Philip Angus - Largest Mouth Gape in the World

Philip Angus - Largest Mouth Gape in the World 

A teenager in Pennsylvania has broken the Guinness World Record for Largest Gape, with his mouth widening 3.75 inches, or 9.52 centimetres. Philip Angus, 16, smashed the record for having the largest gap between his upper and lower incisor teeth by about a quarter of an inch. His measurements were taken twice; first with a caliper and second with a cut to measure 3.75 inch (9.5cm) Popsicle stick. Angus first realized he had a large mouth when he was having trouble hearing as a child and tried to pop his ears by yawning.

Angus says when he was just nine years old, even his friends would comment on his wide gape. He later learned about the 2017 record holder, German man Bernd Schmidt – who can open up 3.46 inches (8.8cm). Schmidt was inspired by JJ Bittner's gape in the 2015 Guinness World Records book.

But when it came to obtaining the title, Angus beat Minnesota teen Isaac Johnson. Johnson was capable of widening his mouth 3.67 inches (9.34cm). Angus' mother initially measured the space between his teeth, to see if he would qualify. Then his dentist helped with the official measurement and said she's never seen anything like it. It may seem like a trivial accolade but the young man from Boyer-town is pleased about the achievement officially recorded on November 5, 2019.

'I never have been the best at anything, really, but I'm now the best at this and it feels great knowing that I have this and no one else can have it, until they beat me,' he told CBS 3. In a video for Guinness World Records, he is seen placing an apple, tennis ball and various other objects on top of his tongue.

Angus says he has no explanation for why he's able to open his jaw so wide and insists it's not a genetic trait. 'I'm not really sure why I have a big mouth, neither my mom or dad have a big mouth so it's kind of like a very odd thing but I'm happy to have it,' Angus told Guinness. His mother says his big mouth can be problematic at meal times because she has to stop him from cramming too much food inside in one go.

She labels her son a 'very good eater'.The mother added about her son's love of stuffing large amounts of food, like triple Decker ice cream sandwiches, inside his mouth: 'I'm trying to convince him not to.