Overview

• The catch took place on June 29 during a dawn bowfishing outing on Plum Creek in Monroe County and yielded a 45-inch flathead.
• Weighing 64.46 pounds, the fish eclipses Lloyd Tanner’s 53.35-pound record set in 2022 on the St. Joseph River.
• The DNR published Carlson’s fish measurements on its Master Angler website following the official verification.
• Carlson initially thought he was targeting a channel catfish for dinner before realizing he had landed a record-breaking flathead.
• Michigan’s Master Angler program requires any potential state record to be weighed on certified commercial scales and validated by a DNR biologist.