Bass Fishing Jul 2018 | Page 114

TBF WHAT’S MAKING NEWS IN THE BASS FEDERATION By Dan Johnson PHOTOS BY LAUREN RENEE Austin Wilson relied heavily on umbrella rigs and deep-running crankbaits to put a limit in the boat all three days of the tournament. WILSON CLAIMS FEDERATION CROWN VERSATILE CALIFORNIAN CONQUERS BULL SHOALS TO TAKE TBF NATIONAL TITLE C 112 alifornia’s Austin Wilson overcame rollercoaster weather conditions, falling water levels and intense competition to earn top honors in the boater division at the 2018 The Bass Federation National Championship April 12-14 on Bull Shoals Lake near Flippin, Ark. Wilson racked up a 40-pound, 4- ounce total and claimed more than $120,000 in winnings. Wilson’s championship drive began with exhaustive research conducted at his home in Citrus Heights, just outside Sacramento. “As soon as I found out that we were fishing Bull Shoals, I spent as much time as possible on Google Earth, dissecting the lake and getting an idea where I thought the lake’s bass would position to move in and spawn,” he says. It was no small task, considering the massive White River impoundment covers nearly 50,000 acres and has hundreds of miles of largely undeveloped shoreline rich in limestone bluffs, shelf rock, rubble and gravel. In choosing his plan of attack, Wilson considered countless coves, points, ledges, flats, chan- nels and banks. Artificial habitat structures and flooded shore- line vegetation offered even more potential hot spots. Wilson also polished his presentation skills before leaving for Arkansas. “My home waters include the California Delta, Folsom and Clear Lake,” he says. “I love the Delta. But preparing for the championship I spent a lot of time on lakes more similar to Bull Shoals, getting used to how the fish position in these environ- ments and practicing presentations I thought would be a factor.” After arriving at Bull Shoals for practice, Wilson fished the reservoir from stem to stern. “Every day I launched and fished somewhere totally differ- ent,” he says. Wilson started the championship with a five-fish limit weighing 14 pounds, 2 ounces. The catch included a pair of largemouths that hit a compact Picasso umbrella rig near a bridge located 25 minutes from takeoff at the Bull Shoals Boat Dock, and a trio of smallmouths caught practically within a long cast from the ramp. “I got the smallmouths on a Norman Little N in reverse green craw,” he says. “I was fishing chunk rock on a secondary point in 5 to 10 feet of water.” fLWfIshIng.com I juLy 2018