Caribou Gear Tarp

montana preference point question

bb1379

Member
Joined
Sep 17, 2011
Messages
54
i purchased the preference point last year for the combo license. i have a buddy that has 0 preference points and wants to apply with me for the deer combo this year. from reading the literature on the GF site, with bonus points they average them and the round up or down. my question is with my 1 pp and my buddies 0 we get .5pp. will they round up for the group to 1? again, I'm talking pref points.
 
I know for bonus points they round up. Would guess it’s the same for preference points too. If you call FWP they will tell you for sure.
 
that's what i plan to do Monday. really id rather hunt alone, but having someone to split expenses is nice.
 
He can buy the preference point now and use it now (2018).

i read that somewhere on another post i thought. sure goes against what most all of the other states do. i got one after the draw last summer, so i can get another one now i suppose? sounds like an easy way for MGF to get another $50. if people can buy a point after the draw and then another before the draw that could really push the draw to people with 2pp.
 
He can buy the preference point now and use it now (2018).

I don’t think that is true. The only way to get a preference point is to buy it as “points only” or be unsuccessful in the draw. So how can you buy a preference point in 2018 and draw a 2018 combo tag. It doesn’t make any sense, unless they drastically changed the regulations this year.
 
Purchasing Preference Points
Preference points for a nonresident big game or deer combination license may be purchased for a nonrefundable fee of $50. Applicants may purchase only one preference point per license year. Preference points can be purchased:
when applying for the nonresident combination license; or
between July 1 and Sept. 30, for those who did not apply for a nonresident big game license, or who did not purchase a preference point at the time they applied for a nonresident big game combination license.
The application deadline is Sept. 30 at 5 p.m. Preference points purchased at the time of application are awarded prior to the drawing.
Distribution of Licenses
Seventy-five percent of the nonresident combination licenses will be issued to individuals with preference points and 25 percent will be issued to those applicants who do not have preference points.
Retaining Preference Points
When you are successful in obtaining a nonresident combination license, your preference points are zeroed out.
Hunters must apply for the license at least every other year to retain their preference points. Failure to apply for the license for two consecutive years zeroes out the preference points.
 
From my understanding...You can only buy 1 PP per year...either before the draw/when you apply OR after the draw if you did not apply or after the draw if you applied without buying a PP. Seeing that there were ~1000 people who did not get deer combos last year, I would expect that most people will be buying a pp this year. I wonder if there will be any deer combos available to those people who do not buy a point at all. We planned our hunt for this fall coming from Massachusetts. To ensure that we got a deer tag we bought a PP last fall and another when we sent in our applications...yes this added another $100 to the cost of the tag, but it should ensure that we get a tag at least!
 
i did confirm and you can buy a pref point and have it go towards this years drawing. kind of different from most all the other states. 75% of tags are supposed to go to pp holders, 25% with out a point. lady told me 84% of pref points holders got a tag last year. bet that number is lower this year if the trend that seems to be hitting other states, like Wyoming, with the point creep.
 
Montana has officially confused every hunter trying to apply it seems. Luckily I've kept up with most changes. It's my understanding you can use the pref point the year you apply unlike most states. So you could go into the draw with two and your buddy one if he buys this month. With one point I think it's a shoe in. I've never bought one. They even had me confused this year when thinking on applying on combo refunds they have changed so much junk last few years their website even is incorrect. I have found both 80% refund this year and another area on site that states all refundable except some minor fees that total less than 50$. The latter is incorrect I'm pretty sure. Why can't they freaking make things easier to understand. I couldn't imagine starting from scratch today and figuring out those regs. They need a major retake.
 
I agree that it can be confusing at times. The preference point thing is a real money maker! They are banking on continued demand over supply and people reacting to it!! as for the refund, I believe that the 80% is only if you are offered the combo and turn it down due to not getting a permit. The full refund less fees is if you flat out don't get a license. Confusing, but definitely helps to pass the late winter blues!!! A prerequisite should be that you must hunt with a NR that has hinted at least the last 10 consecutive years, only he or she has a vague understanding of the Regs!!!!!!!!
 
I don’t think that is true. The only way to get a preference point is to buy it as “points only” or be unsuccessful in the draw. So how can you buy a preference point in 2018 and draw a 2018 combo tag. It doesn’t make any sense, unless they drastically changed the regulations this year.

Yes it is true . U are wrong . Believe me I've done my research .
 
i did confirm and you can buy a pref point and have it go towards this years drawing. kind of different from most all the other states. 75% of tags are supposed to go to pp holders, 25% with out a point. lady told me 84% of pref points holders got a tag last year. bet that number is lower this year if the trend that seems to be hitting other states, like Wyoming, with the point creep.

100% of pref point holders got tags . My brother drew a deer combo with no point and me a big game combo with no point . Anyone with pref point beats us out so 100% drew with pref point . I would not have got a tag if someone with a pref point didn't
 
100% of pref point holders got tags . My brother drew a deer combo with no point and me a big game combo with no point . Anyone with pref point beats us out so 100% drew with pref point . I would not have got a tag if someone with a pref point didn't

I’m just saying what they told me.
 
If you buy a PP this year it will apply to this years drawing. If you do not draw this year it will carry over to next year. If you do apply for two years it will be lost !
 
100% of pref point holders got tags . My brother drew a deer combo with no point and me a big game combo with no point . Anyone with pref point beats us out so 100% drew with pref point . I would not have got a tag if someone with a pref point didn't

According to statute, only 75 percent of the available licenses are given to those with preference points. What happens when there are more people using preference points than the 75 percent equates to? Your scenario would be true if there wasn't the 75/25 split.
 
Last edited:
So it 10,500 guys apply for 10,000 tags and 8,000 guys with pref points apply there's 500 guys with no points that get a tag over a guy with the point ? God for dumb
 
Glad I bought a point last summer plus one I bought at app time . 2 should get me a tag
 

Forum statistics

Threads
110,807
Messages
1,935,171
Members
34,887
Latest member
Uncle_Danno
Back
Top