ATHENS – Angler Clayton Braddock of Argyle reeled in Lake Tawakoni’s grand entry into the Toyota ShareLunker program Sunday, catching the waterbody’s first Legacy Class fish.
The lake became the 79th Texas public fishery to produce one of these massive largemouth bass, and Braddock’s 13.30-pound ShareLunker 676 Sunday bumped the overall total to seven during the 2025 Toyota ShareLunker collection season
“It is always exciting to see new reservoirs added to the list of waters producing Legacy Class fish, showcasing the outstanding fisheries across the state,” said Natalie Goldstrohm, Toyota ShareLunker program coordinator. “Thank you to the anglers who make this program possible and help us continue to enhance and celebrate these world-class fisheries.”
Braddock competes in Team Trail Outdoors fishing tournaments and has one scheduled at Lake Tawakoni in a couple of weeks. He headed out Sunday morning to practice and due to some rain, didn’t get on the water until roughly 8:30 a.m. They fished a couple of spots and came up empty, so they decided to go fish on some rocky areas.
“I was throwing a medium diver crankbait, and she bit in about six feet of water,” said Braddock. “All she did was headshake and it almost felt like I had a five-pound channel catfish on the line. I finally got her up closer to the surface and saw her side and knew she was different. I told my friend who I was fishing with to grab the net because I knew it was a giant. We got her in the net, celebrated, put her in the live well, gave her some time and decided to weigh her. When we saw the weight, we knew at that point our plans had changed.”
Sunday’s catch was a personal best for Braddock and broke his previous personal best of nine and a quarter pounds, which he set last year.
“My experience with the ShareLunker program was phenomenal,” said Braddock. “Natalie was great to work with, we weighed the fish on the certified scale, sent her the video and she headed over to collect the fish. Everything was perfect.”
During the first three months of the season (Jan. 1 through March 31), anglers who reel in a 13-plus pound bass can loan it to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for the ShareLunker selective breeding and stocking program. These anglers can call the ShareLunker hotline at (903) 681-0550 to report their catch 24/7 through March 31, 2025.
Legacy Class ShareLunker weights are all verified using a certified scale, but anglers may use a digital scale to get an initial weight to inform the ShareLunker response team. Once the TPWD team arrives, they can take a certified weight on site.
A list of official weigh stations can be found on the ShareLunker Official Weigh and Holding Stations website. Braddock used the certified scale at the Duck Cove Marina to weigh ShareLunker 676.
Anglers that catch and loan a 13-plus pound lunker earn Legacy Class status, receive a catch kit filled with merchandise, a 13lb+ Legacy decal for their vehicle or boat, VIP access to the Toyota ShareLunker Annual Awards event, a high-quality replica mount of their fish from Lake Fork Taxidermy, ShareLunker branded apparel provided by AFTCO, and Bass University will provide a swag pack and annual subscription. Anglers also receive entries into two separate drawings – a Legacy Class Drawing and the year-end Grand Prize Drawing. Both drawings will award the winner a $5,000 Bass Pro Shops shopping spree.
The year-round Toyota ShareLunker program offers anglers three additional levels of participation for catching bass over eight pounds or 24 inches in Texas public waters. Each of these levels provide vital data to TPWD fisheries biologists, helping them continue to create bigger, better bass in Texas.
Anglers who enter data for any lunker they catch greater than eight pounds or 24 inches also receive a catch kit, a decal for their vehicle or boat, a one-month subscription to Bass University and an entry into the year-end Grand Prize Drawing to win a $5,000 Bass Pro Shops shopping spree. ShareLunker entry classes include the Bass Pro Shops Lunker Class (8 lb.+), Strike King Elite Class (10 lb.+) and Lew’s Legend Class (13 lb.+).
Once a lunker is reeled in, anglers need to enter the catch data on the Toyota ShareLunker mobile app – available for free from the Apple App Store and Google Play – or at TexasSharelunker.com.
In addition to providing basic catch information, anglers have the option to send a DNA scale sample from their lunker bass to TPWD researchers for genetic analysis. Anglers who contribute a sample to the program will receive a Lew’s baitcast reel valued at up to $200 while supplies last, with a limit of one reel per angler. Anglers who send in a genetic sample will also get a three-month subscription to Bass University. Instructions for submitting DNA samples are located on the Toyota ShareLunker website.
The Toyota ShareLunker Program is made possible in part by the generous sponsorship of Toyota. Toyota is a longtime supporter of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation and TPWD, providing major funding for a wide variety of fisheries, state parks and wildlife projects.
Additional vital program support comes from Legend class category prize sponsor Lew’s, Elite class category prize sponsor Strike King, Lunker class category prize sponsor Bass Pro Shops, AFTCO, Bass Forecast, Bass University and Lake Fork Taxidermy.
For updates on the Toyota ShareLunker Program, visit facebook.com/sharelunkerprogram/, https://www.instagram.com/TexasShareLunker/ or TexasSharelunker.com.