A Northern Territory teenager whose family has fallen on hard times in recent years has become the first winner of a huge Australian fishing prize.
Keegan Payne thought the 67cm barramundi he brought back from the Katherine River on Sunday would make a good meal for his family.
He had no idea that it was a very special fish, worth $1 million to whoever caught it, in a prize that had never been won before.
The keen fisherman from Katherine was fishing with his sister and some friends on Sunday morning when he got the best bite of his life.
“We didn’t really expect a tagged barra at that time, until my little sister asked me what was in the fish,” Mr Payne said.
Keegan Payne (pictured) thought the 67cm barramundi he collected from the Katherine River on Sunday would make a good meal for his family.
He had no idea it was a very special fish, worth $1 million (pictured) to whoever caught it, in a prize that had never before been won in the course of the nine seasons of the competition.
When he realized there was a tag and that tag was worth $1 million, the 19-year-old said he and his sister were “freaked out.”
“We almost crashed the boat on the way back to the boat ramp.”
Her sister Addyson, 11, was the first to spot the colorful tag worth a magical million.
“We were sitting down and my brother’s penis fell over,” she told ABC.
“He thought it was a catfish – but it was a barra.
“And they didn’t see the label, but I saw it, and I said, ‘What does that mean?’
“And Keegan turned it around and said, “No way, no way. “
“He was jumping around screaming.”
His brother said: “It was a very good fight, it didn’t take more than 10 seconds.”
Mr Payne is the first person to win the biggest prize in the Northern Territory’s annual Million Dollar Fish competition, which is in its ninth season.
He said the victory was life-changing for his family, who tragically lost one of their brothers in an accident four years ago.
“It’s crazy for us, we’re a big family, there’s eight of us, it’s more money than we could ever ask for.” It’s just awesome,” the teenager said.
“The whole family was shocked – they are all proud of me,” he said.
“It’s pretty tough for us right now with money, but now with a million dollars, we have nothing to complain about.”
He added that “I can buy whatever I want, maybe help mum and dad with the mortgages”, and said the family could now afford to take a holiday and were planning a trip to America.
Mr Payne also plans to buy a new boat and a car this week.
The Northern Territory government said it would guarantee there would be a winner of the competition – created to attract tourists to the Top End out of season – this year, but did not reveal exactly how that would happen.
Mr Payne said his family (pictured) could now afford to take a holiday and were planning a trip to America.
The very grateful and humble teenager was a worthy recipient of this massive award.
When asked what the best thing about fishing in the Northern Territory was, he said: “You can catch a million dollar barra. »
The Cancer Council also received a check for $10,000 thanks to the teen choosing it as his charity of choice.
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