one of the guys I hunt ELK with occasionally (GEORGE) has and uses a 257 roberts on ELK loaded with SPEER BULLETS 25CAL 115 GR TROPHY BONDED BEAR CLAW BULLETs most of the time, in his BLR.(I know I load his ammo) it KILLS ELK just fine, but it seldom puts them down at the bullet impact point/location.
theres a big differance between having the ability to deliver a MORTAL WOUND that will soon drop the animal and having the ability to both deliver that MORTAL WOUND and almost instantly shut down the games ability to travel.
that differance is due in most cases to the EXTENT and DEPTH of the DAMAGE that results.
yes shot placement is critical, but having the ability to reach the vitals from almost any angle and at reasonable ranges, under almost all conditions and inflicting damage to a larger area tends to give you a significant advantage, that advantage is the result, of physics,physical factors that favor larger/heavier bullets and more energy on the target than a 257 calibers 115-120 grain bullets deliver.
can you kill ELK with a 257 roberts SURE,IVE SEEN it done several times, once ive even seen an ELK drop within a few feet of the bullets impact, but the differance in the internal damage when dressing out those ELK would make me suggest a larger calibers a better chooice in most hunters hands.
like some others have mentioned, a .277 cal/150 grain bullet is a more senceable MINIMUM, and a 30 cal/165 or larger is even better if you can learn to handle the recoil levels.
what this discussion is really about is the DIRECTION ELK run and REACTION of ELK after being hit, I seriously doubt we would be having this discussion if WOUNDED ELK that could still remain mobile tended to STOMP& GORE hunters untill they resembled bloody hamburger, but because they tend to run AWAY and die with no potential danger to the shooter it appears, its just not as important to some hunters that they get a CLEAN/FAST KILL