The fishing-friendly waters of Table Rock welcomed back NSKA for Table Rock 2.0 for 2021 and it was a wild ride.
As many NSKA tournament anglers know, this was the sixth event that involved rain or thunderstorms this year…and this one was a doozy. As Forrest Gump said, “We been through every kind of rain there is. Little bitty stingin’ rain and big ol’ fat rain, rain that flew in sideways. And sometimes rain even seemed to come straight up from underneath.”
On Saturday a dead calm sunny morning turned into stormaggeddon in the afternoon. In fishing one thing is true, when the weather changes the fishing changes and it was going to help someone catch ’em late.
Tournament Results
As 53 anglers took to the water expectations for catching fish were high. Table Rock put out good numbers in the May event (1.0) and there was some optimism it would be a bit easer than Beaver Lake. Overall a very strong 73% of anglers turned in a limit and with 338 fish caught for a 6.5 average per angler the Rock was on fire again.
Levi Schneider took 1st place in his first NSKA event with 88.00″ on the day (after a 1″ deduction!), followed by Jason Kincy with 84.00″ squeaking by Josh King in a tie-breaker who finished 3rd with 84.00″ on the day. Levi also won Big Bass with a 20.00″ Table Rock tank.
The Table Rock top ten:
- Levi Schneider
- Jason Kincy
- Josh King
- Tyler Zengerle
- Ryan Paskiewicz
- Josh Landreth
- Jason Adams
- Dwain Batey
- Justin Writght
- Jason Coleman
Check out the full results on TourneyX.
Angler Roundtable
Top finishers of the event break down the day in the roundtable discussion. A lot of fish were caught that day by Levi, Jason, Josh and Tyler.
What part of Table Rock did you go to and why?
Levi – After having a horrible practice at the Kings River I looked elsewhere. I found a random ramp just north of Emerald Beach that looked really good with a mix or brush piles, docks, and main lake bluff walls with rock. With multiple main lake points, secondary points, and a couple of coves so I had plenty of options no matter where the fish went.
Jason – Put in at Beavertown because I’d pre-fished a couple of spots on Table Rock and just couldn’t get things going so tried something different for the tournament. Rock Creek and Big M was where I wanted to fish because they are so good.
Josh – I wanted to go to the same spot I did in the first Table Rock tournament, but with the water being down 4’ I didn’t think it would be as good. I got on the internet, looked at some maps and found a spot that wasn’t too far of a drive and had several main points. I ended up fishing Owl Creek arm.
Tyler – I chose to fish at Shell Knob because I figured most of the crowd would be at the Kings River ramp or around Big M area. After doing map study, I noticed that there weren’t a lot of bluff walls, but rather shallower water which best suits my fishing style. I chose to fish behind the island (Lost Hill) and that’s where almost all my fish came from.
Key baits or techniques used to catch keepers?
Levi – I caught ’em early with a Rapala X Rap in a gaudy orange chartreuse color although those fish flopped off the board before I could snap a picture of them. After that all of my fish came of a CJs custom 1/2 oz PB&J football jig with either a green and purple Strike King Rage Craw or a Googan baits Krackin craw.
Jason – I got to power fish all day…pleased to say I didn’t touch a spinning rod one time! Heddon zara spook, War Eagle buzzbait, ZMan chatterbait, Booyah Covert spinnerbait and Slowtown football jig were all contributors.
Josh – I started with a buzzbait and landed one keeper pretty early. I switched to a wacky worm and turned out a small limit. I then put on a 1/2oz football jig, caught several and culled up four fish.
Tyler – All of the fish in my final five came off of a Jewel Finesse jig in PB&J with a Gambler Lures craw in orange/green pumpkin for the trailer. I did catch a few on a shaky head and Ned rig, but nothing of significant size.
Anything notable about catching your biggest fish?
Levi – My biggest fish came off the same main lake point I caught my 5th fish of the day to fill my limit. After I fished the cove by the point with little luck I decided to back out to the point mainly cause the clouds had came back and that’s when I had noticed my biggest bites would happen and sure enough after a few casts and a couple of hops the 20” largie ate my jig and if you saw my picture of him he was a little messed up.
Jason – I’d found a specific pattern by about 10:00 and was running it, catching a fish almost every time I’d find a certain thing. My 19.25″ kicker was cool because I saw it flash a second before it thwanked my bait and the fight was on. Sadly, shortly after this I lost my chance to catch Levi when another biggie pulled off after doing the exact same thing.
Josh – Absolutely, it was in the last five minutes of the game. It was literally going to be my last cast and I was almost back to my vehicle. I’ve never worked so fast and so hard at reeling, catching, unhooking and photographing a fish as I did for that one. I was very nervous it wouldn’t upload before 3:00pm.
Tyler – My biggest catch was 18.50”. I caught him going back through the same stretch of water I already fished about 45 minutes before the hurricane came through. I threw between some chunk rock and wood and pulled him out. He went airborne, and as soon as I had him in the net, the jig popped out. One second later, she probably wouldn’t have been in my final five.
What is one tip on getting good photos you can give new anglers?
Levi – A couple of things are recommend are take your measuring board with you anytime you go fishing and practice taking picture with every single fish you catch. Also if you’re a visual learner like I am, I mostly learned how to from watching many Greg Blanchard videos which is why when I started tournament fishing it was like second nature. Also measure in the lowest part of your kayak to reduce the chance of your fish from flopping out of the kayak.
Jason – Like Levi said, take your board and take photos when not in a tournament. Also like what Josh said about a routine and having everything in its place so you have to think less when in the moment. I’m very superstitious about this and have to put everything back exactly where it goes before starting to fish again, haha.
Josh – What is one tip on getting good photos you can give new anglers? I’m still learning myself and I still make several mistakes, but for me the key is having everything ready and always in the same place and doing the process the same way. Having that muscle memory helps when I have those rushed or excited moments.
Tyler – I recommend practicing at home. I went in the garage, sat in my kayak and moved my board around and figured out the best orientation that is most comfortable for me. After taking a few pics, I found a way that I don’t have to worry about my identifier being cutoff and that my whole board will fit in the picture. I’ve also reached out to other people with the same boat as me and looked at the way they did it. Yes, I know there are more variables when you’re out on the water, but having a plan in place before you hit the water is important. You can tweak some things when you’re actually measuring a fish. Snap a couple pics and always review them before submitting. It’s not fun getting an 18”+ fish DQ’d…I would know.
Classic Standings & AOY Race
Well the season is about over but there are a LOT of anglers in the hunt for a Classic berth. Right now I’d say there are 10-12 spots up for grabs depending on how everyone does in the final event on Beaver Lake. Lots of movement coming for sure.
In the AOY race, Dwain Batey has a chokehold on first that I believe nobody can overcome based on the numbers. (but I’m no mathematician) There is a slight chance for a few…Kyle Long and Tyler Zengerle in particular to catch up if they dominate the last event and the Classic and Dwain stumbles in the Classic. We will see what we see.
Take a moment to check out Dwain’s article about his day on Table Rock, and subscribe to his blog – it is a great read.
Heavy Hitters Not Over?
Was looking pretty early like Kyle Long had his own chokehold on Heavy Hitters, but like last year things tighten up down the stretch. Although he has a good lead, there are some threats to the crown in this last event.
If Kyle does not upgrade…Tyler, Ryan and Jason all have an outside shot at stealing it in the last event. Tyler would need a 21.75″ to win, Ryan needs a 21.75″ to win, and Jason needs a 21.50″ to win. These are not likely on Beaver Lake, but possible!
