(Editor's note: This is part 1 of a 2-part story on Bassmaster Tour pro Stacey King.)
Ozark legend Stacey King, a 16-year battle-hardened veteran of the Bassmaster Tour, pieced together a consistent season. He made two day 2 cuts – one on his home lake – but never broke the plane of the winner's circle. Yet he accomplished a few of his goals - he made the next two Bassmaster Classics and is in strong position to make next year's Bassmaster Majors.
One slight problem - he's not sure whether he'll fish the Bassmaster Elite Series next year. That
decision is forthcoming. But he's not ready to retire by any means. Whatever his Elite Series decision, he'll keep fishing, he said, and try to keep the consistency wheel rolling.
A Little Above Average
King finished 28th in the Bassmaster Tour points this year, compared to 29th last year and 51st the year before. But he climbed significantly in the State Farm-BassFan World Rankings: from No. 39 to No. 19. He said he'd grade his 2005 Bassmaster season at "about a B-minus.
"I did not do as well this year as I did last year," he said. "I don't know why. It's hard to say. I would say I was probably above average this year, but not at the top of the field. I made money and had some decent finishes, and I qualified for both Classics again."
He said he didn't fish any differently this year, but a few of the lakes weren't quite up his alley. "Maybe the conditions didn't lend themselves to my style of fishing quite as well as last season. Maybe that kept me from being close to the top of the pack."
Table Rock, Mo. is his home lake, and he's at his best on deep, clear-water bites. "Still, I have a pretty basic knowledge of all types of fishing," he said. "I feel I can compete on average in any situation they put me in. Some types of conditions I feel I can excel in, and once in a while we do get them.
"Larry Nixon told me many years ago when I first got into it, that in BASS, 90% of the fish are caught in 10 feet of water or less. I found that out to be true, but I like to fish deeper if I have the opportunity."
His type of bite came at the very last Bassmaster regular-season event at Table Rock. But he also fished deep at Clarks Hill. To better examine his strategies this year, here's a tournament-by-tournament analysis of his season.
Lake Toho, Fla. (113th)
> Day 1: 1, 1-12
> Day 2: 3, 5-06
= Total: 4, 7-02
The last time King had fished Toho was 2001. He bombed then with a 119th, and didn't do much better this year. "Toho has always been a nemesis to me, and here I am going back there for the (2006) Classic," he said. "I don't know why that is. I've done fairly well on some Florida lakes over the years. And I've caught some really good stringers of fish on Toho, but never during the competition period.
"I don't know what it is about the lake. It has a lot of fish in it. I feel like I always make the wrong turns there."
Although he's primarily a rock fisherman, he said he does enjoy grass, so that's not the problem. "I just never could put it together there. I may branch out a little and spend more time on Kissimmee (at the Classic). I have not fished it much, and it seems like some of the better stringers have been coming from there."
But if the Toho Classic sets up as a sight-fishing bite, that will be bad news for him. "I'm not an advocate of sight-fishing," he said. "My eyes aren't all that good anymore, and I've never been an advocate anyway. I never grew up with it. That's not to say I wouldn't try to catch a big bass if I saw one on a nest, but I prefer to blindcast and fish for them that way."
Harris Chain, Fla. (51st)
> Day 1: 5, 16-11
> Day 2: 1, 1-05
= Total: 6, 18-00
King improved his Florida performance a week later at the Harris Chain, but his finish wasn't great. He had a strong first day, then weighed only one fish on day 2.
"I was on some really good fish," he said of the event. "The first day I was in 6th place with about 17 pounds. The wind killed me the next day. I really only had one area that had good fish, and the wind blew me off. I couldn't even fish them. I tried to scramble and find something else, but it just didn't pay off."
Much of the field was sight-fishing or blind bed-fishing, but he flipped. And the lakes fished small. "A lot of the guys had established areas, and I knew where they were fishing," he said. "I never did go in there the second day. I didn't want to get in their way. I scrambled and it didn't work."
Guntersville, Ala. (66th)
> Day 1: 3, 8-05
> Day 2: 3, 14-04
= Total: 6, 22-09
King was one of pre-tournament favorites at this year's Guntersville event. Why? He finished 2nd there last year. But that previous finish turned out to haunt him because he fished those memories.
"I tried to fish (Guntersville) this year like I did last year – I threw jerkbaits," he said. "I was never in the right area, or I wasn't doing the right thing to catch them. I think I let myself get into the mindset that I could catch a very big stringer."
The jerkbait got him "four or five good-quality bites" during practice. "And in practice, I lost a couple of real good fish. And on the second day, I caught a 7 and a 4 on back-to-back casts. When you do that, it locks you in. And that was early in the day. I just knew I could catch a big stringer that second day. It just didn't happen."
He said memories are a trap even veterans fall into. "I stuck with it – the jerkbait. I did finally pick up a jig and catch another 3-pounder later. But I just kept thinking, I can catch a big one. I let past experience hurt me in that particular tournament.
"When you've done so well on a lake or pattern the year before – the last time you were there – it's hard not to want to do that same thing, or make it work in other areas. One thing that makes a pro a pro is he can get memories out of his head and fish fresh. Sometimes I don't do that."
Notable
> King also qualified for another Championship this year – the Cabela's Top Gun Championship – but he didn't fish it. He DQd himself after he inadvertently received information about the lake from Gary Klein. "It was just a stupid mistake, and it was embarrassing," he said. "But I know I did the right thing. I wish I could have been there. It was a wonderful tournament. I would like to see more events like that."
– End of part 1 (of 2) –
