My Most Memorable Events
of 2008
February 4, 2009
Looking back on my 2008 tournament season, I would have to say that the PAA event at Lake Fork in April made a huge impact on my season. My team finished 9th overall in that event and that’s what got the ball rolling for the success I’d achieve the remainder of that season. Getting the chance to practice and fish with two of the best anglers in the country, David Curtis from Texas and Denny Brauer, was big for me.
Denny and I actually fished the two day event together and though I was excited to see Denny working a jig (same as me!) I was also encouraged when I watched Denny struggle a bit – even a pro can have a bad day. Watching Denny overcome and regroup, I realized that if I can learn to overcome unwelcome conditions and bad attitudes, I’ll be much more successful in this sport. Learning to change my attitude was paramount in the success of my season.
Two additional successful events for me were Lake Norman and Ft. Loudon/Tellico on the FLW Tour. Obviously, the two top 10's I achieved were significant, but what I learned in both of those events was to stay open minded and pay attention to the situations I was encountering: I kept moving and learning new waters each day of the Lake Norman tournament. Fish were spawning for the most part but I set up an alternative off shore structure pattern with a Carolina rigged Senko and it made the difference.
Every day I would make sure I was covering water looking for new fish moving up to spawn and it produced a top-10 finish.
I finished 3rd at the Ft. Loudon/Tellico event and I attribute that again to paying attention to DETAIL! My co-angler on day two made a crazy cast out in the middle of nowhere with a rig and caught an unsuspected bass. I was struggling at the time but paid attention to where he caught it. I swung the boat around, hoping to capitalize on where he threw and I had 18 pounds of largemouth in the livewell in ten minutes!
In addition to being more open-minded and detail-oriented, and most importantly to me, I've discovered through another season of fishing and life that the most important thing I can do in my life is to trust God.