Scott Martin told BassFan today that he had a run-in on day 3 of the Forrest Wood Cup with the same gentleman that Anthony Gagliardi encountered the following morning.
Martin said he started days 2 and 3 on the same point that Gagliardi eventually fished on the final day, just up from the northern end of the Saluda Dam. Upon arriving at the area on day 3, Martin noticed a man fishing in a red and white Nitro.
"These schools of fish we were fishing, they don't just randomly come up 100 yards from here or there, it's roughly the same spot," he said. "I came off plane and made sure to swing wide off in the deep water and I was probably 100 yards from the guy. He was down the side of the point more.
"A habit I have in a situation like that is I always ask before I make a cast," Martin continued, "but I noticed he turned his trolling motor and started coming out at me. I said, 'Do you mind if I make a few casts across this point?' From where I was, I would be casting 90 degrees away from him."
Martin said the man leaned over and increased the speed of his trolling motor, but was still a distance away.
"He says, 'You might as well because it doesn't matter anyway,'" Martin recalled. "'You guys get to fish every day. I wish you guys weren't here.'"
As Martin informed him the tournament would be over on the following the day, the man continued to get closer to his boat.
"I didn't say anything and I was throwing completely away from him," Martin said. "So I kept casting and casting, but he was still coming at me and I didn't know what he's going to do. He started throwing at my boat, staring at me the whole time. Just then, some fish came up on the other side of where he come from so I turned out to open water to steer away from him. I was going out 100 yards on the other side and the minute I turned, he turns and comes right at me again and starts casting at my boat.
"I told him I was trying to get around him and give him plenty of room. I asked him where he wanted to fish. He said, 'I'm fishing all of this.' At that point, I asked him if he was going to ram my boat."
Martin said he finally steered clear of the man and fished a dock that was near where the man had been before.
"I didn't want to fight, but he eventually left," Martin said. "The minute he left Anthony went over there and started catching them. It was a spot Anthony said he'd seen them breaking out of the corner of his eye on day 2. I fished it later that afternoon, but didn't catch anything."
Martin said at the Top-10 meeting Saturday night he warned Gagliardi about a guy in a smaller boat who was not happy that we were there.
"I've never had a guy chase me around like that," Martin said. "I've had guys not want to leave, but it's an argument both ways. It is what it is. Later on, when I was on a different spot, the same guy came by on half plane. People in boats that were watching me were yelling to him to slow down, but he just kept coming.
"The guy was definitely aggressive. When I stop 100 yards away from you and you troll at me cussing and then start casting at me when I try to go around you, he made me uncomfortable enough where I left."
BassFan is attempting to reach the local angler in question in an effort to get his view on what transpired last weekend.
