Captain
Mike Mathias

Member since August 2020 Kingston, United States
Background
2022 Texoma Striper Challenge Champion, Captain Mike has fished his whole life. Pond & river fishing Okla. as a kid led to big lake & deep gulf fishing out of Texas, Florida, and Louisiana. He was born and raised in Shawnee, Ok.
Techniques
Captain Mike hunts trophy sized Texoma Striper 2-3 feet long or bigger. He trolls along the channels, near under water structures, and cliffs and enjoys the nature while waiting for one of these huge fishes to bite. If the top-water bite lights up he'll stop trolling, and cast or drift live or cut bait. When the season and weather permit so, he likes to check and bait a handful of catfish jugs on the way out, and once more on the way in. Several Blue Catfish have been boated that weighed over fifty pounds, a few twenty pound flat head catfish. If eater sized fish are pulled in, he will clean them for you when he cleans the rest of the haul.

Hey, I'm Captain Mike Mathias

Kingston, United States
Background
2022 Texoma Striper Challenge Champion, Captain Mike has fished his whole life. Pond & river fishing Okla. as a kid led to big lake & deep gulf fishing out of Texas, Florida, and Louisiana. He was born and raised in Shawnee, Ok.
Techniques
Captain Mike hunts trophy sized Texoma Striper 2-3 feet long or bigger. He trolls along the channels, near under water structures, and cliffs and enjoys the nature while waiting for one of these huge fishes to bite. If the top-water bite lights up he'll stop trolling, and cast or drift live or cut bait. When the season and weather permit so, he likes to check and bait a handful of catfish jugs on the way out, and once more on the way in. Several Blue Catfish have been boated that weighed over fifty pounds, a few twenty pound flat head catfish. If eater sized fish are pulled in, he will clean them for you when he cleans the rest of the haul.

My Charter Listing

Excellent
4.6 / 5
(119 reviews)
Kingston
 4 bookings in the past week.
 Instant Confirmation
Trips from US $300

Fishing Reports

The thing about
The thing about "Trophy" fishing
Apr 28, 2026 Kingston
There are three primary ways to go after Texoma Striped bass. The most common and what most guides do, is live bait fishing. This type of fishing yields large numbers of table sized fish, with the chance of landing a big one. Casting and topwater fishing brings in fish of all sizes, depending on when and where you are fishing. Trolling, **this is what we do** and is the most successful way to catch larger fish. Why? Because larger fish are boat shy and when trolling, the lures are 60-80 yards behind the boat. 100%, no BS, our lures are 10-12 inches long, and we are after fish two feet long or bigger. The way Texoma's limit is structured, each angler can keep 10 striper, but only 2 of them can be over twenty inches long. We are after two fish per person that are three feet long. 36 inch fish are rare, but a 30" fish is considered a true Trophy Class Striped Bass, and we boat a few dozen a year that size. 24 inch to 27 inch fish are regularly caught. And we put a couple of the big mean 28 and 29 inchers in the boat every week. But we dont stop chasing bigs when its slow. We are not here to appease unruly children, but we have had some of the future pros on this boat, and we love to put well mannered kids on fish. Book a trip and sit back. The rods will be in holders because a 20lbs fish might yank it right out of your hands. But when the rod bends over and drag screams off the line its just you and that big old striped bass. Now that you know, you know. From now until mid-July is BIG fish season. Come get on one.
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**READ BEFORE BOOKING** (what to expect)
**READ BEFORE BOOKING** (what to expect)
Sep 19, 2024 Kingston
Regular "Guided" Striped Bass fishing and "Trophy" Striped Bass fishing are two completely different kinds of fishing and produce vastly different outcomes. Regular striped bass guides use live shad or jigs/spoons, and fish straight down over schools of fish ranging from 8 to 20 inches long. Occasionally, they catch a striper over 30 inches long, but they almost allways catch eight or ten fish per person, and usually you are done fishing, and off the lake in two hours or less because you can only keep ten fish per person. Of the ten fish per person you can keep, 2 of them can be over twenty (20) inches long. Those two fish per person are the ones we are after, but due to the size of our baits, usually 24 or 25 inches is the smallest striper we catch. A thirty (30) inch striped bass is considered "Trophy Class," and those are what we are really after. In the fall and winter, we catch one or two stripers over 30 inches a week. In the Spring its sometimes three or four a week. The point is, we dont catch a trophy every single day. If we did, they wouldn't really be trophies. If you want to come catch a bunch of fish and have a small chance at catching a trophy striper, book a different guide. If you want to catch a wallhanger or a couple of fish over two feet long, we are your guide service. If you notice my reviews, you'll see a few negative ones. These are people who did NOT read the trip description and came out expecting to catch a ten fish limit of little fish, or who did not consider weather, or seasonal timing, or that if you go BIG sometimes you gotta take the miss. And try again another day. It's like hunting deer. Some hunts ate about harvesting does for meat. Those are the limit trips other guides offer. Some hunts are about that prize, and how glorious that buck's rack will look on the wall. On those hunts, you might sight down a few spikes,a 6 pointer, and even pass on that 8. But if you keep trying, you get your shot at that 14-point atypical... Like I said, we catch one or two "Trophy Class" striper a week from October thru January, and then Feb thru July, we catch three or four a week. August and September, the water temp is so warm that the bigs stay deeper and are far harder to catch. It's not easy to catch the bigger fish, to begin with. The baits are huge and expensive, and the terrain we fish over is rocky and hard on gear. When we troll, the motor is always running, burning fuel. So when you want to catch a couple big ass fish, book us. If you want to catch a bunch of fish in a few hours, book someone else. Fishingbooker has plenty of top-notch options. Just dont come fishing with us, and be mad that we didn't catch a bunch of fish. Our company is Big Fish Texoma Our motto is We Don't Fish for Smalls! Hope to see you soon, Captain Mike
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May to Aug. 2024, a recap of some of the
May to Aug. 2024, a recap of some of the
Aug 23, 2024 Kingston
As I've said all year, this Summer has been mild, at least on Lake Texoma, and the fish in it. Usually the water surface reaches 90+ degrees and stays well in the 80s even at night, but this year it has been much cooler. Just yesterday, the water temp was 83.5 degrees at mid day. On the lake, even though it was in the 100s last week, and already dropping to the lower 90s for the next ten or so days, we stay cool by constantly moving. Obviously we are moving when we are trolling, but after we find a pile of fish, and make a few passes through them, we have to relocate and let them settle before we can hit them again. My favorite spots are fairly close together, but far enough apart that my Mercury 300hp can put us in the wind to cool off as we change locations. As we roll into Sept, the fishing gets even better, the big striper are all fat on the giant shad they've been feeding on, and they love the cooler weather. The trolling bite stays live deep into December, and even then, if you can dress for it, "Dead Sticking" for monster stripers is amazingly fun and productive in the coldest months. September, October, November, into December is prime TROPHY time. This year, they should be bigger than ever. As you can see in these pictures of fish, all caught by us or our clients, between May 2024 and Aug 22, 2024, we've managed to put more than a few trophies in the boat, during these recent months, when it is boiling outside and the struggle is real. I can only imagine what this fall will bring. Just the other day a client's grandson caught a 39lbs Blue Catfish trolling a massive swim bait we use for striper. Only 3 times in my thirteen years guiding here, has a catfish bitten one of those swim baits. Our gear was tested to its limits, but survived. Except for the net, which folded over from the weight of the fish. Three days before that, we pulled in a four-and-a-half-foot-long spotted gar on a catfish jugline. Not to mention the four striped bass over thirty inches, the longest being thirty four (34") we have sent to the taxidermist in just the last three weeks. And did I say the fishing is getting better as the heat dies away? Look at our calendar and find a spot over the next few months and come treat yourself to amazing trophy striper fishing, on an amazing lake that sits just two hours from DFW and OKC and is surrounded by casino resorts like West Bay, Lakecrest, and Caney Creek. And with 5 star Winstar and Choctaw Casino Resorts only a half hour from my dock... Around here, there isn't much better to do. Book a trip and come see us.
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Customer reviews

Rating summary
Excellent
4.6 / 5
out of 5 stars from 119 reviews
Boat
Excellent
4.7 / 5
Crew
Excellent
4.7 / 5
Experience
Excellent
4.5 / 5
Photos & videos by reviewers (164)
hea great!
hea great!
hea great!
+161
Angler rating
94
11
5
5
2
Anglers claimed
Good experience
92%
Friendly captain
100%
Recommend this charter
86%
Appropriate for children
97%
Satisfied with the boat
100%
Caught fish
80%
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Featured  
Showing:
5 of 119 reviews
Steve M.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Great Experience!

VERIFIED   NEW  Sunset BIG Striper troll for 2-6ppl on June 4, 2026
Mike is the real deal!ย  I took my 14 year old son on a trip to catch some Striper and we had a blast!ย  Mike is very friendly....
Steve M. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Steve M. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Mitchell W.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

HAD A BLAST !!

VERIFIED   NEW  *2 person* Topwater, trolling combo on May 30, 2026
captain mike was knowlegable and very experienced.. also just a great guy !! absolutely recommend him!! we will be booking...
Mitchell W. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Mitchell W. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Carla D.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Capn Mike is amazing!

VERIFIED   NEW  Sunset BIG Striper troll for 2-6ppl on June 19, 2026
My husband and I enjoyed our evening troll so much! You canโ€™t beat this trip!
Carla D. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Carla D. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Amber J.
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Overall

Hea great!

VERIFIED   NEW  *2 person* Topwater, trolling combo on June 20, 2026
he was great put us on fish and was super friendly
Amber J. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Amber J. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Jim M.
Excellent
4.7 / 5
Experience:
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Boat
Excellent
5.0 / 5
Crew
Very good
4.0 / 5
Overall

Great outing

VERIFIED   **2ppl** 6hr Striper/Catfish Combo on March 18, 2026
We enjoyed the fishing trip with Captain Mike. He was entertaining listening to him trying to talk the fish into biting.
Jim M. recommends Big Fish Texoma
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Jim M. recommends Big Fish Texoma
Mark review as helpful
You found this review helpful