2011 Progressive Weekend Wrap Up Show Part 2
AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh continues our look back at one tremendous weekend across the region including a sneak peek at the Kyle Page coming to Murray this Sunday, April 17th-part 2
2011 Progressive Weekend Wrap Up Show Part One
April 11th Progressive Weekend Wrap Up with AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh.......looking back at some phenomenal weights this past weekend on Santee, Chickamauga, and more-Part One!
Art Waldo Wins The Bfl Volunteer Div. On Douglas Lake.
Shallow bites were the key for a big sack and the win for Art. He won by 2 ounces over Gary Pilkenton. Fishing shallow fishing was the deal for catching fish. There was 114 boats fishing the BFL today. Fishing was still alittle tough on a lot of the fisherman.
Catt Lake Wylie Champs Jimmy Bumgarner And Boots Wilson Tops The Scales With 17 Plus!!
CATT Lake Wylie Champs Jimmy Bumgarner and Boots Wilson haul in 17.07 worth $760-they had to go deeper after little success shallow this morning-click on the video for the full story!!
Flw College Fishing National Championship Underway!
Sonar represents UCF on Kentucky Lake - photo courtesy FLW Outdoors
The best collegiate bass clubs are battling for the FLW College Fishing National Title this week on Kentucky Lake. Action began today. Above is a cool photo of Miles "Sonar" Burghoff as he fishes solo this week - his partner could not make the trip. Sonar caught enough to begin in 18th place.
Defending national champs, Jake Gipson and Matt Wercinski had all hands on deck. The duo, fishing for the Florida Gators, are currently 5th with 12 pounds, 8 ounces. after tomorrow's (day 2) round, only the top 5 teams will compete on Saturday.
Matthew McClellan and Tyler Fisher from the University of Texas-Tyler currently hold top honors today with 15 pounds, 4 ounces.
LSU, winners of the recent Bassmaster Collegiate Classic in New Orleans, are 2nd with 14-14.
Tiny Christopher Newport University holds down 3rd with 14-11.
More at FLWOutdoors.com.
13 Lakes in 30 Days - Alabama Lakes Update
I would estimate that I have boated or seen at least 1000 bass (so, who's counting?) in the past month ! Incredible! But this took me, my truck and my boat, traveling thousands of miles and guiding on 13 of Alabama's lakes (some lakes several times) in the last 30 days, to produce such an astounding number of bass, to even lay claim to such a feat.
From the Tennessee River Lakes, Guntersville, Wheeler, Wilson and Pickwick lakes. To the six Coosa River Lakes; Weiss, Neely Henry, Logan Martin, Lay, Mitchell and Jordan lakes. To the Tallapoosa River Impoundment's; Lake Wedowee and Lake Martin. Then, all the way south to the Chattahoochee Impoundment Walter F. George reservoir, better know as Lake Eufaula on the Alabama / Georgia, state lines.
As owner of Alabama's oldest, professional "bass fishing only" guide service, I have guided for largemouth bass, spotted bass and smallmouth bass on these lakes recently.
So here is short update on the current conditions (water temp, lake levels, etc.) of each of these Alabama lakes. The type of spring, "spawning mode" the bass on each of these lakes are currently displaying and what size of bass we have seen recently, including the best lures and techniques for targeting these bass on the first week of April...a time of change for both the bass and the determined springtime anglers that pursue them!
TENNESSEE RIVER LAKES / GUNTERSVILLE LAKE
Guntersville lake is currently down 1 1/2 feet. Water Temperature is in the low 60's but it will reach 70 degrees by this weekend! Most bass are bedding.
See: www.fishingalabama.com for a Guntersville Lake link titled, " 11 pound largemouth bass / Guntersville Lake." There you will read a report of two mid-March trips, one two-day trip that produced several 5-8 pounders and 2 - nine pounders, and one 3-day trip in which a lady caught an 11 pounder on the last day! In all, total - we saw over 200 bass caught in a total of 5 days while fishing with lipless lures, shallow diving crankbaits, spinnerbaits, buzz baits and lures on bottom like creature baits and worms.
* Don't believe everything you read about Guntersville Lake. Sure, some info is good, reliable information. But. There are now over a dozen guides on this lake, (some, just out of work anglers), that send out reports only, no pictures, no names, some are ridiculous, reports of 50-100 bass a day! Even on some of our recent trips we have struggled with only 10 bass a day and no big ones! But, I always have Big Bass pictures and notable clients testimonials...for anyone that asks for them.
To date, this year we have seen several 7 & 8 pound bass, three-9 pound bass, one ten pound bass and an 11 pounder. Heard this from any other source?
WHEELER LAKE
Wheeler Lake is currently down 2 1/2 feet. Water temps are in the low-60's, but could rise to 70 degrees by this weekend with mid-80's air temps predicted state wide!
I have seen no bedding bass on Wheeler Lake. Bass will be bedding in mid-April to May and the lake will be back to full pool. Most lures we have had success are shallow diving crankbaits, rattletraps and red eye shad, suspending jerk baits and some topwater bites (that will increase this week!) on spooks and buzz baits around wood cover in creeks and the Elk River. Tube baits, worms, creature baits, jig combos and Texas-rigged lizards will be good bedding bass lures this coming week!
WILSON LAKE AND PICKWICK LAKES
Wilson lake is down 2 feet today. Water temps are in the low 60's. / Pickwick lake is down 1 3/4 feet below full pool, water temps are in the low 60's. By this week the water temps could rise close to 70 degrees on these lakes. Both lakes will "traditionally" be back to full pool by the end of April. Largemouth bass will be bedding in the next week or so, on into early May. Smallmouth bass on these lakes should be bedding this week as well!
We have fished the dams, rock bluffs, deep mid lake structure, and creeks with as many as 20-30 bass a day! Also drum, stripers, white bass, catfish, crappie and other fish!
* Drifting below dams can be feast or famine on each daily outing. Always try lures bumped on bottom like spinnerbaits, tube baits, jig combos, Texas-rigged worms, lizards, creature baits and smaller grubs, curly twin tails and shad imitations fished on light line and with jig heads. Creeks on these lakes should show a tremendous topwater bite in April and May around new growing aquatic weeds and wood cover!
COOSA RIVER LAKES
WEISS LAKE - Weiss lake is currently at Full Pool. It should remain full pool, for it is usually brought up in mid April. Water temps are in the mid 60's and should be 70 degrees by this weekend.
NEELY HENRY LAKE is down 1 foot with water temps in the low to mid 60's.
LOGAN MARTIN LAKE - Logan Martin Lake is down 2 1/2 feet and rising. Water Temps are in the mid 60's.
LAY LAKE - Lay lake is 1/2 foot below full pool. Water temps in the mid 60's.
MITCHELL LAKE - Mitchell Lake is at Full Pool. Water Temps are in the mid 60's.
JORDAN LAKE - Jordan Lake is down 1/2 foot. Water Temps in the mid 60's.
All of these Coosa River Lakes should display water temps close to 70 degrees by this weekend, with predicted highs in the mid 80's. Largemouth bass are bedding on some Coosa River lakes and will all be bedding by the end of April, when all of these Coosa River lakes will be at or near full pool and new growing aquatic weeds show bass very shallow and very aggressive for the next 6 weeks. Post spawn spotted bass and largemouth bass will be hitting topwater lures, as these bass come off the beds and they are hungry and aggressive! All throughout April and May...it only gets better!
TALLAPOOSA RIVER SYSTEM
LAKE MARTIN AND LAKE WEDOWEE
Although both of these lakes are currently down, with Lake Martin 1 1/2 feet below normal full pool lake levels and Wedowee Lake 3 feet low, they will both be close to full pool by the end of April. Water temps are in the mid 60's, but will rise to 70 degrees this week on both lakes.
There are very little aquatic weeds on these lakes, but wood cover and rocks will show bedding bass in April and post spawn bass by May. Topwater lures, finesse fishing on Martin and jig combos on Wedowee are good lures for bedding bass and for smaller spotted bass in schools on rocky points and rock bluffs.
CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVER SYSTEM
LAKE EUFAULA
Lake Eufaula is down 3 1/2 feet. Water temps are in the mid-70's. Bass have bed!
Post spawn bass on Lake Eufaula will be very active in April and May! Weedless lures like frogs around grass are deadly lures these months for big bass! Bass will also hit buzz baits, spooks, Sammie and other topwater lures like baby torpedoes and other prop-baits, including topwater lures like pop-r's fished along weed edges and other shallow water lures around weeds like floating worms, soft jerk baits, lizards and weightless lures like Yamamoto's Senkos, are all good too!
Spinnerbaits and shallow diving crankbaits, suspending jerk baits and swim baits, will continue to produced numbers of big, post-spawn bass. As bass come off the beds look for them along creek flats, creek and main lake points, and any rip-rap rocks like those found around bridges, causeways and the dam area. New growing aquatic weeds like Lilly pads, milfoil and hydrilla weeds will hold shallow bass all throughout the months of April and May!
REEDS GUIDE SERVICE / ALABAMA'S OLDEST
Always call on Reeds Guide Service...first! Sure, I've got days open all this month, next month and on into the summer months...we all do. But why experiment? Go with Alabama's oldest, professional, "bass fishing only" guide service and you will be glad you did... Call (205) 663-1504 or e-mail me [email protected] today to reserve your springtime fishing trip!
* See my website www.fishingalabama.com for more info for bass fishing on all of Alabama's Lake's for every season!
Thanks and Good Fishin'!
Reed Montgomery / Outdoor Writer
Owner / Reeds Guide Service
Alabaster, Alabama (205) 663-1504
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.fishingalabama.com
" Over 40 Years Guiding, Fishing and Exploring Every Lake in Alabama For Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Spotted Bass and Striped Bass "
Always Call on Reeds Guide Service...first!
Alabama's Oldest Professional, Freshwater Fishing Guide Service!
Spawn A Week Off, But Fishing Good For Chattanooga Bass Tournament On Chickamauga
Fishing will be very good for the Chattanooga Bass Association’s third tournament of the year on Lake Chickamauga Saturday, but not nearly as good as it probably would be if the tournament were held a week later, according to competitor Chris Coleman.
“Fishing has been really good. The fish were into heavy pre-spawn the last couple of months and they will catch some big stringers in this tournament,” said Coleman who served as CBA president the last two years.
“There was an ABA tournament last weekend and there were some heavy stringers and a lot of really big fish caught. There was a 10-pounder and two over 9 pounds. But the weights dropped off pretty quick.”
Coleman, who is ranked sixth in the CBA points standings with teammate Jim Cross after finishing 20th in the February 26 tournament and 10th in the March 12 tournament, said the problem for this weekend is the moon phase.
“The water temperature will be up by this weekend, but the spawn will probably be towards the end of next week when the full moon occurs. There will be a major spawn then if conditions stay like they are and the water temperature gets up a couple of degrees.
The fish will still be scattered by Saturday, Coleman said.
“I was on the lake both days this past weekend and the fish were just cruising around, not in a feeding mood. They are thinking about the spawn but they are not feeding. They are hard to catch when they are running around like that and not locked onto anything.”
Steve Kite and his teammate Daniel Lewis are currently leading the points after two tournaments, having finished third Feb. 26 and fourth March 12.
“Steve is one of the older fishermen on the lake and he has a lot of knowledge,” said Coleman. “He's really consistent and he's had 20-pound stringers in the first two tournaments.”
Coleman pointed out that the Chattanooga Bass Association format of 12 tournaments throughout the season has been extremely successful because of the participation of local and national sponsors.
“The entry money covers payback at the tournaments and the Classic every year is 100 percent funded by sponsors – and CBA has more than 70 sponsors this year.”
That has bred success for the trail, he noted, with tournaments this year setting current records for participation.
“We had over 100 boats in the first tournament and 98 in the last one. It's been 10 years since I can remember a CBA tournament with 100 boats, but it's because the fishing has been so good and the payout has been so good the last couple of years,” he said. “I think the purse in the classic the last couple of years exceeded $60,000 and everybody in the classic last year left with a check, even if they did not catch a fish.”
Chattanooga Bass Association
Lake Chickamauga
Chester Frost Park
Saturday, Apr. 9, 2011
Call Justin Medley 423-593-7703
2011 Countdown to Blastoff Week 12 Part Two
AC Insider Robby Byrum helps us continue to go through all of the upcoming Tournaments including the CATT Trail on Wylie and what you will need to throw if you want to cut a CHECK-Part Two
TBF of SC SANTEE Results!!
Big Bass & Big Winds at Santee
The Bass Federation of South Carolina held it’s 3rd points tournament of the year at Santee Cooper this past Saturday April 2nd. Santee has been hot with many tournaments won with limits of 30 lbs. or so. Most of the TBF anglers were anticipating the same type of day . They were greeted however with winds gusting over 30 miles per hour and
anyone that fishes this lake knows how treacherous it can be.
This changed many game plans keeping many away from the areas they would have liked to fish. Santee still gave up some nice bass though with the big story mainly among the co/anglers. Two of our younger anglers have recently moved up from the TBF Juniors program and showed they know how to get it done, out fishing their older counterparts.
Co/angler Shane Cantley of Camden brought in the heaviest bag of the day. His 4 largemouth weighed in at 16.67 lbs to take 1st place in his division. His big fish was 5.04 lbs. this earned Shane a check for $577. In second also just having joined us from the Juniors is DJ McEachern with 3 bass for a weight of 10.72 lbs. and big bass of the day at 6.16 lbs. DJ received $346 and $128 for his big fish. Third place co/angler was Nate Nienhius of Lexington at 10.05 lbs. and $230 for his efforts.Co-Angler Champion Shane Cantley
The boaters also brought in some nice bass although there were no 5 bass limits at all.
1st place honor went to Robert Rikard of Lexington with 3 bass weighing in at 11.89 lbs.
Roberts largest was 5.78 lbs. 1st place paid out $961 . Finishing 2nd was Bernie Dreher
With 4 bass weighing 11.16 lbs. and earning Bernie $577. Buddy Walden, owner of Buddies Marine Service would come in 3rd with 11.12 lbs. and earning him his first check with TBF of $385. Way to go Buddy. Big bass in the Boater division went to Rich Gerken of Prosperity with a 6.20 lb largemouth and a check for $213.
Big Bass Winner Rich Gerken with a 6.20 Lb Catch!
There were 19 boats at this tournament making the payout amounts noteworthy.
The Bass Federation of South Carolina has a reputation for running quality tournaments, as well as a Junior Angler program. For more information please visit www.tbfofsc.com
Piedmont Bass Classics Results - Falls Lake - April 2, 2011
Steven Woodlief & Ted Boyette won with 26.10 lbs!
Great turnout on a day the weatherman was calling for wind gusts up to 50 mph!!...65 boats! It was the toughest day for our anglers and weighin crew that I've experienced in 27 years. The winds were just plain 'brutal'. However, 137 bass were weighed for a total of 389 pounds. Mortality: 3 bass. Water temps ranged from 50 to 55 and air temps ranged from 39 to 67 with winds ranging from light to 50 mph gusts. Big fish for the day was 7.42 pounds. 3 others over 7 pounds along with several 6 pound bass were also weighed.
1st Place team of Steven Woodlief & Ted Boyette, caught most of their fish in the clearer water down river towards the Falls Dam. Boyette said most of their fish came on 'Carolina Rigs' in 8 foot of water off points. Evidently, all the rain brought cooler water in the lake and backed the fish off the banks. The bass are still in the pre-spawn mode. Warmer weather will definitely set these lakes in our area on fishing-fire!
Once again, I want to thank our sponsors. Without their support we could not be offering the $5,000 Trail. The next PBC tournament will be at Falls Lake on Saturday April 9th. This event will be an 'Open Fun' tournament. Also on the 9th will be the 1st qualifying tournament for our new 'Adult/Youth Future's Trail and an 'Open Crappie' tournament.
The next 'Piedmont Bass Classics $5,000 Bass Tournament Trail' event (qualifier #4) will be at Kerr Lake April 16th. I hope to see all of you at Falls on the 9th!
Now here are the April 2nd results:
1st Place..Steven Woodlief & Ted Boyette of Wake Forest & Kenly...5 bass...26.10 lbs...$1,248
2nd Place..William Small & Lee Williams of Creedmoor & Durham...5 bass...19.20 lbs...$780
3rd Place..Paul & Russell Rigsbee of Timberlake...4 bass...15.37 lbs...$520
4th Place..Mark Herndon & Jay Garrard of Bahama & Durham...5 bass...14.15 lbs...$468
5th Place..Scott Gatton & Jamie Baynard of Cary & Clayton...5 bass...14.09 lbs...$416
6th Place..Billy Bledsoe & Henry Thomason of Fayetteville...5 bass...13.71 lbs...$364
7th Place..Claiborn Cox & Mike Carden of Timberlake...5 bass...12.55 lbs...$312
8th Place..Geno McCree & Phillip Johnson of Durham...5 bass...11.81 lbs...$260
9th Place..Tony Fofi & Dave Murdock of Fayetteville...5 bass...11.73 lbs...$208
10th Place..Bobby Houser & Mike Stephenson of Raleigh & Durham...5 bass...11.18 lbs...$208
11th Place..Richard Linton & Marc Peck of Pikeville...5 bass...10.14 lbs...$156
12th Place..Jesse Soles & Ron White of Aberdeen...3 bass...10.08 lbs...$156
13th Place..Chip Baty & Doug Farr of Linden & Fayetteville...5 bass...9.63 lbs...$104
1st Place Big Fish..1st Place Team Above...7.42 lbs...$840
2nd Place Big Fish..Billy West & Tracy Sykes of Knightdale & New Hill...7.35 lbs...$360
1st Place TWT..1st Place Team Above...26.10 lbs...$735
2nd Place TWT..2nd Place Team Above...19.20 lbs...$315
For more information call Phil McCarson at 919-471-1571 or 919-971-5042 or visit the website: www.piedmontbassclassics.com
Second Place team William Small and Lee Williams had 19.20 lbs!
Morristown Marine Team Trail Results - Cherokee Lake - April 2, 2011
There were 138 boats that showed up on Saturday for our 2nd tournament of the 2011 season. Wayne Coppage and Darby Dye were able to come through with the win by bringing 19.98 lbs to the scales. They won by just .47 ounces over the 2nd place team! First place was good for $3,000!
In second was the team of Steve and Jim Miracle with 19.51 lbs, good for $2,000. Benny Roberts and Todd Nidiffer took 3rd place with 17.81 lbs. They took home $1,000.
The team of Brent and Chuck Hoskins won the Big Largmouth prize with a 5.89 lb fish, good for $675. Also winning $675 for the Big Smallmouth prize was the team of Bobby Cardwell and Pete King. They caught a nice 6.37 lb smallie.
Rounding out the top 10 were:
4th - Bobby Ferguson and Dean Cutshaw - 17.35 lbs - $725
5th - Dexter Goins and Greg Vinsant - 16.91 lbs - $650
6th - Charlie Rasch and Gary Pilkenton - 16.76 lbs - $625
7th - Larry Neal and Ben Boggs - 15.50 lbs - $600
8th - Benny Neal and Marty Stewart - 15.45 lbs - $575
9th - Bill Humbard and Greg Warren - 14.99 lbs - $525
10th - Ken and Brian Vicchio - 14.97 lbs - $500
FOR COMPLETE RESULTS, YOU CAN CLICK HERE OR CLICK THE LINK BELOW!
 Bobby Cardwell and Pete King won the Big Smallmouth check |
 Brent and Chuck Hoskins won the Big Largemouth prize |
2011 Paa Update From Director Danny Blandford
PAA Director Danny Blandford takes a few minutes to get us up to speed as to how the PAA is doing and what tremendous strides they have made the past 18 months--
2011 Paa Day 2 Highlights Part One
We grab several of the big boys as they leave the stage on Day 2 including current 6th place angler Todd Auten!
FLW tour major, Lake Hartwell
Since I live close to Lake Hartwell, I spent six days pre-practicing before off limits in February. I tried to find as many staging areas as I could for normal March conditions but our continual warm up since February warmed the water temps up so fast that the fish went from winter time pattern, to spawning. So I spent my three days of practice searching for spawning fish. I found enough to get me through the tournament. Day one I had a limit that weighed 14lbs 15 oz. Day two I had four fish at lunch time then my engine blew. The four weighed 10lbs 9 oz. I finished 40th, less than 4lbs out of the top 20 cut. It was an overall good tournament, 40th place paid $10,500. I caught my site fish on a 6 inch zoom white lizard. Home for two weeks then onto Lake Chickamauga TN. Check back in three weeks for that tournament update.
Countdown to Blastoff 2011 Week 11 from Sportsmans Warehouse-Part Two
AC Pro Staffer Brett Collins continues to help us weed thru all the big tournaments coming to our area this coming weekend including 2 CATT Tournaments on Wateree and Murray, where he has paid out almost $75,000 YTD!! Part Two
Countdown to Blastoff 2011 Week 11 from Sportsmans Warehouse-Part One
AC Pro Staffer, Greene Boat and Motor TT Director, and CATT Director Brett Collins joins us at Sportsmans Warehouse to look ahead at another MONSTER list of tournaments coming our way this weekend-Part One!!
Cherokee Lake Bass Turning On Just In Time For Second Morristown Marine Trail Tournament
Charlie Rasch and Gary Pilkenton won the Mar 12 tourney on Cherokee
Charlie Rasch is on a roll in the Morristown Marine Tournament Trail.
Fishing solo, Rasch won the 2010 Morristown Marine Classic last Nov. 13 on Douglas Lake and took home a $30,000 Skeeter-Yamaha bass boat for first prize.
Rasch then teamed with Gary Pilkenton to win the first Morristown Marine Skeeter/Yamaha Elite Series tournament of the 2011 season March 12 on Cherokee Lake. The pair weighed in a limit at 15.89 pounds and won $3,000.
“The bite for that tournament was a little bit off and we did not have a lot of limits weighed in,” said tournament director Sam Phillips. “The wind was blowing really hard then, so we are looking for a little better tournament this weekend.”
Phillips said the Cherokee bass are “turned on” in time for the tournament.
“We've had rain here this week, but Saturday there is supposed to be just a few showers and the rain will move out. Hopefully, we will have overcast skies and fishing will be great.”
The area down the lake appears to be the current hot spot and smallmouth bass seem to be the species that are really turned on right now, Phillips said. “We've been getting a lot of rain so I am sure it's muddy up the river and they have been puling water, drawing the lake down, so it seems like the fishing is better from the mid to lower lake where the water is a little more clear. That is where the big bites are coming from,”
Phillips said anglers are catching the bass on crankbaits, jerkbaits and spinnerbaits, that kind of fishing.
“But it won't be all smallmouth. The bass have not moved up to spawn yet, but they are maybe a week or so away from what I am hearing,” he said.
“We had a real good turnout in the first tournament with 145 teams and there are a lot of anglers out practicing this week for the tournament this weekend,” he said. “We paid back over 100 percent at the ramp the first tournament and we hope to pay back over 100 percent this week, too.”
Phillips noted that first place gets $3,000 and the payback covers one place for every six boats. New for this year, he noted, is the addition of Abu Garcia as a big fish sponsor. Abu Garcia will give several rods to the big fish winners at each tournament.
“And, at the Classic in November, we will give a 2011 Skeeter ZX200 with a new 200 Yamaha SHO 4-stroke engine to the winners,” he added.
Manufacturer bonus programs for the trail include Skeeter Real Money, Stratos Double Your Winnings, Triton Gold, Phoenix First Flight Program and the Morristown Marine Boat Bucks plan.
“In the Morristown Marine Boat Bucks program, if your buy a boat or motor here, new or used, any brand, we will pay an additional $500 on top of what you win,” Phillips said.
Entries are accepted at Morristown Marine the week of the tournament and anglers who sign up by 6
p.m. on Friday get two draws for starting position and can keep the one they want. Entries will also be accepted at Hookers & Hunters Bait and Tackle from 1 to 6 p.m. on Fridays prior to the tournament
After 6 p.m. teams get only one draw for starting position and entries will be accepted at the ramp the morning of the tournament.
The 2011 schedule includes: April 2, Cherokee Lake, Boat Launch Road; April 23, Douglas Lake, TVA Dam; May 14, Cherokee Lake, Boat Launch Road; Sept. 24, Douglas Lake, TVA Dam; Oct. 22, Cherokee Lake, Boat Launch Road; and Nov. 12. Morristown Marine Classic, Cherokee Lake, Boat Launch Road.
Morristown Marine Team Trail
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Cherokee Lake
Hamblin County Marina-Boat Launch Road
Contact: Sam Phillips 423-677-3004
Bass Fishing On Lake Eufaula Getting Better And Better Just In Time For Bama Division Bfl
Capt. Sam Williams of Eufaula, AL
Although the weather has been crazy, fishing is getting better and better just in time for the FLW Bass Fishing League Bama Division Tournament Saturday on Alabama's Lake Eufaula.
“Fishing is getting hot. Day by day it is getting better,” said guide Capt. Sam Williams of Eufaula. And not just for bass, either, he noted.
“Crappie fishing is getting better. We are catching some big crappie, just not a lot of numbers yet. People are starting to catch some big catfish, also. It's just a little bit too early for panfish, although a week and a half ago a fellow here got on a big bed of shellcrackers.”
Despite the cold, rainy weather, bass fishing has begun to take off, too, he said.
“I had a guy in the store this morning who caught a 6-pounder,” said Williams who noted that it took 14 pounds to win a big tournament out of Lake Point State Park two weeks ago, but it took 22 pounds to win a tournament last weekend.
“The bigger bass are just starting to do a little bit of moving and they will be moving in once the weather warms up. The barometric pressure has been going crazy. After the last full moon they pulled off the beds,” he said.
Williams had some advice for anglers planning to fish in the Bama BFL Tournament Saturday.
“They are talking about people fishing all the way down to the dam. You have to be extra cautious down there because the river gets so wide. The wind gets up, especially out of the north and south. People need to fish north of the railroad trestle to be safe,” he said.
“We've got more storms coming through this week and the water is going to be dirty. Rat-L-traps are really hot right now,” he said, “but schooling fish are not busting shad out of the water. You will be working the shoreline and hear a swirl behind you. Throw at the swirl. I had a guy who fished last Wednesday and he caught 20-something bass, but he never saw a shad bust out of the water.”
Up to 400 boaters and co-anglers are expected at Lake Point State Park on Lake Eufaula Saturday for the second of five stops in the Bama Division 2011 schedule. Based on entries, first prize could be as much as $9,500 for the boaters and $3,000 for co-anglers.
Williams, a full-time guide on Lake Eufaula, is also the founder and tournament director for the annual Lee King Benefit Tournament which will be held Saturday, June 11, out of Lake Point State Park. The Lee King Foundation, which holds the tournament and other fund-raising events, is named for Lee King, a local teenager afflicted with Niemann-Pick disease, a rare terminal degenerative disease for which there is no cure. Children with the disease have only their childhood to live a lifetime and King died last month at the age of 20.
“We lost Lee the last Saturday in February,” Williams said. “We are goi9ng to keep the tournament going in his behalf and we hope to get up to 200 boats this June.”
For information on fishing Lake Eufaula or on the Lee King Benefit Tournament, contact Williams at (334) 687-6266; (334) 355-5057 (mobile); or (334) 687-4000 (store). Check out his guide service at : http://www.hawksfishingguideservice.com/.
FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) - Bama Division
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Lake Eufaula
Lake Point State Park
Progressive Bass Weekend Wrap Up Part Two
AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh continues looking back at some of these huge events last weekend including the Tom's Marine TT and how the slot limit on Cherokee almost guarantee's quality SM if you land em'-Part Two
Progressive Bass Weekend Wrap Up Part One
AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh joins us to look back at some fantastic Tournament fishing this past weekend including his win at the Bassmaster Weekend Series on Norman-Part One
NC Western Region Tournament Top 30
CATT LAke Wylie Winners
Clay Williams and David Redman brought in a 5 bass limit of Lake Wylie bass totaling up at 18 lbs 11 ozs to take 1st Place this past Saturday at Buster Boyd Bridge. They weighed in a 4 lb 3 oz bass taking 2nd place Big Fish and they also won the BONUS $. All total they collected $1,128.00.
Tim Chapman and Marc Leech finished in 2nd with a limit weighing 16 lbs 1 ozs and they received $360.00.
3rd place went to Brian and Hunter Key with 16 lbs 5 ozs and they brought in the 1st place Big Fish at 4 lbs 14 ozs. All total they took home $477.00.
James Buchanon and Warren Wylie took 4th with 15 lbs 14 ozs and took home $140.00.
Jay Adams and Greg Clayton came in 5th with 15 lbs 13 ozs and received $110.00.
6th place went to Jim and Zach Davis with 14 lbs 5 ozs and they collected $100.00.
Next Lake Wylie CATT is April 9th at Buster Boyd Bridge.
Brett Collins
CATT LLC
CATT Wateree Mar 26 Lots of bass!
We had another solid field at Lake Wateree this past Saturday with 47 teams shrugging off the forecast of rain and when we got done with the weigh in it was no doubt why they were there. The bass are absolutely eating everything in sight! 14 lbs barely got you in the top 20 and over 17 lbs took the last money paying place. With the Wateree Final coming up next week it should be another weekend of good bags of bass brought in.
This coming Friday we will meet at the Vengeance Tackle store location at 2619 Liberty Hill Rd Hwy 97 in Camden. We will cook hot dogs and burgers starting up at 5:30 pm. We should be done by 7:30 to give everyone plenty of time to get back home and get ready for the Final the next day. One member of your team must be there to take part in the Calcutta. Email me or call to get more details. This is not a mandatory meeting.
Greg Sigmon and Tracy Pope were the only team to break 20 lbs so it was easy to know who had won by the time we wrapped up the weigh in. They weighed in 5 healthy bass at 21.58 lbs taking 1st place and they also weighed in a 5.97 lb bass taking 2nd place Big Fish. As it almost always seems to be the case the winners are in the BONUS $ and Greg and Tracy added another $580.00 to their total winnings. With everything totaled up they took home $1,721.00!
Ron Catoe fishing solo took 2nd place with 5 bass weighing 19.15 lbs and he took home $500.00.
David Ethridge and Mike Catoe took 3rd with a limit weighing 18.99 lbs and received $350.00 pushing their total CATT winnings over $11,000.00!
Scott Floyd and Bob Weaver brought in another heavy bag weighing 18.84 lbs and finished in 4th and they collected $260.00.
Ken McFarland and Darryl Watson came in 5th with a limit weighing 18.43 lbs and received $165.00.
6th – Chad Gainey & Cleve Yarborough 18.24 lbs $130.00
7th – Barry Holloman & Joey Bramlett 17.62 lbs $120.00
8th – Sam Dowey and Tommy Moak 17.32 lbs $115.00
Sam and Tommy win the points and will fish the Final free of charge and take #1 blast off position.
9th – Larry Hastings – Jack Gilmore 17.21 lbs $90.00
1st place Big Fish went to Mark & William Richardson with a fat 6.47 lb hawg and they received $329.00.
Next up at Wateree is the Spring Final with 85 teams eligible to enter. If at least 60 teams enter the Final payback will top $10,000.00!
Brett Collins
CATT LLC
Youngblood's 8-pounder Wins KVD Big Bass Classic on Table Rock
Branson, MO., March 28, 2011 -- The second stop of the 2011 Oakley Big Bass Tour was held on Table Rock Lake this past weekend as Bass Pro Shops and Big Cedar Lodge played host for the 2nd annual Kevin VanDam Big Bass Classic. The tough weather condition trend carried over to Table Rock as strong storms ushered in the event weekend. Despite the weather, anglers were not deterred and a record number of big fish were brought to the scales on day one. “We had a record number of anglers competing this year and they definitely battled the elements on both days,” said Louis Wellen of Oakley Sports Marketing. “The quality of the fish weighed on Saturday was very impressive given the conditions,” added Wellen. Saturday’s competition ended with Wayne Youngblood in the lead with an 8.70-pound bass he brought to the scales in the 10:00 a.m. -11:00 a.m. hour.
Despite an improvement in the weather conditions, the fishing on Sunday proved to be more difficult and Youngblood’s lead wasn’t challenged, as none of the day’s fish broke the 8 pound mark. Wayne’s big bass earned him 2011 bragging rights along with a Nitro Z9 powered by a250hp Mercury Pro XS and a Power Pole. The grand prize, coupled with the additional hourly checks earned by Wayne, brought his two day total cash and prize payout to just over $46,000.
“We would like to thank Kevin as well as Bass Pro Shops and Big Cedar Lodge for their first class hospitality. This was an outstanding event,” Wellen added. The next stop on the 2011 Oakley Big Bass Tour schedule is Jamie McMurray’s Carolina Big Bass Classic on Lake Norman, April 30th & May 1st. For more information regarding upcoming events please visit www.oakleybigbass.com.
Wayne Youngblood wins the KVD Big Bass Classic
About the Oakley Big Bass Tour:
The Oakley Big Bass Tour is a premier big bass tournament series open to all amateur anglers. The tour provides anglers of all skill levels with an exciting tournament format and event experience on some of the nations best bass fisheries. Since it was established in 2007 the tour has focused upon the promotion of bass fishing and bass conservation at the grass roots level. The 2011 Oakley Big Bass Tour features the following six tournaments: Lake Conroe Big Bass Classic, Kevin VanDam Big Bass Classic, Jamie McMurray's Carolina Big Bass Classic, Blue Ridge Big Bass Classic, Kelly Jordon Big Bass Classic and the Gerald Swindle Big Bass Classic. For more information regarding tour events please visit www.oakleybigbass.com or call (877) 958-TOUR (8687).
Piedmont Bass Classics Results - Jordan Lake - March 27, 2011
Most of the bass caught today were on jerk baits and Rat-L-Traps. 33 bass were weighed in totalling 118 pounds. All fish were released alive!
The next tournament will be at Falls Lake on Saturday, April 2nd out of Ledge Rock Wildlife ramp. This event is the 3rd in a series of 7 qualifying tournaments for the 'Piedmont Bass Classics $5,000 Bass Tournament Trail'. If you want to fish in the Championship, June 18th, and have not fished as of now, you must fish as a team in the next and final 5 qualifying events. I hope to see all of you on the 2nd!
Now here are the March 27th results:
1st Place..Tony Fofi & Dave Murdock of Fayetteville...5 bass...21.91 lbs...$625
2nd Place..Ryan & Paul Rigsbee of Apex...5 bass...21.04 lbs...$335
1st Place Big Fish..1st Place Team above...7.71 lbs...$168
2nd Place Big Fish..Alfio Romano & John Kane of Willow Springs & Garner...6.28 lbs...$72
1st Place TWT..1st Place Team above...21.91 lbs...$140
2nd Place TWT..Todd Gibson & George Lambeth of Thomasville...19.63 lbs...$60
For more information call Phil McCarson at 919-471-1571 or 919-971-5042 or visit the website: www.piedmontbassclassics.com
Thanks for fishing!
Phil
Lake Hartwell FLW Tour Major Re-Cap
I just made it home from the Lake Hartwell FLW Tour event and finished 53rd. I was 4 ozs away from $10,000 and that hurt a little bit. Overall, I can't complain. Again, I was on basically nothing in practice and had to figure it out as I went. On the third day of practice I caught a few fish that were suspended in the clear water. I could have probably had around 10lbs. I also marked some on beds and figured I could catch some of those if I had to. Well, on day one, the wind blew 30+ right into the areas I had marked. The water went from crystal clear to muddy and I had to completely abandon the area. I went back toward the landing and scratched out 9lbs, good for 102nd place. On day 2, after the reports of all the bed fishing, I decided to hunt for beds. I caught my first fish on the bed around 9:30. Around 10:00, I was casting a senko while I was looking for beds and caught a 3lber. On my very next cast, I caught a 4lber on the senko. I looked up and noticed that I caught those fish on a spawning bank in the little bit deeper water. About 11:30, I got to thinking, I wonder if the fish that I found in practice could be caught that way? Although the water had muddied up, I didn't need to see them to fish the senko. I ran the 10+ miles to them and caught 3 big ones before the end of the day. That decision resulted in over 14lbs, moved me from 102 to 53 and got me $4,000. Amazing how little decisions make a world of difference. Best thing is, I'm 41st in the standings. I'll take it for 2 tournaments where I could not fish my strengths at all. Two weeks of rest...I mean...work, then it's off to the next one! Ya'll take care, Dearal
Thank you, Anglerschannel.com, Buckeye Lures, Snag Proof, Evinrude E-Tec, Ranger Boats, Costa Del Mar, Marshall's Marine
www.dearalrodgers.com
Tracy Adams And Jason Quinn Comment On Day 3 Of The Bassmaster Open On Lake Norman
Tracy Adams and Jason Quinn comment on what they did on this final day and how impressed they were with Champion Fletcher Shryock's incredible bag and success on Lake Norman!
Fletcher Shyrock Seals The Bassmaster Open On Lake Norman With A 7-9 Kicker!!
Ohio Native Fletcher Shryock caps off an incredible week with back to back 17 plus LB bags and 49-9 over three days to win the second Southern Open of the 2011 season!!
2011 Bassmaster Open Day 2 Lake Norman Highlights Part Two
Just after coming off stage, we grab current 2nd place angler Tracy Adams to talk about his second solid afternoon with one more round to go!!
2011 Bassmaster Open Day 2 Lake Norman Highlights Part One
Fetha-Styx pro Andy Montgomery and Brandon Card join us after weighing in some of the better bags of Day 2 on Lake Norman
Hite Expects Lake Norman Fishing To Be As Good As It Gets For Bass Southern Open
Elite Series Pro and 1999 Bassmaster Classic Champion Davy Hite
Davy Hite, the 1999 Bassmaster Classic champion, got about 5-6 hours of practice on Lake Norman Monday afternoon for the Bassmaster Southern Open which begins Thursday and he liked what he found in that short time.
“With just a few hours on the water, it's hard to say how the tournament will go, but I think it will be a good tournament,” said the long-time pro from Ninety Six, S.C. “The water temperature is about 56 to 60 degrees, depending on where you are on the lake, so I think a lot of fish will be caught a lot of different ways this week.”
Hite has come to the first Southern Open focused on his main goal this year – to qualify for the 2012 Bassmaster Classic.
“As always,” he said, “you want to have a good start for the season. Having won a couple of Bassmaster Angler of the Year titles, that is something that is an ultimate goal every year, but I try to make it a realistic goal. With competition the way it is you can't have a single bad tournament and have a chance at Angler of the Year.”
His hopes to make a run for the AOY title this year in the Elite Series went down the drain last week in the second Elite tournament of the year when he finished well out of the money.
“Florida has never been good to me,” Hite said. “I had a decent finish on the Harris Chain of Lakes, 33rd. I'll take that finish any day of the week in Florida. Then last week on the St. Johns River I had a bad finish that eliminated my chances to have a shot at Angler of the Year.”
The goal now is to stay focused, he said, on making the Classic next year.
“Realizing I had a decent first tournament and the Classic is a goal I shoot for every year, I certainly plan to qualify for it this year. I just barely missed it this past year.”
There are two main ways for a pro angler to qualify for the Classic – through the Elite Series, based on points, and through the Opens, which is why Hite and many other anglers are fishing both series now.
Besides the opportunity to earn as much as $192, 500 by winning an Open tournament, the Pro Division winner of each Open tournament also gets a berth in the 2012 Bassmaster Classic.
With that goal in mind, Hite plans to pick a different section of the lake to scout on Tuesday and then he will spend the half-day of practice Wednesday zeroing in on his plan for fishing the tournament.
“I will probably try to target largemouths, but from what I've seen so far I don't know if you would be able to catch a limit of those. So, I probably will target a little bit of both to make sure I get five fish each day. It would be really good to get a quality largemouth to help with the weight.”
Hite said the bass are up in pre-spawn and likely will be shallow by tournament time.
“I think they will be caught on shallow crankbaits, jigs, Shakey Head Worms, all those sorts of things. But it all depends on the weather over the next few days as to how far along these fish will progress. We had some good 80-degree weather this past weekend, but things cooled off Saturday night and it's supposed to be fairly cool the next few days.”
If the water temperature holds and even edges up slightly, it could make for a really good tournament, Hite said.
“Lake Norman is not known for big stringers, but it should fish about as well as it can this week.”
Bassmaster Southern Open
March 24-26, 2011
Lake Norman
Blythe Landing
Thrift Still Running Full Speed For Flw Tournament On Lake Hartwell
2010 FLW Tour Angler of the Year Bryan Thrift
Coming off a win in the opening tournament of the FLW Tour this year on Beaver Lake, Bryan Thrift has no intentions of slowing down.
“Beaver Lake was exceptionally good,” said Thrift whose $125,000 prize money boosted his career winnings to well over $800,000 in FLW Outdoors tournaments. “That was one of the last places I thought I would have a chance to win at because it is a deep clear lake. That just shows if you fish hard and stay at it, that is the main thing. You just have to stay at it and fish.”
That win came on top of a stellar year on the FLW Tour for the Shelby, N.C., pro, one that started out with a deep personal loss.
“I lost my father in January last year. It was definitely difficult to travel without him. He traveled to all the tournaments with me. It was especially hard going into that first tournament without him.”
The loss obviously spurred him to fish even harder – and smarter. Thrift finished fourth in the first tournament of 2010 on Table Rock Lake and he completed the season with five top 10 finishes, including first place on Lake Norman, his home water.
While 2010 started off on a sad note, 2011 began with high hopes.
Thrift and his wife, Allison, are the proud parents of a new baby boy, Wylie Thomas Thrift, giving him increased incentive to succeed in the tournament world.
The 2010 Walmart Angler of the Year is the hottest pro on the circuit, having now posted seven top-10 finishes and two wins in the last eight events dating back to the 2009 Forrest Wood Cup. He was ranked fifth in AOY standings in 2008 and 2009 and he finished 9th in the Forrest Wood Cup in 2009 and 10th in 2010.
“I want to catch them everywhere I go. That’s my goal,” he said. “Last year was really good. Everything just seemed to work out. The consistency came because it all falls back on working and hard and fishing hard. You have to put the time in and fish as hard as you can.”
Until Sunday's opening day of practice Thrift had never been on Lake Hartwell, scene of the second FLW Tour Major of the Year this week, but he planned to approach it very much like he would if the tournament was back on Lake Norman.
“This is about the same week I won last year on Norman and Hartwell will probably fish a lot like Norman. There are a lot of red clay points and I hope I can pattern it like Lake Norman,” he said. “It's springtime and I know a lot of the lakes around here the fish are biting good. The fish should be moving up so I will run a lot and fish shallow.”
His strategy in practice will be to burn a lot of gas and try to determine what the fish are doing, he said.
“I like to cover a lot of water and find five that want to bite.”
Like Norman, Hartwell harbors two major populations of bass – largemouths and spotted bass. Thrift said he will not specifically target one species.
“I'll just be targeting bass, everything but striped bass and white bass. I don't care if I catch a smallmouth – as long as it is a bass.”
FLW Tour Major #2
March 24-27, 2011
Lake Hartwell
Portman Shoals Marina
2011 Countdown to Blastoff Week 10 Part Two
AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh helps us continue to weed through the maze of Tournaments all over the Region this weekend including Tom's Marine TT on Cherokee and HD Marine heading to West Point-Part Two
2011 Countdown to Blastoff Week 10 Part One
AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh helps us look ahead to one of the bigger Tournament Weekends of the year.......we start with the Bassmaster Open on Lake Norman-Part One
Bassmaster Elite Citrus Slam Final Weigh In Nailbiter!!!
Check out footage from one of the most exciting Bassmaster Elite Series weigh in shows EVER! It's the final day of the Citrus Slam on the St Johns River in Palatka, Florida.
And Blastoff! Citrus Slam Day 4 Launch
Footage from launch of the fourth and final day of the Bassmaster Elite Series Citrus Slam on the St Johns River in Palatka, Florida, along with a pair of interviews from guys who have some ground to make up.
2011 Bfl Lake Wylie Weigh-In Highlights Including Hank Cherry's 5 Lb Bf Kicker!!
Some good weigh-in footage from yesterdays BFL on Wylie including the BF of the day brought to the scales by angler Hank Cherry!
2011 Bfl Lake Wylie Champion Brian Hoyle Plus A One On One With Frog Tape Pro Brian Travis
Brain Hoyle wins the 2011 BFL on Lake Wylie with 16 Plus and we get some insight from FLW and Frog Tape Pro Brian Travis........
Bassmaster Citrus Slam on the St Johns - Day 3 Weigh In High Lights!
We have insightful interviews and exciting action from the Bassmaster Elite Series Citrus Slam on the St Johns River from Palatka, Florida! Check out all of the BIG bass that came to the scales on day 3!!!
Pete's Perspective - on the Tourney; the River
Peter "T" Thliveros cleared one cut, but he didn't quite make it into the top 12 so he won't fish Sunday. He shares with us his ideas on what he now thinks he should have done - a big lesson for all of us! He also speaks about what makes the St Johns so special.
Bassmaster Elite Series Citrus Slam - on the water with Brandon Palaniuk
Get out on the water with Bri Palaniuk as she cheers on her brother, Brandon. Despite a strong performance, Brandon had issues. He explains on stage at weigh in.
Bassmaster Elite Series Citrus Slam - Day 1 Part 2 - more (Heavy) Weigh In footage from the St Johns River in Palatka, FL!!!
More scale-smashing action from Palatka, Florida!!!
Bassmaster Elite Series Citrus Slam - Day 1 (Heavy) Weigh In footage from the St Johns River in Palatka, FL!!!
Check out the parade of BIG bass fron the St Johns River in Palatka, FL as 99 Elite Series pros battle for $100,000 and the title of Citrus Slam Champion!
TBF of South Carolina Lake Wylie Results - Mar. 12, 2011
Tony Wilcox came in 1st on the Boater side with 12.70 lbs
The Bass Federation of South Carolina completed the second tournament of the 2011 points trail this past Saturday on Lake Wylie. A heavy rain storm and cold front that passed late in the week had more than just a few anglers a bit worried. Especially after seeing the muddy water that greeted them that morning. A week earlier, before the off limits, the water was much clearer and warming.
The bass however were cooperative as almost everyone caught fish. A 14 inch min. size limit was imposed to eliminate the confusion between state laws. 95 keepers were brought to the scales for a total weight of 198.30lbs. All were released alive.
In the boater division coming out on top was Tony Wilcox of Lexington,SC. His 5 bass limit weighed 12.70lbs. Tony reported a crank bait bite was working for him. Second for the boaters was Bill Payne of Swansea with his limit weighing 11.39 lbs. No report from Bill as to how he caught them. Third place and Big Bass honor went to John Sturkie also of Swansea. His 5 largemouth total was 10.36 lbs and big fish 3.88 lbs. Spinnerbaits did the trick for John. Rounding out the top 5 were Robert Rikard and Rich Gerken.
The Co/Anglers also had a good day for the most part. For the second tournament in a row Tommy Lindler of Lexington would take the win with the heaviest sack of the day weighing 13.56 lbs. Second place and Big Bass honor went to Chapin’s Wade Amick . His 4 bass weighed 11.95 lbs. and big bass of 3.59 lbs. Third place taking his first check withh TBF was Nate Nienhius of Lexington. Nate’s limit weighed a total of 10.50 lbs.
There were a total of 16 boats in this event and payout were as follows:
Boater 1st $810 2nd $486 3rd $324 Big Bass $180
Co/angler 1st $ 486 2nd $$292 3rd $195 Big Bass $ 108
The Next tournament on the TBF Trail will be on April 2nd at Santee Cooper.
The TBF is affiliated with FLW Outdoors and offer quality tournaments with good payback and the opportunity to advance to the next level in bass fishing through the divisional tournament and National Championship.
For more information about fishing with TBF go to www.tbfofsc.com.
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This Week's Big Bass on Lake Guntersville...an 11-Pounder!!
Many of those huge, largemouth bass have been taken during the Spring months of March, April and May. Some exceeding that almost, seemingly magical weight of "ten pounds" taken during other seasons as well. But it never seems to amaze me at each and every big bass we successfully fool into biting our fake offerings (we never use live bait), how really hard we must work at it, to be so well rewarded with that bass of a lifetime.
Whether it is a "trophy-sized bass of a lifetime", or several "big bass" taken in a days time, or even a day of catching "just numbers" of smaller bass, nowadays they just don't come easy. Often, we may start our day with high expectations casting hundreds of times, changing lures every few minutes, experimenting with various reels, rods, line sizes and all types of lures and various color schemes (only Picasso would only dream up), with our little fake offerings. Only to be severely disappointed. Then.
Later in the morning we run into that "feeding frenzy," a big school of big bass. Its 4-5 pounders on every cast, then suddenly an 8 pounder or even bigger, a ten pounder, that quickly brightens our day. We take lots of pictures and release all those big, largemouth bass. " To live and fight another day and give glory to another angler," as it battles once again in search of its freedom...given only by you.
As the title of this lake report says, "a half dozen bass all weighing 8 pounds or better up to 11 pounds" in three recent trips to Guntersville Lake.
* EARLIER IN THE YEAR WE HAD A 9 & 10 POUND LARGEMOUTH BASS AND A 7 POUNDER, A 5 POUNDER AND 4 POUNDER. "5 BASS WEIGHING 35 POUNDS"
You may have seen the caption and pictures all over the Internet or read about it in my fishing reports. It was cold, water temps 43 degrees / air temps high 48 degrees, and we were the only anglers catching bass this size. A very good day by any anglers standards fishing jig combos and 10 inch worms along shallow to deep river channel drop-offs.
Then the big bass moved into shallow water for spring spawn.
* FIRST WEEK OF MARCH A TWO-DAY GUIDED TRIP - On one particular guided two-day trip on March 2&3 four corporate anglers from St. Peters Missouri came to Alabama to relax and fish with Reeds Guide Service for two rather cool days. They brought a boat and two were going to fish with me, while the other two anglers followed behind in their boat. But the new boat had a problem, it had no key!
They spent all day looking for someone to make a Triton Boat Key and ended up going to Weiss lake to get one made.
Well, the other two anglers fished with me on Wednesday while all this took place. We had a rather slow, bright, sunny high pressure day, (at least that's what I blamed it on!), but we still managed to fool about a dozen nice bass, including a nice pair of 6 pounders, mostly taken on spinnerbaits, shallow diving crankbaits and lipless lures.
But Thursday the next day, the other two anglers that had missed a day of fishing while looking for a key master, decided to fish with me and they gave the boat (now with a nice shiny new key) to the anglers that had fished with me Wednesday. We were fishing the mid-to-lower lake. But due to a hot tip provided by an angler fishing the recent FLW Outdoors tournament they decided to head far up the lake. Well, they ended up catching zero.
Meanwhile while they were 30 miles up the lake, we were loading the boat! In some places where we had zeroed on the day before! To make up for their lost day of fishing they caught what they came for. A nice pair of 9 pounders! Including several 4-6 pounders, and a 7 pounder. Five bass weighing about 38 pounds...easily. In all, over 60 pounds of bass to show their friends, that later joined us sadly, empty-handed.
We took lots of pictures all now on my website www.fishingalabama.com or posted with this report, if allowed.
You will see 4 very happy guys (one with a bright orange shirt that looks like Jimmy Houston!), holding 8 bass including the two 9 pounders all weighing over 60 pounds. In all, that two day trip yielded over 40 bass!
* SUNDAY - TUESDAY, MARCH 13-15 / THE LAST DAY OF A THREE DAY GUIDED TRIP - Two anglers, a nice couple from Papillion, Nebraska left a snow-blanketed home to come to Alabama for their annual, springtime three day fishing trip. WHAT THEY SAW WHEN THEY ARRIVED DID NOT LOOK ALL THAT GOOD FOR FISHING!
They were scheduled to fish Logan Martin Lake with me. A lake that rose over 6 feet due to recent floods this past week. With the lake suddenly a few feet over full pool, I knew the very spread-out bass, would be difficult to locate. So we fished Lay lake, situated on the now flooded Coosa River System right below Logan Martin lake and we did managed to fool some bass up to 4 pounds, in Lay's then flooded weedy waters.
Mostly caught on Zoom's trick worms, Flukes and spinnerbaits. His name was Reid and her's Carrie.
On the next two days of this three day trip on Monday and Tuesday, we decided to fish Guntersville Lake and Carrie is now very glad that she did...
On Monday as usual, the bass were hitting lipless lures so we stuck with it, hitting several shallow weedy locations in a days time. We were rewarded with some nice 5-6 pounders and about a dozen other good keepers. I had provided the lures and rods but they went tackle shopping on their own that night.
Tuesday, the last day of this three day vacation for a now rather tired and weary couple as they met me the boat dock. Now rigged and ready we once again set out looking for that trophy bass of lifetime. We immediately got into a school of 3-5 pounders and once again the lipless lures came through for that big bass bite. Two nice 4-5 pounders by mid day and then a slow period.
We took a small break snacking and drinking, and still casting our lures. I just watched and waited, hoping the inevitable would occur. With only about two hours to go before quitting time, maybe just one more big bass would complete their trip to Alabama. Including their lipless lures and the box of lures I gave them, they must have tied and re-tied on at least a dozen lipless lure choices.
Until at last, one particular Strike King model lipless lure produced "the bass of lifetime." A lure I had added my special paint job to, adding a red gill plate. It had a gray back, a yellow stripe down its side and a white belly. Carrie fished it on 14 pound test line.
The line screamed, the rod was bowed over, and the big bass was going crazy, all taking place in water of about two feet deep. But the huge bass wore down fast and as it came along side the boat I knew it was bigger than anything we have seen all year. "Easily over 10 pounds", I thought. It was! An 11 pounder and Carrie took pictures of it, I took pictures of it and then we let it go along with several other bass...to live, lay their eggs, and fight another day, giving another angler a thrill of a lifetime!
So it was added to some of this year's big bass list. Dozens of 4-6 pounders, a few 7 pounders, an 8 pounder, three 9 pounders, a ten pounder and now, an 11 pounder! What holds next? With Guntersville Lake...you never know!
* ALWAYS CALL ON REEDS GUIDE SERVICE ...FIRST! WHY? FOR BIG BASS, THAT'S WHY! MAYBE YOURS WILL BE NEXT! Book your trip now to Alabama's "big bass factory" Guntersville Lake. In April, May and even June it only gets better! Call (205) 663-1504 or e-mail me at; [email protected] for more info and rates.
* BIG BASS PICTURES ON FOX 6 TELEVISION - Not all websites this recieve this lake report posts my pictures. But they can be seen on my website at www.fishingalabama.com or on TV in Birmingham and throughout all of Alabama!
Also, you can see these pictures and other Big Bass pictures from recent guided trips in my next appearance on WBRC's Fox 6 morning show, " Good Day Alabama ." My next appearance is on Tuesday, March 29 (I'm on every last Tuesday of the month for over 6 years) on at 8 a.m. or just a few minutes after.
Call in with your fishing questions on my, "Ask the Angler" question and answer segment on Fox 6!
That's all for now, until next time...Good Fishin'!
Thanks, Reed
Reed Montgomery / Outdoor Writer
Owner / Reeds Guide Service
Alabaster, Alabama (205) 663-1504
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.fishingalabama.com
" Over 40 Years Guiding, Fishing and Exploring Every Lake in Alabama For Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Spotted Bass and Striped Bass "
Always Call on Reeds Guide Service...first!
Alabama's Oldest Professional, Freshwater Fishing Guide Service!
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Typical Kerr Bass Fishing Predicted For Virginia Bassmaster Weekend Series Tournament Saturday
Brandon Gray won the Bassmaster Weekend Series Regional tournament on Kerr in Oct 2010
Chris Bullock, 2010 Angler of the Year for the Virginia Division of the Bassmaster Weekend Series, has been crappie fishing instead of practicing for the first BWS tournament of the year on Kerr Reservoir, but the fish he caught over the weekend has him excited about his prospects Saturday.
“I have not been bass fishing. I've been crappie fishing and I finished second in a crappie tournament Saturday. But something happened during that tournament that is kind of special to me,” Bullock said.
“I've been fishing the lake for the past 28 years or so and in that time I've only caught maybe a dozen smallmouth, most of them up the river. I was tight-lining for crappie Saturday and I caught a smallmouth that weighed between 3 and 4 pounds.”
The Fountain, N.C., angler said the fish hit about 5 feet deep in 10 feet of water off a little secondary point. Dealing with some health issues, he will only get in one practice day this week – on Friday, he said.
“The water has really risen in the past week. I've not checked it the past couple of nights, but I think it will be close to 305 feet by the time we get there and the fishing will be the usual Kerr Lake patterns, I'm afraid – spinnerbaits, jigs and plastics in the bushes. There are a lot of bushes and trees in the water now.”
Bullock said the main lake from Grassy Creek up the river towards Clarksville is muddy.
“The main channel is muddy and there is a lot of trash and debris out in the main river, but the creeks have started clearing up.
And, while he is looking forward to the first BWS tournament Saturday, Bullock said he will not be able to defend his 2010 title.
“I've committed to fish another trail with my dad this year and one of those tournaments interferes with one of the weekend tournaments. I won't be points champion this year, but that time with my dad is more important.”
Bullock has also launched a guide service for catfish and crappie on Kerr and several years ago he organized a winter catfish tournament that has grown to 58 boats this year.
“It's held the last Saturday in January when everybody has cabin fever, so we call it the Ice Bowl,” he said. “We compete between North Carolina and Virginia teams and we welcome fishermen from all over. Just pick a side you want to fish for. We are in it for the fun of it.”
BWS Tournament Manager Gary Conner said that, based on previous years and the input so far with anglers, he expects around 65 boats for Saturday's BWS tournament.
“Our numbers seem to grow slowly each year and that has been the case this season across the country,” Conner said. “Right now, with $4 a gallon gas I am anticipating our numbers will be up. If it stays this way much longer, however, I anticipate as we caw a couple of years back when gas prices went up the numbers will drop.
The Virginia Division BWS schedule includes: March 19, Kerr Lake, North Bend Park Special Use Area; April 9, Gaston, Americamps; May 21, Smith Mountain Lake, Parkway Marina; July 16, Kerr Lake, North Bend Park SUA; Aug. 20-21, Kerr Lake, North Bend Park SUA.
Bassmaster Weekend Series Virginia Division
Sat, Mar. 19, 2011
Kerr / Buggs Island Lake
North Bend State Park
Warming Weather Should Boost Weights For Tommy Shaw Memorial On Clarks Hill
With temperatures predicted in the 80s for the end of this week the scales should be singing at weigh-in for the fourth annual Tommy Shaw Memorial Bass Tournament Saturday on Clarks Hill Lake.
Local anglers expect weights to be up considerably over the winning weights in the Savannah River BFL Tournament last Saturday when Tim Jones of North Augusta, S.C., won the Boater Division and $7,089 with a limit that weighed 18 pounds, 5 ounces, and Jeff Rikard of Leesville, S.C., caught a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 1 ounce to win $2,545 in the Co-angler Division.
“The fish were up shallow and then that little cold snap the past couple of weeks pulled them off,” said Billy Black with the Tommy Shaw tournament.
Noting that, “We were expecting 25 pounds to pull it out,” last weekend, Black said fishing should be much better this week.
“These warm nights will make the fish move up, so we are expecting some really good weights this weekend.”
Black said the tournament which benefits several local charities, has a guaranteed first place award of $5,000. He said he is expecting 125 to 130 boats for the tournament which is the first leg in the Clark Hill Committee's series of tournaments towards the angler of the year title for the lake.
The Clark Hill Committee is a nonprofit organization consisting of 22 bass clubs and 286 members who strive for good bass fishing competition, but also relaxation and fun through good sportsmanship and good fellowship.
The angler of the year, chosen after competition in the Tommy Shaw Memorial (March 19), the local Top 6 Tournament for members only (April 8-9), the Clark Hill Memorial Open Team Tournament (May 14) and the Mr. Clark Hill Tournament (Oct. 7-8), will earn a guaranteed $1,500. First-place payout in each of those tournaments is a guaranteed $5,000.
New clubs and members are being sought. Anyone interested can contact Ray Diamond at (706) 533-1948.
Entry fee for the Tommy Shaw Tournament is $100 plus $10 for Big Fish. There will be an additional charge of $50 if neither team member is a member of The Clark Hill Committee. Pre-registration will b held 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Academy Sports and Outdoors, 4210 Washington Road, in Evans, Ga. Drawing for boat positions will start at 7. Late registration will be held tournament day at the ramp starting at 5 a.m. Entrants must be checked in by 6 a.m. tournament day.
For more information, call Larry Gilpin at (706) 738-7663 or Barry Frazier at (706) 829-3850.
The late Tommy Shaw was perhaps the most beloved figure in the fishing community around Clarks Hill Lake.
Shaw, who ran Little River Marina for more than two decades, died Sept. 22, 2007, at the age of 84.
“He had the first marina on the lake and he loved to fish. There were not many people that he didn’t like,” said Gilpin, president of the Clark Hill Committee, who was a close friend and frequent fishing companion of Shaw.
Tommy Shaw Memorial Bass Tournament
Sat, Mar. 19, 2011
Clarks Hill Lake
Wildwood Park
CATT Top 5 Mar 12 Wateree
47 Teams entered the 3rd CATT 2011 Spring Wateree Qualifier with heavy fog wating at the ramp. Blast off was delayed until 8:30 cutting into the guys fishing time but Scott Floyd and Bob Weaver didn't need a full 8 hours to take home $1,949.00 and 1st Place. They weighed in 19 lbs 4 ozs and also weighed in the Big Fish of the day at 7 lbs 1 oz.
2nd - Randall Bock - Josh McCaskill 17.01 $500.00
3rd - Alan Fletcher - Danny Johnson 16.04 $350.00
4th - Steve Borton - Brian Bultman 14.09 $260.00
5th - Jeff Reynolds 14.08 $165.00
Next Lake Wateree CATT is Saturday March 19 at Clearwater Cove Marina. We're on track to payback over $30,000.00 this Spring at Wateree. Also CATT qualifiers on Murray and Santee Cooper this Saturday.
Airport Marine Team Trail Results - Lake Guntersville - Mar. 12, 2011
The Team of Marty and Kim Giddens won the Lake Guntersville tournament with 28.32bs. Their first place prize was $2,000! They also had the big fish of the tournament, weighing 8.93lbs, and they took home the Couples bonus...both of these adding to their payout!
Most everybody that weighed in caught their fish in the first 4 hrs, with the fish turning off after that. The lures of choice were crankbaits, jigs and spinnerbaits. The wind was up on Saturday at 20+ mph and the lake was extremely muddy. According to Tournament Director Flynn Gerald, the Airport Marine Team Trail payouts end up giving back 100% plus with some of the incentives they have!
Top 10 as follows:
1 Marty Giddens-Kim Giddens 28.32
2 Tim Hurst-Mark McCaig 27.47
3 David Kilgore-Mike Spears 25.38
4 Hadley Coan-Donny Mcelvoy 23.46
5 Clark Smith-Blake Stewart 22.98
6 Flynn Gerald-Kyle Mabrey 22.95
7 Johnny Patterson-Bryam Douglas 22.67
8 Bob Blackerby-Drew Cox 22.08
9 Todd Watts-Craig Watts 21.23
10 Kevin Lee-Shane Varnadoe 21.20
Xtreme Bass Series Results - Lake Guntersville - Mar. 13, 2011
Our Xtreme Bass Team Series, (Lake Guntersville division), had it's second event of the season and had a great turnout. 37 teams came to compete once again out of the beautiful Val Monte Resort. The lake had just been in a slight flood condition as we had many inches of rain throughout the week, which left the water very muddy. The day itself was as nice as it could be with temps reaching 70 and winds only 5-10 mph. The turnout shows, guys still expect these Guntersville fish to cooperate. Some of them proved it to be true, although the overall take was that the weights were off for here, especially in March. Most feel we are a month behind due to the weather and can't wait till next month. Our water temps were only around 55 degrees and the forecast for next week has our air temps near 80.
This event was a little different for us as we teamed up with Derek Chambers for a GREAT cause. You see Derek started "From Rifles To Rods and Reels", where he brings a veteran to fish with him. They get to compete against all of us and the veteran gets to keep various gifts from sponsors such as rods and reels and rain gear from Frogg Toggs as well as product from Lunkersauce, among other things. We will be doing this for the remainder of the year. Derek says you can check it out on Facebook if you want to follow them or want more info. The veteran that Derek brought to this event was Nathan Owen and he is scheduled to return to action in the fall. May God be with you Nathan and our Extreme GRATITUDE for what you do. You know with all that is going on in the world, you really get a new perspective on life and how good most of us have it because of Nathan and all our veterans.
Here are some of the results: O.B Wilborn and Brian Haynes came in first place with a total of 25.52 lbs earning a whopping $1470. They also had the big fish of 7.16 lbs for which they got an additional $360. 2nd place and $730 went to Byron Franklin and Britt Perry with 22.44 lbs anchored by a nice 6.16 lber. 3rd pl was Scott Keeling and Frelon Moore with 21.84 lbs. They had a 6.90 lber to help them and earned $330. 4th place and $200 went to Darryl Gentry and Robert Hargiss with 21.72 lbs and 5th place for $150 went to Hadley Coan and Donnie Mcelvoy with 19.98 lbs. All results can be found on www.xbseries.com ... By the way, Derek and Nathan finished respectfully in 19th place with 14.34 lbs and had a great time telling me all about it.
As usual, I'd like to thank God for it all, and also my wife Michelle for helping with weigh in and keeping my kids under control through it all. Also, thank you to all the anglers that competed, as they make it very enjoyable. Our next event is April 3rd out of Val Monte and I very much look forward to seeing everyone there.
Jamie Shay
Xtreme Bass
256-599-0132
www.jamieshayfishing.com
Byron Franklin and Britt Perry finished 2nd with 22.44 lbs
Derrick and Nathan won the Lunker Sauce giveaway!
Heartland Anglers Division 8 Tourney - Finding Clean Water Was Key For Win After Recent Heavy Rain
The Heartland Anglers Division 8 on Watts Bar Lake out of Tom Fuller Park had their first tournament. 21 boats showed up for a warm day of fishing. Stan Bishop & John Wade got the win with 20.10 on Jerkbaits. They had a mixed bag of small mouth and big spotted bass!
