Smallmouth spin out Casey Ashley

Pro anglers are expected to have all the answers, know all there is to know about bass, but Casey Ashley confesses that when it comes to smallmouth, they've got his number.

Pro anglers are expected to have all the answers, know all there is to know about bass, but Casey Ashley confesses that when it comes to smallmouth, they’ve got his number.

 

“I’ve never sniffed a 20-pound limit in a smallmouth tournament, and best I can remember, I’ve never even cashed a check in a smallmouth dominated event,” said Ashley soon after weighing-in a respectable 15-pound limit on Day One at the Bassmaster Elite Series Angler of the Year Championship on Lake Michigan.

 

Rest assured the likeable South Carolina pro isn’t complaining that Day Two was cancelled due to high winds, and he probably won’t even spend much time tweaking tackle during this unplanned windy day off. 

 

A glance at his Triton’s front deck revealed nine rods and reels after Day One; four of them baitcasters decorated with jerkbaits, the other five were all Size 30 Quantum Smoke and Energy spinning reels sporting standard Smallmouth fare such as tubes and drop shots – leaving no doubt Ashley knows what to throw. It’s more of a struggle of where to throw.

 

“My big struggle with Smallmouth is they’re so random,” explained a frustrated Ashley. “With largemouth, I can pretty much tell you what cast is gonna get a bite based on the fact that largemouth live in predictable places, but with smallmouth, I swear sometimes I could do just as well casting over my shoulder, as when I try to pinpoint them.”

 

Ashley may struggle with Smallmouth, but his 10th place standing in the Toyota Angler of the Year race entering this tournament proves his 2014 season has been awesome to the point that mathematically all he really needed to do at Escanaba, Michigan this week was show-up, and catch a single bass.

 

“I’m not even sure I had to catch a bass here to stay qualified for the 2015 Classic, but I’ll admit I screamed like Iaconelli when I caught that first keeper today, just knowing for certain at that moment that I had locked myself in for Hartwell,” said Ashley.

 

And my, oh my, is the upcoming February 2015 Bassmaster Classic on Lake Hartwell ever significant to Ashley. It’s his home lake. Fishing along his father Danny’s side, Hartwell’s waters baptized the young Ashley’s penchant for competitive angling 15 years ago, and his recent wire-to-wire $100,000 FLW Tour win at Hartwell just seven months ago left no doubt how dominant Ashley can be there at the very same time of year he’ll compete for a life-changing Classic win in 2015.

 

It could happen, but with no thanks to Smallmouth.