Matt Moccia has been a friend of mine and an excellent fishing partner for countless years now. Recently, he joined the ranks of elite Texas anglers, catching every Texas bass fisherman's dream...a Shareluner (a 13+ lb largemouth bass.) Even more rare was the fact that he caught this fish while fishing a tournament.
I remember Matt talking about catching a fish like this since high school and maybe even before. It was a well deserved fish for an excellent bass angler and a very good friend. I don't know why it took me so long to interview him, but I am glad I waited. I was able to get the details on his fishing and the Sharelunker.
Here is Part 2 of the interview (Click here for part 1):
Pat Kellner: Alright, so...how big was the fish?
Matt Moccia: The official numbers were 13.34 pounds, 26.25 inch length, and a 23.25 inch girth.
PK: What part of Lake Dunlap did you catch her in?
MM: I caught it in the north end of the lake.
PK: What did you catch it on?
MM: A Norman DD22, Talapia pattern, was the magic lure. I was slow rolling it in 8-12 feet of water.
PK: Did you know it was a monster when you first set the hook? Did you know you had a 13+ while you where fighting it? When did you realize that you needed to get Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPWD) on the phone?
MM: I knew right form the hook set that it was a decent fish. About five seconds into the fight it came to the surface and jumped. At that point we knew it was a big. It wasn't until it made a shallow pass by the boat that we saw how big she really was. After a couple of good runs, I got the fish turned and headed towards the boat. I didn't have a net in the boat, so I had to lip her which was a bit scary. Once I had one hand on it, I dropped the rod and grabbed with both hands to get her in the boat. At this point I was shaking pretty good and asked my partner Josh to grab the scale. I know it was going to be a double digit, but when the scale started bouncing between 13.2 and 13.4, my heart really started racing. We spend the next five to ten minutes getting her set up in the live well with some fresh water, an extra air pump, and some Release Me formula. After we got settled back in, we called another angler in the tournament to use his scale for a second opinion. After the second scale was showing 13 pounds, it was time to make the call.
PK: Did you immediately drive back to the weigh in station, or did you put her in the live well and keep fishing?
MM: After talking to TPWD and confirming a meeting place and time-frame of when to meet, we continued to fish. This was about the only thing I could do to keep my nerves calm at the time.
PK: How was the rest of the morning? Did you catch a limit, was this the only fish, any other big fish, did you win the tournament?
MM: The rest of the morning went well. We stayed with the same pattern that had been working, and actually caught another keeper towards our limit. We ended up with four keepers on the day. We lost a couple good fish early, so it was a little disappointing not having a limit, but that was easily overshadowed by the excitement of a potential Sharelunker. We did end up winning the tournament, which was just icing on the cake after the confirmation of the fish.
PK: To your knowledge, was this the only Sharelunker to be caught in a tournament?
MM: To my knowledge, yes, But I don't know that for sure.
PK: When is somebody going to catch a Sharelunker while fishing from a kayak?
MM: I think it's going to be very soon. Kayak fishing has grown so much in the past five or so years, that the odds are constantly increasing.
PK: How long had you been waiting to catch that fish?
MM: My whole life. Catching a Sharelunker has been a goal of mine ever since I gained knowledge of the program years ago. Hopefully in the next thirty years I will be fortunate enough to catch one even bigger. I'm sure it's not going to be easy, but a new personal bar has been set.
PK: What do you get for catching it?
MM: I don't quite know all the details yet. I do know that I will get a free replica, which I am very excited about, and I get to attend the Sharelunker banquet, which is a real honor.
PK: Thanks, man. Enjoyed the interview.
To read Part 1: Interview with Matt Moccia
Related posts:
Matt Moccia Catches Sharelunker #539
Interview with Hale White
Interview with Kristian Kolflat
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