Trophy Class Outfitters

Submitted by: J.T. Kreager

Review Submitted: Dec 11, 2010

Hunt Date: Dec 7, 2010

Species Hunted: Whitetail Deer, Wild Boar

Days Hunted: 3

Hunt Type: Guided

Primary Terrain: Farmland

Method: Bow

Price Range: 1000-1999

Mississippi deer and hog hunt

Just returned from a fun combo deer and hog hunt with Trophy Class Outfitters at their new lodge near Monticello, MS. There was a severe cold snap that shut down the hog activity but kept the deer moving. I harvested a nice 9 point buck and a doe with my Hoyt AlphaMax bow on the first day. I only saw two hogs in the three days and didn't get a shot at them. I had other opportunties at deer that I passed on since I also wanted to get a shot at a hog. The lodge accommodations were excellent and so was the great southern cooking. They can handle groups of about 2-5 hunters per 3 day hunt. Head guide Art Mott is a great guy and works hard to get you shot opportunities. His wife Darlene is an excellent cook and will keep your belly good and full. They have 2,000 acres of prime river bottom ground that should only get better with time because Art certainly knows how to manage for quality deer and hogs. You probably won't kill a giant buck here but it's capable of producing bucks in the 120-140 range. I would recommend them and personally hope to hunt with them again someday.

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Submitted by: JT Kreager

Review Submitted: Nov 10, 2010

Hunt Date: Oct 30, 2010

Species Hunted: Whitetail Deer

Days Hunted: 5

Hunt Type: Guided

Primary Terrain: Praire

Method: Bow

Price Range: 2000-2999

Kansas Archery Whitetail

RL Foster of Trophy Class Outfitters runs a good trophy whitetail bowhunt in Kansas. He has some prime land leased with stands set in travel corridors and creek bottoms that are key funnels and pinch points. If the bucks are chasing and the rut is on I have no doubt hunters would have opportunities to harvest some great bucks. Unfortunately the week I was there there was very little rut activity. The weather was warm several days and for whatever reason the pre-rut activity was slow. While on stand, I only saw two bucks chasing does on the second to last day of my hunt. The last morning I rattled in a nice 120 class buck which I passed on. He uses lock-on stands and a few ladders. It was nice to see that they had pruned shooting lanes. Accomodations are very basic at a local motel and hunters are responsible for their own food and mostly eat at local restaurants. RL and his crew have a genuine interest in helping and want their hunters to have a great experience.

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note: The following reviews predate the numeric rating system and are not included in this outfitter's overall rating.

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outfitter review submitted by: John Woodall on Oct 14 2009

Species Hunted: Whitetail

Game Quality: Great

Accommodation Quality: Fine

Camp Condition: N/A

Food Quality: Good

Guide Experience: Good

Other Personal Experience: Good

Overall Impression: Great

Recommend: YES

Reviewer Comments: I have hunted with RL for the past 5 years. No luck the first year. I have tagged out every year since. I have killed a 135' 120' 155' 152'. I would recommend this hunt to anyone who is interested in a REAL hunt where invetsing time in a stand is critical. This is not a corporate hunt with fancy lodges and cooks and it is not advertised as such. Please email me if you have any questions and I will be glad to show off the deer RL has given me the opportunity to hunt.

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outfitter review submitted by: Ryan Scully on Jun 24 2009

Species Hunted: Whitetail

Game Quality: good

Accommodation Quality: not so good

Camp Condition: none

Food Quality: some good

Guide Experience: fair

Other Personal Experience: fair

Overall Impression: good

Recommend: yes

Reviewer Comments: If you want to have a chance at a true IL giant, Trophy Class is a good bet. Hunting these farms will make you want to move to IL. With that being said, you could possibly jack up in a power pole in Walmart parking lot in Pike County and kill a monster. There are literally that many deer in Pittsfield! We saw bucks chasing does just about any time we drove around, daytime or night, downtown or in the country.. The opening morning of the hunt I saw good bucks from daylight till noon. i saw a total of 11 bucks that morning. Though I didn't see any shooters the first day it was still amazing to watch that kind of deer activity. And this was all while the corn was still standing! On day 3 they were cutting the corn in the morning while i was on stand and there were deer running everywhere! i ended up getting down and going back to the hotel for lunch and getting right back up in the tree. At 330 that afternoon i saw the biggest buck i have ever seen in person! Giant mainframe 10pt with split brows and split g2s! He would probably score close to 170! He was tending a doe and came within 25yrds without me getting a shot.. I know you just almost threw up when you read that but its true. That would be the only downfall to that stand placement. There wasn't a shooting land trimmed to get a shot at the cut corn field. Over the next 2 days i saw so many bucks that i would stop counting. They would come to any kind of calling; grunting, rattling, can.. anything! But I waited on that big guy to come back and he never did. I made the choice to sit on one deer and i went home empty handed. However i saw some find deer that our fellow hunters had killed. I have plenty of pics if you want to email me! Now for the downfalls of the trip. There is nothing included in the hunt, but the hunt. You pay for your own food, drinks, beer, hotel, everything. So you're $2,250 hunt can end up costing a good bit more than that. There weren't as many stands on my farm as i would have liked. The motel is pretty much terrible, but you're hunting monster whitetails so how bad can it really be. I would have liked to have seen some topos of my farm and i would have liked to discuss options a little bit more. It was basically like they take you out to your stand, show you it and play ball. A little more personal attention would have made me more comfortable. I'm sure there are a few more things but I can't think of them right now. Email me and ask me some questions. Now for the pluses. You are hunting giant whitetails! Every farm has studs and you will see that from the buck sign. My favorite part of the entire hunt was the comradery that I had with my fellow hunters. By the second night I had friends for life. I think that is what i might miss the most about not going this year. The food around Pittsfield isn't great but there are a couple stand outs. The Red Dome Inn has the best prime rib i have ever tasted, by far! And if you go to the Red Dome you're almost certain to see some pro hunters up there. Watch a few videos before you go up there and you'll see some of those same guys at the Red Dome. Plus they have good looking girls working there. There is a breakfast place that we went to a couple times that was amazing too. If you choose trophy class you will have a wonderful time hunting monster IL brusiers but it is still a hunt. The deer aren't behind a fence. They don't have tags in their ears. They are wild whitetails but they are IL whitetails! You'll see what i mean after you get done with your hunt!

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outfitter review submitted by: Scott Alberda on Apr 28 2008

Species Hunted: Trophy Whitetail

Game Quality: Above Average

Accommodation Quality: Average Motel

Camp Condition: Good

Food Quality: Fend for yourself

Guide Experience: Great

Other Personal Experience: Great

Overall Impression: Worth Every Penny

Recommend: ABSOLUTELY

Reviewer Comments: R.L. and his staff of professional guides did a great job on my hunt over the first week of Nov 2007. Although I was not successful. I did see plenty of deer and rut activity and out of the 13 bowhunters in camp 6 killed P&Y bucks with 2 others missing shots. R.L. has been guiding clients in PIKE CO. many years and was actually one of the first outfitters to break ground in PIKE CO. before it ever had the press it dose now. His hunt's are for the serious BOWHUNTER and not the fly by night wine and dine. If you are looking to purchase an animal this is not the hunt for you . But if you are looking for a realistic chance at a TROPHY WHITETAIL then this would be a good bet being as he only runs hunt's the last week of October and the first 2 weeks of November while most other outfitters hunt from the opening of Bow season all the way through the slug season and back to bow season till that closes having pounded the farms that they have. Season ended with a 40% success rate and 60% shot Opportunity. With 9 Bucks over 140 P&Y and 5 of those over 150 P&Y Thats pretty good anywhere in North America for TROPHY WHITETAIL at $ 2,250

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outfitter review submitted by: Anthony Finn on Jan 2 2008

Species Hunted: WHITETAIL

Game Quality: FAIR

Accommodation Quality: AWEFUL

Camp Condition: MOTEL

Food Quality: FAST FOOD

Guide Experience: POOR

Other Personal Experience: AVERAGE

Overall Impression: POOR

Recommend: NO

Reviewer Comments: THE MOTEL BOOKED FOR US BY THE OUTFITTER WAS SO FILHTY I HAD TO BUY A SHOWER CURTAIN AT WALMART AND CUT IT INTO PIECES TO PUT ON THE BATHROOM FLOOR,IN THE SHOWER AND A PIECE TO USE AS A CURTAIN IN THE BATHROOM.THE GUIDES WERE YOUNG AND INEXPERIENCE. OUT OF THE 15 HUNTERS IN CAMP ONLY 3 BUCKS WERE KILLED ON THE 7 PROPERTIES IN PIKE COUNTY? AND ONE WAS KILLED BY A GUIDE!I WAS BURNED OUT IN 1 STAND FOR 3 DAYS,NEVER GIVEN A LAYOUT OF THE PROPERTY,STAND LOCATIONS,BEDDING AREAS,FEEDING PATTERNS,TRAVEL CORRIDORS ETC. ,THERE WERE ONLY 7 STANDS ON THE 400 ACRES WHICH ONLY THE GUIDE KNEW WHERE THEY WERE. HE HAD THE CHOICE OF STANDS FIRST.STANDS WERE NOT SETUP TO PLAY THE WIND!,EVERYTHING WAS LEFT FOR CHANCE,SHOOTING LANES WEREN'T TRIMMED,EVEN THOUGH THE CONDITIONS WERE WARM I SEEN ONLY A TOTAL OF 10 DEER(DOES AND BUCKS) FOR A 5 DAY HUNT AND NONE WERE IN SHOOTING RANGE.MY BUDDY DID SHOOT A 140 CLASS ON THE 3RD. DAY BUT THAT WAS BY "CHANCE".OVERALL NOT MUCH OF A EFFORT BY THE OWNER TO PUT ME ON ANY DEER PERIOD!HIS % SPEAKS FOR ITSELF! 3 OUT OF 15 ? IN MID NOVEMBER ON 7 PRIME PROPERTIES IN PIKE COUNTY!

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