By Todd Ceisner
BassFan Editor


Tyler Carriere was out on the water Thursday, but he wasn’t chasing largemouth bass. Instead, he was running a charter boat for folks looking to catch some trout and redfish out of Port Sulphur, La.

Soon, though, his sole focus will shift to freshwater and preparing for the coming Elite Series season, which kicks off in 68 days at Cherokee Lake in east Tennessee.

Carriere, a 42-year-old father of two who now lives in Youngsville, La., will be part of the 13-man crop of newcomers to the 2017 Elite Series. He’ll be one of 11 true rookies, three of whom call Louisiana home.

He qualified through the Central Opens this year, thanks to a trio of top-30 finishes at the Arkansas River, Red River and Atchafalaya Basin, all shallow-water fisheries that suited his strengths.

“It was typical river fishing,” Carriere said. “It’s what I grew up doing.”

He’ll never forget the fish that propelled him to a 23rd-place finish at the Atchafalaya Basin and clinched 4th place in the Central Division points.

“I’d lost some key fish on day 1 and at about 10 a.m. on day 2, I only had three 12-inchers,” he said. “I went to a log where I’d had a bite in practice and threw a spinnerbait at it. I caught two 2 1/2-pounders and left. Ten minutes, I went back to it and caught a 4-pounder. That was the difference maker. Without that fish, I don’t qualify.”

His success opened the door to an opportunity he’s been chasing for the last couple years. He fished all but one Northern Open in 2015 in an attempt to qualify for the Elite Series. He did the same this year, but after a triple-digit finish at the first Southern Open, he knew his best shot was through the Central Division.

When the 2017 Elite Series information packet arrived, he knew he was officially in, but he didn’t know what to make of it.

“I just kind of looked at it,” he said with a chuckle. “I was scared to open the pamphlet. It still hasn’t sunk in.”

The last several weeks have been busy as he tries to get everything in order before heading out on the road in February.

“It’s been kind of crazy and it’s still kind of surreal,” he said. “Once we get to the first tournament, it’ll hit me probably. Right now, I’m still trying to lock up some sponsors. It’s hard to get somebody to commit.”

Long Layoff

Carriere’s background is unique in that he went a significant period of time without competing in bass tournaments. He only got back into it seriously in 2014 – and now he’s about to go head to head with the best in the world. He thinks he’ll be up to the task.

“It takes a lot to get me riled up,” he said. “I’ll be able to make it through. Regardless of what happens over the next two years, I’ll go back and try to re-qualify, but my plan is keep on rolling with it.”

He got started fishing with his dad when he was a toddler, but his dad wasn’t into tournaments.

“When I was in high school, I’d jump in with the other guys in bigger tournaments, but back then, they didn’t have the big paybacks like now,” he said. “If you fished for $10,000 or $12,000 you were doing good.”

He continued tournament fishing after high school around Texas and Louisiana, but after he received his Airframe and Powerplant license, he did maintenance on airplanes for roughly 10 years. After Hurricane Katrina devastated much of the Louisiana coast in 2005, he opened up a charter fishing business – T&C Fishing Bowfishing Charters – out of Port Sulphur and has done that ever since. All told, he figures he went 12 to 14 years without competing in a bass tournament.

“I did some fun fishing and stuff like that, but I didn’t get my feet wet again until 2015,” he said. “I just missed it.”

Being Realistic

Carriere knows his foray into the Elite Series is going to be a challenge, but he’s already set a goal he believes is attainable.

“It’s a big step you take, but I want to try to be above the top-70 cut line,” he said. “It’s going to be tough because those guys are very good. If we can do better than that I’ll take it.”

He formed friendships with 2016 rookies Brett Preuett and John Hunter Jr. through the Opens and plans to travel with them next year.

For now, he’s focused on building his sponsor portfolio and planning some scouting trips to some of the venues on the ’17 schedule. He does have some experience at Sam Rayburn Reservoir, Toledo Bend and Ross Barnett Reservoir, but the others will all be new.

“Shallow water is my deal,” he said. “I’ll do the deep water stuff, but I like to flip. I really like the northern lakes. I like catching smallmouth, but we don’t get to do much of it around here.”

He said one of the areas he’ll need to improve in – and fast – will be using his electronics. He says it’s his No. 1 weakness at this point.

“Back when I fished before, they had stuff, but nothing like it is nowadays,” he added.