Swordfish – Syndication Server

Angler ‘still in shock’ after landing pending-record swordfish

Luc Ofield battled the massive swordfish for nearly five hours off San Diego; his catch could shatter the existing California record.

A San Diego angler last Sunday battled a massive swordfish for nearly five hours and returned to port in the dark with a potential record catch.

The swordfish landed by Luc Ofield tipped the San Diego Marlin Club scale at 666.2 pounds. A second weigh-in recorded a weight of 663.8 pounds.

The current California record stands at 520 pounds, for a swordfish caught off San Diego in October 2023. (It can take weeks for the state to review new record submissions.)

“After a 4.5 hours long battle with the gladiator of the sea, Luc and Dave managed to subdue this monster of a Swordfish!” the San Diego Marlin Club announced Monday via Instagram. “666.2 lbs weighed at the Marlin Club last night and it looks like this will take the new California State Record Swordfish!”

https://www.instagram.com/p/DBdFfYmRWaN/

Ofield, who works at Angler’s Choice Tackle in San Diego, issued a statement Tuesday via Instagram, noting the lower weight and a longer fighting period:

“The ultimate battle with a Goliath of the sea! I have the utmost respect for this fish and the amazing battle it gave. 4 hours and 50 minutes of raw strength. Thanks to the boat skills of my buddy Dave, or this fish would have never made it to the scales.

“Thanks to Dylan, Michael, Todd, Jack, for helping record this piece of history once we reached the dock. 663.8 lbs! New pending state record. Still in shock.”

For comparison, the all-tackle world record stands at 1,182 pounds. That record, which might never be broken, was set in 1953 off Iquique, Chile.

‘Taxman’ claims share but wants more as anglers land swordfish

Footage shows anglers posing with a partially consumed swordfish as the still-hungry mako shark circles the boat.

Anglers out of San Diego boated a large swordfish recently, but not before an equally large mako shark claimed part of the catch.

“The taxman took his share, but Pacifica Sportfishing managed most of a swordfish on the first day of their trip,” Seaforth Landing explained via Instagram.

The image shows five anglers posing with a swordfish whose lower body had been shredded by the shark as the swordfish was being reeled to the boat.

A swipe-through features video footage showing the mako shark swimming near the boat as one passenger remarks, “He’s wondering where his meal went.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/DBHZ7N9zrSw/?img_index=1

Swordfish catches by recreational anglers are rare off Southern California, but it’s not rare for sharks to go after any large fish that’s struggling at the end of a fishing line.

Sharks that claim part or all of a hooked game fish are commonly referred to as tax collectors or, singularly, the taxman.

Angler shatters swordfish record after marathon battle

The recent catch of a 393-pound swordfish off Maryland, after an epic struggle, has shattered the state record by more than 90 pounds.

Jeff Jacobs, 38, fought the swordfish for more than five hours from the charter vessel, RoShamBo. He said the billfish “jumped out of the water and looked like a Volkswagen,” in reference to its size.

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources, which announced the record Friday, stated that Capt. Willie Zimmerman was returning to port after an eight-hour charter off Ocean City when the swordfish struck a blue-and-white skirted eel.

Already exhausted, Jacobs sprung to action, fighting the fish with a two-speed Shimano reel. “Giving up wasn’t an option,” he said. “When we saw it we all knew it was a state record.”

ALSO: Red-footed booby grabs spotlight on whale-watching trip; video

The swordfish was weighed on a certified scale and the catch was confirmed by a DNR biologist.

The previous state record, involving the catch of a 301-pound swordfish off Ocean City, was set in 2021.

[listicle id=1956609]

Angler lands record swordfish after marathon battle

A Maryland angler who baited his hook with a dead eel has landed a state-record swordfish.

Peter Schultz, 36, caught the 301-pound swordfish July 23 after an eight-hour fight 50 miles off Ocean City. Schultz, a participant in the Huk Big Fish Classic, also helped his team aboard Real One net $542,648 in prize money.

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Angler jailed for harvesting a protected goliath grouper

The state record was announced Thursday by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, which explained that the Atlantic Division swordfish record category had been vacant with a qualification requirement of at least 300 pounds.

Schultz, who used a dead eel attached to a circle hook and 50-pound-test braid line with a 150-pound-test leader, described the catch as a “fish of a lifetime” and a team effort.

“We put so much effort into this,” the Annapolis resident said. “Everyone had a crucial role.”

The swordfish was weighed on a certified scale at M.R. Ducks at Talbot Square Pier.

–Image courtesy of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources