Thousands of weekend anglers dream of it, hundreds of professional anglers compete to have a slim chance to be a part of it, and only 36 Bassmaster Elite Series Anglers qualify to fish in it.  If you have one bad tournament or an off year, you qualify to work the Bassmaster Classic Expo, attend to Classic weigh-in in the stands, or worst yet end up watching it on ESPN 360.  Only 51 professional anglers qualify and got to fish in the 2010 Bassmaster Classic Championship; only 25 anglers make the cut and fish day three.  The other 26 anglers watch the event; wondering, if only I would have?  Three anglers that did not make the cut but fished in the 2010 Bassmaster Classic were Alton Jones, a past Bassmaster Classic winner, Terry Scroggins, and Terry Butcher.

Every competitor in the 2010 Bassmaster Classic approached winning it differently.  Texan Bassmaster Elite professional angler Alton Jones went into the event hoping to win another Bassmaster Classic Championship.  “I fished with a green pumpkin YUM Wooly Hawgtail (www.lurenet.com) Texas rigged with a ¼-ounce XCalibur Tg Tungsten weight and a BOOYAH Baby Boo Jig with a green pumpkin 2.75 YUM Craw Papi for a trailer.  The area I concentrated on was an island in a spawning area; I just pitched these lure into holes in the grass to get my bites.  I had the bites on day two to be in the hunt.  The fish were biting, but I did not do my part and get the fish in the boat,” explained Jones.  Not getting the fish into the boat kept Jones from making it to day three; however, I expect Jones will get another chance next year to win another Classic. 

Oklahoma Bassmaster Elite professional angler Terry Butcher targeted fish moving up from deeper water to spawn.  Normally, these fish would be feeding heavily right before spawning.  “I fished a XCalibur Xt3d in Foxy Momma on step 60-degree rocky banks for suspended bass to catch some of my keepers and a 3/8-ounce BOOYAH Vibra-FLX with a chartreuse/white skirt around isolated wood on grassy banks or slow rolling it in front of the grass,” explained Butcher.  Another lure that Butcher likes in cold water conditions is a Bomber Flat A.  During practice Butcher did fish it some but did not get the results he wanted.  The plan was to fish with lures that catch quality bass, the kind that win the Classic.  Unfortunately, a second cold front at the start of the week backed off the better fish that were moving up and kept Butcher from making the cut.

 Floridian Bassmaster Elite professional angler Terry Scroggins targeted secondary points inside creeks where the water was warmer for quality bites.  “Practice was tough, it snowed and rained; the water got muddy and made the lake fish smaller,” Scroggins continued, “I fished with a big BOOYAH Jig with a YUM Chunk trying to get quality fish to bite; I knew that it was going to take some big bites to win.”  Scroggins’ spent most of his time fishing a 10-foot deep hump that had rocks on inside a creek.  When the fish refused to bite the big jig, Scroggins shifted gear and tried to coaxes the bigger fish into biting a 3/16-ounce BOOYAH Shaky Head Jig rigged with a green pumpkin YUM Houdini worm.  It was not to be for Scroggins, the quality fish kept their mouths shut denying him any opportunity to fish the third day.   

 Each of these anglers fished to win the 2010 Bassmaster Classic; no one will remember who finished in second play five years from now.  It’s one of the few tournaments where professional anglers fish only to win and fish with lures that can win the tournament.  It’s all about being there.