Did you know the world record Walleye was caught in Tennessee? That’s right, I said TENNESEE!
Typically when people think of Walleye they think of Nothern states with blistering cold winters and strong allegiances to dairy. This is not wrong as Walleye were originally found only in the Great Lakes Region and Missouri and Mississippi River Basins.
However, thanks to hard work from state agencies and non-profit organizations throughout the country, Walleye have been successfully introduced to over 40 US states! This introduction has strengthened walleye fishing and culture to ensure a bright future for the next generation of anglers. So, get out to your Walleye lake and start fishing, you’re not going to catch the next state record sitting on the couch!
Walleye State Records:
| State | Weight | Location | Angler | Date |
| Alabama | 10 lbs 14 oz | Weiss Reservoir | Julia Hurley | 6/24/1980 |
| Arizona | 16 lbs 1.76 oz | Show Low Lake | Gregg Munck | 11/18/2002 |
| Arkansas | 22 lbs 11 oz |
Greers Ferry Lake | Al Nelson | 3/12/1982 |
| Colorado | 18 lbs 13 oz | Standley Lake | Scott Regan | 1997 |
| Connecticut | 14 lbs 8 oz | Candlewood Lake | George Britto | 1941 |
| Delaware | 6 lbs 14 oz | Brandywine River | Nesbit Copenhaver | 7/23/1995 |
| Georgia | 11 lbs 6 oz | Richard B. Russell Lake | Neal Watson | 9/11/1995 |
| Idaho | 17 lbs 14 oz | Oakley Reservoir | Damon Rush | 9/10/2011 |
| Illinois | 15 lbs 0.8 oz | Pecatonica River | James Zimmerman | 2012 |
| Indiana | 14 lbs 4 oz | Little Kankakee River | Leon Richart | 1974 |
| Indiana | 14 lbs 4 oz | Tippecanoe River | Donal Tedford | 1977 |
| Iowa | 14lbs 8 oz | Des Moines River | Gloria Eoriatti | 1986 |
| Kansas | 13 lbs 2.56 oz | Wilson Reservoir | Dustin Ritter | 4/17/1996 |
| Kentucky | 21 lbs 8 oz | Lake Cumberland | Abe Black | 10/1/1958 |
| Maryland | 14 lbs 4 oz | Jennings Randolph Reservoir | John McCarley | 5/16/1998 |
| Massachusetts | 11 lbs 0 oz | Quabbin Reservoir | Robert Methot | 1975 |
| Michigan | 17 lbs 3.04 oz | Pine River | Ray Fadely | 1951 |
| Minnesota | 17 lbs 8 oz | Seagull River | Leroy Chiovitte | 5/13/1979 |
| Mississippi | 9 lbs 10.56 oz | Tennessee River | Clayton E. Hobbs | 1/19/1985 |
| Missouri | 21 lbs 1 oz | Bull Shoals Lake | Gerry Partlow | 3/26/1988 |
| Montana | 17 lbs 12 oz | Tiber Reservoir | Robert Bob Hart | 11/18/2007 |
| Nebraska | 16 lbs 2 oz | Lake McConaughy | Herbert J. Cutshall | 7/5/1971 |
| Nevada | 15 lbs 4 oz | Lahontan Reservoir | Billy Foster | 1998 |
| New Hampshire | 12 lbs 8.8 oz | Connecticut River | Anthony Bartolini | 5/4/1992 |
| New Jersey | 13 lbs 9 oz | Delaware River | George Fundell | 1993 |
| New Mexico | 16 lbs 9 oz | Clayton Lake | G.L. Peppers | 9/19/1999 |
| New York | 16 lbs 9 oz | Mystic Lake | Thomas Reed | 1/20/2009 |
| North Carolina | 13 lbs 8 oz | Lake Chatuge | Lamar L. Cofer | 8/16/1986 |
| North Dakota | 15 lbs 13 oz | Missouri River | Neal Leier | 2018 |
| Ohio | 16 lbs 3.04 oz | Lake Erie | Tom Haberman | 11/23/1999 |
| Oklahoma | 12 lbs 13 oz | Robert S Kerr | Kerry Carter | 5/8/2004 |
| Oregon | 19 lbs 15.3 oz | Columbia River | Arnold Berg | 1990 |
| Pennsylvania | 17 lbs 9 oz | Allegheny River | Mike Holly | 1980 |
| South Carolina | 10 lbs 0 oz | Richard B. Russell Lake | Robert Huskins | 1994 |
| South Dakota | 15 lbs 3 oz | Lake Sharpe | George Heyde | 4/7/1979 |
| Tennessee | 25 lbs 0 oz | Old Hickory Reservoir | Mabry Harper | 8/3/1960 |
| Texas | 11 lbs 14.08 oz | Lake Meredith | Hank McWilliams Jr. | 2/26/1990 |
| Utah | 15 lbs 9 oz | Provo River | Jeffery Tanner | 1991 |
| Vermont | 14 lbs 8.8 oz | Lake Champlain | Richard Levesque | 2/10/2010 |
| Virginia | 15 lbs 15 oz | New River | Anthony P. Duncan | 12/15/2000 |
| Washington | 19 lbs | Columbia River | Mike Hepper | 2/5/2007 |
| West Virginia | 17 lbs .82 oz | Kanawha River | Steve Skeens | 2003 |
| Wisconsin | 18 lbs 0 oz | High Lake | unknown | 9/16/1933 |
| Wyoming | 17 lbs 6.72 oz | Boysen Reservoir | Stan Seivewright | 1991 |
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Comments 1
I hope you guys know that Washington States’ record is very outdated. The current record was caught a few miles from my home in Pasco, Washington and it weighed 20.32 pounds. It was caught on March 5th, 2014 by John Grubenhoff. The huge ‘eye is an absolute tank of a fish. I am only posting this because as a fisherman myself, I should represent my state and set the record straight.
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