Momentum is a funny thing in professional bass fishing. It can’t be measured in ounces or entered into BASSTrakk but the anglers know exactly what it feels like.
For Team Toyota pro Matt Arey, that feeling rode shotgun as the Bassmaster Elite Series rolled into Lake Martin.
Arey is coming off a 21st-place finish at Lake Guntersville, a tournament that tested the field with bitter cold and stingy bites. It wasn’t a headline-grabbing Top 10 but in a sport where confidence can swing as wildly as a crankbait, it was a steadying performance. And one he believes can carry forward into the clear waters of this Alabama highland reservoir.
“I ended up finishing in 21st place on Guntersville,” Arey said. “The first day of practice there was probably the coldest I’ve ever been. The fish I ended up catching during the tournament, I found on that super-cold day. 13 of the 15 fish I weighed were caught on a jerkbait. It was an old-school bite, really. I’d jerk it a few times and have to wait 8 or so seconds to get a bite.”
That patience defined his week. Guntersville, famous for its expansive grass flats and ledges, demanded a throwback approach. Arey leaned into it. He targeted subtle irregularities.
“I was really focusing on drains and turns in the grass,” he said. “Open areas in the grass were key, obviously, so my treble hooks wouldn’t get tangled up in the vegetation.”
It wasn’t flashy. It wasn’t fast. It was methodical and rooted in experience. More importantly, it was instinctive.
“It was so nice letting the fish dictate everything,” Arey said. “Getting back to gut instincts, intuition and instinct was a lot of fun. I can’t overstate that.”
In a modern Elite Series field loaded with forward-facing sonar, high-definition mapping and real-time data, that kind of seat-of-the-pants fishing can feel almost rebellious. It reminded Arey why he started chasing bass for a living in the first place.
Now the tour shifts southeast to Lake Martin, a sprawling Coosa River impoundment known for its spotted bass, clear water and scenic shorelines dotted with docks and deep pockets. If Guntersville was a test of endurance and patience, Martin promises to be a thinking man’s lake.
“As far as Lake Martin goes, it’s slap-full of bass,” Arey said. “You can catch a bass just about anywhere, but 2-pounders are an absolute premium. If you look at all the BFL tournaments here lately, normally 13 to 15 pounds wins in a one-day tournament.”
That statistic alone tells the story.
Lake Martin isn’t a place where anglers typically stack 20-pound bags. Limits are common; quality is not. In many ways, it’s a grinder’s paradise.
“If you catch 7 1/2 to 9 pounds per day here, you’re going to have a great day,” Arey said.
In Elite Series competition, where five-bass limits and cumulative weights rule the week, that reality forces anglers to recalibrate expectations. A single 3-pounder can swing dozens of places in the standings. A lost fish can haunt a competitor long after weigh-in.
“A few folks are going to catch a big largemouth in the 5-pound range and that’s going to carry their weight for the tournament,” Arey said.
That wildcard, a kicker largemouth lurking around a dock, seawall or shallow brush pile, could separate the contenders from the rest of the pack. While Martin is known for its spotted bass, those green-backed largemouth still have the power to tilt the scales.
For Arey, the lake’s personality feels familiar.
“This lake reminds me a lot of Lake Hartwell and Lake Norman,” he said. “It’s a fantastic pattern lake. But don’t be mistaken, forward-facing sonar is going to change a lot of stuff. It will spread the lake out, which is a good thing. This lake has a lot of shoreline with a lot of fingers to it, so I don’t expect a bunch of anglers to be on top of each other.”
Hartwell. Norman. Both are Carolina fisheries where Arey has logged countless hours. Clear water. Spotted bass. Docks. Points. The kind of places where reading subtle clues like bait movement, wind direction and water clarity shifts can unlock a productive stretch.
On those lakes, patterns tend to develop in layers. Lake Martin offers similar possibilities, but modern electronics will undoubtedly influence how competitors break it down. Forward-facing sonar has become a dominant tool, allowing anglers to target individual fish in real time.
Arey isn’t blind to that evolution.
“I’ll be fishing with a lot of spinning gear in this event,” he said. “I’m very well versed when it comes to finesse fishing but the thing I have to remember is, a lot of other competitors are also very good at this type of fishing.”
That acknowledgment reflects the razor-thin margins at the Elite level. There are no secrets about finesse tactics anymore. Drop shots, shaky heads and small swimbaits on spinning rods are standard issue on lakes like Martin. The difference often comes down to execution. Boat positioning, line management and decision making under pressure.
It also comes back to momentum.
A 21st-place finish may not earn a trophy, but it builds rhythm. It reinforces decision-making. It reminds an angler that he can adjust when conditions turn harsh and the bite gets tough.
At Lake Martin, where 2-pounders are prized and ounces can mean everything, that same willingness to slow down and listen could pay dividends. Instead of forcing a preconceived game plan, Arey is ready to let the lake unfold in front of him.
As the Elite Series field launches onto the blue waters of Lake Martin, the storylines will revolve around electronics, spotted bass and the hunt for a 5-pound largemouth that could anchor a winning bag.
For Matt Arey, though, the storyline feels simpler.
Trust your instincts. Build on momentum. And when the bite gets tough, don’t be afraid to wait those eight long seconds. On a lake where every ounce matters, patience just might be the heaviest thing he brings to the scales.
