O
ut for a full season with an injury
that crushed his leg and fractured
his spirit, one of bass fishing’s most
consistent performers has his game face on and
his game plan ready for 2015. Life takes turns
for all of us, and, in January of last year, the turn
was steep and downward for Cliff Pace, then the
reigning Bassmaster Classic champion.
Pace crushed his tibia and broke his fibula and,
for good measure, tore his ACL, too, as he was
descending from a deer stand while bow hunting
alone near his Mississippi home.
But the biggest “downer” of all was the
downtime to his fishing career, beginning with
his inability to defend his Bassmaster Classic
title at Alabama’s Lake Guntersville in 2014.
That nightmare began to haunt him even as he
lay on the ground and awaited rescue after the
disappointment then went. Neither might they
understand today that the very equanimity they
panned during Pace’s confetti shower in Tulsa
might very well be the very stuff that will shape
a quick comeback this season.
At least that’s the prediction from these
quarters. Cliff Pace will be back on “Pace” for
another successful Bassmaster Elite season
following the lost season of 2014. He’ll make
little noise and no trouble. He will be in the
money in three out of every four events, and he
will likely have several Top 10 finishes. And, yes,
his chances of winning a tournament are as good
as ever, as good as anyone’s.
You heard it here first.
Optimistic? Yes. Out on a limb? No! If you like
to measure success by the numbers more than
the headlines, Cliff Pace is your kind of guy. He
Preparation every
time I fish begins
with organizing
my tackle
injury. Worse yet was the lost season during his
confinement to hospital bed, rehab and recovery
during last year’s Bassmaster Elite season.
has taken home paychecks from 75 of his 101
B.A.S.S. events and finished in the Top 10 in more
than a quarter (26) of them.
Those who criticized his calm demeanor and
lack of visible elation following his huge win at
the 2013 Bassmaster Classic on Grand Lake of
the Cherokees surely had no clue how deep his
That record has been good enough to earn more
than $1.36 million in Bassmaster money and a
spot in six Bassmaster Classic events, only five
of which he was able to fish.
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