JML Weekend Warriors Bass Series - Tournament 2 - Oct. 27th - Lake Pleasant

I was once again able to prefish the week before, but it was a rough day but found an area and a pattern of super shallow fish. Since I couldn't find anything early we decided to be one of the last boats out. We went out boat 49 of 51 and to our surprise the area I had found had no one in it. I threw a squarebill and Dave through a medium diving crankbait. On one of my first few casts I hooked up with a 2lb fish and minutes later Dave hooked into one over 4lbs. We were ecstatic, and fished that spot and area for the next couple hours filling our limit. We moved around the rest of the day and culled throughout the day. We managed to weighed 10.61lb, with a 4.18lb big fish. Those fish put us in 7th place, with tournament big fish.

JML Weekend Warriors Bass Series - Sept. 8th - Roosevelt Lake

I didn't have a partner going into the series and after a random call about a product I ended up fishing with sponsor, and friend, Dave Davis. I had pre-fished but had nothing early or any big bites, so we just planned to go out and have some fun. We had a tough morning of small fish and my afternoon spots were horrible to start. Throughout the day we managed to figure out a pattern and hit all the areas had found. Dave hooked into a 3.93lb largemouth which helped relight the spark. After numerous small fish we went back to where we started with a short amount of time left but it proved to be correct. We caught and culled multiple times in the last 20 minutes and finished 18th out of 68 boats, with 13.17lbs. Most of our fish came on dropshot and carolina rigs with a few others on crankbaits.

Century Marine Pantera Classic/Mercury V8 Break-In - Oct. 11th - Saguaro Lake

I was asked by Century Marine to break-in the Pantera Classic for the WON Bass US Open. I gladly accepted because I really wanted to try out the new 200 Mercury Pro XS V8 4-Stroke. What a beast that motor is. Insane low end torque and acceleration with a great topend. The Pantera Classic was fun to drive and extremely maneuverable. The Pantera Classic/Mercury Pro XS combo is a ton of boat for the money, anyone that drives one will agree. After over 3 total hours of break-in, I had the boat at 69.9 @ 5700 rpms and a 2 second holeshot. Very impressive performance and numbers on the factory settings.

Trifecta Graphics - New Sponsor

For this season I have partnered up with the people at Trifecta Graphics. They do some amazing graphics designs for all sorts of wraps and applications. They are a new company but not new to the field, I have worked with them in the past and am looking forward to the helping them build their new company.
Their contact information is 602-820-1927
1828 W Broadway Rd, Ste 48
Mesa, Arizona 85202

AZ Head to Head Bracket Tournament - Round 5 - Championship - June 29th - Lake Pleasant

Down to the final 3, and Lake Pleasant was the lucky draw. I had fished the previous weekend and decided to run the same pattern and areas. It produced a great bag Sunday and was hoping for a repeat. Unfortunately, the big fish didn't cooperate.
I started in the back of the launch area and had two fish in minutes but were both small keepers and couldn't get a big bite, so moved to a few other areas had hit. I noticed that the water had cleared up and dropped 2-3ft in the last few days. I downsized my bait and proceeded to catch fish after fish culling up my limit at every spot but just not solid bites. I caught over 70 fish and all came on a dropshotted worm. At the end of the day I could only total up to 5 fish for 7lb 12oz. Second place edged me out with two late fish that pushed him up to 8lbs 5oz. The winner had a small bag until hooked into a 7+ and a 4.5lb largemouth that pushed him up to a great 16lbs 12oz.
I had an absolute blast and am looking forward to the series next year, it is one of the most fun series that I am able to compete in.

AZ Head to Head Bracket Tournament - Round 4 - June 20th - Lake Pleasant

The 4th round was a debacle as opponent slept in and didn't show for the first few hours. At 4:30am I decided to run around and just look at spots I normally wouldn't go to. A few hours later I find out he is fishing and I am now behind the 8-ball as I threw those hours away figuring on a DQ for no show. I didn't want to win that way so I went back to a previous pattern. I was targeting isolated islands and humps in the main lake with 4.5 inch worms on dropshots. I caught 50+ fish and culled the next 3 hours of the day in the brutal 110+ heat. It was the closest weigh-in ever in the series. I took the win with 11.08 to 11.06, we weighed 3 times just to make sure. Now on to the finals for the second straight year hoping to win again.

AZ Head to Head Bracket Tournament - Round 3 - June 14th - Bartlett Lake

Well Round 3 was at Bartlett Lake, which has been fishing great for numbers but not for size. I figured out a few patterns and decided to run with them to see how they would turn out. I started towards the river throwing a crankbait and wobble head and had 3 small fish until finally caught one over 3lbs on the crankbait. I limited out very quickly and proceeded to catch more small fish. I had to make a move to where I could usually get one or two better bites. It worked and caught a few upgrades but nothing great. I continued to rotate spots and hitting deeper reefs with a carolina rig the rest of the day. With a few minuted to go I caught two fish that culled including another 3.5lb fish. It was enough to take the win, 11.44 to 8.73. One more round to go then the finals again.

AZ Head to Head Bracket Tournament - Round 2 - May 10th - Lake Pleasant

With the random draw system, round 2 was at Lake Pleasant. It isn't one of my favorite lakes, but it does have a few predominate patterns. So my game plan was to hope I guessed right on a starting area and then bounce around the rest of the day. I was going to stick with topwater early then dropshot for the most part later. I threw a whopper plopper most the morning covering water looking for spawning fish while covering water. I caught one on the plopper early and made a move to an area had caught them on in previous years. While throwing the topwater I saw a fish holding in tree limbs, I decided to toss a dropshot out and it was instantaneous. I caught that fish as well as the next fish in a scattered tree as well. I stuck with that pattern for awhile and had 4 fish. I moved into Castle to find active fish in the stained water but it ended up being a waste of time. I decided to run the tree pattern again all over the main lake and it produced fish after fish. I the decided to try some shallow reefs and kept catching them as well. I ended up with 9.5-10 lbs and it was good enough to take the win.

JML Outdoors Weekend Warriors Championshp - April 28th/29th - Roosevelt Lake

Well Fred and I qualified for the JML Championship and I was able to get some prefish in and found some areas but hadn't found the winning fish in practice. We were boat 34 out to launch and reverse order the next day.
Day 1 was a blast. We started on an area had found practicing and threw whopper ploppers and small crankbaits. That topwater bite was on fire, as we caught 2 pound fish one after another just burning bank. Later in the day after it slowed we moved around to main lake cuts with some deeper dropoffs and it produced our best fish of the day, a 4.13 lb largemouth. We finished the day in 10th place with 14.40 lbs. We were looking forward to the next day and with the patterns that were emerging figured we could duplicate or better our day 1 weight.
Day 2 was a completely different day. The wind was blowing 15-20+ and there was a full moon that night and when we got to our spot, there was a full on shad spawn that had been going most the night. The first cast of the day was a heartbreaker as we watched a giant smallmouth explode my topwater 3 feet into the air and miss it. We continued to throw it and caught a few smaller fish, but could tell the bite had changed due to the wind and full moon. With some quick thinking we changed up tactics for the wind and threw jerkbaits and spinnerbaits. We were able to start catching fish again but we never got a big bite. With 5 minutes to go we found a monster school of smallmouth that followed in a 2lb smallmouth that caught but we ran out of time being in the first flight. We finished the day with 9.22lbs and a total of 23.62, which was good enough for 15th place. It was a bitter sweat ending to the season, we had a great pattern and it fizzled due to mother nature but we hung in to figure out options  C,D, & F. Looking forward to next season.

AZ Head to Head Bracket Tournament - Round 1 - April 18th - Bartlett Lake

This is the first round trying to defend my championship. I drew Bartlett Lake in the random draw and my competition and I agreed to fish 2pm-7pm. I hadn't been out to Bartlett in awhile and definitely haven't fished in the afternoons to dark at all since last year. My game plan was to keep it simple and throw a carolina-rig and crankbait most the time and mix in a dropshot etc. when needed. I caught a few small keepers early and kept burning bank all afternoon until they really started biting before dark. From 6-7pm I culled 7 or 8 times and caught my biggest fish all on crankbaits super shallow. I ended up getting the win with 8.5lbs, it was ugly but efficient. On the bright side, the new Ultrex had made fishing certain areas in the wind a little easier.

Century Marine Demo Days - April 6th - Lake Pleasant

Had a blast at the Century Marine Demo Days at Lake Pleasant. We had the new Bass Cat Boats on display along with the new Lynx for demo. These boats are absolutely gorgeous and showed extremely well on the water and off. We were out at the lake from 4pm-dusk.

Arizona International Sportsman's Expo & Boat Show

Had an absolute blast at the Arizona ISE & Boat Show. Was there representing Century Marine and Bass Cat Boats. We had the Pantera II, new Lynx, Pantera Classic, Cougar SP, and Eyra all on display to show all the great features of the Bass Cat Boats. It is amazing at how beautiful and well built these Bass Cat Boats really are.

New Boat - 2018 Bass Cat Eyra - Merury 250 Pro XS

The wait is finally over and the boat turned out amazing. For the rest of the 2018 and 2019 seaons, I will be running the new 2018 Bass Cat Boats Eyra combined with the Mercury 250 Pro XS. I am beyond stoked with everything about it and can't wait to get it broke in and out on the water.

Bass Cat Boats - New Sponsor

After partnering with Century Marine, I was able to further that partnership with being the newest addition to the Bass Cat Boats team and family. These boats are absolutely amazing, the attention to detail in unrivaled and that is shown in every inch of the boat. The gelcoat is absolutely pristine throughout, the trailers are unmatched in quality and workmanship, the factory installs are prefect, the carpet is incredible, and every inch of the boat is thought out and used appropriately.

Our construction techniques are not only innovative, they are revolutionary. We stand behind each boat with a transferable lifetime structural warranty. The Pierce family is not the new kid on the block when it comes to building premium fiberglass fishing boats. We've been leading the pack since 1971!
The term "One-Piece" is an overused term in our industry that few can back up. The hull, floor, custom one-piece stringer assembly, and transom are literally sucked together using huge vacuum pumps for a bond that earns the one-piece name. This bonding process offers increased durability, energy transfer, and performance characteristics that our boats have become famous for.  

Attention to detail is a priority in the finishing department. Every piece of hardware is countersunk into our boats, steering cables fully sheathed, dashes are drilled to fit. On the showroom floor, many of our finishing touches go unnoticed. It's throughout your many years of ownership that these qualities eventually shine. Take some time to view our finishing video, and see why we provide a total commitment, with no compromise here at Bass Cat.  

Century Marine - New Sponsor

This was hard to keep under wraps while was in the works. I am proud to announce that I have partnered with Century Marine.
Century Marine's service is second to none, and has taken care of my family and friends on the water. They have a full service shop, detail, proshop, and more. I can't thank them enough for the opportunity they have given me and I look forward to the future with this great company.

Century Marine was opened in 1979 by Bruce and Janet Bosley who have helped shape the path of wakeboarding, skiing and boating in Arizona. Bruce still runs the business and is on site everyday. Century Marine has been keeping Arizona families boating ever since with Centurion Boats, Supreme Boats, Sea Ray, Regal Boats, Bass Cat Boats, and Harris Flote Bote! We currently offer a large selection of Pre-Owned boats.
Our Service department can help you with any questions you may have about your boat. We service ALL brands as well as do fiberglass repair, all trailer work and stock a large selection of boat care products.
Century Marine features a fully stocked Proshop and Parts Department with everything you need to make the most of the boating experience.
Our Proshop carries all the biggest brands in Waterskiing, Wakeboarding, Wakeskating and Surfing with a knowledgeable staff who personally demo all the gear we sell.

Century Marine LTD

3302 E Main St 

Mesa, AZ, USA 85213  

480-835-9134

 

 

 

Bass Junkyz Teams - Feb. 3rd - Alamo Lake

My partner went to prefish on Thursday and had a 25-30lb pound bad, so we went with his game plan. The weather was cool in the morning and warmed up during the day with a breeze picking up later in the afternoon. The tournament drew 88 boats, which was incredible for Alamo.
We made a run to the are he wanted in the morning, but the size was horrible. We had a few shorts and one small keeper. We made some moves and the fish were eating a swimjig just couldn't get the right size. We finally caught one close to 3lbs on a deep crank, so we kept mixing it in. We struggled most the day and got on an area that was full of fish and were catching them on the cranks as well as Texas rigged creature baits. It was a grind for use all day and we only ended up with a small limit for 8.09lbs. We finished 77th out of 88 boats and still to this day aren't sure how our bite was just gone. The next one for us in the circuit is the finale at Lake Pleasant, April 6th.

JML Outdoors Weekend Warriors Bass Series - Jan. 27th - Bartlett Lake

I fished this one alone, as my partner got stuck having to work. It was a windy morning but I stuck to what worked well the last few months. It paid off quick with one nice fish, and two small keepers on a deep crank. After those bites it just stopped, so made a move up lake. I switched it up from cranks to dropshots and video game fished a few keepers. I didn't like the option so moved to an old area that is rarely under water, and it really paid off. The first 4 casts were all solid keepers on a Carolina rig including one at 2.72lbs. Then once again the bite shut down. So I figured they were moving in and out of areas for pre-spawn so I kept moving around the lake. I caught a few more fish throughout the day and weighed a limit of 8.55lbs and finished 29th out of 59 boats. An extra rod in the water would have been nice but at least stuck with my instincts and battled it out to keep up is the championship at the end of April.

Bass Junkyz Teams - Jan. 6th - Bartlett Lake

This was the first number capped tournament at Bartlett Lake, 100 boats! We pre-signed just to make sure were able to get in the tournament, and glad we did, they were turning people away at the entrance. My partner and I had been on such a good crankbait and chatterbait bite for 2 weeks that we were stoked to get out there.
With 100 boats we were still able to start in our area. We could see the fish and bait on the graph but within a few minutes my partner got spun out from the slow bite, we unfortunately abandoned our area without trying different baits. The guy that fished the area all day finished 3rd. We moved all around the lake and our bite flat disappeared. Later in the afternoon we found a solid dropshot bite and proceeded to catch over 50 fish but not the right size. We finished the day with 8.11lbs and finished 50th place. Lesson learned here is to slow down and try something finesse when needed, those fish had been hammered all week and needed to see something less intrusive.