As a tournament bass fisherman in GA in a previous life, I caught and witnessed catches of dozens of bowfins up to 15 pounds. In it's early life, Lake West Point was crawling with them. Some guys carried small baseball bats to whack them with so they could get their spinnerbaits, buzz baits and other hooks back. Having one 10-12 pounds come thru a grass bed to destroy a spinnerbait will give you nightmares.