RE: KVD stats poll – Roland had nine AOYs, 19 wins. Kevin has eight AOYs against a stronger field. However, the 26 tournament victories over the decades speaks of consistancy and focus. Also, the schedules expanded to more diverse fisheries, while Roland's were more geographically concentrated.
RE: Fishing with antique lures – Nice article. One correction, however. The famous Bass Oreno was manufactured by South Bend. not Heddon. Heddon made similarly designed plugs like the Basser and Lucky 13.
BassFan says: Thanks for that info, Mike.
RE: Balog on Saginaw Bay BPT – Fair play? If everyone is doing the same thing, it's fair ... 'nuff said.
RE: Balog on Saginaw Bay BTP – Joe, I really enjoy your articles, but I believe this one may be a little quick to give it all to the sonar guys based off one tournament. Had the wind not shifted and KVD's smallmouth spot not been blown out, we may have seen a very different ending. Would that mean that old-school would go back to dominating everything? Definitely not, anymore than technology will dominate everything going forward. Yes, it is a huge factor, especially in smallmouth tournaments. But 3rd place in AOY for the Bass Pro Tour was Ott Defoe, who by his own admission has not committed fully to the forward-facing sonar deal. Over on the Bassmaster Elite Series, the top two guys in AOY are both shallow-water, old-school flipping, frogging, topwater guys; as is the 4th. Sure, the remaining two tournaments over there set up well for the video game fishermen, but they will have a 40-point deficit to overcome in order to win the title.
I expect that when the dust settles there will be a balance struck between the technology and conventional angling. The tech will drive a lot of guys offshore and the Lanes and Defoes of the sport will find their fish less pressured. There are indications that bass may even be becoming sensitive to FFS in deep water and if so they will be even more so in shallow, where guys have been turning off their electronics for years to avoid spooking them. As the pressure increases offshore, more bass will move shallow to avoid said pressure, the same way they did the opposite decades ago.
I may be wrong. I hope I'm not and maybe you do too. But I think it may be too early to throw in the towel on good old-fashioned fishing just yet.
In 2017 at the Classic in Houston we met the nicest person in Houston. It was the wife of Matt Herren. She took myself and my wife in to the weigh-in on extra tickets she had. I saw her again at the Elite tournament at Lake St Clair on 7-26-23. She remembered us and gave me a T-shirt with Matt Herren on the back. Fan forever. Hope to find a way to the Classic this year in Oklahoma. Thanks for your kindness and the shirt.
RE: Fennel among Sports Business Journal honorees – Kathy is a classy professional who is a credit to the sport!
Dear BassFan Readers: As you may have noticed, new content has not been posted to BassFan.com recently. That’s because in an effort to streamline production,
By B.A.S.S. Communications PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. — Before the Lake Champlain Bassmaster Elite Qualifier even started, Emil Wagner was telling anyone who
By B.A.S.S. Communications PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. — Emil Wagner estimated a couple hundred waves crashed over the bow of his boat on Day 2 of the Lake
