Florida Woman Ties Georgia State Record Florida Pompano
Eugene L. 10.25.22
A Florida Woman has tied Georgia State Record for Florida Pompano, say that five times fast. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) certified her catch this week for her Florida Pompano (Trachinotus carolinus). The fish came in at 1-pound, 7.68-ounces, and was caught by Cathy Sanders of Palm Coast, Florida. She caught the fish while surf fishing on St. Simons Island on Oct. 9th. Ms. Sander’s catch is tied with the previous record holder, Laura Cheek, who landed a 1-pound, 7-ounce Florida Pompano on Sea Island in 1982. The new pompano caught by Ms. Sander’s had a 12-inch fork length.
Ms. Sanders was volunteering with the “Kids Can Fish Foundation’s Running of the Bulls” youth fishing tournament when she caught the record fish. She was surf fishing with a 12-foot Okuma Rockaway rod and an Okuma Rockaway 6000 reel. For bait, she was using Fishbites EZ Crab (Electric Chicken) with Sinker Guys glass beads and salted shrimp on 20-pound high visibility monofilament. Her terminal rig was a 2/0 circle hook on a double drop rig with a 3-ounce Guy Sputnik sinker.
Ms. Sanders is the first recipient of a newly designed state record certificate. The new certificate now features an image of the record-setting species, a gold-color embossed state seal, and signatures from the governor, commissioner of DNR, and director of DNR’s Coastal Resources Division. The latter two of the three administer the Georgia Saltwater Game Fish Records Program.
The reason why Ms. Sander’s catch was a tie instead of a new record, even with being .68 ounces heavier than the previous record, is that under the rules of the Georgia Saltwater Game Fish Records Program. If a catch does not exceed a current record by more than 4 ounces it is considered a tie.
Sanders name has been added to the list of current and past record holders maintained at CoastalGaDNR.org/SaltwaterRecords and will be listed in the 2023 Georgia Sport Fishing Regulation Guide.
