Record Blue Catfish Haul at Belton Lake
On the evening of June 6, 28-year-old Michael Padgett was fishing for catfish on Belton Lake, accompanied by his wife, Jordan, and friends Ashley Beaman and Garett Trammell. While anchored over a submerged ridge, using gizzard shad as bait, one of their robust fishing rods bent sharply. Padgett, a pest control professional from Temple, Texas, immediately recognized he had hooked a significant catch.
Using a strong 85-pound-test braided line, Padgett successfully reeled in the fish. It was only when they brought it alongside the boat and Garett netted it that the group fully grasped the immense size of their catch. Lacking a suitable scale onboard, Padgett carefully placed the blue catfish into the boat's 80-gallon livewell and promptly headed back to the launch ramp. He contacted friends in search of a scale capable of accurately weighing such a large specimen.
Initially, the catfish registered 75.02 pounds on a non-certified scale. Padgett's primary intention was to release the fish rather than risk its life for an official weight record. However, learning about Texas's catch-and-release lake record program, he decided to measure the fish instead. He transported the catfish to his home, placing it in a 300-gallon tank overnight to maintain its health until official measurements could be taken the following morning. The fish was officially recorded at an impressive 50 inches in length with a 33-inch girth, surpassing the previous Belton Lake catch-and-release blue catfish record of 47.5 inches, which had stood for four years. Padgett has submitted the necessary documentation and photographs to state authorities, and his catch is anticipated to be officially recognized as the new Belton Lake catch-and-release blue catfish length record. Despite its substantial estimated weight, his decision to release the fish meant it would not challenge the existing Belton Lake weight record of 68.05 pounds.
Padgett expressed his satisfaction with achieving the length record, emphasizing his contentment that the fish remains alive, healthy, and back in Belton Lake to contribute to the local ecosystem and future generations of catfish. He also plans to commission a replica mount of the fish, a testament to his remarkable catch, to display alongside his other trophies.