|| |—| || |Jesse Lockowitz stands to break North Carolina’s tarpon record. Photo: Courtesy of Kathy Lockowitz| A pending-state-record tarpon in North Carolina met its match with a kid who doesn’t even have his driver’s license.
Sixteen-year-old Jesse Lockowitz tossed a live bluefish on a balloon-float rig from Bogue Inlet Pier and waited as the current and wind carried his bait out to the tarpon rolling on the surface more than 200 yards away. His plan worked. One of the fish took the bait and then fought Lockowitz for almost two hours. It took three people to gaff the fish, and six to bring it out of the water.
The tarpon tipped a certified scale at 175 pounds, 11 pounds heavier than the current state-record tarpon and five pounds heavier than Lockowitz.
