The 12-year-old was archery hunting with his older brother, Colton Thompson, in Mead Township, and was getting pretty bored. He asked if they could quit for the day.

Thompson suggested they “give it just a little bit longer.”

Neither of them had any clue that a prize-winning buck was headed their way. They hadn’t put up a trail cam to guide them to any popular deer hang-outs. It was just an old-fashioned “brothers spending a day in the woods” kinda day.

It wasn’t long after, Kirk took aim at what he and his brother thought was about an eight-point buck. Kirk said he shot it in the neck but it didn’t go down right away. Thompson called his mom to tell her the news.

It was still light out, but with darkness approaching, they no idea how far the deer might travel. Tracking it became a family affair. They didn’t want to waste any time or allow the deer to suffer. Some of Kirk’s older brothers and even some cousins joined the effort. N

obody suspected until they came upon the deer, the size of the buck, or its rack. “It was huge,” Zofcin said. The 17-point buck (at least 15 scored) — Kirk’s first buck, though he did get a doe last year during rifle season — turned out to be a prize-winner.

Zofcin was a bit under the weather this week but still excited about winning this year’s Times Observer Big Buck Bonanza. He had to wait until the end of rifle season to get the news that he held onto the record for the most points.

Kirk is currently having the deer scored and mounted.