Bassmaster Central Open

Fort Gibson Lake, Wagoner, OK

I arrived down in Wagoner, Oklahoma just in time to run smack into another visitor in Tropical Storm Isaac. Honestly I was hoping we were in track for lots and lots of rain as I knew most all of Oklahoma was in a severe drought and I was really hoping the water level was going to rise dramatically enough to throw things off a bit and throw a wrench in the plans of the local anglers who have been planting brush piles and things of that nature. As a die hard flipper, the thought of having thousands of miles worth of freshly new flooded timber gave me a war and fuzzy kinda feeling. Unfortunately to myself and the thirst of Oklahoma, Isaac produce about as much water as my ice does when it melts in my cooler and instead of high muddy water we were left with low water and 110 degree temps for the rest of the week and into the tournament.

Practice started slow for me but after about a day and a half I started to figure a few things out. There was a good bunch of quality sized fish that were living real shallow on the "right" kind of rocks or old abandoned foundations. Early in the morning I could get bit by throwing a Biovex Amp Wake (Bone) and when the sun got high I was having success throwing the old Ft. Gibson standby a Gene Larew Biffle Bug (Sooner Run) on wouldn't you know it.......a Gene Larew Biffle Hardhead. I'd also throw around a US Custom color Biovex Amp Shallow Crank and Biovex Kolt Ridge Tail Swimbait (Sexy Shad).

Basically I could couple my Navionics Platinum South Chip with my Lowrance HDS 10 Gen-2 StructureScan and find both these shallow rocks and old foundations. I found a lot of this type of structure in deeper water but for the best of me I could not get bit in anything over about 7 - 8 feet with far more bites coming around 3 - 4 feet.

In practice I did manage to catch a limit each day following these techniques but catching lots of fish was out of the question. Though my size was definitely there, I never fished the same area twice. My thought on that was since I didn't know the lake that well and I was unable to find a secondary pattern, fishing the same area twice was a loose loose anyways. One, I go there and catch another 4 to 5 pounder. Great, but now I burnt a quality fish. Two, I go there and don't get bit, this sucks as now I don't have as much confidence there but will fish it anyways cause I have nowhere else to go. My hope was that though my bite was drastically dwindling by the day, once the derby kicks off I'll run every area I got bit in before and round out limits. If I could just get a limit, I'd have a real good bag. I knew going into day one that I'd either hero or zero. 

Day one and I was off to the races quick being that I drew boat seven. I decided with that number that I was going to start near the take-off and try to pull one or two off of a community hole as I knew these areas would have dozens of boats on them all throughout the day. Sometimes this proves to be a bad call as I left with nothing to show for it and blew that early draw. 

I raced around spots but never really got the bites as I knew could happen and finished the day with one fish for a mere 2.8 pounds. Knowing now that I needed to go big day 2, I decided it best to stick with that exact pattern knowing I needed that big bite. After waiting around for that last and final flight I got to work same as I did the day prior with the same result except I had two good ones on and dropped them both. One was easily over four pounds and mistakes that bad were sure to hurt me. Finally mid afternoon I put a skinny 15" largemouth in the box and then to make matters worse, I also dropped the fourth bite of the day on a Biovex Stangun Spinnerbait that surfaced and threw the bait immediately. 

Not the end result I was looking for. In hindsight, I wish I would have thrown the Biovex Kolt Ridge Tail more during the tournament. In practice, I could catch a lot of fish on it but never got many keeper bites. My gut tells me had I thrown it the majority of the day that I would have at least caught three a day if not limits and though I may not have caught grown ones, that kind of result would have surely been good enough for a check and cracking the top 50 in the AOY race.

Instead, I finished the day with one bass for a pathetic 1 pound 11 ounces and finished the last tournament of the 2012 Bassmaster Central Open sitting in 125th place. I fell in the Angler of the Year Standings to 81st out of 192  anglers. 

I was disappointed to say the least. My main goal for my rookie season on the Opens was to finish in the top 50 in the AOY race. Those three dropped fish cost me that. On the bright side I competed well and honestly had a chance in every tournament but just didn't fit the pieces together all at the same time. Something I definitely learned from and look very forward to doing next season. I'm willing to take my punches on the chin, but with more hard work I hope to soon be the one doing the punching.......or at least fist pumping all the way to the bank!

Up next I got the final Denny's Super 30 on Lake Minnetonka as well as the NABC World Championship on the Mighty Mississippi River for 20 grand! Not to mention Bri and I's move to Tennessee! Going to be a busy few weeks to say the least. Wish me luck!

Congratulations to competitor, friend and fellow Minnesotan Seth Feider for finishing 3rd against a stacked field!

5 Lure Challenge

I was checking in on my buddy Rich Lindgren's website when I noticed he was asked to partake in the challenge, the 5 Lure Challenge. Basically, if you could only fish with 5 lures for the rest of your life, which 5 would it be? Easy enough right? Not really. I started thinking about it and honestly started to get a bit wigged out once I started thinking about it. I'm used to having basically whatever I need for any day no matter the circumstances, I got it covered. The thought of throwing it all out and working with just 5 straight freaks me out but hey I'm still a gamer so let's play.

1. I'd easily have to agree with Rich on this one and opt for a 1/2 oz. jig. I'd prefer tungsten if it's available and would go for a hand wrapped green pumpkin/brown skirt. I do use a lot of 3/8 oz. but I can always slow down the rate of fall by adding a larger chunk but really have no way to speed up the fall for deeper situations. So a 1/2 oz. is the deal.

 2. Now's where she starts getting tough....but with careful consideration I'd probably go with a 3/8 oz. Outkast Swim Jig. A reaction bite is always a thing and a swim jig can be thrown anywhere at anytime. It's a power finesse presentation that can be thrown in wide open water or in the nastiest trash imaginable. Like any jig, it gets bit and gets bit hard by good uns. When it comes to color I'd probably ask for the Brown/Blue, a custom Outkast color that gets bit no matter the water clarity and no matter the forage. I'd ride it out with a single tail grub.

3. A staple for me, the Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver. I'd texas rig it with a Lazer Tungsten Weight and a Trokar 4/0 Magworm Hook. Color is well thought out and I'd opt for the Xmas Pumpkin, equally as deadly in clear water as it is in stained. The Beaver simply produces bites and is an excellent bait choice when probing relatively shallow water but should not be overlooked in deep water as it is equally as deadly on a flip shot rig.

4. The Biovex Deep Runner, easily my favorite deep water crankbait but one I choose carefully because of how perfectly balanced it is and how exact the bill placement is this bait rolls over every snag which means I can get away with fishing it in shallow areas as well. A great choice when fishing any of the rocky lakes throughout Oklahoma, Texas and Arkansas and absolutely ideal for fishing ledges throughout the entire Tennessee River System. Color is an easy pick, as long as it's blueback chartreuse.

5. For my final choice I find myself staring at my computer screen in an absolute daze. uhhh............... My brain says I need a topwater. Should I go with a spook? Perhaps a buzzbait? Or wait, how about a popper? What if there's vegetation around, it has to be a frog....right? Well in the end it looks like if the bite is on top then I'm in trouble, because even though every single bass angler better have a topwater I think I'm going with a Zoom Baby Brush Hog, a green pumpkin one to be exact. I need to have a carolina rig in my boat and nothing catches 'em better then a Baby Brush Hog! I just better hope I can wheel my swim jig fast just under the surface when the bass start schooling on topwaters!

When it comes to an honorable mention though I'm going to go with a single blade black buzzbait. A hog slayer of epic proportions!

Recipe's Off the Water

Walleye Ceviche

This is one of my all time favorite eats and one that can come very easily to those that live up here in Minnesota and catch walleyes on the regular. Ceviche is a popular dish that originates from coastal regions throughout Mexico and Central and South America. Ceviche is when you take fish or seafood and use citrus juice from lemons or limes to actually cook the fish, then spice it with various chili peppers.

I've taken this traditional form of cooking and gave it a Minnesota flare by using our state game fish as the main ingredient. If you don't have wallleye you can use other fish native to wherever you live such as stripers, catfish, crappies or saltwater fish like shrimp, halibut and grouper. Ceviche is also a very healthy dish packed with not only healthy protein but also consists of fresh fruits and vegetables, mostly grown in my back yard.

Great for watching football games or enjoying a non traditional breakfast while watching Bassmasters on Saturday mornings.

Here's what you'll need:

1 Walleye Filet (skinned and boned)
1 Jalapeno
1 Tomato
1 Onion
1 Avacado
Juice of 4 Limes
Cilantro
5+ Dried Chili de Arbol Peppers
Tortilla Chips

Preparation is simple.

Dice raw walleye filet into very small pieces and throw into a mixing bowl.
Dice jalapeno and onion and mix with the walleye and add juice of 4 limes.
Cover and let sit in refrigerator for 3 hours, stir around every hour or so.
Once the 3 hours is up, the fish should have changed in color and actually cooked from the citrus.

Next, add diced fresh tomato and cilantro to ceviche mix. Take a handful of dried chili de arbol peppers or less or more, depending on your spice level and throw on a dry skillet and heat. This is to open up the oils of the dried chili's. Once warmed, put into old coffee grinder and grind into a powder. Add ground chili's to ceviche mix and place back into refrigerator for another hour.

After an hour, take out ceviche, add diced avacado and a pinch of salt to taste and serve with your favorite tortilla chips as well as a couple ice cold beers and enjoy!

Intro to "Recipe's Off the Water"

Anyone who is reading my blog knows I'm an obsessed bass angler that spends almost every single waken hour out on the water. The rare times I'm not on the water, I enjoy spending time at home in the kitchen with my wife Bri, cooking up some of our favorite dishes and enjoying some of the finer things nature provides to us all.

"Recipe's Off the Water" is the newest addition to my JD Fishing Blog and one I've been brainstorming for some time. The point of this segment is to share some of our other hobbies such as growing fresh produce and fiery hot peppers and combining it with my passion for fishing and hunting. I love nature and everything about it and really take great pride in using nature's gifts in the kitchen to make flavorable and healthy dishes!

I eat a lot of fish and vegetables and am a spicy food addict! Though I always catch and release when bass fishing, I on occasion will run into a couple nice eating sized walleyes or other game fish and find it very rewarding to bring home and cook up. I also love grilling and smoking meats and will make a point to use game meats like deer and elk venison as my family and friends are avid hunters.

My wife is my inspiration behind "Recipe's Off the Water" as she is enjoying great success with her own website, The Fisherman's Widow. Her "Trials and Tribulations of a Fisherman's Widow" themed website pokes fun at the obvious but it's her content that is producing a very impressive following.

One of Bri and I's biggest goals for the future is to buy land in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee and not just to be able to fish every renown bass lake on the Tennessee River but to also be able to live more off the land and grow all our own fruits and vegetables as well as raise our own chickens and sheep. All part of the big dream that continues to drive me to accomplish my lifetime goals of holding a Bassmaster Classic Trophy high over my head and enjoying life's finer things with my family.

Thanks for reading and I hope to bring you more fantastic reads well into the future! If you have any outdoors-like recipes that are a must try, please send them over! If I like them, I'll post them!

Denny's Super 30

Lake Minnetonka, Mound, MN

Today was the fourth stop of the Denny's Super 30 on Lake Minnetonka. As I've stated before, I cherish the Denny's Minnetonka tournaments. I get as excited for this event as I do any other tournament all year as the lake is local and the competition is fierce. We're talking about some of the best fisherman in the state making up the 50 teams and all playing in their back yard on what Bassmaster just recently ranked as the 7th best bass fishing lake in the world.

Despite preparing for my move south and a hectic past few months, I was able to get on the water a few days before the tournament. Mostly half days between meetings and guide trips but it was enough to agree that the dock talk was spot on. The recent cold snap after having months of record breaking warmth was making for a tough bite. The lake was changing and though I usually have tried and true areas to fish, I was finding that even those areas weren't holding up. My buddy and team tournament partner Paul Coffey jumped in my boat for the weekend, we pulled the brim of our hats down, dropped the trolling motor and just went fishing.

We'd go hours without much more than a pike or two and then all of a sudden run into a load a bass, waypoint the area and move on. It was a very mundane approach to fishing but was proving to be effective none the less. By the end of the first day we could connect the dots and start making sense of everything so that the next day we could simply start where we had left off. In the end we felt like we had found some key areas that if we milked them effectively we could put ourselves in position. We also knew we needed to keep an open mind because the weather was starting to get warmer by the hour and we knew the bass could fall back into their normal summer haunts at any time and wanted to be sure we let the lake tell us what was going on.

Tournament morning couldn't have started better as we managed to pull together a nice limit rather quickly. Being that we had a comfortable limit in the box early we decided to venture out and see if we could bang a few good ones of a few off our traditional summer spots. This was the decision of the day as we started to upgrade on every spot we stopped at and by 9:30 we had roughly 26 pounds in the livewell.

Knowing we were sitting in good position, we decided to start hitting all the big fish haunts we have ever known in the past. We managed to catch fish all day but none that helped us. In fact it wasn't until the last minute that I jumped up on rock retaining wall right next to the weigh in and caught a 2.8 pound bass to cull out our smallest 2.6 pound bass. Nothing like catching a last minute bass on a Outkast Pro Staff Jig to help the cause!

In the end, we finished with our 8 fish limit totaling 26.9 pounds good enough for a 7th place finish and a much needed paycheck. Though we were super happy with the result the competitor in us was a little ego bruised. Not everyday can you start out with a bag like that and still have six hours to try to upgrade. Really we only needed one five pounder or a couple more three and a half's and we would have had the win at a tournament I've wanted so bad for the past few years. On the other hand we fished strong, even more important we fished smart all day and the results show at the scales. Hat's off to the boys that did it better, it's never an easy feat.

Up next I'm hoping to swing this momentum for the Bassmaster Open down on Fort Gibson Lake, in Northeastern Oklahoma. The last and final stop of the 2012 Bassmaster Central Opens! Wish me luck!

A Bachelor Party Mille Lacs Style!

What a great weekend! My Good friend and fishing buddy Corey Brant and a bunch of fellow fishing friends all got together and headed up to Mille Lacs to partake in Corey's bachelor party. Honestly, I can't think of any better bachelor party then sticking toads before heading to a cabin to rock out.

Lake Mille Lacs is easily one of the top fishing lakes in the world let alone Minnesota. Known as a champion walleye and muskie lake, the lake is finally getting the reputation as one of the premier bass lakes in the country with plenty of quality bass both smallmouth and largemouth.

Of course being as competitive as we all are you just know that we had to make it a competition, which of course brings out our best. In the end, it was a day to remember and one I know I'm going to miss once I move south. We all caught plenty a good fish to make it all the better, Here's some pictures from our day on the water.

Corey, congratulations buddy!

2012 ICAST & More

The fishing world's mecca of a trade show ICAST, has come and gone leaving an addicted tackle junkie like myself scowering through endless internet pages in search for what's in store come 2013. All I'm saying is the world better not end in December because I can't wait to get my hands on some of these products and better yet, bass can't wait to wrap their mouth around some of them either.

Being a die hard bass fisherman one may think I only pay attention to bass related items but that's not entirely true. A lot of our proven tackle today comes from other forms of sport fishing such as Alabama Rigs, Spoons, Fluorocarbon and swimbaits. Everyone will see and hear of the new bass gear but to find something that would work well for bass but is meant for another species is a desire to every competitive tournament bass angler. I did indeed see a couple things that toot my fancy that may be designed for saltwater use but I think will pay dividends in upcoming bass tournaments. I'd be a fool to give those ideas away so instead I'll just focus on my main area of interest and if your reading my blog I'd reckon you have the same interests as I and that's putting big ole fat bass in the livewell.

G Loomis GLX

I got all sorts of geeked out when I saw G Loomis announced their new line of GLX rods that will soon be hitting the market. If you know me at all or read my blogs and articles often, you'll know I'm a die hard G Loomis guru and have been since I was a little kid. I've been able to use these rods my entire fishing career and though I could fish with any of the G Loomis line of rods, I almost always choose GLX. The exception of course is the G Loomis NRX line of spinning rods which are most definitely the cat's booty. G Loomis used this opportunity to fix probably the only flaw in their entire line of rods which was the need for a meat stick of a crankin' rod. They've always had excellent crankbait rods that are ideal for baits like the Biovex Mid Runner or Rapala DT-6 style crankbaits, but their lack of a big, gaudy 7'11" Heavy action parabolic pig sticker was definitely a negative and also left the door open for inferior rod companies to get their name mentioned in the same sentence. Step down peons, the king has once again claimed the throne and now you can get all of that and a bag of chips as G Loomis not only combines it's GLX sensitivity but also the size and action desired by America's most well known ledge crankers!

I was even more taken aback by the new GLX Flipping Series. I wondered how they could actually improve on perfection itself, well they found a way and though I'll never trade in my tried and true 894 GLX's,  now I need to do some reel shopping because my boat definitely has room for a couple more flipping sticks. Newly designed with split grip handles and improved Fuji Titanium SIC Guides these rods are 23-35% stronger and lighter then their predecessor and better yet, is available in all sorts of different sizes and actions all stamped with the unprecedented GLX logo.

Shimano Calcutta D

Just as I'm a G Loomis die hard, I'm equally as obsessed with Shimano Reels. I have to admit, I waited anxiously to hear what was in store for Shimano. What I found was not much in the way of high end reels except of course for one of the best reels ever made, the Shimano Calcutta. In the bass world, this reel has had the reputation as the best swimbait reel on the market. These days it also has double duty as the best Alabama Rig reel as well. Let me introduce you all to the Shimano Calcutta D. I'm sure there's many a California anglers lined up outside the well known swimbait shops all waiting for their turn to play with the new design but since the umbrella rig craze, boys on the East coast are lining up as well.

Lazer Trokar Wacky Worm Hook

With today's fishing pressure, anglers are learning that they need to either beef up and throw a chandelier that holds numerous swimbaits or size down and get all sorts of finesse-like on weary bass to fill a limit. Nothing is more finesse and productive as a wacky rigged straight tail worm. I first started leaning on this technique when bass were in their post spawn funk. Casting a wacky rigged 4 inch senko around the inside weedline can produce some very good results. Now that the fish are deep I still employ the wacky rig only now I double dip 'em with finesse by wacky riggin' a straight tail worm on a dropshot. They love it! Trokar already is known as the premier hook company which puts out lazer sharp and efficient hooks that competitors can only attempt to knock off. Now they've upped the ante by releasing the perfect lazer sharp wacky hook dubbed the Lazer Trokar Wacky Worm Hook. No pun attended but enough said.

Eco Pro Tungsten Jigs

I'm a 100% tungsten guy. I believe in everything it stands for from being environmentally more safe to the fishing benefits that relate back to it's denseness. I know tungsten isn't cheap, but for most the bass fishing world loosing them on the regular isn't that often as it is for a dude from Minnesota who happens to flip his way into a school of pike or muskie by accident and snip, snip, snip, I just donated several one ounce flippin' weights to the cause. Sucks! Still though, they are a necessary part of my everyday arsenal and I wouldn't think of using lead in it's place ever again. I was very excited to see Eco Pro, who already is one of the premier tungsten companies, announced they're releasing a line up of tungsten jigs. This is a no brainer and something I've been screaming for for at least five years! It makes total sense to offer football jigs and shakey head jigs in 97% tungsten. These are bottom orientated baits that excel over rocks and bottom changing areas and to have the ability to feel every nook and cranny along the way is essential. We pay ridiculous amounts of cash for our rods and fishing line so that we have the "feel", why would that stop with the bait?

On a personal note, I'm even more excited about the Eco Pro Tungsten Flipping Jig. I used to be obsessed with the old Tru Tungsten Jig and have to admit my supply is dwindling. Anytime I can get away with a smaller profile head on my jigs, I'm all in!

Zappu Abare Dama

Zappu, one of Japan's leading terminal tackle manufacturer's released what I think will be one of the serious game changers in coming years, the Abare Dama, which translates into "the Wicked Ball". Basically they developed a spring that holds a small tungsten ball that you can attach directly to the back treble of your favorite crankbait. This offers a lot as it will give your bait that little something extra in the way of a searching style action. It also may allow your deep running crankbait to suspend which I guarantee will elicit more strikes from weary bass.

Biovex USA

Not yet ready for the 2102 ICAST, but one of Japan's premier tackle manufacturer's Biovex,  is set to soon release their brand here in the United States under the new name Biovex USA. Though they are still finishing final steps in the transformation and not yet able to present at ICAST the buzz is already noteworthy. Biovex is known for their awesome hard baits and soft baits alike.

Some of my personal favorites hard baits are the Biovex Deep Runner and Amp Wake Bait, both intended for total opposites in the water column but both get similar results, bone jarring strikes! On the soft plastic side of things, they'll take the U.S. by storm with the introduction to the Biovex Kolt Stick and Biovex  Kolt Fish Tail, both excellent on a drop shot. The Fish Tail is a smallmouth slayer, seriously they can't stand it and I'd put money on it that my Biovex Fish Tail will out fish any other bait hands down. The Kolt Stick is a very interesting bait that I now lean on all the time especially for largemouth. For years anglers have used a small 3" senko style worm with great results when drop shotting. The Biovex Kolt Stick provides that same profile but in a ribbed body, providing more motion underwater and better yet has bubble making action via the small holes that are incorporated inside the bait that when quivered releases the smallest and most realistic air bubbles. I'm telling you, GAME OVER! Bass can't stand it!

The Bass are Snapping! Book a Guide Trip Today!

The bass fishing is off the hook up here right now! I've been fortunate to be on the water everyday for the past couple weeks and am happy to admit this bass catching stuff never gets old to a true bassin' junkie like myself.

I'm starting to book but do still have some available days so if you're interested in a great day on beautiful Lake Minnetonka, please contact me soon.

My email is josh@joshdouglasfishing.com.

Looking forward to seeing you on the water!

Denny's Super 30

Lake Minnetonka, Mound, MN

Man I was looking forward to today, the lake has been on absolute fire! Being that life has been so stressful lately as we are preparing for our move south, I decided the best medicine would be to just hit my favorite lake during my favorite time of year and put in a full week of practice leading up to the Denny's.

As I said the lake has been hot and the weather has been even hotter, this isn't usually a bad thing either as I feel it puts the fish in more predictable deep water areas. The vegetation actually starts to burn off much like that of corn and other plants that get a unhealthy dose of higher than usual air temps, making finding healthy weeds a must for success. When I found these key areas, the bass were fat and plentiful as they weren't the only fish that found this habitat desirable. The bluegills, perch and crayfish also were plentiful making easy meals for the bass.

During practice I made it a point to search out new water. Once I had developed a successful pattern I saw no need to check spots that I knew I was going to fish come tournament day. My team tournament partner Paul Coffey did the same and by the end of the week we had more water than we ever knew what to do with and knew there was no way we could ever fish it all.

For the tournament we drew boat 22, not great but really I could have cared less to be honest. Like I said, we had lots of water and not a single spot I felt was more desirable than the next. The wind was tough and that made Paul and I rethink our attack strategy, in fact we reversed it all together in an attempt to be able to better approach our water.

The morning started off great as we put together a limit real quick, though the size just wasn't there. That never really changed all day as we kept catching them but just never got a big bite and also both managed to break off on a couple nice ones. In the end, we stubbed our toes something fierce and ended up with the worst showing at a Denny's tournament of my entire life, 8 for roughly 22 pounds. The end result was mind boggling as we truly were on the right fish and if the tournament was tomorrow I don't know that I'd a changed a thing and would have whacked 'em. Sometimes you just should have zigged instead of zagged but in hindsight it's always easy to wish you would have hit certain areas at certain times instead. The only thing I guess I would have changed if given the opportunity would have been to fish our original track instead of switching it up to account for the wind. We probably would have picked up a couple of better bites earlier and set a much better tone right away. Things to consider...

Up next I have a handful of guide trips and then get to head up north to fish Gull Lake in the third NABC event. I'm always more than excited to head to northern Minnesota and throw down in God's country!

Speaking of guide trips, NOW'S THE TIME! Lake Minnetonka is prime right now and the big girls are biting and biting a lot! Contact me today to book your trip.

North American Bass Circuit

Madison Chain of Lakes, Madison , WI

This tournament literally makes me laugh and not cause I was counting my money all the way to the bank, in fact it was quite the opposite.

Teaming up with me for this series is good friend Rich Lindgren. We both pulled our boats across Wisconsin to give our two days of practice the most potential possible. We did our research on the chain and broke up the waterway evenly deciding we'd adjust our game plan after the first day of practice.

I took Lake Monona and Rich took Lake Waubesa as well as some of the smaller lakes attached to the chain. His practice basically consisted of eliminating water as finding quality fish were close to impossible. I on the other hand had one of the best practice periods of my entire life. I was shaking off around 30 bites a day and the ones that I did check were all keepers with a few 4 pounders mixed in. We had previously figured that Monona would be the more consistent lake but it was easily exceeding my expectations by a long shot. Basically I was flipping three key milfoil areas that held both bass and their forage. All three areas sat out in front of shallow flats so baitfish were abundant in all these areas and the bass would use the milfoil clumps as ambush points. I was flipping small compact craw style baits on a 3/4 oz. Eagle Claw Lazer Tungsten Flippin' Weight and a 4/0 Trokar Flippin' Hook. I also was getting far more bites using 20lb. Seaguar Abrazx Fluorocarbon instead of Seaguar Kanzen Braid and the only downfall was the loss of precious tungsten weights to the many muskie that inhabit these same waters. My method of flipping was easy as I'd simply work the edge making a short flip into the visible milfoil, working the bait slowly trying to entice a bite. Working the bait slowly and methodically was important as I wasn't the only one who had figured out the milfoil's potential and pressure was setting in by the second. Still despite the pressure I had them dead to rights as whatever I was doing was getting the bites and good ones at that.

Tournament morning rolled around and we were able to get to our first stretch right away in the morning, things had changed in that we didn't have sun nor wind like we had all of practice. Despite these changes our confidence still remained high even when we weren't getting the bites I had come accustomed to all of practice. As the day wore on we'd get a bite about every 15 minutes or so but our hook up ratio was the worst I have ever seen. We had the bottom of my boat covered in craws that were missing pinchers as our hookup ratio was a disgusting 95% miss rate. I honestly felt like I could puke in disgust as the bites were there, quality ones at that but the livewell wasn't filling at all. In the end we ended up with only three bass weighing just over seven pounds, a tough tournament to say the least and one that will bug me for quite a while. I joked in the opening paragraph that I laugh about this event and though I'm 100% sincere it's not a conceded look, it's the only way I can gut it. Looking back there's obviously things we should have done differently as well as adjustments we should have made like adjusting better to the weather. The fish were on the outside of the grass with the lack of sun and we didn't need to be flipping to them since they were on the edge and probably should have leaned harder on baits like jigworms and dropshots to get the job done. However, when you've had a terrific practice doing one thing and was getting the bites on game day doing the exact same but not hooking up it's a real tough thing to abandon. It was necessary to adjust and would have been the difference between cashing a check and weighing three fish but all I can do now is acknowledge that I should have listened to the voices in my head, learn from my stubbornness, chalk it up to one of my worst tournament performances of my life and then laugh about it and move on.

There's plenty more fish in the sea and plenty more opportunities to showcase my talents then to sit and dwell on a bad one.

See you on the water!

Denny's Super 30

Lake Minnetonka, Mound, MN

Today was the second tournament of the Denny's Super 30 and team tournament partner Paul Coffey and I had some work to do. After a less than ideal first tournament where we finished somewhere in the 20's we knew we needed to shoot for a top 10 to get ourselves back into contention for the Team of the Year standings as well as give us a much needed shot of confidence heading into the middle part of the summer.

We put in the time as best we could leading up to tournament day and both were able to locate some quality fish. I have a tremendous amount of confidence in the lake and my decision making abilities once the summer months arrive and was feeling good about our early summer this season. In fact I had easily one of the best few practice days of my life as the bass are quickly starting to school up and once located can be a blast catching as they're one right after another.

Tournament day started slow for us as our first few stops didn't produce much but a fish or two here and there. Finally we managed to get on a school or two and it was a fun few hours putting the smack down as we quickly culled our way to about 24 pounds. Once the bite slowed we knew we were exactly where we needed to be and started running in search of a couple kickers to get our weight up into the high 20's. The bass kept biting for us but none that were able to help until about a half hour left in the event when Paul had an ace in the hole spot he located in practice that was close to the weigh in. After our first pass through with nothing we decided it be best to go back through instead of running as lures in the water are always better and quickly I got bit and in came a nice four pound bass making for a nice cull to end the day.

We weighed in our best 8 for a respectable 25 pounds and finished in 14th place. Missing a check by a mere two pounds but still had the day that most of the time would cough up a much deserved check. We fished well and fished clean and honestly I can say I had one of the best all around days on the water that I've ever had and if I parlay off that I'll be in great shape with the rest of my fishing career going forward.

The best part was that we moved up a ton in the Team of the Year points and are currently sitting tied with good friends Ryan and Corey Brant for 15th place overall with three more events to go. Still lots of work to be done.

See you on the water.

Searching for my Mojo

Denny's Super 30 &
Minnetonka Classic

Lake Minnetonka, Mound, MN

Usually I recap in detail each tournament I compete in no matter how good or bad it turned out. I rarely discuss anything about Lake Minnetonka though besides the very basics because it's my home water, the competition is just too stiff and I always seem to have another event out there right around the corner. As this still holds true, my latest week of fishing out there is nothing to brag about and I definitely didn't unlock any tried and true spring Tonka secrets, so here we go.

I teamed up with a good buddy this year, Paul Coffey. Paul has been fishing with myself, Ryan Brant and Corey Brant for the past couple years now and instead of the Brant's and I splitting up all the Tonka events between the three of us we decided it was time to make two teams and fish them all. We still work very close and keep an open book with everything we find since we have all worked equally as hard out there for the past three years that there's no reason to stop the learning curve. It's important to see both teams succeed.

The first event was the Denny's Super 30. I had spent a few days out on the water patterning moving fish. I found them on beds, inside weedlines, in the thick weeds, pads, laydowns, deep, shallow, you name it. They were everywhere but the overall lack of big ones was discerning as I just couldn't seem to get enough big bites and out there you need numerous big bites just to compete. In the end, Paul and I had a plan to just junk fish our way to a healthy limit. I always want to win but with not having more than a few days of experience ever on Minnetonka in the Spring, my main focus was on just saving face in the points race. I've won my fair share of money out there in the Summer and Fall and have a lot better feel for what it takes to bring in a winning sack. If we could get through this first one without falling on our faces than we'd have a descent shot at the Team of the Year going forward the rest of the season.

When the tournament ended we managed to not fall flat on our faces but we didn't turn any heads either. We weighed in 8 bass for 18.85 pounds for a very mediocre 26th place finish. Not what I was looking for but still in the hunt for the Team of the Year.

Next up was the Minnetonka Classic and though this marks the 20 or 30 something annual, I've only fished it once before a couple years back and managed to cash a check for 14th place. I was thinking this time that Paul and I could do much better giving all the time we spent on the water preparing for the Denny's. The weather seemed to change by the day and I really started getting confused. I was guessing that the fish were coming to me so I stayed deep, in hindsight I probably should have went ultra shallow. Either way in the end we ended with somewhere above the teams that chose not to weigh in and under the teams that did well. I always weigh and usually am pretty geared up to do so but I've always been one to take it on the chin and bring the fish to the scales regardless. It's embarrassing to not have a sack at the scales and that feeling will stay with me as I use it as added motivation in the upcoming weeks. In the end we zigged when we should have zagged and we ran when we should have stopped. Basically I don't know exactly what went wrong but we just weren't getting the quality bites we needed at all. You fish to learn and learn to compete.

I'm down but far from out. In this sport you take the good with the bad and need to have a short memory. If you win, you need to enjoy it but forget it the next day because someone else will rise to the occasion next week and you need to stay sharp. If you suck, learn from it and get over it because tomorrow's a new day and you can't dwell on it. Big bass are always only one cast away.

For now it's back to the drawing board, Bri and I as well as the pups are soon heading up to her family cabin for a little fun in the sun, some awesome bass fishing and possibly a beer or two around the campfire. After all, this is what it's all about!

See you on the water!

Tuning Into the HydroWave

Every morning I awake to the sound of my coffee machine brewing a fresh pot of joe. Like clockwork I roll out of bed, pour a fresh cup and off to the lake I go.

This daily habit got me thinking. If I'm self-programmed to respond and react to the sound of fresh coffee being brewed, will lethargic bass become active off the sounds of other bass feeding?

This very question got me looking into the effectiveness of the feeding emulator known as the HydroWave. As a professional bass fisherman, I'm always looking for ways to up my game and give me that needed edge over my competition. The HydroWave is an electronic devise that omits prerecorded sounds of feeding bass underwater and as their slogan reads, creates a feeding frenzy.

Despite powerhouse bass anglers such as Kevin Van Dam, Jeff Kriet and Gene Eisenmann proudly sporting them, I still found myself a bit skeptical on the whole idea. Even when Paul Elias caught that mega sack every day of competition on a very tough fall bite at Alabama's Lake Guntersville, I still wasn't quick to chalk that win up to much more than a great presentation on a few great areas. It wasn't until looking into the actual physical science behind HydroWave that I started to believe in the product.

Tactile Sound Transmission (TST) is the primary output of the HydroWave's speaker system and uses finely tuned amplifiers to deliver the sound. Tactile sound is much different than ordinary sounds because it delivers a noise that you can actually feel. As described on HydroWave’s website, if you have earplugs in you will not be able to hear a sub-woofer but you will be able to feel it. Fish hear on that same frequency, the same frequency and sound produced by the HydroWave.

To continue to break it down one step further, HydroWave incorporates both Lateral Reactive Technology (LRT) as well as Vibration Reactive Technology (VRT) to elicit predatory feeding responses.

LRT is a vibration wave technology that operates at a frequency level that stimulates a predatory response through a fish's lateral line. The lateral line is naturally tuned to detect low frequency vibrations created by small prey such as shad, herring, bluegills and crayfish. The LRT of the HydroWave, produces these exact vibrations and creates a natural predatory response.

VRT is a vibration wave that operates at a frequency that stimulates a predatory response from the fish through their inner ear. It's well known that a fish's ear is nothing like a humans, a fish's ear consists of dense bones under the skin that detect and translate vibrations. This vibration detection is so accurate that a bass is able to differentiate between vibrations of various preys. This explains how a fish can be so visually impaired but still be able to feed and know what it's feeding on before it attacks it.

Alright, enough with the science mumbo jumbo, let's take it to the water. After looking into the hype that is the HydroWave, I decided to borrow a buddy’s unit for a Bassmaster Open event on Lake Lewisville, in north Texas. I used much of my practice time playing with the different settings and options trying to quickly familiarize myself with the contraption. For those of you who don't know, the Lewisville Open broke a record for the toughest tournament in B.A.S.S. history with only 3 anglers catching a limit in technically 4 days of competition. My first realization of the potential of the HydroWave actually came as a surprise. While struggling to find more than a bite or two in the first couple days of practice I decided I better start probing a bit of deep water. I recall idling out of a creek and as I was idling out through the mouth over the creek channel I noticed my Lowrance unit "light up" with what looked like bass and enormous schools of shad on the bottom in 20 feet. I quickly got on the deck of my Ranger and started making casts with heavy spinnerbaits, a deep running Biovex crankbait, and an Outkast football jig. After a solid 25 casts with not a bite and zero activity around me, I remembered I had the HydroWave on my deck. I turned it on and within a minute fish started blowing up all around me. Unfortunately for me they were not largemouth they were stripers that had started blowing up on shad. I had literally sat there for 15 minutes with not a ripple on the water and less than a minute after turning on the HydroWave all pandemonium broke out around me and in that moment my confidence quickly started growing.

My next tournament was just a couple weeks ago on legendary Table Rock Lake. In practice I had found a couple fairly deep rock piles that were the size of my boat and sat on the ends of some long tapered points in 35 feet of water which I located by slowly scanning the points with my Lowrance StructureScan. On my very first cast I caught a 4 pound smallmouth on a 3/4 oz. Outkast Touch Down Jig. The fish instantly coughed up crayfish all over my boat so I saw no need to make another cast, I knew what they were eating and where, so I saved a waypoint and left.

The first day of the tournament, after spending all morning and early afternoon trying to make something happen shallow, I made my way to my deep rocks and within about 2 to 3 hours I probably caught close to 30 and culled a dozen or so times and put myself in strong contention going into the second day.

Day 2 of competition opened with a day full of extremely high winds and fishing these rock piles efficiently in the middle of the lake was close to impossible. The rocks were so snag filled that I couldn't fish them without breaking off and since the piles were so small, all I was doing was shutting down the school.

A sure thing was turning into a nightmare and my nerves got the best of me so I blew out of there in search of some shallow fish. This was not the best scenario considering I wasted the first few hours and the best morning shallow bite trying to force something to happen out deep. My worst fears became reality when afternoon rolled around and I only had one small keeper in the box, with two hours left before I had to weigh in. I decided I'd leave it all out there on those deep fish. This time though I'd take a different approach, instead of sitting back and trying to fight the wind I'd idle up to the rock pile and jump up on my trolling motor and use my Lowrance HDS 10 Gen-2 to show me a single fish and then try to catch that one fish and just try to put together a limit one bass at a time. The only problem was that I wasn't seeing the bass any more; I knew they had to be there but I couldn't see them. Desperate, I turned on my HydroWave unit and I started seeing fish pop up on my graph and could sit on top of them, flip my 3/4 oz. Outkast Touch Down Jig off the side of the boat and use the wind to drift the bait right past the bass's face and within an hour I filled my limit!

On my ride home to Minnesota, I couldn't help but be disappointed that I didn't put two and two together earlier in the day as I could have easily been right up there in the standings. At the same time, I was so grateful that I did figure it out and was able to prevent a horrible day on the water as well as gain valuable points in the Angler of the Year standings. Even though those bass were on a crayfish bite, the sounds from the HydroWave was just enough to pull them off the rocks by about a foot so I could separate them from the bottom with my Lowrance unit and make fishing those rocks way more efficient without snagging. Like my coffee machine, the HydroWave was just enough to turn those fish from lethargic and sitting on the rocks to active and ready to eat; regardless of what their prey was.

Speaking of Minnesota, anglers from the south regions of the country already understand the importance of the HydroWave as they've been dealing with shad their entire angling lives. Bass anglers from my neck of the woods are slow to connect the dots. For my sake I probably shouldn't be going into this. Like I said before, at the level I fish, I need every advantage a guy can get. Regardless, just because we don't have shad as our main forage here in the upper MidWest, doesn't mean HydroWave's technology isn't just as useful to us, in fact it's better. The prerecorded sounds that the HydroWave omits are actually the sounds of bass actively feeding and the crunching you hear are the shad's swim bladders crunching. The same sounds that are made when bass start putting the smack down on bluegills, it's nature ringing the dinner bell. 

The reason I say that we northerners have it better is for the simple reason that not too many savvy bass fishermen have HydroWave’s equipped on their rigs yet in this part of the country. It's totally new to our bass and like with anything else new, bass aren't at all conditioned to it. It's like showing a bass that's never seen an artificial lure in its entire life a spinnerbait for the first time. Game over.

Also, for those that are still wanting more, the rumor is that the powers that be at HydroWave are in the process of developing bluegill and crayfish sounds that will be available as an update to the already existing units. Let me be the first to tell you, if you think largemouth respond well, wait till you see how smallies react.

There's still so much I need to learn with my HydroWave but I'm eagerly learning one bass at a time.

North American Bass Circuit

Lake Winnebago Chain, Osh Kosh, WI

I might as well get this write up over with as it's not going to get any easier for me with the passing of the days. Last Saturday my buddy Rich Lindgren and I competed in the first stop of the NABC Team Circuit on east Wisconsin's, Lake Winnebago. Though Rich and I have been friends for years, this would be the first time we didn't compete against each other and instead climbed in the same boat and attempted to make something happen. I was pretty excited to team with Rich as I first learned a lot of my bass fishing skill from him years back when I joined his BASS federation club, Gopher Bassmasters. 

We've both come a long way since those club days and I'd be lying if I said that we didn't set very high expectations for ourselves heading into this event. Even though I had never been to this chain of lakes, I was confident because the largemouth bite should fall right into our wheelhouse and Rich has fished a couple pretty big events here over the years. Never this time of year but later and that should help us as we knew where they were going when they were through spawning.

We didn't get much practice time and in hindsight probably tackled practice all wrong from the get go. Basically we drove out together the previous week and got in about a full day on Saturday with the exception of the early morning bite as we were still in route from Minne. Side note, I don't mind driving long distances at all, in fact I like to. I'll drive to the any lake in the country, fish for a day or two and drive back, sounds like fun, but there's something gigantically mind numbing about driving five hours and still being in Wisconsin. I'm just saying.

The next day we awoke to thunderstorms and three inches of rain, we're die hards so there was no stopping us from going out but practicing was tough. You really can't see much and if you don't get bit, it doesn't necessarily mean they're not there. So instead we spent most our time cruising around and finding more productive areas that were working the day before.

 We were also able to get out for one final practice day the Friday before the derby. We checked what we had found the weekend before which for the most part still held up but it was becoming more and more obvious that this was all pretty community. Not always a bad thing but still worrisome none the less. Basically we were targeting spawning largemouth as well as some pre and post cruisers.

With only an hour or so to go, we happened to find an area that looked like what heaven would look like to a fisherman. We found a clear water, off the map area, loaded with fish from pike, slab crappies, bluegills, more gar than I've seen in my whole life and probably around fifty bass anywhere from 2 pounds to 5 pounds. It was crazy! This is exactly what a tournament guy dreams of, stay on the water till the last possible second and then find the holy water just before the event.

Now with mixed emotions running through our head as well as drawing boat number 23, we had some talking to do. The gambling side to us thought maybe it be best if we ran the community stuff early in the morning and caught our 14-16 plus pounds and then sneak over to the juice and really put together a kings sack. What if we don't get prime area in the community with the weak take off number? What if someone else found the juice and will make fresh squeezed lemonade before we ever get there? What if we have a tough day and driving home hate ourselves for not taking advantage of what we found?

You can see where our heads were at and decided we shouldn't take any chances, skip the community and go all out in this area we had found and hopefully have it all to ourselves. When we arrived tourney morning it appeared we were the first in until we spotted some perch jerkers anchored down on one of the better areas. We politely squeezed past them and the noticed there was another tournament boat up the cut, not sure if they creeped in another way or just had an early take off number but none the less, they were ahead of us and we were fishing their seconds. Then wouldn't you know it, out comes KVD wannabe himself blazing through the cut trolling motor on 100 talking about "they were here yesterday" and damn near bumped my boat to get out. What was gin clear water was now turning to chocolate milk fast and this area just couldn't hold up to this kind of pressure, too shallow and too skinny. There was also a lot of people on their docks enjoying the beautiful Saturday morning catching some gills. Just too much pressure, no excuses, we should have considered that from the get go but didn't and now was too late to go back. I did manage one nice keeper out of there but with three hours burned we left that area with just the one. We ran to the community and quickly got the feeling we were not only fishing seconds but more like thirds, fourths and fifths. Still head down and determined we worked at taking what we could get and Rich managed to bag three keepers with time dwindling down. Our hail mary pass came late in the game when we only had 4 in the box and an hour to go, we ran back to our starting spot and I managed to take one buck off a bed to fill our limit. 

At weigh-in we put together 5 for a very disappointing 11.88 pounds only good enough for a 32nd place finish. The most important thing though is we definitely learned something from this event and know what we have to do better ourselves at the next one. It's important in a team tournament to find as much water in practice as possible and fish each others strengths to maximize results. We're not too beat up about our decision to skip community even though that's were a lot of the big bags came from. Tournament bass fishing is about rolling the dice and hats off to those that made the right decision.      

Bassmaster Central Open

Table Rock Lake, Branson, MO

The second stop of the 2012 Bassmaster Central Opens has come and passed and I'm definitely left with mixed emotions. First of all, this was my first time fishing on legendary Table Rock and let me tell you this lake is sent from the heavens. Easily one of the most beautiful bodies of water I've ever visited and I'm pretty seasoned in that department. Not only does the lake's scenic beauty hold up to it's reputation but the bass that inhibit the lake are plentiful and match it's reputation of a trophy producer.

I was really excited to get down there and start breaking down this long and windy waterway that has everything to offer. You can fish your strengths here no matter if you excel at fishing deep or shallow water, there's something for everyone.

Saturday morning I launched with my wife Bri and spent all our day fishing the Kings river arm. The morning started slow but I think that has a lot to do with me playing around with my new Power Pole Blades and trying to get tuned into them. We managed to catch a lot of fish but the overall size was concerning. I could catch spotted bass on nearly every cast along bluff bank with a personal hand-tied Outkast Finesse Jig and Bri was catching two at a time on my modified three hook Alabama Rig but again the size just wasn't there. The most exciting part of my day was testing out the new Biovex Popper prototype and whacking spots on nearly every cast. The action of this bait is sure to be a hit. When worked it actually gives a side to side "walking" action like that of a small spook but delivers the most enticing "pop" every time you twitch your rod. My favorite detail of this new bait is that when paused, the popper actually stands upright giving that extra flare, forcing a following bass to inhale it.

At the end of the day I wasn't to crazy about the Kings even though I knew it can produce winning sacks of fish at any given time. I also took into consideration that it was a long way from the take-off point so I rid off the Kings River that first day.

For the remainder of practice I stayed close to the dam and quickly started to put some things together. I had seen some small bass on beds the day before in the Kings so I just started picking some coves near the dam that had good looking spawning habitat and that also had the main river channel flow close to the mouth of the cove. I picked out small manageable coves and started at one point and just fished my way all the way in and back out until I came to the opposite side point. I caught and pulled on some quality bites and they were all relatively shallow. For the  most part I was flipping at shallow cover with a craw type plastic and various sized Lazer Tungsten Weights and my favorite all time hook, the Trokar 4/0 MagWorm hook. In between the cover I had success working the initial drop off from the bank throwing  a Biovex Mid Runner (Vermillion), a 1/2 oz. Biovex Stangun Spinnerbait (Chartreuse and White) and of course the good old Missouri standby, a Storm Wiggle Wart (Phantom Green Craw).

I continued to work this pattern for the rest of practice and was able to find numerous coves that all held quality fish. I added to the pattern and refined it as well and figured I could catch anywhere from 17 to 18 pounds for my best five a day. I was happy with that kind of weight but I also had some anxiety as I felt like my bite was dwindling fast. Most the fish were post spawn and on the move toward the main lake and were stopping in random bushes and laydowns along their way out of the creeks. The one thing I felt confident about was that the water had a lot of color due to an unusually long algae bloom that was present because of the early summer and the warmer temps. Table Rock is known for it's gin clear waters and the bass are accustomed to that. I felt like the color of the water may keep them shallow and in the cover.

I took the last day of practice and went all in on some deeper water. I knew there was good fish in those coves so I stayed in that general area. It didn't come easy for me either but I did manage to find two small rock piles literally in the middle of the lake that were about the size of my Ranger boat. They sat in 30 feet of water and the tops of the piles came up to about 25 feet. I made one cast with a hand tied Outkast 1/2 oz. Touchdown Jig and caught a 4 pound smallmouth.

Day one of the tournament started fast as I popped a keeper out of the first to bushes I came across. The key was definitely my Trokar hooks and the reason was because I still had to use lighter line as I got way more bites on 15 pound Seaguar Invizx than I could with 20 pound Seaguar so keeping them pegged throughout the brush was a must.

It wasn't long before I was running out of water as my worries were coming true, the bite was going away from me and I was also competing for space with other competitors. After failing to scrape up a limit and no where near the weight I was seeing in practice I ran out to my rock piles and it was straight pandemonium from there. I spent the final three hours out there and probably caught close to 25 bass both smallmouth and spotted bass. I culled like crazy but for ounces instead of pounds as I just never got that big bite like I did during practice and in the end I weighed in a 5 fish limit consisting of two largemouth, 2 smallmouth and a spotted bass going 11.13 pounds and was sitting in close contention to not only claiming a check the next day but not a far cry away from the top 10.

My plan the next day was to get to that deep spot right away and see if the bigger ones would bite and if nothing else get a quick limit and then run shallow for a mega bite or two. I knew my presentation was spot on as I had to clean crayfish parts out of my boat that night, I definitely was using the right bait.

Day two started out rough and tough right away. I made it to my deep holes but the stiff 30 mph winds made them almost impossible to fish. The main problem was that the rocks were so snag filled that I couldn't finesse the jig through them and entice bites like I could the day before. Instead I got hung on EVERY cast and with the spot being so small I would just shut down the school before they ever got going. The key with that spot was to finesse the jig until it hit a bigger boulder and then "pop" it free, that's when I'd get bit. Instead I wasted a better part of two hours and about a dozen jigs with nothing to show for it.

Frustrated I ran shallow and did manage to catch two relatively quickly on a 1/2 oz. Biovex Stangun Spinnerbait. With only an hour or so to go and crushing thoughts of not weighing a limit I ran back to my deep haunts and this time took a different approach. I tied on a 3/4 oz. Outkast Touchdown Jig and really relied on my Lowrance electronics and Hydrowave to assist me in scratching out a limit. Basically I idled into the wind to the rocks and then jumped up on my trolling motor and set it at 100 to be able to handle the wind, I waited until I saw a fish on my sonar and then would pitch the heavier jig down to them and then drift backward bringing the jig past their face. This way I could be more efficient and would snag less knowing I'm working a smaller and obviously more productive area. A dropshot would have been more productive but I couldn't buy a bite on one as they clearly were on a crayfish bite. The key was my Hydrowave as it actually brought the fish up just a bit so I could easily separate them from the bottom on my sonar, honestly there is so many tricks a guy can use with a Hydrowave but I'll leave all that to my next article.

I was able to bang out a small limit in the last hour and weighed in a disappointing 9.03 pounds for an ultimate finish of 81st place out of 168. I was disappointed as I once again proved I belong on this stage but same as the last event on Lewisville, I was so close on day 1 and just didn't get it done on day 2. When you're that close your priorities quickly change and ultimately not meeting those left me disappointed. I can say that I fished as hard as I have ever fished before and saw another part of my game get even better, great signs for things to come. I had a game plan, a good one at that and just didn't get the big bite like I had in practice. That's just tournament bass fishing. Good news was two semi solid finishes moved me up in the points but the goal of qualifying for the Bassmaster Elites is almost long gone for 2012. Now I focus on continuing to work and hone my skills for an awesome 2013 campaign on the Bassmaster Opens. I still have a shot at qualifying for the Bassmaster Classic at Fort Gibson, OK in September so you can bet your ass I'll be leaving it all on the water there. Grand lake in February would mean the world to me but I got my hands full that's for sure. Bring it on! I'm a competition junkie all the way.

For now, I have a HUGE tournament schedule shaping up here in the north country. Up next is the North American Bass event held on the Winnebago Chain in east Wisconsin. Should set up for a whack fest! I'm also filling fast for guide trips so get in touch with me right away if you'd like to take advantage. I'm always looking for a good time on the water so I'll be sure to work you in! See you on the water!!

Bassmaster Central Open Preview

Table Rock Lake, Branson, MO

I'm getting very close to heading south to partake in the second stop on the Bassmaster Central Open Tour and will be putting in work on legendary Table Rock Lake. Every serious bass angler has dreams and aspirations of fishing this well known body of water, so with that a lot of my fellow competitors already have years of knowledge of what it will take to excel to a top finish. I on the other hand do not, in fact the only experience I have on this beast of a lake was a few weeks back when I made the hike down for a long weekend to get a bit more familiar. All this means is it's time to put on my work hat, pull my boot straps tight and put my chin down in search of winning fish. As Jason Aldean says, "that's my kinda party!" I like the unexpected, in fact I prefer it as I seem to find a way to rise to the occasion when I have no preconceived notions on what I need to do. I rely on instincts and my bass fishing prowess are what have excelled me in this sport in my mere 5 years of competition.

I try not to do to much homework either as it has shot me in the foot more than it's ever helped me out. I gather some info, mostly public stuff like general water information. I know that the lake runs gin clear for the most part and that spring rains can and will effect that. I know it's a deep fishery with world class largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass all throughout it. Table Rock sits nestled into the Ozark Mountains and vegetation is null throughout the entire fishery. There's three main rivers that make up the waterway in the Kings, James and White Rivers and figuring out where these watersheds come from will give me a good idea of what to expect and how the fish will relate in these sections of the lake.

Table Rock has a reputation of being a do it all type of fishery, meaning a guy can catch 'em anyway he desires. I may have to get up close and personal and swim Outkast Swim Jigs through the brush and around the docks or throw the Biovex Wake Bait enticing big bites from schooling fish. If push comes to shove, I may need to bust out the G Loomis NRX Spinning Rods spooled with 6 lb. Seaguar Tatsu Fluorocarbon and use my Lowrance electronics to dropshot toads out of the many planted bushes that have been placed all over the depths of the lake. No matter what it takes I pride myself on being a versatile angler and am not afraid to learn on the fly.

This is the mid way point of the Central Opens and a strong finish here could really catapult me to the top of the Angler of the Year points and give me a direct shot at qualifying for the Bassmaster Elite Series, a tough task to say the least but one I've literally been dreaming of everyday since I was a little kid. I plan to take advantage of every opportunity I can create.

No more time to talk shop, it's time to put up or shut up! I also have to go get my new Power Pole Blades installed so I really do have to go! LOVING LIFE!!!

Full Throttle Team Event

Mississippi River Pools 3, 4 and 5, Red Wing, MN

I'm happy to say that my tournament season is fully underway! This past weekend I got the opportunity to fish the Full Throttle Team Tourney with a good friend and one of Minnesota's best bass anglers, Andy Young. The event was held on one of my favorite bodies of water in the Mississippi River.

As much as I'd like to get into the details of what patterns worked and which ones didn't but I can't as Andy has another upcoming tournament there in the next couple weeks.

Practice went very well and we knew if we had a run and gun approach we should easily be able to catch 15 pounds and though we caught some nice ones during practice, we knew that we would need to capitalize on a few big bites. We figured it'd take 18 to 20 pounds to have a chance of winning and thought if we ran all our spots we may just find ourselves with that kind of weight.

Game day turned up exactly what we thought and though we put together 15 pounds we never did get that big bite needed to push us to the top. We weighed in 5 for 15.28 lbs only good enough for an 8th place finish. The winners put together an impressive 5 largemouths for 19.1 pounds. Even though it didn't turn out the way we had hoped we still had a great day on the water and after some good river fishing I'm more than ready to hit the road and try to put together something great on Table Rock!

Getting the Kinks Out

Back in action! Loving every second of it too. Believe it or not, there's a lot that goes with trying to make a career out of bass fishing. It's not all setting hooks and sunny 80 degree weather with flip flops. There's a business side. My view on this is that business is just as important off the water as it is on the water and they're both extremely important!

Lately my on-water time has been few and far between and even when I do find myself on the water there wasn't much in the way of actual casting. Our lakes up here in Minnesota actually opened a few weeks ago and with the river not flooding at all, the fishing has been wide open. Instead, when the temps reached a record breaking 80 degrees in mid March, I was working a Cabela's event for my sponsors all weekend. Last week the Northwest Sport Show took all my time as the Navionics booth was hopping. Don't get me wrong either, I don't mind the business side of our sport, in fact it's what allows me to be on the water every other day. I'm fortunate to have so much support from the leaders in the bass fishing industry but there's still no denying, I work to fish!

Now with the show season coming to a halt, I've been running the river working out the kinks of a long winter. My next Bassmaster Central Open is coming up at the end of April on Missouri's legendary Table Rock Lake. My goal is to be in straight beast mode by the time that event rolls around. To prepare I decided to team up with good buddy Andy Young and sign up for a Full Throttle event held on the Mississippi River Pools 3-5. The river is the only thing similar to southern reservoir fishing that we have here in Minnesota and really they're not that close but there is shad and current. There's also everyday changes that you need to be quick on your feet and be able to fish the moment. Our lakes are different, they're by far more "spot" orientated than "pattern" orientated.

Nothing is more evident of this than the fishing we've encountered the past two days. We decided to stay close to home and fish pool 2 of the Mississippi River. We'll practice pools 3-5 enough over the next week but it's nice to be able to hit the pool just north of the action to figure out what the bite is and also be able to tool 'em up a bit without sacrificing tournament bites.

Thursday was a decent day. The smallmouth weren't wanting to join in the party at all. They'd bite but for the life of me I couldn't get them to commit but we found the largemouth a lot more willing. Odd as we had bright bluebird skies and hardly no wind, you'd think it be a smallie kind of a day? The largemouth we caught came on an array of baits but Andy whacked the two biggest on my homemade 3/8 oz. pitchin' jig (black and blue). We also caught a bunch on a jerkbait which probably got the most bites as well as an Outkast Pro Swim Jig, though the size was much smaller.


Friday was all around different. I finally caught a couple main river smallies on a Biovex Mid Runner (Blueback Chartreuse). That gave me the idea to fish more main river and secondary shoots instead of running all the way to the backs of the little feeder creeks. Usually the bite would be strong in the bays and lagoons but being that the river is extremely low and for the most part clean with little current these fish aren't needing to go as far back and with the low overnight temps, the main river is staying the same water temp where the backs are getting very cold overnight and taking most the day to warm up.

Friday I got most of my bites fishing bluff rock and where ever there was a laydown or a rock outcropping off the bluff was lights out. I caught a lot on a Biovex Mid Runner, an Outkast Swim Jig and that same 3/8 oz. pitching jig. I also got an opportunity to try out the Reaction Innovations Kinky Beaver and was impressed with the results.

The bass were double dipping on both crayfish and shad and gorging themselves in preparation for the spawn. The big girls were extra fat! Once I found that pattern I was very efficient as I could use my Lowrance HDS 8 Gen 2 along with my new 2012 Navionics Platinum North Chip and actually use the maps 3D capability to see where the bluffs where and then idle the bluff looking for the ideal laydowns or outcroppings. The "juice" was where the outcropping was still underwater and not visible to the eye, my StructureScan could pick it up every time.

The best was saved for last when my wife Bri showed up to hit the water and take some photo's with our new camera when I popped a 4 pounder on the Biovex Mid Runner and a 5.6 on the jig! Man it feels good to be back in action!! Best part, I don't ever have to winterize my boat again! Game on!