Back-To-Back Wins Give Loberg Chance To Advance

By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor

After an excellent 2021 season on the water that now includes back-to-back victories in MLF Toyota Series Western Division events, Andrew Loberg has some decisions to make about next year. Does he stick with the Toyota Series and local and regional events around Northern California again or move up and tackle the MLF Pro Circuit?

"I'm still up in the air about that and I'll have to figure it out soon," said the 27-year-old crop scientist from Rocklin, Calif. "It's all going to depend on sponsors and the financial side of it."

He won the recent Toyota Series derby at Lake Havasu with a three-day total of 59-14, outdistancing runner-up Mike Williams by almost 3 1/2 pounds. That came on the heels of his August triumph at the California Delta.

"Probably my biggest wins prior to these were a couple of collegiate events (while attending Chico State University, where he obtained a degree in agriculture consulting)," he said. "I've won some team tournaments and other stuff like that, but this was by far the biggest stage.

"This year, whether it was MLF or local tournaments, I've really had a successful year in a lot of divisions."

He said that versatility is probably his No. 1 angling attribute.

"I've been focusing on a lot of different bodies of water – spotted bass in the hills and the tidal stuff on the Delta, and I've been spending as much time as I can at Clear Lake, where my family has a place. I've ventured out and gained some confidence in stuff that I feel has upped my versatility.

"I feel like I'm pretty versatile now with everything from light line to 80-pound braid. I've learned to change with the conditions and to go with what I know."

Like a New Lake

Loberg had visited Havasu on several previous occasions, but only for springtime events.

"I'd never been there in the fall and it was kind of like a new lake," he said. "I broke it down that way and just went from there."

He focused on two varieties of vegetation – some stringy stuff that grows fairly tall known as haygrass and a prickly type that he couldn't identify by name. He fished the lake's main bowl on the northwest side and used crankbaits to catch fish at depths ranging from 12 to 20 feet.

"That was the cleanest and most healthy grass in the lake," he said.

His primary offering was a Rapala DT 16, which he used on fish sitting in 12 to 16 feet of water. He opted for a Strike King 10XD for specimens residing a few feet deeper.

He fished them in a manner usually associated with a rattlebait – he reeled them into the grass and then ripped them out, and that's when most of the bites occurred. He tried a Rat-L-Trap in practice, but it was ineffective.

Extreme heat was a major factor, as daytime temperatures in Arizona were still cracking the triple-digit mark.

"I was drinking water like crazy and I had to force myself to eat," he said. "I had a lot of cramping in my hands and shoulders and I was sweating all day, but I had to break through that mental barrier and go for it.

"Just sticking with those two big crankbaits and having confidence in them was the key. I wasn't getting that many bites – the first day I caught five keepers and the second day I had seven, then the third day I fished one area and caught 10 or 11. I just had to grind it out and make the fish react to it."

Gear Notes

> Cranking gear: 7'11" or 8' medium-heavy Powell rod, Daiwa Tatula casting reel (6.3:1 or 7.3:1 ratio), 12- or 15-pound P-Line fluorocarbon line, Rapala DT 16 or Strike King 10XD (green gizzard shad).

Final Standings

1. Andrew Loberg -- 19-09 (5) -- 18-10 (5) -- 21-11 (5) -- 59-14 (15) -- $24,119

2. Mike Williams -- 20-09 (5) -- 17-03 (5) -- 18-11 (5) -- 56-07 (15) -- $9,346

3. Roy Hawk -- 17-00 (5) -- 16-04 (5) -- 20-12 (5) -- 54-00 (15) -- $8,736

4. Mark Williams -- 14-02 (5) -- 13-15 (5) -- 15-01 (5) -- 43-02 (15) -- $6,030

5. Frankie Mueller -- 10-10 (5) -- 15-07 (5) -- 15-07 (5) -- 41-08 (15) -- $5,427

6. Phillip Dutra -- 13-14 (5) -- 13-06 (5) -- 12-08 (5) -- 39-12 (15) -- $4,824

7. Chris Kinley -- 14-13 (5) -- 12-07 (5) -- 11-15 (5) -- 39-03 (15) -- $4,221

8. Kazuki Kodama -- 14-00 (5) -- 12-13 (5) -- 12-06 (5) -- 39-03 (15) -- $3,618

9. Randy McAbee Jr -- 16-06 (5) -- 11-11 (5) -- 6-13 (2) -- 34-14 (12) -- $3,015

10. Logan Huntze -- 16-00 (5) -- 10-02 (4) -- 7-00 (3) -- 33-02 (12) -- $2,412

The following anglers did not make the cut and did not fish on day 3.

11. Tim Rath -- 15-11 (5) -- 9-12 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 25-07 (10) -- $2,261

12. Robert Faaborg -- 12-14 (5) -- 11-05 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 24-03 (10) -- $2,174

13. Chris Nickerson -- 8-05 (4) -- 15-09 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 23-14 (9) -- $1,809

14. Michael Caruso -- 13-11 (5) -- 9-11 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 23-06 (9) -- $1,809

15. Wade Curtiss -- 8-04 (3) -- 14-09 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 22-13 (8) -- $1,809

16. Kyle Grover -- 8-15 (4) -- 13-09 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 22-08 (9) -- $1,809

17. Clifford Pirch -- 12-00 (5) -- 9-11 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 21-11 (10) -- $1,809

18. Nick Salvucci -- 6-06 (3) -- 15-01 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 21-07 (8)

19. Ricky Shabazz -- 10-00 (5) -- 11-04 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 21-04 (10)

20. Michael Moreno -- 11-03 (5) -- 9-06 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 20-09 (9)

21. Lane Olson -- 8-13 (5) -- 11-11 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 20-08 (10)

22. Chris Costello -- 8-03 (2) -- 12-03 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 20-06 (7)

23. Mark Lassagne -- 11-03 (5) -- 9-02 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 20-05 (10)

24. Jon Strelic -- 9-14 (4) -- 10-07 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 20-05 (8)

25. Todd Kline -- 7-09 (4) -- 12-05 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 19-14 (9)

26. Jared Lintner -- 11-07 (4) -- 7-13 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 19-04 (9)

27. Matt Luna -- 12-12 (4) -- 6-00 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 18-12 (6)

28. Cody Steckel -- 9-09 (5) -- 9-00 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 18-09 (10)

29. Randy Estrada, Md -- 7-06 (2) -- 10-15 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 18-05 (6)

30. Tai Au -- 14-06 (5) -- 3-14 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 18-04 (7)

31. Shaun Bailey -- 4-06 (2) -- 13-07 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 17-13 (7)

32. Justin Kerr -- 7-04 (3) -- 10-08 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 17-12 (7)

33. Jordan Collom -- 5-15 (3) -- 11-01 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 17-00 (8)

34. Carlos Garcia -- 8-13 (4) -- 8-03 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 17-00 (8)

35. Robert Nakatomi -- 14-08 (5) -- 2-01 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 16-09 (6)

36. Russ Barger -- 8-10 (4) -- 7-00 (3) -- 0-00 (0) -- 15-10 (7)

37. David Valdivia -- 5-07 (2) -- 10-02 (3) -- 0-00 (0) -- 15-09 (5)

38. Ed Arledge -- 13-08 (5) -- 1-14 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 15-06 (6) -- $200

39. Christian Ostrander -- 3-15 (2) -- 10-15 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 14-14 (6)

40. Ty Faber -- 6-03 (1) -- 8-08 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 14-11 (6) -- $64

41. Chad Hulbert -- 7-02 (4) -- 7-08 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 14-10 (8)

42. Gunnar Stanton -- 0-00 (0) -- 14-07 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 14-07 (5)

43. Jeff Dyer -- 9-07 (5) -- 4-12 (3) -- 0-00 (0) -- 14-03 (8)

44. Jay Wright -- 9-06 (4) -- 4-13 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 14-03 (6)

45. Matt Shura -- 9-15 (4) -- 3-14 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 13-13 (6)

46. Erich Cline -- 6-13 (3) -- 6-02 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 12-15 (5)

47. Benjamin Green -- 4-03 (1) -- 7-13 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 12-00 (5)

48. Philip Roesener -- 0-00 (0) -- 11-06 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 11-06 (5)

49. Shane Spinning -- 0-00 (0) -- 10-12 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 10-12 (4)

50. Justin Patti -- 1-08 (1) -- 9-04 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 10-12 (5)

51. David Ridley III -- 2-05 (1) -- 8-02 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 10-07 (6)

52. Josh Carruthers -- 4-05 (2) -- 5-13 (3) -- 0-00 (0) -- 10-02 (5)

53. Josh Needleman -- 0-00 (0) -- 9-02 (5) -- 0-00 (0) -- 9-02 (5)

54. Guy Savidan -- 3-11 (2) -- 4-04 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 7-15 (4)

55. Gregg Leonard -- 2-15 (2) -- 4-14 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 7-13 (4)

56. Carl Limbrick Jr -- 5-12 (3) -- 1-07 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 7-03 (4)

57. Nick Young -- 7-00 (3) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 7-00 (3)

58. Jason Caine -- 6-13 (4) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 6-13 (4)

59. Pete Marino -- 3-05 (1) -- 3-04 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 6-09 (2)

60. Rick Grover -- 6-03 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 6-03 (2)

61. Nicholas Elliott -- 1-06 (1) -- 4-13 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 6-03 (3)

62. Mitch Southern -- 5-14 (3) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 5-14 (3)

63. Blake Dyer -- 4-11 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 4-11 (2)

64. Ronald Hammett -- 0-00 (0) -- 4-05 (2) -- 0-00 (0) -- 4-05 (2)

65. Johnny Johnson -- 1-14 (1) -- 1-15 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 3-13 (2)

66. Patrick Whitaker -- 3-07 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 3-07 (1)

67. Andrew Napoleon -- 2-15 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 0-00 (0) -- 2-15 (1)

68. Claudio Silva -- 0-00 (0) -- 2-10 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 2-10 (1)

69. Jeff Richards -- 0-00 (0) -- 1-07 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 1-07 (1)