So me and my dad have been fishing since i was about 5 and im 16 now. He has done plenty of tournys but i have done none. So on may 2nd we are going to enter one at one of our local lakes. The lake is very clear. I was just wondering if all of you could give me some tips so that i can hopefully do good in my 1st tourny ever!!

Thanks Everyone   :D

What state are you fishing?

What Lake are you fishing?

More information would help to give you some pointers.

Its in virginia...its a system of like 13 small lakes and you can jump around to them all during the tourny but the one we like best is called lake annette and it is very very clear but some parts of it are like 30 feet deep.

Fish to your strengths

Remeber, you are not out trying to find fish.  You are there to catch.  Throw the baits you have the most confidence in, the ones you can always count on to catch a fish.  Also, make sure you keep you bait in the water, don't waste time retying new baits every few minutes.  

yeah my dad has been telling me its all about casting..he said you have to be constantly casting 1 after another

Remeber, you are not out trying to find fish. You are there to catch. Throw the baits you have the most confidence in, the ones you can always count on to catch a fish. Also, make sure you keep you bait in the water, don't waste time retying new baits every few minutes.

This is a good point.  I had a co-angler with me once, and every 20 casts he'd tie on a new lure.  By the end of the day, he went through everything in his tackle bag....and didn't catch a fish.  The funny thing was, I caught all of my fish on the same spinnerbait.  I never even switched rods the whole day!!!

Hi I'm 16 too and we have a Highschool bass team wich we fish many tournaments and I wanna give you a few pointers because my tournament turned out bad. First thing do not get in to big of a hurry. Just fish at you steady normal pace and don't let anything get to you such as another tournament fisherman or if the fish are not biting. Someone else made a good point by saying that you should always keep your bait in the water. And another important rule is to NEVER leave fish to go find fish that you think may be biting better in another part of the lake. Remember 90% of the fish are in 10% of the lake.  And whatever you do, do not get frustrated because everyone knows a frustrated fisherman can't catch fish. Stay calm keep your cool and have fun. That's all I got.

GOOD LUCK!

Be confident in what your throwing. If you are sure what you are throwing is the right thing, don't change, be patient and you will get bit. Also, fish for five big fish. Unless I'm fishing for points (for club or state team) I don't try to get a quick limit and upgrade. An 8lb limit isn't going to win you a tournament anyway so instead of getting a quick limit and upgrading, fish for five quality bites. Also, never EVER give up during a tournament. Here's why, last october I was fishing a tournament as a rider. I had a solid limit, he had squat. Ten minutes before we had to leave for weigh in, he caught two 4lb smallmouth on his jerkbait on one cast, one on the front hook, one on the back. In the next five minutes, he caught three more smallmouth over 3lbs, finishing out his limit. He ended up coming in second and cashing a check. If he would have gave up like many people would have, he would have went home empty handed. Also, no matter what, don't panic and don't get angry, it won't help.

Its in virginia...its a system of like 13 small lakes and you can jump around to them all during the tourny but the one we like best is called lake annette and it is very very clear but some parts of it are like 30 feet deep.

I'm curious, where in Virginia are these lakes?

Its in virginia...its a system of like 13 small lakes and you can jump around to them all during the tourny but the one we like best is called lake annette and it is very very clear but some parts of it are like 30 feet deep.

I'm curious, where in Virginia are these lakes?

Its in suffolk, virginia here is the link to them  http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/fishing/waterbodies/display.asp?id=80