Well, I learned one thing last week for sure: They don’t jump in the boat. Finishing 96th on the second or third best bass lake in the country will give you a real good perspective on that. And, to make matters even worse I don’t have anyone to blame but myself. I was my own worst enemy.
Practice went OK. When the tournament started the weather changed. I stuck with my practice pattern. (I don’t know why, either.) Then, on Friday, the weather changed back to what it was during practice. I abandoned my practice pattern. (I don’t know why I did that, either.) At the same time I passed over 3 pound bass on the beds because I didn’t think they were big enough. I didn’t even make a cast towards them. (That was one more good decision.)
Can you make more bad decisions than that?
It’s funny, you know. Some of my worst finishes have been on the best lakes. I think that’s because I overcompensate for things. I let the need for big bass get into my head and control my fishing in a negative way. I mean, it’s pretty bad when you catch more bass on the Sabine River than you do on Lake Guntersville. If I fished those legendary lakes more like a regular tournament, maybe I’d have more success. I sure couldn’t have less.
Skeet’s performance was extraordinary. He was an example of something I’ve talked about for years. When the Elite Series comes to town someone in the group will figure them out. They’ll find the right fish, make them bite and get them into the boat. When you fish like Skeet did last week, you win. That’s how things work at the professional level.
However, if you are a recreational angler or a weekend tournament guy, don’t let that fool you into thinking it always works that way. It doesn’t. As good as the Elite Series guys are they don’t always catch them. That thought should apply to you. Keep it in mind. Don’t be discouraged or get too down if you go to Lake Wonderful and struggle. Everyone struggles. They’re fish.
I won’t use any names other than my own because I don’t want to highlight other angler’s tough tournaments. That’s not what I’m about. Nevertheless, we all know that in any event there will be some well-known anglers who don’t finish in the upper half and don’t fish on Saturday. It happens. That’s part of what makes fishing different from a lot of things. A bad day can really be a bad day.
So, while we should all admire what Skeet was able to accomplish, we shouldn’t let that fool us into thinking we can, or should, do the same thing. Sometimes things don’t go the way we’d like despite our best efforts. It’s a big mistake to compare yourself to the winner of an Elite Series tournament, especially someone with the skills of Skeet Reese.
The past couple of columns have been directed primarily at casual or recreational anglers. Next week we’ll talk about how to deal with recreational anglers if you are fishing a tournament.