Every bass angler wants to catch a 10-pounder. You don’t expect it to happen, but in the back of your mind you’re always hopeful. That’s why we go to bodies of water where big ones live and choose our lures with giants in mind. If your name is Hanna Robbins you may come up a little short, pun intended. Seven times short.

Ultimately, if your “10 lb. bass” (or your 20 pound peacock, or your 30 inch rainbow or your 50 inch muskie) would not actually meet that mark on a certified measuring device, that’s on you. You have to live with yourself. I will tell you that at least in the bass world, there are exponentially more eights than there are nines, and exponentially more nines than tens. Even on the world’s best bass fisheries, a true double digit is a rare prize. Don’t let anyone get you down because you caught an 8.22, or an 8.99, or a 9.79.