A huge number of Bassmaster Fantasy Fishing Fans picked Keith Combs to do very well at this week’s Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.
And rightfully so. Combs has won three previous Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest events, including the 2014 event on Lake Fork when he hauled a massive 110 pounds of fat largemouth to the scales in just three days of competition. Heck, it’d take a tax account ten minutes to add up all the prize money and Toyota Trucks Bonus Bucks he’s earned from this event.
And the crazy thing is, Lake Fork is not even Combs’ home lake. While many predict his prowess here this week could be jeopardized by clouds, rain, current, and a somewhat lagging post-spawn migration, a conversation with him on the eve of this super cool derby suggested he was feeling just fine about his chances.
Q: Okay, don’t fib to us, what’s the biggest bass you’ve had your hands on in practice?
Combs: A 9-pounder.
Q: What’s the biggest bass you’ve weighed-in during previous events here?
Combs: A 10 pound 14 ounce bass in 2014 that I caught on a Strike King 10XD tied to 15-pound fluorocarbon.
Q: Name three lures you think fans can expect pros to throw a lot here this week?
Combs: a 10XD crankbait, a ¾ ounce pitching jig, and a ½ ounce swim jig.
Q: What’s going to surprise fans most about this event?
Combs: We’re going to see a lot of great 5-bass limits caught, but probably not the huge number of 30-pound limits some people are saying we’ll catch.
Q: Give you’re confidence level a letter grade right now.
Combs: I’d give it an “A”
Q: Chris Knight is playing a concert here at Texas Fest on Saturday. What music are you listening to these days?
Combs: Man, you threw me a curveball. I thought this was all about bass fishing. I’ll tell ya, man, I’m an old soul, so I just ride around in the Tundra listening to country music on FM radio most days.