LAST UPDATED: May 1st, 2015
Illinois bowhunter Marc Anthony is among the most respected and admired whitetail bowhunters on the planet. Alone, he holds over two dozen Pope and Young entries and more Boone and Crockett entries than anyone on the face of planet earth – at six. If you don’t think that is a feat, think about how he has taken them, almost all being taken from the ground.
Featured in high profile hunting magazines and books by many notable outdoor authors, Marc’s reputation has been on the fast track to nearing legendary status. And legendary status in the outdoor industry can bring big money, big sponsorships, and bigger pressures. All of which Marc has had to endure. Now it seems that a possible mistake may take all of that away from him.
The buck currently in question is the one above, shown here following a North American Whitetail story written by Marc Anthony.
It all started last week, when whitetail enthusiasts and shed collectors on Facebook were discussing the differences between caliber of bucks when one of them posted pictures of a big Kansas dead head once owned by a famous collector. It’s unclear how it snowballed from there, but what we do know is that one of the whitetail enthusiasts recognized the dead head from a past article featured in North American Whitetail written by Marc Anthony. The gates were open and comments began to flood in.
This image appeared on Facebook last week as deer and shed hunting enthusiasts discussed the discrepencies in the measuring of antlers. It was this image that drew the attention of at least one enthusiast who recognized this deer immediately as one being claimed to have been taken by ground hunter – Marc Anthony. The buck (on the left) was found dead in Kansas many years before and sold several times over.
The comparison of the two buck racks seems uncanny. Except for the possibility of a single sticker point, the two bucks become one. Marc Anthony’s personal Facebook page took the brunt of the heat, ballooning with questions and accusations from deer hunters from all across the country. In fact, his page is no longer open; the account has been closed by him or someone rushing to his aid.
This past Saturday, Marc issued this statement, “I am a by the book hunter. I don’t cheat. I am not a poacher. I have done nothing illegal.”
Further stating that he is pulling himself out of the industry altogether.
The Illinois Whitetail Alliance, which Marc once sat on the leadership board of, has also decided to part ways (at least for the time being) with him. They issued an announcement on Facebook asking the attention not be given to the controversy surrounding Marc or the Alliances once connection to him.
It remains unclear what will happen next in the controversy. As nothing was done illegally, Marc’s name may just slip into the realm of deer hunting obscurity alongside Mitch Rompola, Noel Feather and Spook Spann. Perhaps he’ll prove his innocence. Perhaps he won’t.
If you think about it, the most interesting undertaking in this odd story may not be coming from Marc at all, but rather from one or both of those prestigious record clubs that Marc belongs too (both P&Y and B&C). It has been well documented over the years that when such occurrences take place these clubs meet and decide the fate of all the deer entered by the controversial hunter in question. Typically, they are not in favor of the hunter.
Marc Anthony poses in 2006 with several of his best bucks from over a lifetime of hunting. He has taken more Boone and Crockett whitetail than anyone – at six.
This may be Marc’s one and only falsified deer, but without question the validity of all of his deer will certainly be scrutinized in the coming weeks. His reputation built over forty years of hunting is at stake.
Everyone’s wondering Marc – is this the same deer?
Read what the Bowhunting.com community has to say on this topic in our Forum post located here.
