If you were to poll a bunch of anglers as to why they go fishing, you’d probably get a wide range of answers. The resulting list of angling motivations would certainly include such things as relaxation, putting food on the table, enjoying the outdoors, or the simple enjoyment of catching fish. A few respondents might mention the chance of catching a really big fish, and a very few might mention the desire to make a record-setting catch, but the majority of anglers tend to not list the search for exceptionally sized fish as chief among their reasons for angling. But poll results notwithstanding, the reality is that anglers tend to be an extremely competitive bunch. The first debate about which angler caught the bigger fish probably occurred in caveman days when the absence of digital cameras, tape measures and certified scales surely resulted in animated fireside discussions among club-wielding primitives.

Who among us hasn’t daydreamed about catching a really big fish — maybe even a world record? There are many organizations which keep track of the catches made by anglers in various states, countries and regions of the world, but by far the most universally respected and accepted keeper of fishing records is the International Game Fish Association, headquartered on the east coast in Dania Beach, Florida. My own daydreaming about record catches was triggered last week by the mailman’s delivery of the 2013 edition of “IGFA World Record Gamefishes,” which includes nearly 150 pages of record catches which have been made around the world in both fresh and salt water.