By Todd Ceisner
BassFan Editor
While many of his fellow bass pros were heading south (or were already there) for warmer weather and a chance to wet a line earlier this month, Matt Arey was still tending to his hobby, err, hunting addiction. As recently as last week, the North Carolina pro was in the Kentucky wilderness trying to help a friend bag a doe.
As skilled as Arey is at bass fishing, he says “it’s a good thing I haven’t figured out a way to make a living with a bow in my hand because I would’ve sold my Ranger long ago.”
He’s been pretty stout with a rod and reel lately, so it appears hunting will continue to take a back seat to this fishing gig. Arey comes into the 2015 season with a newfound confidence gained from his strong 2014 FLW Tour campaign that was punctuated by his victory at Beaver Lake last April.
“After a win like that, I learned to trust my gut more,” he said. “Before, I used to make a move and if it didn’t work, I’d mentally crumble sometimes. Now, I know to just go do something else and keep my head up.”
The win helped him on multiple fronts. He was able to secure a fourth straight Forrest Wood Cup berth and also by virtue of his 15th-place finish in Angler of the Year points, he secured another trip to the Toyota Texas Bass Classic later this spring.
Always A Favorite
The Ozark lakes, of which Beaver is one, have always been among Arey’s favorites since they jive pretty well with what he’s used to fishing in North Carolina.
“Beaver just sets up well for what I like,” he said. “A lot of North Carolina guys do well there. When I think of places like Lake Wylie or Norman or High Rock, there’s little to no grass, just like Beaver. They all have a lot of shore cover and rock transitions and docks.”
He says the variety of fishing options at Beaver is also one of the reasons he’s listed it as one of his favorite lakes to fish.
“You have dirty shallow water on the lower end or deep clear water or a mix of both in the middle,” he said. “Typically, you have to have largemouths to win, but the spots and smallmouth are getting better every year it seems.
“I’ve always listed it as my favorite lake. I’ve liked it from the time I went there as a co-angler. That goes for all of the Ozark lakes. There’s a lot of natural shoreline cover and they have all three species, which is exciting because of all the options that presents.”
It’s a thinking-man’s lake, too, he says, meaning the same locations often won’t produce day after day.
“I’ve never caught fish there and done well in the same areas,” he said. “You have to just fish the conditions and read the lake. It’s not like Florida where you’re grinding along and catch a 9-pounder to compete.”
Confidence Boost
Prior to 2014, Arey’s only two top-10 finishes on Tour had come at Beaver (2008 and 2011). He’d also cashed multiple checks there, so he certainly had a measure of confidence about how to tackle the lake that seemingly everyone loves to hate.
Being able to climb to the top of the leaderboard and stay there as he did on day 3 of last year’s event was a new experience for Arey and one he hopes to draw upon in the future.
“I’ve always been the kind to second-guess myself,” he said. “I’d been close a couple times and had some decent finishes here and there, but I never felt like I was in a position to win.
“What it did was give me the confidence in knowing how to close,” he added. “I always wondered about that because having a good tournament and closing a tournament are two different things. Now that I’ve done that, it gives me confidence that I know I can close.”
The obvious question now is how long does he think it’ll be until he notches another tour-level win.
“I hope it’s this year,” he said with a chuckle. “When you taste it once, there’s nothing like it. I’m going to try to win every one. I have a lot of confidence and I love the schedule and the timing of some of the places we’re going, so knock on wood.”
Fork Again
Another event he’s looking forward to is the Toyota Texas Bass Classic, which will be back at Lake Fork this spring. He fished two TTBCs at Lake Conroe, but he said there was no comparison once he got a look at Fork last year.
“I learned a ton there,” he said. “I was one of idiots fishing on the bank. I knew some guys down there and my mark was 25 pounds a day and I thought I could catch that fishing the bank. I wasn’t even close.
“It’s just an incredible fishery, probably the most incredible fishing I’ve ever gotten to fish. I can’t imagine that place during pre-spawn or the spawn. I’m excited to go back and the event itself is becoming so popular with the country music they bring in. It seems to be growing every year and I can’t wait to go back.
"I know you won’t see me on the bank this time.”
