FOUR CAN’T-MISS TOURNAMENTS IN 2012

Story by Matt Pangrac - Photos by Mark Jeffreys and Matt Pangrac - FLW photos courtesy of FLW Outdoors

Moore, OK – Each year in professional bass fishing, there are defining tournaments that put a stamp on the season. 

In some cases, there are clues that an upcoming tournament may rewrite the record books or go down as one of the most exciting in recent memory.  Other times, a sudden twist or turn during a seemingly typical tour level event can surprise even the most ardent fans of the sport.      

With this in mind, The BASS ZONE breaks down four of the most intriguing and potentially exciting  tournaments on the 2012 Bassmaster Elite Series and 2012 FLW Tour schedules: 

FLW Tour Open – Lake Okeechobee – February 9-12
The first tournament of a new season always brings with it a sense of excitement and anticipation.  Those senses are heightened even more when the season kicks off on the same fishery that surrendered the FLW Tour heaviest weight record just one year ago.  
 
In 2011, Brandon McMillan won on Okeechobee with 106-10, while Randall Tharp and Chad Prough each brought over 100-pounds to the scales.  Over the course of the tournament, there were seven limits of at least 30-pounds weighed-in, and the 2012 Okeechobee Tour Open is expected to be more of the same.  The FLW single-day weight record, FLW overall weight record, and FLW big bass record  all have the potential to be broken if Mother Nature and the historically finicky Florida strain largemouth decide to cooperate. 

That’s where things could get interesting.  With the sight bite expected to dominate, the weather could turn this potential slugfest into a game of cat and mouse.  The forecast for Clewiston is anything but sunny.  The extended weather forecast calls for scattered thunderstorms, showers, and cloudy skies for all four competition days, with northeast winds of 10 to 15 miles-per-hour - not exactly ideal conditions for sight fishing.  

FLW Tour Major – Table Rock Lake – March 29 – April 1
While the majority of the FLW Tour pros that The BASS ZONE has spoken with believe that umbrella rigs could play a role in the first Tour Major of the season on Lake Hartwell in early March, the second Major of the season on Table Rock will likely serve as the litmus test for the true impact that the newly popularized technique will have on the Tour season. 

With clear, deep water, and the bass most likely in the early pre-spawn stage, the umbrella rig could prove to be the perfect tool to target pre-spawners. Anglers and fans alike are anxious to see what might unfold when the vast majority of the field is all chunking and winding the same rig from start to finish. 

While fisheries can change from year to year, should the umbrella rig become the main storyline at Table Rock in the 2012 Tour event, there will be ample tournament history on the Missouri fishery to compare just how much overall weights are impacted by umbrella rigs.  The FLW Tour visited Table Rock in March of 2009 and again during March in 2010.  

The Tour anglers also have a little unfinished business on Table Rock, after last year’s scheduled stop was cancelled when water levels rose nearly 20 feet in less than four days.   

Bassmaster Elite Series – Toledo Bend – June 7-10
The Bassmaster Elite Series returns to Toledo Bend for the second time in as many years.  In 2011, Arizona’s Dean Rojas claimed victory with just under 71-pounds of Toledo Bend bass. 

There are two main factors that bring intrigue to the 2012 Elite Series tournament on Toledo Bend – water level and timing.  

The average lake level for Toledo Bend in June is 170.7.  As of February 5th, the lake level at Toledo Bend was 164.03 (nearly six-feet below the average February lake level of 170.004).  When the Elites visited Toledo Bend in 2011, the lake level was right around 164.3, but that doesn’t tell the entire story. 

Following the Elite Series tournament in 2011, the water level on Toledo Bend steadily dropped, reaching a historic low of 159.78 in late November, which left the majority of the launch ramps on the fishery high and dry.  While the water level has started to slowly climb over the past two months, without substantial rainfall in the upcoming months, the water level will almost certainly play a huge factor in the upcoming Elite Series tournament. 

The timing of the Toledo Bend event will also provide an interesting twist.  The June date is by far the latest in the season that B.A.S.S. has held a tour level tournament on the 185,000-acre fishery.  The previous 11 B.A.S.S. Invitational, Top 150, Open, and Elite Series tournaments on Toledo Bend have all been held between December and April.   With water temperatures typically eclipsing the 80-degree mark in June, the predominant patterns will differ from those that have produced in the past.  

Bassmaster Elite Series – Oneida Lake – August 23-26
The final tournament of the regular season is typically a nail-biter.  In addition to crowning the Angler Of the Year and Rookie Of the Year, a good chunk of the field is battling for the final points needed to qualify for the Bassmaster Classic.    

This year’s final Elite Series tournament on New York’s Oneida Lake in late August will be a barnburner for several additional reasons. 

For the first time in the Elite Series, Toyota Tundra Angler Of the Year points will be distributed in one-point increments without any bonus points awarded for leading or winning.  If the field consists of 100 anglers, the winner will receive 100 TTAOY points and the last place finisher will receive 1-point (as long as he weighs at least one-bass in the tournament).    

The Oneida Lake finale will give fans and anglers a chance to see just how efficient the new point system is in crowning the 2012 Angler Of the Year, Rookie Of the Year, and Classic qualifiers.

On the water, Oneida Lake is one of the few fisheries in the country where anglers can target either largemouth or smallmouth bass with a shot at lifting the trophy.  In 2006, Tommy Biffle won by targeting shallow-water largemouth while the majority of the field fished for the more plentiful population of smallmouth, and in 2008, Dean Rojas targeted Largemouth to hoist the trophy.  While more anglers keyed into Oneida’s largemouth population in 2009, Chad Griffin relied heavily on smallmouth to win his first Elite Series tournament on Oneida.   Each angler will have to make the tough decision on whether to chase the brown fish or grind it out with the largemouth.