catches for 2019 would drop to 1,421 . If you remove the Championship Round from 2023 – since the 2019 Championship Round was on Garcia – there would be 1,512 fish caught in 2023 . That means the 2019 and 2023 events were within 100 fish catches of being identical if they had the same minimum scorable weight .
Using those same adjustments , we see that the average number of fish per day would have been 284.2 in 2019 and 302.4 in 2023 . This equals a perangling-day catch rate of 7.10 in 2019 and 7.56 in 2023 and a fish per angling hour of . 95 in 2019 and 1.0 in 2023 . Statistically , these numbers are within a margin of error that make them remarkably similar .
comparing 2019 and 2023 to 2020 using 2-pound minimum
The 2020 Heavy Hitters event looks very low compared to the other two events in terms of fish catches per day , but that ’ s because a higher minimum scorable weight was being used . The unique rules of Heavy Hitters make comparing it directly to the other two events somewhat difficult . The easiest way to look at it would be to drop the Day 6 results from 2020 and 2023 . The 2020 event ( using a 3-pound minimum scorable weight ) resulted in just 43 scorable bass , which drove the stats way down for that event . If we look at the 2020 event minus Day 6 , we have a total of 893 fish catches using a 2- pound minimum scorable weight Days 1 through 5 . This averages out to 178.6 fish per day . When we adjust 2019 and 2023 to use a 2-pound minimum , we get a total of 583 and 776 , respectively . In 2019 , that would be an average of 116.6 fish per day and in 2023 it would be 155.2 fish per day .
Using our original data and looking specifically at the number of fish caught per angler hour is the most effective way to compare the data sets . Unadjusted , the fish per angling hour in 2019 was 1.2 , 0.6 in 2020 , and 1.02 in 2023 . When we adjust these numbers for a 2-pound minimum and drop Day 6 , we get a fish per angling hour of 0.38 in 2019 , 0.53 in 2020 , and 0.52 in 2023 . Once again , a remarkably similar comparison .
PHOTO BY GARRICK DIXON
Adrian Avena at 2020 General Tire Heavy Hitters event .
The other stat that ’ s likely intriguing is the largest fish and number of fish over 7 pounds . For largest fish in 2019 , it was 9-12 , 9-2 in 2020 , and 9-8 in 2023 . The number of fish caught over 7 pounds was three in 2019 , 18 in 2020 and 17 in 2023 . On the angling side , you could argue that the 2019 season started earlier ( when smaller male bass were more likely to be caught , driving down the opportunity for a big fish ), but the reality is , in Florida , sometimes the big fish show up and sometimes they don ’ t .
takeaways
When we look through the data and try to answer the question of how the scoring rule change will impact the amount of data we ’ re able to collect and provide to state fisheries biologists , I think the answer from this event is that there ’ s no impact . It seems that as long as Bass Pro Tour anglers continue to weigh the majority of their fish , even if they already have five in their daily limit , then the FMD should be able to provide the states data that ’ s equivalent to the standard we set in the past . The greater impact on fish catches appears to come from the minimum scorable weight . It ’ s an easy trend to spot when we compare all the
data sets . The higher the minimum scorable weight , the lower the number of recordable fish catches . That ’ s an obvious trend and one we predicted years ago .
Another interesting anomaly seen in the 2020 and 2023 data is that the average weight of fish caught is close to 1 pound above the minimum scorable weight . That ’ s not a trend we ’ ve been tracking , but it will be on the radar in future analysis .
One more fun takeaway for Kissimmee Chain anglers comes from the GIS maps we created to assess fish catches . The maps tell a story of the anglers being evenly distributed throughout the Chain in 2023 , but in 2020 and 2019 , they were certainly more concentrated within Toho and in other smaller areas of the chain . This is hopefully a sign that these fisheries are improving and that the entire chain is healthier today than ever before .
In the 2023 season , we ’ ll have two additional opportunities to assess data from other events and will look forward to seeing if the trends from Kissimmee continue . Both events will be on northern fisheries – Cayuga and St . Clair – where anglers may be competing for ounces at the cut line , making every fish truly continue to count .
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