“My weekend started the same as most everyone else’s in the Southeast, cold and snowing mixed with rain and sleet. I still had high hopes; with cold weather comes less fishing pressure. After 5 hours of nothing more than cold fingers and a sore butt, I finally got a clue. It was in the form of a one pound channel cat. I had been throwing a Bill Lewis 1/2oz Rat-L-Trap in Swamp Craw pattern in the deeper water. My retrieve was to cast it out, let it fall to the bottom, then give it 5 fast cranks on the reel handle. Fishing for that reaction bite. I beat that area to death with the trap only to come up empty. I decided to tie on a 4″ Lake Fork Flutter Spoon in 3/4oz. They were wanting to react but not to noise it seemed. Second cast, BAM! I managed 3 bass in 10 casts. Two over 7 pounds and one at 4 and a half. As soon as they turned on they turned off.
The next day I went back out. I still had my Rat-L-Trap tied on so I worked it up a sloping ridge from 10 feet to 5 feet of water. Somewhere in the middle I got slack knocked in my line. The VMC hooks that came on the bait did their job. Another 7 plus pounder. It took 3 more hours to get another bite. I was vertically jigging the Rat-L-Trap off the bottom near a column in 20 foot of water, the same place the spoon fish came from. I switched from one rip to two short ones and felt a tick. This one wasn’t as big as the one earlier but at 4 and a half it capped off a great weekend and secured first place for me.
Catching fish is satisfying but catching them on a lure you won from a previous tournament definitely adds to it. I wonder how big the bass will be I catch on one of the Booyah baits I won from this tournament?”
Tournament Champion: Joseph Gayton, South Carolina
Good Stuff Joseph! A Rat-L-Trap is always deadly, but especially this time of year. Congrats on a SOLID win!