The 2023 Texas ShareLunker season was another banner year for the program, with multiple milestones reached and memories made by anglers working with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Inland Fisheries Division staff, who together make the program a success.
Key highlights from the 2023 Toyota ShareLunker collection season include:
- A record 15 Legacy Class ShareLunkers produced from O.H. Ivie
- Five fish weighing more than 14 pounds
- Angler Kyle Hall recorded a Legacy Lunker in back-to-back seasons
- Anglers Dalton Smith and Caden Cowan reeled in Legacy Lunkers at O.H. Ivie on the same day (Feb. 2)
- Anglers from seven states, including Texas, etched their name into the program’s record book: Texas, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Washington
- Anglers have submitted 650 Legacy Lunkers in the first 37 years of the ShareLunker program and during the 2022 and 2023 collection seasons, all the loaned fish were healthy and returned to the lake where they were caught
How to Participate in ShareLunker Program
If you reel in a largemouth bass that’s at least 8 pounds or 24 inches, you can participate simply by entering your lunker catch information online or on the ShareLunker mobile app during the year-long season (Jan. 1-Dec. 31). Lunkers weighing 13+ pounds that are caught during spawning season (Jan. 1-March 31) can be donated to the ShareLunker program — just call the mobile hotline at 903-681-0550 and program representatives will come pick it up.
Once a lunker is reeled in, enter the catch data on the Toyota ShareLunker mobile app — available for free from the Apple App Store and Google Play — or on the Toyota ShareLunker online app.
All confirmed ShareLunker participants will receive a Catch Kit corresponding to their fish’s weight class. Each Catch Kit includes an achievement decal, merchandise, and other giveaways. Plus, qualified entries will be included in a grand prize drawing to win a $5,000 shopping spree and other prizes! And, if you donate a 13-pound or larger bass for spawning, you will be entered in an additional drawing to win a $5,000 shopping spree, VIP access to the Toyota ShareLunker Annual Awards event, and a high-quality replica of your lunker fish.
