Bryan Schmitt has done it again.
He tallied 44-15 over three days, including 15-4 on the final day, to secure the victory at the Potomac River Northern Toyota Series. It is Schmitt's seventh career Toyota Series win – a record – and fourth at the Potomac as he further cemented his status as a top tidal water angler.
Samuel Fish was the runner-up with 43-9, including 17-7 on the final day. Christian Grieco finished third with 43-4.
Schmitt targeted grass, rock and a mix of other cover en route to the win.
“It was a no-brainer approach,” he said of Day 1. “With the clouds, I had a couple small grass stretches that I think were overlooked. They might not have had a ton of fish, but they had some chunks, some decent 3-pounders. I really leaned on them hard Day 1. It was shallow hydrilla, and that was all winding my swim jig.”
Then, Schmitt added a fish on a drop-shot off a dock post, and he kept the mix up rolling from there.
“The day before the tournament and Day 1, we had clouds,” said Schmitt. “That kind of triggers a bite. When you reverse that here and the sun finally pops out, it gets tough. Day 2, I wasn’t able to catch any fish in the morning in the grass – I had to rely on some hard structure, docks, a couple isolated deep logs. And at the end of the day, for like 2 1/2 hours, I punched mats, and one was a good one.”
Schmitt continued to tap his deep Potomac knowledge on the final day.
“Today, I ran the same pattern – some wood, some docks – and I caught 13 pounds pretty easy,” he said. “But I felt like I needed to run something new. So, I ran to this one spot that my wife and I fished 20 years ago. It’s an old underwater rock jetty. Dude, I pulled up, and I caught a 3-6 right away. Then my co-angler catches a 3 1/2, and if they’re there, they’re never by themselves. Well, I didn’t position the boat right, and he catches a 4. Then I caught another one, and then I ran to some grass late, and caught one almost 3 on a frog that probably upgraded me half a pound.”
By the end of the tournament, Schmitt had used just about every rod on his deck to get the job done.
“It was 100 percent history of the river, knowledge of the river, and having a few things different up my sleeve,” he said.
For baits, Schmitt used a 3/8-ounce Hayabusa Lil’ Schmitty Swim Jig with a Missile Baits Chunky D trailer in the grass. For hard stuff, a Missile Baits Magic Worm on a drop-shot and a SPRO Little John MD got the call. Schmitt also used a SPRO Bronzeye Poppin’ Frog, and a Missile Baits D Bomb accounted for his punching fish. Of particular note, Schmitt used his signature Fitzgerald swim jig rod when he was swimming his signature jig.
On stage, Schmitt was emotional when he earned the win in front of family and friends.
“I put a lot of pressure on myself when we come around here, and there was a definite opportunity,” he said. “I wanted it real bad. I feel very rewarded. I’m really blown away, seriously.”
Here's how the top 10 looked:
1. Bryan Schmitt: 15, 44-15
2. Samuel Fish: 15, 43-9
3. Christian Grieco: 15, 43-4
4. Anthony Buzzeo: 15, 41-3
5. Matt McCluskey: 15, 41-3
6. Bryan Labelle: 15, 40-15
7. Aaron Dixon: 15: 40-14
8. Brady Lunsmann: 15, 40-14
9. Jason Burger: 15, 40-8
10. Emil Wagner: 15, 39-12
