Lake Worth Largemouth Goes 8 1/2 Pounds, Breaks Record

Keaton Smith, 16, of Poulan, with the new Lake Worth largemouth record.

Lake Worth has a new lake-record largemouth, and it’s one that’s going to be hard to top. The angler, Keaton Smith, 16, of Poulan, caught the bass on March 25 just below Blackshear’s Warwick Dam.

“We were actually fishing for shoal bass when he caught the largemouth,” said his dad, Monty.

Monty said they have been doing really well catching some nice shoal bass this spring. Keaton has caught a few in the 5- to 6-lb. range.

“I caught a 5 1/2-lb. shoal bass that was tagged by Auburn University,” said Monty. “I reported the fish to Auburn and released it immediately.”

On the day Keaton broke the largemouth record, he and his dad launched their boat at Killebrew Park. The big largemouth bit a Berkley 3.5 chrome-colored crankbait that was thrown up near the bank.

“We had never fished the Flint until March and had only been about five times before this fish was caught,” said Monty.

Keaton has been having a great spring catching shoal bass.

Lake Worth, also known as Lake Chehaw, is a small reservoir at the confluence of the Flint River, Kinchafoonee Creek and Muckalee Creek. The concrete Flint River Dam was built in 1908 for hydroelectric generation and is owned by Georgia Power today. Lake Chehaw is very riverine and shallow with average depths of 17 feet. In winter, the lake is drawn down nearly 10 feet in anticipation of flooding spring rains. In the Flood of 1994, the lake overflowed its banks and the dam itself was underwater at one point. For GON’s Lake & River Records program, any fish caught upstream to Warwick dam is considered record potential for Lake Worth.

Lake Worth Upstream To Blackshear Dam Record Fish

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Requirements For Record Fish

• Fish must be caught legally by rod and reel in a manner consistent with WRD fish regulations.

• Catch must be weighed on accurate Georgia DOA certified scales with at least two witnesses present.

• Witnesses to the weighing must be at least 18 years old, and they must not be members of the angler’s immediate family nor have a close personal relationship with the angler.

• Catch must be positively identified by qualified DNR personnel. GON can correspond with DNR when high-quality, multiple photos are taken of the fish and emailed to GON. All record submissions and photos must be sent to [email protected].

GON’s records are compiled and maintained by GON, to be awarded at GON’s discretion. Additional steps may be required for record consideration.