I always like to use this last entry of the year to reflect on my season, compare it to years past and that helps me get an idea of if, and how I'm progressing as a fisherman. The main things I like to look at are as follows:
1. Did I learn anything that will help me be more successful down the road?
1. Did I learn anything that will help me be more successful down the road?
This is the most important part of the equation to me. It's the reason I fish and I've always said the year I don't learn something will be the year I quit fishing. A couple years ago I got in a rut and I was really beginning to think I'd about maxed out on what I could learn. Last year some things started clicking and I actually said in my 2013 Season Recap that I felt like I'd learned more in 2013 than I had in any year prior. Learning that much in '13 really had me excited about putting it to use this year and I never dreamed I could have another learning year like '13 this far into my career but '14 was even better! It's really hard to explain but let's take March for instance. March has always been my favorite month to fish, I've been pretty successful in March over the years and caught fish a lot of different ways. I pretty much thought I was as dialed into March fishing as I could be and this year it was like all of the little pieces of the puzzle came together and I could see the big picture. Before, I was fortunate to find good places or patterns but this year it became crystal clear to me when and why those places were good and I even added a few new patterns that I never knew existed to my March arsenal. April has always been my Achilles Heel on KY Lake and I had numerous 20lb days this year and that was a huge confidence boost for me moving forward. Another good example was what I learned about electronics and school fishing. I've been able to find and catch fish using my Lowrance for several years but I really learned some next level stuff this past summer. The coolest thing I learned was where to make my first cast into the school by the way they're positioned on the Lowrance to get the most out of the school. I really believe this is the type stuff that's separated guys like Randy Haynes from the rest of the pack the past few years. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I know as much as Randy, just saying I know a lot more than I did 8 months ago! To sum it up, it was a very exciting year from a learning standpoint and probably the best of my career.
2. TOURNAMENT WINS
For me to make a living fishing at this level, I have to win tournaments. As I've said many times, the difference in a win and second place for me is around 10 grand. In order to get all of my big bonus checks from Triton, Mercury, Power-Pole, etc, I have to win! In a recent Bass Fan interview Randall Tharp said at the end of the year he doesn't want to count paychecks, he wants to count trophies! Randall hit the nail on the head and even though I'm competing at a lower level, I can definitely relate. Tournaments, especially one day tournaments, are very hard to win. There are more fishermen on the lake than ever before and with all of the technology and info available the vast majority of these fishermen know what they're doing out there. I don't think we'll ever see an era like I've heard about in the 80's and 90's where guys like Bill and Billy Schroeder on KY Lake or Ed Gettys and Billy Ledbetter on Guntersville dominated and won every single tournament they entered because the playing field is just too level now. I try to set realistic goals every year and while I fish to win every tournament I enter, that's just not realistic this day and age. Too many things have to come together to win. I do believe with smart game plans, smart decisions, perfect execution and a little luck, you can win several tournaments in a season so my goal the past few years has been to win five Triton/Mercury sanctioned events a season. Three years ago when I set this goal, I won two but they were more luck than anything and I just never got in tune with the winning fish that year. Last year, I won two sanctioned events again but I really felt like I was around the winning fish or on the winning patterns in several more. This year I was able to get even closer to my goal of winning five in a season. I only sealed the deal in three of them but either lost the winning fish or was within ounces or one bite of winning four more. This was definitely the most consistent year I've ever had as far as being in contention to win and it strengthens my belief that 5 or more wins in a season is a realistic and reachable goal.
3. TOP 10 FINISHES AND CHECKS
I also like to look at my top 10 finishes and how many checks I cash compared to past years because even though the ultimate goal is winning, the longer you linger around the top 10 the more wins you’re going to get. I was able to cash checks in 17/22 events (77%) and finish in the top 10 in 15/22 events (68%). These numbers are almost identical to 2013 (16/23 on checks and top 10's) but there was one major improvement. Out of my 15 top 10 finishes, 13 of them were 4th place or better. That number of top 4's surpasses any year I've had to date by far and again helped me prove to myself that winning numerous tournaments in a season is very possible.
SUMMARY: I don't have any complaints about this season. My guide business absolutely exploded and I feel like I'm right where I need to be at this point with my guiding. As far as the tournament side, not having any complaints doesn't mean I'm content. I am still striving for the "perfect" season where all of the "one bite away" 2nd and 3rd places are "W's"! What this season did was show me that while not an easy feat, winning 40 to 50% of the tournaments I enter is very possible. It may never happen, but as long as I believe that it's a reachable goal, that's what we're shooting for. I'm usually pretty burnt out by this point in the year and not even wanting to think about the upcoming season but after what I learned this year, I'm very much looking forward to next year's tournament season. That's what I love most about this amazing sport. No matter how much time we spend on the water we can never learn it all, every day is brand new and that's what keeps us coming back.
As always thanks to all of my sponsors: Odom's Blue and Gray Marine, Triton Boats, Mercury Marine, Lowrance, Strike King Lures, Power-Pole, Seaguar, All Pro Rods, Abu Garcia, The Rod Glove, Strike Force Fish Attractant, The Cabin Bait and Tackle and TackleExperts.com.
Thanks to my family and friends for all of their support and most of all my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the opportunity to live the dream.
Thanks to everyone who followed along this year, I hope you all have a blessed 2015!
2. TOURNAMENT WINS
For me to make a living fishing at this level, I have to win tournaments. As I've said many times, the difference in a win and second place for me is around 10 grand. In order to get all of my big bonus checks from Triton, Mercury, Power-Pole, etc, I have to win! In a recent Bass Fan interview Randall Tharp said at the end of the year he doesn't want to count paychecks, he wants to count trophies! Randall hit the nail on the head and even though I'm competing at a lower level, I can definitely relate. Tournaments, especially one day tournaments, are very hard to win. There are more fishermen on the lake than ever before and with all of the technology and info available the vast majority of these fishermen know what they're doing out there. I don't think we'll ever see an era like I've heard about in the 80's and 90's where guys like Bill and Billy Schroeder on KY Lake or Ed Gettys and Billy Ledbetter on Guntersville dominated and won every single tournament they entered because the playing field is just too level now. I try to set realistic goals every year and while I fish to win every tournament I enter, that's just not realistic this day and age. Too many things have to come together to win. I do believe with smart game plans, smart decisions, perfect execution and a little luck, you can win several tournaments in a season so my goal the past few years has been to win five Triton/Mercury sanctioned events a season. Three years ago when I set this goal, I won two but they were more luck than anything and I just never got in tune with the winning fish that year. Last year, I won two sanctioned events again but I really felt like I was around the winning fish or on the winning patterns in several more. This year I was able to get even closer to my goal of winning five in a season. I only sealed the deal in three of them but either lost the winning fish or was within ounces or one bite of winning four more. This was definitely the most consistent year I've ever had as far as being in contention to win and it strengthens my belief that 5 or more wins in a season is a realistic and reachable goal.
3. TOP 10 FINISHES AND CHECKS
I also like to look at my top 10 finishes and how many checks I cash compared to past years because even though the ultimate goal is winning, the longer you linger around the top 10 the more wins you’re going to get. I was able to cash checks in 17/22 events (77%) and finish in the top 10 in 15/22 events (68%). These numbers are almost identical to 2013 (16/23 on checks and top 10's) but there was one major improvement. Out of my 15 top 10 finishes, 13 of them were 4th place or better. That number of top 4's surpasses any year I've had to date by far and again helped me prove to myself that winning numerous tournaments in a season is very possible.
SUMMARY: I don't have any complaints about this season. My guide business absolutely exploded and I feel like I'm right where I need to be at this point with my guiding. As far as the tournament side, not having any complaints doesn't mean I'm content. I am still striving for the "perfect" season where all of the "one bite away" 2nd and 3rd places are "W's"! What this season did was show me that while not an easy feat, winning 40 to 50% of the tournaments I enter is very possible. It may never happen, but as long as I believe that it's a reachable goal, that's what we're shooting for. I'm usually pretty burnt out by this point in the year and not even wanting to think about the upcoming season but after what I learned this year, I'm very much looking forward to next year's tournament season. That's what I love most about this amazing sport. No matter how much time we spend on the water we can never learn it all, every day is brand new and that's what keeps us coming back.
As always thanks to all of my sponsors: Odom's Blue and Gray Marine, Triton Boats, Mercury Marine, Lowrance, Strike King Lures, Power-Pole, Seaguar, All Pro Rods, Abu Garcia, The Rod Glove, Strike Force Fish Attractant, The Cabin Bait and Tackle and TackleExperts.com.
Thanks to my family and friends for all of their support and most of all my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the opportunity to live the dream.
Thanks to everyone who followed along this year, I hope you all have a blessed 2015!
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