Humble Pie

[IgotWood]

I took a big old bite of it this weekend. This is my first season fishing for LMB. I have been quite consistent all year with fish over 20", and I decided to join a local kayak tournament. This is the first tournament I have ever fished. I anticipated it for months thinking I would have a strong shot at winning. Well, with that hurricane/tropical storm last week, the lake was up about 2-3', and the water had cooled way down. The bite was non-existent for me. I landed two small fish that weren't even worth scoring. I tried everything I had with me. I was getting lots of bites on wacky senkos, but I couldn't get the hook set on any of them. I spent the day banging the banks and lay-downs. The water was very dirty, so I didn't suspect them to be in open water. It was a bad day. Definitely need to become a more rounded fisherman!  

[jbmaine]

Don't feel bad. I've been fishing for LM for years, and still have times like that. The fact that you know you need to become a more rounded fisherman is the first step in becoming one. As I said, I've been LM fishing for years, and I'm still learning how to catch fish in unexpected water / weather conditions.

                           Jim

[gulfcaptain]

First off....welcome to fishing in general.  Second, welcome to tournament fishng.  Sounds like you went in ready to go but then lost it mentally when conditions changed and you didn't.  As for your 2 small fish, if you're fishing tournaments ALWAYS count fish that will weigh or score in a tournament, no matter how small they are.....as long as they are legal.  And as you said this is your first season fishing bass, read more articles about seasonal patterns and different conditions as so when you encounter them you can adjust.  We all eat some humble pie every now and then, but every day you spend on the water you should learn something weather or not you caught them or didn't.  

[scaleface]

My first club tournament I was confident going in and got skunked . Second tourney I was just as confident and  won . So give them hell next time .

[Turtle135]

Keep after them! Fishing those kayak tournaments will force you become a more resourceful bass angler. I would second the notion that you should score any legal bass in a tournament. If your tournaments are like mine they are catch, photo and release so no harm in getting a quick photo on a dink. You never know when you might need that dink to complete your limit.

I have been fishing a local kayak series for the past three seasons. As kayak anglers we are somewhat locked into the area we chose to fish. No firing up the outboard to check one spot seven miles down the lake. We have to plan better before we even get on the water. We also need to present our artificials better as we will be working over a more limited number of bass over the course of the tournament.

I would say that two out of every three tournaments I have fished in have been a "grind" to get bites for the entire field. Fishing is more frequently tough than easy. I can only think of one tournament over three years where everyone was into the bass that day.

Good luck!

 

[IgotWood]

Thanks for the comments. Yes, I would have scored the small fish, but the tournament was biggest fish by length. You could score as many fish as you like, but only your biggest will be scored against the rest of the competitors. The two fish I caught were probably shy of 12"....I didn't bother...lol! Well, it seems now that the fall transition period is in full swing. Time to find different ways to catch them.

[WIGuide]

2 hours ago, IgotWood said:

Thanks for the comments. Yes, I would have scored the small fish, but the tournament was biggest fish by length. You could score as many fish as you like, but only your biggest will be scored against the rest of the competitors. The two fish I caught were probably shy of 12"....I didn't bother...lol! Well, it seems now that the fall transition period is in full swing. Time to find different ways to catch them.

You've got some good info here so I don't have much to add other than welcome to tournament fishing! Also, I'm curious as to what it took to win that tournament and how the rest of the field did. There's a difference in it being a tough day for you and being a tough day for everyone. Obviously, it's going to be beneficial to become more well rounded, but it's good to know if you were close to what was working, or you missed the boat completely.