Todd Faircloth's 9th-place standing in the Bassmaster Elite Series Angler of the Year (AOY) race is proof that he's had a consistently solid season. He's been ridiculously consistent since summer began.
In the last four regular-season events, the Texan has finished 17th, 14th, 16th and 16th.
"I really can't explain why it's been like that, but it's been good and kind of upsetting at the same time," he said. "That's four straight finishes right outside the Top 12.
"In one way, I'm happy with the Top 20s. But in another way, I'm a little disappointed."
He said he was on good enough fish to make the Top 12 in two of those events. In the other two, his finishes were higher than he'd anticipated.
"At Champlain, I definitely felt I should have made the cut, but I managed my time real poorly," he said. "I got worried about the wind and afraid I wouldn't be able to get back in time (from Ticonderoga, and the southern end of the lake), and I ended up getting back an hour and a half early.
"I did better than I expected to at the Potomac, but after the second day I ran out of fish. I had to just go fishing on the third day."
With his 2008 Classic berth all but in the bag, he might take a few more chances in the final Elite event next month at Toho. The same goes for the week's Legends Major at Dardanelle.
"Both of those are kind of freebies for me, and I'll probably fish with a little bit different mindset. As I'm accumulating points through the season, my main goal is to catch a limit every day.
"At these tournaments, I'll concentrate on fishing where I think the potential to win is."
