Last update:  June 20, 2008

What:  FLW

When:   June 19 - 22, 2002

Where:  Lake Champlain, VT

Finish:  102nd

It’s such a great fishery that catching a limit of bass isn’t the concern. The problem is only in finding the groups of larger fish. I concentrated on the north end of the lake in an area known as the "Inland Sea". Through practice I found several areas with smallmouth of about a two-pound average and several areas with largemouth that occasionally grew bigger. Despite catching more than thirty bass per day I could only cull up to a 2-1/2 pound average. It was great fun but next time I’ll dedicate more time to finding the larger fish.

What:  FLW

When:   May 15-18, 2002

Where:  Old Hickory, TN

Finish:  165th

Tournament weights were low due to the lake’s fishkill several years earlier and the newly-raised minimum size limit made keepers scarce. In fact, few limits were weighed in. My health from the previous week hadn’t recovered and I couldn’t even practice for three days prior to the tournament. My previous knowledge of the lake paid off but I could only catch short fish – sometimes over thirty per day. Catching fifty fish on a full-sized jig-and-pig with only one keeper just doesn’t make sense. Despite my rigorous tournament schedule I’ve got to maintain my health better – this was the third tournament week I’ve been affected by this year.

What:  FLW

When:   April 17-19, 2002

Where:  Beaver Lake, AR

Finish:  166th

I truly enjoy going to Beaver Lake because the scenery is fantastic and the lake fits my style of shallow fishing due to an abundance of cover. Perhaps there was too much cover this time since the lake was eight feet high. I concentrated on the lower end of the lake because the banks are steeper and this makes the flooded bushes and timber more manageable. Unusually warm weather pushed the fish into a spawning mode and I had found a number of good areas. This was one of those tournaments where I just had bad luck landing fish. I got enough bites each day to have a great tournament finish but the fish just simply kept coming off my hook or got tangled in the brush.

What:  FLW

When:   March 13-16,2002

Where:  Lake Ouachita, AR

Finish:  6th

Winnings:  $15,000

Since Lake Ouachita hasn't hosted a professional tournament in a number of years I'll start with the lake itself.  Lake Ouachita is a highland reservoir with deep hydrilla growing around approximately 60% of the lake's shoreline.  This is the perfect formula for an incredible fishery however, the Largemouth Bass Virus killed off a lot of big fish last summer.  Look for Lake Ouachita to rebound quickly due to it's prolific vegetation and 16" size limit for largemouth.  

For some reason the lake's spotted bass were unusually difficult to catch and weren't a major factor in the tournament's results.   The largemouth were difficult to pattern due to changing weather.  In practice I could comfortably catch a limit that would have weighed about 15 pounds - several days.  But of course conditions changed.  I had been catching them over the grass in relatively shallow water.  Warm rains slowly raised the water temperature and the lake level as well.  The temperature went up from 48 to about 51 degrees and the lake's level rose about 2' right before the tournament.  The fish should have moved shallow and began feeding heavily but they did just the opposite.  I don't understand why the fish scattered out but my solution was to fish fast.  I felt that I was targeting the few feeding fish that were left shallow and that covering water was my best option.  Crucial to my success were 1) Douglas batteries that gave me tremendous endurance, the 2) Minn Kota trolling motor that operates quietly at high speeds while using the Maximizer circuitry to stretch out the day, and 3) Shimano Castaic reels with a high-speed 6.2:1 gear ratio.  

I fished the best "scrambling" tournament of my career by fishing a shallow-running crankbait over shallow grass in numerous points and pockets.  This is not one of my strengths but I feel that I've overcome one more hurdle towards my goal of becoming a more versatile fisherman.  I'm not getting away from flipping but rather just trying to get better at techniques to use when flipping isn't an option.

I'm looking forward to returning to Lake Ouachita for another tournament soon.  Nearby Hot Springs will be the future home of the Professional Bass Fishing Hall of Fame.

What:  FLW

When:   February 13-16,2002

Where:  Lake Wheeler, AL

Finish:  42nd

Winnings:  $2,300

I was extremely hopeful about my chances to do well in this tournament because in practice I could quickly catch a limit every morning on a finesse rig. The first tournament morning I caught a limit in about 1-1/2 hours and then left the fish. My disappointment started early on the second day. My motor had a mechanical problem and I could only find one boat to borrow. My buddy David Harrison (lives near Huntsville, AL) lent me his Ranger boat. By the time that I drove and got the boat and then launched I was leaving 2-1/2 hours late. This cut my fishing time down and I’d already missed the early-morning feeding period. It got worse when I found out that the trolling motor wasn’t working and there wasn’t a spare (different brand than mine). I was limited to fishing cover that I could grab on to and fish around while moving the boat by pulling and pushing around cover. I caught two fish for almost five pounds and only missed the cut by three pounds. I have no doubt that I would have made the first and second cuts if my equipment hadn’t acted up. I learned that regardless of how well you’re catching fish there are still uncontrollable variables that I have to learn to accept.

What:  FLW

When:   January 23- 26, 2002

Where:  Lake Okeechobee, FL

Finish:  160th

I had planned three days of practice because I’ve found that to be plenty for this lake but it turned out to be a big mistake. Since the lake has filled back up after last year’s drought the shoreline vegetation and submerged vegetation have moved around considerably. In fact, new maps would be a good idea too.

I should have spent more time to learn the new areas that held the spawning fish. Those competitors who found the fish caught them easily and the rest of us struggled. For the next tournament I’ll have to allow at least a week. I congratulate JT Kenney (from Maryland) for winning the first FLW he’s competed in.