**UPDATE: After LSON first published this story, the fish received scrutiny from TPWD biologists and was eventually taken out of the record books, now being declared a butterfly koi. Check out the story in the November 23 issue of Lone Star Outdoor News for further details of the mistaken identity.**
It would take quite the toilet to flush this goldfish.
Metroplex angler John Wiseman was having a slow night fishing Lake Tawakoni when he brought in an unexpected catch.
“I had been going to Tawakoni a couple of times for crappie and catfish,” he said. “I had caught a couple of nice mixed bags fishing overnight and I started bringing my stuff to make dough bait with, so that if the fishing started slowing down at night I’d have something to stretch the line out.”
Wiseman said the fishing slowed down as he had anticipated one night at Uncle Rick’s Duck Cove Marina, and his dough bait of Big Red and Wheaties started attracting big buffalo carp.
“I caught a 41-pound Bigmouth buffalo, which is the lake record,” he said. “Three days after that I went back again. I hadn’t caught a fish for about three hours when he hit and I didn’t think much of it; he felt like another 6 or 7-pound carp, until he came up and I saw his fins.
“I knew he was different.”
Wiseman’s catch drew a crowd. He told everybody to finish taking their pictures because he was going to put the fish back, but Liz from the marina said she thought it was a record.
“I took it down and got it weighed,” he said. “It was 7.24 pounds — the previous record was like 5 pounds. The game wardens came out and took a look at it a couple of days later and confirmed that it was a goldfish.”
Wiseman said he was amused to learn his goldfish was a record.
“While it’s prestigious, it’s hilarious,” he said. “You live your whole life wanting to catch a record and then you catch a damn goldfish.”
