It was the one that didn't get away. A Tauranga charter boat skipper is still buzzing from recently catching a huge Sea Bass that tipped the scales at 60.2 kilograms.

'It's so rare to catch a fish that big,” says Russell ‘Rusty' Hugh Ensor. 'Hauling one up that size is like the biggest adrenaline run of your life. It's pretty exciting. Definitely next level.”

Rusty was hosting a group of 12 fishermen from Auckland on his family's Te Kuia game fishing vessel off Mayor Island last month.

'We had hardly any drift on the boat and we were using the mackerel we'd caught the day before as bait. Now, the thing with bass is you need to get it right in front of its nose for it to bite – and that's what happened.”

Actually smoking

The fish was at a depth of 420 metres. 'It took us about 15 or 20 minutes to get it to the top. Two of us were working the electric reel so that it didn't blow out. It was actually smoking,” says Rusty.

'There was so much cheering and excitement when we got it to the surface. We just couldn't believe it. 'What a monster. The boys were just blown away. That bass was just over 60 kilos and we might see maybe one or two of those per year and then you might go three years not seeing any. It's so rare.”

The big catch has whetted Rusty's appetite for the charter season ahead, when he'll be running luxury game fishing tours on the well-known 48ft Riviera, Striker.

'This boat is world famous,” says Rusty. 'It caught the world record Black Marlin and more than 2000 marlin in its chartering career, and it was owned and chartered by the award-winning game fisherman Bruce Smith.”

Rusty's passion

'Striker's reputation is that it's had the most strikes of any game fishing boat. That's why they call it Striker, I guess. This is my passion. I've fished and skippered my whole life, but this is a bit different for me. It's more upmarket.

'A real luxury fishing excursion, harbour cruise, day trip out to Mayor Island or a multi-day experience. We're really excited for summer. This massive catch has reinforced the bay's reputation as a great place for deep sea game fishing.”