5 Big Mammas!
By Bryan Brasher
BASS PRESS RELEASE
As a native of Osaka, Japan, Morizo Shimizu doesn’t speak
quite as much English as the average angler on the Bassmaster Elite Series.
But he knows the words “Big Mama” very well.
That’s the nickname he uses for the size bass he likes to
catch — and on Thursday, he caught five of them.
 |
| Big largemouth key for Japanese pro. (Photo: BASS) |
Shimizu, an 11-year veteran of the Elite Series, brought 23
pounds, 6 ounces to the scales and took the first-round lead in the Busch Beer
Bassmaster Elite at Cayuga Lake. His catch was anchored by a 6-3 largemouth
that he said came during the afternoon hours.
“I catch about eight fish all day,” Shimizu said in his
usual broken English. “But I only catch five big ones. I caught fish early and
late — all day long — from about 5 feet of water. But the biggest one came
during afternoon.”
Including Shimizu’s mammoth catch, the 107-angler field
produced 12 bags that weighed 20 pounds or more. It took 19-5 to make the Top
20 and 16-15 to make the Top 50 — the highest Day 1 mark needed to make the Top
50 this year.
Spawning smallmouth played a role for many anglers, but
Shimizu opted to fish for largemouth because the smallies he located during
practice had disappeared.
“I saw some on beds, but they had gone,” he said. “I don’t
know if somebody caught them or if they just left. But they weren’t there
anymore.”
New Jersey pro Michael Iaconelli was second with 21-15 — and
like Shimizu, he chose to concentrate mainly on largemouth.
