Awesome awesome fish!!!!!!

What a great fish and to land it alone is amazing.

that is huuuuge. nice catch. The place you fished at looks awesome how the water is so blue and it looks cool how the fins on the fish are red also.

Another state record fall in Michigan this fall! Absolute Monster!

What an amazing fish- I'd love to know how long it took him to bring that thing in.

Thats one heck of a fish great job!!

I read it. 9" muskie magnet. The lure looks beat up, Did the fish's teeth do that?

And in the second pic, see how big the guys hands are in proportion to the fish. Then compare the size of his hands to the rest of his body. It's not real, folks.

I am not denying the guy caught a sweet muskie, but pic #1 and pic #2 are farked. I know a Photoshopped picture when I see one. The hands behind the fish are not lined up, there is no shadow for the fish, and the outline of the fish is digitally altered. His hand "inside" the gills aren't even there, the overlayed fish pic has been put there to act like his hands are in there, when they aren't. In the 2nd pic, you can't even see the guy on the left's hands - how is he holding the fish up? As much as I'd like to agree with you that this is a real pic, it's not. Sorry.

It has nothing to do with the size of the fish (even though that was blown up too), it has to do with the fact that you can see the Photoshopped edges of the fish. Look at the gills in Pic 1 - that's not how gills look when you hold a fish of that size. The fish itself is real, you can tell from the other pics, but they tried to scale it up to make it bigger in Pic 1 and 2. You can tell it's farked by the absences of any shadowing on the fish in comparison to the guy(s) holding it. I deal with digital photography and Photoshop on a daily basis and this is a Photoshopped pic.

I'm not a constant naysayer. I love seeing big fish. Most pics are true. I'm, for the most part, a positive person. Again, I'm not saying the fish isn't legit. You can tell by the other pics that it is, however, the first two pics are farked. Good for the guys that caught the fish it's a beast, I just wished we could have seen the real pics of them holding it.

Well myself and everyone esle that's made comments here have NO issues with the photos. I believe them to be legit. Why in the world would this angler or any of his friends take the time to change them? No need. The fish is huge, a state record, and bigger than any other Musky you, me, or anyone else has probably ever seen.

OE - Those pics look exactly like the other two on the site in regard to being PS'ed. You can modify a pic and put them on an SD card, you know, right? I'm a photographer too and if I wanted to take pics - I could modify them and then put them back on my SD card. That's not a valid argument. However, I will stop all the blabbing I have been doing today on this topic. Ignorance is bliss. My apologies if I upset anyone on this site. Tight lines, everyone!

What a fish. That is the most beautiful Muskie I have ever seen. Those fins look like they are on fire. Congrats man- on the catch of a lifetime. PS-those pictures dont look photo-shopped to me

Beautiful fish. Beautiful lake. 2009 has been an exceptional year for trophy fish and game ... and we still have 3-months left. Must be the weather.

I agree with Storminspank. Either the hair-due on that woman was photoshopped, or Anderson had to go back to 1988 to find a 50lb scale.

Crazy fish my friend, congratulations.

this fish was caught on the lake i live on! torch lake is the most beautiful place in the world. and these photos are definitely not photoshopped. ive seen muskies that my dad has caught out of the same lake and river, many of them are large compared to other areas of northern michigan. congratulations on the great catch kyle!

Oh and I agree, that Muskie is not photoshopped.

Great catch, what a beauty. Were you able to release it?

Made previous comments before reading all of your photo captions. Great effort to release, Great fish!
Congrats!

Well fake or not that is one amazing fish. Congratulations and happy fishing

OK, at first I was actually one of the people who thought the first 2 shots looked photoshopped, but after seeing the pics blown up, and seeing the extra bonus shots posted by the webmaster, I'm totally convinced they are real. After all, why would anyone with a record fish have to exaggerate it in pics!
Good job guys and sorry a few of us doubted the pics.

As for Storminspank's comment you can rest assured this is real. I own the marina at the mouth of Torch River. I saw this fish when it was still alive. It is real!!! And in the pictures you will notice this fish had been trap netted in the spring and actually was around 55 lbs then. The taxaderist mounting the fish said there was nothing in the belly of this fish or it would have weighed more. The MDNR fisheries radio tag was returned to them. So moral to the story mr. storminspank if you can't catch your own monster make sure you know what you are talking about before you open your mouth and stick your foot in it.

Legit fish, legit record, legit pictures. Period. As for the person who said that Anderson couldn't hold it up with his fingers...50lbs isn't that heavy (but for a fish it is very heavy) and the dude looks like he spends some time in the gym...so quit doubting it, and just accept the fact that the guy caught an amazing fish.

I know torch well but didn't know it was muskie water (Too clear and not enough life) Any idea where it was caught? Near the river or further out?

Hey "schmallhorse" another question I have is how far away from where you tagged her was she caught? And where abouts did you tag her in torch?

Awesome fish...

wow that fish is a beast...unreal. congrats

Great catch, I'm never swimming in Torch ever again.

Way to go Kyle! No one is more deserving of this State Record than you! We will now feel more at ease when our kids swim in the lake and the river!! Pam & Rob

ajb81586,
The results of the study will be available to the public in about a year when my thesis is published. I am also planning on preparing a condensed version for publication in a scientific journal. Until then there won't be anything in print.

- John

Great catch. Great fish. What a monster

Beautiful hog muskie! Not sure I'll be swimming in Torch next year though.
Love that Kyle tried to release first.

wow GREAT fish and also wow I swam with that monster muskie.nice one kyle

What an amazing fish! Once in a lifetime catch. That would eat any muskie I've ever caught for breakfast! Congrats man

Awesome catch Kyle!!! I was on a mission this year to break the record but I spent my time on Skegemog. I had a ton of action over there out from the landing. I've always seen Torn as a boating lake and not for fishing. I'll be spending more time on Elk and Torch now. Thanks

Shmallhorse,wow what a story, with the fact that it began last may, adds alot to this record. However, I cannot wait for your published thesis next year, I need to get more facts before that. There is a reason for that! I was on the SE end of Torch fishing on the drop off near Alden 25 - 40 feet of water throwing 'buuldawgs, cowgirls, doublecowgirls, little ernies, etc...i'm sure you get the picture. I was not trolling. The reason for this area of the lake to fish in was because in '05, while trolling for browns, or atlantics, or lakers, I had a 25 minute battle with a huge muskie, (that I released). It was two days before the weekend opener (April ??). This really peaked my interest as I turned an interest to targeting this remakable species. However, am I wasting time casting for this specie on such a gin clear lake, and what else did your studies reveal about the browns, lake trout, or atlantic salmon on these waters? Is this the medium to use for this info? Can you help?

Why the fish on ice? What about catch and release. You mean he kept it. Who would do a thing like that?

Congratulations
BEST CAPTURE

nice fish!!

Great fish! The red on the fins is very vibrant!

Exceptional fish, Photoshop my butt! Anyone that doesn't recognize that head structure obviously has not had their on many BIG muskies! Outstanding fish! Congratulations Kyle. We never keep muskies, but that bad boy would be on my livingroom wall for sure!