Gary Klein can hardly be faulted for going to the best area he'd found during practice to begin last week's Okeechobee Bassmaster Elite Series in Florida. It was that decision, however, that likely prevented him from making the Top-12 cut – he was 1-11 shy of the total he needed for that after day 3 and ended up 13th.
He started day 1 at a place on the north shore in the vicinity of Indian Prairie. The 13-pound bag he caught that day was nearly 6 pounds lighter than his hauls on each of the next 2 days, after he'd relocated to the West Wall.
"I don't have any regrets," he said. "The thing about tournament results is everything's based on decisions and commitments – not only about where to go and how to fish, but then how long to stay.
"The southeast wind that was continually blowing all week had finally gotten that (northern) area dirty. The water was a grayish-black on day 1 and I could see my jig maybe an inch underneath."
He caught plenty of fish that morning, but had only about 7 pounds in his livewell when he departed at mid-day. He put together a decent sack (13 pounds) that afternoon at the West Wall, followed by much heftier bags on day 2 (19-12) and day 3 (18-13).
"I was real happy with my finish. Okeechobee has always been one of my favorite lakes in the whole country to fish and for many years it was on my schedule every year, but I hadn't gotten to go there in at least 10 years. It changes every year and you have to relearn the weed growth and the inside lines and the outside lines, and I felt that each day I was getting better.
"I fished a flawless event – every big bite I got, I landed. It's a fun event for me anytime I can have three 8-foot flip-sticks laid out on my deck."
The Big Bite Lookback, which focuses on the angler who's first out of the final cut at each tour-level event, is brought to you by the great folks at Big Bite Baits.
