Big Game by StateThe public record of western draws

Montana · Elk · District 270

Montana elk b licence 270-02

How many people put this elk b licencefirst and how many of them drew it — year by year, separately for each of the four pools Montana draws, and separately at every bonus point level. Every figure comes from a Fish, Wildlife & Parks report linked at the foot of this page.

What the 2026 drawing did

Montana set a quota of 500 on 270-02 in 2026 and drew 500 — the quota filled. Across the four pools FWP draws separately, no nonresident landowner applicant put it first; no resident landowner applicant put it first; 207 nonresident applicants put it first and 37 drew, 17.87%; 2,147 resident applicants put it first and 463 drew, 21.56%.

Published in 11 of the drawing years FWP has posted, 2014 to 2026.

Drawing pool

First-choice success rate, by pool and year

The rate is the first-choice applicants in a pool who drew, divided by the first-choice applicants in that pool. Both are exact integers FWP printed in the same row, and it is the measure the department's own drawing statistics tool publishes: "the percentage of 1st choice applicants that were successful". A dash means nobody in that pool applied, so the draw answered nothing — absent, not nought.
YearPoolPool capPut it firstDrew on first choiceFirst-choice success ratePut it 2nd or 3rdDrew on 2nd or 3rd
2026Nonresident502073717.87%450
2026Resident5002,14746321.56%5400
2026Nonresident landowner5000———
2026Resident landowner7500———
2025Nonresident502314117.75%420
2025Resident5002,01945922.73%5220
2025Nonresident landowner5000———
2025Resident landowner7500———
2024Nonresident501603220.00%640
2024Resident5001,79746826.04%5450
2024Nonresident landowner5000———
2024Resident landowner7500———
2023Nonresident501753218.29%420
2023Resident5001,72046727.15%4630
2023Nonresident landowner5011100.00%——
2023Resident landowner7500———
2022Nonresident401313224.43%310
2022Resident4001,48936724.65%3980
2022Nonresident landowner4011100.00%——
2022Resident landowner6000———
2021Nonresident301452215.17%490
2021Resident3001,53627718.03%4990
2021Nonresident landowner3011100.00%——
2021Resident landowner4500———
2020Nonresident30761621.05%210
2020Resident3001,14028324.82%3130
2020Nonresident landowner3011100.00%——
2020Resident landowner4500———
2019Nonresident30571628.07%160
2019Resident30092328430.77%2230
2019Nonresident landowner3000———
2019Resident landowner4500———
2018Nonresident20511019.61%160
2018Resident20077219024.61%2480
2018Nonresident landowner2000———
2018Resident landowner3000———
2015Nonresident5500.00%60
2015Resident503985012.56%1540
2015Nonresident landowner500———
2015Resident landowner800———
2014Nonresident5700.00%30
2014Resident503085016.23%1450
2014Nonresident landowner500———
2014Resident landowner800———

Pool cap is FWP's own QTA column, and it is a ceiling rather than an allocation. The resident regular cap equals the overall quota; the nonresident caps are ten per cent of it and cover landowner and regular nonresidents together; the resident landowner cap is fifteen per cent. The department states plainly that the ceiling is not a floor: "although the nonresident quotas are set at 10%, that entire quota may not be drawn by nonresidents", and that if every resident applicant draws, nonresidents may go over ten per cent.

Landowner rows are a different drawing, not a subset of the one below them.Landowner preference is the first stage, worth up to fifteen per cent of the quota to resident landowners, and its applicants are counted apart from the regular pool throughout. FWP publishes the landowner pools at first choice only, which is why their second and third columns are dashes rather than noughts.

Draw rate at each bonus point level

One row per bonus point level per pool per year, exactly as FWP's Detailed Bonus Point report publishes it. The rate is that level's successes divided by its applications — both exact integers in the same printed row.
YearPoolBonus pointsAppliedDrewDrew at this level
2026Nonresident05024.00%
2026Nonresident180810.00%
2026Nonresident246919.57%
2026Nonresident3171164.71%
2026Nonresident414750.00%
2026Resident0429194.43%
2026Resident16707811.64%
2026Resident255412622.74%
2026Resident331713141.32%
2026Resident41367454.41%
2026Resident5352982.86%
2026Resident644100.00%
2026Resident722100.00%
2025Nonresident04948.16%
2025Nonresident19966.06%
2025Nonresident2551527.27%
2025Nonresident3221045.45%
2025Nonresident422100.00%
2025Nonresident544100.00%
2025Resident0441245.44%
2025Resident170010114.43%
2025Resident247611624.37%
2025Resident328113648.40%
2025Resident4986364.29%
2025Resident5181688.89%
2025Resident65360.00%
2024Nonresident04112.44%
2024Nonresident1681116.18%
2024Nonresident233824.24%
2024Nonresident310550.00%
2024Nonresident45480.00%
2024Nonresident533100.00%
2024Resident0453459.93%
2024Resident16018313.81%
2024Resident245216035.40%
2024Resident319910452.26%
2024Resident4756181.33%
2024Resident5121083.33%
2024Resident622100.00%
2024Resident711100.00%
2024Resident822100.00%
2023Nonresident1851112.94%
2023Nonresident228828.57%
2023Nonresident316743.75%
2023Nonresident45480.00%
2023Nonresident511100.00%
2023Nonresidentnot stated4012.50%
2023Resident166112218.46%
2023Resident232612337.73%
2023Resident320911454.55%
2023Resident4655483.08%
2023Resident5191894.74%
2023Resident65480.00%
2023Resident811100.00%
2023Residentnot stated434317.14%
2023Nonresident landowner111100.00%
2022Nonresident1421228.57%
2022Nonresident224520.83%
2022Nonresident310550.00%
2022Nonresident43266.67%
2022Nonresident522100.00%
2022Nonresidentnot stated50612.00%
2022Resident14205312.62%
2022Resident234011834.71%
2022Resident31639759.51%
2022Resident4634876.19%
2022Resident5201575.00%
2022Resident622100.00%
2022Residentnot stated481347.07%
2022Nonresident landowner111100.00%
2021Nonresident061914.75%
2021Nonresident11119.09%
2021Nonresident26466.67%
2021Nonresident32150.00%
2021Nonresidentnot stated65710.77%
2021Resident05236312.05%
2021Resident12827024.82%
2021Resident21395539.57%
2021Resident3463065.22%
2021Resident46583.33%
2021Resident544100.00%
2021Resident711100.00%
2021Residentnot stated535499.16%
2021Nonresident landowner011100.00%
2020Nonresident029413.79%
2020Nonresident113538.46%
2020Nonresident23266.67%
2020Nonresident3100.00%
2020Nonresidentnot stated30516.67%
2020Resident04036315.63%
2020Resident12125525.94%
2020Resident21117264.86%
2020Resident3262076.92%
2020Resident45480.00%
2020Resident511100.00%
2020Resident622100.00%
2020Residentnot stated3806617.37%
2020Nonresident landowner211100.00%
2019Nonresident030826.67%
2019Nonresident114642.86%
2019Nonresidentnot stated13215.38%
2019Resident02874816.72%
2019Resident12068139.32%
2019Resident2745371.62%
2019Resident3201785.00%
2019Resident45480.00%
2019Resident522100.00%
2019Residentnot stated3297924.01%
2018Nonresident02528.00%
2018Nonresident12150.00%
2018Nonresident22150.00%
2018Nonresident311100.00%
2018Nonresidentnot stated21523.81%
2018Resident02975418.18%
2018Resident11053230.48%
2018Resident2523363.46%
2018Resident3151280.00%
2018Resident455100.00%
2018Resident55480.00%
2018Resident711100.00%
2018Residentnot stated2924916.78%
2015Nonresident0500.00%
2015Resident0123129.76%
2015Resident145920.00%
2015Resident236616.67%
2015Resident316743.75%
2015Resident48225.00%
2015Resident56233.33%
2015Residentnot stated164127.32%
2014Nonresident0200.00%
2014Nonresidentnot stated500.00%
2014Resident0771114.29%
2014Resident1491326.53%
2014Resident219526.32%
2014Resident317423.53%
2014Resident416743.75%
2014Residentnot stated130107.69%

No bonus point level guarantees a licence in Montana, and this page does not publish one. FWP squares your bonus points and adds them to your current application as extra chances — three points give ten chances, ten points give a hundred and one — so the drawing is a weighted lottery and not a queue. More points is better odds every time, and a place in line never.

Not stated is FWP's own blank cell, and it is not the same as nought. The department's reports frequently carry both a nought-point row and a blank one for the same pool in the same year, with different application counts, and both are inside the district total it prints. FWP does not say what separates them, so they are shown apart rather than added together into a "no points" figure it never published.

Sources for this licence

Other licences in these districts

Bonus points are one of Montana's two point systems and the only one that applies here. The other, preference points, exists on nonresident combination licences alone and works in the opposite way. See how these numbers are produced and checked, or the Montana application deadlines.