six years later, he and adam Waters represented the university of north carolina at charlotte in the Yeti flW college fishing national championship on Beaver lake in 2013 and placed second by less than a pound to paul clark and Brett preuett of the university of louisiana at Monroe. that, after notable finishes of fourth, second and first in southeastern conference events in 2012 and 2013. When he was at unccharlotte, lehew entertained the notion of entering the law enforcement field. he took classes that led in that direction, but tournament fishing eventually won him over for keeps. in 2014, his rookie season as a pro on the flW tour, lehew earned four checks and a total of $ 40,000. altogether, his winnings have amounted to about $ 45,000 per season.
“ the tBf deal was good for me, and so was college fishing. i just wish high school fishing had been around back then, too,” observes lehew.“ i think the two biggest things in fishing now are electronics and the fishing programs for younger people. electronics have been improved so much in just a short time; they’ re such a huge factor in fishing now, and kids are growing up through high school and college fishing learning how to use them. it’ s given them such an advantage. there are some really outstanding fishermen coming right out of college.” lehew being one of them. not surprisingly, he was one of a handful of favorites to win the 2017 forrest Wood cup on lake Murray. he wound up in 19th place after spending three days muttering to himself about the“ crazy blueback herring bite.”
“ i had a lot of missed opportunities the second day, but with the big topwater i was throwing, losing fish was probably a given,” admits lehew.“ i don’ t think that if i had landed everything i hooked i would have won, but a top 10 was possible.”
fishing never ends in a sense, the tar heel pro is treading water and waiting for the big breakout season that Jacob Wheeler, Justin atkins and other young pros experienced at some point early in their careers. luck has a lot to do with it, as
Tackle company Shane’ s Baits is a family business, run by Shane LeHew and his father, Troy. does being able to fish the type of fishery that suits one’ s strengths.
“ power fishing down a bank is where i feel most comfortable,” notes lehew.“ i like to mix it up, and of course there are certain things i do better than others. one of the things i struggle with is adjusting during the day – trusting in knowing what, when and how. i do like running new water, but sometimes i’ ll make a wrong turn. and i’ ll admit that ledge fishing is definitely one of my weaknesses. i usually last about five minutes on a spot before running somewhere else.” during the long lull between tour seasons, lehew fishes to perfect his skills and hone the little nuts-and-bolts details that always come into play during tough tournaments when every bite counts. he competes in events in the carolinas, helps his dad with their tackle business, shane’ s Baits, and fishes as much as he can, usually at lake norman. it’ s home to a pair of power plants whose warm-water outflows keep the food chain percolating through the coldest months of the year.
“ i fish with [ 2017 aoY ] Bryan thrift some, and i’ ve learned a lot from him, and if i had another choice of who i could fish with, it would be andy Morgan. he’ s been super consistent for as long as flW has been around. i’ d like to get in a boat with him and see how he operates during a tournament.”
Regardless of which direction they head with their lives, the young come out of the starting blocks at full gallop. lehew is impatient, but there’ s plenty of time for him. at 29, he still has plenty of room to mature as an angler. he’ s also at the peak of his physical abilities. Minus the facial hair that comes and goes these days, he appears to be as fit and trim as he did when he was a heavy hitter in the college ranks. he has the look of a champion, if not the trophies.
“ of course, i want to get better. i’ ve been doing this for four years, and i haven’ t won a major tournament. i got close last year, but it didn’ t happen,” says lehew.“ i’ m consistent as far as getting checks and making the forrest Wood cup, but people remember you when you win tournaments, not when you finish 25th.” true to some extent, but not altogether accurate. Win or not, finishing near the top just about every time out counts quite a bit, too. that’ s another thing lehew can ask andy Morgan about when he gets to go fishing with him.
28 fLWfIshInG. com I january 2018