Final results from local clubs are compiled for 2018. In the Flint River Bass Club, Potato Creek Bassmasters and Spalding County Sportsman Club members compete all year for points at monthly tournaments, and the top six at the end of the year are awarded plaques and bragging rights. All three use a point system rather than total weight but we keep up with both.
In the Flint River club we award 100 points for first place in each tournament down to 10 for tenth place. There are also 20 tournament attendance points and ten meeting attendance points for each month. After 12 tournaments, I won with 1440 points weighing in 62 bass with as total weight of 112.03 pounds. I was the only member to fish all 12 tournaments so that made a big difference.

Alex Gober placed second with 670 points, 25 bass and 40.81 pounds and his grandfather Don Gober was third with 650 points and 34 bass weighing 45.3 pounds. Niles Murray was fourth with 590 points, 17 bass, 28.39 pounds, fifth was Chuck Croft with 550 points, 18 bass, 24.47 pounds and Doug Acree placed sixth with 470 points, 11 bass and 22.21 pounds. Brandon Bailey had big fish for the year with a 6.29 pounder.

In Potato Creek the same point system is used. Lee Hancock placed first with 920 points weighing in 56 bass at 98.97 pounds, Kwong YU was second with 880 points, 48 bass and 84.57 pounds and Raymond English was third with 805 points, 49 bass and 81.46 pounds.

Doug Acree placed fourth with 780 points, 49 bass, 94.47 pounds, I was fifth with 730 points, 49 bass, 83.78 pounds and Tom Tanner came in sixth with 610 points, 35 bass and 68.38 pounds. Jack Ridgeway had big fish for the year with a 5.90 pounder.

In Spalding County, points are different, with 25 for first down to one for 25, and bonus points are awarded for meeting and tournament attendance as well as big fish and limits in each tournament. Raymond English placed first with 300 points weighing in 69 bass at 116.32 pounds.

Jay Gerson placed second with 281 points, 58 bass, 88.29 pounds, I was third with 272 points, 57 bass, 107.45 pounds, Kwong Yu came in fourth with 241 points, 48 bass, 93.7 pounds, Wayne Teal was fifth with 219 points, 46 bass, 85.21 pounds and Billy Roberts was sixth with 238 points, 51 bass and 76.23 pounds. Wayne Teal had big fish with a 5.91 pounder.

If those results seem low, join one, two or all three clubs and show us how to do it. Entry fees and dues are low, and we do not pay out much money in the tournaments, but we have a lot of fun and share information after each tournament.

All three clubs are starting our year now. Flint River meets the first Tuesday of each month at Bryans, Potato Creek the Monday after the first Tuesday at Panda Bear and Sportsman Club the third Tuesday at Bryans. Potato Creek fishes the Saturday after the meeting and the other two on the Sunday after the meeting. All three clubs fish some two day tournaments, too.

Flint River met this week and is fishing this Sunday at Lanier, Potato Creek meets Monday and fishes next Saturday at Sinclair and Sportsman Club meets on the 15th and fishes the following Sunday at Jackson. You can fish alone or with a partner of your choosing that is a member of the club. And we welcome fishermen with no boats, we have more than enough to find you someone to fish with.

I joined the Sportsman Club in 1974, Flint River in 1978 and Potato Creek three year ago. I love club fishing and try to fish every tournament in all three. I will keep fishing all three as long as I am able!

The Spalding County Sportsman Club was formed in the 1950s and the group hunted and fished together. In the late 1960s the club started having bass tournaments and these rules were started from club rules at the time. No input from the Bass Angler Sportsman Society was used, unlike the Flint River Bass Club rules Those rules were developed from BASS. These rules have developed over the years and have served the club well.

I. TOURNAMENT COMMITTEES AND OFFICERS
A. Tournament committee shall be comprised of the executive officers and the top six fishermen. This committee shall make all new rules and will rule on all decisions. Its decisions shall be final in all tournament matters.
B. The tournament committee shall plan the dates and locations of all tournaments. This committee reserves the right to change the date and location of any tournament. The schedule will be presented for a vote by the club membership at the January meeting each year. After adoption, the schedule can only be changed by following the rule for a by-law change. Tournaments can be canceled by the tournament director due to dangerous conditions. NO canceled tournament will be rescheduled.
C. Recorder shall be the same as the club tournament director. Duties shall consist of keeping complete tournament records and enforcing tournament rules.
D. Tournament director will receive and distribute any tournament money.
E. Inspection officers shall be appointed by the president and the tournament director. Duties shall be enforcing all rules set forth by the tournament committee, including random live well checks.
F. The weigher shall be appointed by the president and the tournament director with approval of the tournament committee. Duties shall be maintaining the club scales and conducting the weigh-ins for all tournaments.
G. Scorers shall consist of the weigher, the recorder, and one or more assistants appointed by them.
H. Each tournament officer shall appoint an alternate if unable to perform his duties.
II. TOURNAMENT ENTRANCE
A. Former members in good standing of the Spalding County Sportsman Club must pay dues at least one meeting prior to his first tournament during the calendar year.
B. Former members in good standing must pay dues by March meeting or attend a meeting prior to fishing a tournament.
C. Each tournament shall have an entrance fee determined by the tournament committee prior to the first tournament. The entrance fee shall be $25.00 until changed.
III. TOURNAMENT RULES
A. All participants shall leave from a designated starting point and return to the same point for weigh-in.
B. Participant shall not be allowed to fish with a nonmember except a member may bring a guest to a tournament. The guest may fish only one tournament a year and will pay all entry fees and be eligible for all tournament winnings. They may participate in the tournament big fish pot but may not participate in the cumulative big fish pot. Guest will not receive any points for the tournament they fish.
C. Roll call will be taken preceding each tournament by the president and /or tournament director. Any participant missing his name at roll call shall be considered late. Any late participant must find another participating member (A club member who was on time) who will check his livewell fish and collect his entrance fee before the late member is allowed to start fishing . Failure to do so will mean disqualification.
D. Penalty for late arrival for weigh-in shall be 3% per minute up to 15 minutes late. Later arrival will call for disqualification.
E. Only artificial lures may be used. No live bait is permitted. All fish must be caught live and in a conventional sporting manner.
F. Scoring shall be determined by pounds and ounces. Tournament winners shall be determined by accumulated weight for entire tournament. 25 points shall be awarded for the largest total weight in each tournament, 24 for second, down to one point for 25th place. No points shall be awarded unless the participant has weighed at least one fish. One additional point will be awarded to anyone catching a daily limit of bass (5 except in three club tournament, 7 in it). Also , 1 additional point will be give for the largest bass caught in each tournament and 1 point for each club meeting, and 1 point for each tournament attended.
G. There will be one division and we will pay the top four places.
H. Only black bass; largemouth , spotted, red eye or smallmouth bass will be weighed. Five bass per day is the limit. Each contestant must present his own catch at weigh-in if possible. A bass will not be counted or weighed that is not at least 12 inches in length, and all bass must meet state requirements for the lake being fished. Length of a bass will be determined by measurement of the bass with the mouth closed an one tip of the tail touching. The tail will be smoothed down and pinched together As a penalty, a contestant with short fish will have one pound weight deducted for each short bass. This shall apply to both days of a two day tournament. If a short bass is weighed in the first day and the contestant has no other fish, the pound penalty shall be deducted on the second day. Any contestant weighing in more than 5 fish will have his bass culled down to the limit by culling the largest bass first. All fish taken out of the boat will be weighed in. Any bass that appears to be mangled, mashed or mauled will be measured and credited only the discretion of the weighing officials.
I. The tournament committee reserves the right to change or postpone any tournament. However, no tournament shall be postponed once it starts.
J. Weigh-ins. In case of unavoidable delays, catches must be brought to the weighing station by a fellow member and registered as the delayed members catch and reason for the delay shall be given to the recorder.
K. Any member in good standing missing a tournament because he is representing the club in a Federation Tournament shall be given his average points for the present years tournaments.
IV. Tournament Prizes
A. Total prize for each tournament shall be set at a fixed percentage of the money taken in for each tournament. The percentages are 1st – 40%, 2nd – 30%, 3rd – 20%, 4th – 10%.
B. Fifty dollars of all entrance fees shall be placed in the club treasury before any prizes are given out. This money will be used to promote the club and its activities. Examples: Patches for each member, scrapbook of tournaments, pictures, slides, film and film processing, entrance fees for members attending federation tournament and jackets for the top six members representing the club at federation tournaments.
C. Trophies or plaques shall be given to the top six and for the largest fish for the year. These places will be based on total number of points for the year. All tournaments will count in the point standing.
V. RULES NOT COVERED
A. Any situation not covered by these rules and regulations shall be ruled upon by the tournament committee but may be appealed to the club at large.
B. These rules were adopted by the tournament committee on January 12, 1993
Last Revision February 2004

The fist Sunday in November, only five members of the Flint River Bass Club showed up for our November tournament at West Point. We fished eight hours on a cold, windy day. At 3:30 we weighed in seven largemouth and ten spots weighing about 25 pounds. There was one limit and no zeros.

I got lucky landing a limit weighing 9.32 pounds to win and had big fish with a 3.11 pound largemouth. Doug Acre was second with four at 5.09 pounds, Jack Ridgeway was third with three at 4.14 pounds, fourth was Don Gober with three at 3.79 pounds and his grandson Alex Gober placed fifth with two at 2.79 pounds.

I thought it was going to be a good day, quickly catching a keeper spot on a crankbait back in a creek. But after three hours fishing in creeks, catching only throwbacks, I was getting disgusted. Something made me go to a hump at 11:00 where I had some brush marked in 22 feet of water. My first cast to it produced my second keeper.

The bite was strange, just a little mushy feeling on my shaky head worm. My next cast I didn’t feel anything but realized my line was moving. When I set the hook, I reeled in a jig and no worm. That made me pick up a Carolina rig and pulled it into the brush. I thought I was pulling the weight against the brush but felt a fish spit it out.

I put a worm on my shaky head and was ready. When it hit the brush and felt mushy, I set the hook and caught my third keeper. Although I cast to the brush until noon, I did not get another bite.

Hoping the pattern would hold, I went to more deep brush on the main lake. At the next one, the big largemouth took off with my shaky head as it sank, almost jerking the rod out of my hand. I definitely felt it! Luckily it hooked itself.

At the next brush pile a good keeper spot did the same thing. I now had four keepers and was feeling better. The next brush pile I was ready. I switched to a jig and pig and as it fell I watched may line. It twitched, and I set the hook on my biggest spot, giving me a limit.

The rest of the day I carefully fished brush and stayed ready to set the hook on any unusual feeling. I landed three more spots, culling my first three fish.
the last one hit on my last cast with just eight minutes to get in to weigh-in on time.

Today Potato Creek is fishing West Point. I’m sure all the rain has muddied up the water and dropped the temperature. But I will try my pattern again, anyway!

On Sunday, November 25 nine members of the Spalding County Sportsman Club fished our November tournament at Bartletts Ferry. After eight hours of casting we brought 27 keeper bass to the scales weighing about 32 pounds. There were two limits and one zero.

Jay Gerson won it all with five weighing 9.22 pounds and his 4.09 pound largemouth was big fish. Wayne Teal had four weighing 6.84 pounds for second, my three at 5.60 pounds was third and Billy Roberts had five weighing 4.60 pounds for fourth.

Driving to the lake the fog was so thick it was a slow trip. I thought I would have to change my plans of running about five miles to start on a point I like where I caught fish in September, but when we got to the lake there was little fog on the water, a surprise.

I should have changed my plans anyway since I did not get a bite for almost two hours. At 8:45 I landed a 3.12 pound largemouth on a shaky head so that fired me up, but I didn’t get another bite for two more hours, then lost a solid keeper that jumped and threw my jig head worm.

About ten minutes later I hooked and landed another good keeper largemouth, making me feel a little better. But two hours later I had not gotten another bite until a keeper spot hit my worm. That was it, I got no more bites before having to go in. I was surprised to place in the tournament with just three fish, but everybody had a tough day.

I was happy to see 14 of the 27 bass were largemouth. And three of them weighed more than three pounds. Back in the 1970s and 80s we caught a lot of good largemouth there, many in the five to six-pound range. Then spotted bass invaded the lake and for years we had a hard time catching largemouth.

Spots are not native to middle Georgia lakes and when they get in one they are so aggressive they tend to crowd out the largemouth. That has happened on Jackson, West Point and Bartletts Ferry.

Hopefully the spots are getting reduced and the largemouth are coming back some. One reason Bartletts Ferry has changed is the hydrilla there. That underwater weed offers largemouth great habitat but not so much for spots.

The Chattahoochee River feeding Bartletts Ferry has had a lot of hydrilla in it for several years and it had spread to the lower lake. Last year there were thick beds of it, helping the largemouth. Unfortunately, the Alabama DNR sprayed and killed most of it on the lower lake. I wish they would leave it alone.

In our annual three club two-day tournament at Lake Martin last weekend, 27 members weighed in 244 bass weighing about 357 pounds. We had 26 five-fish limits on Saturday and 21 limits on Sunday. There was one zero for both days. There were only 36 largemouth.

Lee Hancock won with 10 bass weighing 21.96 pounds and had big fish with a 4.38 pound largemouth. Doug Acree was second with ten at 19.87 pounds, Tom Tanner placed third with ten weighing 18.04 pounds and Kwong Yu was fourth with ten at 17.94.

We pay out the top four and big fish each day based on that day’s catch. Saturday, Tom Tanner won with 11.10 pounds, Kwong Yu was second with 10.94, Raymond English was third with 10.76, Lee Hancock was fourth with 10.36 and I came in fifth with 10.0. Raymond English had big fish with a 3.33 pounder.

Sunday Lee Hancock won with 11.60 pounds, Doug Acree had 9.97 for second, third was William Scott with 9.33 and his partner Dylan Lawrence was fourth with 8.95. Tom Tanner placed fifth with 8.77. Lee Hancock had big fish with his 4.38 pounder and was the only fisherman to win money both days.

I went over Wednesday in the pouring rain and set up camp at Wind Creek State Park. Thursday, I tried a few things and thought I had a pattern of decent size spots on deep rocky points. I caught my biggest fish, a 2.5-pound spot, from a blowdown so I hoped that was a back-up plan. But I did not catch fish in the tournament on either!

Friday, I got up before daylight and thought I had found some fish on a shallow point at first light. I didn’t fish much, deciding to come in and rest.

Saturday, I caught two decent spots on my first stop. Then I spent the next six hours catching small fish on the two patterns from Thursday that I knew I did not want to weigh in. I needed bigger fish.

At 2:00 I cast a jig under a dock and caught a bigger spot, about 2.5 pounds, so I started fishing docks. I soon caught another 2.5 pound spot, then landed a 2.63 pound largemouth, under other docks, before 3:00. Although I fished docks hard for the last two hours I did not catch another keeper.

Sunday I again caught two fish on my first stop, but they were small spots I hoped to cull. So, I started fishing docks but could catch only small spots. I had a limit at 9:00 but they were small and my best five weighted in only 6.25 pounds.

At noon I decided to try other things and caught as few small spots. I probably should have stuck with docks since the fish started hitting around them after lunch the day before. As usual, I wish I could go back and do something else.

I love Lake Martin and camping at Wind Creek. On my first trip there in 1975 I caught my first spotted bass ever. And we usually catch a lot of fish, as all the limits in the tournament show. It is a fun place to fish and the bass bite good all fall.

Last Sunday 12 members of the Spalding County Sportsman Club fished our September tournament at Sinclair. After seven hours of casting we brought 26 12-inch largemouth weighing about 33 pounds to the scales. Thankfully no spots are showing up at Sinclair yet. There was one limit and three people did not catch a keeper.

Raymond English wore us all out with five weighing 11.40 pounds and had big fish with a 5.37 pounder.
Robert Proctor placed second with three weighing 5.46 pounds and had a nice 2.96 pounder, Chris Davies was third with three weighing 4.47 and fourth was George Roberts with four at 4.21 pounds.

I’m very glad the hot summer fishing is about over. I managed to place fifth with three weighing 3.69 pounds for the second time in the last two tournaments. It can be very frustrating this time of year, but I keep telling myself I am just happy to be able to be out there.

First thing that morning I thought I could catch some fish on topwater, but I guess I started at the wrong places. I did hook and lose what looked like a short fish on a buzzbait and missed a hit on a frog, but those were my only two bites the first hour.

At 8:00 I gave up and started fishing brush with a shaky head worm. I quickly caught a keeper in some deep brush, then 15 minutes later caught a small keeper from some shallow brush. After running to another cove, I caught my biggest keeper out of some brush beside a dock, then caught a short fish in more brush.

At 9:00 I felt pretty good with three keepers in the live well and five hours left to fish. I spent another hour fishing brush but never got a bite. I was mostly letting the sun get higher and creating shade under docks.

Usually I can catch some small keepers at Sinclair this time of year by skipping a weightless Senko under docks, but after trying that for three hours without a bite from even a short fish, I gave up.

The last hour I went back to fishing brush and rocks but never got a bite in the last five hours of the tournament. I must have been in the wrong places using the wrong bait at the wrong time, or maybe the bass were just not eating.
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Changes in the Works for Major Bass Circuits

By Frank Sargeant, Editor
from The Fishing Wire

Bass Pro

According to Bruce Akin, CEO of B.A.S.S., which is headquartered in Birmingham, the 2019 Elite season will see a smaller field, vastly increased payouts, dramatically reduced entry fees and the promise of more exposure through the company’s media platforms.

First, the 2019 Elite Series field size will be based on 80 anglers, down from 110 last year. This reduction in the number of competitors will not only allow the pros to get more exposure through B.A.S.S. media platforms, according to Akin, but also will improve their odds of winning and qualifying for the Bassmaster Classic.

The new format features three no-entry fee events that will payout $1 million each: the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest, the Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship and the Bassmaster Classic, generally recognized as the Superbowl of bass fishing. Additionally, the eight regular-season Elite Series events will now pay the entire field of anglers, a first in the world of professional fishing. First-place prize will remain $100,000, but now the last-place angler will earn $2,500.

Alongside the three no-entry fee events, B.A.S.S. cut regular-season entry fees by $5,375. So, the season entry fee for Elite Series anglers is now $43,000. Because every angler is guaranteed to make at least $23,500, the total out of pocket expense for entry is cut to $19,500.

Akin said B.A.S.S. is also providing a $20,000 credit to anglers who competed in the 2018 Elite Series season and who take advantage of an early entry fee offer, giving these fishermen a $500 surplus above participation fees.

“For the first time in the history of professional bass fishing, anglers are actually being paid by the league to fish,” Akin said.

In total, B.A.S.S. is investing an additional $3 million in payouts and reduced entry fees for the 2019 Elite Series.

The organization also announced an increased investment in exposure opportunities for the pros. Starting with the 2019 season, the popular Bassmaster LIVE show on Bassmaster.com will be produced all four days of Elite Series events. Plus, there will be live-streaming cameras on every boat on semi-final Saturday, as well as Bassmaster LIVE cameras on every angler for Championship Sunday.

The Bassmasters TV show is being revamped with a renewed focus of on-the-water footage featuring more anglers, catching more bass. Other opportunities for Elite Series anglers to get exposure for their sponsors include Bassmaster Magazine, which has a readership of 4.4 million; B.A.S.S. Times, which reaches 100,000 of the nation’s most avid anglers; Bassmaster Radio, which airs on 200 stations on the SB Nation network; and Bassmaster.com, which averages over 1 million unique visitors per month.

“We want the world to know that B.A.S.S. and our stable of sponsors are committed to growing the sport of bass fishing,” Akin said. “Ray Scott launched the sport and industry 50 years ago with the creation of B.A.S.S., and we will continue to push his vision forward for the next 50 years.”

Meantime, Boyd Duckett has announced that the new Major League Fishing (MLF) Tour also has plenty of financial and media muscle behind it. The 80-angler, invitation-only trail is a collaboration between the Professional Bass Tour Anglers Association (MLF anglers) and Outdoor Sportsman Group, which is parent company of the Outdoor Channel and BassFan. Title sponsorship is from the largest player in the industry, Bass Pro Shops.

Regular tour events will pay out more than $700,000 per event, with the championship purse exceeding $1.2 million. Competing anglers will also have a seat at the table for decisions affecting the competitions, according to Duckett.

According to John Johnson at BassFan, the identities of all of the invitees are not presently known, but the list includes many of the top names in the sport and the majority are current Bassmaster Elite Series competitors. It includes the 28 anglers who compete at MLF’s Cup level (Tommy Biffle, Denny Brauer, Brent Chapman, Jason Christie, Mark Davis, Ott DeFoe, Duckett, Brent Ehrler, Edwin Evers, Shaw Grigsby, Greg Hackney, Tim Horton, Mike Iaconelli, Alton Jones, Kelly Jordon, Gary Klein, Jeff Kriet, Bobby Lane, Aaron Martens, Mike McClelland, Ish Monroe, Andy Montgomery, Takahiro Omori, Keith Poche, Skeet Reese, Dean Rojas, Kevin VanDam and Jacob Wheeler).

The made-for-television format will follow an immediate catch-and-release regimen, with all scorable bass weighed and let go on the spot. Anglers will know their place in the standings throughout each tournament day. The anglers will be asked to make a 3-year commitment that will not prohibit them from fishing with any other organization, but will make concurrent participation in the Elite Series or FLW Tour likely impossible due to simple logistics.

If the new circuit succeeds—and it seems possible given the players behind it—the national bass tournament scene may open up added slots for new anglers to become big names, while at the same time pulling away some of the famed fishermen who have built their reputation on B.A.S.S. and FLW events. On the other hand, how much the market will bear in high-entry tournaments requiring expensive gear and extensive travel expenses remains to be seen—2019 should present an interesting tournament scene.

Last Saturday 14 members of the Potato Creek Bass Club fished our September tournament at Bartletts Ferry Lake. We landed 23 spotted and largemouth bass. There were no limits and five people did not have a 12-inch keeper after casting for seven hours.

William Scott won with four keepers weighing 5.22 pounds and I was a very close second with four weighing 5.21 pounds. But my 2.15 pound largemouth was big fish, beating William’s biggest fish by the same amount, only .01 pounds! Kwong Yu placed third with three at 3.81 pounds and Donnie Willis was fourth with two weighing 3.31 pounds.

I was surprised when I got near the ramp. Folks were backed up 200 yards from the boat ramp entrance, waiting to put in. We found out there were at least three other clubs taking off at about the same time as us.

Kwong and Zero both offered to help me get my boat in the water since I was by myself. That is the way it is in bass clubs, we try to help each other. Even nicer, Kwong kept my keys until that afternoon. As I pulled into the cove to take out, he saw me and had my trailer in the water by the time I got to the ramp.

That morning I should have known better to start right at the ramp, but there is a security light on the bank in front of a nearby house, and I can almost always catch a fish or two before the sun gets bright. It is a very shallow bank and so many boats ran by it when they took off that big waves washed it. I never got a bite.

I had a plan. My next stop was a deep bank that stays shady most of the morning. But there was another boat on it. Same for the third place I wanted to fish. So I stopped on a point I had not planned to fish. At 8:00 I caught two short spots on it.

Since the lake was crowded I decided to stay on that point longer than I normally would have, and it paid off with a keeper spot at 8:20. At 8:40 I cast to some deep brush on the side of the point and caught another keeper spot, this one a little bigger.

At 9:00 another cast to that brush got a hit. When I set the hook, the fish was tangled in the brush. After sawing it back and fourth a couple of times it locked down tight, a bad sign. As long as I can feel the tangled fish moving I have hope it will come out but when it does not move it usually means the line is wrapped around limbs.

As I eased the boat directly over the brush the fish suddenly came free and started fighting. I was worried since I knew my line had to be frayed. But I managed to get the fish to the boat and net it. It was the 2.15 pounder that turned out to be big fish and I guess it was one just meant to get caught.

For the next four hours I fished several places, often pulling in as another boat left. I did catch one short spot and lost a fish I did not see on dropshot in deep brush.

With an hour left to fish I went back where I had caught my first three but got no bites. I remembered some brush on a nearby point and stopped on it with about ten minutes to fish. I needed to leave at 1:50 to get in on time and at 1:49 caught my fourth fish out of the brush. All four keepers hit a shaky head worm.

I am glad the water is cooling and fishing should get better soon!