Category Archives: Tournament Fishing

West Point and Bartletts Ferry Tournaments

A few years ago bass fishing in this area ranged from good to exceptional during the last two weeks in February. Two tournaments proved how good West Point can be when there are several warm days in February, and a club tournament at Bartlett’s Ferry, the next lake downstream of West Point proved fishing can still be a little tough for bigger bass.

Two weeks ago on Saturday the Potato Creek Bassmasters fished West Point for their February club tournament. Lee Hancock had a great catch, weighing in five keeper bass weighing 17.21 pounds. Keith Brown was second with five weighing 12.95, Mitchell Cardell placed 3rd with four bass weighing 9.96 pounds and Matt Corley was 4th with three bass at 7.37 pounds.

John R. Mitchell only had one bass, but he made it count by weighing in a 6.44 pound largemouth. That one fish was good for fifth place and big fish for the tournament. It also took the “over six pound” pot for the year.

Potato Creek had a total of 24 fishermen and they caught 44 keeper bass weighing 99.93 pounds.

Last Saturday there was a Fishers of Men trail tournament at West Point. This trail started a few years ago and is a Christian trail that has grown to cover 26 states. Many states, like Georgia, have several divisions. In the Georgia South division a couple of Griffin area anglers are competing.

Chris Davies and Terry Gauger won last Saturday with an incredible catch of five keeper bass weighing 25.64 pounds. Chris said he caught a 7 pounder that was big fish for the tournament and also had a five and a three pounder. Terry added two five pounders in this team tournament.

Chris and Terry landed their big bass on Terminator Spinnerbaits and Rat-L-Trap lipless crankbaits. They were surprised to find the fish feeding in muddy, cold water. Chris said the water temperature where they caught most of their limit was 49 degrees, the coldest water they fished all day.

The Fishers of Men trail encourages father/son teams to compete. It is an excellent organization and you can find tournament results as well as more information online at http://www.fishersofmenministries.com/

At Bartlett’s Ferry the Spalding County Sportsman Club did not have as good a catch in our February tournament. I was lucky in two ways. I ran into John R. Mitchell at the gas station on Saturday and he agreed to fish as my guest the next day. I won the tournament with five bass weighing 7.88 pounds, Javin English placed 2nd with five weighing 6.70 pounds and John had five weighing 6.53 pounds for third. Those were the only three limits caught.

Kwong Yu had four bass weighing 5.13 pounds for 4th place and Billy Roberts had four weighing 4.37 pounds for 5th. Alan Collum had one bass weighing 3.35 pounds and it was big fish for the tournament and also good for 6th place.

Our club had 18 members and guests brought in 40 bass weighing right at 52 pounds.

John and I stopped on a point I like to fish first thing and we landed two keepers each. Then we started fishing his spots and he beat me 9 to 7 for the day, but I was lucky enough to land largemouth which weigh more than the spots he was catching. We caught fish every place we stopped and they hit crankbaits, jig and pig, jerkbaits and Carolina rigged Zoom lizards.

There was a West Georgia Team Club trail the same place and time as our tournament and they had 54 teams. We came in after they did and saw most of their weigh-in. Most of those teams are local so I was surprised to see my individual weight would have placed 5th and John and I could have put our best five together and placed 3rd. It took five weighing 15 pounds to win that tournament.

A Frustrating March Tournament at Lake Oconee

I was really fired up heading to Oconee a few years ago on Sunday morning for the March Flint River Bass Club tournament. I had a good feeling about catching bass. It looked like it would be a beautiful day on the lake. It was, but the bass just did not cooperate with me.

I had talked with Al Bassett Saturday night and he told me he and his wife placed 13th in a Guys and Dolls tournament that day at Oconee with five bass weighing 12 pounds. Al told me it took five bass weighing 21 pounds to win their tournament before he had to hang up. I figured if they caught that many bass I could figure out something.

At the ramp my good feeling continued when fellow club member Tommy Reeves came over to my truck while I waited in line to launch. I was by myself and being along makes it harder to launch a boat. Tommy volunteered to back my boat in and help me, which made things much easier for me. It is great having thoughtful club members like Tommy around.

We started fishing at 7:30 and at 2:00 I had tried everything I could imagine over a big area of the lake and never got a bite. Finally at 2:00 I caught two 12 inch bass – non keepers at Oconee, but at least I got a bite. Then at 2:40, about 40 minutes before I had to stop fishing, I caught a 14.5 inch bass, a keeper!

Almost all members in the club had a tough day. Of the 23 fishermen, eight did not have a keeper. There were only 21 fish weighed in for a total weight of 57.51 pounds. Only four or five members had more than one bass.

Lee Handcock won with 9.34 pounds, Jack “Zero” Ridgeway was second with 6.89 pounds, Keith Brown placed third with 6.84 pounds and had a 4.62 pound bass for big fish, and Toney Roberts was 4th with 5.45 pounds.

My one little fish placed me 14th. To add insult to injury, I got a call from Al on the way home. A Berry’s Boat Dock tournament the same day at Oconee was won with a catch of five bass weighing 21 pounds. Second place went to Glen Rivers with four bass weighing 18 pounds.

I did an article in Georgia Outdoor News with Glen last year. He lives between Oconee and Sinclair and is an excellent fisherman on both lakes. He works part time for Suddeth Baits and his partner for the day was the Suddeth Baits owner’s son.

I called Glen when I got home and he told me he was fishing down a bank and passed a tree in the water. His partner threw a Suddeth crankbait into the tree and hooked a two pounder. Glen turned around, pitched his jig and pig into the tree and immediately hooked a five pounder.

As soon as the five pounder was in the livewell Glen pitched back into the same tree and landed a six pounder. Then he caught another five pounder out of the same tree. That one tree produced all those fish just after 11:00.

I wish I had found a tree like that!

Bassmasters Classic Won On Livingstone Lures

Classic 2014: Livingston LARGE

by Russ Bassdozer
from The Fishing Wire

Randy Howell and Classic Trophy

Newly-crowned 2014 Bassmaster Classic champ Randy Howell had only 20 pounds on Day One and dropped to 18 pounds on Day Two but this Springville, Alabaman has seen so many huge stringers on Lake Guntersville in his life that he knew it was still possible to come from behind and win on Day Three. Indeed his third day catch of 29 pounds was the largest bag Howell’s ever weighed in his professional fishing career of 21 years. His was also the longest comeback ever in Classic history – from 11th place to 1st.

Most every Classic day, Howell caught a lot of fish on the Rapala DT-6 which is a great cold water bait made of wood. When a medium-runner is called for in cold water, the DT-6 is one lure that almost every bass pro uses (whether they are sponsored by Rapala or not). The DT-6 was in Ike’s Demon – a bright red crankbait color. He also caught a key 6-pounder on a Fizzle brand of bladed swim jig on Day Three.

History however will remember Randy Howell and Livingston Lures as the winners of the 2014 Classic.

On Day Three, Howell livewelled his first 20 lbs for the day on the Rapala DT-6 but as the day progressed, his fish moved deeper than could be reached with that crankbait. As the model number DT-6 implies, it dives to a maximum of 6 feet deep.

Howell had located the bass hanging around the riprap surrounding Guntersville’s Spring Creek bridge. He could see the arches of bass and tons of shad on his Lowrance SideScan about 15 feet deep hanging off and looking up at the 8 foot deep riprap rock line where he had been catching them earlier. He could see the streaks and noodles coming up and down from the deeper water to the rocks and back down.

Classic Winning LIvingstone Lures

Randy got out a box of Livingston Lures prototypes he had been given only a few days earlier. He was looking for a deeper-runner in a bright crawfish orange/red color that’s perennially popular on Guntersville. The prototypes had been in his boat all week unused. When he tied on the one deep-runner in the box, he flipped it in the water alongside the boat to see what it looked like. It vibrated really hard, wobbled and rattled his rod tip. In that muddy water, Howell knew it was going to catch them. The bass were everywhere on his graph in the last few hours of the tournament. He landed 30 or 40 bass on the Livingston medium-runner which dives about 8-10 feet deep. The bass just choked it, that hard vibration and that bright color with that red and orange combined in that dirty, muddy water was just perfect. Howell culled every bass he had caught earlier on the DT-6 except one, ratcheting up to his 29 pound Classic-winning weight with the Livingston prototype.

At Livingston, the company and pro staff are prototyping a lot of new lures right now. Howell estimates there are maybe six different models although they may be testing up to several different configurations of each in order to determine which is best. Overall, the Livingston Lures pros had received up to 30 prototypes on the day before the Classic, mostly different configurations to test and give feedback to the company.

Howell said he felt like he did what he needed to do for Livingston Lures by pulling that bait out, having never used it before. The 2014 Classic champ believes Livingston is a great company and a great family of people that are trying to love our sport and really promote our sport. To win on their lure like that was the best feeling in the world for Howell because he wanted to put Livingston Lures on the map.

He has such a love for the people at Livingston because of their commitment to our sport and to Randy Howell and his family personally that he wanted to use their prototypes as a part of this Classic and the results exceeded even Howell’s expectations. The prototype diver fit exactly what he needed to come from behind to win the 2014 Classic.

As we said, he started the morning with the Rapala DT-6. At this time of year in February when the water is cold, a subtle wood bait can be good, especially up shallow. Then when they move out deeper, you need a little more vibration and sound – and that’s where the Livingston came into play.

Howell is a strong proponent of sound. He had his boat’s HydroWave electronic sound attraction unit turned up loud all day on 30 second intervals emitting feeding stimulation sounds in that dirty water.

Likewise, Howell feels the sound unit embodied within Livingston Lures is a huge attraction to fish. The croaking sound emitted by a Livingston Lure is the same decibel level recording as a natural baitfish sound that’s given off, said Howell. He’s watched fish in seminar demonstration tanks come to Livingston Lures solely due to the sound they emit, so he knows they hear the recording and are attracted to it, and in muddy water like on Guntersville during the Classic, that electronic sound is especially good said Howell.

As a media observer during the Classic, I had the chance to eyewitness the Livingston Lures prototypes in action catching bass on Guntersville. I saw up close how the medium-runner like Howell used swims. Obviously its action is good; no, make that great enough to win the Bassmaster Classic. There’s no higher accolade than that. However, the action of the Livingston Lures shallow-running squarebill prototype looks even better. Hefting the prototypes in my hand, at first I couldn’t tell and didn’t believe the sound-emitting electronic units were inside because the crankbaits were so lightweight. I had to dip them in the lake (water activates the sound system) in order to prove to myself that the new, lightweight electronic sound-emitting units really were inside these baits. Clearly these new prototypes, once tested and finalized, will prove to be a huge breakthrough for Livingston Lures and for savvy bass anglers worldwide.

A few months before this Classic in a conversation I enjoyed with Basil, one of the two Battah brothers that head up Livingston, Basil said he hoped to have the sport’s top professional anglers begin to recognize Livingston Lures technology-enhanced baits as the wave of the future – that these lures are not just gimmicks. Certainly Randy Howell just accomplished that. The lure company and its techno-marvels are suddenly and emphatically Livingston LARGE for the entire world to see.

Livingston lures really do work and are not a gimmick. They’re the real deal. Randy Howell’s 2014 Classic win will change any preconceived notions of any anglers that don’t yet believe that Livingston Lures represent the cutting edge and future of our sport.

Watching the Bassmasters Classic Winner from the Road

Bassmasters Classic Draws Roadside Audience for Winning Catch

By Frank Sargeant
from The Fishing Wire

BIRMINGHAM. In one of the more amazing performances in recent Classic history, Randy Howell of Springville, Alabama, leaped from 11th place and a full nine pounds behind leader Edwin Evers on day two to the Classic championship and a $300,000 winner’s check on the final day.

In fact, Howell hardly needed more than the first hour after take-off to put the trophy and the title away.

He stopped at the Big Spring Creek bridge across U.S. 431 right in the midst of Guntersville, and there proceeded to haul in one lunker bass after another, often on consecutive casts, while a crowd that quickly assembled on the bridge right above his boat cheered him on. Howell put over 22 pounds in the live well in that insane flurry, later culling up to his total bag of 29-2. He released what he estimated at close to 30 pounds more.

Howell only stopped briefly during the performance to thank the horde of howling and cheering fans for their support.

“I’ve been fishing tournaments for 21 years and this was by far the best day of fishing I ever had, period,” said Howell. “I might have had some Divine Guidance on that first spot-I was going to run up the lake and something just told me to turn and go back to Spring Creek. A voice inside me said “do you want to be good or do you want to be great? I turned around and went to Spring Creek and that’s what did it.”

Most of his catches were made on a crawfish red Rapala DT6 and a prototype Livingston Lures medium-running crankbait, also in crawfish red.

B.A.S.S. statistician Ken Duke said Howell’s charge from 11th place to first was the greatest comeback in Classic history.

Howell said God truly blessed him to bring the win in front of his home crowd. He said his son had taped a prayer request on the bathroom mirror which said “My Dad to Win the Classic.” Apparently the prayers came true.

Connecticut angler Paul Mueller was second with 66 pounds, 8 ounces for the three-day competition, Edwin Evers of Oklahoma third with 65-11, Ott DeFoe of Tennessee fourth with 63-6 including the big bass of the day, an 8-4, and fifth was Randall Tharp, formerly of Gardendale and now of Port St. Joe, Fla., with 62-12. Jordon Lee of Auburn was sixth with 62-1.

Seven former Classic champions competed in this event-but none of them even made it to the final-day top-25 cutoff. Four-time winner and bassing superstar Kevin Van Dam came the closest, finishing 26th. The other ex-champions who came up short were Chris Lane (36th), Mark Davis (43rd), Alton Jones (45th), Mike Iaconelli (47th), Takahiro Omori (48th) and Skeet Reese (49th).

This Classic will be remembered as the first where personal video cameras delivered full view reports on many of the fish caught soon after the fact. Every Classic competitor had a tiny GoPro camera-from one of the title sponsors of the event–mounted on his boat, allowing viewers of www.bassmaster.com to see uploaded action throughout the day. The cameras also in some cases clearly show the location where the anglers fished, the lures they used and how they worked the baits-an unprecedented access to information for the viewing public.

Randy Howell was only the second angler ever to win a Bassmaster Classic in his home state. Boyd Duckett, now a Guntersville resident, was the first.

Randy Howell Wins Bassmaster Classic

And How: Randy Howell’s Charmed Last Day Leads To Bassmaster Classic Victory
from The Fishing Wire

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Every angler dreams of catching bass after giant bass like Randy Howell did on Sunday.

Randy Howell of Springville, Ala., wins the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by Diet Mountain Dew and GoPro. Bringing in a three-day total of 67 pounds, 8 ounces earned Howell the championship title and $300,000.
Photo by Gary Tramontina/Bassmaster
Howell began hauling in Lake Guntersville lunkers minutes into the final round of the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by Diet Mountain Dew and GoPro. He lost track of how many culls he was able to make, but at one point he was trading 4- and 5-pounders for even larger bass.

When Howell brought his bag to the scales, his five bass weighed 29 pounds, 2 ounces, with the largest going 7-3. The banner day beefed up his total to 67 pounds, 8 ounces.

“I don’t even know if I’m going to win, but it doesn’t matter,” Howell said before all the 25 finalists came to the scales. “It was the best day I’ve ever had in 21 years of professional bass fishing, a day of a lifetime.”

But his day did get better: He became the world champion, the 2014 Bassmaster Classic champ.

“I’ve had this dream so many times, and it’s happening now. I can’t believe I won the Bassmaster Classic. I don’t win tournaments very often,” said Howell as he was announced the winner.

Howell is a two-time Bassmaster event winner, including a 2013 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Northern Open presented by Allstate event that earned him his 2014 Classic qualification.

Sunday’s victory – Howell’s first after 11 other tries as a Classic competitor – was worth $300,000 and the most coveted trophy in the sport. From Springville, Ala., Howell became only the second angler to win the Classic in his home state.

Howell edged out B.A.S.S. Nation qualifier Paul Mueller of Naugatuck, Conn., by 1 pound. Mueller, who on Day 2 set a new one-day Classic weight record at 32-3, totaled 66-8 for second place.

Third place was claimed by second-day leader Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., with 65-11. Fourth was Ott DeFoe of Knoxville, Tenn., with 63-6, including the day’s largest bass, an 8-4. First-day leader Randall Tharp of Port St. Joe, Fla., finished in fifth place at 62-12.

Howell repeatedly used the words “perfect” and “effortless” to describe his day on Lake Guntersville.

“I caught my first one on my second or third cast,” he said. “I caught one almost every cast or two and had a limit in the first 10 or 15 minutes. It was quick. It would have been quicker if I hadn’t had to stop and retie every time because of the rocks.”

The rocks were the riprap up against a causeway bridge on Spring Creek. That early flurry included releasing eight 4-pounders.

Howell spent most of his time on the riprap. He moved only once, going farther back into the creek to a grassy area. The move yielded a 6-pounder and allowed him to cull a 4-pounder. He then motored back to the riprap. His largest was a 7-3. It was his fourth bass of the day and the one that told him he’d made the right decision to go to Spring Creek.

His Classic lure arsenal included a Livingston Lures model being developed within the Pro Series. Not yet available to the public, it’s a medium diver in a crawfish color. He also used a Rapala DT6 crankbait in the “demon” crawfish color and a Yamamoto bladed jig.

“I went out this morning believing I could win,” the champ said. “That’s the weirdest thing. Typically, I would never be in 11th place and 9 pounds back and think I had a chance to win. But for some reason I had the feeling I could win on Spring Creek – that something big would happen there.”

Fred Roumbanis’ 9-3 largemouth from Day 1 won the event’s Carhartt Big Bass Award of $1,000 plus $1,500 for wearing Carhartt clothing.

Howell earned a $7,500 Toyota Bonus Bucks award.

Tharp received the Day 1 GEICO Everyday Leader Award of $1,000 plus $1,500 for having a GEICO decal on his boat’s windshield. Evers won the same bonus on Day 2.

Fans can catch 12 hours of Classic coverage on ESPN2 on The Bassmasters. The first hour will air Saturday, March 1, at 10 a.m. ET. The show centered on Sunday’s finale will air in prime time – 8 to 10 p.m. ET – on Sunday, March 2.

2014 Bassmaster Classic Title Sponsor: GEICO

2014 Bassmaster Classic Presenting Sponsors: Diet Mountain Dew, GoPro

2014 Bassmaster Classic Official Sponsors: Toyota, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Evan Williams Bourbon, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha

2014 Bassmaster Classic Outdoors Expo Presenting Sponsor: Dick’s Sporting Goods

2014 Bassmaster Classic Official Apparel Sponsor: Carhartt

About B.A.S.S.
For more than 45 years, B.A.S.S. has served as the authority on bass fishing. The organization advances the sport through advocacy, outreach and an expansive tournament structure while connecting directly with the passionate community of bass anglers through its Bassmaster media vehicles.

The Bassmaster brand and its multimedia platforms are guided by a mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications – Bassmaster Magazine and B.A.S.S. Times – comprehensive website Bassmaster.com and ESPN2 and Outdoor Channel television programming, Bassmaster provides rich, leading-edge content true to the lifestyle.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series, B.A.S.S. Nation events, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series, Bassmaster High School Series, Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Bassmaster Classic.

B.A.S.S. offers an array of services to its more than 500,000 members and remains focused on issues related to conservation and water access. The organization is headquartered in Birmingham, Ala.

Fishing A Winter Tournament At Lake Sinclair

Last Sunday 18 members of the Flint River Bass Club fished an 8 hour tournament at Lake Sinclair. The water was cold and the breeze off it kept us cool all day, and the fish were hard to find. Ten of the members had keeper bass and there was a total of 20 bass weighing 44.02 pounds.

Bobby Ferris won with 11.17 pounds. He said he caught his bass fishing crankbaits around docks and weedbeds. David Grace had 6.41 pounds and his 4.09 pound bass was good for big fish in the tournament.

Donnie Willis and Tom Perdue fished together and finished 3rd and 4th. Donnie had 5.01 pounds and Tom had 4.45 pounds. I had two bass weighing 4.13 pounds for fifth and Roger Morrow, fresh from driving back from Seminole, placed sixth with 3.36 pounds.

I started out the day pretty good, landing a 3 pound bass on a spinnerbait near a grassbed the first place I stopped. Although I fished that area for over an hour with everything from spinnerbaits, crankbaits, worms, jig and pig and spoons, I never had another hit there.

Then about an hour later I landed my second keeper jigging a spoon under a school of shad back in a creek across the lake from where the first one hit. There were shad and fish all in that small creek, but I fished there for two hours without another bite. After the second one hit just after 9:00 AM I could not catch another fish even though several people said they caught bass in the middle of the day.

Congratulations to Bobby for winning this club tournament.

‘Positive Visualization’ Helps Palaniuk Prepare for Tournament Events

‘Positive Visualization’ Helps Palaniuk Prepare for Tournament Events
from The Fishing Wire

Yamaha Pro Credits Technique with His Two Elite Wins

Brandon Palaniuk

Brandon Palaniuk knows the mental part of professional tournament bass fishing can be as important as the physical part, so he relies on a technique known as ‘positive visualization’ to carry him through the tough days of competition. It’s something the Yamaha Pro learned as a high school wrestler, and he simply continued when he began fishing professionally in 2010.

“I actually started before high school, when I was about eight years old,” remembers Palaniuk. “I was wrestling then in school, but didn’t really know what positive visualization was. I just did it because the coaches told us to.

“Then in high school, it became an important part of our practices. We would lie on the wrestling mats with the lights out, and the coach would walk us through every part of a match, from warm-ups to a take-down to winning and having the referee raise our hand in victory at the end of the match. It always ended in success, so it wasn’t hard to apply that process to bass fishing.”

The Yamaha Pro credits his two previous Bassmaster® Elite wins, in which he led from start to finish in each, as well as his runnerup finish in the 2013 Bassmaster Classic® to his positive visualization process. He has also learned that this technique is a major part of the training cycle for Olympic athletes in all disciplines. The key is always having the thought process end in success.

During his initial Elite Series win at Bull Shoals in 2012, Palaniuk caught his fish in deep water offshore, so he was casting only to a GPS point. He could see bass on his electronics, so as he lay in bed at night he imagined how the fish related to the structure he couldn’t see, how he needed to position his boat, and how he would make each cast. He continued the visualization process all the way through receiving the winner’s trophy.

“During the St. Lawrence tournament this past season, I also lay awake each night visualizing every detail of the 100-mile boat ride to my fishing spot in Lake Ontario,” he explains. “I would continue that thought process during the ride itself the next morning, visualizing how I would see the bass on my electronics, dropping a lure to them, and then landing them. I would go through this with every single fish, and then I would visualize the 100-mile ride back to the weigh-in, and holding up fish as the tournament leader.

“I would try to be as detailed as possible in my visualization, but at the end I always visualized myself winning.”

Prior to the 2013 Classic,® Palaniuk visited Grand Lake in February 2012, a full year in advance, and found the pattern he actually used during the event itself. Thus, he was able to spend 12 months visualizing very precisely how he would fish the tournament. He finished second by just over three pounds to fellow Yamaha Pro Cliff Pace.

“Sometimes my visualization process takes only about five minutes, and other times perhaps as long as 15 minutes,” he continues. “There are times, of course, when things don’t work out the way I would like them to, and when that happens, I visualize myself making a change in techniques, moving to a new location, and certainly making better decisions on the water. I try to turn that day into something positive I can do the following day.”

As the 2014 Classic® nears, Palaniuk admits he is using positive visualization nearly every day, often during early morning exercise runs through the Idaho countryside near his home. Throughout each entire run, he visualizes himself catching bass at Lake Guntersville, always making good decisions and adapting successfully to different situations.

“It’s difficult for someone who has never tried positive visualization to understand how valuable it is,” concludes the Yamaha Pro, “but it allows me to be more focused on what I’m doing, and it certainly helps me make the decisions I need to make. I really do believe it’s been the difference between winning and not winning for me.”

Kevin VanDam At the Bassmasters Classic

KVD Prepared To Deliver A KO In This Week’s Bassmaster Classic

Kevin VanDam

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Watch him: Kevin VanDam says he is better prepared for the Feb. 21-23 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by Diet Mountain Dew and GoPro than he’s been for any of his other 23 Classic competitions.

And that also goes for the four Classics that KVD has won, said the seven-time Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year and 20-time Bassmaster event winner.

“Most Classics I’m scrambling right down to the wire trying to get ready. For this one, I feel prepared on all levels,” said VanDam, as he was hauling his bass rig Feb. 13 from his home in Kalamazoo, Mich., to Lake Guntersville, the 2014 Classic fishery, to arrive in time for the practice period.

“My tackle prep is done, my equipment is ready — and I feel prepared mentally,” he said.

VanDam prepared in a way he has not for any of his recent Classic appearances: He scouted Lake Guntersville.

“It was a very meaningful trip for me,” he said, “Lakes that have a lot of grass change from year to year. I’m hoping that seeing it last fall will help me.”

VanDam already knows Guntersville well. In his Bassmaster career alone, he’s been in 13 competitions on Guntersville. For the most part, those tournaments produced keeper memories. He won the 2007 Bassmaster Elite Series event on Guntersville. He had a ninth-place Elite finish on Guntersville in 2010. Pepper in a second, three thirds and one fourth-place finish over the years, and the confidence factor working for VanDam builds quickly.

Backed by such a history, he’s prepared to take chances to go after Guntersville’s largest bass. That’s what it will take to win this one, he said.

“It’s all or nothing. You have to be prepared to fail, have the guts to risk coming across the stage with nothing,” he said.

Guntersville’s huge bass population is a positive for all 55 competitors, VanDam said. The choices of where to fish along the sprawling Tennessee River impoundment are almost endless. But having so many choices can flip around to become a negative.

“It’s a ton of water to manage,” he said. “That’s going to be the biggest thing for me to overcome because I know so much of the lake. I’ll have to narrow it down based on the conditions. And it’s easy to get caught up catching fish in a certain area (during practice), then come Classic time, something might happen to make that area not as good as another.”

Not to mention that on Guntersville, there’s little water that can easily be eliminated from a game plan, he added.

There’s a new wild card in this Classic, too. It’s the frigid weather Guntersville experienced in January and so far in February.

“I’m not sure any of us really know the impact of that,” he said. “It’s unprecedented. Fishing’s going to be a lot tougher than a lot of people think. In the overall field, some will struggle. The few people who find the right area and patterns are going to make it look easy.”

At least one of those anglers will beat the five-fish-limit, three-day Classic weight record, VanDam said. The record, 69-11 in the 2011 Classic on the Louisiana Delta, will fall, he said. (And he’s the one who owns that record.)

“Everybody in the bass fishing world knows just how good the Tennessee River chain is,” he said. “I say Guntersville is the crown jewel of that chain. We’re about to showcase it to the world in a way that’s never been done before.”

Fans can catch the Classic in Birmingham at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex. Arena doors will open Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 3 p.m. for the weigh-ins. There’s no admission charge. Bassmaster.com will cover the weigh-ins live, and all online access is free.

To see the Classic competition on ESPN2, fans can tune into The Bassmasters on Saturday, March 1, at 10 a.m. ET for the first hour of five centered on the Classic. The Classic finale show will air in prime time — 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET — Sunday, March 2.

2014 Bassmaster Classic Title Sponsor: GEICO

2014 Bassmaster Classic Presenting Sponsors: Diet Mountain Dew, GoPro

2014 Bassmaster Classic Official Sponsors: Toyota, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Evan Williams Bourbon, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha

2014 Bassmaster Classic Outdoors Expo Presenting Sponsor: Dick’s Sporting Goods

2014 Bassmaster Classic Official Apparel Sponsor: Carhartt

The Bassmaster brand and its multimedia platforms are guided by a mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications — Bassmaster Magazine and B.A.S.S. Times — comprehensive website Bassmaster.com and ESPN2 and Outdoor Channel television programming, Bassmaster provides rich, leading-edge content true to the lifestyle.

B.A.S.S. offers an array of services to its more than 500,000 members and remains focused on issues related to conservation and water access. The organization is headquartered in Birmingham, Ala.

Castaway Rod Pros At the Bassmasters Classic

CastAway Rods BASS Elite Series Pro Staffers Faircloth and Lowen Confident Heading into this Year’s Bassmaster Classic

BASS Elite Series anglers Todd Faircloth and Bill Lowen have quite a few things in common. Todd and Bill are two of the best anglers in the world, they both use CastAway Rods exclusively, and they’re both fishing in the upcoming 2014 Bassmaster Classic. That’s where the similarities end, however: Faircloth thinks he’s got a good shot at winning on Guntersville, while Lowen likes his chances of walking away with the coveted trophy.

While the two veteran pros have differing opinions on who is going to take the title, they do agree on what it will take to win. With weather conditions and water temps trending unusually cold, both Faircloth and Lowen are confident that finishing atop the leaderboard will require not only superior angling skills, but also versatility and adaptability.

“Right now, it looks like we’re in for an unusually cold Classic, said Faircloth. “But you never know, things could start to warm up right before the tournament begins. Those anglers that are able to make quick adjustments according to the conditions will have an edge over the rest of the field.”

Lowen shares Faircloth’s assessment. “This event brings together the best bass anglers in the world, so every competitor out there has the ability to win this thing,” noted Lowen. “It’ll come down to reading the conditions and the bass correctly, making the right calls at the right time, and being able to adapt quickly to challenging situations.”

While both Lowen and Faircloth expect the bass to be relating to Guntersville’s abundant grass, they plan on employing different techniques to locate and entice the fish. Lowen plans on doing plenty of flipping, while Faircloth intends on using football jigs, lipless crankbaits and chatterbaits to cover water and find some quality bass.

“It’ll depend upon the conditions come tournament time, of course, but I think I’ll be using my 7’ 6” CastAway Skeleton SKXFP76 flipping rod a good percentage of the time, concentrating on shallower water and targeting fish in the grass, Lowen said. “I consider myself a ‘finesse power fisherman,’ meaning I like to flip with smaller, lighter baits to increase the number of bites I get. While some people think that downsizing lures results in more action but smaller fish, I haven’t found that to be the case. I’ve caught some monster fish flipping ¼-ounce jigs.”

Lowen will be taking full advantage of the combined sensitivity and strength of his Skeleton flipping stick to put bass in the boat. “This rod’s graphite construction allows me to detect subtle bites and flip all day long without fatigue, yet it also provides the backbone I need for positive hook-sets and pulling big fish from heavy cover,” he said.

Faircloth says he’ll be relying on his CastAway Todd Faircloth signature rods to work shallow-running cranks, football jigs and swimbaits in anywhere from 3 to 10 feet of water,” he said. “I expect the fish to be in the grass waiting to ambush prey, so I’ll be using my signature 7’ 2” SKX-TFSC shallow crankbait rod to run everything from a Strike King Red Eye Shad to a Strike King Series 5 through the vegetation. This rod’s soft tip and parabolic action makes it perfect for casting and working these lures, plus it also gives me the backbone I need to rip baits free from the grass and overpower big fish.”

Faircloth also intends on using his versatile signature 7’3” Big T’s Triple Threat Rod on Guntersville to throw jigs, swimbaits and chatterbaits.

Both Lowen and Faircloth credit the quality and performance of their CastAway rods for helping them reach the Classic. “These rods provide the best of all worlds – they’re lightweight and sensitive, but no so light that I have to worry about strength when I slam the hook home or apply heavy pressure on a fish,” explained Faircloth.

Although both seasoned anglers have plenty of talent on their side, neither Lowen or Faircloth has a ton of experience on Guntersville. Lowen, who spent most of his time on the Ohio River, has fished Guntersville only six times, while Faircloth, a Texas native who grew up frequenting Sam Rayburn Lake and Toledo Bend, has fished Guntersville less than 20 times. That doesn’t seem to faze either angler, however. Lowen even believes that the supposed “home water” advantage can actually work against an angler.” If you’ve fished a lake your whole life, sometimes you end up concentrating on old spots where you’ve had success in the past, instead of being ‘in the moment’ and considering the current situation, conditions and opportunities. There’s also a lot more pressure on you to win if you’re a local favorite, and in an event like the Classic where there’s already a ton of pressure, that’s the last thing you need.”

Lowen and Faircloth are definitely capable of winning the upcoming Classic on Guntersville. Both anglers have fished the big show before (this will be Lowen’s sixth Classic and Faircloth’s 12th), they’ve earned the right to compete again in this year, and they have the skills, determination and quality tackle needed to come out on top.

To learn more about CastAway’s pro staffers, including Bill Lowen and Todd Faircloth, or for more information on the complete line of tournament-quality CastAway graphite rods, visit www.castawayrods.com.

Russ Lane Prepares for Classic with Castaway Rods

CastAway Rods Pro Russ Lane Scores Top 10 Finishes at Toho, Okeechobee
from The Fishing Wire

Russ Lane

MONTGOMERY, Texas, – CastAway Rods BASS Elite Series Pro Staffer Russ Lane tallied top-10 finishes in the last two Bassmaster tournaments he competed in – the Jan. 23-25, 2014 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Southern Open on Lake Tohopekaliga and the Dec. 5-7, 2013 Bassmaster Classic Wild Card event on Lake Okeechobee – fueling the veteran angler’s confidence heading into the 2014 season.

On Lake Toho, Lane finished eighth among more than 200 anglers, landing a total of 37.12 pounds of bass despite extremely challenging conditions. That followed an impressive performance in December on Okeechobee, where he finished fourth with 59.2 pounds against an equally talented field. Lane credits these back-to-back top-10 finishes to his flipping talents, his ability to adapt to tough fishing situations, and the quality and performance of his tackle.

According to Lane, the weather was cold and Toho’s bass were tight-lipped during the Southern Open. “One cold front came in just a few days before tournament started, and another front arrived during the second day of the event,” Lane noted. “Water temps were in the low 50s and bites were few and far between.”

Lane was able to capitalize, however, on a small window of opportunity each day on Toho. “The fish were only willing to cooperate for a couple hours in the late afternoon, so I had to make the most of things during those brief periods,” explained Lane. “Flipping was working for me, so I stuck with that technique and my CastAway Invicta INV-FP76 extra-heavy action flipping stick the whole time. It was the first time in my competitive career that I used just one rod over the course of an entire tournament.”

Lane paired his CastAway Invicta flipping stick with a Shimano Curado baitcaster spooled with 60-pound Sunline FX-2 braid, enticing the finicky Toho bass with a black and blue Big Bite Real Deal Craw weighted with a 1½- ounce tungsten sinker. “I worked hard during practice and found a couple of areas that had matted grass, clear water and a lot of fish,” said Lane. “Whenever you get these cold front conditions in Florida, however, the fish bite very softly. You need a rod that’s sensitive enough to feel those subtle bites, but has enough power to get the fish out of the thick vegetation. The CastAway Invicta flipping stick provides the perfect balance of sensitivity and strength required under those extreme conditions.”

Lane pointed out that the lightweight, yet super strong, graphite construction of his Invicta INV-FP76 rod allowed him to flip for long hours without any fatigue. “That’s the beauty of this flipping stick, and all of CastAway’s rods – for as strong and durable as they are, they’re surprisingly light.” He also appreciates the golf club style grips. “They allow for a super comfortable, secure hold even when wet, without interfering with the sensitivity of the blank. I can feel the vibration of a hit transmit from the rod tip all the way to the handle.”

While Lane’s Invicta INV-FP76 flipping stick saw plenty of action on both Toho and Okeechobee, he also uses other CastAway rods to put fish in the livewell. Lane relies on six models with different lengths and actions specialized for handling various fishing techniques. “Along with my flipping stick, I use CastAway Invicta Series rods made for cranking, topwater, casting jigs, working big worms and finesse fishing,” he said. “Those are my ‘go-to’ rods. Each one is light, strong, durable, and perfectly designed for its intended application.”

With plenty of confidence in his abilities and his tackle coming off back-to-back top-10 finishes in two high-profile tournaments, “Big Daddy” has momentum on his side with the new season just around the corner.

To learn more about the complete lineup of tournament-quality CastAway Graphite Rods, visit www.castawayrods.com or call (936) 582-1677.936-582

About CastAway Rods

For more than 30 years, anglers have come to rely upon Texas-based CastAway Rods handcrafted American-made fishing rods for every condition on the water. The evolution of fishing is in the palm of your hand and you’ll feel the difference every time you pick up a CastAway Rod. Rod performance is a combination of great design, quality components and superior technology. It’s the reason that CastAway Rods are the choice of professional anglers.
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