Chickamauga Yields What May Be New Tennessee Record Largemouth
DAYTON, Tenn. — Friday the 13th was anything but unlucky for Gabe Keen of Caryville, Tenn., who caught a 15.20-pound largemouth bass out of Lake Chickamauga that figures to be Tennessee’s new state record. The prior record weighed 14 pounds, 8 ounces and was boated by James Barnett of Sugar Creek.
Keen, who fishes Lake Chickamauga fairly frequently, says he caught the fish on an umbrella rig made by Dixie Custom Rods that was rigged with four baitfish-colored Zoom Swimmin Super Fluke Jr.’s around the perimeter and one white ice-colored Zoom Super Fluke in the center. He had the baits rigged on 1/8-ounce unpainted jigheads made by the Dayton Boat Dock. Keen was using a 7-foot heavy power Abu Garcia Veritas baitcasting rod with a Revo SX reel and 20-pound Vicious Fishing 100% Fluorocarbon line.
Keen says he was fishing a bank that “looked good” near the Chester Frost Park with his boat in about 20 feet of water when the fish latched on to one of the Swimmin Flukes on the outside of his umbrella rig at 11:45 a.m.
“Usually this time of year they fight like a big tire or a piece of wood,” observes Keen. “But, this one made a few surges and then jumped right near the boat. I was afraid it would get off because I only had one hook in her.”
Though Keen is an advocate of catch-and-release and has landed and released a number of other big fish, he is planning on mounting this once-in-a-lifetime bass.
The Walmart FLW Tour will be stopping at Lake Chickamauga in June.
The next Walmart Bass Fishing League tournament on Lake Chickamauga is in April. Find more information and register for it here.