251-pound tuna, 4.09-pound flounder to take top honors at Lafayette convention
The Louisiana Outdoor Writers Association chose the state-record 251-pound yellowfin tuna caught last October as the 2012 Fish of the Year in the Rod and Reel Division.
The giant tuna was hauled in by 22-year-old Elliot Sale of New Iberia, who was fishing aboard the “Recovery Suite” in the West Delta area about 30 miles offshore from Grand Isle on Oct. 13, 2012.
The fish was 79 inches long and had a girth of more than 51 inches. It bested the previous record yellowfin taken in March, 2005 by almost 10 pounds.
In the 2012 Fly Rod Division, Chip Metz of Morgan City took the top prize with his 4.09-pound flounder that was caught in Four League Bay last August.
Metz’s fish is currently ranked third in the state in the Fly Rod Division for flounder.
Sale and Metz will accept their awards at LOWA’s annual convention in Lafayette on Aug. 10.
Each year, the LOWA Fish Records Committee selects anglers and fish from the previous year’s submitted records to be nominated for Fish of the Year.
All nominees are reviewed, and awards are presented in both the Rod and Reel and Fly Fishing Divisions, depending upon that year’s entries.
Current state fishing and hunting records, as well as applications for fish submission, are available here.
