Ozark City lake hosted the RVKA night bass fishing tournament in late April under a full moon. The lake did pretty well in giving up some good numbers to the 22 anglers on hand.
Carson McBride took first place with 82.5″, with Declan McDonald taking second place with 77.5″ and Chris Jones finishing third with 71.25″ overall. Big Bass was won by Chris Jones for a 23″ monster caught after dark.
The top 10 anglers were:
- Carson McBride
- Declan McDonald
- Chris Jones
- Toby Bogart
- Trey Rogers
- Josh Childress
- Gavin Collins
- Jason Kincy
- Lloyd Mize
- Brandon Crippen
Angler Recaps
The top three finishers from the Ozark City Lake event, Carson McBride, Declan McDonald and Chris Jones, shared some of their insights on the tournament and how to successfully compete in these type of events.
How did you catch your fish and what were the key baits?
Carson – I caught my fish in 5 feet or less of water bouncing a Ned rig off of the bottom.
Declan – I caught all my fish on the bottom on ned rigs, just popping it off the bottom just covering the same spots multiple times.
Chris – I threw a popper for first four fish before dark, then caught 2 on a chatterbait after dark.
What was your strategy for the night tournament, how was it different than a regular tourney that starts in the morning?
Carson – My strategy for the night tourney was to start out finesse since it was three in the afternoon with bluebird skies and not much wind. This is instead of throwing a topwater or moving bait in the morning like I would in any other tournament.
Declan – My strategy was to find fish fast and catch a early limit then upgrade later. I knew the blue bird skies and mid-day conditions would be tough so I thought the fishing would improve later toward dark so I just tried to capitalize on the fish I could find.
Chris – My strategy was get around the whole lake and try to locate the biggest baitfish action for a topwater bite and see if it carried into the night.
What is your advice for someone new in preparing for tournaments?
Carson – My advice for someone preparing for tourneys is to throw what your most confident with and stick to that when fishing gets tough.
Declan – My advice would be to just stay confident and throw what you have confidence in if your going to a new lake Google maps is always a great resource.
Chris – Watch the weather and ask questions about the lake and Google search for past tourney results and information.
What’s one specific tip you would give for finding fish on a lake?
Carson – One specific tip I would give for finding fish on a lake is to cover water with what your most confident with.
Chris – Look for bait fish.
Declan – A specific tip would be to pay attention to water temp and weather conditions.