Hilarious Decision Made To Come Forward With World Record Fish

The confluence of the Columbia and Snake Rivers yielded an amazing fish and revealed the awesome sense of humor of an experienced angler.

RECORD BREAKING FISH - JUST DON'T TELL ANYONE

That seemed to be the tongue-in-cheek reaction from Bill Saunders, a waterfowl call maker based in the state of Washington. Bill is a serious walleye angler,who recently learned that one person’s “embarrassing” catch is another person’s world record.

According to a recent article shared by Outdoor Life, Bill was casting for walleye when he hooked into what felt like a decent 8-pounder. As the fish was netted, that's where Don's comedic quandary began.

THE "WALLEYE" HAD NO TEETH

Instead of a trophy walleye, Bill had landed a massive northern pikeminnow. Initially, he was hesitant to submit the fish as a potential record. He said he likened the catch to riding a moped scooter : “They’re fun all right, until your friends see you on one.”

Despite the initial blow to his walleye ego, his wife and fishing partner convinced him to make it official.

THE RECORD-BREAKING STATS ARE IMPRESSIVE

Weight: 8.6 lbs (poised to crush the 2008 world record of 7 lbs 14 oz).
Length: 25.25 inches.
Age: Estimated at 19 years old.

DID MONTANA HAVE THE PREVIOUS WORLD RECORD?

Just for the heck of it, we got curious and checked out Montana Fish, Wildlife and Park's fish record chart, showing the record weight of every species in the state. According to FWP, Montana's state record northern pikeminnow weighs in at 7.88 pounds, caught in 1991 at Noxon Rapids Reservoir. Hmmmmmm.....

While Bill Saunders donated his record-breaker to the state for educational display, most anglers target northern pikeminnows for a different reason: cold, hard cash. Because they feed on endangered baby salmon and steelhead, the Bonneville Power Administration actually pays people to catch them and kill them.

So, while it wasn’t the walleye Bill was looking for, he walked away with a state record, and a pending world record, all because he was encouraged to turn in a fish that is usually just considered a nuisance.

You just never know what will be on the end of your line!

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Gallery Credit: Stacker

Source: Hilarious Decision Made To Come Forward With World Record Fish