Big fish, little fisherman: 9-year-old reels in 150-pound rare fish off South Carolina coast
By Peyton Furtado
Click here for updates on this story
PAWLEYS ISLAND, S.C. (WYFF) — What did you do this summer? Well, a 9-year-old from Greenville caught a nearly record-breaking fish off South Carolina’s coast. The fish likely weighed more than twice the fisherman.
Will Nelson was vacationing with his family in Pawleys Island in early September.
“He’s as smarter kid I’ve ever had on the beach,” said Michael Shope, the family’s fishing guide that day. “He was really able to do something that, frankly, most adults can’t accomplish.”
From the time he could bait a hook, 9-year-old Will Nelson has been an avid angler. But he never expected to catch a nearly 150-pound tarpon, just shy of the 154-pound South Carolina record.
“I’m really excited. I because, I know a lot of fish. And if I don’t know what that means, it’s probably a harder one to get,” said Will.
“I’ve been fishing for 50-plus years, and this is the very first fish tarpon that I’ve landed with anybody on the beach in South Carolina. And that’s fishing weekly and fishing quite often,” Shope said.
“We’re fishing with a barbless hook. And tarpon is notorious for throwing hooks. And so, I thought, oh, we’ll never get this fish in,” said Dave Stafford, Will’s grandfather.
Will, the 70-pound little fisherman who could face to fish with a floundering silver king.
“I was really proud that he didn’t give up, because it was definitely something where, you know, he was getting tired,” said Michael Nelson, Will’s dad.
The 10-minute struggle was like nothing Will had ever done before. And after taking a few pictures and releasing the fish, he’s already angling for a bigger catch.
Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.