Awesome fish

 

Wow! Congrats to the angler.

 

That's a great fish. Only wish is that somehow they could let it live but you can't let it swim and get the record. Congrats to LaRue


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I'm, confused. Did he catch it on the beach or from a boat near the beach? Nice tarpon!

 

I'm sure he caught it from the boat.. he's one of the best tarpon guys in our area. Shane LaRue caught in with his dad Michael LaRue who is the guide.

Big Big Big fish. Congrats to them!!!

 

When you get down to it, just another dead fish picture. One you can't eat. A fiberglass copy last longer than a skin mount.

 

If you had a clue how many he has caught and released over the years, 1 for the record books should be allowed and not have to deal with junior do-gooders.

Congrats Mike and Shane. Nice to see a father take his boys and good friend Rob out for a day of fishing and come home with a state record.

 

Whopper Tarpon

Congratulations on a great catch for Mike and his son. This is a great angling accomplishment, one of the largest ever landed in the U.S. Good work.

 

Dang, they broke my nephew's record that he has held for the last several years..

 

Past record



What was last record?

 

Congrats very nice catch.

 

Hell of a fish, congrats to the fisherman and crew!

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Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't the previous record caught near or on the old pier @ SLP?


That's a hoss for sure!

 

Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't the previous record caught near or on the old pier @ SLP?

That's a hoss for sure!

91st pier off the T-head, before the hurricane screwed that pier up.
Good friend of mine caught it, and he was fishing for tarpon that day as well. It also died during the fight, much like I'm assuming this one did. Mike LaRue caught a tarpon that would have been the state record a few years ago (4 years ago maybe) but he let it go. Off the measurements alone was bigger than this one, so him keeping this fish is not a problem at all. Congrats to Mike and Shane very big fish and a great accomplishment!

 

Great catch. Good job.

 

Outstanding!!!

 

Congrats on the record. But there's gotta be a better way than killing a 70 + year old fish for a picture. Albeit most large tarpon don't survive being landed.

 

You need to change your
name to RUF***ingKiddingMe.
They don't take records on a photo and guestimation of weight.

 

Stud!

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Great fish mike you earned it ! Texas law allows one to keep 1 tarpon for those skilled to catch them read the rules only way a record happens is a fish is kept .

 

jesus christ. you naysayers have no idea the circumstances of this catch. how do you know this fish didn't die during the fight? have you never had a big fish die on you before? maybe you should do some more fishing before you open your mouths. this guy has been a tarpon guide in TEXAS for years. you're flipping bonkers if you don't think he has their conservation in mind.

awesome catch, great to see. congratulations.

 

What an amazing fish! The regulations in TX allow for one fish per day over 85" inches, which is for a record. Perhaps this fish at 95" will just up the limit. So far all the people who are worried about the fish being killed, this might help raise the bar. I don't like seeing the fish killed, I don't know the man that caught it, but I am sure the captain and his son have a great appreciation for the species so it ain't my place to say nothing. What a catch for these guys!

Just know even fish that are caught and released can sit for days after a fight only to get sharked, especially in FL. Satellite tags have shown us this. Unfortunately for as much as people care about these fish, including myself, the act of fishing for them is going to produce more mortality than we all probably care to acknowledge. So if you are really worried about killing the fish, don't fish for them. Use the right gear to fight them correctly, don't bring them in the boat, and revive them correctly in the water to up your chances of seeing that fish swim away. If you are gonna get upset you should worry more about the guys fishing the bridges in FL where the hammerheads hang out. Those guys kill way more fish.

On my soap box now...
One dead fish in TX isn't the issue. If you really care about the species get involved with an organization. I am part of a group called the Field Workers Club which pairs up anglers and science to satellite tag these fish in order to collect data that can be shared with fisheries across the gulf and Caribbean (https://www.fieldworkersclub.com/). Tons more fish are killed in Mexico and other areas even before they get to TX. These fish travel tremendous distance this time of year in places much more dangerous than TX.

Look up Scott here on this board and contribute to his organization called Project Tarpon. There is also the Bonefish Tarpon Trust which also funds tagging efforts to help us understand how these fish migrate so more can be learned and shared about conserving the resource. One record fish in TX a summer isn't the issue. These fish swim the gauntlet every year before they even get to our waters. Once again, congrats to the Captain and his son.

 

Heck of a fish

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I am curious on the tackle used to land that monster. What bait, how long was the fight, did they chase it in the boat, etc. I would love to hear the details of the fight.

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Fight was only about 20 minutes. The fish was gill wrapped and the angler actually thought it was a shark because it never jumped and it was just dead weight.

 

TPWD

Did you ever hear the results from TPWD on the age of that fish. That would be some cool information.[/QUOTE]

If I did hear the results I can not remember it has been several years.

They guy who caught it and his brother have accounts here and maybe they will chime in with an answer.

 

congrats

 

All the back and forth BS about killing the fish is wasted air. It's a matter of personal opinion and an individual philosophy. Doesn't make anyone more "right" because they cuss, use all caps, or get sanctimonious about it. I've been tarpon fishing for close to 20 years now and have caught literally hundreds of them all throughout Florida. I don't think there is a finer sporting fish and I would never intentionally kill one. Wouldn't kill anything I didn't intend to eat. But I'm sure as hell not going to judge a guy for keeping a once in a lifetime fish like that....even if it didn't die during the fight (and I've yet to have one do so with the exception of shark-kill). So congrats on a tremendous fish and thanks for all the others you've released.