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Join a discussion on The Hayes Smallmouth ......
The majority of Dale Hollow Lake is lies within Tennessee. However, about 4,000 acres
of the lake are in
Kentucky (
Map of Dale Hollow Lake ). Hayes has stated that he caught the fish in Kentucky water
but very near the state line, so both states are nappy to lay claim
to the record.
Mr. Hayes smallmouth remained at the top of the record books for more
than 40 years. Then in 1996 the International Game Fish Association (IGFA)
removed the Hayes smallmouth from it's records after an affidavit
surfaced from August 1955 that stated the fish weighed only 8-pounds,
15-ounces. The affidavit stated the other three pounds were metal and
lead weights that were placed in the belly of the fish by Barlow
without Hayes knowledge or consent.
“The IGFA’s policy is always to investigate standing records when
proof is brought forward challenging its legitimacy,” said Jason
Schratweiser, conservation director for the IGFA. The IGFA
subsequently disqualified the Hayes world record smallmouth bass in
1996.
Kentucky followed the IGFA lead and removed the fish from the state
records.
After disqualifying the Hayes smallmouth, the IGFA and the KDFWR
recognized another Dale Hollow Lake bass as the all tackle smallmouth world record; a 10-pound, 14-ounce
fish caught in 1969 by John Gorman. Gorman's smallmouth was 26 and 1/4 inches
long with a girth of 21
and 1/2 inches.
An investigation was launched and by Ron Fox, assistant director of
the Tennessee
Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA). During the investigation Fox
gathered multiple pieces of evidence that suggest Hayes' fish was
legitimate.
Although Barlow had died before the affidavit was discovered Fox did
locate and interview Barlow's brother Ira. Fox said,
"I interviewed Barlow's brother, and he said, 'My brother who claimed
to have done this [added the weight] wasn't even there. He wasn't at the dock that
night'".
Ira Barlow agreed to a polygraph test, and the results were part of
the package Fox presented to IGFA officials.
Fox also located several eyewitnesses, including a Tennessee
enforcement officer who saw Hayes' fish. "I was also fortunate enough
to talk to a guy who worked at the dock and saw the fish that night
and had his picture taken with it, and the scale shows 11 pounds, 15
ounces," Fox said. "I interviewed everybody I could find who saw the
fish that night."
Some of the most compelling physical evidence were the length and
girth measurements of the Hayes' smallmouth. The Hayes bass was 27
inches long with a girth of 21 and 2/3 inches. The #2 smallmouth
caught by John Gorman in 1969 was 10-pound, 14-ounce fish it was 26 and 1/4 inches
long with a girth of 21
and 1/2 inches.
Finally in December 2005 the IGFA reinstated Hayes's smallmouth bass
as the world record.
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