I've mentioned in private to a few folks in PMs that I'm kinda deliberately hardlining the smooth-brain thing because I think "deer psychology" trips folks up. I see a lot of people worried about lure color and not stopping to first ask, "Are there even any fish in this pond?" The folks talking about "deer have a PhD in hunter avoidance" talk so loud you kinda gotta scream to make yourself heard. Happily, it appears I've screamed loud enough to turn heads.None of this means that they are bringing a shedload more smarts to the table. They're still deer. If you ignore the "deer are all smooth-brained and stupid" bluster and look at what @Nutterbuster is planning to do (and how it differs from what he's done in the past)...it reads an awful lot like typical mature buck-hunting strategy, other than not callin' the critter smart.
I definitely think I have a solid strategy. Since I live in an absolutely dismal county and state for big bucks, the highest ROI I can get is a license somewhere else. A couple hours on a computer looking at DMAP and trophy records narrowed down states within driving distance pretty quickly. A few more narrowed it down to counties and public properties.
Next step is truck and boat scouting to knock out 80-90% of what's there. Then it's boots time to knock out 80-90% of that. I try to look for either seasonal food, bedding, or choke points between the two. Dirt simple, but even smart bucks gotta eat and hide. From there it's just a matter of putting time in the tree. Preferably on a cold, clear day with a stiff north wind. Bonus points if it's the horny moon.
Like you said, it ain't that different from a lot of people's strategies. I'm just weighting the front-end, macro prep work higher than the finishing stuff. And not concerning myself with whatever a big buck would write in his autobiography as being the moments that shaped his life.