Crucible – “A place or situation in which concentrated forces interact to cause or influence change or development; a severe test.”
Beaver Lake has been pretty good to us the past couple of years. We’ve often referred to it as the Dead Sea, but that’s fallen away lately as the Beav has generated some really good fishing. This time around, the Dead Sea was back in full force for the annual test, or crucible in the August heat.
Storms, wake boats, jet skis, low water and tough conditions ruled the day. Some caught’em though, as always!
Tournament Recap
Overall, anglers didn’t do too bad for August when it came to catching fish. Fish per anglers (FPA) was a decent 5.4, however, it was a serious dink-fest.
Christa Hibbs made the drive up from the River Valley to take first place with 84.00″, followed by Dwain Batey with 82.50″ and Josh Landreth in third place with 78.50″ on the day. Christa also won Big Bass with a 21″ largemouth, which is a giant for Beaver Lake.
Your top 10:
- Christa Hibbs 84.00
- Dwain Batey 82.50
- Josh Landreth 78.50
- Levi Schneider 78.25
- Tyler Zengerle 75.50
- Nathan Higgins 72.75
- Cole Sikes 71.75
- Troy Enke 69.25
- Kyle Long 67.75
- Jason Kincy 67.75
Angler Roundtable
Our top finishers – Christa, Dwain and Josh tell us how it went down on Beaver Lake. Kudos to these winners and others who participated in recaps throughout the season, it helps new anglers learn and is great sportsmanship!
What part of beaver did you go to and why?
Christa – I decided to fish the southern end of the lake. I was interested in fishing stained water with less pressure.
Dwain – I was up near the dam. I always fish up that way for this event, I have a pattern that is hit or miss and doesn’t always work out but if it does you can win.
Josh – I went to the far south part of the lake because I’m most comfortable fishing shallow water and felt like I could find areas that were less pressured. I also wanted to get as far away from the boat traffic as possible.
What particular baits or techniques did you use for success?
Christa – I used a popper and buzz bait the entire day.
Dwain – I threw several different topwater baits.
Josh – I caught several on topwater early. They were small, and with the muddy water it seemed they were tucked close to wood. In pre-fishing I was only able to catch fish with the shakey head, but had a hard time getting them stuck good. On tournament day, I decided to use a Ned rig head with a Z Zinker worm as my finesse bait. It had an exposed hook and my hook up ratio was way better! It was definitely the key bait for me. I caught at least ten fish on that bait, including three of my keepers. I am not a finesse angler at all. So I really had to focus on every single piece of structure and make multiple casts. I knew my area was limited and I had to maximize its potential.
How did the weather (storms early, bright sun later) impact your approach or fishing?
Christa – The weather helped my bite for the most part. The overcast conditions allowed me to really cover some water quickly with topwater. Once the sun came out I slowed down some and focused on the higher percentage spots that were firing for the day only.
Dwain – The clouds and storms keep me from launching until after 7am. I also wasn’t able to get bit on the same topwater as I have used in the past and had to mix it up and fish some new water as well as covering more water. The low water was also an issue. I was glad to see the sun come out later but there was a period late when I didn’t ever get another bite but I had already done my damage by noon. No upgrades after then.
Josh – The weather honestly had little to no impact on my approach. I guess the water was muddier than I expected, so that changed things a bit.
Summer fishing can be very difficult for most people. In your mind what is the key to being able to beat the heat and catch fish?
Christa – During the summer the key for me is to have a more aggressive approach early in the morning with some sort of topwater. If conditions allow, I would stick with this approach all day. On hot and clear sky days I will chase the shade around until it is gone and then look at structure offshore.
Dwain – I was able to adjust to the conditions and also stick to my game plan for the entire day even though it appeared that it wasn’t going to materialize for several hours and I stayed the course until I was able to make it happen. There was over an hour between each of my last culls and two hours on my very last fish.
Josh – I love the summer! But, most of my experience is on creeks and rivers. Usually I struggle on the lake if I can’t get a topwater bite. For this tournament, I just went to an area that was like the rivers I fish. If you’re going to fish shallow in August, fish real shallow was kinda my thought process.
Heavy Hitters Champion
It was a close one this season with Tony and Josh battling down the stretch. By a very close margin, Tony Sorloungsana is your 2023 Heavy Hitter Champion! The top twelve totals are here:
We asked Tony some questions about his championship run:
What do you think has contributed to an increase in bigger fish this year?
Coming into the season I want to add more diversity to my arsenal, so I forced myself to learned and get use to off shore fishing. The 20” at Tenkiller, 19.50” at Pumpback, and the 21” from the Roadrunner all came from an off shore point.
Is there a technique/bait that has accounted for your success?
Without a doubt cranking deep water w/ a Strike King 6XD has been absolute money for the me in the summer months, if it wasn’t for that lure I don’t know think I would’ve been able to catch Josh.
Many people go a long time without a big fish in a tournament, any advice for them?
We live in this day in age where there is so much free knowledge and advice about fishing, soak it all in and use what makes sense to you. Getting comfortable being uncomfortable will give u a leg up on the competition. Shout out to Dwain Batey, last year he sent a tweet out about the mental game of tournament fishing and how to overcome. That tweet has help me get a better understanding that this is deeper game than just throwing a line and reeling it in.
Angler of the Year Race
Just like Heavy Hitters, the AOY crown is going to be a close finish. With the Classic looming (which counts for two events in AOY totals!) there are several possible outcomes.
Tyler maintains his lead and has a nice cushion. As long as he has a decent performance in the Classic, he’s in good shape to hold on. If he bombs…Josh, Kyle, and Dwain are in reach. Big days from them and a so-so day from the current leader could make this interesting.
Congratulations!
Congratulations to all anglers who participated in an event this year. Kayak tournaments can make you a better at bass fishing, and I’m sure everyone who did an event learned something they can use down the road. Was a great regular season and hope everyone is back next year!