By Megan Wehring
BUDA — When 15-year-old Trace Jansen went fishing on Feb. 28, it was beyond his wildest dreams that he would land the heaviest largemouth bass ever caught at Lake Travis in Austin.
Jansen, a student at Johnson High School in Buda, caught a 15.32-pound bass, breaking a lake record set in 1993. Jansen’s catch is the 12th “Legacy Class” largemouth bass landed in 2021 -- the heaviest at 16.40 pounds on Feb. 19 at O.H. Ivie Lake east of San Angelo.
In the first three months of the season between the months of January and March, anglers can loan their bass of at least 13 pounds to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) for the ShareLunker selective breeding and stocking program.
“The day was pretty slow,” Jansen told the Hays Free Press/News-Dispatch. “I think we had only caught eight fish. We had seen a lot of big ones. We were on our last little stretch of bank on our last spot of the day when we saw her sitting on her bed where she lays the eggs.”
It took about an hour to reel the female bass in, after getting the male off, Jansen added. He said that was the first time he has ever caught a fish that size.
“It feels pretty dang cool,” Jansen is proud of his accomplishment. “It’s pretty exciting. I’ve never thought I would ever catch a fish that big in my life.”
