You are on a small river in North Western, Illinois and suddenly your rod bounces off the gunwale, you pick up your rod and you free spool your reel, this fish of unknown size moves off three feet and stops. The sweat breaks out, the heart starts racing while the minutes pass by, he's doing nothing, 10 minutes go by, you check your drag, you wonder how big he is, is he still there, the anxiety builds to almost unbearable proportions when he moves! And when he moves its with a madness and purpose like no other fish you've known. I tell you to cross his eyes and you do! A good hook up! The fight is unbelievable,how long can he last, your arms start to ache, your legs are getting weak! He's still on the bottom and taking drag again. Twenty five minutes after the calm was shattered and the tackle busting runs, he's lying on the bottom of the boat. After photos and measurements this trophy flathead sinks back to the depths he calls home.
You have just caught the biggest fresh water fish of your life, and to do this everything had to work just right. This is one fish that wins more times than not, so for now you are the master! But just wait till the next time, will it work out the same way or will the tackle or you fail to meet the challenge.