Entry 305-2
I Really Got Tired of Catching Bass at Alabama’s Lake Guntersville with Mark Menendez
Editor’s Note: On May 10, 2009, Mark Menendez of Paducah, Kentucky, finished sixth in the BASS Elite Series Southern Challenge Pro Tournament held at Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Alabama, moving up to eighth place in the race for the Angler-of-the-Year title and taking home his third top-10 finish this season. The previous week, Menendez had finished second in the BASS Open Division Southern Open Tournament held at Wheeler Lake in Decatur, Alabama. This week, you’ll learn the techniques Menendez uses to get tired of catching bass.
Part 2: Day One of the Tournament
Question: Mark, what boat number did you draw on the first morning of competition?
Menendez: I was the 60th boat to leave the launch site. I knew that potentially some of the waypoints I’d marked would be found by other anglers before I reached them. So, the first place I went to was a spot of grass about the size of my boat and truck that was on a hump in 7 to 8 feet of water. I had seven strong bites on the Strike King Anaconda on that site during practice. But when I fished it on the first competition day, I didn’t get a bite. I went to my second spot where I’d caught the 9-pound largemouth and didn’t get a bite.
When I went to my third waypoint, I finally caught a bass that weighed about 2-1/2-pounds. Another competitor slowed-down and went straight to the next waypoint I’d planned to fish about 50-yards away. That competitor sat on that waypoint the entire day. Apparently, he’d found the exact same spot I’d found, and he weighed-in about 22 pounds of bass he caught on that waypoint.
So, at noon, I had two bass in the live well that weighed a total of 5 pounds. My chances for winning the Guntersville tournament weren’t looking good. I cranked-up my boat and ran to one of the places I’d planned to fish in the current. In my first five casts, I caught 27 pounds of bass. 
I fished the rest of the afternoon and caught 75 bass and about 40 of those bass weighed about 4-1/2-pounds. In the four competition days of fishing, I caught and released about 200 bass that weighed about 4-1/2-pounds each.
Question: In what place were you after the weigh-in on the first competition day?
Menendez: I was in 21st place. I was in pretty-good shape. I’d made the 50 cut, and if I continued to fish these tactics, I’d stay in the same place and earn a check.
Contents:
- Part 1: The Key to the Tournament
- Part 2: Day One of the Tournament
- Part 3: The Second Competition Day - Wind 'Em as Fast as You Possibly Can Wind Them
- Part 4: Steppin' It Up
- Part 5: I Needed at Least Fifth Place
