My $200 Six Point

First you have to know that we are trying to shoot just large bucks on the famous Christmas Place. This is often easier said than done. In fact, almost every member has been fined for screwing up and shooting too small a buck. The fine is $200.
The morning was cool. Crisp air and still woods make your heart jump at every sound while you are hunting. I could hear the deer running through the hollow below me and got ready. They turned up the ridge and were right beside me in an instant. They both froze for a few seconds and I realized one was a doe and the other a small buck. She was obviously in heat and he was hot on her tail.
She broke and took off up the ridge. He was right behind her. They reached the end, then turned and raced back and stopped under my stand. A few seconds later she took off, made a big loop and they ended up right beside me again. You could have heard them from a half mile with all of the racket they were making. Up the ridge, down the ridge, back and forth they ran, but they weren’t going anywhere. I figured it was only a matter of time before another buck showed up and then I saw movement as a nice young buck showed up and got in the chase. Crashing, snorting, running, stomping they circled all around me. I knew that the biggest deer in the woods would soon be here to check this out. Ten minutes later, a flash of an antler slipping through the brush, it emerged 20 yards away into the open woods where I was hunting and froze. It’s head was directly behind a tree but I knew it was the king of the forest.
The buck started making a scrape and raking it’s horns in the limbs as I eased up and put my rifle in the fork of the tree. I aimed, just trying to see the antlers. His head was still behind the tree, but my safety was off and I put the crosshair right behind his shoulder. all he had to do was take one step for me to see the antlers and shoot. I was talking to my self “as soon as he steps out, I am going to shoot him right there.” The gun went off! Blood ran down my forehead! The buck took off! I could not believe the gun went off! All I could think was “Oh, s$%t!
Was it him, had I screwed up? I went to get help. I found Mr. Jones who had no sympathy for the scope cut on my forehead and we headed back. The big deer was in the deepest ravine on the property, and to make matters worse was a 6-point. Big, but no matter how I counted it still only had 6-points. Mr. Jones and I almost had heart attacks getting it out and boy did I catch some ribbing at the camp. They all cheered when I wrote out the check..