All-time BASS money-winner Denny Brauer had to scratch his head to pick just one object.
"I've caught all kinds of different debris over the years," he said, "but the one thing I caught that really fooled me was a gallon paint can that was rusted out on the bottom. I guess my crankbait was sliding on the handle and it would run one way and then it would run the other way. I fought it for a while. It really fooled me."
NEW TOP ROOKIE READIES FOR ELITE 50S
This week, Dave Wolak is in a place he never expected to be three months ago.
The 28-year-old PENNSYLVANIA pro is in Jasper, Ala., searching the clear, deep waters of Smith Lake for the mother lode of bass at the season-opener of the Bassmaster Elite 50 Tour.
Wolak couldn't have anticipated a fishing trip to Alabama in April before the Bassmaster Tour season began. After all, the only way he could have qualified for fishing's version of the All Star Game circuit was to win the highly competitive Toyota Rookie of the Year title. Luckily for him, he did just that, dominating a 16-angler field that had decidedly more experience than he did.
"It's great to be in the Elite 50s," he said. "It's quite an honor, but I'm trying to approach them just like I would any other tournaments."
Wolak combines intense focus with a keep-it-simple philosophy that's served him well so far. His finishes on the Tour were 24th at Lake Tohopekaliga, 82nd at the Harris Chain, 39th at Lake Guntersville, 13th at Clarks Hill, 12th at Lake Norman and 10th at Table Rock Lake.
"I've tried to keep it simple," he said. "For a young guy who's relatively new to the sport, I have an old school style of fishing. I go out there, and I'm very methodical. I really try to stay focused. I get up earlier than everybody. I'm out there later than everybody in practice, and I'm enthusiastic about it. I love to fish.
"I've used my background and focus to make up for my lack of tournament experience on the BASS tour," Wolak added.
"Practicing for these tournaments and not knowing anything about the lakes puts a real premium on a person's ability to judge water potential. That's really what it comes down to. This year I judged potential well. I looked at areas I was going to fish and caught a few small fish and left it alone. I usually judged the potential correctly."
Wolak is obviously making great strides in his latest career. In his previous life, he worked in power wheelchair technology and was a ski instructor.
"I love being outdoors," said Wolak, who has a Master's degree in physical therapy. "When I'm cooped up in an office, it's just not me. That's why I'm so enthusiastic about fishing. It gets me out of a cooped-up environment."
Wolak, who has no paying sponsors (unlike his Elite 50 competitors), is thrilled about having qualified for the 2005 Bassmaster Classic in Pittsburgh, but cautions that he knows nothing about the Classic waters.
"It blows my mind to have made the Classic in my first year so much that I'm putting horse blinders on now," he said. "I'm a focused person, but I can easily be distracted. I was the same way in school and the same way in my job. I know to stay focused in this because I've really got nothing else to go to. This is what I want to do."
SWITCH HITTERS
Add a couple more Bassmaster pros to the list of guys who will be plying their trade on the professional redfish tournament circuits this year. Following in the footsteps of Stephen Browning and Jeff Coble will be Greg Hackney and David Walker.
"Stephen talked me into doing it," Hackney said. "I don't know how it will be. I like to fish for them, but I don't know how it will be fishing for them in a tournament. It should be fun."
DID YOU KNOW?
Sharp fishing fans will recall that Rick Clunn holds the record for the largest winning margin in a past Classic with his 25 1/2-pound victory in the 1984 event on the Arkansas River, but few know who owns the second-largest winning cushion. It was the late Don Butler, who captured the second Classic title by a 13-pound, 7-ounce margin in 1972.
PRO BIRTHDAYS
On April 11th, Californian Warren Wyman becomes 31. Georgia pro Danny Kirk will be 49th on April 23rd. A day later Florida's Mark Rogers will turn 33. Former Classic champion Woo Daves will be 59 years young on April 25th. Arkansas' Stephen Browning blows out 39 candles three days later. Japanese pro Ysuke Miyazaki rounds out the April birthdays on the last day of the month when he turns 35.
IF I HADN'T BECOME A BASS PRO
Veteran Georgia pro Johnny Lesesne would be able to concentrate exclusively on his job as a licensed contractor. His company builds about three houses a year.
THEY SAID IT
"I've reached a lot of goals this year. I wanted to make the E-50s, and I did that. I wanted to make the next couple of Classics, and I've taken care of that. Winning Angler of the Year would have been a great thrill because of the prestige and the fact that it's the title." North Carolina pro Marty Stone, the runner-up in the Bassmaster Angler of the Year race to Aaron Martens.