The Festus man broke the pole and line carp fishing record, the third Missouri fishing record broken in 2024.
FESTUS, Mo. — Missouri officially has its third fishing record breaker of 2024.
George Chance of Festus had a chance encounter with a gigantic carp while fishing in the Mississippi River, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) said on its website. Chance was back fishing for catfish with a bottom-bouncing crankbait on March 19 when he snagged the fish. He would then fight the fish for around 20 minutes before he finally got it onto the shore.
“The more it fought, I saw its tail and knew it was some type of carp,” Chance told MDC. “I was able to hook him with a hay hook in order to get him out of the water. It looked to be 50 or 60 pounds at least.”
It turned out Chance undershot the weight…