Good Samaritan angler reels in magnificent catches

Nothing makes a fish bigger than almost catching it. Unless you’re Sam Lababidi, DO, Anesthesiology, who’s spent a lifetime lured by the lunker, wading into waters around the world to wrestle the next big one.

“It's hard to explain why I love it so much,” he said. “I've been fishing ever since I can remember with my father. Worm and bobber to start. Now I fly fish for just about everything. ‘The tug is the drug,’ they say, and I'm a junky!”

Photographic proof of Lababidi’s nonfiction fish tales are below. Per pound, the arapaima is the biggest catch shown here, but it’s the roosterfish that took the longest to pull in. “It took me three and a half hours, the longest I've ever fought a fish. That’s one powerful fish.”

All of these fish were released after these pictures were taken, an important part of the conservation initiatives Lababidi supports to preserve these habitats.

“One of the best parts about fishing is that fish live in beautiful places. You can never have a bad day of fishing if you just enjoy your surroundings!”

Next stop: Lababidi plans to drop anchor off Iceland and cast out for Atlantic salmon and sea-run brown trout, which in the north Atlantic can grow to a beefy 45 pounds. Don’t forget to take a picture!