"Catmando" does it again at Irvine Lake with a monster 59.8 pound blue catfish!
The biggest Irvine Lake blue catfish of the season so far was weighed in by none other than Ronson "Catmando" Smothers on Friday night, when the legendary big-catfish expert weighed in [and later released] a whopping 59.8 pound whiskerfish.

"I fished out in the middle of the lake in 60 feet of water", related Smothers. "I was determined to get a Titan. Around 8:30 PM, I tossed out a 10-inch chunk of mackerel weighing over a pound. I knew if I got bit, it would be something big.

"Around 9:50 PM, the big bait got slammed; I knew it had to be big. I let it run about 15 seconds, and set the hook. The fish was solid, and the fight was chaotic. It was one of the best battles ever, I believe because of the deep water. Every time I got the fish up, it dove back down to the bottom and hugged the floor tightly.

"Halfway through the fight, I had to pull up the anchors before the fish wrapped me up. After nearly 15 minutes, I netted the big blue. I was using 20-pound test Berkley Big Game mono line, and an 8/0 circle hook."

Smothers tipped, "With just a few weeks left in the season, I believe that there is a good chance at 1 or 2 more big ones like this coming out of Irvine Lake before it's over."

In other catfish action, "The bite on smaller fish has been pretty good at 10 to 50 feet", observed Jimmy Getty at the Pro Shop. "Catfish are hitting on mackerel, shrimp, skipjack, and bonito along the west shore and at the flats."

The "King of the Cats" tournament was held on Saturday night, one night after Smothers landed his big one. Top 3 finishers: 1. Chris Hagopian- 14.6 pounds; Denise Swann- 7.10; Ronson Smothers- 5.12.

Bass anglers have gone back to secretive mode, but the word is that largemouth in the 1 to 5-pound category are being caught at 10 to 25 feet on various worm and jig presentations. Some crappie are still available, but overall numbers have slipped. Ditto bluegill and redear numbers are down. Families with children age 12 and under are finding slow action in the Kids Lagoon. Surface temperature in the main lake is 70 to 72 degrees. The water level is receding slowly.

The last catfish stocking will take place the week of Oct. 25, and the final late-night catfish session of the season will be Saturday night, Oct. 31, with normal hours Sunday Nov. 1. The lake will be closed to the public November 2 through 4 to prepare for the trout opener, and a special limited-entry "VIP Fishing Day" with a $150 entry fee will take place on Thursday November 5 [call 714-649-9111 for details]. Irvine Lake's 2010-11 public trout season will begin on Friday, November 6, with some 20,000 pounds of trout planted before opening day.

Outstanding catches of the week at Irvine Lake included:

- Ronson "Catmando" Smothers of Los Angeles, 59.8 pound blue catfish [released] on mackerel at mid-lake

Legendary big-catfish expert Ronson "Catmando" Smothers of Los Angeles nailed this 59.8-pound Irvine Lake blue catfish on October 9 while using a piece of mackerel and 20-pound test Berkley Big Game mono. The big fish was released back into the waters of Irvine Lake.

- Chris "Trollmeister" Hagopian of Redondo Beach, 14.8 pound catfish on mackerel at mid-lake

Picture of cat/ picture of winner with trophy