Tournament bass fishing grabs the spotlight this week on Clear Lake where one of the largest bass tournaments of the year got under way Wednesday. The three-day WON BASS California Open runs through Friday. The tournament uses a pro/am format and will field 148 pros and a like number of amateurs.
Fishermen from throughout the West, including Arizona, Idaho, Nevada and Washington, are included in the field. This is a big-money tournament and the winning pro receives a new Bass Cat bass boat worth $42,000, plus at least $20,000 in cash. Other fishermen who place in the top 20 percent of the field receive cash prizes.
The tournament goes out Library Park in Lakeport and features some of the top bass fishermen on the West Coast. If they can’t catch big fish no one can. The entry fees are $1,000 for the pros and $400 for the amateurs.
Under the pro/am format, pros and their amateur partners share their weight each day on the lake. Each boat can weigh in five bass. Pros draw a different amateur partner each day. The weigh-in begins at 2 p.m. on all three days. This is an unusual tournament in that the pros pay for the gas their boats use. Normally the amateur pays a portion of the fuel expenses.
The fishermen face the challenge of a changing lake and the bass are on the move. The weather has been cool and cloudy, which should help the fishing.
The leading weight by a pro after Wednesday’s first round was 28.48 pounds and belonged to Nathan Phillips of Cobb. He went to Kelseyville High School and then moved to Redding to attend college on a bass fishing scholarship. He has won a number of bass tournaments,
A number of teams weighing in fish Wednesday were between 10-15 pounds. Most of the fishermen said they had to cover a lot of water to locate their fish. The bass haven’t completed their spawn and can still be found on the spawning beds.
The big question the bass pros are asking is where are the big bass Clear Lake Is famous for? In recent tournaments the big fish of the tourney weighed less than 7 pounds. Two bass of more than 7 pounds were caught Wednesday.
Other fish
Whereas the bass fishing is a little on the slow side, it’s just the opposite for the catfish. Just about everyone is catching catfish. In fact, even a couple of anglers in the WON BASS tournament said they caught catfish on their swimbaits. The catfish have been large, often weighing more than 20 pounds. They are widely scattered around the lake. Most are being caught on nightcrawlers.
The crappie action has varied. One day it has been good and the next day you can’t catch a fish. The good news is shore fishermen have been catching bass, crappie and catfish.
Other lakes
Indian Valley Reservoir has re-opened to the public. The lake is full and is in excellent shape. It should offer excellent bass fishing.
