Thirty Pounds Per Hour

The tournament record books serve as reminders of the sport’s greatest events. Who could forget the Dean Rojas limit or the big bass beat-down at Falcon Lake almost 20 years ago?

When the weather aligns with a springtime trip to a trophy factory, it's just a matter of time before giant bags come to the scales and another record hangs by a thread.

Such was the case at Santee Cooper when the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit came to town recently. Predictions of 35-pound bags quickly came true, as two anglers cracked the seven-pound average on day 1. Eventual winner Aaron Yavorsky made things look easy throughout the weather-shortened event, racking up 67-4 for 10 bass. Even more impressive, he caught nearly all of them in a couple hours.

Pound for pound, hour for hour, the recent Santee event may have been the heaviest tournament of all-time. Nearly all of the top competitors reported catching the majority of their weight during their “scope periods”, three-hour windows allowing the use of forward-facing sonar. Following that, most chose to wind lipless cranks and chatterbaits in hopes of catching a cull fish or two.

The fishing on the Santee Cooper chain was nothing short of phenomenal. Five-pound bass became quick toss backs. A seven-pounder was just another good ‘un.

But did the world take note?

Prior to the season, press releases detailed rule changes for the Pro Circuit, including narrowing the window when competitors could use live sonar. Also included were hype-filled primers on upcoming big bass fisheries including Santee and the Harris Chain. Pre-spawn, shallow-water slugfests were sure to keep us interested.

MLF was working to compensate for the parasitic drag of live sonar, stacking the deck in favor of multiple patterns and approaches, anticipating renewed vigor for their triple-A trail. What they were dealt, however, proved that you just can’t beat the ‘Scope.

Sadly, the Santee event now drifts into obscurity. The plan to include all genres and styles in tournament bass fishing failed again.

But does it matter? Remember, we’re chasing records here. Tournament organizations bring big events and notoriety to strong fisheries in hopes of drawing tourists to supporting markets. Surely, regardless of how the pros caught their fish, anglers took note and are on their way down I-95.

Big bass came across the scales in big numbers, caught at record rates. Young guns posted top finishes, priming an AOY battle. Jighead minnows continued to fly off the shelves.

When we boil it all down, that’s always been the concept behind tournament fishing. Learning new techniques from innovative anglers in a pursuit to catch more bass. Recognizing locations where it happens most, and spending a few bucks while supporting the tackle stores and boat dealers. Organized bass fishing 101.

It’s all about the numbers, so the Santee Copper event proved to be an overwhelming success, right?

For those who disagree, perhaps it’s a matter of perspective. Perhaps what the “anti-scopers” view as a problem with the sport is really a problem of their own.

The concept boils down to perspective and what tournament bass fishing means to you. What a professional athlete represents in your eyes. How they achieve success, sustain a career and continue to pave a road that, for most of us, can only be a dream.

Without question, viewers are clicking off the broadcasts during scope-filled events. I know I sure am.

But maybe it doesn’t matter. Perhaps viewership doesn’t align with participation, be it in tournament entries or dollars being spent.

In the end, to an outsider, it was just another big tournament coming to town. The newest fad won out and another star was born. The machine rolls away and the tackle shop owner restocks his shelves.

A new version of the proven concept.

Maybe, it’s just all about perspective.

Joe Balog is the Executive Director of Mighty River Recovery, a nonprofit organization working to restore Florida’s St. Johns River. A former national tournament angler, product designer, seminar speaker and guide, Balog has worn just about every hat available to a professional angler. Today, he enjoys rehashing his experiences and adding veteran insight through his weekly Bass Wars column.

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