On the first day of the two-day event, Bryan hooked and landed a 10.48-pound spotted bass that helped him take the lead in the tournament with a day one weight of 21.39 pounds. Not only did it help in the tournament, but it set forth a chain of events that may end with the 49-year-old angler and businessman holding the new IGFA All Tackle World Record for spotted bass.
When weighed at the tournament scales, the fish weighed 10.48 pounds, then several hours later, it weighed less on a grocery store scale. While Bryan thought this fact would nullify his claim to a potential record, he would later find out the scales can be certified by IGFA after the fact. The tournament scales were sent to the organization, and have been certified as accurate by officials there.
This means that Bryan's fish has been recorded by IGFA as the original 10.48 pounds, and is in the process of being considered for World Record status. The process is to take a mandated 60 days from the date of the catch, so sometime in April, Bryan's fish could become the new All Tackle World Record Spotted Bass.
"This is just an unbelievable experience," said Bryan. "I could never have, in my wildest dreams, imagined catching a world record of any sort. But, to have it happen in a tournament is amazing. I can only wait now and hope that IGFA has enough documentation to certify it as a record. But, even if it doesn't happen, this has truly been a once in a lifetime experience." As icing on the cake, Bryan would also go on to win the tournament with a total, two-day weight of 38.49 pounds.
Bryan caught the bass on Saturday February 22 using a wacky rigged green pumpkin purple and copper flake (color 330) five-inch Gary Yamamoto Custom Baits Senko in approximately 10 feet of water. Bryan inserted a 3/32 Lunker City Nail Weight in the nose and rigged it on a size 2 Wide Gap Weedless Finesse Hook. He threw the rig on a 6103mef Powell Inferno spinning rod and size 3000 Shimano Sahara reel filled with eight-pound-test Power Pro braided line, tipped with a leader of eight-pound-test Seaguar Invizx fluorocarbon.