The pat on the back is a leftover artifact from times when people were fishing to eat, and that fish was an important part of their families sustenance. A really big fish means a lot of food. Same for a big buck. In fishing we have the option not to kill them. So we have moved toward the totally unnatural act of Catch and release. In hunting, some people move to taking pictures and video. In 2000 my wife's family came down to Texas to meet mine. We warned them if my father says anything about turkey videos do not show any interest in them and for the love of God don't ask any questions. My wife's aunt made the mistake of doing both. We all retreated to the front porch and watched through the windows as she was made to watch a LOT of turkey video. By that point dad had been taking more pics and videos than shooting for about a decade. Mom and dad always had deer and turkey in the freezer, but they had a lot more on film.
Nothing wrong with keeping fish to eat, or to fertilize your garden. But in 2021 it does seem ridiculous to HAVE TO kill them to brag.
Maybe we should start some kind of campaign to get the rules changed around the records.