Table Rock, MO

They rescheduled the Bassmaster Open on Table Rock late in October so the bass will have moved shallow again in their fall patterns. I had made some 200+ waypoints earlier in April but since then I was able to find over a thousand fish attractor and brush pile, rock pile GPS locations so I can now go anywhere on the lake and find places to fish.




I will be fishing the Bassmaster Open on the Arkansas River, Muskogee, OK at the end of September before we head back to Table Rock. I have run into financial difficulty and have not been fishing as much as I am accustomed, it's just so expensive putting gas in boat even traveling to the different lakes I go to has become something I can no longer afford to do as often. We have had excessive heat this year also pretty much 100* everyday since the beginning of June so even if you get out to the lake it has been tough to enjoy the afternoons, a light breeze is a must, there is very little shade in open water as the bass are getting deep to escape the heat also.

I am heading back to Arkansas Lake Ouachita again at the end of August for the Bassmaster Weekend Series 2day championship so I can qualify for the Regional Championship on the Red River. I'm hoping I get some of the jobs I'm bidding right now so I will have the money to finish competing in these tournaments. Right now I don't have the money I need to complete my season. I really need to be practicing out on the Arkansas River so I have a chance for a paycheck in the next Open, I really need a good showing if I want to keep fishing and attract some sponsor support. They really don't give you the time of day now if you can't show that you can win these events. It's an uphill battle all the way. There's a good chance I won't be around next year on the tournament trail if I don't have some immediate success in my remaining 2011 tournaments. It's do or die as they say.

Lake Ouachita

Bassmaster Weekend Series on Lake Ouachita, Arkansas this weekend, Here are some are of the trails I want check out. It's a grass lake so I should be able to find the fish. The water level is 10' high so that may effect their location, I suspect the big bass will still be caught deep but reports are some bass are up shallow in the brush. Leaving tomorrow with one day of practice for tournament on Saturday.




Update:
Fishing is a lot tougher than I thought it would be. There is a morning topwater bite then it gets tough. The water is a lot warmer than was reported and I haven't found the deep water fish, I haven't seen any grass or Lilly pads high water... some bass shallow but not really in the brush. I have a plan but well just have see how it goes, will be on the water earlier than today so maybe that will make a difference. Going hunting for shade and deep water before noon it was very hot, light wind on main lake felt good. So far thin spawned out bass 3lb best today? Very small field. I practiced on the two trails left/center.

Update:

I fished all new water today on Lake Ouachita, I fished the trail I laid out on the right. The fishing didn't go as well as I had hoped. I didn't catch enough fish to get in the money. No topwater bite for me. But my friend Larry Havaila won on the co-angler side using his Pop-R that he was using in practice. As strange as it sounds it didn't appear the bass would bite topwater in the shade, I guess that's where I went wrong in the morning? My co-angler threw a popper most of morning with no bites. The bait that I chose today was a Berkley Heavy Weight stick worm rigged wacky style on Trokar circle hook. I only had two keepers and got one step closer to Regionals on the Red River. I just didn't get the bites I needed. I did finally find some grass but got there too late in the day. I boated every fish that bit, just not the quality I needed for a limit. A little under 14lbs won...I just needed a limit of 3's. sometimes it's harder than it sounds. My other two friends Chris Megee and Mike Phar finished 3rd/4th...I finished 19th not so good with 2 bass. It was very hot and guys struggled to keep fish alive, Chris lost 4 otherwise he would have finished 2nd. My bass were healthier than when I caught them. I hope to make amends on the 2day championship on the same lake in August.

Central Open, Table Rock

I'm loaded and ready to travel to Branson, MO in the morning. I had to take my Skeeter in this week to have the fuel injector pump filters replaced, there was debris of some kind in there. It was expensive but I should be able to make my long runs now. I have a 45mile run from Table Rock State Park up the James River where I want to go. I'm not sure what my range is but it's going to cost me a lot of money for gas now that it's $4gal.

We are timing the spawn just right since they are behind with the cool weather we've had. We are finally getting some rain now so the water is rising which should move the bass up into the buck brush by tournament time. I should be able to catch them good. I'm going to run as far as I can, unfortunately it's going to cost me a fortune.



If I don't make the top 12 cut on saturday I will fish the Bassmaster Weekend Series out of Kimberling also. I should have figured something out by then and should have a good chance however my goal is to make the top 12 so I have an opportunity to win.

After the tournament I have one day to unload everything out of my boat for the trip to Toledo Fiberglass on Toledo Bend. I'm having my hull repaired from the puncture from Lake Fork, I will be getting the Gator Hull put on which is guaranteed for life and is transferable to a new owner. I may have found a good deal for a newer 2008 Skeeter ZX225 HPDI, so the new gator hull may help me sell my Skeeter, it's a big plus down there in Texas so I may be able to get a better price for my boat.

Updates:
The Central Open was cancelled after water level on the lake rose 20' in the three days of practice. It rained heavy day and night the 3days I was there. It has been rescheduled for October. http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2039600989917

I got the new Gator hull on the boat.
Follow these links to view videos I posted on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2054329158112
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2054621085410
http://www.facebook.com/#!/video/video.php?v=2058527183060&comments

I was the only bidder on a bank owned 2009 Skeeter 20i. I bid $20K to start then the bank bid $35K I got up and walked out. I was willing to pay $27K-$28K. It was a wrapped tournament boat and worth maybe $33K. I called a week later and bank still owned and are still trying to get $35K for it

Pickwick, AL

I have to start getting myself mentally ready for the second stop of the Bassmaster Central Open on Table Rock. I watched Davy Hite win the Elite Series on Pickwick in Florence, AL. I feel like I could have done very well in that tournament. I just got through fishing the same water as Hite and Terry Scroggins in the first Southern Open on Lake Toho. I've competed against Aaron Martens, Shaw Grisby, Paul Elias and the Lane boys in the Opens and the PAA event on Toledo Bend. Just the experience of sharing water with these guys has been a big thrill. I fished with Alton Jones on Falcon in my first event as a co-angler in the Elites, it was right after he won the Classic. I thought it was cool when I had the very same Yum Dinger, green pumpkin purple tied on. He did great on Pickwick flipping it in the sawgrass....I probably would have been doing the same thing. Aaron Martens was fishing one of the spots I fished in the community area up by the dam. There is a great drop off there with big boulders with the current running it's a great place to fish. I feel like I know that lake extremely well. Out there in the middle by the dam the bottom is rippled like waves on the surface and the bass sit between the humps and wait for bait to swim overhead, so swimming a jig, swimbait, or crankbait work great....slow rolling a big spinnerbait is also great. I didn't see anyone fishing the bluff walls but I'm sure they were. The bass love to pin the shad there, they have nowhere to go but up. Hite and Keith Poche fished up against the dam walls in slack water, fish where pinning the shad there and they were catching them big time. Hite won on a Berkley hollow body swimbait. I really like their thin body hollow body swimbait I use it alot and will be using it on Tenkiller next week and on Table Rock. I feel like I'm one of the boys now and know some of these guys pretty well after fishing 10 events with alot of those Elite pros. I've been becoming very versatile after competing on so many different lakes at a high level around the country, I'm sure this experience will pay off soon. Mentally, I've been through it all and that's mostly what I've been learning as well as how to catch fish these past four years. When I see these guys fishing lakes I know it's like I'm there. I can picture Pickwick in my mind and wouldn't even have to practice and be confident. Confidence is the number one thing a tournament angler must have to do good. I love it when I know where the big bass are and am catching them...then, there is the opposite of the spectrum. Frustration, and things breaking. This is a very expensive sport. I've been paying my dues and really can't wait to get back out on the water now that it has warmed up and the bass have moved shallow. I'm hungry and now it's time to win.

Lake Fork Dodge MegaBass- BassChamps

Click on link to see video shot day of tournament.
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1955666771614&comments
I caught a nice 10+ bass in practice, it was sunny and 80* the day before the tournament. It was up shallow in 2' of water on a stump, the water was 72*. A cold front rolled in and it was cold and cloudy all day during the tournament. The day started off badly as I hit a stump right and put a $3500 hole in the hull. I trailered immediately and put a tube of RV silicon adhesive over the damaged area and then duct tapped, it worked great and I didn't get a drop of water in the boat.

Unfortunately, the weather effected the bite and I didn't get the big bite I needed to win a truck. I was confident in the area, it just didn't work out. I hate fishing cold weather.



My next tournament is on Lake Tenkiller, OK Bassmaster Weekend Series, Then the Bassmaster Central Open on Table Rock. I plan to put a temporary fiberglass patch then take my boat down to Toledo Fiberglass for their guaranteed for life Gorilla Hull.
I'm really hurting now financially with all my setbacks and need to start collecting checks if I'm to continue competitive fishing.

Lake Fork Dodge MegaBass- BassChamps

I'm fishing the Big Bass competition on March 27th. I need a new truck so this will work out well. They are giving away eight new Dodge trucks every hour for big bass. Second place is $500 etc. Lake Fork is a slot lake I think it's 16"-24" so the biggest under usually 3lbs gets you $500? This time of the year the big girls are up pre-spawn. 7lb-10lbs could win you a new truck.




I'll be fishing jigs and large worms at the base of the biggest stumps I can find in the back of this creek. They look like they might stage up on this group of trees, there is an underwater point off this protected pocket. So this small flat has potential. I will be hunting big stumps on the channel swings and breaks etc.

I would love to win a new truck using my custom bullfrog, bass love it!

Lake Lewisville, TX.- Central Open, Trail

Click on the above link for tournament standings......


Here is a good spot I was fishing during practice and the two days of the tournament. I fished the entire bank at the end of this trail. I had one good bite on Day 1, my only fish. I ran up this river beyond the bridge and fished tight to the bank and pitched timber. I started there because of cold weather that blew in. I figured the banks would hold some heat. I caught several during practice. I moved back out after the wind died down and the sun came out a little. Still no bites on Day2. I dropped down to 101st place. I was wanting to stay shallow and catch a couple large female cruising the buck brush and banks. I only need a couple large females for a paycheck. The tournament was won on a jerkbait on suspended fish 10'-15'

I made this trail on Saturday while I was waiting for the welding shop to put a new spindle on my trailer. I ran out of Little Elm park all the days of practice, I showed the ramp in an earlier google earth post.

I caught 3 bass on my custom bullfrog flipping to the base of buck brush, and also caught three flipping a Yum papi craw, blue/ brown. All other bass were caught using large Trokar Flipping hooks. My only bass of the tournament came on my bullfrog. If it had only warmed up enough for the big girls to move up I could have had much better results.

Results from Lake Lewisville:
http://proxy.espn.go.com/outdoors/bassmaster/members/ldr/leaderboard?tournamentId=963


My next stop is Table Rock.....I'm forfeiting my $500 deposit for Lake Norman, Southern Open, I just can't afford the balance and expenses, I also don't have anyone to watch my dogs and house for two weeks after the loss of my best friend of many years and roommate. He was a good friend, he just couldn't deal with his dad dying. I'll miss him being around. He was always there when I needed help. A true friend!

I think I'm going to fish Bass Champs Dodge Megatruck Big Bass tournament on Lake Fork......you're just one cast away from a new truck, I need one of those too.

Lake Lewisville - Central Open

After two days of practice I've pretty much eliminated 99% of the lake. The weather was nice my first day of practice and I covered most of the area I was looking at. Day two was much colder and windy, I kept my coat on all morning. Around noon my Lowrance unit lost contact with the GPS module in the rough water so I pulled off the water at 1:00 and got the module working. I rigged my tackle primary for flipping the next day then went to Walmart for groceries and coffee creamer. When I got back to where I'm staying I discovered the bearings on the trailer were gone and the wheel was about to come off. I'm spending this morning trying to get a new spindle welded on, I caught it right before the mag wheel was damaged.

Oh yeah, they are now calling for rain for the first two days of the tournament so the misery index just went up and the temperature dropped to 67° to start the event. I'm going to need my luck to change big time. At least I have a plan, if it's a good one remains to be seen. As a largemouth fishery this place sucks. Whoever gets a limit every day will be in contention.

Lake Lewisville, TX.- Central Open

I'm packed up and ready to head to Texas for fishing tomorrow. The weather looks great for practice and the tournament. I should be able to enjoy this stable weather because that's all you need to have the big bass move shallow.

Lake Lewisville, TX.- Central Open

I'm leaving for Lake Lewisville on Tuesday and have found a nice ramp to start my practice. It's located on the North East end of the lake. I'm going to start on this end of the lake because of the numerous areas that look protected from which ever direction the wind blows, lots of points and pockets for me to fish.

The weather looks like it's going to get warm fast and stay that way into the tournament which ought to get the big girls moving shallow? I've had enough winter, 70's will be nice!

My plan is to fish points and then move shallow. I'll probably throw a spinnerbait and trap a lot followed up with a c-rig and flipping plastic and some topwater, whatever it takes. If they are shallow my custom bullfrog could be the deal....they seem to love it. All I need to do is run into some big ones and let the fun begin.

Southern Open - Lake Norman

Here's stop #2 for the Southern Open. Another new lake for me. There are tons of shoreline, points, pockets and docks.....a zillion docks. The spawn should be nearly over so I can stay near the lower end of the lake. I could easily spend lots for gas as usual. This lake has a power plant on it, but don't think that will be a factor. I've seen lots of small bass and spots come out of this lake so catching bigger bass is going to be the key to winning.

Central Open, Lake Lewisville

Lake Lewisville is the first stop for the Central Opens. I'm expecting a lot more competition from the Elite pros this year, looking for a spot at the Bassmaster Classic, you are only one win away, so the incentive is there. This map shows where the Top 12 have to travel for the final Day weigh-in at the nearest Bass Pro Shop. They changed the rules which cut the final day down from the top 30. good for the top 12 anglers bad for the other 18 anglers hoping to move up in points and money. Not that great for the bass either, I wish I knew what they were thinking?I've never fished lake Lewisville before so I will have that disadvantage but I know from fishing Grand Lake this time of the year I need to run North as far as I can into the feeder rivers. I will be running into the same problem with my boat burning so much gas. It just costs me too much. I need the new Yamaha SHO. I'm going to have the same problem when I get to Table Rock and the 45mile run up that river. I need a paycheck again or I will be struggling all year with expenses.

Southern Open Toho

Toho turned out to be a disappointment. Mainly, the weather did not cooperate warm then cold, and cold and wet again for the tournament. I made the decision to stay and fish Toho and it never got enough of a warming trend for the spawnners to move up into the shallows. It was much warmer down on Lake Kissimmee and that is where the tournament was won. Bobby Lane said they really moved up on day 2.
I caught better fish in practice. I found a good spot for day one and shared area with Terry Scroggins and Davy Hite. They were biting a trap pretty good only I didn't get a single bite. My co-angler caught some nice fish on a carolina rig. Day 2 two I caught a couple small fish punching mats. I had caught another on my custom bullfrog. I have a winner there, the bass loved my new bait. I made one mistake when I got excited when a 16" bass shot out after my frog, I thought he got the frog. I missed it. I lost one other fish when it came unhooked while pinned to a mat. I burned a lot of gas learning the lake even taking it easy. I needed to have a new fuel pump when I got home, that's why the boat wasn't running right the last several days. The support team told me to change plugs, that wasn't the problem. I should be good to go for Lake Lewisville.