each keeping their rigs at the elder Jones ’ property in Waco . They test lures together in the swimming pool . Nonetheless , competition is fierce . “ I want to be on top of him on
SCORETRACKER ®,” Senior admits . “ I ’ m usually listening for his name to judge how I ’ m doing ” Junior adds .
The 2022 season saw the duo compete against each other in a Bass Pro Tour Championship Round for the first time , at Stage Two on Lake Fork . Alton Jr . claimed the first-place trophy and check that day with 46 pounds , 2 ounces while Senior finished fifth with 29-6 . Junior hoisted the trophy in front of fans , friends and family in the Jones ’ home state .
His father just stood to the side of the stage , smiling and soaking it all in .
“ I couldn ’ t be more proud ,” Senior said at the time . “ To be on the same lake with ‘ Little Alton ’ for a championship was pretty great , but there ’ s no better feeling as a father than to watch him lift that trophy .”
The glue that holds the Joneses together
As is almost always the case with any father / son duo , there ’ s a third party who deserves much of the credit for their success . That ’ s true for the Joneses : Alton ’ s wife and Junior ’ s mother , Jimmye Sue , is the lynchpin of this tournament-fishing family and the biggest common denominator between both Senior and Junior ’ s successes .
Alton and Jimmye Sue met while attending Baylor University and married in 1985 . Alton owned a computer store at the time , Jimmye Sue was a registered nurse , and bass fishing already occupied a hearty percentage of Alton ’ s time and energy . So much so that by 1989 , Jimmye Sue offered Alton a suggestion that would set the family ’ s course for the next three-plus decades .
“ She told me ‘ You ’ re not being successful at fishing because of the computer store , and you ’ re not being successful at the computer store because of fishing ,” Alton says . “’ You have to choose one or the other , and if you don ’ t choose fishing , you ’ ll drive me crazy . Let ’ s try it and see if we can make it work ’.”
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PHOTO COURTESY ALTON JONES
ALTON , JIMMYE SUE ON THE ROAD TO RECOVERY AFTER CRASH
IT WAS A NIGHTMARE come true for Alton and Jimmye Sue Jones .
As they drove Alton ’ s Bass Pro Tour competition rig south from Saginaw Bay , Michigan , in mid-June – headed to Detroit for Bass Pro Tour Stage Six – a car heading the opposite direction suddenly turned into their lane . With no warning and no time to react going 55 miles per hour , the Joneses ’ truck and boat collided with the vehicle broadside , sending them careening into a field , turning their truck on its side and ejecting the boat from the trailer .
The truck and boat were totaled and a large percentage of Alton ’ s tackle was either damaged or lost . But despite the severity of the crash , the pair escaped with only a broken sternum ( Jimmye Sue ) and bumps and bruises to show for it .
“ God was looking out for us ,” Alton said . “ Everybody who has seen pictures of the truck and boat say the same thing : ‘ You ’ re lucky to be alive !’, and they ’ re right . We ’ re very fortunate to still have our lives , and we can thank God for that .”
Although the crash happened just four days before the start of Stage Six , Alton competed in the tournament , finishing 47th while fishing out of Junior ’ s boat ( the two were in separate competition groups ).
“ Jimmye Sue insisted ,” Alton said . “ She told me ‘ What are you going to do except sit around with me , worry and think about fishing ?’ We had gotten her home and she was with family and friends , so I felt confident enough in her condition that I agreed to fish . But I have to admit , my head wasn ’ t really in it . It felt good to get out there and fish , but my thoughts were with Jimmye Sue and how close we came to losing our lives .”
Jimmye Sue ’ s recovery from the injury has gone well , and she ’ s expected to be back to full strength by the time this issue arrives in subscribers ’ mailboxes .
So Jones went all in on the tournament game , fishing the 1990 New York and Maryland Invitationals and a full schedule of seven Bass Invitationals , a Bassmaster MegaBucks , a Bassmaster Top 100 and a Bassmaster Top 150 in 1991 . His total winnings in those events were $ 4,566.67 .
“ Jimmye Sue was paying the bills ,” Senior admits . “ A lot of wives put their husbands through law school or medical school , but Jimmye Sue put me through ‘ fishing school ’. I was also working as a guide at the time , but she was the one keeping us afloat .”
Alton Jr . came along in the spring of 1992 , somewhere in between the Florida Top 100 and South Carolina Top 100 . Alton continued to fish the Top 100s through the mid-1990s , eventually winning $ 24,000 cash and a $ 21,000 boat at the Alabama Top 100 on Neely Henry in May of 1997 and finishing 18th in the Bassmaster Classic three months later . Before Junior ’ s first-grade year in 1998 , Jimmye Sue quit her job and the Jones family embarked on a seasonal road trip that continues ( in some fashion ) to this day .
Years later , with Senior secure in his career and an up-and-coming Little Alton and younger sisters Kristen and Jamie traveling the country with them , Jimmye Sue worked virtually around the clock to bring the next in line up to speed .
“ My mom is the glue that holds the family together ” Alton Jr . says . “ Home schooling takes a special set of parents . I ’ d be out practicing with my dad all day , and my mom would school my siblings . Then she ’ d have to work with me half the night when I ’ d come in after practice . What my mom did was pretty incredible – she was busy taking care of kids , taking care of my dad and doing all the things to allow him to succeed while also allowing me to get my feet under me in my career as well .”
MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2023