Record-Breaking Striped Bass Catch Thrills Anglers

The Night Greg Myerson Changed Striper History

August 4, 2011, started like countless other nights on Long Island Sound. Greg Myerson was drifting over a reef off Westbrook, Connecticut, working live eels the way striper fishermen have done for generations. Nothing about the evening suggested he was about to catch the biggest striped bass ever taken on rod and reel.

Then his line came tight in a way he’d never felt before.

What followed was a 15-minute fight that would rewrite the record books. When Myerson finally slid the net under his catch, he knew immediately this wasn’t just another nice fish. The striped bass stretched 54 inches—four and a half feet of silver muscle that dwarfed anything he’d ever boated.

The scales confirmed what he suspected: 81 pounds, 14 ounces. The new all-tackle world record.

Breaking a Record That Stood for Nearly Three Decades

Myerson’s fish didn’t just edge out the previous record—it demolished it by more than three pounds. That might not sound like much, but consider this: the record he broke had stood untouched since 1982.

That September night, Albert McReynolds was fishing the Vermont Avenue Jetty in Atlantic City during a storm. Not ideal conditions by any measure, but stripers often feed aggressively when the weather turns foul. McReynolds was throwing a 5½-inch black-back silver Rebel plug when his rod doubled over.

His fish weighed 78 pounds, 8 ounces. It would remain the undisputed world record for 29 years.

Think about everything that happened in American fishing during those three decades. Graphite rods replaced fiberglass. GPS units replaced paper charts. Braided line revolutionized tackle. And through all of it, no one managed to land a striper bigger than McReynolds’ Atlantic City fish.

The Biggest Striper Nobody Can Claim

Here’s a detail that frustrates record-chasing anglers: Myerson’s 81-pounder isn’t even the largest striped bass ever documented. Not by a long shot.

In 1995, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources was conducting routine research in the Chesapeake Bay. Scientists were netting stripers to gather data on the population—a standard fisheries management practice. When they hauled in one particular net, they found a fish that stopped everyone in their tracks.

Ninety-two pounds. A striper that would have shattered any rod-and-reel record by more than ten pounds.

But the IGFA doesn’t recognize fish caught in nets. Their rules require the fish to be taken by an individual angler using conventional tackle. The Maryland striper, magnificent as it was, gets filed under “interesting scientific observation” rather than “world record.”

It does, however, prove that fish of this size exist. Somewhere in the bays, rivers, and coastal waters of the eastern seaboard, there may be another 90-pound striper waiting for the right angler on the right night.

What Makes a Record Striper

Striped bass can live for 30 years or more. Females grow larger than males and keep adding weight throughout their lives as long as forage remains plentiful. The biggest fish are almost always females, and they tend to prefer specific conditions.

Both Myerson and McReynolds caught their records at night. That’s not coincidental. Trophy stripers often feed most actively after dark, when they can hunt with less caution. The cover of darkness emboldens fish that might otherwise stay deep during daylight hours.

Live bait versus artificial is an endless debate, but the two world record fish split the difference. McReynolds threw hardware; Myerson fished live eels. Successful trophy hunters typically master both approaches and adapt to conditions.

The Landlocked Record

Striped bass don’t just live in salt water. Introduced populations thrive in freshwater reservoirs across the country, from California to Tennessee. These landlocked fish grow to impressive sizes, though they rarely match their coastal cousins.

James Bramlett holds the landlocked striper record: a 69-pound fish caught in February 2013. He was fishing with 50-pound test—heavy tackle that gave him a fighting chance against a fish that outweighed most tournament bass by a factor of ten.

Freshwater stripers present unique challenges. They tend to be more nomadic than coastal fish, following schools of shad and other baitfish through vast reservoir systems. Finding them often requires covering miles of water and relying on electronics to locate active schools.

Will the Record Fall Again?

Myerson’s record has stood for over a decade now, but the math suggests a bigger fish is out there. If a 92-pound striper existed in 1995, genetics haven’t changed. The question is whether an angler can put themselves in the right place at the right time with the right tackle.

The Chesapeake Bay remains prime water. So does the Connecticut coastline where Myerson made history. The Jersey Shore. The Rhode Island coast. Cape Cod. Any of these waters could produce the next record.

For most anglers, landing a 40-pound striper represents a lifetime achievement. A 50-pounder is the fish of a decade. Anything approaching 60 pounds makes news.

But somewhere out there, in dark water under a moonless sky, a striped bass heavier than anything ever recorded on rod and reel is feeding. The odds of any single angler finding that fish are astronomical.

Then again, Greg Myerson wasn’t expecting to make history either. He was just fishing eels on a summer night.