Understanding Arizona's Big Game Drawing

Arizona is yet another state that has a fairly confusing big game drawing system. I’ll try to make some sense of how it works, and how using the drawing reports helps tell the story of how tags are awarded.

Bonus Points

Arizona uses a bonus point system for deer, antelope, elk, turkey, javelina, bighorn sheep, buffalo, and bear. Bonus points are accrued by submitting a valid application and being unsuccessful in the drawing. Arizona also offers applicants a loyalty bonus point (per species) if you apply for a tag or bonus point for five years consecutively. The loyalty point is retained as long as you continue to submit an application for that species at least once a year. For anyone who lives close enough to make it worthwhile, Arizona also offers a hunter education bonus point which is awarded when an individual successfully completes a hunter safety course in the State of Arizona.

In addition to individual bonus points Arizona has a group bonus point system. Group points are accrued when 2 to 4 applicants apply as a party on a single application. The total points for the group are calculated by adding the total amongst each individual and dividing by the number of applicants in the group. If the average point total has decimal digits equal to or greater than .5, the total is rounded to the next highest number. Any point totals with decimal digits less than .5 are rounded down.

An important thing to keep in mind with group applications is, if your number comes up, there must be enough permits to satisfy all applicants in the group. In other words, if there are four people in your group and the group is selected with only three permits remaining, your group will not draw. The computer will move on to the next applicant.

Since Arizona caps non-residents tags at 10% of the quota, it is crucial that you at least buy a bonus point every year. The bonus point can be purchased by paying for a hunting license and also paying a $7.50 application fee. Bonus points can be purchased for any applicant who is at least 10 years old by the application deadline. A general hunting license is also required to participate in the big game drawing.

Arizona has no online application platform for big game tags. Hunting licenses however can be purchased online. Tag applications must be submitted via US mail to the Fish and Game Department’s Phoenix Office at P.O. Box 74020, Phoenix, AZ 85087-1052. On deadline days, Department business offices close at 5:00 p.m. (MST), but applications can be delivered to drop boxes until 7:00 p.m., (MST). Drop boxes are locked promptly at 7:00 p.m., (MST). All applications must be received by the Department before the deadline. Keep in mind that post marks do not count, so be sure you know the deadlines!

If bonus points and mailing instructions seem simple enough, here comes the confusing part. Arizona has three phases to their drawing; the bonus point phase, the first-second choice phase, and the third-fourth choice phase. For each phase of the drawing, a random number is generated for each application plus additional random numbers for each bonus point group. In other words, if you apply with 7 bonus points your application will receive 7 random numbers for each phase your application is used in. The lowest random numbers are drawn first in each phase; however the bonus point phase also looks at the highest point categories first.

To help explain the drawing process I’ve cut and pasted the drawing info directly from the Arizona Game and Fish website. I have inserted my comments after each section in bold italics:

First Pass (20% Bonus Point)   

Twenty percent of authorized hunt permit-tags in each hunt number for deer, antelope, elk, turkey, javelina, and spring bear may be issued in this pass. Twenty percent of the total authorized hunt permit-tags (all hunt numbers combined) for both bighorn sheep and buffalo may be issued. Although 20 percent are available, the 10% nonresident caps are still in effect. 

1. Each valid application is assigned the lowest random number from those generated for that application.
2.  The application file for each species is sorted by point category in descending sequence and then by random number within the bonus point category. 

In the Bonus Pass, the first and second hunt choices for all applications with maximum bonus points are looked at first. If permits are still available from the 20% allocation, then the next lower bonus point category is looked at; and so on, until all of the 20% allocation is issued or until all applications with 1 or more bonus points are read.  Applications with zero bonus points will not be included in the 20% Bonus Pass of the Draw.

As each application is read, the first and then second hunt choices are checked to see if there are any permits available as part of the 20% bonus point allocation. If there are enough permits available for each applicant on the application without exceeding the 20% allocation or the nonresident cap, the permits are issued to that application. If not, the next application is read and the first and second hunt choices are checked until the entire application file is read. Any un­issued permits from the "bonus point pass" will be returned to the available permits for each hunt. The Drawing will then continue to the next two passes.

In the following paragraphs I’m going to refer to some drawing reports. The graphic below explains the information in the first 5 columns of the reports I’ll use as examples.

 

What’s interesting in Arizona Is, despite the fact that bonus points and random numbers are used, you have a high likelihood of drawing a tag with your first choice, if you are in the highest bonus point group, and the total number of applicants in your  groups doesn’t exceed the 20% cap.

For example, the table below shows drawing results for elk hunt 3008, which is a general bull elk tag for unit 23 north. The hunt had a quota of 15 tags, 3 of which (20%) were issued in the bonus point phase of the drawing. All three licenses went to folks in the max bonus point group of 18. You’ll also notice that this is an example where the number of first-choice applicants in the highest point group (5) exceeds the 20% cap for available tags (3), which means two applicants were left out in the cold.

 

Now you might be saying to yourself, I don’t have 18 points for elk in Arizona so I would have no chance of drawing the hunt shown above. Before making that assumption, read the next section.

Second Pass (1st and 2nd Hunt Choices)

1.  For all valid applications which were unsuccessful in the bonus point pass, new random numbers are generated for each application with the lowest random number being assigned to the application. The same random number process as described above is used.
2.  The valid application file for each species is then sorted in random number sequence only. 
3.  The first valid application (with the lowest random number) is read, checking the first and then the second hunt choices for available hunt permit-tags. If there are enough hunt permit-tags available for either of the choices and for each applicant on the application, without exceeding the nonresident cap when applicable, then the hunt permit-tags are issued. The next valid application in random number sequence is then checked for available hunt permit-tags until the entire file is read. 

The second phase of Arizona’s drawing is where things get really interesting. Just because you may not have drawn a tag in the bonus point phase doesn’t mean you’re out of luck. During the second phase your application is assigned new computer generated numbers and your bonus points are still used! The difference in the second phase is the highest point category is not looked at first. All tags in this phase are issued based on the random numbers assigned to applications. Obviously, the more bonus points you have, the better your odds are of being assigned a low random number.

The table below shows the phase 2 draw results for the same hunt we looked at in the previous table. Note that tags were awarded all across the bonus point categories, with a few exceptions. What can be a little confusing here is the second phase draw report also includes the folks who drew in the bonus point phase – the three tags drawn in the 18 point category. What this means is, in the second phase a total of 12 tags were issued, thus filling out the quota of 15 total licenses for this particular hunt. Since all 15 tags were issued in the first two phases of the drawing for this hunt, nobody in the third phase would have a chance at drawing tags.

Third Pass (3rd, 4th, and 5th Hunt Choices)

1. For all applications which were unsuccessful with their first and second choices, new random numbers are generated for each valid application with the lowest random number being assigned to the application. The same random number process as described above is used.
2.  The valid application file for each species is again sorted into random number sequence. 
3.  Each valid application is then read checking the third, then fourth, and then fifth hunt choices for available hunt permit-tags for all applicants on each application (without exceeding the nonresident cap). When hunt permit-tags are available for one of the three choices, they are issued to the application.
4.  After the entire file has been read in the third pass, the hunt permit-tag issuance portion of the drawing has been completed. Applicants are then awarded an additional bonus point for each species for which they were unsuccessful with a valid application. The species bonus points for each successful applicant are then zeroed out for the species for which they were issued a hunt permit-tag. 

In phase 3 your application is again assigned new computer generated numbers and your bonus points are still used! Tags in phase 3 are issued the same as they are in phase 2, assuming there are any tags left for this phase.  

I was not able to find drawing reports for this phase. In any case, it’s safe to assume that very few (if any) tags were drawn based on these choices, especially by non-resident hunters.

Leftover Permits

Any hunt permit-tags not issued in the above three passes are eligible for the first-come/first ­serve process. Applications are made by mail (or online, if available) and hunt permit-tags are issued to the first individuals who apply for these hunts. In the first-come/first-serve process, a successful applicant retains all accumulated bonus points.

Recap

• There are three phases to Arizona's big game drawing. If you have bonus points and are not drawn in phase 1, you still have a chance in phase 2.  
• Tags in phase 1 are awarded to the highest bonus point categories first.
• Tags in phase 2 and 3 are awarded based on the lowest random number your application is assigned.
• You are still assigned random numbers for your bonus points in phases 2 and 3.
• Bonus points are only awarded if you fail to draw a tag, not if you fail to draw in a given phase of the drawing. If you draw a tag in any phase, your bonus points are zeroed out for that species.
• A hunting license is required to apply for tags or purchase bonus points
• Bonus points can be purchases for anyone who is 10 years old as of the application deadline.

The application deadline for 2011 elk and antelope tags in February 8, 2011. The deadline for deer, bighorn sheep, turkey, buffalo pheasant and javelina will be June 14, 2011.

If you have any questions about the Arizona big game drawing, be sure to give us a call or shoot us an e-mail.

Good luck in the draw!

Understanding Arizona's Big Game Drawing