huddle up !
T he sight of a huddle is commonplace in most team sports , where communication among teammates is frequently a key to winning . Turns out that the huddle can be a thing in high-level tournament bass fishing as well .
We all know that bass fishing played at its highest professional tier – on the Bass Pro Tour , et . al . – is the definition of an individual sport . It ’ s one angler vs . Mother Nature and the rest of the field , fishing out of one ’ s own boat , making decisions with no outside input and depending wholly on instincts , knowledge and skills to win .
That ’ s why the sight of Jacob Wheeler , Jason Lambert and Dylan Hays huddled around a Lowrance screen in the pre-dawn darkness at the ramp at Lake Le Homme Dieu in Alexandria , Minnesota , seemed so striking . No sooner had the three-man Crockett Creek team received a paper map and official notification of the boundaries of the competition waters on this early fall Minnesota morning – the very first day of competition at the General Tire Team Series Lucas Oil Qualifier Presented by B & W Trailer Hitches – then team captain Wheeler called a huddle at his boat and the play-calling commenced . And man , did the trio call the right plays . Using a “ zone ” approach , where Wheeler , Lambert and Hays each fished distinctly different parts of the 5,045-acre Le Homme Dieu chain , Team Crocket Creek smashed the competition . Lambert landed on the honey hole of the whole chain on Day 1 , winding a vibrating jig along outside weed lines to the tune of 42 largemouth for 72 pounds , 6 ounces . Crocket Creek finished the first day with 90 fish for 173-14 and ended the two-day competition with a total of 165 fish for 310-7 , a whopping 85-pound cushion over Team Kubota in second place .
That dominant performance catapulted Team Crocket Creek into the $ 300,000 Team Series Championship in Florida , where you can be sure that team huddles will be a common sight .
PHOTO BY GARRICK DIXON
FEBRUARY-MARCH 2023 | MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM 73