The Tennessee Division season is complete. We had our Divisional Championships on Old Hickory Lake in Tennessee this past weekend. The divisional is a 2 day tournament that is worth double points. This tournament will be the deciding factor to who makes the top 8 and goes on to the National Championships on Clarks Hill in Augusta Georgia. I was sitting in 7th place leading into this tournament and only by a couple points. I knew I had to make a good showing and catch some fish. Old Hickory has been very tough lately and the weekend before I had 16lbs off of one point so I thought I might have a chance at winning.
Friday - Practice
I launched at 5:45am and heading to my 1st spot up lake. I found a key spot in Bledsoe Creek on a main channel with some brush and a small rock pile. I started out with a jig and worked the area pretty good and nothing. I changed to a shaky head and nothing. On my last pass some white bass moved in and I played with them away with a fluke. That school passed and another school of fish moved in and it was a small school of dink largemouth. Then the white bass moved in again. I tried to get my crankbait past them but too many of them. I think I caught 10 white's in a row. I picked up my jig again and threw right into them. The jig sank past them and BAMM a nice 3lb bass whacked my jig. I threw into it again and same thing happened, whack, another nice fish. I think the lazy bass were laying low under the school of whites and eating their leftovers. I also used a swim bait by
Optimum Baits out of California to use as a search bait. The schools were so skittish I stayed way back and threw the swim bait into the school and watch to see what whacked it or followed it up. If it was small bass I moved on, if it was Whites, I stopped and threw a jig into them. This technique played a huge part in finding the bigger bass. I used this technique to a 4th place finish on Center Hill this year.
I marked the spot and moved on. I moved to the mouth of Bartons creek and threw a jig for a few minutes and caught a couple dinks. I headed to the docks back in Bartons as they have some good deep water and scattered weeds around them. I caught 1 14" bass on a fluke out of some grass and a few dinks.
11am I decided to hit some ledges and pockets on the way down lake to a few spots I have around Avondale. Nothing but dinks. I headed into Cedar Creek to a favorite ledge of mine and quickly caught another keeper on a watermelon jig. Mark the spot and head on down some more. I pulled into a spot near Avondale that typically holds some smallies. I pitched my jig in and caught a few dinks. However I had a couple nice whacks. I thought with the windy conditions moving in over the weekend it might turn this spot on. So my day was done at 3pm and headed to Flippers to meet Jimmy Scott a good friend of mine and fellow competitor who was in 11th in points. I reported I had 4 fish for about 8-9 pounds. Nothing special by no means.
Day -1 I drew boat number 21 and partner Dale Morris from Tullahoma, great guy by the way.
Dale and I headed down to Bledsoe only to find another boat sitting on my 1st spot. So I pulled into past them to flip some wood and shallow grass and wait them out. It turned out to be Dustin Evans and friend Chris Scott. They worked the spot for a couple hours and no fish and decided to troll off. I took the opening and immediately headed in. I told my Dale we are going to sit here and work the spot until 10:00 - yes nearly 1/2 the tournament in one spot. I think he thought I was crazy! I threw my trusty watermelon jig the I got from Michael at
www.midtnmarine.com and Zoom small chunk jr in watermelon dunked in my secret sauce. 7:00 my 1st fish came and it was a solid 3lb bass. A few casts later netted me a fish that was a squeaker - it was slow close to going I put it in the box to hope it would relax and make the board. Dale then was the next man, he caught a solid keeper fish on a Carolina rig sweet beaver. A few casts later he hooked up on a good fish but as it was fighting it he made a mistake and tried to lift a solid 4-5 lb bass into the net and the fish came off. He probably lost big fish of the tournament. A few minutes later a hooked up on a big fish and it had shoulders. She broke me off after a couple runs. It was my mistake for not re-tying my jig after my last 2 fish, that won't happen again. It cost me what I think was a win. 10am we headed down lake and hit spot after spot with nothing happening. 1pm we hit my last little spot by Avondale and by this time the wind was pounding into it. I quickly caught a 12" spot on a jig and then caught another 13.5" KY Spot on a DT-16. Time was up and we headed in to the weigh-in.
I had 3 fish for 4.55 lbs, well behind the leader Adam Wagner at over 13lbs. I was sitting out of the top 10 and knew I needed a good sack on Sunday to make some money and top 8. Jimmy and I headed to Cedar Creek campground to have a cook out with his family. Jimmy, Tina and the whole family are some fantastic people for putting up with me. Jimmy and I sat there drinking a few brewski's and talked about our day. Jimmy mentioned I seemed awfully relaxed and I was. I told him I felt with the Sunny skie and no wind forecast for Sunday I could get 10 or 11 pounds and I think the other guys will struggle.
Day 2 - Sunday I drew boat number 6 and partner Jason Minor of Old Hickory. I planned to follow my same pattern as I felt my bite will only get stronger. Pulled into my 1st hole and by 7am had a solid 3lb bass and a 14" bass on the same watermelon jig. I wanted top pick up the pace a bit for today and headed down lake picking off holes as I went. We caught several short fish at each stop but no keepers. I pulled into my Avondale spot at 11a.m. and just told Jason this can hold big smallies after a heavy wind or breezy day and the breeze had just picked up. My 2 cast with my trusty jig had a 3lb smallie whack it. A short fight and I had fish #3 in boat and feeling good. I knew I had enough to make Nationals but now I was going for some $$$. At 1:30 I moved to a little spot off the main river up lake that is a ledge are I like to fish. I needed 2 more keepers to make a move. We fished it for a bit out deep and the wind had blown me into the bank and as I was trying to move out I saw a toad just a foot or so under the water. Jason and I pitched at her for 20+ minutes and no go. Then I saw 3 smaller fish, the 1st one did not measure as she whacked a shaky head. The next 2 ate my shaky head on the 1st pitch and both measured and went into the box. I sat down and took a big breath and now had 5 in the box.
We headed into weigh-in and started noticing the low sacks coming in. Adam who had 13 lbs the day before now only had 2 fish for 5lbs for a little over 18 lbs. I knew I did not have enough to over take 1st but I thought I had a shot at the top 5. I weighed in and had 5 bass for a little over 10lbs. I had 1 of the only 2 limits weighed in on day 2. The other was
Brian Carper of Murfreesboro, TN a local guide on Percy Priest and other area lakes.
After all said and done I ended up cashing a check and 4th place. I felt pretty good making the top 8, (5th in points) and heading to Clarks Hill Lake in Augusta GA.
Also making it to the top 8 on the non-boater side was one of my sponsors Michael Pewitt of
www.midtnmarine.com . Michael has been a fantastic sponsor and good friend. He has gotten me lures and tackle in a pinch. He provides great service at a great price. He can get you anything you need, performance boating and tackle products for the performance angler.
As a side not, Monday I took out to Old Hickory, Cody and his father, a team from Minnesota fishing the Fishers of Men Legacy Nationals on Pickwick lake. They wanted to get an idea about ledge fishing and how river fed systems are fished. Cody is also a Jr Bassmaster Champion from
Gopher Bassmaster in Minnesota and seems to be well taught by
Rich and Wayne Lindgren. He will represent Minnesota in his age division in Arkansas at the Championship. Good luck Cody. Cody had a nice 4lb bass on a tube and 2 other keepers for about 8 lbs. However, I could not be out done by a kid, I had 5 bass for 10lbs or so. Yes we fished my same pattern I used in the tournament.
Thanks to everyone for the kind emails and words of encouragement as I head to Nationals. I did my part, Rich, I am waiting on you!
