HS man lands first fish in challenge
A Hot Springs man boated a bluegill worth $1,000 Saturday morning on just his second cast of the day, becoming the first prize winner in the Sixth Annual $86,000 Hot Springs Fishing Challenge.
Marq Hebert, of Hot Springs, boated the bluegill bearing prize tag No. 12 on Lake Catherine at about 9:45 a.m. Saturday, less than four hours after the start of the challenge at 6 a.m.
Hebert told Visit Hot Springs, the contest’s sponsor, that he had heard about the challenge and decided to go out and try his luck. Hebert was fishing in a boat with a friend offshore from Lake Catherine State Park when the bluegill hit his minnow bait on his second cast of the morning, Visit Hot Springs said in a news release.
The 0.62-pound prize fish was 9.1 inches long. Sixty prize fish, including the top prize fish dubbed “Big Al,” worth $15,000, remain at large.
Since the challenge began in 2012, no one has ever caught “Big Al,” which varies in species each year. In 2016, “Big Al” was a channel catfish that was worth $10,000.
Clues will be given out during May and June if “Big Al” has not been caught by then, Visit Hot Springs says.
“On May 1 we will reveal the first clue about Big Al if he remains at large,” Steve Arrison, CEO of Visit Hot Springs, said in a news release. “Then we’ll reveal a second clue on June 1, and a third on June 26, if the top prize hasn’t been claimed.
The species include largemouth bass, bluegill, channel catfish, white bass, crappie and walleye. The tags are imprinted with a phone number and a prize number. If a fish is caught, the angler must call the number and present the fish with the tag attached.
All tagged fish must be caught in accordance with all state and local laws, codes, rules and regulations.
A complete list of the rules and regulations is available at http://www.agfc.com/fishing/Pages/FishingRegulations.aspx.
The sixth annual challenge runs through 5 p.m. June 30.