What’s a species everyone thinks would be super fun to catch until they actually do it? I’ll start.
Goliath grouper. Goliath grouper are a very commonly requested target especially with younger anglers. The problem with fishing for Goliath is they are super structure oriented, meaning they have a little ledge or culvert they hide in and the second they get hooked they run for their home. So generally a fight with a Goliath will be won or lost in the first two or three seconds of the fight. The drag is set crazy tight, and it’s you against the strength of the fish. You either turn his head and keep him facing away from the structure or you don’t and he goes into his cave and getting him back out is almost impossible (depending on the type of structure he is living in). No matter what reels and rods you use they end up getting broken after a dozen fish or so (unless you use wildly expensive gear). And here is the kicker, most people can’t successfully get a 50lb grouper up let alone the 300lb fish everyone asks for. If you hook a Goliath in a deep pass or off the beach or any where away from heavy structure, that’s a different story, you can let them run and tire out and it’s a lot of fun but not easy to find.