May 19th, 2012 Green River Tournament

It was another busy day at the “overheated” scales Saturday as 6 limits were brought in. Although a limit did not guarantee a check this time as an overall good quality of fish were weighed. Word has it that topwater baits did well all day, but the usual jigs and shakey heads also produced. Congratulations to the following!  Results

Mike Sherley 1st Place

1st Place:	Mike Sherley				11.69 lbs.
2nd Place:	Joe Howard				10.32 lbs.
3rd Place:	Larry Whiteman				9.20 lbs

Top Boat:	Mike Sherley/Greg Schultz				18.54 lbs.
1st Big Fish:	Patrick Mertens				3.93 lbs.

Limits Rule at Kentucky Lake Two Day!

Friday is a Challenge

There were several things leading into the weekend that had some of us wondering if we would make it to the lake.  Gary had drug problems (no, not that! A reaction to meds…), Billy had clock issues, and Lee wanted to sleep in…but eventually everyone made it. Reports in the evening were good, although the temps dropped 15+ degrees by late afternoon.

This is the first year in at least 3 years that the lake was not flooded.  No one really knew what to do with the majority of the bushes high and dry. Adjustments would have to be made on Saturday as the weather was completely different.  Or would they?

Saturday

The weather Saturday was significantly different from most of Friday.  High winds, lower temperatures made for a bumpy ride for those heading out to the main lake from Jonathan Creek.  Joe and Tim were seen bouncing high on the waves at high-speed for their long run south.  At least one other boat went north, while the majority stayed in and around Jonathan Creek.

Weigh-in was set for 4p and what a weigh-in would be!  Billy and Bill had a problem early in the day and had to leave the tournament as Billy’s trolling motor blew up.  Hated to hear that and wish they could have stayed around to see the action.  All of the talk at the ramp as boats were being pulled out was about who had what limit.  Of the 10 guys weighing fish, 7 had a limit, 2 had four fish each, while I only had 1.  40 fish for 10 guys in one day made for the best day I have personally ever seen in the LMBC.  It should also be noted that 3 boats had both guys with a limit, with Dale and John having 9 fish and John telling tales of losing or breaking off 3 more keepers.  So who had the biggest of the limits?

Third place Saturday was a tie.  Both Joe Howard and Rick Fusner weighed in with a nice 11.15 pounds of fish.  Joe and Mike had gone several miles south of Jonathan Creek as previously noted.  Not sure what Joe caught all of his fish on but am thinking a jig and shaky head were the weapons of choice.  Rick and his angler, Mike Sherley, had gone the other direction and Carolina rigged their way into limits with Rick’s being just ahead of Mike’s.  Mike Sherley, Dale Siebert and Tim Pate also had limits but were not in the top 3 after day 1.

In second place was the club’s defending co-angler of the year, David Nash.  David has whined for years that he and Lee always do the same things, going to the same places, and not always doing well.  However, David has never once suggested not fishing with his buddy Lee at a club two-day affair.  This year David would be more than happy he did as both he and Lee had limits.  David had 5 nice fish at the scale on Saturday weighing in at 11.76 pounds.  A very nice sack of fish all caught in Jonathan Creek.  Way to go David…now my question is can I catch you in the standings after your strong start again this year?

If you have been paying attention you should now know who came in first without me having to type it out.  Any guesses?  Go read it again.  Go ahead.  I’ll wait.  Still waiting…

Okay, so you surely figured out that Lee Gruner was leading after one day.  Lee had 3 solid fish on Saturday plus 2 kickers both of which were over 5 pounds.  The largest was a 5.22 pound largemouth that contributed to Lee’s near 5 pound advantage after day one with a total of 16.53 pounds.  David and Lee rocked Jonathan Creek on Saturday, and seemingly had an insurmountable lead.  But would it hold?

Sunday

Guess what?  The weather changed again on Sunday.  After the high winds and cool temperatures at launch on Saturday, Sunday the winds dropped to nothing while the temps were at or near 40 degrees in a fog filled launch.  Would this change negatively impact the catch?  Short answer is no, not even close.  After having 7 limits Saturday with 40 fish, there would be 6 limits Sunday with 49 fish weighed.  Keep in mind Sunday’s weigh in was also 2 hours earlier than Saturday, so we have all had limits had the additional 2 hours been added in.  Gary and I both had limits, and I even had a 4.32 pound kicker that would help me have the second highest total on Sunday, and third largest bag of the weekend.  Too bad I couldn’t do that Saturday…but hey, Gary and I helped bring the total of limits to 13 overall caught by 9 of the 11 LMBC participants. 11 participants you say?  Yes, Larry joined us on Sunday after fishing the BFL on Barkley Saturday. Mike S. and Rick, plus Lee and David, would also have limits on day 2.  Okie dokie smokie, but who won?

Our third place finisher edged out his partner by .05 pounds. Rick Fusner came to the scale Sunday with another quality bag that included a beautiful smallmouth with leopard-like stripping that weighed over 3 pounds.  That, plus the 4 largemouth he also had, brought Rick’s two-day total to 23.06 pounds.  He and Mike Sherley again went north and Carolina rigged themselves to limits.  Mike  also had a nice leopard striped smallie just slightly smaller than Rick’s.  Both were beautiful animals with really cool coloration.

Our second place angler had the biggest overall weight on Sunday with a bag that totaled just over 13 pounds.  My hero, David Nash, would challenge his partner for Tournament Big Fish bringing in a 5.18 pound largemouth kicker.  David’s combined total over 2 days came in at 25.47 pounds, all in Jonathan Creek, with many near the bridge.  Nice job David!  It is really fun having 2 limits in one boat isn’t it?  And you did it 2 days in a row!  Fantastic outing for the SS Dirty Barge piloted by your buddy Lee.

Speaking of Lee, he would bring in a good bag of fish on Sunday but it didn’t have a 5 pounder like the day before.  It didn’t matter with that 5 pound lead giving Lee more than enough cushion for the win.  Lee combined for 9 largemouth and 1 spot, 2 fish over 5 pounds, and a grand total of 26.82 pounds.  Throw David’s fish into the other side of the live well, and the SS Dirty Barge would win Top Boat by a significant margin with a total weight of 52.29 pounds.  Great job guys!

Weigh Master’s Note

A shout out to John King and Gary Melson for coordinating our lodging.  Not the most modern facility, but it was relatively clean and had a great grill for our cookout.  Thank you!

All of us have read about Kentucky Lake in almost every fishing magazine, we have seen it featured on numerous fishing shows from The Bass Pros to the Hank Parker Show, and this tournament showed us why.  It is by far the most productive lake the LMBC fishes every year, year in and year out.  If I could pick a place to retire and fish out my last days it would be on Kentucky Lake.  Sure Florida and Texas have lakes with bigger fish, but they aren’t home.  Bottom line is nothing beats Kentucky Lake.  Just ask any of the guys from the LMBC…

April 21-22 KY Lake Results and Pics

Here are the Kentucky Lake results from the two day tournament over the weekend. The scales were kept very busy as 7 limits were brought in on day one, and another 6 limits on day two. Overall we weighed 89 Bass weighing 198.50 lbs. for 2.23 lb. average. Also there were three fish over 5lbs. weighed ( Lee two and David one).  Four members of the club moved into the top 10 Two day tournament results with Gruner, Nash, Fusner, and Sherley knocking off some old weights.  Greg’s newsletter with pictures to follow (pictures are already up).

1st Place:	Lee Gruner				26.82 lbs.
2nd Place:	David Nash				25.47 lbs.
3rd Place:	Rick Fusner				23.06 lbs.
Top Boat:	Lee Gruner/David Nash				52.29 lbs.
1st Big Fish:	Lee Gruner				5.22 lbs.

The LMBC Returns to Dale Hollow to Kickoff 2012

Over the past several years the Louisville Metro Bass Club has fished at Dale Hollow in March virtually every season.  That was until last year, when your’s truly had the bright idea to try Cumberland instead.  After gallons of rain in 2011, Cumberland was up higher than it had been in months, and the fishing for most of us was horrendous with only 3 of 14  weighing fish.  Fast forward to March 2012 as the LMBC returned to Dale Hollow with a much higher weigh in ratio with 13 of 14 having at least one keeper at the scale.  Guess this means next March we will be back at the Hollow…on to the details!

So who won?

Coming in third place was the angler that shares his first name with the lake, Dale Siebert.  As most of you may recall, Dale finished 1 point out of Angler of the Year in 2011 so he is really focused on staying toward the top this season.  The only question is will his new grandchildren allow him the time and focus to be consistent enough to regain the elite level of the LMBC – Angler of the Year.  Rumor has it that he used a lipless crankbait and perhaps a jig to bring a very diverse sack to the scale.  Mr. Siebert had 4 fish that included 1 spot, 1 smallie and 2 largemouth for a combined total weight of 5.99 lbs.  Nice finish at Dale, Dale!

 

My recollection is our second place finisher doesn’t usually do as well in the early spring as he does in the warmer months, but this year would be different, at least after 1 tournament.  Lee Gruner won the first few angler of the year and club champion titles when I first joined the club in 2006 but he has not been back in that seat for a few years.  However, it looks like he is focused on pushing for that title again in 2012.  Lee only had 3 fish at the scale, but those 3 included tournament Big Fish, a 3.70 lbs largemouth.  The largemouth, combined with 2 spots, was just over a 1/4 pound ahead of Dale, at a total of 6.26 lbs.  A very good finish and enough for second place Mr. Gruner.  Nice job!

Y’all may be wondering why I am already talking about year-end awards when this is just the first outing of the LMBC season.  The reason is simple, you have to start strong and stay consistent to order to win those year-end titles.  A weak start, and inconsistent year can place you 1 or more points out of first, and even a strong start may not be enough.  Just ask Dale.  The past few years our first place finisher was THE most consistent (kind of like UK basketball this season…) rarely finishing anywhere beyond 3rd or 4th all season long.  It should be no surprise to see Mike Sherley once again at the top of the leader board already this season.  Mike used a spinner bait, small crank bait and a jig to bring the only limit of the day to the scales.  I was partnered with Mike and it was a fun day as we each caught several fish all day long in fast-moving, shallow water.  Only difference being my largest fish was 14.75 inches long (actually my top 4 fish were almost identical at 14.75 inches – sucks!) while Mike’s 5 averaged 2.25 lbs each and all between 15-17 inches.  It was a great day on the water for our boat, as Mike won Top Boat even without me contributing a keeper to the mix.  Great job Mike!  I really enjoyed it!

Next…

Our next tournament will be our first two-day of the year at Kentucky Lake on April 21-22.  See you on the water!

Greg

2012 LMBS Schedule posted

Below is the agreed upon 2012 LMBC Tournament schedule….

March 10th – Dale Hollow

April 21st-22nd – Kentucky Lake

May 19th – Green River

June 23rd – Laurel River Lake

July 14th – Ohio River (Cox’s Park)

August 25th – Nolin – Team/Night Tournament

September 29th-30th – Barren

October 20th – Rough River Lake

November 3rd – Nolin

November 17th – Tournament of Champions

LMBC 2011 Awards Banquet Photo

Mike Sherley and David Nash with their 2011 Awards!

 

2011 LMBC Season Closes with a Tight Finish

After the October Barkley Tournament the Angler of the Year and LMBC Club Champion standings were as close as ever.  As our (former) financial wizard pointed out on 10/24 – “If David finishes one spot ahead of Dale and Dale finished 2 spots ahead of Mike S (like, 1st, 2nd and 4th) on Nolin, we would have a 3 way tie for club champion (as long as Mike finishes no lower than 8th place)…. “.  The way the year has been going this was more than a reasonable possibility.  So how would these guys do on the water?

Nolin – November 5th 

The date for this tournament was moved back one week from 11/12 to 11/5.  I would like to thank the membership for allowing this move.  I wonder if we would have done better in weights had we waited a week?  Not that fishing was horrible, but the promise of catching 50-60-70 bass on crankbaits was just not on at this point in the year. 

That’s not to say fish weren’t caught on moving baits as Joe Howard and I both caught fish on crankbaits and spinnerbaits early  in the day.  However, Joe would get out his shaky head to slink his way to 4 solid fish and a Third Place finish.  Joe had 3 largemouth and 1 decent spotted bass for a total combined weight of 5.64 pounds.  Nice job Joe!  Thanks for the shaky head lesson…hope I can use it in 2012!

As Todd noted, a tie for club Champion and Angler of the Year was very possible.  Thing is Dale had to finish 2 spots ahead of Mike for that to happen.  Mike had a better idea, finish no lower than 2nd and he would claim his second Angler of the Year and Club Champion titles in two years.  Mike used a jig as I recall to boat his limit of 3 largemouth and 2 Kentucky’s (Mike’s term for spots) for a nice 7.33 pounds that gave him second on Nolin and both titles as previously noted.  Mike started the year slower than he did last year but finished very strong.  He was Mr. Consistent no doubt.  Congratulations Mike and more on these titles later in the newsletter.

We were short one co-angler for Nolin and Dale would be the last boater/angler drawn.  Dale has also been very consistent this year but missing that June outing on the Ohio may have cost him Club Champion and Angler of the Year.  That doesn’t mean he wouldn’t come to Nolin with a goal of doing his best to challenge Mike.  Dale couldn’t control what anyone else did on the water but himself.  And he did dang good!  I did not hear how Dale caught his fish but I am looking forward to hearing his tales at the banquet in January.  Regardless of how he caught them, catch them he did.  Dale had a limit of 5 high quality largemouth for a total weight of 12 lbs even.  That included the tournament big fish at 4.94 pounds.  And oh yeah, Dale also won Top Boat.  By himself!  So like I said, Dale did everything he could to win the overall title but would end up being 1 point behind Mike.  Outstanding tournament and a great year none the less Dale!

Tournament of Champions – Nov. 19th

The TOC is always a fun way to conclude the LMBC season.  For the last several years it has been scheduled the Saturday before Thanksgiving.  To qualify, at least though this year, you had to either fish 7 club tournaments or be in the Top 10 of year-end standings.  This may change in 2012, but in 2011 the only qualifiers were the Top 10.  The only one of the Top 10 not to compete in the TOC was Lee Gruner.  He had a commitment he could not avoid.  It should also be pointed out that the largest tournament payout each year is to the winner of the TOC.  That will also change in 2012, but with likely even higher payouts.

What is unique about the TOC is that the lake is chosen by vote the morning of the tournament.  Angler-Co-angler pairings are also done the morning of the tournament.  The lake vote this year was the same as the last few years with Green River Lake receiving 6 or 7 votes.  Not sure why we keep going back to Green, is it the 12″ size limit?  Closer drive time?  Both?  I am going to propose a new rule for 2012 that we cannot fish the same TOC lake 2 years in a row.  But I digress…who won? 

The TOC I think pays through the Top 4…or is it the Top 5?  Just in case, our 5th place finisher was my angler, Joe Howard.  Joe caught a really nice spot on a spinnerbait that helped him bring in 3 fish with a combined weight of 5.29 pounds.  3 solid fish no doubt!

Our 4th place finisher had a limit of 5 fish and is also my new hero, David Nash.  David locked up the Co-angler of the Year title in September and was very close to Club Champion through the end of the year.  Way to go David! David was paired with Larry Whiteman here at the TOC and Larry took David to the fish.  He brought in 5 fish with 3 largemouth, 1 spot and 1 smallie for a total of 7.58 pounds.  Not a bad finish to an outstanding year!

Our third place finisher is getting old, tired and cranky.  The club’s most recent contender on the national stage by finishing high in the FLW regional to qualify for the All American in Washington, DC in May 2012, Gary Melson.  Gary had a very solid bag with 5 largemouth averaging 2.4 pounds per fish at a combined weight of 10.19 pounds.  I gave him grief all through the weigh-in but he was too tired to even speak to the weighmaster!  Just teasing man…great finish in the TOC!

Our second place finisher was again stuck fishing alone for the second consecutive tournament.  Dale was the last name drawn but that didn’t phase him as he boated 5 largemouth using a 3/8 ounce lipless crankbait in the high winds for a combined weight of 11.92 pounds.  I have to say that I threw a lipless crankbait for hours to never get a bite but I was throwing a 1/2 ounce size.  And men say size doesn’t matter!  Ha!  Again, Dale a very good finish to an outstanding year.  Not bad for a new Grand Pa!

In first place is an angler that fishes Green River probably more than any other LMBC member, Larry Whiteman.  Larry doesn’t live to awful far from this lake and seems to split his time between Green and Dale Hollow.  Larry would use what many consider to be a “Dale Hollow style bait” to run away with 2011 TOC crown, a black hair jig.  Yes, a hair jig!  That hair jig gave Larry a limit by 830a that included the tournament big fish at 3.89 pounds and total weight of 13.93 pounds.  A hair jig?  Really?  Way cool Larry.  Fantastic finish to a very good year.  Will you come back next year and challenge for angler of the year?  Or will you continue to split time between BASS events and the LMBC?

Did anyone throw a silver buddy?  After hearing how Dale caught his I wish I had tried a small one but I didn’t throw one at all.  Just curious if anyone did?  Todd?

Final 2011 Weighmaster Notes

I would like to begin with another thanks and farewell to our good buddy Todd Scott.  Todd is moving back to northern Ohio and is lobbying for an LMBC event in Lake Erie.  Todd has been a very valuable club member for the past 2 years and we have become good friends.  Good luck to you Todd and your family.  Keep in touch!

The 2011 Angler of the Year and Club Champion titles are again awarded to Mike Sherley.  All Mike does is catch fish.  Way to go Mike!  Congratulations!

Co-angler of the Year was David Nash.  Up until this year David had wondered where his previous fishing skills had gone.  It turns out that didn’t go anywhere.  David had an outstanding year never really being challenged for Co-angler of the Year.  Will Derek or John fish enough in 2012 to challenge?  Or will I put more top finishes on my plaque and put the pressure on?  Or will it be Mike Rach?  Tune in next year and find out!

As you read above there are likely to be several suggested changes to the LMBC by-laws in 2012.  Please mark the first Thursday in February 2012 for the first LMBC meeting.  It would be great to have everyone that does not have to work at this meeting.  By-law changes, club affiliation changes, new member introductions and 2012 LMBC season will all be topics of conversation.  Write it down.  Tell your wife.  Note it in your blackberry or iPhone or Android.  Do your best to be there!

Our 2011 club banquet will likely be held on Saturday January 21st.  Dale and his wife have graciously agreed to once again host this event.  For those that have participated this year watch for your invitation and RSVP in early January with full details to be provided at that time.

Finally, over the last few weeks we have received emails from several prospective new members.  I hope we see them all at the February meeting.  I also would like to extend an open invitation to former members that have left for various reasons.  Carl!  Tony!  Derek!  Not to mention Patrick if your health is improved.  Hope to see you all in 2012!  At least come to the meeting in February and see what has changed.  We would love to have you back!