About Keenan Adams, Turkey Hunter

At 15, Keenan has killed more than 200 wild turkeys, a stat not likely to be surpassed by any other teenager.

 

Record-breaking achievement certainly doesn’t come to the lazy and it usually doesn’t come to the very young, but 15-year-old Keenan Adams has a drive beyond his years and his ambition has paid off. A child in every right, but with the knowledge of a seasoned hunter, Adams has set the world record for the most World Slams of turkey hunting recorded by the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF)—a feat that many of his older counterparts can only dream about.

A World Slam is considered the biggest accomplishment in turkey hunting and requires taking one of each subspecies of turkey in North America (Eastern, Rio Grande, Merriam’s, Osceola, Gould’s) and the Ocellated wild turkey found in the jungles of Mexico, and Keenan has completed this deed a remarkable 14 times. In 2003, Keenan temporarily held the record as the youngest hunter to ever complete a World Slam. In fact, record breaking seems to be Keenan’s forte.

In pursuit of another record to break, Keenan put down his shotgun and completed his last World Slam with a bow, making him the youngest to do so, and in the process arrowed the NWTF’s highest-scoring and heaviest Ocellated turkey taken with a bow on record, weighing 17.4 pounds (total score of 59.4375).

Keenan now does all of his hunting with a bow. In fact, out of all his accomplishments, Keenan says he’s most proud of his 2006 and 2007 World ASA Championship and the 2006 and 2007 Shooter of the Year awards. His top score of 475 in the 2007 ASA event was the highest score ever recorded in the history of the ASA for any class.

“It took a lot of hard work and preparation to be able to win both of these tournaments,” Keenan said. “But my score was evidence that it had all paid off.”

The Early Years

Keenan’s dad, Roy, and his uncle, Buddy, laid the groundwork for Keenan’s many accomplishments before he was even born. The two started a business that provided them with the freedom and money to travel and hunt at will. So, as soon as Keenan was old enough, the trio began traveling to whatever destination they desired in pursuit of gobblers and other game, during which time they taught Keenan all there is to know about the wilderness and turkey hunting, and they were diligent on their rules of safety.

“Buddy and I took Keenan along with us on hunts when he was only 2 years old,” said Roy. “Of course, he didn’t carry a gun, but he experienced everything else about the hunt. I have six daughters and Keenan is my only son, so he naturally wanted to pal around with the guys. These days, Keenan still goes everywhere Buddy or I go. If one or both of us have a trip planned and Keenan can’t go, then we just want to cancel the trip. We’re a team.”

Keenan Adams with three gobblers he took while hunting the Ocellated wild turkey in Mexico. But should you still call them gobblers if they don’t gobble?

 

Keenan was only 5 years old when he shot his first turkey, but even as a mere kindergartener, Keenan contracted gobbler fever and knew that his first bird was just one of many more to come.

“I’ll never forget that day. I wasn’t planning on shooting during that hunt, but on the way I decided that I wanted to give it a try. So, I asked my dad and he said, ‘sure, son.’ After arriving at our hunting location, we waited for approximately an hour. Finally three big ole gobblers entered the chufa plot. I put my sight on the biggest one. I switched my safety off, took two deep breaths and fired. The gun kicked me so hard that I dropped it, but I didn’t care because I was so excited about shooting my first bird.”

As the years passed, Keenan began to show more and more interest in hunting, so his father insisted that he study for his hunting certificate. At 7, Keenan went with his father to take the certification test, but the instructor informed Roy that he thought Keenan was too young and reminded him that he could not assist his son. Roy stated that he understood and thought his son was ready to take the test. Keenan not only completed the test, but he was the only hunter out of 40 to make a perfect score of 100.

A Bright Future

Keenan is on his way to completing his second World Slam with a bow.

 

Now a 9th-grader at Bainbridge High School in Georgia, Keenan is still overshadowing those much older than him with his hunting prowess and after taking more than 200 gobblers, Keenan never tires of going after big toms.

“I love the challenge of it. You never know what to expect from each turkey hunt, which keeps it exciting.”

So what type of goal does a young guy set who has already accomplished apparently all there is to accomplish in the world of turkey hunting? More World Slams, of course.

“My next turkey-hunting goal would be to harvest an Osceola with my bow to complete my second bow-only World Slam. That Osceola would also complete my 15th World Slam.”

But, those who know Keenan also know there’s more to the high school freshman than just turkeys. Like any boy his age, school, friends and sports play a big role in this teenager’s life.

“Keenan is good at soccer and he plays on the varsity football team as the kicker,” said his father. “It’s hard to balance the sports and hunting with school, but Keenan manages his schedule well and works hard at everything that he does.”

Despite his busy schedule, Keenan still has an active social life with a broad circle of friends who are in awe of Keenan’s hunting accomplishments.

“They all think that I’m the luckiest guy in the world to be able to hunt turkeys all of the time.”

While Keenan’s friends all admire his turkey hunting successes, Keenan has his own heroes in the industry, and one of those is Michael Waddell, host of “Realtree Road Trips.”

“Michael Waddell has inspired me to work at being as successful as he is in the hunting industry.”

But, Keenan also has other hopes for his future as well. He plans to go to college and major in a field such as civil engineering or architecture. Whether he ends up in the turkey woods or the business world, or more than likely a combination of both, with a drive like Keenan’s there’s no doubt that he’ll excel at whatever he decides to do. The future is definitely bright for Keenan Adams.

How to Score Your Wild Turkey
Courtesy of NWTF