Many people have differing opinions on Predator hunting tournaments. While this is not the focus of this blog, I will offer my opinion for what it’s worth. I believe they are a great way to incentivize predator hunters to gather and meet, exchange ideas, and methods. I also believe it is a way to incentivize predator control. Most of these contests are held right after the rut when many deer are vulnerable to predation and right before many does begin giving birth to next year’s fawn crop.
If you do decide to enter one of these tournaments you will quickly learn that they are very competitive. To compete and win you must have a good partner or two and a well-thought-out strategy. These contests take place on set dates with usually either a 24, 36, or 48-hour period. Without a plan, you will just be donating your entry fee. Below you will find a few tips that will give you a better chance for success.
- Pick good partners. By this, I mean put together a good team of guys that understand calling predators and can shoot well. More experienced predator hunters can read the body language of incoming animals and make good judgments as to when to shoot/not shoot. This sometimes means the difference of picking up just one animal per stand or multiples.
- Have plenty of good ground to hunt. This is critical. Many guys save their better spots for tournaments and only call them during tournaments. You don’t want to waste precious time calling spots that have been recently called.
- Play the wind. Have spots lined up that will work in different winds and conditions and avoid calling places where conditions are not perfect.
- Plan a route to hunt. Whether you are hunting large properties or many smaller properties this still applies. Map out an efficient route that saves time.
- Don’t waste time on each stand. The overwhelming majority of predators will respond within the first few minutes of the stand. Don’t waste time on stragglers that may or may not come. We usually limit each stand to no more than ten minutes whether we called in a predator or not.
- Use good equipment. Accurate rifles with good day and night scopes will give you the ability to make shots that are not possible with lesser equipment. Familiarize yourself with this equipment and you can capitalize on every opportunity. One animal can make the difference of being in the money or not.
- Use a good call. While there are many calls out there on the market, most operate on AA batteries (1.5 volt) and utilize cheap “PA type speakers” and don’t produce the best quality sounds. Convergent Hunting Solutions produces a call (Bullet HP) that runs on much more powerful (3.8 volt) batteries and higher quality “cone type” speakers that produce a much fuller sound. This higher quality sound will not only entice reluctant or hesitant predators into responding, but it will also help those that do respond to finish out closer to the call.
If you follow these few tips, you will give yourself the best opportunity for success while hunting these tournaments. With the payout for many of these tournaments being into the thousands of dollars, it could also end up being very lucrative. Remember to have fun, observe the rules/laws, and be safe.
Written by, Professional Predator Hunter,
Byron South