Tuesday Tour Update: Thrift behind AOY eight ball

Bryan Thrift sees the good and the bad with the start of his 2013 Walmart FLW Tour campaign. On one hand, he’s cashed two good checks and is sitting 10th in the Angler of the Year race – in solid position for making his seventh consecutive Forrest Wood Cup. On the other, he’s 47 points behind AOY leader Brent Ehrler with only four qualifiers left on the schedule.

Like JT Kenney, Thrift first and foremost approaches professional fishing as a job – setting a goal of cashing a check in each and every tournament.

“I’ve got to make money,” said the Chevy pro. “To me, that’s the bottom line. As long as I make money I consider it a successful year. I’m not out there chasing glory.”

But as he grows and improves with each passing year on tour, Thrift often finds himself wanting more. Part of that is human nature; part of it comes out of necessity.

“I’m still satisfied getting checks in tournaments, but now I seem to dwell a bit more. I look back and I just needed one more bite or I had that one missed fish. Last year at the Cup, I’m not going to say I could’ve beat Wheeler, but I definitely think I could’ve threatened him a bit if I would’ve adjusted sooner. We were all focused on topwaters, but those big largemouths were eating a shaky head better than the topwaters. I had several instances where the light bulb should’ve gone off, but it didn’t. The first two days I could’ve weighed a legit 18 to 22 pounds each day.

“I’m always striving to do better. As good as fishermen are these days, you’ve got to keep getting better to survive.”

Thrift looks at Ehrler and Andy Morgan as prime examples.

“Brent Ehrler and Andy Morgan are flat-out my heroes,” Thrift said. “As far as I’m concerned, they are the best two fishermen in the world right now. I don’t care what any poll says out there. We’ve had two tournaments and Ehrler has 399 Angler of the Year points. That’s insane.”

The Shelby, N.C., native has done his part in raising the bar. Years ago, Thrift was simply considered a young gun who could cover water near the bank in lightning-like fashion. While he still loves to skip a jig and fish fast, he’s learned to embrace offshore angling.

“I love fishing offshore now, I really do. But it started as a necessity. If you can’t go out there and catch them, it’s going to be tough to make a living. When you have to make money, you do whatever it takes. Look at how many tournaments are won out deep these days. The way to win is to find your own offshore school.”

Thrift was pleased with his season-opening performance at Okeechobee. He found an 8-pounder on bed the last day practice and caught her almost immediately the next morning.

“I ended up staying in that area pretty much the whole tournament. I fished next to Dion Hibdon; he was only like 50 feet away. We were laughing, cracking jokes and comparing catches. I was extremely happy with how Okeechobee played out. But I also feel like I slipped up a bit on the final day. Everybody struggled when the wind picked up and I could’ve adjusted and made up some serious ground.”

Thrift made another check at Smith, but he also ceded 30 points in the AOY race.

“That’s hard to make up in just six events; there’s little room for error. It seems like now you have to have four or five top-10s to win AOY. There’s time left to recover. I’ve put myself in a position where the leaders have to stumble to give me a chance and that’s not a good position to be in.”

Looking forward, Thrift likes the schedule. He’s ready for Beaver to commence, the site of his 2011 win. He describes the White River impoundment as a “pick-your-poison tournament,” with jerkbaits, jigs, crankbaits, umbrella rigs and finesse tactics all playing a role.

“The one I `m looking forward to the most is Grand Lake. I’ve got no information on it whatsoever. But that’s what excites me now after fishing professionally over the past seven years. I get more excited about a new lake than I even would if it was on Lake Norman, my home lake. You just look at a lake with a whole new perspective – and that seems to be when I do the best.”

A-rig opinion

For the record, Thrift remains firmly entrenched in the pro A-rig camp.

“Everybody that fusses about it is being stupid,” he said. “Look back to last year when Tharp won at Okeechobee. Everybody was flipping, but nobody tried to ban it. Years ago, when I won the Okeechobee EverStart on the ChatterBait, the next six tournaments there were won on a ChatterBait and nobody wanted to outlaw it. Table Rock is the same thing; you’re not going to ban a jerkbait or a Wiggle Wart. The guys that are catching them on the A-rig now are the same guys that always catch them. I guess I don’t see what the big deal is with it. To me, it’s just people who don’t want to learn it.”