What is the best way for a person to start tourny fishing. What do i need to do to get started. I have fished one tourney on a local lake and done ok. I try to fish alot and have developed a few methods i can catch fish on. Just need to know what is the best way to get started. Do not want to be a boater. Thanx

BFL

you think that is the best way to go right off the get go? To go to something that big.

Join a local club.

Local club, you can learn some things there too.

Fish all types of water through out different parts of the year...

The worse thing that happens to early tourney anglers is that they get put in a situation they have either never been in before...

Use a map

I am in the same boat as you are crewman. I have about 30 some tournaments this year to go to. Hopefully I am not too over my head. I joined a bass club, a college bass club, and the BFL. With the bass club do your homework. I found that many of the clubs in my area only fished one or two lakes and a handful of tournaments. The one I chose has 17 club tournaments, 4 buddy tournaments, and 10 weeknight tournaments. The college club I am in is fishing two big tournaments this year and two or three small club tournaments. The BFL is fairly pricey $100 a tournament and  the price of food/gas/boater money/hotel. My advice is do your research on local bass clubs and the BFL. Do some searching on google for your state. There should be a state bass site with club information. You can write a post in the bass club section and I am 100% sure that someone in your area will help you! Good luck enjoy the ride!!!

The first tournament I ever fished was as a co-angler in the BFL. It was the greatest move I ever made. The reason I did it was because I wanted to learn. $100 is a cheap, full day guided trip. That's just the way I looked at it, as a learning experience. And boy did I learn. I got lucky and drawed a couple of the top sticks on my home lake. But I learned something from all of the boaters I drew.

It's worth a $100! Plus you never know what might happen!

The worse thing that happens to early tourney anglers is that they get put in a situation they have either never been in before...

That's how you learn!

The worse thing that happens to early tourney anglers is that they get put in a situation they have either never been in before...

That's how you learn!

Not always

I always thought it was better to be prepared then not

Remember trouneys are timed so the better prepared you are the better off you will be and the more FUN you will have.

Though I do understand that a lot of people if in that situation will try and try different techniques/presentation.

Try to fish as many situations on as many lakes as possibe

Be versatile

I feel like too many people make it sound harder than it really is. Most of my preparation was done right here on my PC or out and about the local tackle stores, when I was co-angling. I applied them come tournament day. You don't know how you will be fishing until the night before. Who better to learn from than an experienced boater? There is no better experience than hands on. You can watch all the TV, read all the articles, but until you done for yourself, you will never have the key element, confidence.

It's true, you can take all the talent in the world and throw it away, without preparation. But if you don't apply your preparation, your wasting it.

A question for the people wanting to become a tournament fisherman:

How long do you want to take before you are considered a "threat to the feild?"

Don't know where you guys hail from, but getting some info from local bait shops and such don't work to good for the local tournament angler, and on pro trails, seeking that info is forbidden now days.    

   Specially when you have 10 top trails for all levels that fish the same said lakes all year.   Our trails, the director don't get any feedback from winning teams when they are asked about their days, its tight lips.

You stand a better chance of getting info from Bass Resource than you do locally.      

   Go to Texas Fishing Forum and ask about current patterns on area lakes and see how many serious replies you get, maybe a joke or two.

Guys have lived on said lakes most of the time and jackpot all tournies on home waters, the locals aren't giving any better advice than the TPWD site, which don't help.

     Maybe asking for crappie or other species and buying some bait would help, but don't bet the farm on any of it being a winning pattern.

Time on the water in all conditions, when it rains, when the wind is out of the north, any condition that you may encounter is the same way you should practice.

Good luck and fish what you can.   Its always a learning experience.

Don't know where you guys hail from, but getting some info from local bait shops and such don't work to good for the local tournament angler, and on pro trails, seeking that info is forbidden now days.

I am suprised at your response Matt. A month before the WBT last year, there were a flock of women at our weigh in. This was before the off limits so it was legit for them to solicit info. Only major trails and major tournaments have an off limits anymore. There's kinda this "I'll scratch your back, you scratch mine" thing.

There's ways to get info in bait shops without ever saying a word. Yet, I have been to different areas and have gotten different outlooks. Around Table Rock, lips are sealed. I went to central Florida and visited John Bitter of Bitter Baits and Tackle (yeah it's Jim's brother), he went into detail that I would have never expected. I'm not saying guys should go in expecting GPS coordinates but tackle shop owners will turn you on to the right baits. Afterall, they want you to come back.

What guy wouldn't spill his guts to Marcia Rubin.    Different players in the game.    

Try that little test on the TFF.    See how many forum fishermen will help you out.    

   Its about competition and money in my areas.  Where the lakes see a tournament every week, and sometimes, multiiple trails at the same time.      Not saying you can't get info, just not as much as some think.     Locally run forums were guys compete on the same waters just isn't the 411 on spots and patterns.

I believe you'll get more info by just looking in baitshops.    What is the missing color, whats the popular spinnerbait missing, topwater, colors.    Old pictures posted.         I hit the same shops on certain lakes all the time, if this guy gives 100 guys the same story, is that good advice or just idle chat, alot of holes given up are public local knowledge in the first place.    

     And some of the baits recommended are old stock that didn't sell very well, seen this at Fork when 3200 anglers come down for the annual splash.    On average, thats 32 states and a few countries that show up for the annual Splash, and prostaff are there to move baits, any of them.  

      Just my take on info for competitive fishing.

Thanks for the info guys. I am going to join tne UT martin club when i transfer to martin. I have already been talking to one of the members about that. I am going to give a local club a call in just a second hopefully it works out. I may fish the BFL tourney when it comes to Paris Landing i thing in June. I will just have to see how it goes. Thanks again.

x2 on the BFL co-angler. The first one or two I was totally out of my element, but by the third I knew what was going on. There is no way I would have learned what I did by fishing just the local club tourneys in my area, but your area could be different.

How to start tournament fishing? Join a tournament trail & go fishing

How to find lake information? Get in your boat & hit the lake

Fishing reports, tackle shop talk, forums are just history lessons

join a local club then move up from there. Local clubs for the most part are made up of friendly people very willing to share information with you.  I'm so glad i did that myself

local club and read IKE's book( Fishing on the edge), knowledge is power.

Ike's book was excellent, i read it three times and I'm sure i'll read it again.  I was really surprised about how great his writing was, i'm hoping he follows it up with another one

Ike's book was excellent, i read it three times and I'm sure i'll read it again. I was really surprised about how great his writing was, i'm hoping he follows it up with another one

Yeah he is a great writer. On another note, his TV show is great too.

I didnt know he had a tv show!! I never have time to watch tv anymore, basically i watched the football games and some cartoons at night but other than that its been study all week and work, girlfriend, and fishing on the weekends (the later being the highest on the to do list lol).

BFL

yea I'm probably not the person to ask but that seems like kinda making a big leap really quick. I believe the best thing to do would be to join a local club. Not only are the tournaments fun but there should be great camaraderie too

Start with a club and work your way up. Some of the best you will ever fish against are at the local level.