fishing exposed
mixed greens
Jacob Wheeler’s Forrest Wood cup game plan was all about access.
he spent the entirety of the tournament far in the back of Wheeler
Lake’s creeks in areas that were so difficult to reach that the fish living
there were often less pressured than fish in other parts of the lake.
getting there was often risky business for Wheeler, who ran his boat
full bore across shallow flats, relying on scouting in practice and care-
ful motor setup and boat control to get there safely. other times,
such as in the scene shown here, Wheeler had to idle through heavy
cover. those lily pads were no match for his evinrude e-tec g2, which
apparently doubles as a salad shooter in a pinch.
photo by patterson leeth