Wyoming - Preference Points Explained - Sort Of

[Len Backus]

by Al Langston, Information Specialist

Now that Wyoming has had nonresident preference points for a few years, we at the Game and Fish are fielding calls with increasing frequency from those who are trying to map out exactly what their chances will be for drawing some of the harder to get elk, deer and antelope licenses.

Hunters have been analyzing preference points for years with moose and bighorn sheep, and now that we are into 13 years for preferences for those species, we can make a reasonable guess on the number of points it will take to draw a license in most areas.

The demand index found on the Game and Fish website shows the number of points it took to draw a license in respective areas. In some areas it will show the maximum. Some will show a few less than the maximum. For example, moose hunt area 1 in the Bighorn Mountains had a nonresident quota of three licenses last year in the preference point draw. There was one nonresident who applied for that license who had 11 points and that person drew. That left two licenses. Two more people who had 10 points applied and they both drew. In other words, we had to go down to 10 points to fill the quota. If no one switches areas in the 2008 drawing, we will have to go down to 9 points to fill the quota in that area. This same process can be applied to any hunt area. Hunters can look at the preference points they have and estimate how many points it will take to pull a license in the various hunt areas. Of course the unknown is that quotas can change, and some hunters who have been applying may drop out, or other hunters may decide to switch areas.

For elk, deer and antelope, we simply do not have enough years of data to make much of a guess in the really hard-to-draw areas. After a few more years, some sort of pattern will develop and hunters will be able to narrow down their draw predictions somewhat. A folly of trying to make a prediction this early in the game can be found at looking at one of the hard to draw elk areas in the southwest part of the state. In area 31 south of Rock Springs, nonresidents had less than a two percent chance of drawing…even with preference points. This would lead one to believe that it could take 40*-50 years to draw a license. Of course in the ensuing years, some hunters will drop out and others will draw so the actual time period to draw will be much shorter. Exactly how much shorter is impossible to say at this point in time.

But, in hunt areas where the drawing odds aren’t so steep, hunters can now make a reasonable estimation of when they will draw. For a general special elk license, hunters who get preference points may be able to draw at least every other year. The same holds true for several of the general deer regions.

But one thing is for certain, if the desire is to draw one of the harder-to-get licenses for elk, deer and antelope, obtaining the preference point is very important. In the drawing, 75 percent of the licenses are reserved for the preference point draw. The remaining 25 percent of the license quota is issued in a complete random draw. To get an idea how this works, let’s look at popular nonresident deer Region W in the Medicine Bow National Forest. These odds from last year are for the regular-priced license. In 2007, those who purchased a preference point had a 100 percent chance in the draw. Those who chose not to purchase a point had drawing odds of just under 15 percent.

So the choice is yours. In some areas, especially private land areas for antelope and deer, drawing odds are very friendly and purchasing a preference point is usually not necessary. For more info on the ins and outs of preference points, feel free to give us a call at 307-777-4600.