BASSMASTER SERIES
Alabama South Div. Lake Eufaula

Rex Chambers 2-9-08 

Sometimes practice doesn’t make perfect. I found that out the hard way this past week on Lake Eufaula. I traveled to Eufaula two weeks ago for a day of pre-fishing for the first event of the upcoming Bassmaster Weekend Series season. A simple four hour drive, one way, and a mere 245 miles from my driveway. Met up with an old friend and spent the day fishing Eufaula. We had a decent day landing a couple huge fish and several nice keepers. Gave me an idea on what the next couple weeks may bring anyway.

This past Thursday I headed back to Eufaula for a couple days of practice with the event to be held on Saturday. Thursday’s fishing wasn’t great to start with but did manage to find a good bite late in the afternoon in a couple wind protected coves. Something to think about, I thought to myself . Friday’s practice began at daylight as I put in at a different ramp and fished a different part of the lake on the South end. Same pattern as late Thursday and the fish were absolutely killing a big swimbait fished shallow. Caught the first couple bites just to get a sense of the size fish I was around. Both were identical twins at four pounds a piece. So, I continued on close to the same area with the same bait, only bending the hook to make sure I didn’t stick another fish. Over a dozen more strikes. Things are looking great for at least a top five finish in the season opener.

Attend the pairings meeting Friday evening and draw out my co-angler who happened to be one of the three or four Smith Lake anglers that made the trip South. You see, this particular division’s Regional event will be here on Smith Lake in October and I thought more local anglers would take part, but that was just another thing I was wrong about. Just like the fish staying on my pattern for tournament day. Blast off at safe light Saturday morning for the event and head straight for an area I thought I could boat just a few keepers on which was a bridge in a creek with muddy water. I don’t get strike and my co-angler lands one small fifteen inch keeper.

That would be the start of my "pattern" completely falling apart. I had figured in my head that it would take 18 to 19 pounds to win the event and I was on a bite that would be very close to that and even better with a little luck by landing a big six plus pound bite. Just another thing I was wrong about. Leave the first stop and head to where I had caught a huge fish two weeks earlier. A deep brushed boat house. I managed a solid keeper on jig and nothing more. Now it’s time for the mid-day bite that was so awfully good during practice. I’m convi nced t hat the fun is about to begin. Wrong again.

Arrive at the secret "I found ’em" hole to find that several other tournament boats are there in the creek also. No big deal though, they aren’t really close to MY bank. Start whizzing the big swimbait on the wind-blown grassy bank and no takers. I was hoping for at least two good ones there. Move back into the creek a bit out of the wind, thinking that may have been the problem. Finally get one a good one to crush the bait just like they did in practice and put number two in the boat. Then, nothing. A couple more hours on my "go to" pattern and not another keeper bite. Decide to abandon the pattern for a while and land one more keeper on a crankbait from a wind-blown dock and few small fish that were just under the length limit. I have there keepers in the boat and go back to the big fish pattern in a different area. No takers. Which is how the day ended. Back to the weigh-in feeling awfully humbled by "what could have b een" i f only the practice time would have actually counted. Tuck my tail between my legs and begin the 245 mile trip back home with a disappointing 46th place finish, telling myself all the way home, "maybe next time".