A Top 50 finish isn’t a meaningful accomplishment in most tournaments, including many high-level events. But when you’re competing against the incredibly talented anglers who fish the Elite Series, a Top 50 is a big deal. Every one of those guys is capable of winning a blue trophy.
If you fail to make the Top 50 cut in too many Elite tournaments, you won’t qualify for the Bassmaster Classic. That’s essential for anyone who hopes to maintain a lengthy career in this sport.
Going into the Elite tournament on Florida’s Harris Chain, I’d made the Top 50 in every event last season and in the first two this season. I’m sure other pros have enjoyed longer streaks, but I’m certainly proud of mine.
That kind of consistency boosts your confidence. It helps you relax and make good decisions under the intense pressure that comes with fishing the Elite Series. On the other hand, I wasn’t overconfident in my ability prior to the Harris Chain tournament. You have to guard against overconfidence because it’s just as detrimental as lacking confidence.
I knew I wasn’t bulletproof, but I was comfortable with my success. After fishing the first day on Lake Harris, I finished among the Top 50 anglers. I took advantage of a morning shad spawn with a spinnerbait. Then I cranked offshore grass with a squarebill.
I fished the same patterns the second day and caught more bass than on the first day. But the quality bites eluded me. Because Harris has little offshore grass, the available cover there receives heavy fishing pressure. That may have been part of the issue on Day 2.
Even though I was struggling, my Top 50 streak had me believing I would somehow catch the fish I needed.
I may have had them on. I lost one bass on a squarebill when I tried to swing it into the boat. The crankbait had jammed sideways in its mouth, but the fish was never actually hooked. A couple of hours later, I hooked a good one that pulled off right at the boat.
I don’t know if those two bass would have boosted me into the Top 50, but I was only 11 ounces shy.
It felt weird to come up short. I began to question the decisions I made during the tournament and what I could have done differently to produce a better outcome.
I didn’t have long to dwell on it because the St. Johns River tournament took place the very next week. I had to put those results behind me and get my mind back in the game. That definitely helped. I didn’t have time to second-guess myself, which could have undermined my confidence.
Although I didn’t have a good practice at St. Johns, my head was still in a good place. A weather delay scratched one of the practice days, so I couldn’t check everything I wanted to see. I figured I’d have to fish new water every day and probably catch a few key bass in totally different areas.
I managed to do that well enough on the first two days to fish Day 3. Two patterns did the job for me. One was casting a Zara Spook to schooling bass, a bite that went on throughout the day. The other pattern was swimming a jig through lily pads.
The biggest keys to battling back from my missed Top 50 cut was to work through the mental negativity, to believe the next bite is sure to come and too make good decisions.
I finished in 20th place at the St. Johns with 44 pounds, 13 ounces. I’m hopeful that it marks the beginning of another long Top 50 streak.
