By Todd Ceisner
Special to BassFan

One of Kip Carter’s guiding principles in fishing tells you all you need to know about how he prepared for the recent Wheeler Lake Southeastern FLW Series.

“If you can’t catch ‘em shallow, go shallower,” he says with a chuckle. “I’m one of those guys.”

While Carter, who hails from Mansfield, Ga., wouldn’t classify himself as an expert on Wheeler or any of the other TVA lakes, his biggest tournament win came at Wheeler in a BFL Regional in the fall of 2017. That was the last time he made a cast at the lake prior to the FLW Series event.

“One thing I know about Wheeler is it’s not like most of the TVA lakes,” he said. “You can compete as a shallow angler, which I am. It’s not a ledge-dominated lake, so when I saw it on the schedule I was happy about it.”

He was pretty happy with the outcome, too, as he captured his FLW Series triumph with a three-day total of 41-14, including a tournament-best 15-08 stringer on day 3. He was able to stay true to his shallow-water pedigree, mixing a variety of presentations together in the backs of various creeks, all within 10 to 15 miles of Decatur, where the field took off from.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to venture out farther, but he was somewhat limited by the boat he opted to compete out of. With his Ranger fiberglass boat at home in need of some electrical work, Carter made waves by fishing out of a 2002 aluminum tunnel-hull. It’s just the kind of boat a skinny water angler covets and Carter had intentions of taking full advantage of the maneuverability of the boat. What he was giving up in horsepower to the field (he said the boat tops out at 35 mph on a good day) he was gaining in having the ability to access extremely shallow water either in the back of a creek or a backwater area.

Ultimately, though, Carter said those types of areas never materialized.

“In this particular instance, being in that boat got a lot of attention, but when it came tournament time, I didn’t need it for the fish I found,” he said. “I could’ve gotten to them all in my Ranger. I brought the tunnel-hull it with hopes of finding those places that weren’t as accessible. I got into some of those places, but the fish weren’t there.”

Knowing his limitations, he ruled out the Elk River, west of Decatur, and the Flint River to the east to maximize his efficiency.

Tougher Than He Remembered

Carter admitted he had some preconceptions about how the fish would be set up for the tournament based on his previous experience. One thing he didn’t plan on was how challenging it was.

“The first thing I noticed was that it seemed tougher than it did in 2017, even though that was an October tournament,” Carter said.

Still, he committed to visit the back of every creek he could in practice. Among them was Limestone Creek, which had a different vibe compared to the others, Carter said.

“It boiled down to an instinct thing,” he said. “Every creek I visited I had a bite or two in and every one had bait and fish in it. (Limestone) just had that look to it. It’s like a grass guy at Okeechobee. Everything might look the same to me or you but he’ll know where they’re going to be. Fishing backwaters as much as I do, it just looked right to me.”

Limestone had all the key ingredients – it’s full of cover with lots of shade and bait combined with shoreline overgrowth and bushes. Carter said there was also isolated cover on the flats leading into it.

“It had a lot of good bottom, too,” he said. “It had that hard and sandy mix, which is good for crawfish along with the shad population. It just felt right.”

Daily Adjustments

Carter said he tried not to pay much heed to the dock talk that seemed to set the projected winning weight somewhere in the 41 to 45-pound range, but as the event played out those predictions proved prophetic.

With overcast skies to start day 1, Carter opted for a walking bait and a frog, but came up empty. A switch to a spinnerbait netted him his first keeper.

“It still didn’t feel quite right,” he said. “It was one of those deals where I just knew.”

Eventually, he switched to a white swim jig, which accounted for the bulk of his 13-05, which had him in 2nd after the opening day.

“I was skipping it around undercuts and bushes – just trash-fishing,” he said. “Anything that looked like it would hold a bass.”

Boosted by the confidence he gained in the swim jig, Carter tried to make that work to start day 2. After a 2 1/2-hour dry spell, he wound up switching to a shaky-head, which produced a trio of keepers and got his nerves calmed down. He had a limit of 1 1/2-pounders by lunch time, but he was still far short of his goal of 10 pounds, which he figured he needed to qualify for the final day.

“That’s when it dawned on me that I’d not thrown a buzzbait,” he said. “I figured maybe the big fish will react to something over them because they were clearly not feeding.”

Within 20 minutes, he caught four more fish, including a 3 3/4-pounder and another 3-pounder to push him past the 13-pound threshold

“What was strange is it was bright, sunny skies, which is not typical buzzbait weather,” Carter said, “but I finally found something they’d bite. That was the toughest day.”

Carter’s 13-01 pushed him into the lead with 1 day to go.

The buzzbait was the ticket again early on day 3 as Carter caught two keepers, including a 4-pounder in the first 15 minutes to set the tone. While he started in a different creek than where he’d been fishing, the topwater reaction bait was the right call.

“It couldn’t have worked out any better,” he said. “It was all about confidence and momentum. I couldn’t have fished any better. There were no nerves, just all confidence.”

After a 90-minute lull, he swiftly finished his limit and culled his way to 12 pounds before tacking on a few more culls to salt away the win.

Carter said he’d start his assault on a creek in the mouth or the flats before they “tighten down.”

“Those are good scenarios,” he said. “I’d work my way back and then back out.”

Winning Gear Notes

> Buzzbait gear: 6’9” moderate-heavy Big Bear Rods casting rod, Shimano Curado casting reel (7.1:1 ratio), 20-pound Berkley Trilene Big Game monofilament line, 3/8-oz. Dirty Jigs buzzbait (silver blade/no skirt), Zoom Horny Toad trailer (black).

> Carter went without a skirt because he was skipping the bait under overhanging limbs and fishing it around heavy cover. “I’m still a skirt guy, but just not in this scenario,” he said.

> Swim jig gear: Same rod, same reel, 50-pound unnamed braided line, 3/8-oz. homemade swim jig (white), Zoom Super Chunk trailer (pearl white).

> When he relied on a shaky-head on day 2, it was a 1/4-oz. jig head paired with a Zoom Magnum Shaky-Head Worm (green-pumpkin).



Final Results

1. Kip Carter -- Mansfield, Ga -- 13-5 (5) -- 13-1 (5) -- 26-6 (10) -- 15-8 (5) -- 41-14 (15) -- $22,286

2. Harry Peyton -- Guntersville, Al -- 11-2 (5) -- 12-9 (5) -- 23-11 (10) -- 13-4 (5) -- 36-15 (15) -- $8,636

3. Dustin Smith -- Grand Island, Fl -- 9-13 (5) -- 12-9 (4) -- 22-6 (9) -- 12-2 (5) -- 34-8 (14) -- $7,686

4. Andrew Johnson -- Glencoe, Al -- 12-8 (5) -- 11-5 (5) -- 23-13 (10) -- 10-5 (5) -- 34-2 (15) -- $5,572

5. Lavoyd Lemmond -- Decatur, Al -- 13-0 (5) -- 11-15 (5) -- 24-15 (10) -- 7-9 (5) -- 32-8 (15) -- $5,214

6. Jesse Millsaps -- Jasper, Ga -- 14-15 (5) -- 7-14 (5) -- 22-13 (10) -- 8-11 (4) -- 31-8 (14) -- $4,514

7. Josh Bragg -- Jacksonville, Al -- 11-6 (5) -- 9-10 (5) -- 21-0 (10) -- 9-3 (5) -- 30-3 (15) -- $3,900

8. Lynn Johnson -- Attalla, Al -- 13-1 (5) -- 11-7 (5) -- 24-8 (10) -- 5-4 (3) -- 29-12 (13) -- $3,343

9. Dustin Neat -- Dunnville, Ky -- 12-8 (5) -- 8-7 (5) -- 20-15 (10) -- 6-11 (4) -- 27-10 (14) -- $2,786

10. Bill Spratlin -- Rockford, Al -- 10-10 (5) -- 10-12 (4) -- 21-6 (9) -- 5-3 (3) -- 26-9 (12) -- $2,229

The following anglers missed the cut and did not compete on Day 3.

11. Clabion Johns -- Social Circle, Ga -- 7-4 (3) -- 13-10 (5) -- 20-14 (8) -- $2,146

12. Casey O'Donnell -- Guntersville, Al -- 10-8 (5) -- 9-15 (5) -- 20-7 (10) -- $1,950

13. Lee Black -- Danville, Al -- 9-14 (5) -- 10-6 (5) -- 20-4 (10) -- $1,671

14. Mark Mitchell -- Mesquite, Tx -- 6-2 (5) -- 12-7 (5) -- 18-9 (10) -- $1,671

15. Logan Johnson -- Tuscaloosa, Al -- 10-10 (5) -- 7-11 (5) -- 18-5 (10) -- $1,671

16. John Duvall -- Madison, Ga -- 5-7 (3) -- 12-5 (5) -- 17-12 (8)

17. Andrew Nordbye -- Guntersville, Al -- 10-9 (5) -- 6-6 (3) -- 16-15 (8)

18. Jeff Cannon -- Douglasville, Ga -- 9-5 (5) -- 7-10 (5) -- 16-15 (10)

19. Terry Tucker -- Gadsden, Al -- 4-10 (3) -- 12-0 (5) -- 16-10 (8)

20. Kyle Glasgow -- Guin, Al -- 10-12 (5) -- 5-13 (5) -- 16-9 (10)

21. Chris Hensley -- Marbury, Al -- 7-1 (4) -- 9-8 (4) -- 16-9 (8)

22. Josh Stracner -- Vandiver, Al -- 6-2 (3) -- 10-4 (5) -- 16-6 (8)

23. David Parsons -- Dothan, Al -- 9-15 (5) -- 6-6 (5) -- 16-5 (10)

24. James Johnson -- Trinity, Al -- 6-10 (5) -- 9-6 (5) -- 16-0 (10)

25. Scott Towry -- Lawrenceburg, Tn -- 4-13 (3) -- 10-13 (5) -- 15-10 (8)

26. Cal Lane -- Guntersville, Al -- 8-5 (5) -- 6-9 (3) -- 14-14 (8)

27. Scott Byrd -- Ocklawaha, Fl -- 8-1 (5) -- 6-8 (5) -- 14-9 (10)

28. Lance Oligschlaeger -- Gallatin, Tn -- 3-12 (2) -- 9-13 (5) -- 13-9 (7)

29. Jeff Kitchens -- Auburn, Al -- 4-10 (3) -- 8-14 (5) -- 13-8 (8)

30. Josh Butler -- Hayden, Al -- 7-14 (5) -- 5-3 (4) -- 13-1 (9)

31. Edward Guice -- Decatur, Al -- 10-10 (5) -- 2-2 (1) -- 12-12 (6)

32. Laker Howell -- Guntersville, Al -- 8-2 (5) -- 4-2 (3) -- 12-4 (8)

33. Hunter Hayes -- Gadsden, Al -- 9-4 (5) -- 2-13 (2) -- 12-1 (7)

34. Charles Gordon -- Leitchfield, Ky -- 2-4 (2) -- 8-7 (5) -- 10-11 (7)

35. Jason Nixon -- Wetumpka, Al -- 8-12 (5) -- 1-0 (1) -- 9-12 (6)

36. Ethan Greene -- Eufaula, Al -- 7-10 (5) -- 1-12 (1) -- 9-6 (6)

37. Adam Lynn -- Columbia, Tn -- 3-7 (2) -- 5-9 (4) -- 9-0 (6)

38. Bryton Kurtz -- Magnolia, Tx -- 7-8 (4) -- 1-7 (1) -- 8-15 (5)

39. Michael Hood -- Winchester, Tn -- 5-10 (4) -- 3-2 (2) -- 8-12 (6)

40. Allen Armour -- Cumming, Ga -- 3-1 (2) -- 5-5 (4) -- 8-6 (6)

41. Michael Brewer -- Lawrenceburg, Tn -- 1-0 (1) -- 6-8 (5) -- 7-8 (6)

42. Blake Edwards -- Springfield, Mo -- 7-6 (5) -- 0-0 (0) -- 7-6 (5)

43. Brian Merriman -- Falkville, Al -- 1-8 (1) -- 5-13 (3) -- 7-5 (4)

44. Sloan Pennington -- Childersburg, Al -- 0-0 (0) -- 6-14 (5) -- 6-14 (5)

45. Will Beutjer -- Athens, Al -- 4-12 (2) -- 2-2 (2) -- 6-14 (4)

46. John Grinstead -- Cairo, Ga -- 3-14 (3) -- 2-10 (1) -- 6-8 (4)

47. Hermilo Salgado -- Artemus, Ky -- 4-3 (3) -- 1-14 (1) -- 6-1 (4)

48. Justin Marbut -- Jacksonville, Al -- 3-8 (2) -- 2-5 (1) -- 5-13 (3)

49. Brent Crow -- Hartselle, Al -- 2-12 (2) -- 3-0 (2) -- 5-12 (4)

50. Raymond Kitchens -- Southside, Al -- 2-2 (2) -- 3-9 (3) -- 5-11 (5)

51. Scotty Estes -- Holly Pond, Al -- 1-8 (1) -- 2-6 (1) -- 3-14 (2)

52. Joel Green -- Moulton, Al -- 3-10 (2) -- 0-0 (0) -- 3-10 (2)

53. Scott Huff -- Madison, Ga -- 2-1 (2) -- 1-6 (1) -- 3-7 (3)

54. Hank Golden -- Tallassee, Al -- 0-13 (1) -- 2-2 (1) -- 2-15 (2)

55. Logan Waites -- Phenix City, Al -- 2-10 (1) -- 0-0 (0) -- 2-10 (1)

56. John Janick -- Adams, Tn -- 0-0 (0) -- 2-10 (1) -- 2-10 (1)

57. Chris Summers -- Winchester, Tn -- 0-0 (0) -- 2-4 (1) -- 2-4 (1)

58. Casey Taylor -- Smithville, Tn -- 2-3 (1) -- 0-0 (0) -- 2-3 (1)

59. Harry Moore -- Valley, Al -- 0-0 (0) -- 1-6 (1) -- 1-6 (1)

60. Scott Gibbs -- Rome, Ga -- 0-0 (0) -- 1-5 (1) -- 1-5 (1)

Kacy Mims -- Randolph, Al -- 0-0 (0) -- 0-0 (0) -- 0-0 (0)