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The International Game Fish Association - IGFA

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Need help identifying some of your Western Atlantic grouper species? 🔍 Check out the guide below for the best ways to differentiate these commonly confused species! by @theigfa

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2 days ago

Whether you have felt the weight of a marlin at the end of your line or simply believe these fish deserve a fighting chance, you can be part of the science. Support the IGFA Great Marlin Race and receive this year’s “Every Tag Tells a Story” AFTCO shirt featuring original artwork by Dennis Friel. Every gift is matched up to $20,000 while the match lasts!
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The world’s largest citizen-science satellite tagging program is powered by anglers.
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Since 2011, the IGFA Great Marlin Race has:
🛰️ Deployed more than 711 satellite tags
📉 Collected more than 1.5 million nautical miles of migration data
🔬 Supported 13 peer-reviewed scientific publications
🌎 Shared open-source data with researchers around the world
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Support the science that’s helping protect billfish for future generations. [Link in BIO]
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@theigfa @aftco @dennisfrielart @connectedbywater
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#igfa #aftco #dfrielart #connectedbywater #everytagtellsastory taken in IGFA by @theigfa

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3 days ago

𝑯𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝑩𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒅𝒂𝒚, 𝑬𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝑯𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒘𝒂𝒚

Before sport fishing had modern big game techniques or a global authority to govern them, Ernest Hemingway was helping build both. Best known as one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century, Hemingway was also a pioneering angler whose decades on the water shaped the sport itself.

Born July 21, 1899, in Oak Park, Illinois, Hemingway learned to fish as a boy on the lakes and streams near Petoskey, Michigan. In 1921, in the harbor at Vigo, Spain, he watched six-foot tuna leap clear of the water and land “with a noise like horses jumping off a dock.” Anyone capable of boating one, he decided, had earned the right to stand among the elder gods. Saltwater angling had a new champion.

Hemingway first visited Key West in 1928 and spent the next three decades fishing the Gulf Stream, living first in Florida and later in Cuba. In 1934 he acquired his famed boat “Pilar” and dedicated himself to the pursuit of marlin, tuna, and sailfish. He pioneered fighting techniques that brought big fish to the boat before sharks could destroy them, kept detailed journals on marlin behavior, and hosted scientists aboard “Pilar” to advance the study of billfish, work that contributed directly to how marlin species were identified.

In August 1940, Hemingway was named a Vice President of the IGFA, a title he held until his death in 1961.

“The Old Man and the Sea” melded his two deepest passions and earned the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1954. Through deceptively simple prose, he introduced millions beyond the angling public to the sport, and in 1998 he was inducted into the inaugural class of the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame.

Today, on his birthday, his story enters a new chapter. Original correspondence between Hemingway and the IGFA is among the first materials to be digitized as part of the newly announced E.K. Harry Digital Archive, a multi-year effort to preserve the world’s most comprehensive collection of sportfishing history. His letters, and millions of assets like them, will soon be searchable for the first time.

Visit the link in our bio to learn more or support the project. by @theigfa

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4 days ago

El Gouna IGFA Red Sea Championship – 4th Edition is HERE! 🌊🏆

From January 4–8, 2027, the Red Sea’s premier fishing destination welcomes the world’s top anglers back to El Gouna.

Organized by Ethical Anglers under IGFA supervision, in collaboration with the Egyptian Angling Federation, the Ministry of Youth & Sports, and the Ministry of Environment.

🎣 Your official gateway to qualify for the 2028 Offshore World Championship in Costa Rica 🇨🇷

Spots are limited. Greatness awaits. by @theigfa

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5 days ago

On July 19, 2022, @lisa_m_kitagawa landed this impressive 16.58-kilogram (36-pound, 10-ounce) yellowtail on a live sardine. With this fish, Lisa set the IGFA Women’s 6-kg (12 lb) Line Class World Record for the species. She was fishing with Captain Daron Muratyan aboard the “Peruz” when this beautiful yellowtail struck. She then returned to the @BalboaAnglingClub to record an official weight on a certified scale. by @theigfa

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6 days ago

Since 2019, the IGFA has shipped hundreds of Passports to Fishing kits to 51 countries worldwide, and we're still going strong. The next one is already on its way to the Turks & Caicos. In 2026, we've seen events in Spain, Egypt, Greece, Costa Rica, Mexico, India, American Samoa, and more! The program is nearing the 70,000 mark for the number of kids reached since 2019! by @theigfa

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7 days ago

Few freshwater gamefish command the respect and admiration of anglers quite like the speckled peacock bass, Cichla temensis. Yet despite its reputation, surprisingly little long-term scientific information exists regarding the life history of giant wild Cichla temensis. Questions about age, growth, territoriality, movement patterns, and survival after release have largely been answered through anecdotal observations rather than long-term data.

In 2019, that began to change thanks to the team @riomarieflyfish and @pinawacafoundation, in cooperation with the local indigenous people of the Rio Negro Basin in the Brazilian Amazon.

Click the link in our bio to read our feature piece in this month's "International Angler" magazine to learn how a six-year tagging project has yielded new insights into the lives of giant peacock bass. by @theigfa

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8 days ago

41 years ago this month, Jerry Downey set the IGFA Men’s 8-kg (16 lb) Line Class World Record with this incredible 35.15-kilogram (77-pound, 8-ounce) Chinook salmon. Jerry was drift fishing the Kenai River with a spin-glo lure and landed the record salmon after a 30-minute fight. The mid '80s produced some of the largest Chinook salmon in the IGFA record books. by @theigfa

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9 days ago

For 15 years, the IGFA Great Marlin Race has brought together anglers and scientists to unlock the mysteries of billfish around the globe. More than 711 satellite tags deployed across 25 countries have generated over 1.5 million nautical miles of migration data - and we're still learning!

Today, we're taking a look back at one iconic blue marlin, the winner of the 2022-2023 IGFA Great Marlin Race. Caught by Ven Poole and tagged by Scott Poole aboard the @Wasteknotfishing. The fish traveled an impressive straight-line distance of 4,149 nautical miles (nm) from the U.S. East Coast to the coast of Brazil. This incredible journey was the year's longest, and also ranks as the 5th longest in the program's history and the 3rd longest for a blue marlin, with a total estimated track of 7,819 nm.

Together, we can ensure every tag tells a story that helps protect billfish for generations to come. What fish will take home the crown this year? Only one way to find out!

Learn more and support the race with the link in our bio! by @theigfa

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10 days ago

One of our favorite days of the year! 🎣

This past Saturday, Crocodile Bay was proud to partner with IGFA and FECOP for our annual Take Kids Fishing Day.

From first casts to first catches, the smiles said it all. More than just a day on the water, this event is about inspiring the next generation of anglers while teaching the importance of conservation and protecting Costa Rica’s incredible fisheries.

A huge thank you to our amazing captains, mates, volunteers, IGFA, and FECOP for making this special tradition possible. We can’t wait to do it again next year! 🐟❤️🎣
#crocodilebay #takekidsfishing #conservationthrougheducation #osapeninsula #bestdayoftheyear taken in Golfo Dulce and Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica by @theigfa

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12 days ago

On July 12, 2025, Benny Ortiz was fishing off the coast of Madeira Beach, Florida, with a Shimano Flat-Side 224 Super Glow jig when this gag grouper struck. After a spirited fight, he landed the fish, recorded the length on his official IGFA measuring device, and released it to fight another day. At 98 cm, this fish has set the all-tackle length world record for the species. by @theigfa

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13 days ago

On July 11, 2021, Robert Foley was fishing the waters off Montauk, New York when he landed this massive 30.96-kilogram (68-pound, 4-ounce) great northern tilefish to set the IGFA All-Tackle World Record for the species. Robert was able to wrestle this record fish on a top and bottom rig. Known in the region as golden tilefish, the species is often found in depths in excess of 500 feet. by @theigfa

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14 days ago