DAY 1: Guntersville Alabama is the home of one of the best bass fisheries in America. The problem is over the past several years, with all the big sacks the pros have brought in at weigh-ins, all of America knows it is a great big bass producer. All that publicity is great for the local economy but now the pros must contend with the problem they may have created and that is pressured bass.
Lake Guntersville is big but even a big lake can be pressured and after a full season of weekend anglers, vacationing anglers as well as the many tournaments held on Guntersville throughout the season the Lake Guntersville bass have seen it all. My guess is that the angler that finds the bass offshore (Mark Rose) will do well provided he finds them. I pulled Mark Rose from my winner on my fantasy team after hearing his discouraging interview on the morning of day 3 practice. I inserted Randall Tharp into his place because Randall has been hot and he finished second in 2008 in a B.A.S.S open in October so I think with his strengths in shallow water and covering water he should do well with the bass scattered throughout the lake I think that is going to be the way to catch them. You must keep in mind that Mr. Rose and anyone else can find the ledge fish and if they do they should bite especially since they ultimately see much less pressure than the grass and shoreline bass.
Check back here the next few days for updates on the progress and what is working during this tournament.
DAY 2: Well so much for the low weights. Paul Elias is hammering them. Unfortunately I took him off my fantasy team, amazing. Anyway the rumer is that Paul is using an unorthodox presentation and I will post that as soon as the on the water cam gets some shots of his technique. Paul already has 21 pounds this morning and I would say he has this one wrapped up. Most of the anglers are flipping but the fishing has been super slow so like everyone else I am anxious to see what Mr. Elias is doing to get those big to bite.
Overall the weights, I guess you could say, are down a bit compared to past Guntersville tournaments but with Paul Elias and Marshall Deakins breaking the 20 pound mark and reportedly Paul has already broke that mark this morning and 16 pounds needed for the top ten I would say not too bad especially considering the conditions.
The big story here is Paul Elias and his technique that is continuing to put monsters in the boat. Check back and see what that technique is and why it is working so well.
The Alabama rig. Holy cow, Paul Elias catches 29 pounds on the rig and jumps his weight to 55-03 on day two and with nearly a 15 pound lead it looks like the win is his. This tournament has turned into the Alabama rig on-slought and rest assured there will be a few sold in the days to come. I hope they can make them fast enough.
DAY 3: Well there are more guys throwing that Alabama Rig on day 3 and the weights have increased because of it. Occasionally a bait comes along that the bass have not seen and they really take to it just like they took to this rig at Guntersville. It would not surprise me if someone wasn’t on lake Guntersville this very moment slinging the Alabama Rig. Scott Martin said, during weigh in that there was two tournaments going on. The one he was fishing and that other one called the Alabama Rig tournament and that in his tournament he was doing well but since a rumored 18 out of the top 20 anglers were throwing the Alabama Rig.
It is a fact that 9 of the remaining 10 anglers, left for tomorrow, is fishing for second place. Unless something really bazaar happens Paul Elias has it in the bag. Keep in mind though that his nearly 15 pound lead could be considered bazaar to the many anglers that struggled just to get a bite through practice and into the tournament.
Casey Martin took care of business sacking 20 pounds, 9 ounces and the win by 1pm and laid down his rod. A friend gave Casey an Alabama Rig and then he was paired with Mr. Elias or should we call him, at least for now Mr. Alabama Rig? This win was Casey Martin’s second in a row winning at Lake Champlain a month ago.
Check back for a summary of the Alabama Rig open on lake Guntersville tomorrow. I wonder if anybody will be throwing anything but an Alabama Rig and if there is someone not throwing it I wonder where he will place.
DAY 4: Paul Elias brings in another big sack of Lake Guntersville bass and breaks the 100 pound mark for the tournament. This has been one of those tournaments that will be talked about for a long time and the Alabama Rig will be the center of the conversation. There will be more said about this lure and if it will be legal I am sure. There are some states that do not allow this many hooks on a line. I thought they were rigging it like an umbrella rig, used for trolling for stripers, which only has one bait with a hook and the others are just to attract the fish to the rig then the center bait had the hook and trailed a few inches back from the rest of the pack like a weaker baitfish. I was surprised myself to learn they had hooks on all the baits but I guess it is legal so I guess it pays to know the rules to stay out of trouble but also to get the upper hand because I would have automatically thought it wasn’t allowed.
Congrats to Paul Elias a great guy and a pillar in the sport of bass fishing.
Ken McBroom is a freelance outdoor writer and photographer based in Indiana. For more information please visit www.ramblingangler.com send comments to [email protected]