Entry 305-5

I Really Got Tired of Catching Bass at Alabama’s Lake Guntersville with Mark Menendez

Part 5: I Needed at Least Fifth Place

Question: Mark, going into the final day of competition, did you think you had a chance to win?

Menendez: I knew I was 12 pounds behind Aaron Martens of Leeds, Alabama, who had the lead. And, unless his boat sank, I’d have a difficult time catching him and taking over the lead. I hoped I could at least move up to 5th place. Fifth place in a tournament was very important to me because my children, Max and Caroline, have really gotten into trophies. They think Daddy bringing home a trophy is a big deal. In every BASS tournament, awards are given through fifth place. So, my goal was to get to fifth place and take home a trophy for my children.

Question: Where did you start on the last day of competition?

Menendez: I went to my No. 2 hole, which was the current break with the two stair-step ledges. But I’d fished that hole really hard the day before to make sure I got in the 12 cut. As soon as I pulled up on the hole, I caught three bass on three casts. I had one 4 pounder and two, 3-1/2-pounders. I noticed that the current had slowed down considerably, so I switched to a 10-inch Strike King Anaconda and caught two more keepers. Then I decided to fish that 12-inch ledge using a Carolina rig and a Strike King Game Hawg in the Bama Bug color. I caught a bass that weighed about 4-3/4-pounds.

Before I left that spot, I’d caught nine keepers and had about a 16- or a 17-pound limit. I returned to the place where I’d caught bass on the first and the second days, and local fishermen were fishing there. But they were out on the end of the point and apparently hadn’t found that little cutback with the break line where the bass were holding. I asked the local fishermen if they would mind if I fished there. They smiled and said they didn’t. So, I went straight to that break line I’d marked on my GPS and caught 25 bass on 25 casts. Those local fishermen were amazed that I went straight to the area and started catching bass when they hadn’t gotten a bite. But they were just fishing too shallow. I caught all 25 bass on a Strike King Series 4S crankbait in the Sexy Shad color.

Knowing where the bass were holding, having the right lure and reeling as hard as I could were the keys to my success in this tournament. Most of the bass I caught were in that 4-pound range. I left that spot with five bass weighing a total of 20 pounds. When I returned that afternoon, those local fishermen were there, wearing-out the bass. But since those guys allowed me to fish there and catch the bass I needed, I didn’t mind if they moved in and fished that spot after I’d left. Just before I left, I noticed the current had picked-up. I ran about 10 miles up the lake where it narrowed-down and found a pretty good bit of current. I caught 20 bass that weighed about 4-pounds each on a 10-inch Anaconda in the cranberry color.

Question: How did you work the Anaconda?

Menendez: The place I fished was a little cutback in the river bank. It had a 90-degree corner on the down-current side, but then swung upstream to create a little shelf that dropped off about 1-1/2-feet. Those bass were holding right on the grass line on the edge of the break. I hopped the Anaconda on the bottom. When that big worm hopped, those bass would hit it so hard that they’d throw slack in my line. But when I set that No. 5/0 hook, and the bass would come up, I’d just say to myself, “Oh no! Another 4 pounder.”

Question: On what rod and reel did you fish the Anaconda?

Menendez: I fished 20-pound-test Berkley Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon line with a No. 5/0 hook, a 3/8-ounce sinker, a 7 foot, 6-inch Power Tackle flipping stick and a Pflueger Patriarch 7.1:1 gear-ratio reel.

Question: How many pounds did you weigh-in on the final day?

Menendez: I had 20 pounds, 4 ounces. Many of the top 12 weighed-in 17- and 18-pound limits, so I hoped I could move up to 5th place to get that trophy. But I moved up three more places to finish in 6th place, taking home $13,500, but no trophy.

Question: Mark, what did you think about Lake Guntersville?

Menendez: Lake Guntersville always has been the crown jewel of the Tennessee River chain as far as bass fishing. But in 2005, while practicing at Guntersville, I got a severe case of spinal meningitis. However, with this great tournament, awesome fishing and a 6th-place finish, I’ll never have to worry about getting sick there again. I was amazed at how many big bass we caught. Every bass that was spawned in 2005 still seems to be in the lake, and they weighed 4- to 4-3/4-pounds each. Guntersville is a good lake not only because of the size and the number of the bass in the lake, but because of the various ways you can catch them. You can catch a 4-pound average bass year around in any depth of water. You can fish anyway and be successful at Lake Guntersville.

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