Although a decade ago, Davy Hite fondly recalls his big doings in northwest Alabama, site of this week’s Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite at Pickwick Lake, where he expects more big doings.
Hite won going away in the 2011 Elite tournament, his eighth in B.A.S.S., then competed five more years before becoming a Bassmaster TV analyst. The win came 17 years after his first, with a Classic title and two Angler of the Year titles in between. Hite spoke on stage then how much the victory meant, and he reiterated that this week.
“You remember all your Bassmaster victories and don’t take any of them for granted, but even at that point in my career, they started meaning more,” he said. “I certainly appreciated it. People who saw the show, you could see my emotions on the stage. They were even greater than some emotions earlier in my career.
“Your first victory means so much — I’m not downplaying any victory — but at that point I was thinking, ‘Wow, you never know when it will be your last one.’”
Pickwick would be his final victory in a Bass Fishing Hall of Fame career, so as time marched on, it’s taken on more meaning. He still espouses shooting for the win, which at times left him outside the cut or down in points. At Pickwick, Hite was near the top early then put his foot on the gas, weighing in three bags of more than 20 pounds to win with 84-9.
“When you’re on the Tennessee River, and especially Pickwick, you have to have 20-plus pound stringers to win,” Hite said.
More than that will be needed this week, Hite believes. Before the season began, he made a bold prediction that the Pickwick winner might eclipse 100 pounds. Noting a recent tournament where it took almost 28 pounds to win and with five bags topping 25, he’s not backing down.
“I had a lot of people look at me like I was crazy about Pickwick being one of those places where it could take over 100 pounds to win, but I’m sticking to that,” he said. “If we have good weather, and right now the forecast is good, no big fog delays, I still think it will take 100 pounds. It’s a great fishery.”
Despite a severe storm hitting Wednesday, Hite said conditions at Pickwick could be much like those during his victory, although that was a few weeks later in early April. Anglers will be able to target prespawn fish staging deep, and there will be a shallow bite on jigs, crankbaits and vibrating jigs.
“Just like the tournament I won, there were fish being caught on frogs, swim jigs and topwater stuff,” he said. “I think it’s set up to be the exact same kind of tournament.”
Hite weighed a handful of smallmouth in his 20 fish, and he expects to see mixed bags this week, although not necessarily from the angler who catches 100 pounds. In recent B.A.S.S. Nation events, both in November, a number of 5-plus-pounders were caught with the big bass of 8-4 in 2018. The 2011 and 2010 spring Elite events produced a number of bass topping 6 pounds.
Kevin Short won here in 2010 with 75-1, catching two 6-pound largemouth on the final day. In 1998, Mark Menendez, who is in this year’s field, won the Alabama Top 100 with 60-3.
“I weighed in some 6-pound largemouth when I won,” Hite said. “I only weighed maybe five or six smallmouth, and one really big mean mouth, the biggest I’ve ever seen. It went like 3.70, a really big beautiful fish for mean mouth.”
Mean mouth are a hybrid species when a largemouth or spotted bass mate with smallmouth. All species must measure 15 inches on Pickwick, where limits should be fairly easy to come by, but the trick will be having several oversize bass.
“The bar is at another level at a place like Pickwick. Those 17-pound stringers might make you a check, but you’re not going to win,” Hite said.
Fishing the Wilson Dam tailrace in 2011, Hite did most of his damage once water generation began around 11 a.m. each day. His biggest bag came on Day 1 with 23 pounds, 8 ounces, compelling him to shoot for the win.
“Once I was able to get off to a good start, it was trying to put myself in position to win,” Hite said. “If you don’t, you don’t. Through my career, I was always that way. It cost me a lot of times where I could have made a check, and I came up not even coming close to making a check.
“I guess swinging for the fences is an overused term in our sport, but in my opinion you always have to try to win. Wins are hard to come by, fishing against 99 other people only eight or 10 times a year.”
So after Hite’s 19-7 on Day 2 gave him the lead, he went all in. There are two approaches in Bassmaster tournaments, focusing on catching limits to make checks and maximize points to qualify for the Classic, or targeting big fish in pursuit of winning, where there’s always the chance of coming up short.
“When you do have an opportunity to win, you have to lay it all out on the line,” Hite said. “People who fish tournaments know what I’m talking about. There’s times when you show up and, ‘Wow, if I can just survive, get some points or just make a check.’ Then there’s other times you know, ‘If all things come together this week, I can win.”
That philosophy served Hite well. In 253 Bassmaster events, Hite won eight events to stand among the top 10 all-time in victories. That’s a winning rate of just over 3%, but it’s considered stellar in bass fishing where anglers have had great careers while never hoisting a trophy. Hite also qualified for 14 Classics, winning in 1999 on the Louisiana Delta and taking second on Lay Lake in 1996.
“The Bassmaster Classic I finished second, it almost fell in my lap, so to speak,” he said. “I almost won it, and I had no idea I even had a chance. The Classic I won, I knew I was in an area and knew if I could execute, then I could win.
“It’s that way in an Elite tournament or the Classic, you just kind of know when you’ve really got that chance to win. If you smell it just a little bit, you have to go for it and never have any regrets about doing it.”
At Pickwick, Hite closed with two 20-pound limits to finish 8 pounds ahead of second. Being able to close out tournaments is a source of pride for Hite, who only lost one lead in his career.
“When you look at my career stats, you see nine second-place finishes, and eight wins,” he said. “All those seconds, I never led. I just moved up. I’m proud of that. It means a lot to not lose leads. I think I wanted to lead more tournaments because it’s always great for your career. I led nine events, first day, second day, and won eight of them. I’m proud of that.”