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The thing that reall ticked me off was that this team was following a top name guide around! No, I did not actually wittness it, but I heard from a very reliable source that it did happen. The next day when I mentioned that I was ticked, my source tried to downplay the whole thing. Apparently, word got out and people were very upset, so the organizers were really trying to keep a lid on what happened. This was a big name tourny with good money on the line and Im sure they didnt want a tarnished event. Im just glad the guy didnt win first place!

As for ethics, what do you think about this? An angler followed a guide friend around during a tourny for the whole event. The rules stated that the guide could not fish, but nothing was said about following a guide around from another boat. Thats what this guy did. He was in first place after day one, and finished 2nd for the tourny and won seveal thousand dollars. Though there was no rule against it, I think this is totall unethical and wrong. The organizers should have taken some sort of action about it, but Im sure he was part of the "in" group! How would you feel about looseing money to a guy whos pattern is to follow around a top local guide? It peed me off!

I do agree with ol' Robby about one thing, Tourny's are not nearly as fun as they should be. I think that this is mostly cause they are not fair. I know that there is going to be a group of guys jump on me for this statement, but these are probably the guys that get all the benefits and are usually the one putting the events on, or are buddy buddy with event organizers. Now, I finished 2nd place for the season in the South TX Five tourny trail, so Im not making any excusses, Im just giving my opinion on what I have experienced. Tournys have become very political and not everybody is held to the same rules and standards. I have seen way to many times when anglers are able to break or bend rules because of their name. I have lost money on several occassions because of this. For example, an angler being allowed to weigh in fish after the cut off time! I dont care if its 1 minute past or 10 min past, if you are not in on time; you should be DQ'd! This things cost way too much money to get bumped by someone that didnt follow the rules! I could go on and on with other examples. Next; younger guys, newbies, and the likes are really picked on alot! Especially if you are out fishing alot of people. Me and my partner, are constantly being turned in for false accusations or nitpicking exaggerated offenses. For example, on Amistad; I pulled up on a big offshore Flat with a step ledge on its border that runs about 300-500 yds. Its a giant fishing area, enough for several boats to fish and not bother eachother. When I pulled up there was one guy, I wnt to the other side well away from him, about 300 yds away. I even worked the area in the oposite direction he was going! I am very carefull to never impose on another fisherman/boater if they were there first! After weigh-Ins, we got talked to by the organizers! The guy had reported to the organizers that we had pulled up on him as he was fishing a point! It was total BullSH*%! In no way did we impose on him, we didnt even get within shouting distance. Yet, something was said anyways. IT is like this all the time, it really stirs my blood! As for cheating, what do you think about this? An angler followed a guide friend around during a tourny for the whole event. The rules stated that the guide could not fish, but nothing was said about following a guide around from another boat. Thats what this guy did. He was in first place after day one, and finished 2nd for the tourny and won seveal thousand dollars. Though there was no rule against it, I think this is totall unethical and wrong. The organizers should have taken some sort of action about it, but Im sure he was part of the "in" group!

I heard that ESPN was going to be dropping BASS from its coverage! I heard that it might go to the Versus channel! I heard that they are also canceling alot of good shows such as the "worlds greatest fishing show! Is this true! I heard that alot of the fisherman are looseing their sponsorships because tobacco products can no longer be advertised (Chew/Snuff). I will be very sad of this is true and thought that BASS was really starting to get a following. Anybody else heard this stuff! Or, is my info false?

The best advice I can give you about tourny fishing is to make sure you are organized, prepared, and ready to go once yall officially start! By taking the time to organize your gear before you fish, you will get alot more fishing time once the event startsm instead of wasting time looking for certain baits, tieing knots, and other managorial tasks! I spend several hours getting ready the night before my tournys. I re-spool, rig up several rods with baits that I want to use! Organize lures and set aside those that I plan to use, etc. I generally do very well in tournaments and usually outfish my partners and I think that it is because I am more prepared to fish. I always notice that my line is wet alot more than theirs. While Im fishing, they are messing with their equipment! Be ready!

Canyon lake is a very uneratted lake in my mind. Most TX anglers have no idea that it is plum full of smallmouth bass!! Not only does it have good numbers of them, but good size as well. Lake record is about 6.5 lbs and there are many fish in the 3-4 lb range! Best way to catch them is to fish points, bluffs, and ledges! I have always done good with drop shots, jerkbaits, tubes, and senkos on that lake! It also has good numbers of Largemouth, but not too much on size! Also good for striper! Beautifull lake!! Can get crowded during the summer time but empty during colder months. In summer I will suggest that you fish early in the mornings and try to stay away from weekends if possible! Also, during the summer times it is good to go finesse! Learn the drop shot technique if you dont already!

I have seen some very big gars down here in south TX. Quite often at Falcon and Choke I see gar next to the boat while bass fishing that easily go 100 lbs plus! Another place that has huge Gar is the Oso Creek, in a certain secrete section right before it reaches the bay, there are some real monsters in there as well! My grandma has an old black and white of here dad when he was a teenager and he and friends are posing next to a absolute monster. It looks to be close to 9 feet long! Its awesome, but not certified or anything

I was down there when the first one happened! However I thought it was the Mex military that robbed those guys of $500! I did not know that it happened two other times and that it is not military. This is disturbing bullcrud! I live just about 2 hrs from Falcon and have been fishing it regularly for about 3 yrs. Personally, I have never had any trouble or felt unsafe down there and this is the first time I have heard of a string of such occurrances. Usually, you just hear of boats being taken from guys fishing in mexico without a license, but this is totally crossing a line! Our authorities need to do something to stop this now!! We should be able to enjoy a day fishing this great lake without some "johny depp wannabe" swashbuckling there way over and sticking Ak47s in our faces! This has major problem written all over it. This is Texas! Sooner or later they are going to try and jack a boat and the fisherman on board are going to have guns too and there is going to be a big shootout! Seriously, I have already heard many fisherman down here start saying how they are going to bring their AR-15s, 9s, 40s, and 45s with them fishing and shoot it out with anyone that looks like a pirate. This isnt a joke, this is how Texas people think! We need to get some sort of police presence out there now! This is a matter of national security with these guys actually crossing over into US waters! There is absolutly no kind of border patrol, Police, or Warden presence at all out there but it needs to start now! Before someone gets killed. Ive heard guys talking about loading the boat up with guns and going out there just for the purpose of getting into a confrontation! For now, make sure you stay out of Mexico water even if you have a license! Also, it might not be a bad idea to pull the trolling motor up and haul *** if you see a suspicious boat headed your way! We got 250s they dont! Just use your head!

That lady looks really happy? I wonder if she is a big time bass angler or if she was just out messing around and has no idea what she is holding? SWAMP BASS!!

Just got back from Falcon! Had a pretty fun day trip though we didnt catch anything of 6 lbs! Lots of fish in the 3 to 4 lb range and they are all fairly shallow or feeding at the surface on tiny shad! The water was fairly clear in areas and there was a 10 mph east wind on saturday, with cloud cover and 95 deg temps! The fish were all very much concentrated around rocky points and are very shallow for this time of year. We did catch a few fish sitting in about 20 ft of water but they were all near the surface! However, the biggest fish did come off the bottom in about 20 feet with a 12" pwr worm, it was about 6 1/2 lbs! The spinnerbait bite is very good, as is the senko bite, crankbait, and flukes! However, the action was very odd. You would catch nothing for several minutes untill the bass came to the surface and started attacking shad. When this happened, all you had to do was make a cast into the area and a would hit immediately! You could catch one on every cast for a few moments, then it would get quite again! It would be a feeding frenzy! The senkos seemed to be the only bait that you could catch fish that werent visible! We tried to fish deep for several hours but just couldnt get many bites, oddly, c-rigs werent working! Most fish were caught in 4-12 ft range, and at the surface! Topwater didnt work though! All in all, a fun but weird day. We caught about 50 fish! Our biggest five probably went about 24 lbs! Most other people said the same!

Nobody even asked me to explain the opinion that I gave. Instead yall just get all wound up like usuall and start passing judgement on my without even knowing anything about me. You say I know nothing about sharelunker, well; you know nothing about me! Take your own advice and quit getting so upset any time someone has a different opinion than you! Why are you guys so defenseive of sharelunker anyways? Did you start it or something? Seems like it! Why do you two have to get so personal all the time. I didnt say anything to either of you personally, and just gave a reply not aimed at anyone personally. But here, you go again! I know all that I need to know about sharelunker and my opinion of it is shared by many people. Especially, south TX anglers that have a clue as to what is really going on! Honestly, I would probably like sharlunker as much as you do if I lived up north closer to the programs reasources, and where must of the fingerlings get stocked at. You can read up on sharlunker all you want but you have to read between the lines a little and understand how it is set-up to benifit some more than others. If I caught a fish during the summer at choke canyon or mathis it would run a great risk of dying while waiting a minimum of 5 hrs for officials to get to it. Thats a risk Im not willing to take and would rather release it back into the lake to continue doing its thing. Plus, why should I give the reasources of my lake to help a program that always seems to skip us when stocking time comes? You know how many times Choke has gotten sharlunker fingerlings, last time I checked it was only once! Many other south TX anglers agree with this point of view. Thats why you never see sharelunkers entered by local anglers! Do you really thing that we havent been catching them? Its always out of towners that enter their fish cause visitors are always less protective of the lake. I would be the same way if visiting Fork! The other lake that I mainly fish is Falcon, which is as far away from sharlunker resources as it gets. There isnt even a holding tank on that lake. Thats why you dont see many sharlunkers from Falcon! So, in my mind; it is just not reasonable to support a program that does absolutely nothing for me. Furthermore, I think Share has becom more of a program to give guys bragging rights than a way to help fisheries. Before you guys start passing judgement on me try and understand where I am coming from. Also, quit being so defensive anytime someone gives an opinion, especially when it isnt personally aimed at you!

With all the rain this year and a lot of lakes filling back up, I bet TX fishing will contiue to be pretty good for the next couple of years. However, I would like to see a push for more anglers to release 13 lb+ right back into the water that they were caught instead of everyone calling Sharelunker! Not saying that sharelunker is bad, but I just think that it would be better for TX lakes to be able to keep some of their biggest fish instead of taking them out! I hate nothing more than to see a 13lb+ bass die while waiting for sharelunker to come get it! Another thing is that I think they should only accept fish of 13 lbs! A 13 lber has great genes and I dont think that we should risk the like of these giant 15 and 16 lbers anymore. Catch em, then get them back in the water so that they can get closer to 20 lbs and be caught again. Trust me, a bass like this will do a much better job spawning on its own than what sharelunker can do! Plus, the bigger they are, the harder to hold alive untill the Pro's get to it! Now, I have no problem with the theory behind sharelunker but I just think a few changes are needed!

Yea, heard about that 16 lber this weekend at the Choke boat ramp while we were all standing around talking about where our big fish have gone! Enjoy it while it last cause the word is getting out! Just wait till yall get some mag writups and TV time! Then the flocks will start coming and you will see things get tougher! Dont get me wrong, the fish will still be there, they will just quit nailing anything that moves!

Well, I havent posted in a while because I have been very busy. I recently started my own business, and have been fished three tournies in the past month! This has kept me away from posting for some time. I finally have a chance to catch my breath now, before heading to Falcon this weekend! Anyways, Choke Canyon has been very difficult the paast several weeks! Not in the way of numbers, but in solid fish. Fish over 2 lbs have been a rarity, even for good anglers. They arent biting shallow or deep and you basically just have to get lucky and hit them on the head right now. Two weeks ago BassChamps did put up a 26 lb winning sack, but the last payout was only at 13 lbs! Thats very week for Choke, it usually takes close to 26 lbs on a 3 fish limmit, and 13 lbs should never get you a check on this lake. The day after, my leage only had a winning weight of 18 lbs. Take in mind that we have some very good anglers, including some of the bass champs guys like Jimmy Johnson! This weekend, my leauge and the Fed fish choke again. This time, our winning weight was only 16 lbs and the team even had a 9 lber! The fed was a 3 fish limmit and only won with like 12 lbs! Thats horrible! My leauge is even a team tourny! Now, the small fish are easy to catch. Me and my partner probably caught 200 fish on sunday, but only ended with about 11 lbs! I dont know what is going on for sure, but the only thing I can think of is that the bigger fish are becomming very lure shy! I talked to TPWD a month ago or so, and they said that our shocks showed better numbers and size than we've almost ever had. The lake has filled up to near capacity and the weather has been very warm. Since the little fish are bitting so well, it just makes me believe that the enormous increase in pressure has smartened up the older bigger fish making them very hard to catch, even in deep water! One thing that I noticed this past weekend was that a lot of the fish that I caught had hook wounds all over their mouths! This should tell you something! It was very sad, a lot of us anglers actually had to resort to finesse like tactics to catch better fish this weekend! The touny winners were those lucky enough to put one solid fish with a sack of 1s and 2s! All I can say is that I am glad tha OH Ivie is turning so many heads. Maybe people and tournys will start going there and give Choke a breather so that the fish can settle down a little bit! There is no way that Choke should be spitting out sacks less than 20 lbs, no way!

Choke is my home lake and it has been low for the past couple yrs. I hope that it will fill up to the same levels that it had prior to 2009! That would open up alot of the creeks, coves, and ponds that choke used to have making things way more fun. You cant even fish any of the good spawning areas anymore cause the lake has been so low. There is this one Pond in particular that was connected to the lake by a small pass off of a creek arm. This pond was about 2 football fields in size adn surround by reeds. It was filled with hydrilla and was crystal clear with deepths ranging from 2-10 feet! The frist week of Feb. 2008 I had some of the best fishing in my life out of this area. One day I counted like half a dozen bass all over 10 lbs in this little pond! The next day I caught my Personal Best of 12.4 out of there on a spinnerbait! I wasnt big on Senkos then but cant wait till it fills back up cause they will be killer in there. I check it the other day, and the pass still wasnt open, but hopefully soon! Also, increased lake levels should bring back the isolated patches of reeds that used to be all over the lake. That used to be a great pattern for choke back when the lake was full. You could hopp from clump to clump and pull fish out of every one. They also where good to fish during the spring cause they let you know where the hard bottoms are, which usually ment beds, which was a great target when water was dingy and you couldnt see. Unfortunatly, all of the isolated reed patches died off and now the only reeds on the lake are on the banks in very shallow water! I hope they come back!!

Dude, it just take experience and practice. I have been fishing hardcore since childhood, Im now 28, and there are still times that I set the hook on stumps or miss fish cause I could tell that I had a bite! It happens to the best of us, all we can do is keep it to a minimum! As an anlger gets more and more experience, they start to learn with different things feel like and can tell the difference between: grass, sticks, logs, rock, and a fish! However, in the beginning there is a lot of swings and misses, especially when your into fish. For example, I took 2 newbies to Choke the other day and we got into a big mess of stagging bass. After a while, these 2 guys were setting the hook on everything cause they were so excited and used to every thump being a bite! My suggestion with newbies is to tie on an easy lure and try and locate and area where they can catch a bunch of fish, no matter the species. Get them used to feeling a live bite. Get them hooked! Then you can go out, slow it down; and they can start figuring out the hard stuff through practice. Remember, keep it fun so they dont loose interest at first! Especially kids!

Im cool with that! This is this dudes thread so lets let him end it!

You definately need to go with a weightless senko! You can fish it either TX rigged or Wacky style, both are deadly. This is one of the best baits for clear water and grass! Also you would probably do good with a fluke, weightless of course! All topwater would be good out there, especially ones that you can throw far. This way the fish dont see you in that clear water. I would stick with spooks, buzzbaits, plugs, and those little chrom torpedo prop baits. My second biggest bass ever came off of a torpedo prop bait in a small pond, 10.5 lbs! As for cranking lures, dont rule them out! They can be great fished in the grass. But, you got to get the right ones and fish them right. First lipless cranks: go with the Red Eye Shade by Stike King. It is like a rattle trap but has a deeper and narrower body, which helps it stay a little higher and produces a wobble that rips out of grass much better! Then you got your billed crankbaits: Again, go with a crankbait that has a deep and narrow body for that tight fast wobble that rips free easy. Also, find a crankbait that has a squar shaped bill, which deflects easier than the round! Use the grass to your advantage when cranking. When you touch the grass shlow down a little and try to deflect off or just touch it! It you get caught you can do two things. First, stop reeling; this may cause your bait to float loose! Or, you can rip it free. If ripping free it is impairitve to have the right body design that I mentioned. Either way, this is when you are most likely to get your strikes. Get it free, then pause and you will get your hits.. It takes practice but once you learn how to do it, it will be an effective weapon to your arsenal!

This guy is a total scam artist and joke. I didnt know much about him other than the story when he got got, but now after learning all of this Im even more amazed at this guy's shadyness! Also, how is he going to be so angry at tourny fishing when he has won so much money from it. I have heard rumors that he has won over $100k in the past several years. Thats allot of money for an amatuer fisherman! This guy has been cheating all along and it all adds up now. His system was the team tournys, where he would fish along so that he could cheat! He probably had bags of fish positions out in the lakes, or within his boat somewhere! WoW!! I cant believe that he just doesnt appologize! The american public is very forgiving and he might have been forgiven by some people if he would show sincere remorse for what he did! What a jerk!!

Sort of like your thread on "TX Tourney Trails Need Change or posts of the effects of fishing spawning bass. Dude, get a life and quit trying to start problems. No body cares. Either say something productive or move on cause I have way too much going on to verbally sparr with you over none-sense! All of those post where created for people to give their "opinions" if you want to read facts than grab an encyclopedia! When it comes to all of those topics, points of view will also be heavily seeded in opinion because factual evidence is irrelivant, shady, or differs from study to study! After all, I cant pick up the phone and call mr. bass after a tourny to see how he feels(LOL)! So, you got my opinion. I never stated that it was fact, nor did I try and act like it was. I just gave my opinion and clearly stated it was just based on my own judgment and vast experience in the TX outdoors! Your too funny, how do you demand facts from someone that is just giving an opinion on issues that are not black and white, especially when the person stating their opinion does not care to prove anything to you. Im just throwing an educated opinion out there for you to think about, I dont care if you accept it, hate it, or love it! Take it for what its worth and move on man! Go fishing or something!

Yea, hopefully some people will start going to OH Ivie instead of coming down here to choke and falcon. We could use the break. Like I have always said, there are a bunch of lakes in TX that are full of big fish, its just that everyone only wants to fish the same several lakes. Me, I have been enjoying these little known spots for years!

Continued....... Look, I dont care how long somebody has been sitting at a computer and posting comments. If the person calls me out and makes a ridiculous comment, taking me way out of context, then I will address the issue! I absolutely can not stand somebody trying to make me look bad especially when what they are saying makes no sense! Now, if you want to cow down to somebody because they have lots of posts, than thats your right; but I won't! If he wanted to leave an opinion than fine, but instead he just wanted to try and make me look foolish! Thats getting personal. Which brings me to the second thing I hate, " People saying Im the one starting stuff, when it was the other guy that was making personal comments against me!" Last, this is not a thread about Facts! This is a thread about opinions! What is your deal with facts anyways! This is a thread in which you can make a case for many different points of view. There can be evidence, small facts, and other examples to back up your opinions, but this topic is still based on our opinions in the end. So, I dont understand why you are asking me for facts on a discussion like this! One last thing, I dont know you, you dont know me. I make no preconcieved judgements on you nor should you make them about me! If you want to be friendly than fine, if not than just leave me alone! Im not out here trying to please everybody and win a popularity contest. Im a very nice guy but Im also very sure of myself and confident in my opinions. At the same time, I can respect yours, but this doesnt mean that I have to agree with them, as long as I dont get personal. I dont ever get personal unless attack first! Lets just let this die and have a great day!

What is that suppossed to mean! I didnt say anything bad about anyone, every post I mad was in defense of all kinds of people being able to fish! I personally think that fishing is a sport in which everyone has the same physical ability to succed and that it is other restraints; such as society views or socio-economic status that keep women or minorities from succeding at competiitve bass fishing! I thought that I clearly stated this but I guess some people just dont comprehend things very well! Look, Im just giving my opinion on this issue and I was having fun untill certain people started jumping on and personally trying to insult me about stuff that doesnt even make sense! In no way am I "the spokesman for white fisherman" nor do I want to be! However, Im just calling things the way I see them based on what I have experienced! These arent my feelings, but Im not affraid to talk about it! I think its a major problem and was trying to give yall a logical, educated, socio-economic reason for stereotypes towards minorities. The fact that having a few "Black" members in your bass club is speciall to you illustrates the problem bass fishing has. It shouldnt be a big deal, they shouldnt be treated "specially", it should just be ordinary! But it isnt! Its so unusual that you have to bring it up and use it to show how progressive you are. Now, if you live in a different part of the country where everything is soooo great, than fine! It probably more likely that you just live in a region where everyone is the same. I'm only speaking about the areas that I have lived, which all have large minority populations. There isnt much outright racism here, but there are a lot of stereotypes, and I was merely trying to discuss them in a logical educated way. Now, if some of you cant handle that than fine, lets not talk about it anymore! However, I just think its crazy how so many people can completely miss an obvious message! But whatever! I know who I am and am secure in that! I dont need to throw out names of black friends, or the fact that my father is Mexican-American! I just hate when my words are taken out of context and when people miss a concept that I clearly laid out! Its cool though! Yall guys just have a good day and be carefull out there!

White/hot pink Senkos rigged wacky style White tube bait White Jig White Speed Crawl (netbait) Topwaters (spooks) Of course I will go with more natural colors at times, but I like to go with the whites/pink when fish are unmolested and very agressive cause you can see them pick it up very easy. Alot of time bed fish will spit quickly so you got to be on the ball. If you have ever sight fished, then you know how long a fish actually can have your bait before you feel it, its crazy! As for the Topwater Spooks, I love them for bedfishing; especially in super clear water or with nervous pressured fish! Alot of people dont realize that bass hate having a noisy topwater come walking over the top of their beds, and they will hit it as fast as any plastic or jig! You can make long cast with these, so the fish cant see you, and you can cast past their beds and bring it in naturally! However, hook-ups on females can be tricky at times. Sometimes they will just bump it out of their area, so sharp hooks and multiple cast are a must. But, sometimes they blast it every time. I have had some great bedfishing days with a spook!