Jan. 30, 2026
Media Contact: TPWD News, Business Hours, 512-389-8030
ATHENS – The 2026 Toyota ShareLunker program kicked off its 40th anniversary season this past week at O.H. Ivie Lake and Lake Alan Henry. Legendary reservoir O.H. Ivie has produced 59 Legacy Class largemouth bass over the past six years, and at Lake Alan Henry, one lucky angler caught the same giant fish for the third time since 2023.
Charles Roberts of Trinity reeled in 13.75-pound ShareLunker 684 late Tuesday afternoon (Jan. 20) — the first fish of the new collection season. This particular fish is no stranger to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) biologists as she proved to be a recapture of ShareLunker 681, part of the 2025 Legacy Class. She weighed 13.66 pounds when Kevin Roberston of Lubbock caught her on March 27.
Ross Gomez of Post landed 14.74-pound ShareLunker 685 Thursday night (Jan. 22) — the exact same Legacy Class fish he had caught on two previous occasions. Gomez brought her in the first time as ShareLunker 641 in 2023, then ShareLunker 674 in 2025 and now ShareLunker 685. He caught the bass in the same general location each time.
“The start of our 40th Anniversary season has been nothing short of remarkable,” said Natalie Goldstrohm, Toyota ShareLunker program coordinator. “These extraordinary fish returning year after year highlight the exceptional care provided by our hatchery staff at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center, ensuring they remain healthy and thrive for others to catch their fish of a lifetime. Anglers who submit these fish demonstrate how vital their participation is in largemouth bass conservation and in advancing the ShareLunker mission to create Bigger, Better Bass in Texas.”
The story of ShareLunker 685 was a truly remarkable one. Gomez had worked until 3 p.m. that day and wanted to get some fishing in after work. He had thought about taking his kayak out but ultimately decided to go to the dock and see what he could catch.
“I got out to the dock and there was a friend of mine that I’d fished with before and hadn’t seen in about a year,” said Gomez. “I was trying out a new lure that I had bought, and we were just talking about fishing. I threw out the lure and while I was bringing it back, I stopped, looked at it, and out of nowhere I saw her come up from the bottom and smash it. I’m screaming to my friend to get the net and I finally got her up and realized, this is a huge fish.”
The first thing his friend asked was whether Gomez thought it was the same fish he’d caught twice before. Gomez wasn’t sure; if so, it certainly looked older this time. When he had returned the fish the previous two times, the locations of the return were roughly two miles from the dock. Gomez called the local bait shop to get it on the scale and then dialed up the Toyota ShareLunker program.
All Legacy Class ShareLunkers are tagged with a small electronic identifier, similar to a pet microchip, when they are brought into the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens. The unique code embedded in the tag enables TPWD biologists to quickly identify whether a fish has been previously submitted to the program. When biologists scanned the ID in Gomez’ catch, they were able to confirm it was the same fish he’d caught twice before.
“The experience with the ShareLunker program was great and another smooth process,” said Gomez. “We got everything done and submitted, and TPWD staff arrived quickly to pick her up. I was talking to my wife about it, and she said, ‘What are the chances of you catching the same fish for the third time?’ It was kind of shocking for me when Natalie told me, but it’s not even the fact that I caught it the third time, or this fish made it back there again. I told my wife, ‘Why did I catch her? I’m not the only one that fishes out there because there are tons of people who fish at that dock. Why did she decide on that day to hit my lure?’ That’s the unbelievable thing to me.”
O.H. Ivie racked up 12 Legacy Class Lunkers in 2021, 2022 and 2024 and amassed a record-shattering 15 ShareLunkers in 2023. The waterbody paced the field in 2025 with a season best six and is off to a good start in 2026 with Tuesday’s fish. Meanwhile, Gomez’ catch became the 32nd all-time Legacy Class Lunker for Alan Henry and put the waterbody on the board for the second year in a row.
During the first three months of the season (Jan. 1 through March 31), anglers who reel in a 13-plus pound bass can loan it to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for the ShareLunker selective breeding and stocking program. These anglers can call the ShareLunker hotline at (903) 681-0550 to report their catch 24/7 through March 31, 2026.
Legacy Class ShareLunker weights are all verified using a certified scale, but anglers may use a digital scale to get an initial weight to inform the ShareLunker response team. Once the TPWD team arrives, they can take a certified weight on site.
A list of official weigh stations can be found on the ShareLunker Official Weigh and Holding Stations website. Roberts used the certified scale at the ShareLunker Official Weigh Station at Concho Marina to weigh ShareLunker 684.
Anglers that catch and loan a 13-plus pound lunker earn Legacy Class status, receive a catch kit filled with merchandise donated by program sponsors, a 13lb+ Legacy decal for their vehicle or boat, VIP access to the Toyota ShareLunker Annual Awards event, a high-quality replica mount of their fish from Lake Fork Taxidermy and ShareLunker branded apparel provided by AFTCO. Anglers also receive entries into two separate drawings – a Legacy Class Drawing and the year-end Grand Prize Drawing. Both drawings will award the winner a $5,000 Bass Pro Shops shopping spree.
The year-round Toyota ShareLunker Program offers anglers three additional levels of participation for catching bass over eight pounds or 24 inches in Texas public waters. Each of these levels provide vital data to TPWD fisheries biologists, helping them continue to create bigger, better bass in Texas.
Anglers who enter data for any lunker they catch greater than eight pounds or 24 inches also receive a catch kit, a decal for their vehicle or boat, a one-month subscription card to Bass University and an entry into the year-end Grand Prize Drawing to win a $5,000 Bass Pro Shops shopping spree. ShareLunker entry classes include the Bass Pro Shops Lunker Class (8 lb.+), Strike King Elite Class (10 lb.+) and Lew’s Legend Class (13 lb.+).
Once a qualified lunker is reeled in, anglers need to enter the catch data on the Toyota ShareLunker mobile app – available for free from the Apple App Store and Google Play – or at TexasSharelunker.com.
In addition to providing basic catch information, anglers have the option to send a DNA scale sample from their lunker bass to TPWD biologists for genetic analysis. Anglers who contribute a sample to the program will receive a Lew’s reel while supplies last, with a limit of one reel per angler. Instructions for submitting DNA samples are located on the Toyota ShareLunker website.
TPWD and the Toyota ShareLunker program are once again partnering with AFTCO on the AFTCO Guide of the Year award for the 2026 ShareLunker season. The AFTCO Guide of the Year award recognizes a fishing guide who contributes to conservation and enhancement of largemouth bass in Texas.
The Toyota ShareLunker Program is made possible in part by the generous title sponsorship of Toyota. Toyota is a longtime supporter of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation and TPWD, providing major funding for a wide variety of fisheries, state parks and wildlife projects.
Additional vital program support comes from Legend Class category prize sponsor Lew’s, Elite Class category prize sponsor Strike King, Lunker Class category prize sponsor Bass Pro Shops, AFTCO, Bass Forecast, Bass University and Lake Fork Taxidermy.
For updates on the Toyota ShareLunker Program, visit facebook.com/sharelunkerprogram/, https://www.instagram.com/TexasShareLunker/ or TexasSharelunker.com.
Author: TOR Poobah
Original Source: http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/newsmedia/releases/?req=20260130c
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