Since Kevin VanDam took the title at the Busch Beer Bassmaster Elite at Cayuga Lake, the Elite Series field has had over a month off and been able to recharge their batteries to surge through the last few events.
The Potomac River is the next event on the schedule and numerous pros took advantage of the break to put in some pre-practice time before the cut off. The river has been fishing stellar based on what tournaments and fishing reports have been showing, which could make for an interesting tournament near the end of the regular season.
Cayuga turned out to be a good Fantasy Fishing event solely because of Jordan Lee and Jacob Powroznik’s great showings; they certainly anchored my team.
There are definitely a few favorites that we can pick out of the crowd for the Potomac, but none of those will be on my team. It can be worthwhile to take risks in Fantasy Fishing and avoid some of the over picked anglers. Off the top of my head I expect Mike Iaconelli, Adrian Avena, Jacob Powroznik and Aaron Martens to be heavy favorites and their ownership percentage should reflect that. Hop on those trains if you want to, but in my list of anglers I’m not considering them right now, instead I’m picking those anglers with some extra motivation late in the year.
BUCKET A: LUCAS
Safe Bet: Brett Hite
Healthy vegetation + B. Hite = A safe bet. Most people would agree with that statement based on his expertise at catching bass on a bladed jig, but Hite also has another factor working for him at the moment … momentum. Some people believe in it while others don’t, but most anglers will agree that when they get going with good mojo their decision making gets a lot better. For those two reasons alone, I’d expect B. Hite to do well and keep his momentum rolling from Cayuga and the Niagara Classic Bracket.
Worth a risk: Justin Lucas
Justin Lucas has been under the radar for the most part this season, but has still put together a solid year thus far. With a Top 12 in the first event and no finishes below 65th, Lucas is sitting in 17th in Toyota Angler of the Year and is primed for another Classic qualification. Now they head to the Potomac where Lucas finished 2nd a few years ago before making his switch to the Elites. Not that the 2015 Chesapeake Bay Elite event has any bearing on this tournament, but Lucas notched a Top 25 there as well, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Lucas cashed in once again.
Gut tells me: Lucas
Lucas has proved to be a versatile angler, but has also shown a strength when it comes to fishing vegetation. I expect another quality finish, maybe even another Top 12 for the Alabama pro.
BUCKET B: B. LANE
Safe Bet: Dave Lefebre
There may not be a safer pick at the Potomac than Lefebre. Although he is from Pennsylvania, the Potomac seems to be a home fishery for him. He has registered numerous Top 10’s in pro and semi-pro events on the Potomac in the last four or five years. With a second place finish earlier this year, Lefebre wants a win (duh, who doesn’t), but it’s very possible for him to go for it instead of laying up and playing it safe. He is sitting somewhat comfortably in the AOY standings and I don’t expect a bad event from him at the Potomac.
Worth a risk: Bobby Lane
Bobby Lane has fished thousands of lakes across the country and has been successful up to this point in his career. Many of you are saying “we know Ronnie, why are you saying this?” The thing is that when Bobby Lane speaks up and says “I can’t wait to go to the Potomac it’s my favorite fishery of all-time” I tend to perk up and listen. After a long season so far, many anglers are looking forward to the break, but for B. Lane to already be excited about the Potomac tells me he could be zoned in.
Alton Jones is also another underrated option with a low ownership percentage.
Gut tells me: B. Lane
Pressure doesn’t get to Bobby Lane; he fishes as relaxed as anyone whether it’s 7:00 a.m. or 2:55 p.m. so I don’t expect a flop from him here. Plus, how can you go wrong with a Florida grass angler on a fishery with some good vegetation.
BUCKET C: FEIDER
Safe Bet: Cliff Crochet
Froggin’ isn’t easy, but Crochet is one of the best at it. You have a mid-August tournament on a tidal, grass fishery … a frog will certainly put them in the boat. After starting off the season strong, Crochet has slipped in the last two tournaments and now needs two solid finishes to get into the Classic cut. He has plenty of opportunities with two grass fisheries to end the regular season and although he is 65th in points, he is just 21 points away from 50th.
Worth a risk: Seth Feider
It isn’t all finesse for the Minnesota pro, he can fish grass as well, he showed that at Cayuga with a 17th place finish. Feider doesn’t need any extra motivation at this point in the season, because he is just a few points from the Top 50 and an opportunity to fish Mille Lacs for the AOY Championship. With his premier knowledge of Minnesota smallie fishing, he would be tough to beat and could get into the Classic if he makes it there. Are we primed for a Feider surge to the finish line? He hopes so and I think so.
Gut tells me: Feider
Bucket C has a lot of wishy washy anglers in terms of the Top 50 AOY cut so there is extra motivation and plenty of points that will get swapped in the last two regular season events. I think Feider is due for another good finish and to keep his check streak going since he turned his season around at Texoma.
BUCKET D: D. WILLIAMS
Safe Bet: David Williams
If I was a betting man I would say this tournament could line up well for David Williams. He excels at topwater as well as jig/worm fishing. He’s seen a couple unfortunate events spoil Top 12 opportunities, but the prior two times he has fished the Potomac he has come away with Top 10’s. Granted, those weren’t at the Elite level, but Williams has slowly made the progression from the local level and BFL’s through the Opens and now is in his second-year in the big leagues. It’s not the easiest transition to make, but Williams support system has been there the whole time. It wouldn’t surprise me if Williams found his own slice of water away from any potential crowds and picked it apart enough for a payday.
Worth a risk: Dennis Tietje
Dennis Tietje knows tides, grass and the certain windows that open up for those feeding fish. The Potomac River could end up being one of the hardest fought tournaments all year with every angler charged back up from the extended break. Anyone is worth a risk, but Tietje could do well here for sure.
Gut tells me: Williams
Williams is always a bargain when it comes to ownership percentages and this tournament could eliminate the slight gap between him and the Top 70 in points as anglers look to stay qualified for the 2017 Elite season.
BUCKET E: SCHULTZ
Safe Bet: Carl Jocumsen
It seems that the one consistent part of Jocumsen’s game is his ability on tidal fisheries. He notched a Top 12 in last season’s Chesapeake Bay event and had a stellar Day 1 at Winyah Bay this year. He could add a third solid tidal finish to his short Elite Series career. The ever-positive Jocumsen looks to end his season on a strong note with the Potomac and the Mississippi River. His pre-practice last month could pay off for him.
Worth a risk: Bernie Schultz
If you have read Bernie Schultz’ columns on Bassmaster.com then you’ve watched how his season has transpired thus far. He has missed the boat in some tournaments by the thinnest of margins and maybe zigged when he should’ve zagged. He also talked about “Fishing scared” and sometimes just trying to survive tournaments instead of having the utmost confidence in his gut instinct, which he has gained after a successful career thus far. I think Schultz honest reflection is a couple different things; 1. It allows him to see what he’s been doing wrong and fixing it and 2. sometimes talking about misfortunes is the best way to bounce back. For those reasons I think Schultz is worth a risk at busting through and breaking his Top 50 drought.
Gut tells me: Schultz
Sometimes it isn’t how a lake sets up for an angler, but rather his mindset heading into the respective tournament. I think this could be the case for Schultz and the past month off could be great for his mindset going forward.