But can the average guy eye ball 1/8"?

isn't it ironic that they give out tickets to someone who is helping preserve the life of a bass by putting it in his livewell momentarily while he gets ready to take a picture yet they won't do a damn thing about cormorants and alligator gar which play hell with not only the bass but their food source as well...

Your right it is 1/8 I put 2/16 for one below one above. The one below is illegal the one above is legal.

I saw your buddy put a slot fish in the live well

Amen Brother!! Those cormorants eat thousands of bass a day and we can't do [censored] about em... heck they wouldn't even have to pay me to shoot em!!

And lets not mention the dozens of bank anglers using hand lines and catching anything and everything straight to the grease no matter species/length/etc. And what about illegals?? Heck why even bother getting a license when you can fish for FREE!!

I guess you could put it in your livewell but what excuse are you going to give to the game warden?

The old "I was planning on throwing it back" line?

I'm pretty sure he's heard that one a time or two...

Just explain it to the Judge, how you were looking out for the fishes best interest, by putting it in your livewell!

Sucks for all the guys wanting a pic of their best 5 for Instagram and Facebook. Nobody will believe them now..

Game wardens don't decide guilt or innocence. They write a ticket on probable cause. Only the judge/jury decide if what you did was legal or not. I've put them in long enough to pull out a measuring stick, scale and camera. I do it right away, not leaving the fish in there any longer than it takes to pull it out. I will say that it is only when I am alone and at night when I have to use a light to get everything situated to use. Just because a GW says something doesn't mean that it is gospel

I've been fishing Lake Fork since 1986 and have NEVER saw/seen a game warden. Guess they don't want to get back in the boonies where I fish. Got a ticket on Monticello one time for not having a throw cushion in the boat.

I've hunted and fished for over 60 yrs and never got a ticket for anything. I just wanted to be absolutely sure you couldn't take your big slot for a boat ride on Fork

My fish was not 24 inches.......it was 23.5
I put it in the live well until I got out my measuring stick to check the length
I did not want to put the fish in the bottom of the boat while I checked it out & since I was by myself that is the only thing I could do. Because if it was 24 it was going to the certified scales.
I did not get a ticket, the fish went back in the water asap and I don't feel bad about getting the picture at all. My PB at 9.5#
y'all do what you want to do ........ I'm getting a picture and I didn't want to stress out that fish.
the next time you are worried about "retaining a slot fish" or breaking a rule, remember what PolOlSun said about littering & when your going 80mph down the hiway look at the speed limit sign that says "70" and think about the literal interpretation most of you guys are putting on here.
That Game Warden is going to have to be awfully close to see that it is a slot fish. Yell at him to come over and help you measure it. He might even take the pic for you.

Don't try to bend the rules to your advantage and they seem to be right on point.

I have unfortunately had experience with this issue. It wasn't on Fork but rather Fayette County. I can tell you with certainty that in the live well meets the definition of 'retained' and if the game warden were to write you a ticket, the judge will in all probability uphold it. Game wardens are just normal people like us and I suspect that there are days when they would just let it go, just like there are days when we let are kids get away with one. As for me, I am not going to rely on the game warden's mood to decide if I get a ticket. Take a quick pic and let her go. That's my $0.02.

Well, Saturday while fishing Fork back up in one of the creeks, I had a guy wave me over to his boat. He was fishing by himself and as luck would have it, he wanted me to take a picture of a big slot fish he just caught. Well he pulled the fish out of his livewell, and it was around 8 lbs, and about 22 or 23 inches long. It was a good slot fish anyone would be proud of. Well, we took some good pictures then let the big girl swim away. This is the third time this has happened to me on Fork. This was a good guy who was just excited as all get out to have caught it. I would be a character witness if he would have gotten caught. Even though it was "against the law"

Good Luck to all