We just got word that Matt Tueten of Boston caught the pending IGFA catch-and-release length record smallmouth bass in Wisconsin on the evening of Sept. 18, 2018. He was out on a Big Bass Dreams training trip trying to break a personal best smallmouth, and not only did he do that with this 7-pound, 2-ounce smallmouth bass, but he also beat the current IGFA length record for catch-and-release smallmouth bass with this one measuring 54 cm. The current record is 53 cm, and we believe IGFA requires at least 2 cm larger to be a solo record. So there may be another record bass tie. Nothing is of course official until it is certified by the IGFA with good documentation.
Oliver Ngy and Cobi Pellerito of Big Bass Dreams were on hand to video the catch and measurements, and Pellerito got some incredible photos of the awesome catch that you can see below. Tueten was casting a Megabass Spark Shad on a Megabass Okashira Screw Head on 20-pound braid on a Megabass Orochi XX Whipsnake rod.
The current length record was set in 2014 with a 53 cm smallmouth bass on Lake Guntersville of all places. Tueten is submitting his record application to the IGFA today for the all-tackle catch-and-release length record.
While it’s not the 11-pound, 15-ounce all-tackle smallmouth bass record. It’s cool to see the ante get upped on catch-and-release trophy class bass and documenting those for certification.
Check out the full video on the Big Bass Dreams YouTube channel as well as their full tackle breakdown and more about the record catch and process.
Here are a few more awesome photos of the catch from Cobi Pellerito.
Editors Note: We of course know many smallmouth probably longer than this have been caught, but as of yet, they have not been documented and submitted to IGFA for length records. I suspect this catch will spur that movement on quite a bit now.
Catch-and-release length record smallmouth bass
Catch-and-release length record smallmouth bass
