the projection must be at least one inch long, with the length exceeding width at one inch or more of length. 

  • Inside Spread of Main Beams is measured at a right angle to the center line of the skull at the widest point between main beams. 

  • If the Inside Spread is greater than either Main Beam Length, than the longest Main Beam Length is 

    entered as the Inside Spread Credit. 

  • The NYSBBC currently has measurers across the state. On our website you will find a list of all our measurers and their contact information. They are listed in county order so that you can find and contact the measurers nearest you. We also accept score sheets from B&C, P&Y and Northeast Big Buck Club official scorers. 

  • Not necessarily. We try to get everyone’s picture in the book, but we only have so much room in the book and some of the pictures are not good quality.