The true world record

[Catt]

I saw the bass & I saw what the scales said.

 

World Record c'est fini

 

[Tennessee Boy]

21 hours ago, WRB said:

According to Tennessee regs snagging game fish is allowed in the Tennessee River, Not reservoirs. Rough fish are allowed to be snagged.

Ever watch a bass tournament where bass are snagged outside the mouth, very common with treble hook lures.

Tom

Read your regs.

Tom

Not sure where you’re getting your information but it’s not from Tennessee.

 

From the 2022 Tennessee Regulations 

Grabbling, Gigging, Grab Hooks, Snagging, Archery, Crossbow, Speargun

Season open year round in all waters except:

1. where closed to fishing or expressly prohibited.
2. within 100 yards below dams. At Pickwick Dam the closed area extends downstream to the first moorage cell across from ramp.
3. at John Sevier Steam Plant the discharge channel is closed.

Nongame fish may be taken without limit. Game fish, sturgeon, and alligator gar may not be taken. Catfish, paddlefish, and skipjack may be harvested according to local limits.

[NYWayfarer]

14 hours ago, jbsoonerfan said:

I'm not very smart, but I think foul hooked and snagged are also different. 

I have the same thought in this case. A fish taking a swipe at a lure and getting foul hooked is different from using a weighted treble to snag it. 
 

Luckily I am not obsessed with getting my name in a record book. I would have a picture of me with a huge Bass and the thought that I caught one over 20 pounds. Good enough for me. 

[flyfisher]

There are regulations on what makes a record a record and the fish didn't meet the record so the easy answer is no and there isn't much else to it really. 

[FrnkNsteen]

44 minutes ago, NYWayfarer said:

I have the same thought in this case. A fish taking a swipe at a lure and getting foul hooked is different from using a weighted treble to snag it. 
 

Luckily I am not obsessed with getting my name in a record book. I would have a picture of me with a huge Bass and the thought that I caught one over 20 pounds. Good enough for me. 

Agreed. Foul hooking a fish that takes a swipe at your legitimate bait is nowhere near the same thing as "Snagging" a fish.

 

That being said,... I give the guy credit for admitting he foul hooked it, and agree it didn't meet the requirements for a legal catch, so in that case,... No,... Not a record. However,... I still give him credit for catching a fish that was bigger than the official record,... Even if it didn't qualify.

 

I realize it can be a slippery slope on things like this and they have to draw the line somewhere, so I respect the rules,... But am honest enough to admit it doesn't mean I necessarily agree with them.

[Dwight Hottle]

33 minutes ago, FrnkNsteen said:

Agreed. Foul hooking a fish that takes a swipe at your legitimate bait is nowhere near the same thing as "Snagging" a fish.

 

That being said,... I give the guy credit for admitting he foul hooked it, and agree it didn't meet the requirements for a legal catch, so in that case,... No,... Not a record. However,... I still give him credit for catching a fish that was bigger than the official record,... Even if it didn't qualify.

 

I realize it can be a slippery slope on things like this and they have to draw the line somewhere, so I respect the rules,... But am honest enough to admit it doesn't mean I necessarily agree with them.

 

X2

[WRB]

53 minutes ago, FrnkNsteen said:

Agreed. Foul hooking a fish that takes a swipe at your legitimate bait is nowhere near the same thing as "Snagging" a fish.

 

That being said,... I give the guy credit for admitting he foul hooked it, and agree it didn't meet the requirements for a legal catch, so in that case,... No,... Not a record. However,... I still give him credit for catching a fish that was bigger than the official record,... Even if it didn't qualify.

 

I realize it can be a slippery slope on things like this and they have to draw the line somewhere, so I respect the rules,... But am honest enough to admit it doesn't mean I necessarily agree with them.

Weakly brought the bass to be validated, officially weighed by a local Game Warden. When a group of witnesses watching the catch from a close by dock pointed out the bass was snagged on top of the head with a white jig, Weakly and his 2 boat partners admitted they were right and released Dottie.

It’s shame Dottie was snagged/foul hooked inadvertently but it’s illegal catch in California, end of story.

Tom

[king fisher]

   In order for a fish to qualify for a IGFA record it has to be caught according to IGFA rules as well as be a legal catch according to the regulations of the state it was caught in.  Weather the regulation in a particular state is unpopular,  legal in other states, or makes zero sense to most anglers is irrelevant.  Being a record does not mean it is the biggest fish of that species.  It only means, it was legally caught by sport fishing means, and all IGFA rules were adhered to.  If a world record bass was caught in the state of Idaho at night it would not qualify, because it is illegal to fish at night in Idaho.  It wouldn't matter if the angler thought it was still day light, or hooked it before the closed time, but landed it afterword's, it would still be an illegal catch and would not qualify for a record.

      Many potential saltwater records get disqualified because of an IGFA rule infraction.  The fish was the biggest, but a mate touched the line above the leader, leader length was to long, main line tested above line rating, mate helped move rod and many other rule violations, that doesn't take away from the quality of the fish, but does break the rules of a record sport catch according to the IGFA.

      In Alaska it is illegal to snag salmon in fresh water.  A skilled angler can perfect a skill called lining or flossing.  It involves having the line slide through a salmon's mouth and hooking the salmon in the mouth with a single hooked fly.  It is illegal to intentionally snag a salmon, but impossible to prove the salmon was snagged intentionally.  In order to have some way to enforce the no snagging law, they consider a fish snagged if it is hooked behind the gill.  If Dottie was caught in Alaska, it would have been a legally caught fish and a new world record.  She was caught in CA where the definition of snagging is different, so no record period.

       I agree Dottie was the biggest bass of all time, but she was not a world record sport caught bass in CA, therefore no IGFA record.  She does have the record for the biggest large mouth bass ever weighed on a certified scale.  No other bass, even ones farmed raised or caught in a commercial net have ever been as big

[NYWayfarer]

1 hour ago, WRB said:

Weakly brought the bass to be validated, officially weighed by a local Game Warden. When a group of witnesses watching the catch from a close by dock pointed out the bass was snagged on top of the head with a white jig, Weakly and his 2 boat partners admitted they were right and released Dottie.

It’s shame Dottie was snagged/foul hooked inadvertently but it’s illegal catch in California, end of story.

Tom

In Brooklyn, NY some of the boys would have to visit that group of witnesses…

 

Ballpeen hammers and kneecaps, you saw nuddin, understand capeesh? ???

[ironbjorn]

3 hours ago, flyfisher said:

There are regulations on what makes a record a record and the fish didn't meet the record so the easy answer is no and there isn't much else to it really. 

Actually it's not easy to discount the biggest largemouth ever caught by an angler who was fishing legitimately and caught the bass the same way all of us catch bass sometimes. I personally don't care what the pencil pushers have to say, never asked them anyways. 

[Bluebasser86]

I think because this is "The" bass that we're talking about, the record, he did the right thing and probably saved himself a world of headache. 

 

I can clearly remember KVD catching a bass on a crankbait on TV, in a tournament, in the side right below the dorsal. He said something about the fish swiping at it and credited his hooks and rod before plopping it into the livewell. No big deal in that instance, but when you're talking the world record, and especially since it was on a bed, it really complicates things.

 

It makes me think of Steve Kennedy at Clear Lake.

 

[dodgeguy]

46 minutes ago, NYWayfarer said:

In Brooklyn, NY some of the boys would have to visit that group of witnesses…

 

Ballpeen hammers and kneecaps, you saw nuddin, understand capeesh? ???

LOL

[Woody B]

I don't care about Dottie, or any world record.....but where was George Perry's bass hooked?

[dodgeguy]

1 hour ago, Woody B said:

I don't care about Dottie, or any world record.....but where was George Perry's bass hooked?

Yeah right !!!

[jbsoonerfan]

15 hours ago, ironbjorn said:

I - like all of us here - have had bass swipe at or miss my lure and get snagged in the face or just outside the mouth. I land the fish and never think, "dang, doesn't count though." So to me Dottie is the record. I couldn't care less about such people making such rules - never asked their opinion anyways. It's definitely Dottie. 

Barry intentionally cheated

I don't always foul hook fish, but when I do it's usually about a 7 or 8 lb catfish that is hooked in the side or the tail and I'm sure I have a double digit everytime. I have even foul hooked a snapping turtle in the foot before and that was an adventure. 

[VolFan]

100% been there on all of those- turtle in the mouth is waaay easier than a foot hook!

[soflabasser]

On 6/4/2022 at 5:47 PM, 813basstard said:

Some dude named Bonds probably has had this brought up once or twice…same state as well

From what I researched Bonds said he ''did not know'' the cream he used had a performance enhancing drug in it, only a fool would believe this lame excuse. 

On 6/4/2022 at 6:15 PM, BigAngus752 said:

 

You must understand why it doesn't count.  Most importantly, catching a game fish this way is illegal in most states.  It's also completely unfair. Do you want to compete in a tournament with guys using large, weighted treble hooks they are dragging behind their boat to foul hook bass who aren't feeding or striking a lure? Have you seen people using this technique to catch salmon?  You wouldn't stand a chance in a bass tournament if others were doing that.  

 

I'm certain this guy wasn't intentionally snag fishing, but many people have been caught doing just that in bass tournaments.  We have to have rules.  We have to draw the line somewhere.  I think this guy achieved something amazing and we should all honor him...but it doesn't officially count and I'm good with that.  And you know what?  That gives us TWO records and something to talk about!

Well said @BigAngus752.

[uno]

Let's be honest. Dotty didn't bite his jig. He was sight fishing, fish put her mouth toward the jig but didn't bite. He thought she had it and set, but the jig was never in her mouth. You cannot legally catch a fish that doesn't bite your lure. Stop talking about jerkbaits and such. This was a single hook jig. If you hook a fish outside the mouth on a jig, the fish did not have the jig in its mouth when you set. This isn't hunting. You have to make the fish bite for it to count.

[dodgeguy]

Or the trailer only was in its mouth and it popped out and caught him on the head.

[Dirtyeggroll]

Today on the Elite Bassmaster series Zaldain snagged one in the side using live sonar,  just under 5lbs, and the weight counted toward his total. How crazy would it be for that fish to have been a 26lber snagged in the side, counted toward his Bassmaster tournament but not toward the record.

[TnRiver46]

On 6/4/2022 at 9:17 PM, WRB said:

According to Tennessee regs snagging game fish is allowed in the Tennessee River, Not reservoirs. Rough fish are allowed to be snagged.

Ever watch a bass tournament where bass are snagged outside the mouth, very common with treble hook lures.

Tom

Read your regs.

Tom

 

 

You can’t legally snag game fish in TN. I would also imagine you can’t snag game fish in all 50 states, not just the almighty California 

[Zcoker]

Says a ton for this guy, Weakley, who apparently caught this old girl, snagging her with a jig. He along with his buddies could've just as easily said that they caught it with a jig, which is what they were apparently using that day. I've caught plenty of fish outside the mouth. Sometimes bass swipe at the lures, getting snagged somewhere on the face or even on their body. And even though I've caught fish that way, I can still count the fish as a "catch" during tournaments. 

[Logan S]

12 hours ago, uno said:

Let's be honest. Dotty didn't bite his jig. He was sight fishing, fish put her mouth toward the jig but didn't bite. He thought she had it and set, but the jig was never in her mouth. You cannot legally catch a fish that doesn't bite your lure. Stop talking about jerkbaits and such. This was a single hook jig. If you hook a fish outside the mouth on a jig, the fish did not have the jig in its mouth when you set. This isn't hunting. You have to make the fish bite for it to count.

This is the answer...It wasn't a foul hooked fish like you get frequently with treble/trailer hook baits.  He was sight fishing and swung on the fish when he thought she ate it...But she didn't.  It's a huge difference between the two.  

 

Every tournament trail in the country has rules about the hook needing to be inside the mouth when actively engaged in sight fishing...But most allow foul hooked fish if the angler is not sight fishing.  I know the WR isn't a tournament, but it's similar mentality at play.  

 

Kurita's fish from Biwa is the true WR in my book...Not only was it actually bigger than Perry's, but it was scrutinized during modern times by the IGFA, compared to Perry's fish which was essentially just an honor system almost a century ago.  

[WRB]

5 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

 

 

You can’t legally snag game fish in TN. I would also imagine you can’t snag game fish in all 50 states, not just the almighty California 

There is a site that lists all 50 states that list snagging fish allowed or not. FishingDuo.com

The chart list Tennessee as no with a foot note #5, snagging allowed in the Tennessee River.

Tom

[TnRiver46]

4 minutes ago, WRB said:

There is a site that lists all 50 states that list snagging fish allowed or not. FishingDuo.com

The chart list Tennessee as no with a foot note #5, snagging allowed in the Tennessee River.

Tom

And it said if you snag a game fish , you have to let it go