P&Y Confirms World-Record Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep

A massive Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep killed last October in South Dakota has now been confirmed as a world record by both major hunting score-keepers.

Pope and Young Club confirmed the 209 1/8-inch ram killed by Clayton Miller on Oct. 30 in Pennington County, S.D., is a new P&Y record. It is now the biggest hunter-killer bighorn sheep with both Pope and Young, and Boone and Crockett.

Miller’s bow-killed ram was nearly 10 inches larger than the previous record (Todd Kirk, 1998).

Pope and Young convened a special panel on Jan. 24 to confirm the ram’s score, according to a news release.

”The Rocky Mountain Bighorn sheep is such an American icon. To have the privilege to be part of a Special Panel of Judges to authenticate its final score was a special treat, said Ed Fanchin, Records Chair for the Pope and Young Club. “This ram exceeded the previous Pope and Young Club Rocky Mountain Bighorn sheep World Record by almost 10 inches, a record that stood for the last 20 years. Congratulations to Clayton and the South Dakota Department of Game Fish and Parks for practicing sound wildlife management.”

Miller said he had been applying since a kid to draw a tag to hunt in the bighorn sheep unit in the South Dakota Badlands; his name came up this year.

“I went into this hunt knowing that there were some spectacular animals in the area, but it was beyond my wildest dream that I would be after the new Pope and Young Club World Record,” he said in the news release. “Thank you to everyone that helped along the way, mostly to my wife Becca for taking care of the family while I made dozens of scouting trips. What an honor and a privilege it was for me to be able to watch these incredible animals all year long a short road trip from my backyard!”

The ram will be on display at the Pope and Young Club Convention in Omaha, Nebraska in April 2019.