Tournament angler Stan Lawing of Poetry was competing in a Bass Champs tournament March 3 on Lake Ray Roberts when he boated a 13.06-pound bass
That fish is now ShareLunker 530.
Lawing reported the fish bit about 1:30 p.m. in 2.5 feet of near-60-degree water, according to a news release from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
The bass was caught on a spinner bait.
Lawing won big bass and placed third in the tournament. Half his bag weight was the one fish.
When measured at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center, the fish was 25 inches long and 21 inches in girth.
Four ShareLunkers have come from Lake Ray Roberts in the past, the last in 2005, TPWD reported. Two were caught in 2000 and one in 1999.
“She short-struck me on about six feet of line and made one pull toward the trolling motor,” Lawing told TPWD. “My partner got the net in the water and she swam straight into the net. It was very, very quick.
“Bass Champs did an incredible job taking care of her and keeping her in good shape.”
Anyone legally catching a 13-pound or bigger largemouth bass from Texas waters, public or private, between Oct. 1 and April 30 may submit the fish to the ShareLunker program by calling program manager David Campbell at (903) 681-0550 or paging him at (888) 784-0600 and leaving a phone number including area code.
ShareLunker entries are used in a selective breeding program at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center (TFFC) in Athens.
