Fishing Vs Tournament Fishing

People wonder how fisherman can catch such large fish during tournaments, its not what they catch on a daily bases, only rarely do they have such a good day with big weights. Here is an explanation of how this happens.

Fishermen go out to have fun. They relax, talk if they are with someone, enjoy the outdoors by taking in the sights and sounds of nature, take food breaks, ride around and check out new places or to see where others are fishing. If they miss a fish or lose a fish, other than a few cuss words it’s no big deal.

Now tournament fishing is much different. They pre-fish by fishing hard and checking lots of places. They ask other fisherman and bait shops where to fish or they hire guides to take them around. Tournament day is not a day to have fun, they lost previous tournaments and are now more determined than ever, or they did good in tournaments and now want to do good all the more. This means hard work. They must fish hard all day, no time for talking or looking around, 100% concentration is required. No matter if its hot cold, windy or wet, they must fish hard cast after cast all day long not stopping for one minute. No matter if they haven’t had a bite in hours, the next fish could be worth big bucks so stick with it, full concentration, cast after cast, boredom is just a part of the game, must concentrate and be ready for any little nibble and be ready to slam the hook. There are no missed hits, when they get a bite, they are concentrating and slam the hook. Cast after cast they stand and stare at the poles and line. No matter if it’s snag, slam the hook. If the line runs sideways a few inches, slam the hook. If it is a snag, quickly break off and grab another rod or quickly tie on another lure that is laid out and ready ready When a fish is hooked there is no messing around, get the fish in quick and use the net. No messing around unhooking fish that can’t be weighed in, just rip out out and get back to fishing. Ignore other non tournament fisherman, just pretend they are logs and fish right over the top of them if need be. When running to the next spot there is no slowing down or idling past to not leave a wake, every second counts, that could be another cast and the winning fish. No breaks for lunch, and only drink while running to the next spot. If a person had to fish like this without money and ego being involved, it would be miserable and no one would want to do it.

When they go into the weigh in they are angry and sad if they don’t place in the money. If they do place in the money, they are happy and will share their secrets. But everyone wants to know how the winners did it, so usually the winners are expected to stand in front of everyone and tell how they did it and many times telling exactly where they caught fish. Chances are, they saw a boat fishing a spot so they checked it out and now they are telling the world about the spot that some one was fishing that they store, but they will leave the stealing that part out because it is all too common to consider finding spots where you saw someone else fishing. Next thing it hits the fishing reports and the cities, counties and even states near by now all know this spot that was holding so many big fish and those fish get hammered until there is none left or conditions change and the fish leave.