The 236.6-pound yellowfin tuna caught by Michael McElroy III four days before Mississippi’s shelter-in-place order took effect was certified as a state record last week. If only his timing had been better.
“If he had caught it during the 2018 Mississippi Gulf Coast Billfish Classic, it would have broken the state record and won a half-million in cash,” Bobby Carter, director of the fishing tournament, told the Sun Herald.
The state Commission on Marine Resources confirmed the state-record yellowfin tuna, which shattered the old mark of 205.8 pounds by Robert Landingham on June 9, 2001.
McElroy, who lives in Hattiesburg, launched from Pass Christian on a 29-foot twin V boat on March 30 and returned the next day to have his fish weighed.
It took him 5½ hours to land the yellowfin tuna. It was unknown how many fishermen were with him.
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“It’s the biggest keeping fish I’ve ever caught,” McElroy told the Sun Herald.
He also told the Sun Herald there wasn’t much of the fish going into the freezer, saying, “We’re eating a lot of it” and sharing with family and friends.
Incidentally, the 2020 Mississippi Gulf Coast Billfish Classic is still scheduled to go on as planned June 1-7.
Photos courtesy of Mississippi Commission on Marine Resources, and Bobby Carter and the Mississippi Gulf Coast Billfish Classic.