Now that we have the southern Elite events wrapped up, I’m taking a look at my season before we head up north for the final two events. All things considered, I’d say I’ve had a decent year.
I’ve made six out of seven check cuts — including a Top 10 at Lake Murray. I finished fifth at the Bassmaster Classic and I’m well inside the Classic cut for next year. Considering my early stumble at Lake Fork, I’m pleased with how I’ve been able to regroup and put together a good season so far.
Obviously Fork didn’t go my way and kinda messed up my Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year goal (even though Brandon Palaniuk finished 105th at Lake Okeechobee when he won the title in 2017). That event hurt me, but at the same time, it allowed me to take some chances once I got back to being comfortable like I am now.
If you watch other anglers around you that are at either end of that cut line — either way up at the top or right at the bottom — they fish differently. I witnessed that at Smith Lake. Guys tend to fish a layup, but it ends up burning them sometimes.
I had to fight back from the bottom, so I had to take some chances and get myself back up there. Now, I’m pretty comfortable in the AOY points with two events left. I just have to show up and catch some fish.
Some guys might say, “You should just fish around takeoff.” In my mind, I’m like, “Heck no!” Sitting in good position for the Classic means I can run another 14 miles out into Lake Ontario at the St. Lawrence event, or I can run down to Ticonderoga at Lake Champlain and do something that nobody’s doing.
When you don’t have to worry about maintaining that top five in the AOY points, or the bottom five of the Classic cut, it really loosens some things up for me. Obviously, I’m not officially in the Classic yet, but it does allow me to take a swing on these northern tournaments.
I’m very comfortable with Lake Champlain and the St. Lawrence River. I’ve been to both of them multiple times, and I’ve made the Top 10 on both. The good thing about this year is, with the season I’ve had, it allows me to take a shot at winning another blue trophy.
That’s why it’s so huge for an angler to be able to rebound from a bad event. We had this year’s Classic after Lake Fork, and that gave me a lot of confidence.
I was confident on Fork; I just had a bad day and made some bad decisions. It happens, but you have to be able to fight back and that’s what I did.
So I’ll take this confidence into the final two events of this season and do my best to notch another win. A big part of the motivation is securing my spot in the 2025 Classic at Lake Ray Roberts.
I have a lot of history at that lake, especially during that time of year. I’ve won a lot of major tournaments there, and the only Classic I’ve ever missed was the last time it was on Ray Roberts in 2021.
I left this year’s Classic with the mentality of “go make some cuts, don’t do anything stupid.” That’s what I did. It wasn’t so much about laying up; it was about not gambling, being super efficient and fishing my strengths.
Now I’m in a position where I can take some chances and maybe come home from the Northern Swing with another blue trophy.
