A Harlan County man can now claim he is the state record holder following a largemouth bass catch.

The Kentucky Department of Fish And Wildlife says Mark Ward of Evarts made the record catch on Good Friday after work at Highsplint Lake.

Ward was with his wife and 9-month-old child when it happened. He said he saw a 4-pound bass in the shallows, but he got something much bigger instead.

“I pitched a lizard in there and the 4-pounder showed interest,” Ward said. “Then, another came in and looked like a big log. The 4-pound fish triggered her to pick it up. I set the hook and it was on. Good Friday turned into a great Friday for me.”

The largemouth bass was 14 pounds, 9.5 ounces. It was 26.8 inches long with a girth of 22.5 inches.

“When I saw it in person, what first caught my eye were the eyes on that fish were huge,” said Kevin Frey, Eastern Fisheries District coordinator for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. “It would look like a shark if you saw it swimming in the water. The thickness of the fish was really impressive.”

The previous record was in 1984 when Dale Wilson of London caught a 13-pound, 10-ounce largemouth bass in Wood Creek Lake.