COLUMN : BALOG ON BASS FISHING
surviving the pressure cooker
How Michael Neal and Skeet Reese fend off the stress of fierce competition
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
For more than 20 years , Joe Balog has made his living in the fishing industry on and off the water . A successful tournament angler from the Great Lakes region , Balog now lives in Florida , where he continues to work in product design , marketing and outdoor media when he ' s not chasing trophy largemouth .
S eventeen points . In the end , that was Michael Neal ’ s margin of victory over Skeet Reese for the Tackle Warehouse
Pro Circuit Angler of the Year title .
Looking back at the season , it ’ s hard to fathom how anyone could have beaten Reese in a season that included four Top-10 fishes in six events for the seasoned vet , including a win at the opener . In the season finale on the St . Lawrence River , Reese again turned up the heat with a massive Day 3 stringer in an attempt to overtake Neal in the points race . The latter answered with an 11th-place showing of his own to seal the deal .
I often wonder how they do it . With so much on the line and such relentless competition , how do certain anglers never seem to falter ? This season ’ s AOY race offers insight .
Neal had been close before . On a number of occasions , he finished near the top of the AOY standings , yet the title evaded him .
“ It seemed like I always had a bad event that kept me from winning ,” he says .
The 2021 season would be different , both in terms of strategy and outcome . Neal fished to win at each event and never let off the gas .
“ I knew it was going to be tight ,” Neal says of coming into the last stop of the Pro Circuit season with a slim lead over Reese . “ I fished there to win , just like every other event . The safe thing may have been to fish for largemouths , but I never did . I couldn ’ t .”
With a legend like Reese breathing down his neck , Neal made the right move . Reese originally planned to miss the St . Lawrence event , scheduled on top of a family vacation to Europe two years in the making . Instead , he cut short his visit abroad and came home to challenge for AOY . After a 25-year career , Reese still considers that award to be a defining title . But , like Neal , his approach all season was focused .
26 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2021