Lufkin angler catches ShareLunker 564 - thanks to a crappie - from Sam Rayburn Reservoir
ATHENS, Texas — Roy Euper of Lufkin
caught the first Toyota ShareLunker of the season from Sam Rayburn
Reservoir Monday afternoon. The fish weighed 13.2 pounds, qualifying it
to become ShareLunker 564.
Any angler who catches a 13-pound largemouth bass
can be considered lucky, but Euper may be the luckiest of all. The
official weight for the fish was taken at Jackson Hill Park Marina, an
official Toyota ShareLunker weigh and holding station. After the fish
arrived at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens, it
regurgitated a crappie that weighed 0.3 pounds.
Had the fish not eaten that crappie, or if it had spit it up before
being weighed, it would not have weighed the 13 pounds necessary to
qualify as a ShareLunker.
Euper was fishing in 30 feet of water with a crankbait when the fish
bit about 3 p.m. The fish was 25.5 inches long and 22 inches in girth.
The catch moved Sam Rayburn into sole possession of second place
among Texas lakes for number of ShareLunkers caught. Anglers have caught
26 largemouth bass weighing 13 pounds or more from the lake. Only Lake
Fork, with 257 entries, has produced more. Lakes O.H. Ivie and Alan
Henry have each produced 25.
Last season Sam Rayburn sent two ShareLunkers to Athens. Both were
caught on the same day, March 7. More ShareLunkers are caught in March
than in any other month. Euper’s fish is only the twelfth in the 30-year
history of the ShareLunker program to be caught in November.
Anyone legally catching a 13-pound or bigger largemouth bass from
Texas waters, public or private, between October 1 and April 30 may
submit the fish to the Toyota ShareLunker program. Fish will be picked
up by TPWD personnel within 12 hours.
Anglers entering fish into the Toyota ShareLunker program receive a
free replica of their fish, a certificate and ShareLunker clothing and
are recognized at a banquet at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in
Athens. The person who catches the season’s largest entry will be named
Angler of the Year and will receive a prize package from G. Loomis of a
top-of-the-line rod, Shimano reel, PowerPro line and G. Loomis hat. If
the Angler of the Year is a Texas resident, that person will also
receive a lifetime Texas fishing license.
ShareLunker catches can be reported 24 hours a day, seven days a week
during the season, by calling (903) 681-0550. If poor cellphone service
prevents use of the voice number, anglers can leave a phone number
(including area code) at (888) 784-0600. That number is also monitored
24/7 during the season