Vermont fisherman Andrew Oestringer wrangled in a nearly 2-foot smallmouth bass on Lower Symes Pond in Ryegate in August. Weighing 7 pounds, 6 ounces, the catch could have broken the official Department of Fish & Wildlife state record by a long shot.

Oestringer — not realizing the catch he had — filleted the fish before weighing it on a certified scale, which would have landed him a spot in the annals of state angler history.

Shawn Good, a fish biologist and administrator of the department’s State Record Fish Program , said that Fish & Wildlife can only accept fish weighed on a certified scale for the program but said the “new ‘unofficial record’ is one heck of a fish story.”

The bass’ uncertified weight is 10 ounces heavier than the official record-holder catch back in 2003, Good sai

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