Subscribe | UPI Odd Newsletter Subscribe STUART, Fla., Aug. 23 (UPI) -- Three exhausted south Florida fishermen who battled to bring in a 620-pound swordfish from the Atlantic could have a new state record. The men set out from Stuart, north of West Palm Beach, Sunday night in a 31-foot boat and wound up returning Monday morning with a fish nearly half that long, the Stuart News reported. Advertisement The catch was unofficially recorded at 620 pounds, 13.3 feet in length, including a 4.5-foot bill. "Yep, quite a birthday present," said Brian Bergen, who turned 34 Monday. "It's so valuable to me because of memories," said boat captain Tim Palmer, who said the three friends would each get a molded replica of the prize catch. He said he wasn't too excited when the fish took the squid bait more than 600 feet down, and none of the crew had any idea initially how big the fish was. The state record swordfish of 612 pounds, 12 ounces was caught May 7, 1978, off Key Largo. The world-record weighed 1,182 pounds, and was caught May 7, 1953, off Iquique, Chile.
