A Tennessee man who reeled in a big fish learned that his catch was a world record, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported.

>> Read more trending news 

Lionel Ferguson, of Philadelphia, Tennessee, hauled in a black crappie weighing 5 pounds, 7 ounces, on May 15, the newspaper reported. The International Game Fish Association announced that Ferguson officially broke the previous world record of 5 pounds set in 200 by John R. Horstman.

Ferguson caught the fish at Richeison Pond in Loudon County, the News Sentinel reported. 

"When I caught the fish, I was hollering,” Ferguson told the newspaper. “Most people probably thought somebody shot me."

Ferguson already held the state record for the fish, as the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency confirmed the fish’s size in June, WBIR reported. The previous mark had stood since 1985, when Clyde Freeman caught a 4-pound, 4-ounce black crappie, the television station reported.

A TWRA biologist sent a clipping of the fish’s fin for DNA testing to ensure it was not a hybrid, WBIR reported.

The IGFA receives 500 world record applications annually, and keeps 1,472 different species records internationally.