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The marine game fish record for a red grouper, standing for over 32 years, was recently defeated by a veteran S.C. angler.
Michael Jenkins, of Little River, SC, was fishing offshore when he hooked into and caught a 31 pound red grouper on Friday August 15th off the South Carolina coast to claim the new state record by only 14 ounces.
Jenkins, 50, pushed out from Little River aboard the “Fish Screamer III” with Captain Danny Juel at the helm, and accompanied by his son, Thomas Jenkins and a few friends. The boat, a 40 foot charter sportfishing vessel, anchored up in about 100 feet of water, 50 miles offshore to do a little bottom fishing. Jenkins was fishing with his personal 6-foot Penn rod and reel combo, and using a small grunt called a tomtate for bait rigged on a circle hook with a 16 ounce sinker. He landed the 36 and a ¼-inch (fork length) record red grouper catch in about 10 minutes. Jenkins’ catch tops the previous marine game fish state record holder for a red grouper by 14 ounces, which was set over 32 years ago in 1976, by Gary Frost just offshore of Charleston. S.C. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) biologist Amy Dukes certified the new state record fish weight at Eugene Platt’s Seafood Market in North Myrtle Beach.
For a current listing of S.C.’s State Record Marine Game fish contact Program Coordinator Amy Dukes with the Office of Fisheries Management, DukesA [at] dnr [dot] sc [dot] gov, or call (843) 953-9365.
DNR protects and manages South Carolina’s natural resources by making wise and balanced decisions for the benefit of the state’s natural resources and its people.
