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| The 2021 Classic field is set. Canadian pros Jeff Gustafson and both Johnston Brothers are in plus many of your favourite pros. Take a look at the Elite, Opens, College and Nation anglers who have earned a spot in the 2021 Bassmaster Classic so far. Link over here |
Bass Tournament Organizer Fined $9,000 For Not Following Licence Conditions
By Luigi De Rose
The hammer finally fell on Ben Woo and the B1 Tournament Series. On November 10, 2020, Woo has been convicted and fined $9,000 and had his Ontario recreational fishing licence suspended for five years as a result of improper fish care, discarding dead bass improperly and not notifying the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) of the large fish kill according to the tournament licence.
The infractions occurred during July 13-14, 2019 at their B1 two-day bass tournament held on the St. Lawrence River near Gananoque, Ontario where they suffered a staggering 195 dead bass, many of them smallmouth over 4-pounds. The Ontario Crown determined that fish care stations during the weigh-in process was inadequate.
Ben Woo and staff later dumped 188 of those dead bass into the garbage, which is an illegal act as no game fish or wild animal is allowed to be wasted without proper steps taken to fully utilize it.
The MNRF received several calls regarding the incident and the investigate was started on July 15, 2019.
For the full official statement from the MNRF click here
Classic and Elite Status Nearing Completion
By David A. Brown
BASS Press Release
Williams ride out difficult last day to win.
(Photo: BASS)
Enduring a tough day marked by mishaps and disappointment, Tommy Williams of Shepherdsville, Ky., won the Basspro.com Bassmaster Central Open on Lewisville Lake with a three-day total of 41 pounds, 15 ounces.
On Day 1, Williams caught a second-place limit of 18-8 and trailed early leader Brandon Dillard by 6-1. Adding a Day 2 limit of 15-8 sent him into Championship Saturday with a 6-3 lead.
Saturday, that margin proved essential as Williams found only three keepers for 7-15, but held on to claim the top prize of $35,934 and a berth in the 2021 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk scheduled for March 19-21 on Lake Ray Roberts.
“Everybody knows how tough it is to win a tournament when you have a missed opportunity and I had a couple of them,” Williams said. “The fish bit funny today. I had fish blow up on a spinnerbait and I lost fish on a flipping stick.
“I fished clean all week, but today, they just pulled off. But it’s been a wonderful experience. Texas has treated me well. This is the first time I’ve been in contention to win one of these events.”
Williams spent his tournament in three areas. Two comprised windward pockets with baitfish blown into dense tangles of shallow wood. The third was a main-lake flat.
“I spent seven days of practice and it came together on the third day,” he said. “I fished my strengths through the whole thing.”
He flipped the wood with a Texas-rigged green pumpkin creature bait with the tails dipped in chartreuse. On the flat, he fished a 1/4-ounce spinnerbait with a single No. 3 willow-leaf blade and a chartreuse curly tail grub for a trailer.
This new multi-year partnership between FOX Sports and Bassmaster allows for more expansive coverage of the tournaments, giving fans an opportunity to follow the action live as the world’s best anglers battle big bass — and each other — on some of America’s most legendary fisheries.
Highlighting the coverage is the iconic Bassmaster Classic on Lake Ray Roberts March 19-21, which will feature three hours of content on the FOX broadcast network and three hours of content on FS1.
Fans enjoy two new ways to catch the action during live weekend broadcasts. During the FOX television programming, an additional livestream with additional anglers will be featured on Bassmaster.com.
On days and times when the Bassmaster Classic and Elite Series tournaments are not being broadcast on FOX or FS1, the award-winning Bassmaster LIVE show will be streamed at Bassmaster.com and on the FOX Sports digital platforms. Bassmaster LIVE, which debuted in 2015, features expert commentary and insight while following the top-ranked Elite anglers.
“There is a huge appetite for live bass fishing and this partnership with FOX provides an incredible opportunity to reach new fans as a record number of people participate in fishing,” said B.A.S.S. CEO Bruce Akin. “Fishing license sales are up by double-digits this year, and we commend our anglers as well as the Bassmaster LIVE hosts for making use of time on-screen to explain the sport as well as offer tips and techniques to help fans of all levels improve their fishing.”
The Bassmaster Elite Series was one of the only major sports able to complete their full 2020 season, which drew both enthusiastic fans of bass fishing and sports fans craving the thrill of competition to live broadcasts of the Elite Series tournaments. Not only are both dedicated fans and newcomers alike eagerly tuning in to Bassmaster, but participation in the sport is booming across the country.
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| Lest We Forget! At 11am today, take a minute to reflect. We live in a free society. Even if you don't agree with your neighbour, you have the freedom to have those opinions. |
Canadians Cory Johnston 16th, Jeff Gustafson 30th and Chris Johnston 33rd in AOY!
By Luigi De Rose
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| (Photo: BASS) |
To see who qualified, link over the bassmaster.com
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A Blue Trophy and Century Club makes for a perfect Sunday!
BASS PRESS RELEASE
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| Walters's 29 pound lead over 2nd place simply astonishing. (Photo: BASS) |
Walters placed second on Day 1 with 25-14 and took over the Day 2 lead by adding 26-14. On Semifinal Saturday, his limit of 29-6 — the event’s biggest catch — sent him into Championship Sunday with a 25-pound lead.
Today’s limit of 22-10 allowed him to surge across the finish line and secure his spot in the Century Club, which recognizes an angler for catching 100 pounds of fish in a four-day event. Walters won with an all-time Bassmaster Elite record margin of 29-10.
“What a week; it doesn’t seem real,” Walters said. “Everyone wants to catch 100 pounds, and it feels good.”
While his victory was never in serious jeopardy today, Walters found himself a couple pounds shy of his second objective with time running out. A 15-minute flurry in his last hour of fishing delivered three fish that elevated him well past the century mark.
Walters attributes his closing success to a gutsy relocation. All week, he had been targeting suspended bass amid main-lake standing timber in 10 to 20 feet. When he realized his spots weren’t firing, he moved to a small pocket and caught his final three fish around stumps in less than 5 feet of water.
Canadians Chris Johnston 44th, Cory Johnston 60th & Gustafson 83rd
By David A. Brown
BASS PRESS RELEASE
Walters ridding a hot streak give 11 pound lead
over Loughran.
(Photo: BASS)
Patrick Walters said he believes there are fish on every piece of standing timber in Lake Fork, but dialing in the right scenario allowed him to take the Day 2 lead at the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department with a total of 52 pounds, 12 ounces.
Walters positioned himself well on Day 1 with a second-place limit of 25-14 and trailed Rick Clunn by 3-6. Adding 26-14 today, the Summerville, S.C., angler carries a lead of 11-3 into Semifinal Saturday.
Returning to the standing timber he fished on Day 1, Walters enjoyed a fast start with a limit of 18-15 by about 8:30. His second catch, a 6-1, got his day going in the right direction.
“That made me feel pretty good, catching that 6-1 first thing; it was like, ‘Okay, they’re still here and they’ll still bite,’” Walters said. “I was worried that the big fish just bit yesterday because of weather or something, so I had no idea what I was going to be able to catch.
“It was good to know they would bite again today. Yesterday, I caught a 4-pounder off that same tree where I caught the 6-1 today.”
Walters said that amid the fields of standing timber, he’s looking for a particular type of structure. He declined to elaborate but noted that the right spots also held bait schools. Finding the fish positioned at the right feeding depth meant it was game-on.
“I also checked some of my other areas that I found in practice,” Walters said. “Everywhere on this entire lake has fish. When you set the boat down, there are fish there. You just have to figure out how to catch them.
“I just needed to expand to make sure I wasn’t missing a better area. You don’t know where the bite’s at, so you have to keep putting your feelers out.”
Canadians Chris Johnston 40th, Cory Johnston 52th & Gustafson 81st.
BASS PRESS RELEASE
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| Clunn king of autumn. (Photo: BASS) |
A highly specific presentation plus one key bite gave Rick Clunn of Ava, Mo., the Day 1 lead at the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department on Lake Fork with 29 pounds, 4 ounces.
Spending his day in the mid- to lower-lake region, Clunn targeted docks with an Ichikawa Rick Clunn RC King Kong Shad 10 squarebill. He found one particular structure most productive and relied on a specific undisclosed presentation.
“I fished several docks, but I caught all but one of my (limit fish) off of one dock,” Clunn said. “I found this dock in practice and it had a lot of fish holding in front of it. Today, I pulled up there and I did not see those fish, but I guess they were there.
“You can throw at that dock all day and if you’re not doing it exactly right, you’re not going to catch them,” he said. “I can fish behind three other boats and if they’re not doing (what I’m doing), I’m going to catch fish.”
Midday delivered an unexpected opportunity that propelled Clunn into the lead. Moving to another spot, he passed a round, sandy point that looked appealing enough to merit a few casts with a different reaction bait. One of them tempted an 8-9 largemouth, which stands as the day’s second-largest fish.
“I caught that big one trying to find other places,” Clunn said. “That was just one of those gift fish. I don’t even know where he came from and I couldn’t duplicate the cast.
“In practice, I was catching a few fish late in the day off of stuff like that. Most of the fish I caught, I caught them where I was expecting to catch them. But I didn’t expect to catch that one.”
Noting that Fork’s tremendous number of quality fish justifies its trophy lake reputation, Clunn said he caught about 15 keepers today, but his three big bites (8-9, 6-6 and a 5-9) were the difference-makers.
“This lake is so full of fish, you’re fishing over a thousand to catch one,” he said. “The key here is you have to get those two key bites to get you up over that 20-pound mark.”
Smallmouth shine during impossible fishing
By David A. Brown.
BASS PRESS RELEASE
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| Topwater and finesse key to limits on difficult fishery. (Photo: BASS) |
Entering Championship Saturday with a mere 3-ounce lead over Denny Fiedler of Wabasha, Minn., Robertson added a five-bass limit of 12-4 to his first two days’ limits of 14-8 and 14-0. He won by a margin of 1-10 and earned a top prize of $35,000. Robertson also won the $500 Garmin Tournament Rewards prize.
He also earned an automatic berth into the 2021 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic, which is scheduled for March on Lake Ray Roberts in Texas.
“I’m usually out on the water saying, ‘Maybe I should go here, maybe I should go there,’ but the past two weeks, I’ve just had more faith in myself and I’ve just been rolling with it,” Robertson said. “I’m not second-guessing anything; I’m fishing more deliberately.”
Fresh off a second-place finish at the Basspro.com Bassmaster Central Open on Neely Henry Lake, Robertson had spent his first two days working a small stretch of boulder-laden bottom in 20 feet of water. Intercepting packs of smallmouth bass ravaging bait schools, he caught his fish on a Ned rig and a Neko rig.
With post-frontal conditions bringing bright skies and high pressure, Day 3 found the spot unproductive. Robertson said this prompted him to completely scrap his game plan and switch to something that was right in his wheelhouse.
“I told myself, ‘I’m going to stay there until noon and see what I have,’” he said. “All I caught was a striped bass, so I pulled the plug. I was so comfortable with that decision, it was no big deal.
“I pulled into a little pocket close to my deep spot and caught one on a topwater. I figured out what the pattern was and I went to war with it.”
Robertson said he found his best opportunities in pockets with docks, deeper cuts and flat points with scattered rock. Most of the bass he saw were hunting bait in small feeding groups known as “wolf packs.”
