Record Striper Rejected by IGFA, Angler Loses Out on $1 Million

After an agonizing two-month wait, angler Rodney Ply finally learned that his fish is not worth a million dollars.

Ply’s rollercoaster fish ride began … well, two months ago when he pulled a freshwater striped bass that weighed more than 68 pounds from Bull Shoals Lake in Arkansas on Feb. 18. Ply’s fish was so large that it not only shattered the state record by more than four pounds, it also qualified for a $100,000 prize. Ply had entered Mustad Hook’s “Hook-a-Million” contest where state record fish qualified for a $100,000 winning, and $1 million for world record fish. Ply tried to have his fish weighed on a certified scale and verified by an official game and fish commission witness but his every attempt was met with rejection and or excuses (read the full story about Ply’s record striper). Failure to have the fish weighed and witnessed meant no state record and no shot at 100K.