well this time of yr food is the real key to keeping them on your lands( come closer to the rut and it will switch to where there are doe)
and after food its going to be cover and security or honestly need all 3 in a close area for ideal set ups! if you ask me!
and the less pressure you put in his area the better, most bigger bucks like privacy if you ask me!, and many seem to live away from the rest of the local herds too!
But sadly this is a question I have been trying to answer for yrs at my place as well, as I really don't have the cover, and just cannot seems to make any that they like or will last
and as such deer just live off property and come to eat, as I am the major food source in the area
but sadly, once a little pressure starts
and that typically starts here once they shed there velvet about 2 weeks+ before the hunting season starts(with poaching)
most of the deer thus know they can just show up at nite in the crops/food plots and be gone before light making nocturnal deer at my place
if you figure out a better way to keep a BIG buck, let us all know, sure more than me would love to know how
best answer I could tell you is to buy lots of land, a good 500+ acres should be enough to hold deer all yr if managed right
I have about 200, and its just not enough here!, here deer travel a few miles every day and think nothing of it