FISHING
PROFILE
david dudley’s historic aoy season and how he got here
D
22
avid dudley had been wrestling with it for
quite a while. he, like everyone else, had
always been told there’s no substitute for time
on the water when it comes to success as a
tournament angler.
It makes sense. the simple fact of being older means
more hours logged on the water and more things learned
than some 23-year-old rookie.
then he’d look around. he’d check the standings and
see names of anglers fresh out of college far above the
veterans. he’d see some in their 20s holding up champi-
onship trophies. he’d look at himself, 43 years old and
going on seven seasons since his last tournament victory,
and wonder if he was already on the downslope of his
career, despite the old adage saying otherwise.
STILL NOT SATISFIED
By Sean Ostruszka
“why is it these young guys are out-fishing the old
guys?” says dudley. “old guys are supposed to be wiser
and smarter. shouldn’t they be dominating? how come
they weren’t contending for more wins or angler of the
year titles?
“this is something I’ve wrestled with a long time, but
especially in the last few years. what is it you lose?”
the situation irritated him, mostly because he couldn’t
put his finger on what was going on.
It wasn’t physical. a 55-year-old pro can still physically
drag a worm, pitch a jig or cast a crankbait as well as a
25-year-old.
could it be mental? but again, that goes against the
adage of having mental superiority through experience.
then what?!
FlWFIshInG.com I Fall 2019