A 9-year-old from Greenville just landed a fish nearly twice his own body weight. Will Nelson, who weighs about 70 pounds, hauled in a tarpon weighing nearly 150 pounds off South Carolina's coast while vacationing with his family in Pawleys Island in early September, coming just short of the state's all-time tarpon record.
A Near-Miss With History
As reported by WYFF, Will's catch fell just short of South Carolina's 154-pound tarpon record. For a boy who has been an avid angler since he could bait a hook, per the same account, the catch is a remarkable feat on its own.
The scale of the catch becomes even clearer when measured against typical local hauls. The average tarpon landed along the South Carolina coast measures 40 to 60 inches in length and weighs between 40 and 60 pounds, according to the state Department of Natural Resources. While 100-plus-pound tarpon do turn up in Gulf waters, 150-pound specimens along the Grand Strand remain rare trophies, making Will's fish an outlier by any measure.
A 10-Minute Battle With The Silver King
Will told the station he was really excited about catching the fish, and the fight was no small task for a 9-year-old — he struggled with the tarpon for 10 minutes before finally bringing it to shore. His grandfather, Dave Stafford, said the fish was caught with a barbless hook, notable given that tarpon are notorious for throwing hooks during a fight. His father, Michael Nelson, said he was proud that Will did not give up during the battle.
Tarpon are known among anglers as the “Silver King.”
The Guide Behind The Catch
Michael Shope, the family's fishing guide who operates as SC Fishing Coach off Pawleys Island, said Will accomplished something most adults cannot. Shope has fished for more than 50 years and recalled landing his first tarpon with someone on a South Carolina beach, giving him a personal benchmark for just how special the young angler's catch really was. Shope has also described using specialized drone equipment to deploy heavy surf bait beyond the ocean breaker zone when targeting large coastal species, according to a video he posted on Facebook.
Why The Fish Went Back In The Water
Will released the fish after the catch.
Timing And Migration
Will caught the fish in early September.
South Carolina has a Marine Game Fish Tagging Program.
As for young Will, the catch has only fueled his ambitions. He plans to pursue a bigger catch, according to the same WYFF report that first detailed his encounter with the Silver King.
