Massive grouper catch stuns crowd at Florida fishing dock
The rare catch of a giant Warsaw grouper Sunday remains the most notable highlight, so far, during a monthlong fishing competition in Destin, Fla.
The grouper, landed by Garrett Thornton with Capt. Kyle Lowe aboard the Special K, weighed nearly 350 pounds. But the official “gutted” weight stands at 333.8 pounds, making it the second-largest Warsaw grouper landed in the 74-year history of the Destin Fishing Rodeo.
“It took 30 minutes to get him to the top, but then it took over an hour to figure out how to get him over the side of the boat,” Lowe told The Destin Log. “It took all five of us.”
The rodeo record for Warsaw grouper is 358.8 pounds. The state and world record stands at 436 pounds, 12 ounces. That fish, also caught off Destin, was landed in 1985.
Lowe told The Destin Log that he had known of the whereabouts of a giant grouper in offshore waters since last August, because it kept attacking smaller snowy grouper his clients targeted with lighter tackle.
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Lowe promised Thornton he’d wait until an appropriate time during the rodeo and take him to that spot with heavy tackle. On Sunday he fulfilled that promise.
“We dropped one rod, one bait,” Lowe said. “I thought we were going to have to smoke out the bite, but he bit within 15 seconds. I knew it was going to be a good one, but I had no idea it was going to be that big.”
The Charter Boat Special K Facebook page is filled with posts showing footage of the grouper and the lively scene at the dock.
Among other notable catches during the 2022 Destin Fishing Rodeo, which runs through October, was that of a 101-pound wahoo, setting a tournament record.
–Image courtesy of Charter Boat Special K and AJ’s Seafood & Oyster Bar