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When an angler gets a sponsor, he’s expected to perform, and not necessarily just in competitive events.
Nobody knows that better than Michiana’s Ken Holder who helped put a former NBA basketball player in a fully loaded Caymas CX21 with a Merc 250 from Starboard Choice Marine in Edwardsburg, Mich.
Floyd Wolkins and Steve Martin recovered from a slow start at Paw Paw Lake the first day of the Arjay’s two-day Classic to wrap up the win Sunday at Duke’s Bridge.
New Gear
The 2023 Bassmaster Classic wasn’t the first time that Jeff “Gussy” Gustafson had stacked big weights and solid limits of smallmouth bass on the Tennessee River out of Knoxville, Tennessee. Back in March of 2021,
Word of the “moping” technique traveled quickly through social wires, sending serious bassers on the hunt for Gussy’s favored jig head—Bass Tactics’ Smeltinator Jig.
| Stricker Video Shows Underwater Smallmouth Strikes and Value of Fiberglass Rods |
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Miscalculation Nearly Cost Raber/Anderson $40,000 Win
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A-rigs, Underspin Produce Winning Sack
By Louie Stout
Mike Raber and Austin Anderson came within seconds of seeing a $40,000 first-place prize slip out of their grasp in the Payback Bass Super Tournament at Lake St. Clair last weekend.
Thanks to Ohio anglers Cody Gray and Codea McCathran who hustled Raber to the weigh-in after he and Anderson ran out of gas, the Michiana team was able to get their winning bag of 24.46 pounds of smallmouth on the scales.
The duo, who fished in Lake Erie and headed back in plenty of time, miscalculated how much gas they had burned on Erie in Anderson’s 21-foot Phoenix Bass Boat.
“We took Austin’s boat instead of my Nitro because of the contingency prizes,” explained Raber. “His boat holds 50 gallons and mine holds 55 and we didn’t realize fuel would be an issue. It was a gift from God that those Ohio guys saw me waving frantically and asking for help.”
Raber said the Ohioans picked him up with 10 minutes left within a couple miles of check in.
“It was the difference between $40,000 and the worst day of our lives,” joked Raber, who promises to reward the rescuers with gear from the Tackle Shack, where he works.
Two Lures Lester Loves for September
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By Al McGuckin
Team Toyota’s Brandon Lester endured more stress in the final days of August than a lone goby surrounded by a school of fat smallmouth.
Three days after learning he probably would not qualify for the Bassmaster Classic for only the second time in his fantastic 10-year career, his mega-cute young daughter was hospitalized for a horrible stomach virus, and then, just hours after she began to heal, his father was hospitalized over serious pulmonary concerns.
So, here’s to hoping September brings far more smiles, and some time on the water to decompress for Lester. One thing’s for certain, the next time he launches his boat, there will be two time-proven topwaters tied on.
“No matter where you live, September signifies the first month of fall. It’s that time of year when we get our first cool nights, and lots of things start kicking into a bit of a different gear. To me, that means you better key on baitfish imitators and a trolling motor that’s in fairly constant forward motion,” says Lester.
Covering water with baits that appeal to bass looking skyward is the key, so Lester chooses a buzzbait and Super Spook Jr. as two lures all bass anglers should try during the calendar’s ninth month.
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