Does tournament angling make you a better angler?

[roadwarrior]

Interestingly, KVD won AOY (I believe) in his rookie year.

Although he was the youngest pro to win AOY at age 24, it was his second year as a professional fisherman on tour.

http://espn.go.com/outdoors/gad/profile/vandam.html

8-)

[Matt 825]

Fishing in tournamnets has made me a much better fisherman, but only because I have had the oppertunity to fish with some guys who were really good fisherman.  I watched and learned different ways to catch fish and different methods to find fish.  It basically made me more versitile.  That being said I dont consider myself a 'tournament angler"  I like fishing in my quiet, hard to get to spots with the little aluminum boat far more than a big tournament.

[Willzx225]

I believe it is all in your mind set.  If you have a desire to get better you will find  a way.  I think that tournaments will make you better if that is what you want.  Some people fish a lot of tournaments for the fellowship (mostly smaller "fruit jar" tournaments) and hope to get "lucky" and catch a good fish to win some money.  Others use tournaments as a learning tool.  I always compare my chosen pattern against what the winners did and try to use this to make better decisions the next time I am in that situation.  

A great example of how tournaments will force you to become a better angler is how I approach larger events on my home lake.  I am very comfortable on Smith Mountain Lake.  When I have a BFL or other larger event I always end up looking at stuff I normally don't fish mixed with my normal patterns.  I try to disect the lake like it was a foreign body of water to me and practice how the seasonal patterns should dictate.  By practicing this way I teach myself how to recognize developing patterns and once I find them I have more water than I can often run.  I think it is very important to fish the moment on lakes you are very familiar with instead of running the same old milk run (unless that is the primary pattern of course)

[flechero]

I don't think there is a right answer here... for some yes and others no.

For me, fishing tournaments only made me less patient on the water, running back to the smaller easier to find and catch bass. That strategy may add more numbers of smaller keepers to my livewell but did not make me a better angler.

Although, one could argue the time spent pre-fishing (if more than you would have in fun fishing) could improve your skills.

[fishfordollars]

I'll take a limit of keeper bass every day of the year and wear out the guy that catches a big fish every now and then.

Well, I think that's just personal preference, I'm completely opposite.

I'd rather catch one 8 lb fish than a boatload of "tournament bass".

8-)

Me too if I am just fishing. Tournaments for me are a different deal entirely. I go for a limit and then try to upgrade.

My tournament philosophy used to be the same, get a limit then try to find a kicker.

Not any longer.

I fish to win every tournament. I target winning fish because I know EVERY tournament has good sticks and someone is going to catch them.

Personally, I'm not satisifed with just acheiving a limit if a paycheck does not go with it.

It has worked for me, may not be for everyone, to each his own I guess

If you do your homework the kicker usually comes with the limit. Long Mike was in the boat with me last month as I was trying to squeeze out a limit. I did not get it; however, my two largest weighed over 8 and over 10.

[Garnet]

Everbody goes thru that get a limit. And lots have rode that to great careers.

Then lots switch to swinging for the fence and accept the beatings.

Others adjust to the game and the lake. Some lakes are limit type lakes others are big fish lakes and you can easily go get a small limit and never cash a check.

If you are not fishing for a spot on your state team or the classic or club championship then you try to win or cash a check.

All these thing make you a better angler and others get stalled somewhere inbetween.

Garnet

[DaRy03621]

Fishing new water is an absolute must to becoming a better angler.  If by fishing tournaments your forcing yourself to fish new water, then absolutely tournament angling makes you a better angler.  I haven't started fishing tournaments till this year (Purdue bass club), but I've had the chance to recreationally fish in many different places-NY, WV, PA and now IN.  My ability to read new water has helped me in these tournaments because I've never seen any of Indiana's lakes, but still have managed to fish well.  I guess what I'm trying to say is that if tournament fishing forces you to fish new water, you can definitely improve your fish finding/fishing abilities.  Of course you could do this recreationally like I have done, but some people may get into the habit of just fishing their home waters because they know they can catch fish there.

[thetr20one]

Practice for tourneys and honing skills makes you a better angler. Period! IMHO.

[Catt]

This is still going straight over the heads of many of many of y'all

Y'all can fish all the tournaments y'all can enter within a years time but if y'all aint paying attention to basics y'all will not become a better angler. Y'all can fish a different lake every week not paying attention to the basics y'all will still be the same angler y'all already are. Y'all can not spend your entire life fishing with someone else sooner or later you got to figure out on your own.

What do y'all think makes Tom Redington, Randall or George Welcome the productive guides they have become, the tackle they use, the techniques the employ, or the boats they drive? No absolutely not! They all understand the relationship structures, bait fish, weather conditions, seasonal patterns, timber or vegetation play concerning locating bass.

[Garnet]

Catt what makes you think we are not very good anglers and understand location, seasons, different lakes for different tactics.

Then we try do better.

Garnet

[wagn]

Fishing tournaments made me a worse angler. I was to "new" to bass fishing and didn't have the basics down. I'd fish a tournament and not understand why we were fishing were we were, or what bait to use.

Because I was in someones boat I went where they went.  

If I didn't have the technique to fish deep and they wanted to fish deep, then I was left with no confidence and didn't know what to do. Being a beginner I had a couple of techniques I was confident in and could fish those very well and usually catch a few bass....as long as I could fish were I wanted.

I am in no way an expert now but fishing tourneys today I think would be benefit me. I have a much better understanding of location and structure. I have developed and am comfortable with different techniques for many different situations.

However as Catt said learning the basics is the only thing that will make you a better angler. Tourney's alone do not make you better...I'm living proof.

As an aside, i really enjoyed my limited time tourney fishing and had fun doing it. However it was not nearly as productive a learning experiance as my fishing since leaving tourney's has been.

[5bass]

I agree with Keith on this one, there is no correct answer here. I can say 'yes' and 'no'.

It's my belief that knowledge and understanding of how the forage moves, weather effects, seasonal patterns, etc...is a HUGE advantage when trying to get on fish. Getting to that point where you understand all of the variables and knowing how they affect a basses daily life is crucial to actually finding and catching bass consistently....and finding and catching bass consistently will make you a good angler all the way around. It's all a process.

[Catt]

No one doubts there are a small percentage of tournament anglers who understand what is necessary to consistently catch bass and if those percentages of anglers are in fact teaching others why is there no change in the bottom percentage? My point is often times when someone asks how to become better at locating and catching bass the answer is join a local club or enter local tournaments. My answer is to find a mentor and fish with him as often as possible; this can even be taught via the internet example Muddy.

We are sending inexperienced anglers off to be tutored by whom?

Shouldn't we be teaching them?

Example: how many topics have been started recently about cold water fishing and the majority of the answers are down size you lures and fish slow; what has that told the newbie?

We are willing to get our panties in a wad when what we perceive is questioning of the ability of tournament anglers but refuse to offer proper information required to send the newbie on his way well armed.  

[SDoolittle]

Tournament fishing opened my eyes to how much I didn't know about fishing. It instilled in me the drive to learn more and resulted in me becoming a better fisherman.

[tyrius.]

In my opinion tournament angling is a way to keep score on how good of an angler one is.  The actual tourney isn't the time to improve.  That's done pre-fishing or before one becomes a tourney angler.  

Liken this to any "real" sport and those athletes don't necessarily become better athletes during the games they play, they improve by doing their homework, learning the fundamentals, practicing the fundamentals until they become second nature, and then repeating the above as often as possible.  The actual game time is a showcase of the work they've already done.  If you haven't done the work then don't be surprised if you get smoked.

[Long Mike]

Those of you who know me know that I am a relative newbie to the sport.  I have fished only two tournaments.  Ironically, they were both held at Lake Fork.  As a newbie I take advantage of every opportunity I can to learn from others.  During the first tournament I learned nothing.  My host seemed to know no more that I did.  In the second tournament I fished with Fishfordollars, and I learned a ton.

Truth be told,  whether or not I was fishing a tournament is immaterial.  It's WHO I was fishing with that made me a better angler.

Jack (Fishfordollars) taught me more than he will ever know.  One of the more significant lessons I learned is that, thanks to my incessant reading, I know more than I think I did.  I just couldn't put the pieces together on the water.  Jack very patiently taught me how to start solving the puzzle.  Many thanks Jack.

[Brian_Reeves]

I agree 100% that it's who you're fishing with that can make all the difference in the world.

Tournament angling gives you a chance to fish with a bunch of people.  Especially events with the FLW co-angler format.  You can learn a lot in a few days just by switching up and fishing with different pros.  I'm hitting the co-angler trail next year and I hope to not only become a better angler through knowledge, challenges and experience, but also become a successful one as well.  I can't wait to see how my unorthodox approaches to situations hold up on a trail.  Learning that, in iteself, will make me a better angler.

[Paul Roberts]

Sounds like two topics intertwined here...

-What should be considered basic knowledge (nature, tackle).

-Whether tournaments can make you a better angler.

As to Ts, I think the opportunity to learn is certainly there, but the knowledge you bring with you will affect what you learn tremendously. Educators call this "transfer" -What you already have that will allow you to recognize something valuable when it appears. I like Thoreau's (or was it Emerson's) comment: "There is only as much beauty available to us in the visual ray as we are prepared to appreciate, and not a grain more."

I know anglers who have learned by leaps and bounds by getting involved in clubs, but I see Catt's point: That the easy stuff, tackle and technique, is secondary to basic knowledge about how aquatic systems work. This is much more complicated, over the range of waters bass inhabit, and not all the information is in (at least in my lexicon LOL).

It's much easier, and may be more fun for many, to talk tackle and technique. But as every angler gets pounded in, no one technique is THE ANSWER. Although it sure might seem like it on some days.

Somebody mentioned mentors, and I agree wholeheartedly. I assume mentoring can occur in T situations, but a really good mentor  tends to special kind of person. Not everyone is so giving.

[Raul]

Y'all can fish all the tournaments y'all can enter within a years time but if y'all aint paying attention to basics y'all will not become a better angler. Y'all can fish a different lake every week not paying attention to the basics y'all will still be the same angler y'all already are.  

X2

[BassinMichigan]

The competitive nature involved in tournament angling has definitely made me a better angler, in just one year of fishing tourneys.  It's not the actual day of the tournament that has improved my skills and knowledge, but the preparation for each event.  Before I fished competitively, I never committed myself the way I do today to gaining a true understanding of how bass react and adapt to different structure and cover throughout the year according to water temp, wind, bait patterns, etc.  In just one year, I have improved drastically at analyzing lake maps, identifying pre-spawn, spawn, and post-spawn areas, and finding locations that will be holding fish throughout the summer  I also would never spend time practicing flipping and pitching jigs into coffee cans off of my deck until this year.  My competitive nature is what has fueled my new found dedication to the sport.  It's not the money that I desire, it's simply the victory.

[George Welcome]

The opportunity to learn in a club atmosphere only comes if you have two open-minded people on board.

The opportunity to learn in a circuit tournament, if you are observant, is how to improve your mechanical skills. The mechanical skills involved in this past-time of ours are of extreme importance, but it is an area that is only a few will improve to a level needed in upper level tournaments. The use of rod, reel, and associated tackle can be improved by paying attention.

The opportunity to learn the fine points of locating fish aren't likely to be presented when fishing the circuit tournaments as the "Pro" will have already laid out his choices and rarely with any input from the "Co". However, if the "Pro" is talkative you might gain in this area.

Club tournaments offer the opportunity to "share and learn" fish locating simply because in most cases, two heads are better than one.

If you do get good at the "mechanics", and good at "locating" you can then learn what observation and concentration truly mean by observing both levels of tournament fishing, but circuit tournaments will lead the way in these two areas. These attributes are the most difficult to learn, and the most important of all your fishing skills.

[WRB]

Lets roll the clock back 40 years to 1968, the early All American bass tournaments that Ray Scott held. At that time the only other tournaments were big bass events where the heavest bass won all the money. Scotts events where blind draw events and the heavest limits won the money.

Todays tournaments are fashioned after the All Amercican events and the focus became catching a limit, rather than catching big bass, two very different disiplines. The other factor that the All American events established was a specific start and finish time you had to catch your limit of fish. Limiting the time and catching limits of bass, changed how tournament fisherman fished to be successful. The fisherman could no longer camp out on a specific spot known to have bass and wait for them to start biting. The tournament fisherman needed to have several spots to make a milk run or establish a pattern of lures and locations where you could catch bass at different times and locations.

The weekend fisherman normally doesn't understand why a tournament fisherman tends to be running around the lake and fishing several different areas quickly.

I fully agree with Catt in regards that most bass fisherman do not understand basics of bass behavior and prey types the bass are targeting.

With todays electronics and GPS maps, most tournament fisherman have learned where to fish, they just don't know why the bass are there. If you don't know why the bass are located at that location, during whatever seasonal period it may be, you can't teach anyone else how to consistantly catch bass, regardless of how good you may be with your technical fishing skills or the quality of your equipment and tackle.

Being both a trophy bass fisherman, that occasionally fishes charity tournaments, here are my thoughts on this topic; the tournament bass fisherman must be able to make good decissions to manage their time and know where to fish when. Both the tournament and weekend recreational fisherman should take the time to learn basic bass behavior; it's far more important to know why bass are doing what they do, than being skilled with your tackle and owning high tech equipment.

I don't know tournament fisherman who are willing to share their bass behavior knowledge, they will offer to teach you how to use equipment and present specific lures.

WRB

[Matt Fly]

99% of all the tournaments I have fished taught me very little from the competition.    The guys I fish against are highly competitive, and are what you call "tight lipped".   Having a great partner may teach you alot, but the competition rarely will.    

                I have buddies who can flat out stick some fish, but they can't find them on their own very often.

To answer Catt's question.   It only adds to the time on the water and that don't make you successfull if you can't process info and make adjustments throughout the day.

Hands down, this forum shares more info than any other forum that I have been on.    Time on the water, and learning to apply what you learn here can make you a better fishermen.  

     

     

     

         

     

     

   

[Randall]

Funny this comes up. I am thinking about not fishing any or many tournaments next year so I can learn more. I learn very little on the days I fish tournaments mainly because I don't experiment and trying new things when trying to win. I go with what I know works on those days. I feel if I spend those days I spend fishing tournaments each year just trying to learn more and not worrying about if I catch fish or not then I will learn more and become a better fishermen. I can also spend that time just fishing for trophy fish instead of trying to get five smaller fish for a limit.  

[Red Possum Strangler]

I can say that I used to shoot for FLW as well as Bassmasters and it has made me a much better fisherman. Fishing with a pro, if ever given the opportunity a great way to really learn. If you can ever compete in a pro/am do it.