A 24 pound bag and a 12 pound TOAD!

http://www.nicholsteamseries.com/2013/Event1/Nichols_Awards_-_March.htm

12.28 lbs. That's a beast!

Yeah, tournaments ruin a fishery.

12.28 lbs. That's a beast!

You betcha! The old record was about 2 pounds less and was caught off a dock last year.

 

 

Yeah, tournaments ruin a fishery.

lol

ha i just posted this in the central section.

 

heck yea though huge bass, but dang 294 boats of two man teams thats alot of fishers

ha i just posted this in the central section.

 

heck yea though huge bass, but dang 294 boats of two man teams thats alot of fishers

Thats almost an average weekend on Lake Okeechobee this time of the year plus you can add in all the crappie fishermen that come down from up north.

i guess this fishing thing is pretty popular

That's a toad for that lake!

 

 

Yeah, tournaments ruin a fishery.

 

Ha!  Funny, and I tend to agree for the most part though I have to point out that this is only one instance and is anecdotal so it really doesn't prove anything.  However, there are hundreds of lakes that are good fisheries which experience tournament pressure every year.  I think that kind of evidence speaks loudly.

Up here, Conesus, Oneida, Champlain, Candlewood.... all big bass factories with several daily tournaments.

ha i just posted this in the central section.

 

heck yea though huge bass, but dang 294 boats of two man teams thats alot of fishers

 

150 teams blanked

150 teams blanked

 

I'd wager that these teams' spots really were "fished out."  They are probably not the best spots, and do not reload as quickly.  They are likely spots that these guys count on for single day tournaments.  Spots like this are quickly fished, and eliminated by the pros.  If you've ever fished with or observed a pro, you'd see why.  They are very efficient at what they do, and catch most of the fish in a spot.  If that spot doesn't reload for a few days, it can be affected by a major tournament.  I've seen this on Oneida, first hand.  The guys that do well after a big pressure event usually know prime spots that reload quickly, or fish completely differently than others.  They tend catch the fish that weren't catch-able by techniques used the days before, or that weren't bothered.  In a weeks time, those secondary spots do reload, after the prime spots.

J I can see where you are coming from with that theory. I guess I didnt look at it from that perspective because I live 5 miles from one of the most over fished fisheries in the state of pa. Im used to those fishing those conditions every time I fish. Ive seen situations also where the fish are still in spots but they only feed during a certain time. The fish didnt move out, they just shut down. You might catch them on a spinnerbait one day and the next day they only want a crankbait during a fifteen minute window of the day.

 

Theres also a lot to be said for guys going out and pre fishing. I hear guys all the time... "Man we POUNDED them here yesterday, we are going to really hammer them today now that we have them figured out." The fish didnt leave, they simply sat on that spot and stuck most of the fish in that hole than wonder why they dont bite the next day in a tournament.

Grand gets a ton of tournament pressure as well as recreational pressure every weekend.  Our club puts on a Friday night jackpot during the summer.  We file the appropriate paperwork and make 4 of those tournaments all nighters. I'd put a Ben Franklin up that the fish was caught in a brush pile of offshore.