Bass guide Lawrence Lee, of Toler, Texas, has been on the kind of roll that most anglers only dream of. On Tuesday, Lee notched his name in the states’ trophy bass history book when he caught two 13-pound largemouths in one day. He donated both fish to the ShareLunker Program run by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
This was just a few weeks after he caught and donated another 13-plus-pound bass. Every one of those trophy fish have come from his home lake, J.B. Thomas Reservoir.
“This is the first time in the 40-year history of the ShareLunker program that two 13-pound or heavier Legacy bass have been caught on the same day by the same angler,” TPWD ShareLunker coordinator Natalie Goldstrohm tells Outdoor Life. “It’s also the first time that three 13-pound or heavier Legacy bass have been caught by one angler in a single season.”
Lee’s latest largemouth weighed 13.57 pounds. Photo courtesy Lawrence Lee
Lee’s first Legacy fish of the season came on March 8, when he was running a guided trip on J.B. Thomas. That largemouth weighed 13.12 pounds and you can read the full story here.
Fishing solo, Lee boated another giant bass Tuesday morning weighing 13.1 pounds. That fish slammed a KGB Swimbaits glide bait.
Lee spoke with Outdoor Life around midday Tuesday, after the ShareLunker team had collected the trophy largemouth so they could bring it to the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens. Lee was having lunch at the time, and he said he was going back out that afternoon, since his guide buddy, Christian Gladfelter, had found a spot on the lake with good numbers of heavyweight pre-spawn bass.
“Christian couldn’t go with me that afternoon because he had to guide a party, so I headed out alone about 3:30 p.m.,” says the 35-year-old angler, who runs Slaunched Guide Service with Gladfelter.
Another close-up of the second 13-plus-largemouth Lee boated on March 24. Photo courtesy Lawrence Lee
Using forward-facing sonar — just like he did with his first two trophy bass — Lee was able to find some big fish in deep water that afternoon. But they wouldn’t commit enough to hit his lure.
“I stayed after one big fish that I figured was a 12 pounder for about an hour – but I just couldn’t get the bass to bite,” Lee tells Outdoor Life on Wednesday. “While staying with that big fish I spotted another heavyweight bass near bottom in 18 feet of water about 7 p.m.”
Lee says he still hadn’t gotten a single strike until he made a cast toward that fish. This time he was using a 5.5-inch light-colored DC Swimbait rigged on a half-ounce jighead. Using baitcasting tackle and 25-pound fluorocarbon line, he sent his lure toward the bass and watched the take on his sonar screen.
“My first cast to that fish she whipped around toward my lure and ate it,” Lee says. “I set the hook and she jumped just 20 feet from my boat, and I saw she wasn’t hooked well. The lure was at the tip of her mouth, and there was a big hole in her jaw there.”
The bass dove near Lee’s boat as he reached for his landing net. He missed netting the bass as it swam by and went under his boat. Then it jumped and took some drag, swimming away from the boat and behind Lee.
“I’m usually pretty calm, but I was messing everything up with this bass and my adrenaline was pumping,” he says. “I pulled her back under the boat, got her in my net, lifted her into my boat, and the hook fell out of her jaw … I was lucky and was real close to losing her.”
ShareLunker number 3. Photo courtesy Lawrence Lee
ShareLunker number 2.
ShareLunker number 1. Photo courtesy Lawrence Lee
Using a hand scale he had on board, Lee weighed the fish at more than 13 points. Then he called Goldstrohm for the second time that day.
“I’d just talked to her that morning when I caught my other 13 pounder, so I was kind of cool talking to her,” Lee laughs. “She was stunned.”
A crew from the TPWD ShareLunker program was sent to the lake, where they officially weighed Lee’s bass at 13.57 pounds. It had a 25.47-inch length and a 21.81-girth.
In a typical situation, TPWD fisheries biologists would have taken the bass to the state-run hatchery, where it would be spawned in captivity so its fry could be stocked in other Texas lakes. But the holding tank there was already maxed out with other huge bass. So, biologists tagged Lee’s largemouth, took fin and scale samples for analysis, and gave the live bass back to Lee.
Read Next: ‘A Special Big Bass Spot.’ This Guide Just Caught His 15th 13-Plus-Pounder From the Same Lake
Lee says he went back on the lake and released his bass, then stayed and fished until midnight. He didn’t catch anymore trophies that night. But he did go back out on the lake the next morning and caught a 10.5-pounder, along with a pair of 8-pounders.
“This year we’ve had 17 bass over 13 pounds submitted to the program,” Goldstrohm says. “Four of those have come from O.H. Ivie Lake, and four more from J.B. Thomas.”
Goldstrohm says the 2026 ShareLunker season ends March 31, and that until then, anglers can still contact TPWD to submit bass weighing 13 pounds or more. Even if their fish isn’t collected for the program, they’re still eligible for the prizes and accolades for the accomplishment, including a fiberglass replica of their bass.