J.Vincent

This story sounded fishy ; so I decided to do some citizen investigating. I’m not saying this isn’t true news, but the lack of details doesnt make sense: (a) none of the National media articles mention if Terry Keith Long admitted to cheating (b) the tournament director was not mentioned or interviewed or quoted in the article (c) nobody knows if a poly was given (d) nobody knows what place he was in before the DQ (e) Terry Keith Long wasn’t available for comment (f) the arresting or apprehending police officer isnt mentioned and neither is the time of apprehension (g) there isn’t a single traceable reference Here is the original article I tracked down, which was posted on March 14th in the Wood County Monitor Archives, it’s conveniently placed next to a Coleman Bail Bond Company Advertisement ? I’m not saying this is fake news, but Sealy Outdoors won’t reply to my email and I can’t find a Public Record at Wood County court and there are no News Releases or Game Warden notes at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department ?

That's a good looking Goby imitator....of the 2 weight options in a stream like system....I would pick the smaller 1/2 oz, and if they had 1/4oz I would get those also. Good luck

Certainly there is a brotherhood or sense of community amongst many bass anglers, and whenever I can....I freely provide information to other locals about local lures and patterns that work well

Before I began drop shotting with a dedicated rod , I used my 5ft6 Light Fast action panfish rod; and it worked surprisingly well unless the fish were over 2 lbs; then it just seemed like the bass had the advantage ; but I would recommend a ML or a Medium power for most finesse drop shotting

Yes I’m sure the tail being trimmed was obvious enough to DQ him but now that I think of it they technically should have given a poly anyway in case he actually did catch a fish that someone else had previously trimmed : ) (which is doubtful) but the story contains limited facts and no mention was made about the incident on the official tournament webpage ? Just seems weird to leave out important information...not that I’m a lawyer but I appreciate the finer details in any Bass Fishing Criminal investigation : )

Your right it’s not in the article or any of the articles , I assumed there was a poly because it’s a fairly large tournament.

I like to think the majority of anglers are honest and credible; but you are probably correct there are some bad apples. Maybe the worst part for everyone, is how a story like this can potentially rob the sport of its legitimacy to a certain degree....and you know, what about the 2nd place angler, did they become the winner by default? did everyone who passed a poly move up a spot in the results ?

So true , but last year I wouldn’t have caught half of the fish I did; without the use of plastics made within the last few years. Specifically the Berkley Pit Boss and Yum Christie Craw.....but as for worms I do still fish a plethora of Zoom and Culprits from the 1990s and maybe even late 1980s. They still work very well and in some cases better than newer designed worms.

No way to recover your image after a fiasco like that.....not in this industry. Hopefully he learned his lesson

When spooling new line on baitcasters, the Berkley Mini Spooler is my product of choice. Simple and sweet and easy to stow away; this is a product which works at home or on the go. The mini spooler has been compatible with every Medium, Medium Heavy and Heavy Bass Rod I’ve tried and also works with 1/4 lb spools or filler spools. Just spend some time dialing in the tension correctly prior to spooling !

Very Likely to Place in Top 10: Ott DeFoe Randal Tharp Jason Christie Brandon Lester Jordan Lee Wesley Strader Edwin Evers KVD Ike Dark Horse: B.Hite J.Powraznik

In the words of Kenny Rogers: You've got to know when to hold 'em Know when to fold 'em Know when to walk away And know when to run........

For the past few seasons , I've gone old school style.....and put them in a 1980s style canvas duffle bag. Works great and I organize them in 1 gallon ziploc bags inside the duffle.....Craws, finesse worms, drop shot, curly tail worms, lizards, creature, trailers, flukes, toads, etc etc

These folks have clearly never fished frozen water : ) when the only thing you can get bit on is a wax worm. Fact is there is no universal lure for Bass, which will work under every situation. There are categories of lures that may be productive in every season , including Jigs or Plastics , but just to say a lure category is universal doesn’t mean that it will universally be the primary pattern; so I try to focus on what works best in relation to the season and conditions.

2.5 Tabs is about 55 strands

I know the general rule of thumb for experienced crankbait anglers is to use a Composite or Glass Rod, and I've owned plenty of Composite rods over the years (my favorite was the discontinued Team Daiwa TD-s Crankin Rod) but in the past few years Ive consistently found myself using Moderate Fast Graphite for all of my moving baits, regardless of depth. I actually like the added sensitivity a Moderate Fast Graphite offers when crawling a crankbait on bottom. In your experience and opinion, is the added sensitivity not worth the trade off ? are there other anglers who also prefer Moderate Fast Graphite for cranking or is this 100% the wrong tool to use for Mid to Deep Cranking ?

BOSS Outdoors which I think is fishingskirts.com but you would have to purchase the material and make your own to get that strand count. Their colors and selection are very good, probably the best I've found anywhere.

Ok then fish a live crawfish on bottom and come back in a few days to tell us what happens. I would be very surprised if you don't catch a smallmouth.....but if not then I would consider soaking a 3 or 4 inch Leech either live or the Berkley Gulp Leeches.

I actually like the no emotion , impartiality and neutral character of The BPT referees....reminds me of a baseball ump calling strikes behind the plate or a no nonsense tennis line judge ....I think the NFL should note this and remind all of their refs about the importance of being impartial and calling by the book.

Pro Bass Tournaments on unknown waters announced 48 hours in advance. All boats must be aluminum with a 100 hp limit and 55lb thrust trolling motor limit. Every angler gets a 10 rod limit, 10 Plano Limit, 10 lb Plastic Limit and 1 Physical Map. No GPS, Graphs, Smartphones or Power Poles allowed. But each competitor gets the option of bringing either 1 Drift Sock, 1 Anchor, 1 Net, 1 Push Pole or 1 Marker Buoy. We would find out real quickly who the best in the business are.

I like all of these brands for various situations: Zoom Salty Super Tubes, Strike King Coffee Tubes, Gambler Flipping Tubes and ISG Dream Tubes For your situation I would pick up some Gambler Flipping Tubes, Bullet Sinker Weights , 4/0 or 5/0 EWG Superline Hook and some 20lb Mono or Fluorocarbon line. Texas rig the Tube with a pegged or stopped cone sinker and pitch or flip around the cyprus and isolated wood cover . This should be very effective on days when fish are holding closer to cover.

Book of The Black Bass by James Henshall also Advanced Bass Fishing by Dick Sternberg

With a Nightcrawler dangled below a Red and White Bobber

Looks similar to the Oldham weedless tube jigs; but that hook reminds me of a Venom Tube Jig customized with a wire guard