Friendly competition among outdoorsy couples can come in many ways, shapes, and forms—who shot the biggest buck last year; who limited out first on doves; who cooked the better camp meal; and last but not least, who caught the bigger fish.

Recently, one couple—the Holts—got to experience this firsthand.

Couples who fish together stay together, I like to say. But on Aug. 2, that theory got put to the test. Brandi and Jared Holt of Homedale were hucking bait out into the Snake River late that night when Brandi’s rod tip suddenly bowed towards the water. 

As soon as she started cranking on the reel, she felt the unmistakable feeling of a large river monster fighting on the end of the line. Brandi managed to haul the giant flathead catfish aboard the boat where her husband Jared anxiously rolled out the tape measure.