|
|
| Okay, just finished my 3rd year of tournament fishing and am seriously thinking about not doing it any more and instead just fishing without competition involved because I oviously don't have what it takes to consistently catch muskies to justify the investment. I need to get better first.
I see a few of the same names over and over in the Spring Classic in Eagle River for instance every year. What are they doing to be so consistent. ?
Also, who are the best guys, say over the last 10 years in tournaments and are any of them on this board or have any of you fished with them? Can you explain what I'm up against to compete at there level and make it worth my investment? Who in your minds would you never bet against in a tournament and what makes them so consistent? Is it best gear? Best network of fishing friends to help 'dial them in'? Do you have to be a guide to compete consistently just from being on the water every day? Please offer some hope because I love fishing and would love being up there in the end of a tournament someday. Andrew - the wannabe |
|
| |
|
Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | Lijewski could catch a musky doing dishes, I'm fortunate to have fished with him over the years ... if he's in the field you should just go watch and see where your investment dollars are going and try to learn. Patterning and location, location, location ... he's a technician but also has an uncanny feel. understanding of what he's seeing by using his electronics that others never will.
Another is Nelson (bnelson) who although he doesn't fish tournaments is someone I'd never bet against and get to spend time with. If you are willing, he's here all the time and you can learn a ton from what he contributes. Again , with him it's an understanding of patterning, flexibility and knowing what he's seeing beneath him using electronics.
I'm also beginning to think you shouldn't bet against VanRemortal (WIDuckHunter) who also contributes here ... he's had an incredible year for his clients. Add to the list Neil Barnett who scores consistently under pressure.
Lijewski is even better on the ice if you can imagine that. He'll drill 10 holes off a point to make sure he's on the right spot and can feel the bottom composition by dropping a lead weight. Be careful at dark so you don't step in one of the "extra" holes LOL. Some of the most incredible walleye fishing of a lifetime with him out on the ice ... good times!
key to it all is when you aren't catching fish, someone else is. the difference is flexibility and knowing or being flexible and having the tools to be able to dial in on a pattern even on the toughest of conditions. PMA |
|
| |
|
Posts: 133
Location: Wausau, WI | Andrew,
The teams that consistently place in tournaments all have one thing in common, time on the water. By spending a lot of time of the water, they have a better understanding of what the fish are doing that particular day. A lot of it is having a phenomenal memory of the past and being able to apply that memory/knowledge to the present. Remembering what had worked under similar conditions in the years past will likely get you started on the right track. Their gear is dependable, but by no means is it necessary to have top-of-the-line equipment. You'll also notice that most successful teams don't fish tournaments on lakes that they aren't familiar with. If you want to be competitive in tournament fishing, look over the schedules this winter and pick out a few tournaments that are on the same lake. A very easy and obvious choice would be Eagle River. The Spring Classic, PMTT, WMT, Paul's, and many other clubs all have tournaments on the chain throughout the summer. You'll learn a lot just by fishing if you are conscious of your surroundings and if you're able to retain the information you have learned. The last, but possibly most important tip is that you have to carry some luck with you. Even the best teams dump fish at the net. Even the best teams blank. They're human and every one of them is beatable. Don't be afraid to talk to the guys at the tournaments either. 99% of them are great guys and they're just like you and me. Just because they don't have shirts with their names on it or a big Ranger doesn't mean they not worth your time, it's quite the contrary. Start networking with some guys that you talk to regularly and you'll figure out what's going on a lot faster. Don't give up. Just keep fishing and try to retain as much information on and off the water as possible. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 133
Location: Wausau, WI | One last thing, it's very rare that tournaments can be won with one active mind in the boat. Find yourself a partner that you can get along with and be on the same page with. I've fished with a lot people over the years and my most successful outings have had a few things in common. We both understood why we were fishing the way we were and we were both having fun. There's nothing worse than being in the boat with a crabby tournament partner for ten hours. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1220
| Like I've said so many times, every time a hundred anglers go out to fish a full tournament day, 15 come in with a fish having been measured and 85 get a "Zero." Those were the odds on this past weekend's outing at Namekagen. I was actually really glad to have "a fish" even though the winners had four. 160 anglers fished a day and one half as serious as a heart attack and caught just over 30 fish. And the winners were not any of the big name folks including noted guides who fish those very same waters. I also recall the first major event of this year on Ketucky's Cave Run where the totally top names, Tony Grant, Crash and Justin Mullins, Gregg Thomas and Kevin Nash were not in the money. You would have to be a really, really big dumb nice try to bet against those guys any day (or anywhere) but on a "given day" they will be among the skunks. The last PMTT on the Madison chain proved to be a one-fish event for Jeff Hanson who is likely to be the only guy who fishes that water every single day "for a living" and IMHO is a true "owner" of that lake system. In short, you have fished way too few events to give up. I fish 10-12 per year and have not won for four years. You simply have to enjoy this for the dozens of other reasons many of us fish them. It's totally fun to do so, you make great friends, you learn from your betters at every outing and every single cast matters. Keep fishing them! You'll have a great time, become a better angler, and sooner or later you will get the trophy. Like a lot of other walks of life, however, the "journey" has to stay more important than the destination! |
|
| |
|
Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | Junkman - 10/2/2013 8:16 AM
And the winners were not any of the big name folks including noted guides who fish those very same waters.
around here Ben Michlig is a big name associated with consistently catching fish ... never met his brother, but if i were to compete with Ben i'd want him to spot me points. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | add Wojtusik brothers to the list you don't want to compete against ... catch em everywhere they go on any situation. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 999
| How bout Phil Schwiek? 56 top ten finishes! Also Nate Osfar and Matt Raley have been consistently in the money every year! All great sticks! |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1220
| Hey, I wasn't trying to downplay the winners from this week. In fact, I think I was pretty complementary on the other thread on the tournament side when I said they "put on a clinic" for the rest of us. My point was there was really well known and respected "local talent" that didn't put it together. More or less, I just think it's much harder than it looks. Having said that, I agree that a lot of who is mentioned above by name would be mighty hard folks to beat. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 393
Location: Hopefully on the water | There have been a lot of good sticks that have fished and continue to fish tourneys. The names already listed I have fished against some and it is impressive to see them work a spot, structure, baits the whole nine yards. But the one person I would never bet against is yourself. If you think you are beat by the field you are against, save your time and money. A good partner is IMO key. not only to spend the day or weekend with but think alike and both are open to suggestions, willing to go out on a limb sometimes and try something new. Time on the water and water you feel comfortable with or fishes the style you fish is always a plus.
Maybe rethink the tourneys you are fishing. I started in the bigger payout, higher entry fees and was greenier than cabbage weed and hadn't even caught a fish yet at that point. We were just excited to be out fishing. We backed off of a lot of those and fish some smaller ones where you don't feel the money is all wasted and have a great time doing them. We have met some great people over the years from it and learn from each other of what was or wasn't working. Those conversations generally are after the tourney but put into the memory bank or notes taken at the end of the weekend. Find lakes you like to fish or have similar structure of the way you like to fish.
Paying attention to everything going on around you and where you are at is big. Boat control is a big plus with it also. If you get the chance and have a GPS just run a spot and mark it along the way before the tourney so you know where those inside/outside turns points, break are.
Not to take anything away from the people that are consistant but it is Muskies and anything can happen to any person throughout the tourney. It isn't like bass or walleye where you can get on a school of them.
I wouldn't give it up if you like the competition aspect of it. Just don't put yourself into that perspective of fishing aainst so and so or that you have to make it every time into the money/placing. Over thinking and replaying the events can bring you down or frustrate also. Keep it simple, relax and enjoy it has made a big difference for us. Or make your goals different. Maybe the changing them to having the opportunity or making it on the board. All said and done at the end of a tourney there are a lot of guys that hadn't even seen a fish much less catch one. I have been on that end of the spectrum many times and enjoy them yet. Good luck and enjoy. It does all coem around at some point. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1023
| My good friend fishes and wins a lot here in Ontario bass tourneys. Here r the keys to his success:
- he is good but so r soooo many others
- he spends a lot of time scouting with electronics, networking and prefishing and he leaves fish one when he finds them, saving them for the tourney
- he has a great wife that lets him prefish hardcore
- he believes he is better and better prepared than most other competitors
I don't tourney fish but prefishing, networking and a good combo of luck and skill area kelt all needed to do well.
Landry |
|
| |
|
Posts: 162
Location: Metro, MN | I feel like it does take a lot to be successful. Serious prefishing and electronic/environmental scouting as well as a feel for things with some luck. I also feel like there are a lot of very good fisherman that simply dont have the time or money to invest into tournament fishing...sadly me being one of them |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1220
| I think it's worth noting the make-up of teams including many that are brother-brother teams like the ones who won this past weekend and many of the other competitors. When you think about the entirety of the tournament experience, imagine leaving on Wednesday for a 7 plus hour drive to your destination, maybe two full practice days before the two competion days, four dinners, lunches, breakfasts, going out at night together etc. Then there is the acutal decision process of where you are going to fish which can be a really dividing sort of process. In short, your ability to "get along" which brothers have figured out years ago can mean a lot. It can also be a big factor of whether the whole thing is fun or a just a lonnnnnng weekend. So, I'd add how well two partners mesh together as a big part of making the best teams "tick." |
|
| |
|
Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | or imagine if you're on the water everyday anyway and the tournament is a half hour away one direction or the other ... locals have an enormous advantage, especially when both guys are of the same mold. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 402
Location: Eagle River, WI | I rely solely on luck. I put on a pink rizzo tail and see what happens.
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 360
Location: Algonac, MI | 1 - Time on the water
After 1 - order not specific:
- Good memory of past fish caught/lost, under what conditions, on which lures, method used, etc
- Good network of information
- Ability to accept partners ideas and theirs to accept yours - not all are right at the same time, but over time, all have their right moments - combined knowledge can be very effective
- Depth of tackle for all conditions
- Top notch terminal components and gear maintainence
Edited by Contender 10/3/2013 10:30 AM
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 4342
Location: Smith Creek | I've donated money to a lot of good ones. There's two groups, one Contender describes above. Locals who know the water and don't miss opportunities.
Then there's the guys who get 120% of what their electronics are capable of and can trigger fish (work a bait) like no one else is willing to or physically and mentally capable of. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 171
| Kevin Nash and Gregg Thomas are two of the most consistent anglers to ever fish the only professional muskie tournament trail that travels the country... the Professional Musky Tournament Trail.
Just go fishing and boat the fish you hook. Regardless of your experience, what may have happened in past tournaments, or how much time you have spent on the water... you have just as good a chance to win or place as everyone else.
Don't give it up...
Edited by bshep 10/3/2013 1:37 PM
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 67
| Friendship, one boat captain, trust, both good sticks, and communication. Oh ya, really helps to have different styles of fishing. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 558
| You need to slice the water like sliced bread. |
|
| |
