JML Outdoors - Jet Renu North Valley Nights Championship - Aug. 6th - Bartlett Lake

Well, with my partner out of town for the championship, it was on me to get through the tough night time bite. I started in an area that has produced well the last few times out but started with only 2 fish before I had to abandon it. After that I made a decision to switch up our run pattern. I hit our third stop second and it paid off quickly with my 3rd fish and two other bites that were missed opportunities. After hotting those spots again I finally for number 4 in the boat and was my biggest fish on a deep crankbait. Moving to spot 3 I missed two other fish that really cost me. I fished the rest of our run and moved around the lake every 15-20 minutes if fish weren't biting. I never did catch the 5th keeper due to missed bites and they were the difference in a top 4, money spots, and the top 10 that I finished in. I learned a few things from the mistakes and hopefully I can capitalize on the next opportunities.

New Boat - 2016 Phoenix 819 Pro w/Mercury 200 Pro XS

With the sale of my Ranger a few months before, I had been boatless and working a deal with my sponsor Germaine Marine. After a few trips and working back and forth I am now running a new 2016 Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200 Mercury Pro XS. I was a little uncertain of going with a smaller boat and smaller motor but I am extremely happy with the decision already. This boat truly is something else! It weighs less, so I get better gas mileage towing, it is a rocket out of the hole, and the handling and maneuverability is unmatched. I loved my Rangers in the past but I love the performance of this boat so much more. It gets a ton of attention on the water and the ride is incredible. The boat is already a beast and once I get it all dialed in, it will be even better. Thank you to the guys at Germaine Marine and Mercury Marine for all the help, I am loving it.

JML Outdoors North Valley Nights - July 9th - Bartlett Lake

The 3rd tournament of the night season was back at Bartlett Lake where the water has risen over 20ft in last few weeks because of water released from the upper dam. Partner and I decided to stick to what we had been doing, Carolina-rigs during the day light mixed in with crankbaits at night.
We struggled early but found an area holding fish near a mountain dropoff. It produced two fish very quickly to start our evening but only a few missed bites after. We made a move to a spot that has held a few fish the last few tournaments for us. The spot produced some quality fish but also keyed us into a new bite. They stopped hitting the Carolina-rigged brush hog and instead were inhaling Texas-rigged worms. We mixed it up with the crankbait as well in that area and our next and filled a limit and culled along with a few other missed bites. We knew we had some quality but needed a few more culls and a kicker or two and a moved produced the culls but never the big big bite we needed. We fished the rest of the night and culled up to a limit for 9.84lbs which put us in 7th place for the tournament. We are still trying to figure out where and what the bigger ones eat but we are figuring out more patterns and areas along the way. With a few more tournaments and trips to Bartlett before the championship we are hoping to lock in and figure it out.

JML Outdoors North Valley Nights - June 18th - Lake Pleasant

The second tournament of the series was at Lake Pleasant, not my favorite lake by any means. The river had just opened and out idea was to capitalize on those fish being fresh and untouched for last few months. The first run was rough and brutal, but we made it to the river before anyone else and it proved to have fish, just the wrong size. Without any prefish for this one we didn't know what to expect. We spent the first few hours of the tournament catching and getting bit but has nothing to show for it as all of them were non-keeper fish. We finally made out way out around 10:30pm and made a stop on main lake point/dropoff near the mouth of the river. It proved to be a great spot once we figured out the bite. We caught our limit by 11:30 and proceeded to cull fish. The fish were staging off the drop where bluegill were up shallow either bedding or feeding. We figured out the bite on Carolina-rigged brush hogs just a little too late and we weighed 5 fish for 8lbs and 10.5oz. We should have done better but just didn't have the time on the lake prior to have the better performance. We will take the 10th place finish, especially when we were going out just to have fun and be in the points for the championship at end of season.

JML Outdoors North Valley Nights - June 4th - Bartlett Lake

Partner and I decided to fish the JML Outdoors North Valley Nights Series this summer. The first tournament was at Bartlett Lake and with our success at the lake we figured should be a good tournament. We ran our same pattern as the last few weeks and the bites were non-stop. We caught over 40 fish by the end of the night but unfortunately out size dropped. We could only manage 7.54lb for 5 fish and finished a disappointing 31st. We are ready to move on and to the next one from here.

TBF Arizona - Bass Junkyz - May 14th - Bartlett Lake

After the awesome time my partner and I had the week before during the day, we decided to do the first night tournament of the year. The results were just as amazing as the day. The carolina-rig bite once again was on fire all 8 hours of the tournament and it was just a matter of finding the right size fish.
We started in the same place we left off and the bites were instantaneous, unfortunately not the right size. We made a move and had out limit in a few minutes. We moved a few times before dark and upgraded every place we went. We proceeded to cull all night but only a few ounces at a time. It wasn't until we found a crankbait bite to make it a one-two punch. We caught a few key fish on the crankbait and kept culling with them as well as more coming off the brush hog. We caught fish until the very last cast which happened to be the difference as we caught out last cull of the night, which pushed us to our 10.1lb limit and a solid 3rd place finish. With the bite this good, 60-80 fish again, we are looking forward to more tournaments at Bartlett Lake this summer, especially once they raise the water.

Total Bass Addicts - Butch Nessline Memorial - May 7th - Bartlett Lake

Partner and I decided to fish the memorial tournament for a friend of ours that passed away few years ago. This tournament was an absolute blast. I do not remember the last time caught so many fish. We easily caught over 80 fish and we didn't want to come in. The carolina- rig was on fire!
We had no idea what to throw or where to go. We started in a summer time area and the fish just weren't having it. It took about 45 minutes to figure out that the fish were closer to the bottom and the Carolina-rigged baby brush hog was like candy to those fish. We proceeded to catch fish everywhere we went, and had to set the hook as early as possible because the fish were trying to swallow the bait. We caught them off the flats, the steep drop-offs, the ledges, rock piles etc.
We finished the tournament with 10.07lbs and finished 6th with 2nd place big fish. We couldn't wait to get back out and fish Bartlett some more.