PHOTO BY ROB MATSUURA
Neal and Reese battled until the final day of the season for the AOY .
PADDLING FURIOUSLY
Watch a duck on the water . They ’ re beautiful , calm , controlled – the picture of serenity as they seem to barely make a ripple . Beneath the water , though , it ’ s chaos . Big , webbed feet paddling like pistons to get wherever the duck needs to go . That ’ s Neal . “ People ask me all the time how I stay so calm ,” says Neal , who is known for his stoic , quiet demeanor , especially on the water . “ What they see on the outside versus what ’ s going on inside is totally different . I ’ m a total wreck inside .”
Part of that comes with being an introvert , but part of it also comes from pressure . And most of that pressure he puts on himself , he says .
You ’ d think after nearly a decade of success he ’ d be utterly confident in his abilities and his instincts . He ’ s not . Neal admits he ’ s never ended practice and felt good about it ; like he had a great pattern that was sure to propel him to victory . “ I always feel like I didn ’ t find enough ,” Neal explains . “ Even if I find four great patterns , I always wonder if I missed a fifth that was better . My mind never stops wondering ‘ what if ?’ and I put so much pressure on myself .”
That restless mind is also a big part of his success , because Neal is often so prepared for just about anything .
Take the Lake Murray event in April . Neal started offshore on the lower end , but on Day 2 , he realized he might need to make a change and ran all the way up the river to a stretch of laydowns he ’ d gotten a bite on during practice . One bite . As it turns out , that stretch would get him enough kickers the rest of the event to once again be so very close to victory ( Neal went on to finish third ).
The thing is , Neal is an offshore guy . It ’ s what he ’ s best known for , and he was fishing a lake that was primed to be won offshore based on the time of year . He ’ d even scored a previous Top 10 on Murray fishing offshore . He easily could ’ ve devoted his entire practice to dialing in the offshore bite and called it good . His mind just wouldn ’ t let him , and it ended up working out . Of course , for every time Neal ’ s mind is his aid , there are often as many times it proves to be a hindrance , most notably when it comes to taking risks .
“ I never take a whole lot of chances ,” Neal admits . “ Taking a big risk gets my mind going like crazy . It goes against my entire nature .
“ The thing is , on the final day of a tournament , you need to take those gambles and be more aggressive . It ’ s why you see so many of those ‘ Hail Marys ’ work out for guys , and they win . That ’ s not easy for me . I ’ m working on it , and it ’ s going to take a lot of work .” Fortunately , Neal never shies away from the work . Events like his close call at Murray prove to Neal in little ways that he can push himself further . Winning Angler of the Year proves he has the skills to push himself further . The 2021 season as a whole proved to him that he can trust himself further , to do the things to finally get that tournament win he ’ s always sought .
So yes , Neal finally has a big trophy ; one he ’ s exceptionally proud of - two , in fact . And now it ’ s a matter of getting the next one .
And as long as Neal keeps doing what he ’ s always done , his time isn ’ t just coming — it ’ s already here .
OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2021 | MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM 47