Field and Stream – Potential World Record Muskie Released

An angler from Green Bay, Wisconsin, caught the fish of a lifetime-and didn’t even know it.

No stranger to catching big fish, John Grover was targeting walleyes on May 9, 2013 when he hooked something notably larger. He proceeded to fight the 64-inch fish for almost an hour on 17-pound test line, even after his reel blew out, the Green Bay Press Gazette reported. He landed the fish, measured it, took a few photos, and released it back into the bay.

“I didn’t really think anything of it when I caught it. I just knew it was big,” Grover told the Green Bay Press Gazette. “To be honest, I don’t fish for muskies, so I just imagined the record fish to be like 70 or 71 inches until I came in to (Smokey’s) bait shop and talked to him.”

Grover asked Jeff Tilkins, owner of Smokey’s on the Bay Bait Shop, about the size of the muskie mounted on the wall of the bait shop. After finding out that it was a 52-inch fish, Grover casually mentioned that he just caught one larger. Everyone thought he was joking until he pulled out his smartphone.

“When he showed us the picture, I could not believe it. There it was, and just look at the body. That fish has at least a 30-inch girth, there is no doubt in my mind about that,” Tilkins said.

See the rest of the story at: http://links.bonnieroutdoorgroup.com/ctt?kn=62&ms=NTU4MTYzNAS2&r=NDM3MjMzODU0MzAS1&b=0&j=MzI1Njk4NTkzS0&mt=1&rt=0