THE BASS COLLEGE

Tournament fishing is way more MENTAL than people realize

your exactly right kurt.

By Mike Iaconelli

Bassmaster.com

April 11, 2011

Going catchin'

Last we talked about going fishin'. This week we'll talk about going catchin'. I had a really good tournament on Pickwick. It wasn't perfect, but it was darn good, and I'm driving to Toledo Bend with a smile on my face.

It's especially gratifying after getting off to a tough start on the first day. What made that day so hard to swallow was that I was doing the right things. I had three patterns going, and they were all producing. I'm not exaggerating when I say I caught over 60 keepers on Wednesday. I just couldn't hook one over 3 pounds.

I thought about it that evening and decided that I'd give it some more time the next morning. I wasn't willing to commit the whole day to it, but I was going to give it at least another couple of hours. When I say "it," I'm referring to my staging pattern where I'd found bass stopping at various points on their way to the spawning beds.

That turned out to be a darn good move. On my first cast on Thursday I caught a 4 1/2-pounder. That reinforced my idea and didn't hurt my mood one bit. I felt really confident at that point.

The staging pattern worked for me through Friday. I was pulling up in the standings every day — from 68th place on Wednesday to 27th place on Thursday and into the top 12 by Friday night.

That's the good part. The bad part is that my staging and bigger fish bite — they were hitting Rapala DT6 and 10 crankbaits — disappeared on Saturday. I'd shift patterns for a while and then go back to the crankbaits thinking I could still catch a heavy sack. It didn't work. I caught 11 pounds, 1 ounce, and finished in 11th place.

In hindsight, I should have given up on my staging pattern and just fished my other two options. But, that's hindsight. When you're fishing on the last day and you're down near the bottom, you try to swing for the fences. It really doesn't make much sense to be careful or try for a few ounces more. There's nothing to lose, so why not go for it?

That's all over and done with now, though. It's time to keep looking forward. I can't wait to get to Toledo Bend and start fishing. It's my kind of lake with lots of offshore grass and emergent vegetation. I love that stuff.

Besides, the one thing I know I won't have to do is try to catch bedding bass. I won't pass one by if I see her, but I won't have to find and catch her to win, either. That's a real relief, a big load off my mind. As you know I like to be off the shoreline a ways. I understand those fish more than I do the homemakers.

Hang in there and keep fishing.

That is my brother Kurt in the videos in the REDMAN and BFL tournaments. (BASSMAN KVB). THIS WAS 13 years ago, when Kurt was a BFL regional qualifier and won the Redman tournament on the Potomac in his first year fishing tournaments at age 18. In 2004, he placed second on the Potomac missing first place by only an ounce, with 16.9 lbs, in a pouring rain storm with more than 2 inches of rain in 8 hours!

Sometimes there's no place but first place — that's when you go for broke

By Dan O'Sullivan

MAY 4, 2011

When B.A.S.S. announced a change to the Bassmaster Classic qualifying rules that granted each regular season Elite Series winning angler a berth in the Classic, the term “going for broke” came into play. Now that the season is halfway through, and the point standings have begun to take shape, the approach is en vogue again.

We’ve all heard anglers say they’re “fishing for the win,” but that usually applies to the Bassmaster Classic, when there are no points and second place truly is first loser. So, what does it mean to go for broke? What does it mean to leave all caution to the wind and swing for the fences?

Several Elite Series pros have a reputation for fishing with an all or nothing approach. Greg Hackney, James Niggemeyer and Dean Rojas all have a gambling mentality that’s part of their game plan.

“We all want to win for sure,” Niggemeyer said. “For anglers on this level, it requires knowing what you’re best at and being able to find the right conditions to take a chance at glory. When those things come together, the equation can be victory.”

For Niggemeyer, who won the Central Open on Toledo Bend in 2010, taking a chance on new water was a big part of his “go for the win” attitude. Niggemeyer won the event in a fish-off after finding himself tied for the lead on the final day of the event. He had been sight fishing and was forced to go to new water for the fish off because his primary areas had been exhausted.

Hackney, who has earned a reputation on tour as the Elite’s largest risk taker, said that his choice to take a flyer on an area may come down to one bite.

“I may be on a solid pattern of three and a half pounders, but I know I need five pounders in order to win,” he said. “I may have only gotten one big bit in an area, but I’ll make that my focus for the tournament because I know it holds the quality I need to win.”

For Rojas, it means sticking to a program that he knows like the back of his hand and choosing areas that he believes will provide him the right bites.

“I make decisions at a tournament like the Bassmaster Classic to fish in areas that I know the right bites live in,” he said. “I also try to throw lures that will attract the bigger bite — like my Spro Bronzeye Frog or Kicker Frog — but, I’m not really a giant risk taker otherwise.”

Rojas even admits to hedging his bets at the Bassmaster Classic. He said that his early career struggles to keep fishing forced him to take very calculated risks and making Day Three of the Classic is something that’s important for his sponsors.

“Even today I try to make sure that the gambles are good ones,” he said. “If I’m catching 16 pounds, when I know I need 22 pounds to win, I’ll still try and get the limit early and go after the bigger bites later.”

Hackney said that lure choices or techniques play into going for broke.

“I might be on a dock pattern where I can cash a check on a shaky head,” said Hackney. “But, if I can make five of those fish bite my Hack Attack Jig and Rage Craw, then I’ll have a chance to win. That’s when I’ll pick up my flipping stick.”

Niggemeyer, also a flipper, echoed Hackney: “I’m comfortable with fishing for five or six bites a day,” he said. “So, if that means I pick up the big Strike King Rodent or a Shadalicious swimbait and get seven bites instead of weeding through 25 fish to get a limit, then I’m ready to do that.”

Everyone likes to win, but for anglers who make their living on the water, missing a paycheck by taking a flyer on a gamble can be detrimental. But, a thorough understanding of when to take a risk gives the best anglers greater potential of hitting a home run once in a while.

“I try to take my biggest risks when I know I can afford to,” said Hackney. “When I’ve got a cushion in the points and the body of water suits my style is when I really take a risk at a big tournament.”

very good info. steve, i think everybody here on our site ALWAYS goes for broke

real good stuff

It's real hard sometime's but I never give up until the last second I can fish. I've seen to many tournaments won in the last 1\2 hour. I've won them, and lost them in that half hour, but I always go for the win !

Delawarebass at April 11, 2011 at 10:41 PM

That is my brother Kurt in the videos in the REDMAN and BFL tournaments. (BASSMAN KVB). THIS WAS 13 years ago, when Kurt was a BFL regional qualifier and won the Redman tournament on the Potomac in his first year fishing tournaments at age 18. In 2004, he placed second on the Potomac missing first place by only an ounce, with 16.9 lbs, in a pouring rain storm with more than 2 inches of rain in 8 hours!

What year and what division did Kurt win on the Potomac in the Redman tournament trail?

Northeast in the late 90's I forget the year.