New Tournament Season Underway

The 2019 Bassmaster Elite Series season got started back in early February at the St. John's River in Florida.  Shelby and I went down to Florida a couple weeks before the tournament to get the new Lund 2075 Pro-V Bass in the water and escape some of our Canadian winter. 

Shimano is a huge sponsor for me again this year and they have helped me out with wrapping my boat and truck.  The rig looks pretty good!  

The new boat is a fishing machine, loaded up with all of the best equipment from Humminbird, Minn Kota, T-H Marine and an Atlas Jack Plate.  

• Minn Kota Ultrex
• Humminbird Helix 10
• Humminbird 360 
• T-H Marine Kong Mount
• T-H Marine Hydrowave
• T-H Marine G-Force Handle
• Shimano Reels
• G. Loomis Rods

The first tournament at the St. John's River was not how I wanted to start out my Elite Series career.  I only managed to bring in two fish on the first day then rounded up a limit on day two for a 61st place finish. 

The next event at Lake Lanier was one that I was looking forward to for months.  After fishing an FLW Tour event at Lanier last year, I have called my favourite lake in the southern U.S.  It is the best spotted bass fishery that I have ever visited, a really nice place.  
I had a great first day of the Lanier event, leading the tournament after day one, bringing in a limit weighing 19-2.  Unfortunately on day two I was only able to muster up two fish and dropped to 48th place.  Not sure how I managed to do that but it happened.  One of those days!  
The Bassmaster crew did cover my first day here: Day One Lake Lanier

The new Minn Kota Ultrex with the Down Imaging transducer built into it REALLY, REALLY impressed me at Lake Lanier.  It's nice having a split screen with a look at traditional sonar on one side and D.I. on the other side to really distinguish what is under the boat.  That is a school of spotted bass next to a brush pile, pretty cool stuff. 

I have some of the best sponsors in the industry that allow me to get out there and fish...there are still seven tournaments left this season so I'm sure I'll have plenty of good days!  The next event is the first week of April at Lake Hartwell, South Carolina...I'm looking forward to getting back at it! 

I just did an interview with my friend Lawrence Gunther and his radio show Blue Fish Radio - you can check it out here: Interview with Lawrence & Gussy