How did you lose 3 feet of one of your legs?

he lost 3 feet, but only 3inches off his overall height

If you are referring to paying OT for services such as security overnight to protect their assets on the ground then yes, you are correct sir. If you are were referring to Sealy paying OT for a Game Warden to work the tournament for enforcment of laws only, then do NOT receive funds from Sealy. They are there working as part of their normal tour of duties and being compensated by the state.


What I can tell you from personal experience of 11 years in the field and having brothers who are game wardens,
1. No one is going to tell me or have any rule over how I issue citations or warnings, no one.
2. If this was said to me or any LEO, that person would quickly be put in their place and reminded that they are there to enforce the rules and I am there to enforce the laws. A civilian nor another peace officer can dictate another's officers discretion on this matter.
3. When it comes to testimony in a court of law, "he told me to" simply doesn't cut it.

I stand behind my statements 100% as I sit here and type this message sitting next to the Game Warden who dealt with this specific incident.

I don't know but I bet it's heck to stand on the front deck with a 20mph wind with one leg shorter than the other... but then again, Capt. Morgan does it..

These always go so well

Just to clarify, since my little story has got so much attention. When I first measured the fish on the boat it was just under 16. We didnt noticed the difference until on the way to the weigh in I stopped by my friends house and showed him how close the fish was. I was ready to except a ticket and maybe learn something about how to measure a fish correctly. I was even going to let the GW measure it first then take it up to the official. However the GW where on break and I could not find one. Once the official said it was good I had no problem excepting the $450 check, its their tournament.
If there had been any integrity issue I would have had to know it was an illegal fish. How could I know that if it measured legally one way and not the other. It was a definite coin flip. By the way if I had KNOWN it was illegal the fish would have been swimming with his little buddies immediately.

Per Curt Kelly on KMOO sunday morning if he measures a fish on both sides and one is over/under and the other side is Over/Under he gives the benefit to the angler that its a legal fish.

Good to know. It has always been my perception if the tail broke the 16" line on either side it was a slot fish.

Just a thought, If the tournament director found out that the ruler was not being used correctly what would that have done to everyone else in the tournament. Might have opened up a big can of worms! (And I don't mean the kind you fish with).

The state record was set long before the slot. I dont see the point of the slot the fishing has not been any better or worse since it was implemented IMO.

Ok then, since it's no worse, why change it?

Fishing pressure is worse now than ever so technically fishing has gotten better.

The slot was 14-18 inches when Barry St. Clair caught his 18.18 in 1992. It was changed to 14-21" the following September ('93). The slot on Lake Fork will never be eliminated. Changed? Maybe, but never removed.

A better scenario would be no restrictions for white bass on Fork, only. Probably never happen, either.

Give Game Wardens something better to do thats for sure. The state might lose some revenue from tickets issued to some poor soul who does not understand the whole slot system. Make tournaments much more competitive and enjoyable IMO. Ray Bob had a slot for years and honestly no one gave a [censored] because it was Ray Bob and not Fork. I fish RB probably 30 -40 times a year because I live just up the road. I have never ever been met on the water or at the boat ramp by a GW wanting to check for slotted fish. The slot never showed to produce any kind of better fishing. Fork does get a lot of pressure but I catch more and better fish @ Fork than I do at Ray Bob. I do not think it has anything to do with a slot. Fork is just a much better suited reservoir for bass than RB is. All East Texas lakes are great bass lakes Fork just has a reputation for BIG bass mainly because 10 times more people fish it than any of the other lakes. If there was conclusive data showing the slot is working I could see a reason to keep it, I just dont see it. I would like to hear some opinions from guides about the slot at Fork.