Smallmouth bass – Syndication Server

N.Y. tournament angler lands pending-record smallmouth bass

Dante Piraino was participating in a New York Federation B.A.S.S. Nation event when he hooked the massive smallmouth.

Dante Piraino enjoyed a successful day of tournament bass fishing last Sunday in New York, logging a five-fish bag limit totaling 31.4 pounds.

One of those fish – a 9-pound smallmouth bass – is a pending state record.

Piraino, who was participating in a New York Federation B.A.S.S. Nation Tournament in Ogdensburg, landed the smallmouth while casting a soft-plastic lure on the St. Lawrence River.

He told Wired2Fish that he hooked the fish at about 9 a.m. and figured it weighed six pounds.

9-pound smallmouth bass on display near live well. Photo: Dante Piraino

But when he lipped the smallmouth with his thumb and index finger to hoist it into his live well, he realized that it was “heavier than expected.”

At 9 pounds, heavier than any largemouth bass caught on the same day, the catch eclipses the state record of 8 pounds, 6 ounces, set at Cayuga Lake in 2022.

Piraino, however, is still waiting to hear from the state regarding his potential record, a process that can take weeks.

For comparison, the all-tackle world record for smallmouth bass stands at 11 pounds, 15 ounces. That fish was caught at Tennessee’s Dale Hollow Lake in 1955.

Lake Erie record smallmouth bass rare because of size, but also age

Biologists have determined that a 10.15-pound smallmouth bass reeled from Lake Erie last November was a 16-year-old female.

Biologists have determined that a 10.15-pound smallmouth bass reeled from in Lake Erie last November was a 16-year-old female.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources also stated in a news release Wednesday that the fish caught by Gregg Gallagher of Fremont, Ohio, is the only known 10-pound smallmouth ever caught in a Great Lakes state or province.

Gallagher landed the bass while fishing last Nov. 3 on Lake Erie in Ontario, Canada, waters.

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The previous Ontario record smallmouth was 9.84 pounds, set in 1984. So Gallagher’s catch is a Lake Erie record, a Great Lakes record, and an Ontario record. (The current Ohio record for smallmouth bass is 9.5 pounds.)

Gallagher’s catch measured 23-3/4 inches with a girth of 19-3/8 inches.

According to the Ohio DNR, the fish was hatched in 2006. Smallmouth bass, the agency added, rarely live beyond 14 years.

A typical Lake Erie smallmouth measures less than 20 inches and few catches exceed 7 pounds.

For comparison, the world record for smallmouth bass is 11 pounds, 15 ounces, set at Tennessee’s Dale Hollow Lake in 1955.

–Image showing Gregg Gallagher with his record smallmouth bass is courtesy of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources

Wisconsin angler lands 30,000th smallmouth bass; ‘A great feeling’

Wisconsin angler Bill Schultz recently achieved a major milestone by landing his 30,000th smallmouth bass.

Who maintains a running tally of the number of fish they catch?

Wisconsin angler Bill Schultz does and he recently achieved a major milestone by landing his 30,000th smallmouth bass.

“Hitting the water that Monday and knowing my first fish was going to be 30K had me a little anxious as I was hoping it would be at least 3-plus pounds,” Schultz told Outdoor News.

That was in early November, so Schultz probably has added to the total.

Smallmouth No. 30,000 hit an amber tube jig at 20 feet and Schultz recalled, “When it hit and I began reeling I could tell it was a good sized one, which gave me a great feeling!”

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He has fished almost exclusively for smallmouth bass since his first catch on Delevan Lake in 1994.

“I have not lost the excitement for these great fighters and love chasing them while wearing my waders in small Wisconsin Rivers, or from my boat on Sturgeon Bay, or from one of my fishing kayaks,” Schultz told Outdoor News.

Smallmouth bass, native to the eastern U.S. and southeastern Canada, now occur in almost every U.S. state and in other countries. They are immensely popular among light-tackle, catch-and-release anglers.

The world record stands at 11 pounds, 5 ounces, for a 1955 catch at Tennessee’s Dale Hollow Lake.

–Image showing Bill Schultz with his 30,000th smallmouth bass is courtesy of Schultz, via Outdoor News

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Record smallmouth bass reeled from Lake Erie; ‘I was trembling’

An Ohio angler has caught the largest smallmouth bass ever reeled from Lake Erie and the Great Lakes.

Gregg Gallagher, 54, a high-school business teacher in Fremont, caught the 10.15-pound bass Nov. 6 while fishing with his 24-year-old son, Grant.

The previous record was the catch of a 9.5-pound smallmouth by renowned bass angler Randy VanDam in 1993.

VanDam will still hold the Ohio record; Gallagher’s heavier catch is the largest in Ontario waters and throughout the Great Lakes.

Gallagher, 56, told Cleveland.com that he had dropped his lure toward bottom structure when the smallmouth struck.

“On that cast, the fish hit even before the lure reached the bottom,” he said. “When I felt the light bite I set the hook. I knew immediately that it was a big fish, but at first I thought it was a really large sheepshead.”

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After they realized it was a prized smallmouth, and as Grant netted the fish, both Gallaghers were beside themselves with excitement.

“I was just trembling, and still feel goose bumps when I think about that bass,” Gallagher said.

Gregg Gallagher credited Grant’s knowledge of the fishery and use of electronic equipment for putting him on the record fish.

A mount of the catch will be placed on display at the Ohio Division of Wildlife’s Fisheries Research Station, according to Cleveland.com. A replica will go on display at Gallagher’s home.

For comparison, the all-tackle world record for smallmouth bass stands at 11 pounds, 15 ounces. That fish was caught by David Hayes at Tennessee’s Dale Hollow Lake in 1955.

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Angler ‘in shock’ after landing record smallmouth bass

A South Dakota angler who was practicing for a recent pro bass-fishing tournament said he was “in shock” after landing a state-record smallmouth bass.

Troy Diede, of Sioux Falls, hooked the 7-pound, 4-ounce smallmouth while casting an Eco Pro Tungsten Ned Rig in mid-July on Lake Oahe.

South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks recently approved the catch as a state record. Diede, who hopes to qualify for this year’s Bassmaster Classic, recalled his epic experience this week in a Bassmaster feature.

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Diede said he hooked the 20.75-inch smallmouth bass the morning after catching and releasing a 6-pound smallmouth that looked equally massive.

“I didn’t even make 10 casts and I hooked into another good-sized fish,” Diede told Bassmaster. “After about 90 seconds I realized it had the same similarities as that 6-pounder. It was fighting the same way, it’s taking me forever.

“I only had 7-pound Gamma line on. It started running out of gas after about two minutes and I didn’t realize how big it was until I picked it up. I belly landed it like a football and held it under my arm and I was in shock.”

Diede obtained several unofficial weights before he was able to deliver the fish, alive in an aerated boat well, to a certified scale.

After a Game, Fish and Parks biologist confirmed the catch, Diede released the smallmouth precisely where he had hooked the fish. He beat the previous South Dakota record by about an ounce.

For the sake of comparison, the International Game Fish Assn. lists as the all-tackle world record an 11-pound, 15-ounce smallmouth bass caught at Dale Hollow Lake in Tennessee in July 1955.

–Images courtesy of South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks

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