iStockphoto / Kelly Dalling / Jill_InspiredByDesign
Grander Atlantic Blue marlin weighing 1,260 pounds caught off the coast of Massachusetts
One of the largest blue marlin ever caught in the Atlantic Ocean was just landed by Captain Damon Sacco aboard the Castafari while fishing in Atlantis Canyon after leaving from Falmouth Harbor in Massachusetts.
Not only is this is one of the biggest blue marlin ever caught in the Atlantic Ocean, it is also believed to be the largest ever caught on the East Coast and just 142 pounds off the IGFA All-Tackle fishing world record for Atlantic Blue Marlin, a record held by angler Paulo Amorim who caught a 1402 poudner off of Vitoria, Brazil back in 1992.
1,260-Pound ‘Grander’ Blue Marlin Smashes Massachusetts State Record
The previous Massachusetts state fishing record for the blue marlin species was 873 pounds. That fish was caught by angler Dr. Ralph DeLaTorre and has been a certified record since 2015.
Once certified, this fish will absolutely demolish that record. This grander blue marlin tipped the scales at a whopping 1,260 pounds when it was weighed in Falmouth Harbor. For those keeping track at home, that’s 387 pounds heavier than the previous Massachusetts state record for blue marlin.
Catching granders while fishing from the continental United States is an extreme rarity. Hawaii accounts for the vast majority of all ‘grander’ marlin caught in American waters but those are Pacific Blue and Black Marlin. Hauling in an Atlantic Blue Marlin off of Massachusetts that weighs over 1,200 pounds? That is unprecedented.
Within the Atlantic Ocean, most of the ‘granders’ that are caught these days are in the Cape Verdes Islands off of Africa’s Western Coast near Senegal, or the Azores off of Portugal. Those are really the two hot spots within the Atlantic Ocean for anyone chasing a marlin over 1,000 pounds.
Fish of a Lifetime
None of that matters now though because angler Walter Chapman fought this fish for three hours in Atlantis Canyon before everyone aboard the Castafari ran it back to the scale at Falmouth Harbor and blew everyone away. It measured at 142″ fork before they got it to the scales and were taking guesses on what it might weigh. Check this fish out:
Someone from On The Water was at the marina to check out this once-in-a-lifetime fish. They are calling it the largest blue marlin ever landed and weighed on the East Coast of America. I haven’t been able to independently verify that information but as I mentioned before, the ‘granders’ caught in the Atlantic are primarily in Cape Verdes, the Azores, and occasionally Bermuda as well. Though back in 2023, a 1,145-pounder was caught in the Gulf with a crew fishing out of Orange Beach, Alabama.
Here is their report from the dock as this massive fish made it back to the scales:
How Big Do These Marlin Get?
Female marlin grow considerably larger than males. In some instances, females can weight 3 to 4x more than males. So this fish was almost certainly an older female.
Given how unprecedented a catch like this is in Massachusetts, it is hard to image what the mood was like when they called this fish in and the reactions from friends and family when the crew told everyone what they’d caught. This is a legitimate ‘larger than life’ fish story that people would have to see in order to believe.
A 1,260 pounds, this fish will now become the second heaviest state fishing record in Massachusetts (142 pounds off the fishing world record). Only the 1,324-pound Mako Shark weighs more. It surpassed the state’s record for Bluefin Tuna which sits at 1,228 pounds and has stood strong since 1984.
And for context, the IGFA fishing world record for Pacific Blue Marlin is 1376 pounds. That fish was caught in Kona, Hawaii back in May of 1982. The all tackle world record for Black Marlin is the mark to beat. That sits at 1,560 pounds and was caught by angler Alfred Glasswell, Junior who was fishing out of Cabo Blanco, Peru in August of 1953.