When it comes to historic success with FLW or MLF, it’s hard to top the accomplishments of Bryan Thrift. A Forrest Wood Cup champion and REDCREST champion, Thrift is a two-time Angler of the Year on the FLW Tour, and there’s really not much he hasn’t done in fishing. Along the way, he etched his name into history with a shockingly long streak of consecutive five-bass limits on the FLW Tour – from 2016 through 2019, Thrift rattled off 71 limits in a row, which blew past the previous record of 50 in a row set by Cody Meyer.
This year on the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by MillerTech, Mercury pro Kyle Cortiana will launch his boat at the Harris Chain with an eye on the top spot. Since 2022, the Oklahoma pro has been a lock to catch five, and he’s up to 59 consecutive limits, stretched from the 2022 Pro Circuit event on Guntersville through last fall’s Invitationals Championship at the Mississippi River.
Cortiana will start the season 11 limits shy of the record, which means he could be on the cusp as early as Stop 4 Presented by Phoenix Boats at Douglas Lake, depending on how many times he can make Day 3. Last year, Cortiana banked 18 limits in a row, and he managed 14 in a row in 2023 and 2024, any of which would give him the record.
Of course, catching five every day is no sort of a given, especially with the caliber of this year’s field.
Low-risk strategy has Cortiana in the hunt for the record
When Cortiana struck out nationally from Oklahoma, he started chasing consistency.
“Early in my FLW career, I decided that it seems like the guys who catch limits every day, when it all shakes out, they have pretty good seasons,” he said. “Early on, I decided I’m not going to be the guy who takes risks. I decided I needed to cash checks and bring home the bacon, so I’ve always tried to catch as many as I can.”
One of the best examples of that was when he caught more than 100 bass in a day in the 2024 event on Sam Rayburn. Though he missed a check that day, he cashed in for more than $27,000 across the 2024 season, and last year he banked over $50,000 on the Invitationals – not even mentioning his two Toyota Series victories.
Though always seeking consistency, Cortiana wasn’t worried about the stats initially.
“I didn’t start tracking it until you texted me about it one year, and it was right when we were making picks and predictions and things for the year,” he said. “So, I started thinking about it then. It wasn’t a big deal, it didn’t affect how I fished or practiced, but there were times it made me see the ‘glass half full’ scenario. Times I had a tough day and didn’t catch what I needed to get paid, and I’d think, ‘But, I got a limit, I kept that streak going.’”
James River almost ended the streak
A tricky fishery at the best of times, the James River can produce very compelling tournaments, but nobody would call it an easy place to fish. Last year, Cortiana finished 16th in the event and fished Day 3, but his limit streak almost ended on Day 2.
On Day 1, Cortiana boxed a limit early and easily. That was not the case on Day 2.
“Day 2, I did not make a long run to the Chickahominy. In my mind, I had plenty of fish nearby to catch 10 pounds and make the cut and get paid,” he said. “I lost a couple fish early that day on a Pop-R – one right at the boat, a good chunky one that I went to boat flip, and it popped off. I got stuck on four.
“I was running around all these different creeks, and I had like 10 minutes left to fish,” he said. “I had hit all my stuff, and in one of my main areas I was super stoked for, a tree had fallen over and I couldn’t get in – I tried and tried to get in. So, I’m trying to audible with no places left to go, and I’m just running down the bank with a squarebill, hitting laydowns, and I caught one with 10 minutes left.”
That fish guaranteed him a check and extended the steak.
“It was on my mind big time then; it was on my mind to make money, and to keep the limit streak,” he said. “At that point, it’d been going for a while, so I was thinking about it.”
Early hurdles on the 2026 schedule
This year, the schedule doesn’t look like easy pickings when it comes to keeping a limit streak alive. Though every fishery is compelling in some way, and some could be fantastic, there are a few stops where keepers might not be jumping in the boat.
Right out of the gate, the Harris Chain could be tricky. With the lock to Lake Griffin closed, it could push more people to make the trek to Apopka, which has one of the riskiest locks in the country.
“Griffin used to take a really good percentage of anglers, and I was excited to explore that this year,” Cortiana said. “That makes the practice condensed down, and puts more pressure on the chain. If you do find the fish in Apopka, good Lord, the line of people going in there could be insane. Getting locked out is a definite deal if you go to Apopka, the limit streak could be gone real fast.”
Next up, Santee Cooper promises huge weights – it is almost universally the most anticipated event of the season. But Santee is known to be stingy with numbers.
“At Santee, those are going to be really big fish we’re trying to catch,” he said. “There will be guys that catch really good weight on three or four fish and might be in contention. That one could get pretty hairy.”
Still, if Cortiana makes it through the first two, fish should come easier after that. Eufuala, which can be stingy, is at least home in Oklahoma. From there, the season ends on one of his favorite lakes – Lake Champlain. By then, he could be looking to pad his record, or maybe looking for every ounce and place in the standings to secure a Bass Pro Tour berth.