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Change of plans leads to massive non-typical 23-pointer that sets a new Kent County record in Michigan

Russ Papke shot this Kent County, Mich., record buck after an out-of-state hunting trip unexpectedly ended early. (Contributed photo)

Russ Papke’s annual trip to deer camp in Ohio was a bust this year and left the Howard City hunter “discouraged” and “bummed out.”
But that disappointment was short-lived. A couple days after returning home early from his Ohio hunt, Papke shot the biggest buck of his life on his in-law’s property in Rockford in Kent County, Mich.
“I guess everything happens for a reason,” Papke told Michigan Outdoor News. “I was supposed to be in deer camp in Ohio with my buddies.”

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