Pickwick fishing guide Jimmy Mason holds a college degree in electrical engineering, but now spends 200 days a year as a bass fishing guide on the Tennessee River. He says conditions are wired perfectly for a very successful Bassmaster Elite Series event this week on the 43,000-acre impoundment where Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi kiss one another.
Q: What can fans look forward to most this week?
Mason: They’ll be a lot of fish caught, because while the month of May was exceptionally void of rainfall, the past week gave us the rain we needed to get the current flowing, and that gets the post-spawners out on the river ledges positioned to bite really well.
Q: What depth will most of the fish be caught in, and what kind of weights does an Elite Series pro need to average each day to score a Top 10 finish?
Mason: Guys will catch a few shallow topwater fish early, but 75% of the fish weighed-in this week will be caught from the ledges in 12 to 25-feet of water. You’ll see some 20-pound limits for sure, and you better average at least 18-pounds a day to get a Top 10.
Q: What will be the biggest challenge this week?
Mason: Modern day electronics are so good that the historically best areas could get really crowded this week.
Q: Will the famous tailraces below Wilson Dam roughly 60 miles from this week’s launch at Pickwick Landing State Park be a factor?
Mason: I really don’t think so. The smallmouth dominate that pattern, and they’re pretty much totally nocturnal feeders at this time of year. When Davy Hite won up there it was mid-April. But at this time of year the tailraces aren’t much of a factor.
Q: What about this giant your holding in the photo?
Mason: My longtime tournament partner Lance Walker caught this 15-pound giant. It’s the unofficial Pickwick Lake record. He caught it in January of 2012 on an Alabama Rig, soon after that rig became known to the world.
Q: How do folks get in touch with you if they’d like to hire you as their guide?
Mason: They’re welcome to call my cell at (256) 762-0014, or visit JimmyMasonBassFishing.com