My First Tourney

[Rebel_7]

Hey guys, fishing my first really tournament. I'm fishing in a 1000 acre pretty clear lake with clear sky's and about 60 degrees in the morning. I'm fishing with a friend I've fished with before but not in tournaments. Can you guys help me out on how to catch the keeper fish. Any tips will be great thanks. I'm guessing chatterbaits/frogs/jigs will be good?

[FinCulture]

don't spend too much time in the same spot with the same bait. After fishing a particular area/lure for 15 or so minutes without any luck, either start throwing a different presentation or move spots. And have fun! You won't catch any fish if you go about it like you're fishing for your life. Get out there and enjoy the day, but also focus on what you're doing, as well, in order to catch more fih.

[MidwestF1sh]

Biggest thing is have fun with it. I learned with small tournaments its not for the money really its for the guys you get to meet and talk to. You'll learn a ton. Great advise above. Limit yourself to 15mins before changing something you're doing and don't throw the same thing as your partner unless its producing keepers.

[Florida bassin]

I use a lot of buzz baits and chatter baits but it varies on what the fish are biting. Don't fish with the same lure the whole tourney unless it's producing fish. Find a shady bank with lots of cover and fish it.. Also have fun. For me the small tourneys are a learning experience

[Bluebasser86]

Almost impossible to make any suggestions with next to zero lake info. 

[scaleface]

Use it as a learning experience and have fun . I got skunked my first club tourney  .

[Fishes in trees]

Are you driving the boat or fishing out of the back of the boat?  If you want decent advice, you need to provide a set of circumstances.

For instance, what neighborhood are you fishing in?  Natural lake ?  Man made reservoir?   Some kind of flowage?   Predominate cover, is it weeds or wood or rocks, natural cover or man made brush piles?  Are there any weeds and how deep does the weed line go?   Is there a thermocline and how deep?  How deep is the lake in its deepest part?  What is the average depth?    Predominate species?

What kind of gear you got?  And there are lots more.  The key to getting good advice is to define the fishing conditions you will most likely be facing.

 

For instance, I could tell you to throw a senko all day, but if you're in the back of the boat and the boat driver is covering the bank with spinner baits, you will likely be moving fast enough that a senko is unlikely to be effective.   Good luck.  Maybe-probably this first tournament will teach you to define fishing conditions a little bit.