TBA Championship - Sept. 6th & 7th - Roosevelt Lake

Fred and I qualified for the championship through the night series that was held. There were 21 boats that showed for the 2 day event, held at Roosevelt Lake. Sign up for the championship was held at Boston's Lake House Grill. I was able to get out and pre-fish the weekend prior for a few hours and had found a few different patterns that could work throughout the 2 days. I found fish early on buzz frogs and square-bills in the backs of cuts and deep crankbaits, Carolina rigs, and Alabama rigs deep off points and cliff ledges. The two days of competition turned out to be completely different, Day 1 was sunny and hot, with temps over 110, while day 2 was over cast with wind and rain mixed in with a high of about 80.
Tournament morning for Day 1 came early but we were rigged up and ready to go. We made the short run to the deeper cuts with grass growing in the backs of them. We started at the point of the cuts and worked all the way back in looking for the shad as we covered water. Within a few minutes we had our first keeper on a crankbait and a few casts later had our second. The morning was looking good and we just kept up the same pattern. In the back of the next cove, I connected with a quality buzz frog fish that came unbuttoned just before it got to the side of the boat. That one hurt but had to keep on moving as it was still early. We covered some bank with only a few short fish to show. We found a cover littered with shad but could only manage a strike out if the time spent there, and we threw just about everything we owned! At that point we decided to go with the more finesse bite that I had found with dropshots and Carolina rigs on the steeper breaks. This is where things happened to go severely wrong for us. As we took off to get on plain we heard an odd sound and then the motor got really loud and lost power. Immediately we knew something was wrong and popped off the cowling. The spark plug had literally shot out of the cylinder head and was laying inside the cowling. Without the proper tools to put it back in and make sure was secured to not do excessive damage to the motor, we turned the trolling motor on high and headed towards the bank to fish our way in to the ramp. Heading across channel something internal on the computer for the trolling motor short circuited and we lost almost all the power to the trolling motor. It was a slow pace back to the dock which produced a few short fish, one nice keeper, and a fish that broke us off on light line. We finally made it back to the dock between 9am and 10am and got the boat back on the trailer to assess the damage. Thankfully is looked worse than it was, we placed the spark plug back in and it held without issues, but we were done for the day as the power to the battery and trolling motor was fried. We weighed 3 fish for 4.70lbs which surprisingly got us 2 gift certificates for Day 1.
Unfortunately, we were unable to get the motor tested and the battery and system for trolling motor fixed so we were out of Day 2. It was a frustrating way to end a Championship as we had never had a breakdown force us out before. It was a learning lesson to always check the plugs, fuses, charging system etc. as the roads can cause something very minor that could turn into something major. Also, learned to always put the tools back in the boat, they do no good sitting at home!
I want to thank all of my sponsors as they allow me to do what I love. I am looking forward to next season already!

Picasso Lures - New Sponsorship

I am proud to announce a new sponsor for the 2013-2014 tournament season, Picasso Lures. They have a variety of top of the line products including: tungsten weights, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, multiple styles of umbrella rigs including the Bait Ball Extreme, jigs, terminal tackle and more. I have been using their products prior to being sponsored and they have helped me put fish in the boat at nearly every tournament I have fished.  I am sure the new umbrella rigs and tungsten products will be a huge part of my arsenal this you.  I am looking forward to promoting the company and using their products during this coming season and in future seasons as well. Take a look at their full line of products at - http://www.picassooutdoors.com

 

TBA Nights - August 16th - Saguaro Lake

Once again with thunderstorms lurking in the background prior to launch, the anticipation was growing. The moon was supposed to be out all night, which normally means the weights should be high. The wait on the water to blast off seemed to take forever. My partner and I had a game plan to stick to one spot that had produced for 2 months straight and it got better every time out. The spot is a double ledge with a deep water drop off that is covered with grass, with another stretch connected to it with steep drops and ledges that plastics seems to work best on.
Our number was called and we took off on the short run in the main lake, and were first to our area. We knew the bite wasn't going to start until almost dark since the shad didn't push onto the ledges and shore until then. We were throwing Strike King 6XD and 5XD crankbaits in shad patterns dredging the rocks and then ripping through the grass. Our first fish came around 7:30 and it was around 5lbs. After that first fish the bite just turned on. We continued to catch fish after fish on the crankbaits throughout the entire night. We lost some fish that hurt our total for the end but we never had the chance to dwell on it as we would hookup again within a few minutes. Around 10pm the bite started to slow with only a bite every so often so we continued down the bank to allow the area to rest and hopefully reload. We caught a few on small soft plastics that helped cull some smaller fish out. We worked back down toward the ledge and starting throwing the crankbaits again and within a few casts we had another fish close to 5lbs. We made the decision to stick on that spot and fish it from all angles the rest of the night. We had one of the best nights of fishing, with huge numbers of fish and out biggest limit of the series that weighed in at 20.71 lbs anchored by a 5.05 lb big fish. We finished 6th place and finished in the money and had an absolute blast on the water and the storms steered clear with the exception of a few sprinkles and a few gusts of wind off and on. With this being the last night event of the series, I am looking forward to the TBA Championship on Sept. 6th and 7th at Roosevelt Lake.

iRod Fishing - New Sponsorship

I am proud to announce a new sponsor for the 2013-2014 season, iRod Fishing. Owner, Matt Newman and his rod designers, some of the best pros in the world,  have designed some of the most lightweight and sensitive rods on the market, especially at the value! These rods have great balance and feel. They have 2 different lines of rods, the Air Series and The Genesis II Series, which have been upgraded severely over the first generation rods. These rods are made for a general setup or for specific techniques, whether it's throwing dropshots, squarebill crankbaits, deep divers, all sized swimbaits or the popular A-Rig, they have the right rod to help get the job done. I can not wait until the new season starts next month as these rods will help put more fish in the boat and I will have more fun doing so. Get your hands on one and feel the difference! Take a look at their full lineup of rods at - http://www.irodfishing.com/

TBA Nights - August 2nd - Saguaro Lake

With my series partner sidelined for this tournament, I took a friend of mine to the 5th scheduled event of the Total Bass Addicts Summer Night Series at Saguaro Lake. Our biggest decision was where to start. I know the area I have been fishing has produced 16+ every tournament but I knew would take over 20 again even with the fishing being tougher. Well right at launch we decided to start at a different area and it proved to be the wrong call. We threw A-rigs, crankbaits, jigs, and dropshots to start but couldn't get the short strike bites to hookup. After an hour we made the call to move to the other area and it was the right move. Within a few casts I hooked into a 5.4lb largemouth on a deep crankbait. A few minutes later I lost one over 3, that would later cost us. My partner hooked into a 4.5lb largemouth not long after and we had 2 fish for just under 10lbs and were pumped for what the rest of the night would bring. We happened to catch all of our fish off that area. We miled a 100 yard stretch all night making a few moves elsewhere that didn't pan out. We had our limit with the slow bte but needed a couple more decent fish. With less than 30 minutes left, hooked into another 4lb fish that pushed our limit to between 17 and 18 pounds. We caught a few more fish but could only cull a few ounces instead of pounds. We weighed in 17.63 pounds with a 5.40lb kicker fish, finishing in 8th place. The one we lost cost us a top 5 but that's fishing. We had fun and I am looking forward to the last tournament of the year on August 16th.

TBA Nights - July 19th - Saguaro Lake

With the full moon and thunderstorm in the forecast all night, Fred and I set out for the 4th event of the Total Bass Addicts Summer Night Series at Saguaro Lake. We had made a decision to try the same area we found fish on previously and change up tactics to milk the spot. We launched with the first flight watching the lightning show all around the lake. Thankfully the storm stayed out and around the mountains and only had about 15 minutes worth of rain a slight winds to cool it down.
We made our short run to our starting spot, which happened to be the only run we made all night. Within a few minutes we had 4 smaller fish in the well throwing crankbaits and dropshots. We knew it was going to take much more than what we had but at least we got an early start to get the confidence up. Throughout the night we made pass after pass and had two sweet spots on a 50 yeard stretch that would produce most of our fish. We through dropshots, texas rigged worms and craws, shakey head, etc. but the best bite and most the fish came on the old classic Westy Worm and Wired Worm. We couldn't get the fish to bite the bigger baits but with those working so well it was hard to not throw them. We caught over 30 fish off that area and weighed a limit of largemouth weighing 16.24 pounds with a 5.20 pound big fish, which was good enough for 14th place. We had an absolute blast out there and with our finish we qualified for the end of year Championship at Roosevelt Lake. With 2 more tournaments to go and the pressure off to qualify it should prove to be interesting and hopefully the quality keeps improving.

TBA Nights - June 28th - Saguaro Lake

Well with the temps over 120 degrees during the day, this tournament was going to be brutal, even if the tournament was 7pm-1am. At blast off the temps were still over 110 and the hour wait on the water made it pretty tough to sit around. I had made the decision to only throw big worms the entire tournament since the weights had been so strong the last month or so, while my partner was smarter and knew we needed a limit.
We made a short run to a point adjacent to a flat with a deep drop off the side. We fished the flat for the first little while and once we made a move to the steep side, we had our first fish in the boat, a little over 2.5lbs, and missed a bite a few casts later. We made a move just before the sun was going down where we caught fish in the past and it happened to be a spot we hit repeatedly throughout the night. My partner caught a few short fish on dropshot, but no keepers. He made the decision to makde a few more passes which was the right move. Next pass caught a 3.5lb largemouth. The next pass through it produced another small 13 inch keeper in the same spot. We kept going back and forth across the area and within a few minutes my partner was hooked up with a fish, but in the dark it was hard to tell until it came up and rolled on the surface. It took a few minutes to land on 7lb test but he played it well and he got the 5.13lb largemouth in the boat. The night was looking up, it was a much needed fish to get the adrenaline back that the brutal heat was zapping out. We made a few more passes but only a few short fish. We decided to make a move to an area I did well in prefish and had worked the last month or so. We fished it for abouyt 30 minutes with nothing but a few bluegill bites to show for it. My partner made the call to go back to the area that produced so well. Within the first couple casts I watched as the boat next to us stuck a good fish and we had a big one splash next to the boat, what I didn't realize was that one that splashed was hooked up on my line, I couldn't seem to feel bottom like it was in and endless drop, I reeled up to feel a little tension and set the hook. The fish exploded out of the water a few feet from the boat and the fight was on. Thankfully I was throwing heavier line and was able to get the 5lb largemouth in the boat even with it pulling drag pretty hard. We needed just one more bite to cull the 13 inch fish. We fished extremely hard the last hour but couldn't get another keeper to go even though the bite kept coming. We weighed in just over 16lbs for a 5 fish limit and only ended up in 15th place. It was a fun tournament either way, and can't wait for the next one!