CULLMAN, Ala. — Warming up to the weekend’s cold front enabled Tristan Stewart and DJ Johnson III of the Mount Pleasant Bass Team to sack up the winning weight of 9 pounds, 14 ounces at the Bassmaster Junior Series at Smith Lake.
“I don’t know what to say; I’m happy,” Stewart said. “This is our first win and it’s only our second year fishing together.”
Topping a 27-boat field, the Tennessee anglers fished Simpson Creek and targeted bluff walls in 30 to 35 feet and docks in about 25. Johnson said they targeted the bluffs in the morning and then moved to docks later in the day. In both scenarios, they caught their fish on Berkley SquareBull squarebill crankbaits in the citrus shad color.
“We were casting and retrieving the baits parallel to the bluffs and the same for the docks,” Stewart said. “We just used a slow and steady pace on the bluffs and the docks.”
While they caught some of their practice fish on slower presentations, Johnson said their bait adjustment was the key factor for him and his partner.
“We had to get away from soft plastics and go to crankbaits,” Johnson said. “I think the cold front made them bite better.”
The winners had their weight by noon and while they fell one fish short of a five-bass limit, they anchored their weight with a spotted bass that weighed 3.9. When that fish bit at 10:30 a.m., the anglers reveled in their newfound optimism.
“I thought we might have a chance to win when we got that fish in the boat,” Stewart said. “I didn’t know that big spotted bass like the ones we caught today lived in this lake.”
Turner Tharpe and Blake James of Rhea County finished second with 9-6.
Zac Arnold and Ross Clark of the Good Hope Fishing Team finished third with 8-6. Arnold and Clark won the Big Bass award with their 4-14.
This tournament is being hosted by the Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce.