I've lost the oregon record pumpkinseed a few times, and someone else lost it that I brought with me...pretty sure the same fish...
1st time, I hooked her, and she came off when I tried to flip it onto the bank
2nd time, I flipped her on the bank, and she flipped back into the water
3rd time, someone I took out hooked the fish, and it came off when she tried to flip it lol
Not only that, I know someone else that has pictures of 1 from a different lake they catch every year...I told them about the record and they didn't even know about it