Deep, powerful golden-to-silver jack with a blunt head, steep forehead, a black spot on the gill cover and one on the pectoral fin, and hard scutes at the tail base. Galveston fish commonly 5-20 lb, with 20-40 lb 'bull' jacks regularly landed at the jetties and in the surf.
⚖ Texas limits · 2026-27 license year No TX bag or length limit · verify at TPWD →
On the water
WhenWarm months, roughly May-October, peaking summer. Moving tide and active bait matter more than time of day, but early-morning and evening surface blitzes are classic. Watch for pushing water, showering mullet/menhaden, and birds.WhereGalveston/Bolivar jetties (they roam the channel and jetty fronts), the surf and beachfront guts, nearshore around bait pods and rips, jetty tips, and passes. Often seen crashing bait on the surface along the rocks or in the second/third gut.HowSight-cast to visible schools and surface blowups - put a fast-moving lure ahead of the fish and burn it. Topwater poppers/walkers draw explosive strikes; spoons, big swimbaits, and bucktails work sub-surface. When finicky in clear water, a live menhaden/mullet free-lined or under a cork gets bit. Keep the lure moving fast.BehaviorAn apex-aggressive schooling predator that herds and ambushes baitfish in violent surface feeds. Competitive when schooled up - they'll chase down and smash almost anything moving fast, making them a prime sight-cast target.The fightBrutal - one of the hardest-pulling inshore fish pound-for-pound; long bulldogging runs and stubborn deep circling that can last 20+ minutes on a bull.
Baits that work
Topwater poppers/walk-the-dog plugs - top lure for blitzing fish
Large spoons and heavy bucktail/swimbait jigs
Live menhaden (pogies) or finger mullet
Cut menhaden/mullet on bottom for a soaked-bait shot
Tackle
Rod & reel7-8 ft medium-heavy to heavy rod, 4000-6000 spinning or 300-size baitcaster with strong drag.Line30-50 lb braid.Leader40-60 lb fluorocarbon (2-4 ft); no wire needed - jacks have no cutting teeth, but heavy abrasion leader helps on the rocks.TerminalLarge topwater poppers/walkers, 1-2 oz spoons, 4-6 in swimbaits, heavy bucktails; 5/0-7/0 for live bait.RigLure tied direct or via heavy swivel; live bait free-lined or under a popping cork on a 4-6 ft leader.
The bait clock
☀ DawnLarge topwater popper or live mullet
Marauding schools push bait against jetties and beachfront at first light.
☼ MiddayBig spoon, popper, or live/fresh-dead mullet
Jacks feed opportunistically all day; find the busting school and nearly anything gets eaten.
☾ DuskLive mullet free-lined near schools
Evening bait concentrations can spark surface melees along the channel and surf.
[{'months': [6, 7, 8, 9], 'note': 'Summer through early fall is when big jacks roam Galveston jetties and surf.'}]
Finding the roaming school matters far more than time of day.
Handling & releaseVery hardy and survives release well. Fight them efficiently (they'll fight to exhaustion), support the body, revive by moving water over the gills, and release. Watch the sharp tail scutes and thrashing.On the tableDark, bloody, strong-flavored red meat; most anglers consider it poor table fare and release them. Best used as cut bait.As baitExcellent cut and live bait for sharks - bloody, oily flesh makes strong chunks; small jacks are a top live/dead bait for big sharks off the surf and jetties.
The bar to beat
Texas state record
50.25 lb · 52.25″ — Francis Lyon
Gulf of Mexico, TX, 1976
World record
66.13 lb — —
Barra do Dande, Angola, 2010
Records as compiled in the IronJetty guide (Aug 2026) — verify current marks with TPWD records / IGFA. The previous world record was 57 lb 14 oz (Leon Richard, Southwest Pass, LA, 1997) before the 66-lb Angola fish.
