Here’s a blast from the past from the International Game Fish Association (IGFA). In May of 1998, angler Ken Paulie caught this 123-lb. flathead catfish from Elk City Reservoir in Independence, Kansas. It set the IGFA all-tackle world record for the species, which still stands today.
Now get this: He landed the monster flathead with his trusty Zebco 33 reel and 12-lb.-test line. With that lightweight gear and because he was fishing a live minnow on a jighead beneath a bobber, one must presume Paulie was crappie fishing. His fish of a lifetime must have also been the surprise of a lifetime, and it’s a wonder he was able to land it. The fish measured 61 inches in length, with a 43.75-inch girth.
For more record fish, go to IGFA.org.