Angler ‘in shock’ after landing record smallmouth bass

A South Dakota angler who was practicing for a recent pro bass-fishing tournament said he was “in shock” after landing a state-record smallmouth bass.

Troy Diede, of Sioux Falls, hooked the 7-pound, 4-ounce smallmouth while casting an Eco Pro Tungsten Ned Rig in mid-July on Lake Oahe.

South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks recently approved the catch as a state record. Diede, who hopes to qualify for this year’s Bassmaster Classic, recalled his epic experience this week in a Bassmaster feature.

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Diede said he hooked the 20.75-inch smallmouth bass the morning after catching and releasing a 6-pound smallmouth that looked equally massive.

“I didn’t even make 10 casts and I hooked into another good-sized fish,” Diede told Bassmaster. “After about 90 seconds I realized it had the same similarities as that 6-pounder. It was fighting the same way, it’s taking me forever.

“I only had 7-pound Gamma line on. It started running out of gas after about two minutes and I didn’t realize how big it was until I picked it up. I belly landed it like a football and held it under my arm and I was in shock.”

Diede obtained several unofficial weights before he was able to deliver the fish, alive in an aerated boat well, to a certified scale.

After a Game, Fish and Parks biologist confirmed the catch, Diede released the smallmouth precisely where he had hooked the fish. He beat the previous South Dakota record by about an ounce.

For the sake of comparison, the International Game Fish Assn. lists as the all-tackle world record an 11-pound, 15-ounce smallmouth bass caught at Dale Hollow Lake in Tennessee in July 1955.

–Images courtesy of South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks