Yes. I agree.

Although I have only chased them--for days in the aggregate--and never have taken one, I would only want a shaggy, brown faced, blue bodied old bull.

I have passed on eland looking like that one and cannot imagine why a safari outfitter would tout that one as an exemplar of the species.

Saeed:

I think this is an example of an old Blue Bull I took in Zimbabwe this year. Note the one worn down horn, allways good to harvest the old to make room for the new!

regrds,

Rick L. Webb

mrlexma,

I'm with you all the way on only considering a very old male as a trophy worthy of taking. If a hunting client is only interested in inches and any PH comes accros some young record-book monster who is still in the breeding age, he is faced with some problems: The client wants inches, and sees inches. You know that the animal, despite having lots of inches, is not really a trophy, and should be left to breed his big horns genes into the herd. But in my book of rules the client is always right. So unless I have a very specific understanding with the concession owner I would let the client shoot his inches. The photo is not one that I would put up on my website though.
The biggest impala that I personally shot was hunted for venison and measured a youthfull 26 1/2". I gave the horns away. The impala horns that I keep on my wall was in his prime probably just short of a Roland Ward qualifier at an estimated 23 3/8", but was so worn down to be 16 1/2" and 17 1/2" with nice round blunt worn tips of a battle scarred old veteran well past prime.
Good luck with your hunting season in USA and elsewhere.
Andrew McLaren