# Guntersville Classic Rant!



## JignPig Guide (Aug 3, 2007)

According to the live 'War Room' coverage of the Bass Master Classic being held at Guntersville. Many of the competitors are complaining about being blocked out, cut in front of, and crowded by other bass anglers. The spectators are behaving appropriately. But the local bass anglers are going in and throwing A-Rigs right beside the Classic competitors and yankin' fish out in the same areas.
I know these events are being held on public waterways. But I find it hard to believe that the locals can't hold off, or at least move to different areas for one freakin' weekend.


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## buckzye11 (Jul 16, 2009)

Oh Well... They are getting paid to fish. Just adds a little more strategy to the game. Ive been cut off by so many Bass tourny boats over the years, i have no sympathy... a little taste of their own medicine.


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## 10lbsorbust (Feb 16, 2014)

Exactly, if I only have the weekend to fish I'm not bowing down to a tournament. Granted on the other hand I won't be cutting people off and still have respect but I'm no differ et then them, I just don't get paid for it.


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## FishermanMurph (Jan 29, 2012)

Tournament or no tournament, space should be given to all other fisherman. Don't blame them for complaining about other anglers casting right where they are fishing, I complain also when that happens. Just plain rude. 

Now, for locals not fishing the lake that weekend, it's still their lake and they pay (via license and boat registrations, etc) to fish the lake and should not have to skip a weekend to satisfy a tournament going on. 

But, in the end, we all gotta deal with rude people. Tournament anglers just gotta learn to tolerate it like the rest of us. Like I mentioned, don't totally blame them for complaining.


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## young-gun21 (Mar 14, 2006)

It's an absolute joke that these guys have to account for people with no common sense or courtesy. This is the biggest tournament in the world. What this does for their local economy alone should be reason enough to sit back and enjoy the show, whether it be on the water (at a respectful distance) or at the Classic Expo/Weigh In. The clowns that wait for a guy to pull off of a spot and promptly start fishing, clearly don't give a crap about the sport. We're talking about grown men..it's pathetic.


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## Shad Rap (Nov 10, 2010)

Heres my question...why not shut the ramps down for a day or two if it matters that much?


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## Shortdrift (Apr 5, 2004)

I see no reason for the Pro's to complain. That is a huge lake with plenty of places to fish. Hats off to the Pro's that continue to fish in spite of the public intrusion and do so without complaining. I'm sure that their expertise and self confidence will prevail. To those that complain, I say fire up the super boat and fish another area and prove your ability while keeping your complaints to yourself. To blame ones lack of success due to outside forces beyond an individual's control is a human trait that is often brought up in competitive situations in an effort to justify a poor performance.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

young-gun21 said:


> It's an absolute joke that these guys have to account for people with no common sense or courtesy. This is the biggest tournament in the world. What this does for their local economy alone should be reason enough to sit back and enjoy the show, whether it be on the water (at a respectful distance) or at the Classic Expo/Weigh In. The clowns that wait for a guy to pull off of a spot and promptly start fishing, clearly don't give a crap about the sport. We're talking about grown men..it's pathetic.


I agree....


the biggest problem I have with it, and I think a lot of people are not considering this... these spots that locals are pillaging are likely spots they wouldn't even know anything about if not for seeing a pro fishing it during the tournament.... if they did, they wouldn't be so worried about doing something like that...

Guntersville is a massive lake... there are only 50ish guys fishing in the classic... make a waypoint and come back later, stop trying to ruin the biggest and most important days of fishing in those guys life just because you don't know how to find your own spots...


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

100% agree also.What I find even worse than the idiots that crowd out a pro from a spot,or jump on that spot the second a pro leaves is the classless morons that do waypoint the spot then go park on it the next morning before the pro's blast off.Nothing like driving hundreds of miles to find a few good spots on your practice days then start off the biggest TX of the year worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in winnings and more than that from other sources only to have some local wack job sitting on your spots that you found.I remember on one of the Elite TV shows a couple of years ago the pros were fishing out on the delta in northern California,Aaron Martens pulled up to his best spot and there were two dopes sitting right on it.Martens informed them that he was in a big TX and asked them if they could move and let him fish the spot HE found,of course they refused,I remember him kind of laughing to himself I tell them I'm going for a hundred grand and they're basically fishing for fun in a spot they could fish every day for the rest of the year-whatever.Somebody said that since these guys are pros they should be able to go fish somewhere else if somebody takes their spot-that's ridiculous.These guys only have so much practice time to find their spots,searching out new spots during a TX is not the formula to winning.Then the guy says only a few of the pros are lodging complaints-ever hear the name KVD? He's considered the best of the best and he has made very snide remarks about people following him around to closely,and about guys stealing his spots.The main reason for my lengthy beef here is exactly because of what LOTP said,these weekend warriors would've never,ever found these spots on their own,they have to steal other peoples spots to make them think they know how to find fish-totally classless.


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## young-gun21 (Mar 14, 2006)

I wish that there was some way to make these bodies of water private but that's not reasonable. It's just a joke that "fan interference", and I use that term extremely loosely, is supposed to be accepted and essentially approved of. It's inherently unfair for guys like Ike and KVD coming into an event. That's what KVD deserves for being the face of the sport? Some tool sliding into his spot as soon as his power poles are up, just to tell his buddies how he caught a biggun out of KVD's hole.


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## young-gun21 (Mar 14, 2006)

Shortdrift said:


> To blame ones lack of success due to outside forces beyond an individual's control is a human trait that is often brought up in competitive situations in an effort to justify a poor performance.


Let's discuss the difference between an "excuse" and a REASON.

Ever get on a school of fish and at some point decide that you need to let them rest? Ever stop at a spot first thing in the morning and realize you may need the wind to blow in for a few hours to get the muddy water out? These are things that happen regularly in most levels of tournament competition. Just because you have a sublimated jersey and 27 sponsors doesn't mean that you are some type of Bass Whisperer. These guys still need to fish clean and catch breaks...they are competing against the best guys on the planet.


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## reo (May 22, 2004)

Some of the rudest on the water conduct I have witnessed has been by guys fishing tournaments who seem feel that they have more of a right to a patch of water then a "weekend warrior" just because they are in a tournament. Just sayin.....


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

reo said:


> Some of the rudest on the water conduct I have witnessed has been by guys fishing tournaments who seem feel that they have more of a right to a patch of water then a "weekend warrior" just because they are in a tournament. Just sayin.....


Doubtful. There isn't a tournament angler in the world that is more possessive of an area than a local that considers a body of water his "home lake". I've had guys pull in on me and start fishing countless times, and when I say something, I get the "I've been fishing this spot for years"... well you weren't yesterday when you were drifting down the middle of the lake with a jig and minnow watching me fish....

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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

And I'm going to go out on a limb and say that 99% of the tournament guys you ever run into in Ohio are also "weekend warriors". We all have "real" jobs as well....

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## Intimidator (Nov 25, 2008)

Now I was just watchin a Bass Pro show, last week, where KVD was fishin' Guntersville last Fall, he said that he feels so Comfortable at Guntersville, that he can find fish in any circumstance or pattern at that body of water.

There are rude idiots, that are locals AND Tourney fishermen! It's only common sense to give room, but we all know that is not always the case. That is another huge Southern lake, I'm sure they have fished it MANY times getting ready for the Classic...quite a few of the guys found fish in different areas...guess they "never put all their eggs in 1 basket"!


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## 10lbsorbust (Feb 16, 2014)

montagc said:


> You know, you are only hearing one side of the story. The tourney anglers have the advantage of having media coverage to air their grievances. The locals don't have that advantage. Take that as you will.


Great point man!


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Intimidator said:


> Now I was just watchin a Bass Pro show, last week, where KVD was fishin' Guntersville last Fall, he said that he feels so Comfortable at Guntersville, that he can find fish in any circumstance or pattern at that body of water.
> 
> There are rude idiots, that are locals AND Tourney fishermen! It's only common sense to give room, but we all know that is not always the case. That is another huge Southern lake, I'm sure they have fished it MANY times getting ready for the Classic...quite a few of the guys found fish in different areas...guess they "never put all their eggs in 1 basket"!


They have NOT fished it many times getting ready for the classic... They get 2.5 days of practice for the classic... 

If you are out there fishing stuff that you had success on years before, you are already setting yourself up for failure...

Of course, someone that has never fished a 3 day tournament with limited practice time wouldn't think it is a big deal...

It's insanely difficult to find enough fish to last 3 days in 2.5 days of practice... People that haven't tried to do it really cannot understand this and those people that don't have the experience that are taking the sides of the locals are doing so because they lack the experience and knowledge to form an educated opinion...


Not saying there should be laws against it... I'm not saying the lakes should be made private... I'm not saying any of that... I'm simply saying that poaching a hole after a pro has left it, during a major money tournament is b.s. And only losers would consider doing it


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## turkeyt (Apr 13, 2006)

You know what they say. There are few who ruin it for everyone else. That's why there are so many rules for everyone to have deal with. Matters not if your fishing or playing tiddlywinks??


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

This is what this whole thing amounts to... It's not about what level of fisherman you, weekend warriors, pros, novices... None of that
A handful of guys qualify every year for the classic who are every day working guys that made it through fishing weekend tournaments...

This is about respect for the sport, respect for the things those guys are trying to achieve...

The guys that do these things are the same guys that throw crap onto football fields during the games... They litter at your lakes... They steal stuff from the bed of your truck while your on the water.. They put tungsten in there pockets while walking around bass pro shops... They tie up fish to docks so they can win a 200 pot tournament.. They snag spawning fish...

People that do this stuff are low lifes... Losers... And we all know about losers... Nothing we can do about it


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

lordofthepunks said:


> This is what this whole thing amounts to... It's not about what level of fisherman you, weekend warriors, pros, novices... None of that
> A handful of guys qualify every year for the classic who are every day working guys that made it through fishing weekend tournaments...
> 
> This is about respect for the sport, respect for the things those guys are trying to achieve...
> ...


Yep!

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## KWaller (Oct 3, 2010)

Young gun and LOTP said it best! I was able to be there and spectate. We also were able to fish, it's not that hard to search on a lake that big and find coves and points without pros on them.... 


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## Bimmer (Aug 12, 2011)

I agree it should not happen but don't kid ourselves look at the portion of this country that want something for nothing. Courtesy and common sense imo are declining at a fast rate and instant gratification is taking over.


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## Intimidator (Nov 25, 2008)

lordofthepunks said:


> They have NOT fished it many times getting ready for the classic... They get 2.5 days of practice for the classic...
> 
> If you are out there fishing stuff that you had success on years before, you are already setting yourself up for failure...
> 
> ...


2.5 days BEFORE the Tourney started...KVD did a show from there last Fall and pretty much said, "This Basic Knowledge will help during the Classic that will be held in the Spring".... so you know all of them were hittin the lake as much as possible IF THEY COULD FIND TIME during the Fall and Winter, doing some scouting!
Either that or KVD violated the rules!


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## Cat Mangler (Mar 25, 2012)

I'm not a tourny Fisher at all, so perhaps I am a little bias. But I invite these big tourney guys to come and deal with the Yahoos in my go to lake. Probably see some major temper tantrums. 

Now don't get me wrong, having someone cast in your radius is annoying as heck. But to complain about someone coming into a spot after someone else leaves it is ridiculous. Firstly, if someone is leaving a spot, its for two reasons. One, their "buckets" are full and are done for the day. Or two, they weren't catching crap. Either way, why is it that once someone fishes a particular spot, they consider it they're own and others are just trespassing. Empty spots are exactly that, EMPTY!

I won't lie when I say that showing up to one of my holes just to find some seemingly amateur angler fishing it all wrong(according to what I know about the spot anyways) is a nerve wrecker. But I also keep in mind that just a short while back, and maybe even now, I was most likely that annoying butt head previously. 

One opinion, and I'll probably get some heavy objects launched at my head for saying this. Pros get paid too fish where as I have to pay to fish. Even if these big bass masters contestants don't win, they're cruising in they're sponsorship paid boats fishing with all they're top of the line freebie gear. Not hatin, I'd love to be in that position, but I as well as most are not! So just my prospective. 

There are a lot of things happening to all us anglers that "mess" with our trips. But they get the big bucks for just that. These big tourney guys need to understand that they are dealing with the same things nearly all the rest of us are. But they get to fish multiple waters with multiple tools and are far better equipped with know-how to handle these circumstances. 

I live by two rules when I look for a spot to fish. Find a vacant spot to fish and don't get mad if the spot you wanted is not vacant. Find another, it may be less productive but you're still fishing. Besides, I can't say how many times I've done this waiting for my spot to open just to catch good numbers after the last guy left skunked.

Don't know about y'all, but I fish for fun and anger doesn't really coincide with that effort! 



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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Intimidator said:


> 2.5 days BEFORE the Tourney started...KVD did a show from there last Fall and pretty much said, "This Basic Knowledge will help during the Classic that will be held in the Spring".... so you know all of them were hittin the lake as much as possible IF THEY COULD FIND TIME during the Fall and Winter, doing some scouting!
> Either that or KVD violated the rules!



You know what that "basic knowledge" refers to?

Where the boat ramps are
Good places to eat
Where gas stations are
Good hotels




Ask Kevin if anything else helped considering how vastly different the lake is from year to year.... 


Basic knowledge is not what wins tourneys..


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Cat Mangler said:


> I'm not a tourny Fisher at all, so perhaps I am a little bias. But I invite these big tourney guys to come and deal with the Yahoos in my go to lake. Probably see some major temper tantrums.
> 
> Now don't get me wrong, having someone cast in your radius is annoying as heck. But to complain about someone coming into a spot after someone else leaves it is ridiculous. Firstly, if someone is leaving a spot, its for two reasons. One, their "buckets" are full and are done for the day. Or two, they weren't catching crap. Either way, why is it that once someone fishes a particular spot, they consider it they're own and others are just trespassing. Empty spots are exactly that, EMPTY!
> 
> ...




Funny how that's the perception of pro bass fisherman...

There are 50ish guys in that tourney and maybe 15 of them make "big money" from endorsements.... Another 15 that make as much as a regular working man does in a year.... And the rest work normal jobs when they aren't fishing...


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

I would also add... We aren't talking about people who are just out there fishing and happen to stumble on a spot that a pro had fished earlier in the day... We are talking about guys who are fishing a spot for no other reason than they saw a guy with a wrapped boat fish it first...


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## Salmonid (Apr 14, 2004)

I wasn't there and only know what this thread has said, but.... I can tell you if I was bass fishing a point, cove, inlet, whatever and a tourney guys shows up after me with his entourage, guess what, he will be fishing behind me....that simple, perhaps the angler is on vacation, the only week he gets to head south to fish, most guys have no idea where the classic is held, I for one wouldn't and I follow the fishing markets pretty hard. Perhaps the angler went to a nice secluded spot with no one there and then the pack shows up around him... Just another point of view but if it happened to me, Id stick it out and hope I caught a limit under the tourneys guys nose...and heck, I fish all sorts of tourneys, catfish, crappie, Ice fishing, muskie and even bass tourneys. I guess the point is as was already mentioned is there appears to only be 1 side of the story for everyone to jump to conclusions.

BTW my nickname all my younger days was "spoon", as I was always stirring the pot....
Salmonid


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Salmonid... That's not really what we are talking about... Nobody is saying that... 

What is happening and was happening is that large groups of people are following around pros and after the pro decides to leave an area or a spot, a select few douchebags are immidiately fishing those spots... With no care in the world that this guy is trying to achieve a life changing goal..


If you found the spot on your own, and you are there first... Whatever, nobody gives a crap about that....


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## Mr. A (Apr 23, 2012)

I would rather let a pro have my spot and brag that his 8# kicker came from the place I chose than run in there after a pro and brag about the pickle I caught that KVD himself missed!

I don't see any easy solution because we are dealing with the famous 10% most likely. Too bad really.....

Mr. A


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## Salmonid (Apr 14, 2004)

Oh wasn't sure the situation... I know when we do our catfish tournaments we always have folks pull right up right on us or jump right in front of us as were trolling or drifting, funny how no one for miles until they see us stop and then they show up like flies on a turd....LOL We see folks spotting us with Binoculars all the time, funny when you win a few how everyone watches where you fish and how your fishing.... same with any types of tourneys Im sure....

reminds me of this website with the contributors and the lurkers looking for handouts.

Salmonid


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

Cat Mangler said:


> I'm not a tourny Fisher at all, so perhaps I am a little bias. But I invite these big tourney guys to come and deal with the Yahoos in my go to lake. Probably see some major temper tantrums.
> 
> Now don't get me wrong, having someone cast in your radius is annoying as heck. But to complain about someone coming into a spot after someone else leaves it is ridiculous. Firstly, if someone is leaving a spot, its for two reasons. One, their "buckets" are full and are done for the day. Or two, they weren't catching crap. Either way, why is it that once someone fishes a particular spot, they consider it they're own and others are just trespassing. Empty spots are exactly that, EMPTY!
> 
> ...


 One big problem with your "empty hole" theory.A large percentage of the time when a pro vacates a good spot it's not because he feels that he has caught all of the bass from that spot.To the contrary he doesn't want to catch all of the bass from that spot.On a lot of good spots pros save them for all three days of competition.Put yourself in their situation if you have three or four solid spots working for you and you're near the top on the leaderboard after day one then on day two when you haul ass down the lake to reach your spots local idiots are camped out on them.They only found those spots by watching one of the pros catching fish from them,they then GPS the spot and then knowing that the pros have a blast-off time can be on the spot first in the morning.Another misconception you have-pros DO NOT get paid to fish-pros get paid when they win period.Then you say that even if a pro bombs out in a TX he's still getting paid,and they all get brand new boats,trucks,electronics,rods,reels,lures etc.Sir nothing could be farther from the truth.A very,very small number of pros have big sponsorships,many have none.Judging from your comments I bet you wouldn't even have a good guess at how many pros get new boats or trucks.The majority of the guys that fish the Elite circuit or the FLW Tour have regular full time jobs and they either sleep in their trucks or stay in very low budget motels while on the road.They eat cold cuts sandwiches from brown paper bags the same as many of us do when we're on long roadies.You should read Bassmaster and FLW magazines,they tell exact stories of the crap these guys go through trying to stay on tour-everybody isn't KVD or Ike that fishes the tour.Most of these guys had wives or other family members financing their season when they first got started.To the average guy it would be impossible to even comprehend what attending just one event is going to cost look at say Brandon Palaniuk,dude lives in Idaho,what's the fuel cost alone going to run him from Idaho to a TX in Florida? Lodging? An entry fee of four or five grand,licenses and whatever expenses he incurs along the way.Truth be known about him his sister was helping to support him in his early days of fishing the tour until he started winning some bucks.These are all reasons why these guys get a little upset when jerks steal spots from them during TX's,especially the biggest one of the year.


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## Salmonid (Apr 14, 2004)

well said Harbor, I know in the national catfish trail, only about a dozen guys have boat deals, and there not free, they get em at cost ( figure 30-35k) and allowed to sell them at the end of the 2 year deal and hopefully break even to get the next one at cost, that's how most boat deals work. Several guys I know are still using a 3-4 year old boat because they cant sell them for what they need to upgrade to a newer model. I know a guy on Humminbird Pro staff and he gets electronics at cost.. Not Free, I think he took out some loans to buy all new stuff for the deals he was getting. LOL

Basically in the bass world, you can figure there are maybe 20 guys who can make a decent living on fishing the rest are footing a whole lot of the bills, Tough economy means sponsors back down or back out, Ive run into that myself, several smaller sponsors Ive had are now out of business or plain not sponsoring but 1-2 guys now, its tough out there!!

Salmonid


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## Cajunsaugeye (Apr 9, 2013)

Salmonid,I'm pretty sure I'd know before I went on vacation if there was a top tier tournament where I was going and I wouldn't even go there,unless to watch.EVERYONE on that lake knows what's going on and what they're doing was completely rude,ignorant and inconsiderate.On a side note,that behavior(rude,ignorant inconsiderate) seems to be becoming almost the norm for a lot of people nowadays.

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## Riggu2 (Mar 10, 2013)

Mr. A said:


> I would rather let a pro have my spot and brag that his 8# kicker came from the place I chose than run in there after a pro and brag about the pickle I caught that KVD himself missed!
> 
> I don't see any easy solution because we are dealing with the famous 10% most likely. Too bad really.....
> 
> Mr. A


Well said Mr. A! 


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## ducky152000 (Jul 20, 2005)

just because they are pros does not mean they should get special benifits. Im not saying anybody should run up on someone fishing and get in font of them, although that seems to happen to me a few times a year. Im sure most of them pros are complaining because some local got there first.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

I swear.. You would think reading comprehension was like doing the Pythagorean theory..


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

Yep I give up too.


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## Mr. A (Apr 23, 2012)

lordofthepunks said:


> I swear.. You would think reading comprehension was like doing the Pythagorean theory..


LOTP and I rarely agree but I see his point here. I bet in every single tournament they have several pro's pre fish it only to find dad and Jr. sitting on their money spot first thing Saturday morning. In those situations the pro's probably never say a word, and move on.

What is happening here is malicious not accidental. That's the issue. Finding a guy in your spot isn't a big deal to anyone unless his only means of finding it was watching you fish it then purposefully beating you to it the next day. It's just a dik move on the locals part IMO.

Mr. A


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Mr. A said:


> LOTP and I rarely agree but I see his point here. I bet in every single tournament they have several pro's pre fish it only to find dad and Jr. sitting on their money spot first thing Saturday morning. In those situations the pro's probably never say a word, and move on.
> 
> What is happening here is malicious not accidental. That's the issue. Finding a guy in your spot isn't a big deal to anyone unless his only means of finding it was watching you fish it then purposefully beating you to it the next day. It's just a dik move on the locals part IMO.
> 
> Mr. A


Nailed it... Thanks bud


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## Pigsticker (Oct 18, 2006)

What about when a pro is fishing a spot they found and notice a "weekend warrior" is tearing them up 100 yards away that they had no idea was a good spot? Is the pro any less of a DB when he jumps right on that spot as soon as the "weekend warrior" leaves just because he's a pro? Maybe the WW was letting them rest and this jerk pulls in and starts beating the water to a froth. I've had it happen to me on Erie, Guntersville, Ky lake, Barkley etc. 

I just consider it part of life. There's no calling "places" on a public lake like you do when you have to evacuate your favorite seat in a crowded room.


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## Rabbeye (Oct 28, 2013)

Screw the pros and ALL tournement fisherman both bass and walleye....I hope the locals catch every bass in the lake. 2.5 days of practice before the tournement???? Don't forget the kvd's of the world pay "locals" to pre fish the lakes for them for weeks before the tournements begin. All they need to do is go to the X that marks the spot and throw the bait that they were told to throw. The real winners of these tournements are the people that do all the prefishing for the so called pros. I fish walleye on Erie and every tournement the pros seem to think they have more rights to the water and fish than I have......why??? Because they "make they make their living" from fishing??? Well guess what.....I spend my living to fish. Who has more right to the water and fish???? When I ever have a chance to get in these guys way, I do......nothing better than cutting them off and catching a big walleye right in front of them!!!!!


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Pigsticker said:


> What about when a pro is fishing a spot they found and notice a "weekend warrior" is tearing them up 100 yards away that they had no idea was a good spot? Is the pro any less of a DB when he jumps right on that spot as soon as the "weekend warrior" leaves just because he's a pro? Maybe the WW was letting them rest and this jerk pulls in and starts beating the water to a froth. I've had it happen to me on Erie, Guntersville, Ky lake, Barkley etc.
> 
> I just consider it part of life. There's no calling "places" on a public lake like you do when you have to evacuate your favorite seat in a crowded room.


What a coincidence huh???? Managed to just be casually fishing on 4 different lakes with an etc. while an elite series event or a bassmaster classic is going on? Crazy...

And did those moments where you were just out there for the hell of it and a pro moved in on your stuff, did those moments cost you your career? Or maybe a couple of grand? Or maybe 10 or 20k or maybe even a 100k or 500k?



This is the world now days I reckon... Whatever you are doing at any given moment is obviously far more important than what anyone else is doing... "I don't care if you are working, trying to change your life, trying to earn a living, I'm here to screw it up because I can and I don't care about what you are doing, I want to catch fish too"....


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Rabbeye said:


> Screw the pros and ALL tournement fisherman both bass and walleye....I hope the locals catch every bass in the lake. 2.5 days of practice before the tournement???? Don't forget the kvd's of the world pay "locals" to pre fish the lakes for them for weeks before the tournements begin. All they need to do is go to the X that marks the spot and throw the bait that they were told to throw. The real winners of these tournements are the people that do all the prefishing for the so called pros. I fish walleye on Erie and every tournement the pros seem to think they have more rights to the water and fish than I have......why??? Because they "make they make their living" from fishing??? Well guess what.....I spend my living to fish. Who has more right to the water and fish???? When I ever have a chance to get in these guys way, I do......nothing better than cutting them off and catching a big walleye right in front of them!!!!!


That stuff literally doesn't happen... Against rules and enforced via lie detector but go ahead and live in your little fantasy world...


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## young-gun21 (Mar 14, 2006)

Rabbeye said:


> Screw the pros and ALL tournement fisherman both bass and walleye....I hope the locals catch every bass in the lake. 2.5 days of practice before the tournement???? Don't forget the kvd's of the world pay "locals" to pre fish the lakes for them for weeks before the tournements begin. All they need to do is go to the X that marks the spot and throw the bait that they were told to throw. The real winners of these tournements are the people that do all the prefishing for the so called pros. I fish walleye on Erie and every tournement the pros seem to think they have more rights to the water and fish than I have......why??? Because they "make they make their living" from fishing??? Well guess what.....I spend my living to fish. Who has more right to the water and fish???? When I ever have a chance to get in these guys way, I do......nothing better than cutting them off and catching a big walleye right in front of them!!!!!


Exhibit A....lol.

Again, this is less about fishing and more about common courtesy and "getting" it. 

LOTP, how many "locals" did you stumble across down in Florida to do your prefishing for you?? 

Tournament fishing..."So easy that only the top .001% in the world can do it!"


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

young-gun21 said:


> Exhibit A....lol.
> 
> Again, this is less about fishing and more about common courtesy and "getting" it.
> 
> ...


Haha... Yep... That 10% that everyone talks about, the ones ruining the world, that must be a lonely place...


I've had dozens and dozens of people tell me where to fish, how, with what bait... That works about as often as this dude has caught 8lb walleye in front of a pro....


Seriously... What do people gain by being a-holes? I've never understood it... I go out, I go fishing, I go out of my way to show sportsmanship to competitors and non competitors... Why? What's the point? When people like this guy are out there, why do I even bother showing him respect when he clearly doesn't do the same to others...

What so people get out of being pricks on the water? I just don't see the point


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

8 million acres and this dude is going out of his way to screw up someone's day... 

What goes around comes around and Erie is an unforgiving place... Good luck out there buddy


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## Rabbeye (Oct 28, 2013)

Lordofthepukes and younggag must be tourney fishermen.. I don't go out of my way to screw anyone, but I also don't yield to a guy fishing a tournament either. Most of you, just like charter captains, feel that everyone should get out of your way. I'm not on the water to make my living or to supplement it by fishing tournaments. Why should 99 percent of us give way to 1 percent when the vast majority of you show zero respect to us? If I had a buck for every time a charter cut my drift off or got in my way I would be buying a new boat. Respect and courtesy is a two way street. Public water is just that....public. I have just as much right to it as a guy fishing a tournament. It's not like a golf tournament and the course is closed to all but the competitors. 

And yeah lordothepukes...it literally does happen with both bass and walleye tournaments.


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## Snakecharmer (Apr 9, 2008)

Pigsticker said:


> What about when a pro is fishing a spot they found and notice a "weekend warrior" is tearing them up 100 yards away that they had no idea was a good spot? Is the pro any less of a DB when he jumps right on that spot as soon as the "weekend warrior" leaves just because he's a pro? Maybe the WW was letting them rest and this jerk pulls in and starts beating the water to a froth. I've had it happen to me on Erie, Guntersville, Ky lake, Barkley etc.
> 
> I just consider it part of life. There's no calling "places" on a public lake like you do when you have to evacuate your favorite seat in a crowded room.


Yep...Move your meat. lose your seat LOL


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## Cat Mangler (Mar 25, 2012)

I think I may have mis-communicated my message. I wasn't condoning or supporting the act of what these dirt bags were committing. And I certainly exaggerated on the luxury lifestyle of tournament fisherman. I am fully aware that many of these guys do the best they can to make a name for themselves and its not all glamour, like any other competitive sport really is not.

My point was more to the fact that I believe as a tournament fisherman, especially as such a prestigious event as this is, that composure is just as important as fishing success. At least that would be the standard to which I held myself.

Yes, the people doing this crap deserve a lifetime of skunks, snags and birds nests. I just think its an unavoidable circumstance given our societies lack of respect and common courtesy, and tournament anglers need to adjust their strategies for this hurdle. I'm sure they already have similar plans for when the hole doesn't produce for the obvious fact that not every hole produces the same daily, even without human intervention.

I'm sure many of the well seasoned anglers facing this dilemma have brain stormed backup plans B-Z and if not, then they'd be wise to do so IMHO. I don't tournament fish any yet, but I already start my fishing trips planning for alternatives if my primary hole gets jacked by someone else.

Sorry to step on y'all's toes and heat things up, honestly wasn't trying to. My opinions and big mouth get me in trouble A LOT!



Sent from my V8000_USA_Cricket using Ohub Campfire mobile app


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## Marshall (Apr 11, 2004)

I watched online all weekend and heard and saw all this going on. I agree what took place sucks for the tourney guys. Basically what happened was the pros found spots to fish while many boats watched them catch fish then the pros day ended and had to leave or they went to hit another spot and say the next morning or later that day some guys new there were schools of fish where the pros were fishing and could not resist and had to fish. They had one pro say he showed up at his spot in the am and a local had beat the hell out of it. These tourneys start at first light so it's just bad luck for the pro that someone got to the spot the pro showed held lots of fish and it was a morning bite. We are not talking about our tiny lakes like in ohio. G ville is 70,000 acres. In our inland lakes we always deal with sharing water because we have to. U leave a spot it is guaranteed someone else will fish it. It cost the average pro over 100,000 grand to fish the tour. Many don't make it and a few have been blessed. This years Classic had a lot of lesser known guys do well. They did not have the boats following them around that some of the big name pros had. Hats off to these guys they were able to do much better than the well known guys. Anyway to they guys trying to explain how bad this sucked for the pros that had the hole jumping going on in an ogf forum which is mainly a multi species casual fishing forum, u are not gonna get any love  .


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

Rabbeye said:


> Lordofthepukes and younggag must be tourney fishermen.. I don't go out of my way to screw anyone, but I also don't yield to a guy fishing a tournament either. Most of you, just like charter captains, feel that everyone should get out of your way. I'm not on the water to make my living or to supplement it by fishing tournaments. Why should 99 percent of us give way to 1 percent when the vast majority of you show zero respect to us? If I had a buck for every time a charter cut my drift off or got in my way I would be buying a new boat. Respect and courtesy is a two way street. Public water is just that....public. I have just as much right to it as a guy fishing a tournament. It's not like a golf tournament and the course is closed to all but the competitors.
> 
> And yeah lordothepukes...it literally does happen with both bass and walleye tournaments.


You're so out of touch with reality it's scary....

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Ohub Campfire mobile app


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## Mr. A (Apr 23, 2012)

Rabbeye said:


> Lordofthepukes and younggag must be tourney fishermen.. I don't go out of my way to screw anyone, but I also don't yield to a guy fishing a tournament either. Most of you, just like charter captains, feel that everyone should get out of your way. I'm not on the water to make my living or to supplement it by fishing tournaments. Why should 99 percent of us give way to 1 percent when the vast majority of you show zero respect to us? If I had a buck for every time a charter cut my drift off or got in my way I would be buying a new boat. Respect and courtesy is a two way street. Public water is just that....public. I have just as much right to it as a guy fishing a tournament. It's not like a golf tournament and the course is closed to all but the competitors.
> 
> And yeah lordothepukes...it literally does happen with both bass and walleye tournaments.


If I may try to explain things here....


It appears you are stating your opinion in opposition to LOTP among others. The situation you give as support for your opinions are on the one half of the subject no one is actually arguing about. NOBODY is arguing that locals should be fishing, or even fishing in a pro's spot, but your posts seem to be arguing exactly that. While many are in the middle of the room you appear to be standing in the corner screaming your side to the wall so to speak.

Also, NOBODY is saying that locals move if the pro's come in; in addition, I highly doubt that the pro's are advocating that they should! We/they are arguing that locals should not be purposefully taking spots they saw pro's marking/fishing when they lack the general ability to find a hole themselves.

Overall there is nothing anyone can do about it. Is it illegal or something, no. Is it a complete dick move, darn right it is. Why is it a complete dick move? Because 90% of fisherman work hard to gain knowledge and know how in order to enjoy, dare I say even excel, at the sport we all love. Then some moron from the 10% club wants something for nothing and shows a complete lack of common sense, common courtesy, and all around good sportsmanship. 

Arguing your point further moves you into the 10% IMO, because in effect you are arguing that the negative traits I just listed are what you believe is right.

And just so no body starts thinking I'm flaming them please read my post carefully. It is an explanation of the posters comments in regards to the discussion at hand.

Mr. A


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## Bad Bub (Jan 17, 2006)

Cat Mangler said:


> I think I may have mis-communicated my message. I wasn't condoning or supporting the act of what these dirt bags were committing. And I certainly exaggerated on the luxury lifestyle of tournament fisherman. I am fully aware that many of these guys do the best they can to make a name for themselves and its not all glamour, like any other competitive sport really is not.
> 
> My point was more to the fact that I believe as a tournament fisherman, especially as such a prestigious event as this is, that composure is just as important as fishing success. At least that would be the standard to which I held myself.
> 
> ...


They do plan for those situations you've mentioned, local traffic and all. And I'd say they all kept their composure pretty well by just venting to the camera man and any media interviews during the weigh-ins. I've seen fist fights over people "stealing" spots in our local $500 tournaments... these guys were fishing for $300,000 and a career changing title. Fishing to put food on their families table and have that "10%" completely try to take a crap on everything they worked for. I'd say they were VERY composed....

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Ohub Campfire mobile app


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## lang99 (Mar 6, 2009)

Rabbeye said:


> 2.5 days of practice before the tournement???? Don't forget the kvd's of the world pay "locals" to pre fish the lakes for them for weeks before the tournements begin. All they need to do is go to the X that marks the spot and throw the bait that they were told to throw. The real winners of these tournements are the people that do all the prefishing for the so called pros.


That is a ridiculous statement! Do you really believe these pro's need local help? What makes them pros are there ability to break down massive lakes, find fish and catch them. Not what some local tells them. What did Kvd or any other pro do before he could afford local knowledge? I guess he was just lucky!


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Rabbeye said:


> Lordofthepukes and younggag must be tourney fishermen.. I don't go out of my way to screw anyone, but I also don't yield to a guy fishing a tournament either. Most of you, just like charter captains, feel that everyone should get out of your way. I'm not on the water to make my living or to supplement it by fishing tournaments. Why should 99 percent of us give way to 1 percent when the vast majority of you show zero respect to us? If I had a buck for every time a charter cut my drift off or got in my way I would be buying a new boat. Respect and courtesy is a two way street. Public water is just that....public. I have just as much right to it as a guy fishing a tournament. It's not like a golf tournament and the course is closed to all but the competitors.
> 
> And yeah lordothepukes...it literally does happen with both bass and walleye tournaments.


You're just one of those guys... Karma is a bitch and we all know that guys like you are the root of this country's problems... It's why I can't leave a dip net in the bed of my truck, it's why we have lie detector tests after tournaments, it's why we have to put signs up at the ramps that say "no prepping in ramp lanes"... You're that guy that rides in the passing lane on the highway and that guy who sucks in as much smoke as humanly possible before walking into a no smoking building and then blows it all out inside...

You are just that guy and nothing anyone can do about it because douchebaggery seems to be an incurable disease that 10% of the population has and nobody has found a cure for...

Good luck in life!!!


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

So you think that KVD and others just show up and fish at these tournaments? Somebody else found all their spots for them and even tells them the bait to use.Do you even watch tournaments on TV? I can so easily refute your statements it's laughable.I have seen KVD win TX's numerous times on prototype lures-do you even know what that means? It simply means he is throwing a lure that NOBODY else anywhere even has smart guy.Have you ever read Bassmaster magazine? They do an article every month called "A Day On The Lake",a different pro goes fishing on a lake they have never been to before,the purpose behind this is to show people how they break down a new lake they haven't seen before.If you're so inexperienced that you believe that KVD or any other pro needs a locals help in finding spots then you should stick to your golf game.If you had ever taken the time to go to a lake where a big tournament is going to be held and watch the pros dissect the lake on their 2.5 days of practice fishing maybe then you could understand how they find certain areas that even the locals would never even think of fishing.What some pros may do is check what the weights have been at local TX's to get a rough idea of what they will need each day to be competitive,but I seriously doubt if any Elite Series pro is going to be calling you up anytime soon to offer you some cash for a couple of your waypoints,that sir is hilarious.


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## CrappieTacos (Jun 22, 2010)

Some tourney guys think they own the lake, Ive had Johnny Rangerboat cut me off numerous times. But I've also had Johnny Weekend move in on me too. Im all for giving people space, I just wish everyone else was too.


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## lunker23 (Jun 28, 2013)

*Alright, I'm putting you all in time outs!!!! *This subject is like beating a dead horse and not worth it. Everybody has valid points, but in the end this is a sport that we all enjoy. Yes, there are some unwritten rules that we should follow, but we all know there's going to be some yahoo that thinks they're god's gift to the fishing world. So blow it off and walk away.
I remember a time this past summer when I was on a spot that was producing size and quantity, but had to walk away to take a phone call. Approx 5 minutes later I walked up on a guy fishing my spot and get this, sitting on my folding stool!!! I was upset, but then asked him if he's had any luck. He said not a single bite and that was good enough to make me laugh, grab my stuff and walk away. Karma is a b1tch and in this case, it was satisfying 

P.S. I guess the guy wasn't smart enough to see what I was throwing to catch the fish. He should of used my set up since it was sitting next to my folding stool


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## Intimidator (Nov 25, 2008)

To be honest, NOW, I really get pissed off due to "fishing idiots"...I actually didn't think it was that bad before, and I tended to over-look alot!
A few years back, We did a MASSIVE cover drop at our local lake, so kids, the elderly, and the handicapped, could come out and enjoy fishing in areas that were easily accessed!
We put cover by handicapped platforms, concrete sidewalks, ramps and docks next to the water and covered areas around the Marina.
IT WAS THE WORST DISPLAY OF HUMANITY I HAVE EVER SEEN....people found out and wouldn't allow the groups this was intended for, to fish, they ran handicapped people off areas, or wouldn't allow them access, PEOPLE WERE PUSHING KIDS OUT OF THE WAY....Boats were pulling in and blocking cover, or bank casting access.
We had fist-fights over spots, we had verbal cussing/threats daily, guns pulled, rocks thrown at boats, people were pulling cover up to move it or take it out cause they lost a jig, trash dumped everywhere, trash cans, benches, picnic table thrown in the water...it was a freakin nightmare!
Finally it all ended after 2 years and they fished out the entire area, destroyed all the cover, and now we won't do it again! Our society is in a Dang, Sad, State!


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## Big Joshy (Apr 26, 2004)

this "me first" "take it all" mentality will not stop. So I really hope that they start closing off lakes or part of the lakes for this big of a tournament. Its not that big of a deal especially if they pick a big lake and say one arm of it is the tournament grounds. Ski resorts are closed for the olympics, parks full of baseball diamonds are closed for tournaments, golf courses are closed to the public for tournaments. Its not that hard to figure out. Take away the fans right to fish. You don't see people on the golf course playing the hole the pro just played during a tournament do you? Its just common sense to me and I expect that there are lots of lakes and places that would gladly conform to this type of restriction. Yes I know they are public lakes but lets face it when money is involved peoples right to fish an area of the lake for a few days is not a great problem to overcome. Heck You couldn't fish section of alum creek for almost a month last fall due to them installing powerlines overhead. My guess is that this change will probably happen in the future if this stuff continues.


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## Intimidator (Nov 25, 2008)

Big Joshy said:


> this "me first" "take it all" mentality will not stop. So I really hope that they start closing off lakes or part of the lakes for this big of a tournament. Its not that big of a deal especially if they pick a big lake and say one arm of it is the tournament grounds. Ski resorts are closed for the olympics, parks full of baseball diamonds are closed for tournaments, golf courses are closed to the public for tournaments. Its not that hard to figure out. Take away the fans right to fish. You don't see people on the golf course playing the hole the pro just played during a tournament do you? Its just common sense to me and I expect that there are lots of lakes and places that would gladly conform to this type of restriction. Yes I know they are public lakes but lets face it when money is involved peoples right to fish an area of the lake for a few days is not a great problem to overcome. Heck You couldn't fish section of alum creek for almost a month last fall due to them installing powerlines overhead. My guess is that this change will probably happen in the future if this stuff continues.


Could you imagine the lawsuits if you closed a public area for a private enterprise...Oh hell, there would be lawyers from every public interest group in the US, stationed like Piranhas.


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

I've said that for a couple of years now.You don't need to close down the lake for the couple of practice days,but closing down a lake for the three tournament days is the way to go,and I think we'll see that happen in the very near future.I think with the braintrust running BASS and state DNR heads combining efforts they can choose certain lakes to hold big events on that wouldn't be too hard to close down to the general public during the tournament days.I myself can't stand watching the classic,or even Elite events and seeing one of the pros trying to fish a piece of structure and see a dozen or more "spectator"boats in the background.Two years ago I made the 8-hour drive up to Mullet Lake in northern Michigan for a three day fishing trip.When arriving at the ramp the first morning I discovered that there was a fairly decent tournament about to blast off.After talking to a couple of the guys and learning that it was only a one day tournament I decided to just go to another lake in the area-it's not that hard to figure out.


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## Harbor Hunter (Aug 19, 2007)

Intimidator said:


> Could you imagine the lawsuits if you closed a public area for a private enterprise...Oh hell, there would be lawyers from every public interest group in the US, stationed like Piranhas.


Yes I could imagine that in Ohio!


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## Big Joshy (Apr 26, 2004)

your probably right. I guess im not very well versed in laws. However when there is money involved there always seems to be a way to work things out.


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## lordofthepunks (Feb 24, 2009)

Big Joshy said:


> this "me first" "take it all" mentality will not stop. So I really hope that they start closing off lakes or part of the lakes for this big of a tournament. Its not that big of a deal especially if they pick a big lake and say one arm of it is the tournament grounds. Ski resorts are closed for the olympics, parks full of baseball diamonds are closed for tournaments, golf courses are closed to the public for tournaments. Its not that hard to figure out. Take away the fans right to fish. You don't see people on the golf course playing the hole the pro just played during a tournament do you? Its just common sense to me and I expect that there are lots of lakes and places that would gladly conform to this type of restriction. Yes I know they are public lakes but lets face it when money is involved peoples right to fish an area of the lake for a few days is not a great problem to overcome. Heck You couldn't fish section of alum creek for almost a month last fall due to them installing powerlines overhead. My guess is that this change will probably happen in the future if this stuff continues.


It's a shame that this idea has to even be thought of as a solution... A lot of people like going out there and spectating for the right reasons and it's a shame that the 10% have to ruin it for everyone else...

I've had spectator boats follow me before and I loved it... That adrenaline is seriously awesome when you have a bunch of pontoon and bass boats watching you fish and you hook into a stud with a crankbaits 40 yards from the boat and that fish shoots out of the water a few times... When you finally land it and everyone starts clapping and cheering, it's a fantastic feeling... I would hate to see that go away because of the minority 10%..


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## SConner (Mar 3, 2007)

It seems after 67 posts this subject has been covered from every possible angle and nothing more productive is being added.


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