Over my many years of tournament bass fishing, I have had the privilege and honor of sharing a bass boat with some great anglers. Some of these are 1997 Bassmaster Classic Champ Dion Hibdon, three-time FLW Angler of the Year Clark Wendlandt, and MLF Champion Kelly Jordon who all have the ability to not only find bass, but catch them as well.
Sure, there are videos and some great fishing magazines that can help point you in the right direction, but nothing replaces experience and time on the water. Today, we’ll go over what makes a great tournament angler and the skills necessary to compete on a high level.
Just like any other sport, some athletes are just gifted and have great ability. Some are the complete package and have not only great physical talent, but they possess a great mental aptitude for whatever sport they are playing.
But in the tournament bass fishing world, there are certain skills one must possess in order to compete. First, would be the ability to cast a lure and put it into places where bass live. He or she must be versatile and able to pitch, flip or cast the bait where they want. It’s like a baseball pitcher being able to throw the baseball with precision and accuracy in order to get batters out. If you can’t cast, you won’t be competitive.
But one of the most overlooked skills necessary to be a successful bass fisherman is the ability to locate fish. Finding fish is probably the hardest skill to learn but with today’s high level of electronics, the task has been made much easier.
Today’s up and coming anglers have it too easy with all the new fish locating tools they have at their disposal like down imaging, side scan and, yes, the new controversial forward-facing sonar. Anglers a generation ago had to learn this skill the hard way by understanding water clarity, water temperature, habitat or simply by getting on the water and making cast after cast to try and locate bass.
Back in the day, anglers had to cover a lot of water fan casting a lure for hours trying to locate bass. But most anglers today never have to wet a hook to locate bass. Today’s angler will spend countless hours idling around the lake watching their sonar screens searching and GPS marking good structure or cover like laydowns, brush piles, hydrilla (grass) or more importantly…. baitfish!
All the pre-fishing they need to do today is on a 10- or 12-inch screen. It’s a known fact that some anglers will never make a cast before the tournament starts. Ten years ago, if someone showed up at a bass tournament without pre-fishing, they were just simply donating to the rest of the field. But oh, how times have changed here on Walton’s Mountain!
So, here’s my advice to all the young anglers coming up today. Learn how to find fish on your own. Don’t rely on someone else to send you waypoints or show you where they are catching fish. Rely and trust yourself to find fish! There are no shortcuts or a magical formula for being successful. One thing has remained true from the very beginning of tournament bass fishing, there’s no substitute for time on the water!
Till next time good luck, good fishing and always wear your sunscreen and good UV protective clothing. Melanoma is the number one killer of all forms of cancer. Don’t roll the dice when it comes to your health.
Steve Graf
Angler’s Perspective
