New Maryland records: Thomas Bodmer's 77-pound record albacore, and Jeff Jacobs' 393-pound swordfish. (Courtesy photos)
September 23, 2022
By Game & Fish Staff
New saltwater fishing state records have been broken for two brutish species off the coacst Ocean City, Md.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reported this week that the new state-record swordfish was more than 90 pounds heavier than the previous record, while the new albacore (long-fin tuna) record eclipsed an 18-year-old mark.
Jeff Jacobs' 393-pound swordfish, caught on charterboat RoShamBo with Captain Willie Zimmerman, came as the crew was preparing to return to shore, according to a DNR report. The return was delayed by more than five hours as Jacobs fought the fish. That came after eight hours of fishing.
"Giving up wasn't an option," Jacobs told the DNR. "When (we) saw it we all knew it was a state record."
The record was caught in the canyons off the coast of Ocean City, beating the previous record set last year (301 pounds, Jake Bertonazzi). The swordfish weight was officially certified by Hunter Dorchenzo at Ocean City Fishing Center. A Maryland DNR biologist confirmed the catch.
Albacore Record Thomas "Tad" Bodmer’s 77-pound record albacore caught aboard the charter boat Top Dog with Captain Ryan Knapp on Sept. 20 also came as the crew was preparing a return to the dock. In a late-day flurry, three different lines went off at the same time.
The rod Bodmer grabbed was attached to the record, which beat the previous record set in 2004 (Victor W. Gardner), the DNR said. The fish was caught while trolling a naked ballyhoo bait
"It was chaos," the recent convert to saltwater fishing said. "I would get my fish close and then it would run back out. It took 25 minutes to get it."
The weight was officially certified by Sunset Marina in Ocean City. A Maryland DNR biologist confirmed the catch.
