The concept for Bassmaster’s “Day On The Lake” series was born 26 years ago after an unsuccessful trip to a small public lake where I’d previously caught several big bass. On the drive home, I wondered how a B.A.S.S. pro might have fished that little lake under similar conditions. Having never laid eyes on the lake before, and allowed no practice time, where would he start fishing? What lures would he use, and why would he choose them? How would he adjust his baits and fishing locations if weather conditions changed? I felt a blow-by-blow account of the pro’s day on the lake — a timeline that chronicled his decisions, successes and failures — would make compelling and instructive reading. I discussed the article concept with Bassmaster editor Dave Precht, and he loved it. We agreed that Jay Yelas, one of the hottest B.A.S.S. tournament sticks at the time, would be the ideal guinea pig for our first DOTL challenge. Yelas signed on and met me a few weeks later at that same little lake where I’d hatched the story idea. I couldn’t have scripted the outcome any better. Yelas used his seven-hour time allotment to stage an epic display of bassmanship, successfully altering his lures and approaches throughout the day to address weather changes and bass mood swings. He ended the day with a stunning five-fish limit: 24 pounds, 8 ounces.
When Yelas’ article appeared in the February 1999 issue of Bassmaster, it was an instant hit with readers, and DOTL quickly became a regular feature. To date we’ve logged nearly 200 DOTL outings, and on the following pages I’ve compiled some facts, figures and trivia that loyal fans of this series should find interesting and entertaining.
Heaviest five-bass limits
| PRO | WEIGHT | DATE |
| 1. Dustin Wilks | 28 lb. 15 oz. | April 15, 2009 * |
| 2. Kevin Short | 28 lb. 8 oz. | Jan. 8, 2009 |
| 3. Greg Hackney | 28 lb. 5 oz. | May 25, 2006 |
| 4. Gary Klein | 27 lb. 1 oz. | May 8, 2003 |
| 5. Luke Clausen | 26 lb. 8 oz. | Feb. 13, 2017 |
| 6. Grant Goldbeck | 26 lb. 2 oz. | April 2, 2012 |
| 7. Scott Canterbury | 25 lb. 13 oz. | May 6, 2020 |
| 8. Austin Felix | 25 lb. 11 oz. | April 27, 2021 |
| 9. Kelly Jordon | 25 lb. 8 oz. | Aug. 11, 2003 |
| 10. Larry Nixon | 25 lb. 3 oz. | April 5, 2002 |
* They say timing is everything, and Wilks hit obscure Lake B at the exact moment big prespawn female bass were cruising the shallows prior to joining smaller males that were already on their spawning beds. Wilks whacked his five biggest fish on buzzbaits, adding to the excitement.
Lightest five-bass limits
| PRO | WEIGHT | DATE |
| 1. Basil Bacon | 4 lb. 2 oz. | Oct. 18, 1999 |
| 2. Kim Bain-Moore | 5 lb. 5 oz. | April 3, 2009 |
| 3. Clent Davis | 6 lb. 3 oz. | March 7, 2017 |
| 4. Jeremy Starks | 6 lb. 4 oz. | Nov. 5, 2008 |
| 5. Dave Wolak | 6 lb. 5 oz. | Sept. 8, 2008 |
DOTL zero club (no keeper bass)
| PRO | DATE |
| Denny Brauer | July 22, 1999 |
| Clay Dyer | June 12, 2012 |
| Marty Robinson | March 29, 2013 |
| Dave Mercer | April 6, 2022 |
Heaviest catches – fewer than five bass
| PRO | KEEPERS | WEIGHT | DATE |
| 1. Bobby Murray | 4 | 20 lb. 14 oz. | March 13, 2009 |
| 2. Alton Jones | 4 | 19 lb. 4 oz. | April 6, 2004 |
| 3. Russ Lane | 2 | 18 lb. 6 oz. | Jan. 31, 2007 |
| 4. Stacy King | 4 | 17 lb. 2 oz. | June 10, 2005 |
| 5. David Walker | 4 | 14 lb. 0 oz. | Dec. 12, 2013 |
Biggest DOTL lunkers
| PRO | WEIGHT | LURE | DATE |
| 1. Russ Lane | 11 lb. 14 oz. | Bomber Fat Free Shad crankbait | Jan. 31, 2007 |
| 2. Jimmy Houston | 10 lb. 3 oz. | Bomber Fat Free Shad crankbait | April 4, 2011 |
| 3. Bobby Murray | 10 lb. 1 oz. | Booyah football jig | March 13, 2009 |
| 4. Keith Poche | 9 lb. 10 oz. | Yum umbrella jib | Feb. 26, 2013 |
| 5. Timmy Horton | 9 lb. 2 oz. | Bomber Fat Free Shad crankbait | June 15, 2000 |
| 6. Jacob Powroznik | 9 lb. 1 oz. | Brian’s crankbait | March 1, 2015 |
| 7. Greg Hackney | 8 lb. 15 oz. | Strike King jig | May 25, 2006 |
| 8. Denny Brauer | 8 lb. 9 oz. | Strike King 2.5 crankbait | Feb. 2, 2014 |
| 9. Paul Elias | 8 lb. 1 oz. | Mann’s 20+ crankbait | May 29, 2002 |
| 10. Clifford Pirch | 7 lb. 14 oz. | Pirch signature jig | March 26, 2014 |
B.A.S.S. staff DOTL catches
If you work for B.A.S.S., you should be an expert bass angler, right? Well, maybe. Here’s how four B.A.S.S. guys fared during their mystery lake challenge.
| B.A.S.S. STAFFER | WEIGHT | DATE |
| 1. Mark Zona | 18 lb. 13 oz. | June 15, 2007 |
| 2. Dave Precht | 13 lb. 9 oz. | June 2, 2010 |
| 3. James Hall | 7 lb. 5 oz. | May 3, 2012 |
| 4. Dave Mercer | 0 lb. 0 oz. | April 6, 2022 |
Sweetest DOTL redemption
After 1998 Bassmaster Classic winner Denny Brauer zeroed out on his August 1999 DOTL, his fellow B.A.S.S. competitors gave him so much grief that we eventually granted him a do-over on another mystery lake. On his second DOTL outing (February 2014), Brauer redeemed himself by bagging a 22-pound, 2-ounce limit, causing him to state, “Now they won’t have Brauer to kick around anymore!”
DOTL weather extremes
DOTL challenges are scheduled nearly a year in advance, so pros never know what weather conditions they’ll face until they arrive at the lake. Here are the most miserable DOTL outings so far.
COLDEST DOTL
Date: Jan. 31, 2007
Low: 10 degrees
High: 28 degrees
Water temperature: 39 degrees
Pro: Russ Lane
The lake Lane fished was partially frozen over, yet he caught the biggest bass recorded so far in this series: 11 pounds, 14 ounces.
HOTTEST DOTL
Date: July 22, 1999
Low: 83 degrees
High: 101 degrees
Water temperature: 94 degrees
Pro: Denny Brauer
Brauer‘s solitary bite during this oppressively hot and humid DOTL outing was from an 11-inch largemouth.
MOST MISERABLE DOTL OUTING
Date: Jan. 12, 2012
Temperature at start: 41 degrees
Temperature at finish: 26 degrees
Pro: J. Todd Tucker
The mother of all cold fronts rolled over Tucker and I on that miserably memorable January day, bringing with it rain, sleet, snow and brutally unrelenting Arctic gales. By quitting time, there was 4 inches of snow inside Tucker’s boat. Still, the Georgia pro managed to catch two good keepers.
Ike versus icon
New Jersey pro Mike Iaconelli has accepted two DOTL challenges. We’ve also invited several B.A.S.S. icons, legends who no longer fish competitively, to take our challenge. Just because we think the phrase “Ike vs. Icon” sounds cool, we’re posting the results.
| ANGLER | DATE | KEEPERS | WEIGHT |
| Mike Iaconelli | Feb. 17, 2005 | 2 | 4 lb. 3 oz. |
| Mike Iaconelli | May 26, 2022 | 2 | 3 lb. 9 oz. |
| Bill Dance | April 8, 2008 | 5 | 15 lb. 2 oz. |
| Bobby Murray | March 1, 2009 | 4 | 20 lb. 14 oz. |
| Hank Parker | Feb. 24, 2010 | 3 | 6 lb. 9 oz. |
| Jimmy Houston | April 4, 2011 | 5 | 17 lb. 3 oz. |
| Tommy Martin | Feb. 28, 2012 | 3 | 4 lb. 3 oz. |
| Harold Allen | June 9, 2015 | 5 | 10 lb. 8 oz. |
Most memorable DOTL moments
* April 4, 2011; 6:59 a.m.: While preparing to launch his boat, B.A.S.S. legend Jimmy Houston’s Suburban gets hopelessly stuck in the mud and needs to be extricated with tow chains. 10:23 a.m.: Houston catches a 10-3 largemouth on a crankbait; much fish kissing follows. 12:51 p.m.: We exit the lake rapidly as a tornado approaches!
* April 10, 2012; 12:31 p.m.: Texas pro Grant Goldbeck has spotted a 5-pound largemouth on its spawning bed in a shallow cove. As he rigs up a lure to cast to the nest, a dog runs down the bank, jumps in the water and spooks the bass off its bed.
* March 1, 2015; 9:45 a.m.: Virginia pro Jacob Powroznik hyperventilates and nearly passes out from excitement after catching a 9-pound, 1-ounce largemouth on a crankbait.
* March 9, 2020: Twenty-two years after catching a 24 1/2-pound limit during Bassmaster’s very first DOTL challenge, Jay Yelas boats a 21-pound, 9-ounce bag during his second DOTL outing. The dude has staying power!
* April 27, 2021; 1:03 p.m.: Minnesota pro Austin Felix is sight fishing for bedding bass when wind gusts begin to ripple the surface. Immediately Felix sprays the water with a diluted mixture of dishwashing soap, which makes the surface slick enough so he can spot, and catch, a 5-12 spawner.
DOTL trends
Big Swimbaits – Big swimbaits and glide baits are a recent trend among B.A.S.S. pros, but few have used them effectively during DOTL challenges. An early swimbait devotee and the only DOTL pro to score significant weight on these big lures is Grant Goldbeck, who used a 6-inch Rago SKT Swimmer to catch most of his 26-pound, 2-ounce bag in April 2012.
Forward-Facing Sonar – B.A.S.S. competitors often use prototype lures and equipment during their DOTL outings. A few pros used early forward-facing sonar units in 2019, then by the following summer, every DOTL pro was armed with this groundbreaking technology. The most successful DOTL use of forward-facing sonar to date has been by North Carolina pro KJ Queen, which you can read about firsthand in our upcoming June issue.
Offshore Bass – The forward-facing sonar revolution has sent most DOTL pros offshore, especially during summer and fall, to target unpressured bass suspending around baitfish schools or hunkering near brushpiles.
Live-Action Lures – When fishing offshore, DOTL pros are now using small lures resembling immature baitfish that can be easily tracked with their “live” sonar units, as well as jerkbaits, which they had previously used primarily in cold water. Anglers targeting offshore brushpiles have downsized as well, throwing tiny Ned rigs and small finesse worms.
DOTL quotes
“The Suck-O-Meter is reading 7.5, but I bet it bottoms out to 10 before the day is over!” – Gerald Swindle, while fishing through a monster cold front on Dec. 1, 2014.
“This looks like the thing that exploded out of the guy’s chest in Alien!” – Brandon Lester, upon catching a big bowfin on July 9, 2015.
“They obviously ain’t where we are!” – David Fritts, after unsuccessfully cranking a 100-yard stretch of channel bank on Dec. 4, 2017.
“You gotta admit, I’m putting together a pretty impressive mini-bag!” – Hunter Shryock, after catching a 1-pound, 2-ounce keeper on Aug. 6, 2018.
“I wonder if bass prefer Goodyears over Firestones?” – Randy Sullivan, after boating his second keeper from submerged tires on May 21, 2019.
“Yikes, that’s a cottonmouth! Do I get hazard pay for doing this article?” – Drew Cook, upon seeing a big snake swim past his boat on June 20, 2021.
“They were out of them stick-on numbers at Walmart.” – Matt Robertson, explaining why he painted registration numbers on the side of his boat with a black Magic Marker, on Aug. 3, 2021.
“I take nap. You text me when storm over.” – Takumi Ito, while waiting for a massive thunderstorm to pass before launching on July 29, 2022.
Originally appeared in Bassmaster Magazine 2023.
