“Bassmaster Elite Series pro Paul Mueller” is probably how you know me. But my story as a fisherman started much earlier than my four years on the Elite Series. Just like most anglers, my passion for fishing started many moons ago.
My path to professional fishing is a little different than most, for a few reasons. The Northeast region of the U.S. doesn’t have much representation in the professional ranks, but the passion of those anglers runs deep. Anglers like Bryan Kerchal and Mike Iaconelli carried the flag for the Northeast until a few more of us busted into the professional ranks.
Like those anglers, my journey started with the B.A.S.S. Nation, a league I’ll be forever grateful for. High school and college fishing have grown tremendously over the last decade, but being 34 years old meant I never had the chance to use those avenues. My niche came through the grassroots Nation events. It’s an old school proving ground that has anglers of all skillsets and backgrounds.
The early days
My dad was a big part of my fishing in my adolescent years. He saw my passion for the outdoors, especially fishing. Many anglers are outdoorsmen and will hunt in the offseason, but I’m on the water. I fish year-round and honestly love catching anything that swims. Bass is obviously my favorite species to target, but catching perch, crappie and walleye have helped me find and locate more bass. When I was younger I would fish as much as possible. Whether it was in a stream or wading in a small river or even from the bank of a local lake. I did it all. My first family boat was a dream come true, something that breached the bank and helped me escape to open water.
Whether my boat was a 16-foot deep-V aluminum rig, an old Gambler or my Elite Series rig, they’ve all seemed like Cadillacs to me because they got me off the bank and out on the water. It was a new world to a 13 year old, and it still is a new world with every trip I take. You’ll never stop learning in this sport.
I didn’t really have a mentor to teach me new techniques or show me what I was doing wrong. My dad ignited my fire for fishing, but I really learned on my own with time on the water. I adamantly believe that the best lessons and learning moments come in the midst of a loss or losing effort. I took my fair share of lumps growing up fishing tournaments against local studs. But I continued to compete and fish until I stole a couple checks here and there from the local fishermen I grew up admiring and competing against.
Fishing rooted in faith
Things in life happen for a particular reason, whether it’s due to your planning or not. My fishing and my life are heavily rooted in faith. You can do everything right on the water and come up just short of winning or accomplishing your goal. Then there are times when you can lose fish after fish but catch the single right fish at the perfect time and save the entire week. You’ll hear phrases like “when it’s your time you can’t do anything to mess it up, it’s meant to be.” I don’t chalk it up to luck or accident, but instead it’s God’s timing at work.
There is a specific reason I’m fishing the Bassmaster Elite Series and why I didn’t qualify later in life or even sooner. We tend to rush things in our minds, but in hindsight we look back and think, man that was the perfect thing at the exact right time in my life.
In my next column I’ll share two of the most important years of my life. Of all my years fishing, these two years changed the course of my life and allowed me to pursue my dreams. Don’t rush life because if it’s meant to be, it will happen, but not in the timing you expect it to. Just be patient.