Drew Cook and Paul Marks "Head To Head" on MERCER-210

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Just back from Lake Hartwell andwe have two Elite Series
champions that battled it out onHartwell this past weekend.
That's right, Drew Cook and PaulMarx join me this week.
Oh. I'm Bob Cobb for the Bassmaster.

(00:24):
Welcome to Mercer. Welcome, one.
Welcome all friends, family, freeloaders, fishing freaks, and
of course, you, my humpers. Happy hump day to all of you and
welcome into the awkwardly honest fishing podcast that goes
by my last name, which is Mercer.
This is the 210th edition of theMercer Podcast and I hope
wherever you're watching or listening from the life is

(00:46):
treating you well. Thank you for tuning in.
Your viewership each and every week truly means the world to
me. I think what we have built here
is something truly special, a very positive and uplifting
community, and I love interacting with you guys,
whether it's online, whether it's through socials, whether
it's in person. I love seeing a bunch of humpers

(01:10):
this past week and Lake Hartwell.
We'll talk about that in a minute.
I've asked you guys for help before and I'm going to ask you
guys for help again. The viewership that this show
gets is it blows my mind. It's way more than I ever
imagined we would get and I am so thankful for that.
But it turns out on our streaming platforms, we need

(01:31):
more five star ratings. We need more reviews.
So I think we have a good relationship.
I like you, you like me. Well, most of us like each
other, but I learned a long timeago the best way to encourage a
relationship as well to to buy somebody's love.
So what I'm going to do, we need5 star ratings and reviews on

(01:54):
Spotify and Apple. This will help our podcast get
more notice, get more seen and continue to keep the grow going
just like it has on YouTube. We've done a lot of YouTube
contests. So now this is something for the
Spotify and Apple listeners. And hey, if you're a YouTube
listener, come on over and then just be part of it.
All you got to do is leave a five star review and a or a five

(02:18):
star rating and a review and we will go through all of those and
we will pick one lucky winner atthe before next week's episode
and we will send them this bad boy right there.
And Abu Garcia Revo premiere. It is just a workhorse casting
reel, a beautiful, beautiful reel.
I'll send it to you free of charge.

(02:39):
Show up at your house and all you have to do is well, be nice
and give us a five star review and rating a five star rating
and review. So please do that.
Let's blast Spotify and Apple this week.
I sure could use your help. And again, Youtubers, you're not

(03:00):
out. You're you're welcome to come on
over and enter on both ways. So thank you for that.
And like I said, all you got to do is is be nice.
There's some people in the worldon the Internet not not being
nice recently. I'm not going to give that any
more oxygen than it deserves. Other than met that dude for one

(03:26):
minute in my entire life. Called that dude up afterwards
and said what's up. That dude ended up apologizing
to me. Tell told me.
Didn't mean it like that, but hey, didn't stop it from
whatever I said. It wasn't getting a bit of
oxygen so I'm blowing it out. Let's move on.
A lot of positive stuff to talk about this past week.

(03:49):
Neil Paul and his crew from Green Pond Landing.
It is state-of-the-art. It is truly a state-of-the-art
facility like nothing else. They refer to it.
Neil Paul calls it the Yankee Stadium of tournament
facilities. You go there and you tell me
it's not. It is truly, truly incredible,
an amazing place, an amazing tournament this past week.

(04:12):
We'll get into that in a second.Lake Hartwell always shows out
on the water and off. Another guy who always shows out
and deserves a little love is John Cruz and everything he does
for autism awareness, autism charities.
He's done it for over 10 years. Obviously, if you've been a long

(04:32):
time viewer or if you're a new viewer, I'll just let you know.
I have an amazing, incredible autistic daughter named Cadence
and this causes something very near and dear to my heart.
So I try to do everything I can to help John with his
initiatives and everything that he does with the anglers.
This is not run through bass. This is something that the
anglers do themselves. It's headed up by John and

(04:54):
that's what makes it cool. Every single year he does
something different. Last year it was the year of the
Caretaker. This year it was local autism
charities and he hooked up with Grassroots 252, Oh, the
Pasquotank River and the RainbowGang at in in Anderson, SC,
their local autism charities. We had a bunch of the kids out

(05:18):
that are part of those programs.They had booths at the Expo.
It was just a great event. I mean, John ended up winning
the Fear My Heart award that Carl Jacobson has talked about
on this show, which is just rewarding positivity, rewarding
goodness. I don't know it's back.
I don't know why my camera just keeps getting fuzzy, but it, it,

(05:39):
it's back now. So that's the good news.
So he won $1000 for that and theaward and went ahead and gave it
back. A bunch of people donated.
I donated $5 per pound for the winning weight at both
tournaments. So thank you to everybody that
supported this and thank you to Cruz and everything you continue

(06:03):
to do this past weekend's tournament.
Lake Hartwell. Lake Hartwell always shows out.
But if you ask me, it got down to the wire that final day and
we are watching an epic battle. I mean it is a head to head
battle between Drew Cook, the sight fishing master and then

(06:26):
the herring master Paul Marks and watching them trade blow for
Blower. It mean it was like watching
Drew Cook throw the big haymakers.
He was the power puncher with big shots and Paul Marks just
kind of picked him apart, sat onthe outside and jabbed him to
bits and ended up winning the tournament.
It was truly a sports story for the ages I think.

(06:49):
I mean I really enjoyed it. So much so that at one point I
told Maddie Wong to stop talkingbecause we were doing Bassmaster
live cast and trust me, I want to hear the anglers always.
To me, I love the sound of fishing.
I love the, the, the I love the real being engaged.
I love the line sawing through slop.

(07:11):
I I love all of that. So at one point I I told Maddie
Wong please stop talking. So sorry Maddie, I love your
talking. But at that moment, I just
wanted to hear Drew Cook. I just wanted to hear Paul
Marks. It was an incredible tournament.
It was a lot of fun to cover andgreat feedback since it's.

(07:34):
So I hope you all enjoyed it. And here's something cool that
we got here this week. We have a both of those anglers
on the show. I stuck around after the event
because I was going to be part of an outdoor brands media shoot
that we did with AFCO and Beatdown Mounts and had a lot of
fun doing that. But that allowed us to sit down

(07:57):
with both Drew Cook and Paul Marx.
And this was recorded less than 24 hours after they competed for
the title. So this will give you really
good idea of, of what it's like for the anglers to go through,
you know, what it's like to win and what it's like to just be so
close to winning. They're very open, they're very
honest. Got to thank the guys at Outdoor

(08:19):
Brands for, I mean, they set us up in a board room at the hotel
and we knocked this out. We have sound issues at some
points but we we didn't shoot this in a traditional way so
hopefully you will ignore those.And I've been told to stop
playing with water bottles when I'm recording podcasts and
that's why I don't use a water bottle normally.

(08:48):
So yeah, let's jump right into things.
We can talk forever. But thank you guys for making
this happen. I hope you enjoy it.
First, we sit down with Drew Cook less than 24 hours after
coming close to being a two timeElite Series champion.
And then we are joined by the champion, Paul Marx.
Giddy up. Let's do this, Drew Cook.

(09:12):
Very much. Hasn't been 24 hours.
Does this suck? And tests suck a little bit and
stinks pretty bad. And I don't regret anything.
I regret a little bit, but not I'd do it all again.
Yeah, maybe start on a point andcatch 13 lbs.
You feel you could. Oh yeah.

(09:34):
I've went and found, went and fished a point that I've
normally fished today. And first one I caught was a
three and a quarter. Second one was a three pounder.
It's like, gosh, that was done. You went out again this morning.
I went back. I went back to for old Betty.
She was gone though, unfortunately, because I wanted

(09:54):
to, I wanted to wear. Yeah.
That's AI mean. God, I thought you were to catch
that fish. I did.
Too. I thought I was going to catch
her up until she swam away and when she swam away she really
swam away. So that was that was kind of

(10:17):
soul sucking. Why do you think she swam away?
Do you think you just bothered it to the point that was like
screw this? Man, and it happened a couple of
times this week. These, these fish in particular
are really weird. Why?
I don't know. And they were weird and like two
different aspects. Like there's more multi fish

(10:40):
beds here than anywhere. And the state of South Carolina
as a whole. You know, you see it on Santee,
you see it here and other lakes in South Carolina.
But like dude, at home I've seen3 fish, you know, on one bed a
couple times, but I've never seen 7 here.
In 2019, I found one of those beds and I caught 20 lbs off 1

(11:02):
bed and left 24 pounders on it for the third day.
And I came back the third day and there was 5 spotted baths on
that bed. There was not a spot on the bed
day 2. There was five of them on it on
day three. And it's just one of those
weird, weird deals here. I don't know why.
There's got to be some type of, I guess neurological type

(11:26):
something with these baths that that does it.
But I think it's also, I think these baths spawn a lot at
times, you know, bass in general.
Spawn or fall spawn? Do you think they're actually
actively spawning? Yeah, I think these females are
spawning 234 times during the spring.

(11:49):
Wow. Because the reason I say that I
caught a fish from day one and day 2 that was still had her
eggs pre spawn but had old soresfrom like a month ago on both of
them. And so like they spawned and
then came back and spawned. And I've seen it at home with

(12:11):
the same fish. I've caught the same fish, you
know, almost two months apart inthe same Cove, had the same
birthmark, everything, both times on bed and both times just
plump, you know? One thing that.
You took as a win this week and I don't know if you've fully

(12:32):
been able to absorb what's happened.
Obviously you, you know, it hasn't even been 24 hours.
But dude, your skills and the amount of respect that people
have for you as a sight angler, we're on full display.
When did your sight fishing prowess start?
Like how young were you? Oh man, you could go all the way

(12:56):
back to being like three or fouryears old.
The, the brim and the shiners are like underneath the dock
that are always, you know, when you walk on the dock, they're
all sketchy and stuff like, you know, scaring them off and
leaving a, a worm down there forwhen they come back.
Being able to catch them. And just, there's some of them
about like side fishing. It's hunting and fishing like

(13:19):
put together 'cause you're creeping around, you're trying
to sneak up on them and you're looking for them.
That's just I don't know, it's what I love to do and being able
to do it as much as I have been able to do it at home because
like from January to May, you can you can side fish at home.

(13:40):
So that that helps, that helps alot.
Other parts of the country you get to do it for two or three
weeks maybe and that's it. So getting to do it that much.
I think that's one of the reasons why me and Benton are
are good at it because we got todo it so much growing up.
But it's a gamble, as you saw it.

(14:00):
It can pay off and it can not. Aside from doing it a lot, why
do you think you're good at it? Just I mean, I have really good
eyes there. There's no doubt about that.
But I think that and just probably because I'm stubborn

(14:22):
too, you know, but like, there's, there's a difference
between like it being stubborn on one and getting big and
personal with one. Yeah.
It's like you still got to know like when it's not going to
bite. But like I never fished for one
this week that I thought was notgoing to bite.
And I call it every damn one of them but one.

(14:44):
No one. No one.
How big was that fish? She was in between 6:00 or
seven. I thought she was going to be
closer to seven. That's why I spent so much time
on it, because it was all I needed.
Yeah, yeah. I mean, that was the tournament
right there. What do you think the biggest
mistake people make site fishing?

(15:08):
A getting too close to him or no?
First off, a looking too close to the boat whenever they're
looking so like, and my camera got a comment on a couple times
like I'm looking way up the bankand most people are looking
right here, you know, beside theboat.
And I'm not saying I'm not looking back and forth, but
like, we would, you know, go buyone and you'd hear him turn his

(15:32):
camera and you're like, I already saw it because Wes
Miller made me look like an idiot here.
One time he was calling 1A4 pounder by the boat and, you
know, doing 4 whatever I alreadyseen it was a 2 1/2 pounder.
Like it didn't matter. But he he didn't hear him move.
Like, yeah, I already saw that one.
And there's no one coming right up here.
Like seeing them that far up there is is what?

(15:53):
Because half the time you catch them on the first cast and then
you're not, you know, spending all that time on it.
But if you can see them before they see you, you're like, the
chances are are way higher of getting them caught quicker and
just being able to like, you hear these stories all the time.

(16:13):
I was fishing for this fish and it was being stubborn.
And then out of nowhere, A6 Pounder swims up there and eats
my stuff. There's probably a lot of 6
pounders that you never saw, butyou caught the male and kept on
going, you know. And that's where I think the
difference is looking for those fish sitting out from it.

(16:36):
And you know, now we have live scope that helps a lot for some
of those guys just being able topan out there and they see a
BLOB somewhere close to it. You know, there's I'm highly
good chance of a female. But did you use that at all this
week? No.
Intentionally. Kind of.

(16:58):
I was trying to win one for the old school, the old school got
and man, it's like, don't throw me in the briar patch, you know
what I mean? Like this was a fastball right
over home plate because half thepeople were like, it's done, you
know, they're gone. The other half the people were
up there on the bank, but everybody, all their bed and
fish left. So they're on the points, going

(17:20):
back and forth, everything. So you kind of had it all to
yourself. And it was like, I cannot
believe Cox didn't make top ten.Yeah, this was a John Cox
tournament, you know to I had 4 fish at 2:55 and then, you know,
I caught the caught my fifth onelike that.
There was this type of week or you know, I came back to this

(17:40):
fish, you know, 3 days and finally caught her sitting on a
tree. But it was, I don't know, it was
too, too Ted up. Yeah, this one hurt for a while.
You think? No, I'll be over it after today.
I mean, I just, I still feel it a little bit, but you get one
day. One day.

(18:01):
One day. Then after today you just focus
on the. Next one.
Did you have to learn to do that?
I did had to learn to do that because I used to maybe like 2
weeks and yeah, we'd be at the next turn around.
Like God, if I'd have just landed that one or whatever, you
know, I would have won. And, and I've been close a lot,

(18:26):
especially like last year differently that was.
Yeah. In the MPFL like I had.
AI was fine. Like it's when you say it
differently, it's like when people are like, I'm going to
show that outboard company, put duct tape over the name.
Yeah, you're like, that just makes more people want to look

(18:46):
at them and. Know what it is?
But. Like I think 4 four or five
times last year, like I was one bite away or I lost the bass,
whatever from winning. I mean, it's 100 grand.
So I was kind of like kind of mad at him.

(19:08):
And then last week at Norman, like I finished fifth or
something like that. Hackney won.
But the second day of that tournament, I found a bed that
had, I know now what it was a 511 female and then a bigger one
and a three 7 male. So I find this trio on the bed

(19:33):
and I've got 20 minutes and they're teed up like I'm fixing
to catch one. It's going to be awesome.
And Patrick blows his motor. He's like, I need a ride.
So I'm like, but I'm a good friend left went and Patrick had
already trolled almost to the boat ramp and I only had like 9

(19:55):
minutes so I couldn't go back around there and I was like all
right, that's fine. I'll start on them in the
morning and you know, I'll catchat least one of them and find
another big one and we'll have agood bag.
I started on there and they're all gone.
It's weird because there a lot of them would pull off and they
pull back up, you know, during the same day.

(20:15):
So I came back later that afternoon.
There's a guy. His son and grandson on the dock
and like I creep around the dockand I'm standing on top of my
troll motor bombing it up there like I know exactly where it's
at and everything. And he was like, yeah, come down
here yesterday and I've seen onerolling on the side on that

(20:36):
green spot. Went up there, got my pole.
It was a 511. I was like, it wasn't even that
big one. He said the male was a nice one
too. It was a three seven.
I was like, shit, I weighed in aa 180 something yesterday.
Like all those were good, were good fish, but so I was kind of
teed up for this one after that.Fishing in a league then you

(21:01):
mentioned NPFL, but fishing in aleague that doesn't allow
forward facing sonar versus a league that does allow it the
elites, how does that feel different for you?
Like, do you feel different going into competition there?
Yeah, you know, because, you know, you in the back of your

(21:21):
mind, you're not worried about them people out there in the
middle. I am finding, you know, fish in
La La land like you're fishing against everybody doing the same
stuff. But one thing I do find, and I
know Patrick feels the same way,Like man, you're going to skip
something underneath the dock and you'll automatically paying
your troll motor over there. Yeah.

(21:41):
Like it's force of habit now to do it that way and by the end of
the week, you know, hell, you'renot even looking down anymore.
You're just throwing it. But I mean, three 60s been
pretty big over there. Used it a lot more this year
than than I ever have, especially like at the first one

(22:01):
at Santee with the with the grass.
Yeah, it, it helped a lot, but Idon't know.
It's, it's it's nice to to know whenever you get to a term or
you don't have to rig up, you know that that stuff minnows and
stuff. But and you know, you're going
to, you're going to rig up big line, you know, always going to

(22:21):
have a jig now because it's going to be a player.
More traditional. Yeah, and it's fun.
It's like, it's like you're reading the old book, you know,
I've got to go here, do this andit's fun.
Do you think about that stuff a lot when you're competing on the

(22:41):
elites? And when I watched you compete,
I felt like here's a guy who's fishing number one.
It felt like you're fishing veryfluid, like people you aren't.
We've seen people bed fish in the past where they went and
GPS, 700 waypoints of beds. It felt like you were pulled
into pockets and you were finding fish.

(23:04):
You were. Super.
Free. So when you're doing that, are
you thinking about what's happening out there or is that a
pre tournament thing? That's pre tournament thing.
You can't think about that stuff'cause it is what it is.
And like knowing this week I hadto tell my wife, like, look, I'm
going to get my ass kicked in the mornings.

(23:25):
Like it's going to happen. Like we can only weigh in five.
Like just give me some time and we'll, we'll we'll get back over
there. Because like, I knew they were
going to start on hair and stuff, knew they were going to
catch them and like they were going to have a good base right
out the get where I was going tohave like one or two.
But like if I'm fishing just forfive baths then it doesn't

(23:47):
really matter. If you were running bass
tomorrow, said, hey, here's the keys, you're running this,
you're making decision, what would you do with forward facing
Sonar? And I don't mean just for you
personally, I mean. I would I would do where you get

(24:10):
half and half and the schedule comes out and you have a a coin
toss. You can bet on it online and be
like everybody watch it like be like the draft almost, you know,
and flip a coin. Whichever one wins heads gets
the 1st, 3rd, 7th or 5th, 7th, 9th tournament.
They get 5 tournaments with it and you get 4 tournaments

(24:32):
without it or vice versa or whatever.
And the schedule is already out there.
So it's not like we're, we're cherry picking them.
It just, it is what it is. We might go to Okeechobee and
you get to use it, which is actually a deal now or, but you
know, something like that or theSabine River, you get to use it.
Or we might go to Saint LawrenceRiver.

(24:55):
You don't get to use it, you know, And it would just, it
would change a lot. I think we would catch them a
lot. It'd be a lot funner.
Yeah, for some things, like you'd see a lot of jerkbait or,
you know, not staring down just like bomb and jerkbait throwing
hair jigs, spinner baits and andchatterbait stuff for small

(25:16):
mouth. And it would be it.
It'd be different. Yeah.
But and that's, I feel like that's a win win.
You know, the, the I mean, I don't want to divide anything
up, but like the scopers get their chance and the the, the
others don't, you know, they gettheir, everybody gets their,

(25:36):
their, their chance. Or at least like just make it
the classic where you can't do it or something.
And I don't, you know, when you say I don't want to divide it up
and I get, I mean, the world's got enough division, especially
bass fishing, but I don't know that that's an insult.
Like to be like, hey, that's a scope or that's a it's become an
insult because people are so passionate and hate it so much.

(25:59):
But ultimately to me, it's, it'slike the offshore guys versus
the shallow water guys. That's always been there.
But it was never an insult. It was just like, hey, he's
going to go out there and go outand do his thing and somebody
like use always. I mean, I think it's natural
that somebody like use, if you're not in the tournament,
you want to see a John Cox win, somebody that's did fishes the

(26:21):
way you knew. John Cox, though, is a different
animal. Yes, 100%.
He's never had a transducer. You know, he he's the guy that
shows up with five rods, literally won a tournament here
on Hartwell, caught every bass almost the first three days of
it with a spinning rod, had one spinning rod.

(26:42):
Camera guy gets in his boat day 4 morning breaks the spinning
rod and he said we'll go throw aswim jig and a shatter bait and
wins the tournament. But he's just, he's just like
water off the ducks back then. Yeah, he's a freak.
He's a it's he's like nobody on the elites.
His whole theory, what he's toldme about Ford facing he's like

(27:05):
he's scared of it almost and andwhy he's scared he's like so
much of my fishing is looking upso much of my fishing is look at
that bird over there. Look there's frogs jumping off
the shore. There's like so many of his
clothes and he's like if I startlooking at that, not that I mean
he could obviously do that. I mean he's also in other

(27:28):
technically ends of fishing. He's proved that he he can catch
him, but he's also like, that's just not how I I fish.
And he's got a valid point with that.
Oh, 100%. This week here going in and out
of docks, you know, we didn't get on the outside.
You're always like, you know, just just looking around.

(27:48):
Yeah, checking it out. But you missed that great big
one this underneath the float orlike you, you miss seeing the
tip of the nose underneath the walkway up there, like.
And when you miss that like there's, there's no get it back.
Well, I mean it, I feel like I'mforever with my kids talking

(28:09):
about this, but while you're texting, you're missing the war.
Like, you know what I mean? Like go drive somewhere with
somebody who's like non-stop texting and ask them what they
saw. So nothing they saw text, but
somebody else who's got nothing and they're just made to focus
on that. Yeah, Cox is is wild.
Would you? And I don't even know if you

(28:30):
want to answer this, but obviously you and Benton are
pretty much regarded as two of the best, if not the best side
anglers. Would you say like if you had to
pick side anglers that you can'tpick either you or Benton?
Cox 100%. It's pretty good pick, yeah.

(28:55):
Is is there any differences the way he side fishes versus you?
Guys, and that's why I've threatened with a couple of
different people with this. Like I want to sit with Cox and
just put a camera in the corner and just get to talking about
about side fishing because I've learned a lot from him.

(29:15):
The way he does some things. He likes to spin it around a lot
more, but also the elevation that he gets sometimes.
And I've used it a bunch and it it it he's got a whole deal
figured out and I've got a deal figured out.
You know, it's a little bit different.

(29:36):
Me and Ben are fairly similar with ours, but we could all I
mean, everybody learns and you know, just little, little subtle
things. You know, he, his little pulling
thing is there's a, there's a lot of things he does that that
are, you know. It's funny you said that you

(30:00):
would love to sit. I mean, and I quickly said this
to you in the dock, but Easton, Easton Fothergill said that to
me at the gas station. We were just socially talking
and the end like, and I was congratulating him on making the
top ten. He's like, I'm going to tell you
the most impressive thing that happens in this sport that is
happening in this sport of all the stuff going on, he says is

(30:24):
what Cook does as a sighting. He's like, man, I would do
anything to spend a day. And he says I don't even need to
fish. I just want to watch him like
he's that amazed by you. Just what does that mean when
you hear that? Means he wants to book a guy
trip. But I'm not doing that anymore

(30:46):
because I didn't took Tram McKinney when he was a little
kid and look, he's already here.I ain't doing it again.
Tell me about that. You took Trey when he was.
How old? He was like 12 or 13 and Drew
Benton took him one day sight fishing on Lake Seminole and I
took him the next day sight fishing on a on my home lake and

(31:07):
had no idea that it was going tobe 5 short years or whatever
before he made it here. Yeah, I would have, would have
told it back a little bit more, you know.
I think he's an example of, I mean, he's the extreme example,
but I mean, if you look, there'svideos of him fishing with Andy
Morgan and Dan Moorehead Dudley like the all sorts of like.

(31:32):
I mean, he definitely went afterwhat he wants to do and his but
I think what you did with him isa prime example of what we see
happening with a lot of like young high school anglers
because they're young. I mean, I'll help this kid out
if I say, hey, dude, I mean, I'man MC.
If Easton Fothergill comes up toyou and says, hey, man, I would

(31:53):
really like you to help me, you're like, wait a second, you
just won the Classic. I mean, I don't need to help you
make my job harder. But when it's a kid, you're just
like, God, it's a kid. You know what?
What's? But and then they fish the opens
and then they make it. It's like, damn, you can't get

(32:13):
those secrets back. Is that a frustrating part of
your job? Like it?
It is. And it's not just technology.
There is like a massive influx of young kids and they're all
good with technology. But again, that's also the world
that they they grew up in. Does it frustrate you that it

(32:33):
feels like like traditionally when you started chasing this
dream, it feels like how old areyou now?
30. So it feels like you're about
five years away from what used to be I'm hitting my prime, and
now it feels like that prime haschanged it.

(32:54):
Definitely has just with, with all that, you know, I think.
But the prime's going to change whatever your average age
change, you know what I mean? So like the average age probably
went from honestly, it was probably 50, you know, and now
we're, we're down, I would say closer to 40 now or average age.

(33:17):
But that's still because we got a whole bunch of the, the older
guys left. Yeah, but once, once sooner or
later the average age is going to be 30, you know, and they're
the turnover rates going to get going to get pretty high too.
So you got to keep evolving witheverything.
Try to find new new baits, new new tricks.

(33:39):
Their their bats are getting smarter if you can.
And you can tell whenever you have a something they've never
seen before, you know? How they react?
Because it's, and then me and Patrick talk about it all the
time was like, when that happens, it happens to us like
once every three years. It's like, man, this is what
Taku and Koya have every tournament.

(34:02):
You know, like whenever he took that shrimp thing to the Saint
Lawrence River, like, dude, theynever seen that.
Every small mouth bass that saw it ate it.
Yeah. 40% of the small mouth bass that I saw ate it.
Yeah, you know, that's all mine ate it.
And it's like, yeah, this is. Do you spend time looking for

(34:23):
stuff like that now? Like, when's that done?
Offseason. Is that all?
The time, all the time, because you never know.
And there's so much about bass that we think we know but we
really have no idea about. Like I think personally, I think
the colorblind, I think they seeclear Gray and Gray and Gray,

(34:45):
you know, like just different shades of nothing.
That's why I'm not a huge color guy.
I've got like 4 colors of everything black.
It's just dark and light, you know?
Really so? What are your 4?
So I have a June bug, black and blue whatever.
I have a green pumpkin. I have one that's half green
pumpkin, half black and blue, and then a white like and that's

(35:09):
every color I have minus pink worms.
But I think a pink worm is whenever it's down there is
clear. Yeah, I think all they see is a
the outline of it. Everything's very even.
I mean, you know, I shoot a lot of underwater stuff, but even
when I'm down there and we clearly are not colorblind, I'm

(35:30):
not colorblind, but it everything's muted anyways.
It does. So yeah, you probably have a
point. Do you think flex and stuff like
that matter or do you think that's?
Yeah, I think that matters because like if you got a little
bitty flake in it, yeah, you know, it kind of is really

(35:50):
subtle, but you have a big square one in there, like that's
a void out of that. Thread flake.
And I think sometimes that's good and sometimes it's bad.
Yeah, I think most of the time the smaller flakes probably
better just because you have it,but it's not like gaudy.
But I think a lot, I think a lotof colors and stuff like that

(36:15):
are for fishermen, not actually for fits.
Yeah. But there's something that
happens with bass, like red things like that, that we don't
understand. And then it's not because the
the crawfish are are turning RIPhas nothing to do with it.

(36:37):
It's not the reason they bit LeeLindsey's pink chatterbait, you
know, it had nothing to do with crawfish.
It's not why they bite a straight chartreuse with a
chartreuse trailer chatter. Those are all the same in my
opinion. Same with a methylate floating
worm, a yellow floating worm, a bubble gum floating worm, and a
white floating worm. Those are all the same.
They're all gaudy colors. They they pop.

(37:00):
They like a methylate worm, especially on places like this
man it a six inch methylate wormlooks that big in the water
because it's got like a a glow. Orb.
And like, it's just one of thosethings that they, they, they
either hate it or love it, you know, it's one or the other.

(37:24):
They either come there to eat itor they're getting the hell away
from it. So you're a big believer in if
you're you know the stuff you said about Kya and Takumi and
having different stuff, you're abig believer in like when
something comes, you get it. Got to.
Yeah, I think shapes mean more than anything.

(37:44):
Yeah. Like, I think we're going to see
we get everything like it used to be probably seven years after
Japan, it's now like probably three years and you know, maybe
even an encroaching a little biton two year mark.
But hey, we're fixing to see a big change in our worm shapes

(38:08):
here. Just to try and keep up, right?
Like just to all the dice baits and stuff like that.
What's your theory on that? I think that whenever a bass is
a fry, it eats a lot of that little stuff, and they don't
know how big they are anymore. Yeah, it just been a minute

(38:28):
since I've seen one of those little things.
Yeah, you know. Today's high tech fishing world
can be a real pain in the neck, especially if you're running the
wrong mount beat down outdoors. They bring the graph to you and
they support this podcast and care enough about you to make
this a short ad read check out beat down our doors.
Now back to the show. I have a weird theory about it

(38:50):
too, where I look at a lot of them and I'm like, I know they
seem super weird, but if you look at a jig, like a living
rubber jig under the water when it hits and it sits there and
does that. I mean, they're just a jig
that's falling slow and is doingthat.
The whole, you know, I don't think they're as weird as you
initially think. If you really look at them under

(39:11):
the water, have. You ever seen a crawfish like
hooked on a drop shot? Like looks a lot, especially
whenever he starts. Looks a lot lot like something
something around those parts. But I mean, who'd have thought
sea urchins and dice would be bass catchers?

(39:32):
Why does a new bait? Why do they eat that more?
Because. They hadn't seen it.
I mean, a lot of these bass see a lot of stuff a lot because
there's a lot of people fishing there.
More people, I guess have remotejobs or there's more people
fishing period. But like.
And more educated like. Correct, it's not just.
Years ago it was like 80% of thepeople there, you're like, they

(39:55):
don't really know. Sorry to interrupt you, but.
But yeah, you had the people that like, I'm going to go to
these three points. This afternoon after work, you
know, because I have time and I'm going to throw the same
Carolina rig, you know, on thesethree points now it's like, man,
this guy, he's knows what he's doing and he's fishing more and

(40:16):
that's happening to a lot. So I think the fish are
definitely getting more pressured.
So when you have something new like that and and it's been the
same way all you know for years,but it's just you don't get to
catch them as long on it anymore.
Well, I always say one of the biggest mistakes I ever made was

(40:37):
this shows how old I am. But I remember when the original
Power Bait came out and at that time we were throwing like
culprit worms, stuff that stuff that isn't even a rally Gill
rakers and things that aren't even a bait today.
But I remember thinking that I remember being as arrogant and I
was like a young tournament angler.

(40:58):
And I remember being like, I catch plenty on culprit.
I'm just fine. And then it was literally 2
years later, I was in a boat with a guy and he said put, you
know, he was hammering on power.Just the original 7 inch, you
know, power worm and I tried 1 and I'm like, Oh my God, these
fish never drop it. They just and and you've seen

(41:19):
its effectiveness and then gulp comes along and it's super
effective and and you see that in different lines, but it's
yeah, that early they eat something.
It's I don't think they learn. I just think they they don't
think they know that's a power, but they just know this is
different and I need to. I think sent has a lot to do

(41:41):
with I, I love sin. I have sin on everything you
know, whether it comes from the factory that way or I add it
'cause it don't hurt. No, that's always.
It cannot hurt, you know. Do you?
Do you? Like a site fishing sent a big
player? Or is again, is it just a

(42:03):
camper? I don't think as much site
fishing like that because you're, I mean, you're you're
really just making them mad. You know, it's not like they're
eating because they're hungry, but I think the scent possibly
make some hold on to it longer. Yeah, 100%, yeah.
Yeah, I got my whole big bag of stuff.
It's all got Taku powder and bait, fuel, all that.

(42:26):
There's a concoction of stuff init just because I don't know
which one works better than the other one, so they get it all.
It do you think? Where do you think the sport is
in five years? I think we, I think we have some

(43:00):
type of limitation happened before then on, on the
technology, whether it be you know, government wise or
something or or you know, organization wise.
But I think you'll see us. I still think you'll see the
trend of younger, younger anglers getting better, quicker,

(43:22):
faster because we there's so much information out there now
like you can not know a thing about a thing about herring
spawn. Like there was probably 2015
years ago where there was probably 6 locals on this lake
that knew what a herring spawn was and they ran house during

(43:44):
the springtime. Now you can get on YouTube,
Google herring spawn and 30 minutes, whatever, you get a
pretty good idea on how to do all this stuff, you know, so
that that in itself is, you know, helping a lot because you
can do that for everything, you know, and you're just the amount
of live and stuff on the amount of lakes like you.

(44:06):
You never go to a lake unless ora place without a little bit of
help, except for like the Pasquatank, you know, that was
completely new. It was fun.
I like that. I like those as a fan, it's fun
to see the new places and I, I couldn't agree with your theory.

(44:27):
And I think that's the thing that nobody talks about.
And I used my example of like when I first started working the
for the elites, there's no Shad's poem where I'm from.
I had no idea what a Shad's poemwas and it literally took me few
years to learn what a Shad Spohnwas like people are talking
about. I remember asking Trip, what's
what's a shad spoon? And Trip told me his stuff, but

(44:48):
it took me several years. You can spend one hour and you
know what it looks like, how to identify what to do when you're
there. You could give a seminar on it.
And that's the same with, I mean, when you people start
first going to the Thousand Islands.
Well, now areas that you've seenfrom tournaments, but you can
see exactly the way the guys moving the bait, how they're
rigging the I mean, an FG knot, an FG knot 15 years ago would

(45:13):
have took 30 years to spread through the now there's how many
videos like you take your bait and you do, I mean, everybody
does it where they've got the video on on.
Let me figure out how to do thison their boat.
And it is wild. I also wonder with the youth
thing, if there's part of me that wonders if that's also like

(45:37):
part of the sport growing. Like if you look at other
things, like for years, in almost every sport, the athletes
played a lot later and then there was more and more people
playing. So it pushed the age down
because it's a competitive sport.
Do you think there's any truth to that or yeah, that's going to
happen. That's definitely.

(45:58):
Going to happen and like, you know, on my side of the bench,
like you got to be, you're steadily adapting because you
don't take the three years and you're gone.
You know what I mean? Because I don't have a AOYI
don't have a classic yet. Like I want to get one of those
get out of jail free cards that would be nice to have in your

(46:21):
pocket. But like, I've never referred to
it, but that's a great. Way to look at it.
That's the the reality of. The turnover rate is going to
get a lot higher and just I mean, that's how it's going to
be and that's I mean, it's how it has been, you know, for
forever. It's slowly gotten quicker and
quicker, but like we, we made a big jump, like a big big jump

(46:44):
and it partly because like the new E QS like nobody got lucky 3
tournaments and made it on the elites anymore.
You know what I mean? They caught them.
There's no weak. We had people.
That were great people but they would show up and they clearly
it's statistically they weren't ready to be on the 8 series.

(47:05):
Ain't nobody showing up like that anymore, and that has
something to do with like. The high school fishing, the
college fishing, all that stuff.Like back then you didn't fish
multi day tournaments until you fish the Opens, you know what I
mean? And then you made the elites,
you'd been fishing Tuesday Niners and Saturday jackpots at
home. And so like, you didn't know
anything about it. Now these kids are fishing 3/3

(47:26):
day tournaments from high school, college, you know, the
the opens like they're ready to go.
There's no there's. It's just a step.
And they've been. Gone to every different
geographic area they've got usedto track.
Like I remember when people would first got on the elite
series, they'd be like, man, I'mI used to driving across the

(47:48):
country, like, I mean, where you're from to say you're going
to New York. That's there's a lot of people
you went to high school with that have never just got in a
car by themselves and said, I'm driving to New York and, and
dealt with flat tires and dealt with, you know, the crap that
you're dealing with. Yeah, it's definitely, it's

(48:09):
definitely changing things. You said one of your great
assets for as a sight angler is your vision.
Just does that concern you a little bit?
We have been. Talking about it all the time, I
said. But about hopefully by the time
my eyes are really bad, they'll have like lace surgery that
they're. Already.
Polarized and like just make it so much better.

(48:32):
But yeah, it and it does it makes you like.
More concern about. You know, things when you're not
fishing, you know, like, Dang, Iprobably shouldn't try to light
that thing on fire or you know what I'm saying, I may throw a
match from a long way away, you know, instead of.
It blowing up in my. Face and and that stuff you got

(48:54):
to worry about all the time likeyour hands to like I break one
hand like yeah there's no and I don't.
Pay workers comp like you. Know but.
You can't. Fish one handed.
I mean you can, but I can't learn how to do that quick
enough to for not to to cost me.And I also think weirdly in.

(49:16):
Fishing and nobody talks about this.
I think that because you competefor as long as you do, that's
why physical and not just physical, even mental issues
like if guys are going through stuff at home, whether it be
financial, relationship, family,It's why I think it affects them
so much more in fishing because if you're playing.

(49:38):
Baseball. I mean, you got to focus for so
many less hours. Yeah, and not that it's simpler,
but it to watch what? You did.
Yesterday and try to do with that fish the amount of focus
like you couldn't look like. I mean, I'm watching you do it
and I'm like, dudes going to have a headache just from
focusing like and I think that that's why when you have a sore

(50:02):
shoulder, you can block it out to swing and hit a home run
100%, but it's sure. Hard to freaking.
Block it out for two hours when you're trying to convince a
creature to eat and the. The mental side of it that you
mentioned, like that is so huge.Yeah.

(50:22):
Like football, basketball and stuff like 90 minutes.
You got to, you know, put all that stuff beside you and you
know, you can you can put most things to the side for 90
minutes. You can't do it for four days.
Like at some point in time that that gorilla is going to get on
your back. It's going to get in your head
and you're going to think about it.

(50:44):
So being mentally tough, I thinkis is.
Is good. And honestly, this week I've
felt like I did a really good job at it.
I stayed in it because I mean that yesterday obviously it
happened, but like that wasn't the only time this week that it
was like. Very mentally straining.

(51:06):
Yeah, a fish for one. I think the second day that for
almost 3 hours. Yeah, which the one you kept
going? Back to and.
Finally got it. So like being mentally tough is,
is probably 10 times better thanbeing a good caster really like

(51:32):
and being able to make decisionsand and you know, live with them
or you know, and trust your gut like those that's huge and you
just have to do it. Yourself.
Like like when? You said with a team.
You're playing football, you gotthe rest of your teammates that
are like man, when you drop a pass, they're like man, you got

(51:55):
this. You need to have this because we
need you to have this. So there's that hole you're
keeping up. You're you have.
No. Teammates, I mean, you invent
and obviously work well together, but he isn't on the
water with you. I mean, you get to see them at
night and whatever you have no coaches or somebody like even in

(52:16):
golf, which an individual sport,there's a human that walks down
the fairway with you and gives you advice the entire way.
And, and some of that advice isn't, you know, hey, you're
shooting this club this distance.
You should some of that advice is alright, breathe.
We've been here before. We're down.
It's OK Reset. Yeah, you don't.
Have any? And I think that's why the

(52:37):
mental toughness is. The.
The worst part about it is there's.
A guy in the back of your boat that knows exactly what you need
to do to win, but you don't havea clue and he can't tell you.
He's just back to the camera andlike, what do you mean?
Like he knows exactly what you. Need with yeah, yeah, not what

(53:00):
you need to do, but what you need, like how many pounds you
need. He could have tapped you on your
shoulder and say leave. This seven dude all you need is
13 lbs like. Go back, go back and catch those
ones and passed by earlier like you idiot.
Go back there. No, you don't know he, you know
he. It's his job not to tell you.
And like. That's probably the most

(53:22):
frustrating thing. So you think about that like.
You're like this stuff or it's. Afterwards like that,
afterwards, it's like, I don't just know.
You know. And I'm like, I'm sure the whole
time we're going by these fish on the bed and I'm like making a
cast at it. And it's like, well, it's not
going to bite. Like right now.

(53:43):
Yeah. He's like, dude, just.
Catch. It you.
Know. When I used to do.
On the water coverage with. Overstreet and I was on the
water a lot of times. It's amazing the amount of times
you would like, dudes fish in the shoreline.
He's like, I don't know where they went.
I don't know where they went. And we're like, yeah.
And you can't say anything, you know, like, it's which that's

(54:06):
the stupidity about life. Like if I was out there trying
to catch them, I'd be in the same situation.
But when you're there and you'renot trying to catch them, I mean
the drone, drones, a prime example.
I mean, if you could have sent that around to look for Fish
House, I mean. You think you're pretty?
Decent. I think you're pretty decent at
bed fishing. You would be 100 times better
with a drone. I would invest so.

(54:28):
Much money in like the nicest one that you could get the
quietest one like it had four Dyson fans on it.
You know, the blades don't even turn, they're like and you could
just hover it around. It would be very convenient.
Well. Dude, I think what you're doing
is pretty good and I know that yesterday hurts and but.

(54:52):
You get yours. I mean, you still your freaking
career is pretty strong, wouldn't you say?
Yeah, I don't even. Remember how many I didn't know
how many top 10s I had made to? You said it yesterday and I was
like, damn, that's pretty good. Yeah.
I mean, dude, you've. Contended for Angler of the Year
a bunch you've I mean you think of the amount of people that

(55:13):
have been around for a long timeand I mean you look at swindle
and this is no slide on him but dude he's fished 20 classics
he's been around for a long timehe's.
Never won. Elite, I mean you've done that,
you've been so close. What is your ultimate goal in
your career? Like where is it accomplishment

(55:34):
based or is it just longevity ofcareer?
Like what? Yeah, I mean I, I.
Obviously want to win all three,Yeah, elite, AOL and a classic
really won't. I really want to AOI for me
personally, but career wise the the classic would mean a lot
more. Yeah.

(55:56):
For whatever reason, the three day long event means so much
more than the whole year long event that way in other sports
though. I mean, what the team that wins
the season, I mean, the Patriotsone year went undefeated
throughout the entire season, but they lost the Super Bowl and
the Giants won and the Giants were the dudes who got the
parties. There's a.

(56:18):
But also. Being able to do it for for a
long time because I don't have achoice now, Like I can't go back
to swing on a hammer or nothing like that.
Like once you've done this, there's you want to make sure
that you stay here. Yeah, yeah.
And if you go back? To swinging a hammer.
You think you're motivated now if you went back to doing that,

(56:40):
but it's so hard to get real work.
Like I don't want to go do that again.
No, no. When did you start chasing this
dream? Like how old were you when you
were when the first time you said, man, I got to do this, so
it was a long time ago. Whenever Ken Cook won the
classic, like 91 or not 91, 2001or something like that.

(57:02):
Yeah, 3rd or 4th grade. 3rd or 4th grade.
Dang, so was Kim Cook your guy growing up?
Like, not really. Who was the?
Guy, you looked. Up to I mean I was a like.
Once I finally. Got old enough?
Like Hackney was my my guy. Like I liked Hackney.
I liked Hackney whenever you hadthe chipped teeth like you.

(57:24):
Know it was just. Hackney, you know, and he was
not as polished on camera, like got way more wound up catching
fish. He, I mean, he was my guy.
I liked him. I liked the way he fished, just
like everything around. Him because he always had a.
Big Rod and I always caught him his way and like he knew

(57:47):
whenever it was teed up for him,like he took care of it.
You know, he he showed up and hehe closed and that was that was
what I what I like. Obviously, you know, we all like
Kevin and Kevin's that's that wasn't really my he's not you.
No, it's. Not my hackney's much more.
Like you. Than Kevin.

(58:08):
But you know, we all looked up to Kevin.
Because he was just so dominant.Yeah, he was.
I mean. Unbelievable.
With his wins and all that. But he that wasn't my my, my guy
like Denny Brauer, Greg Hackney,those were my guys.
Some good guys. It.

(58:31):
Did you get a chance to talk to Paul?
Marx afterwards I did. I talked to him a little.
Bit and he actually told me, he said it's kind of funny.
The first time he ever touched one of those blue trophies was
mine. He told me that trophy.
At. Open the right after I won it at
Santee and who even knew who Paul Marx was way back?

(58:53):
That was the first like one of the first times I ever met him
was that night and we battled itout to the end.
But he's won a lot of money on here and I knew he was going to
be. I knew him and Emil and Tucker
were going to be a problem from the get go.
Because they got a. Lot of tricks up their sleeve
too with a whole different worldthat.

(59:18):
I don't. Have I think the.
Way he fishes and I know that I mentioned it to him and I said I
don't ever want to compare anybody.
I would never compare anyone to Kevin Van Damme because that's
just horrible. And I'm not saying that, but
what some of those guys are doing mathematically is
literally what Kevin did to change the sport.

(59:39):
Like Kevin came and got faster and and put his bait in front of
more fish. They're doing it with
technology, but it's the exact same thing.
It is mathematical all of a sudden.
I mean, I watched Wesley Gore doit and he's fishing fry garters
around docks and. He's fishing if you

(01:00:00):
mathematically. Added up, he is fishing three
days worth of docks if you fished them the traditional way
in one day, and that only makes.Sense that you're.
You know, mathematical, Yeah. It's.
It is wild. So half and half would keep you
happy. Half and half I don't.

(01:00:22):
I don't care. I.
Mean, I think you're unhappy, but you know what I mean.
Like. You think that that I mean, what
angler of the year to me is a fan?
I want to see the dude hold the trophy.
You is the best at everything. I want him.
I think that would that would 100.
Percent show you that guy but like.
Like I made a bunch. Of money with that thing.

(01:00:43):
I've called a pile of bass with it and I feel like I can hold my
own pretty good with most of them.
So it's like I don't want to go away because I can't do it.
I can do it. I just, you can't win for losing
these days like that. Feel like that's the only win
win we've got. It'll keep the armchair

(01:01:04):
quarterbacks at Bay. It'll keep everybody.
Everybody wins and I think. And I think it's fine with the
NPFL do, and I think that's the right thing for their league,
but I think it was the best movethey had at that.
Time today was she? I mean, it was if.
They had the simplest decision out on her any league I mean,

(01:01:25):
and it has worked out great for them.
But I also think it's hard to like as much as people hate it,
it's also hard to turn off technology in a sport that's
been driven by technology. Dude like and it's not always
something, but rated line gave people access to fish they never

(01:01:46):
could catch before map cards. Yeah.
That that to. Me is the biggest thing that
never gets talked about. It changed everything.
Like, and especially when you hear Rick Klein talking about
like way back when fishing ATVA tournament, you literally went
and you threw a crankbait till you had a bite.
Yeah, and you threw a buoy. Out.

(01:02:08):
And then you went that way untilyou quit getting bites and threw
a buoy out, and then you finallygot a spot.
And that's why, like, it was so dominant when they found a.
Spot like. They creamed them dude because
nobody else had it. You know it was all by their
self. And those bass, unless you know

(01:02:30):
you, unless they came up schooling, you never had a clue
they were there. Flip.
It the invention of flipping. Like, I mean that it was the
same and again, it's not technology, but it you talk to
people that. Were around them.
And they're like, there was plenty of people like there's a
reason there's length limits on your rods.
And also because people are likethis is they're accessing fish

(01:02:52):
that you couldn't access before.Like it's the same kind of stuff
that you hear, but you. Don't think about that.
I thought they had. We always had a limit on them
because of the camera guys, because like if I had a 10 foot
rod, PPPSOLI never thought aboutthat.
But no, it was it was literally because guys started using these

(01:03:14):
giant long rods to excess fish way back in cane and stuff.
Like it's every rule has a you know what I mean?
It's the same reason why you can't build platforms.
I mean, how much more effective would you be if I was 6 foot?
3 or 4 it'd be so awesome I havea work around.

(01:03:36):
I mean, I'm just waiting for an angler to have the balls to do
it. And I've said you can't build a
platform, but nobody can tell you what shoes you can wear.
Yeah, I didn't know breaking. You roll.
Up in a pair. Of KISS disco booties.
I mean, there will be a rule thenext year.
Yeah. But I but you will get away with

(01:03:56):
it for one year. It.
Now you're a master. What you do is awesome to watch.
What did? You say to Paul when?
You gave him a hug on the stage.Was just a quick Congrats or,
like, did you know you knew at that point?
Yeah. Like, when did you know?

(01:04:17):
Like when you said you didn't look at bass track when you came
in. But I knew whenever.
Whenever. 3:00 happened that it was it was over, you know, and
it is what it is, you know, but it was not my time to win like
the but I don't still don't understand how because the first
three days went so flawless. I caught everything I hooked or

(01:04:40):
if I lost it, I still caught it,you know like afterwards.
Then the final day I lost, you know, 3-3 females and had a.
You know that big? Would not eat it, just you could
feel it some point in. Time during the.
Morning like say like 10:00, butI was like, you know, it, it

(01:05:03):
happens sometimes. I mean, I lost one the final day
at Santee and then end up, you know, it helped me find a, you
know, A8 pounder. And that was.
And honestly, I kind of thought it was going to go the same way.
I was like, but here it is last hour of the tournament, I'm
going to catch a big one and it's going to all work out.

(01:05:24):
And that's why I mean, I kept mycool, never freaked out, but I
know losing those fish, I broke one off, hadn't broke one off in
a long time. And.
It was one of the ones like justswimming.
Down the bank 4 pounder throw over there and it ate it like it
never seen. Nothing.

(01:05:44):
Like wow, finally get one. To eat it because I.
Threw it a bunch of them that didn't eat it and finally get
one. He didn't break it up like he
has. Ronnie Moore got what he wanted.
Yeah. No comment it but I.

(01:06:07):
Don't think that also. Shows your mental toughness and
the fact that like things were not going your way, but you're
still like it's going to happen.And that's also what you that's
the hero story. Like dude, what you tried to do
is one of the most ballsy. Like when I saw you take that
mail out of there and late release it, I'm like, gosh, we
are about to watch a historic chapter.

(01:06:28):
How many times did that big freak like enough like?
There was probably, there was a 20 minute span.
I bet she, she, you know, eitherrolled on it or nosed up to it
probably 10 times. And I was like, here it is.
This is going to be the one, youknow, that she's actually going
to eat it and she doesn't. And I don't know.

(01:06:49):
I did. That I threw one.
Back actually 2 separate times at Santee whenever I won but.
Also it's bit me. I threw A4 pounder back at
Murray. First bass I caught.
It was a 4 LB male. There was a 7 LB female and I

(01:07:10):
couldn't get her to go. Couldn't get her to.
Go threw him back and they both left.
And so I ended up with 0. And so I mean it, you live by
the sword, die by the sword. But that is that that was the
only way that I was going to catch her.
Yeah, You know, I wasn't, she wasn't going to get up there.
I wasn't going to be able to leave, come back in 20 minutes

(01:07:31):
and and throw up there and catchher on the first first slip.
I didn't feel. I mean, I guess it could have
happened. We'll never know, but I think
that was the only way I was going to catch her.
Yeah. Well, I appreciate.
You doing this? I know this day sucks but.
Could suck a lot worse. I mean you.
Could have missed the cut totally and been like, I, you

(01:07:54):
know what I mean? Like you knew you were on the
fish, it just didn't it? Didn't work out and I always say
that. To all you guys, and I do
believe it like it's part of thestory and I don't know who why
the story is the way it is, but it is that way.
I mean, why did Jason Christie get as close as he got to the
classic repeatedly and then justget?

(01:08:15):
Stomped like. Things that were just you
thought, oh, it's it. But that's also why Jason
Christie's classic win was as epic as it was because it was
like, dude, Kevin Van Damme at one time and nobody even
remembers this. At one time Kevin Van Damme was
considered and said publicly as the guy the greatest angler to

(01:08:35):
never win the big one like Kevinfreaking Van Damme like it's
that's part of the day and do even say that people are like
what? And statistically, he wanted.
One out of seven times he showedup, yeah, but he missed.
The but the first. 11 He didn't win, and that was the story and
that. I mean, now, people.

(01:08:57):
Don't even believe that that wasever a time and you got lots
ahead of you. Oops, I got me and me and the.
Classic. We got, we got problems.
Something always happens to me in the classic.
I don't know why. Whatever does it feel different?
Like obviously the. Classic feels, it feels
different for me as an MC like that morning is.

(01:09:18):
Yeah, it's all all different. The practice, I mean everything
you're practicing a week before then you get one day and there's
so much hoopla and stuff in between.
You know, you're, you're nothing's normal like no every
other tournament. And I think like, I don't know,
just brought in short fish. It cost me, you know, a lot of

(01:09:38):
money 5 minutes late where that was probably the best shot I've
ever had at winning a classic. And then like you can't come
back from that the next morning,You know, at grand, the first
bite I had was A5 pounder and fighting it and it, my line
breaks and I, it lays on the surface.

(01:09:59):
I wrap it around my rod and go to pull it up and it goes.
Out into the abyss, and I'm likeyou.
Can't come back from this like it's over.
Do you still see that? Line leaving.
In your and like we just looks like a pigtail girl.
Like you'll never forget, no, like.
How how like how is? This that why is it happening to
me? I don't I don't understand.

(01:10:20):
I think next year, the classic, I'm either like not going to pre
practice or not even not even going to make a cast during
practice and just like I'm gonnarig some.
Rods before we. Go there and like, that's just
what I'm fishing with during tournament.
Like just try something completely different.
Yeah, Cox has always. Said to and this is also

(01:10:42):
explains his thinking, but he's always said like one day pre
fish is perfect. And his whole theory when you
think about us, think of how many times maybe you can pick a
lake, any lake. You go fishing today and there's
times where you go to a lake andyou get your teeth kicked in.
But that night you go home, you have dinner, you sit around, you
think pissed at those fish. At least that's how what I'm

(01:11:05):
shooting shows. That's how I feel the next day.
You almost always catch. You either get that clue in day
one or you almost. And he's like, it's more natural
like in that in Cox, I think. That's another reason he stays
as. Busy as he does so, he doesn't
find himself putting too much because he's not.
And the classic is that tenfold because of the difference in

(01:11:28):
like, it's almost worst case scenario to get on them in
prefix 100% I'd rather not catch.
Crap, you know, and. Every year.
Like it's, oh, this one's going to be perfect.
The weather's going to be alright.
You know, they're going to swim to the bank.
Good shot to win the classic. And then it's cold winds blowing
like water, temperatures steadily dropping.

(01:11:49):
They don't do it so to be a coolarticle.
I need to let Louis stouter somebody know because everybody
has those stories like why I didn't win the classic.
Like Brosnik reminded me this week like of the Hartwell
Classic where he said he was on fish like he's never had before.
He said I've never ever do. But he said there was hundreds

(01:12:10):
of fish and you you needed to bethere in the first hour and
you'll blitz them. And he is couldn't sleep the
night before the first day of the classic he goes.
Out there the first day of the. Classic.
The boats freeze to the trailer and take off.
His delayed an hour or two hours, whatever it was that
morning because boats freaking literally froze to the trailer.

(01:12:30):
Nobody's arguing whether it should be, but he's on this
bite. He weighs in like 8 lbs day one
because he said you need it was the first hour day 2 and day
three he gets to go out and getsthe hour who is 17 lbs and 20
lbs and he said that. I still feel to this day.
That was my classic but literally he was froze out.

(01:12:51):
That's crazy. It's so.
Wild. And I think that doesn't get
enough credit like what you guysdo and how you do it in a public
world, like the things that can affect you.
Know. Stand.
In your way but. It goes back to the.
Mentally tough. Thing.
Oh yeah, because we're not playing.

(01:13:12):
We're not all in the same field,not all in the same course.
Like everything's different. You know, there's there's not
what a? Shooter Mcgavin who?
Do you hire and Happy Gilmore like on the golf course?
You know what I'm saying? She's a big sizzler.
You're a Jackass some. Sometimes you have.

(01:13:33):
You know whether. It be jet skis locals.
Fish and stuff like that that changes, you know your.
Fishing. Area, but not somebody else's.
You know it is it's it's a weirddeal.
It's a good job. I love it.
It's cool. It's cool.
Well, let's send. This how I am things with your
kid every time. Paul Marks, you are a freaking.

(01:13:59):
Bass master Elite Series champion.
I don't even. Realize it's really happening.
Yeah, it's crazy. It's doesn't feel real.
You said that on stage. When do you think it will feel
real? I don't know.
I don't. Know you're not supposed to say

(01:14:20):
I don't know in this. Interview your rookie interview
you gave me 1400. I don't knows I know but.
It's crazy have this thing. Didn't expect it coming into the
tournaments. Fish all over the bank and just
kind of down the spot. So I was catching some small
ones and had a few places. I got some big bites and
sweating. Never expected.
This at all? How can you say you didn't

(01:14:43):
expect? It I mean you were a pre
tournament favorite. I know just time of year.
And I don't know time time. Of year with all.
The fish on the bank and the herring spawn really wasn't that
going on that much just because all the fish were still spawning
spots weren't that fat. Most of them were.
Post fun. So to be able to catch fat

(01:15:05):
enough spots and enough of them was really fortunate.
I don't know how they how I caught enough of them to make it
happen because they were gettingout there skinny and I don't
know. It's unbelievable going into
this season. Would this have been the one you
circled as that's my best shot? No, probably not if it.

(01:15:25):
Would have been three weeks later, maybe I would have just
because they'd be off everyone of them be offshore and be top
water and school and fish more school and fish.
I mean, obviously they were schooling some, but I think it
would be a little. Bit better opportunity for me,
but. It worked out this week, so.
So why did it work out? I mean.

(01:15:53):
It just did. I just said.
I ran around. Did what I love to.
Do I mean pretty much trained mywhole life for it fishing
Lanier. I mean I haven't fished Hartwell
a ton but a good enough amount kind of know the best areas of
the lake with the biggest spots so it worked out.
Can't believe it. What is the reaction?
Been like how many texts I don'tknow I got like.

(01:16:17):
Almost 800 texts I got to respond to so thanks everyone
for texting me but I'll get backto you eventually.
You. I mean winning lead.
Series, man, I always think it'sjust such a weird experience to
go through because I mean, you wonder, you think you focus on
fishing the whole time and then all of a sudden, boom, you're in
front of a big crowd, You've gotyour family there, people are

(01:16:40):
holding up signs you you get rushed around to do a bunch of
different media stuff. When was the 1st?
Moment you got to. Actually absorb.
It with your family. Was that the boat ramp or was it
not till you got home? It was at at the boat ramp after
I did all. The media stuff.
And everyone came down to my boat and we're all hanging out.
It was it was really special. I mean, I barely remember even

(01:17:00):
fishing the last last four days.I was I was running around so
fast. And for come down to this and
may have the trophy. It's it's crazy.
I don't remember running around.I remember like 3 fish catches
all week that really, Yeah. It's and, and I assume you're
not that. Guy normally because most
anglers remember every single I was out there on the water

(01:17:22):
yesterday, I was. Remembering everything.
But now I I don't remember anything.
It's a blur. It's a it's.
A blur. Happened like that feels like it
was weeks ago. Who is the coolest?
Person to hand the trophy to or to to.
Probably my dad, just because. Super special.
I mean, he's taught me a lot about spotted bass fishing and
spent my whole life doing it. When did I mean you guys drew

(01:17:49):
up? I mean, he's a pretty
accomplished angler in his own right.
When do you? Think he started thinking that.
This was a reality for you or something that hey, my kid might
fish for this one day. I don't.
I don't know, I mean. I.
Really. I mean, I didn't fish in.
College and fished high school and stuff, but I really wasn't

(01:18:10):
that into it. And then I don't know, I got, I
got a new Phoenix in like 2019 or something and fish some BFLS
and then I don't know, just it'sall happened.
I never really planned, planned too much to do.
I've always loved it and loved fishing and sport and all that,
but it just, it's all just happened like that.
It's crazy to think back on whenyou think.

(01:18:32):
Back on like your. Childhood What is like the most
earliest kind of. Fishing.
Memory you have with your dad. I mean, he's like checked me out
of school. This time of year and stuff when
we had cloudy rainy days to go out on linear and fish.
So I mean. I don't know he's taken.

(01:18:52):
Me so many times river fishing, ocean fishing, I always spent
wanting to catch a big fish wherever I'm I just want to
catch the biggest fish that are in there, whether it's carp or
whatever. So you're you're an angler like
there's. People that only fish for bass,
but you're that guy who as long as it's pulling, it's good.
Oh yeah, no, I love any. Kind of fishing.

(01:19:13):
I mean, crappie fishing is one of my favorites.
Too I like. Jet boat, river fishing,
running, running current. That's so if I didn't
tournament. Fish and.
Do this. I would just have the biggest
baddest jet boat. What do you like?
About that just. The fish are big and it's.
Cool. Running around rivers and going
over Shoals and stuff like that.It's it's cool.

(01:19:37):
And they're like biting. Year round, like in August,
they're still biting. So Avco.
Not only makes incredible. Outdoor clothing, but they care
about anglers. With their 10% pledge, Avco and
the Shed family donate at least 10% of the company's profits to
conservation and making fishing better.
Now back to the show. What was your biggest question

(01:19:58):
personally coming into the Eliteseries this season?
I mean, I think everybody shows up and has questions.
I mean, unless you're the very few that is like.
I was meant for this. I mean, I think everybody
questions. Yeah, I mean.
That's a tough question. I don't know.

(01:20:20):
So many. I had so many questions.
I'm still wondering about some stuff that.
Just how everything works and. I mean, going to these different
fisheries and trying not to wreck my boat navigate places.
So I mean there's. All I think about is fishing.
It's. Kind of kind of wild where

(01:20:42):
we're. Going and.
I don't know when we. Did our pre.
Interview, our rookie interview.That's kind of what I.
Took from it like. This is all like, who are you, a
fish? If tomorrow fishing is gone,
there's no such thing as competitive bass fishing.
Who the hell is Paul Marx? I don't know.

(01:21:04):
I just. Like to have fun?
Hang out with. My friends and have fun try to
do it every day just So what do you what do you do?
For fun, I mean, if you take fishing away, I.
Don't know what I'd do. No clue.
I'd I would hunt. More I'd I used.
To hunt a lot but nowadays don'tdon't hunt near as often just

(01:21:26):
because I like fishing when I get in the fall when it gets
cold to fishing is my favorite but all your friends.
Fish. Pretty.
Much every one of them. Don't get along with people
that. Don't fish, I do, but just.
I don't know. It's my life.
Yeah, Yeah. Did the hoist in this?
Trophy. I mean, it hasn't.
Even been 24 hours. So maybe this is a tough

(01:21:48):
question to ask, but did hoist in this trophy answer any of the
questions you had coming into the season about your abilities,
your right to be here? Yes, I mean.
I knew that I I was maybe capable of it, but I'm in
fishing against those hundred guys.
They're the best in the world and I don't know to get this
thing is it's crazy. When did you?

(01:22:11):
Think you had one? Like, did you have a moment?
Well, when I came in and my camera.
Got because no one was followingme but I was running around like
crazy nuts. Like like just hitting, pulling.
Up making one. Cast somewhere I was going to
the next and then no one was following me at the end of the
day and no drone. No, nothing.
And I was. Like man, someone's catching

(01:22:31):
them. I just thought I'm going to get
like 4th place or something and then came in and my camera got
like grabbed me. He's like, ah, don't ever let
the highs and lows get you down.And then he hopped out of my
boat and I refreshed bass track right after I checked in.
I was like, holy smokes, like it's going to be really close.
Me and Tucker and 2nd and then got up there and went down to

(01:22:52):
where we swapped to the Toyotas and Luke Palmer was sitting I.
Was like, oh, how'd you do that?He's.
Like, oh, I got 16 or 17. I always started doing the math
in my head. I was like, Oh my gosh, he went
because he only had 13 on Bastrop.
And I was like, this is going tobe really close, doing the math
in my head and stuff. And then wound up it was I had

(01:23:12):
enough. But that was the most stressed
out I've ever been in my life. But that's also the I would say.
That's the good thing that's stress.
Like I wish you guys couldn't like I've tried to.
I've always said like I wish youguys couldn't even look at bass
track on Sunday because you didn't know idea, you know, but
but even that it was in your situation didn't matter because

(01:23:32):
it was close enough that hey, Tucker could have won.
Cook obviously was your biggest competition go into that final
day and I thought what happened between you and Cook was really
cool. You haven't had a chance to
absorb a, but commentating on itand watching it was really cool
because it was like it was a. Battle between and it was.

(01:23:53):
The two different, you know thatthere was 2 predominant patterns
in this tournament, the, the site fishing pattern and the
herring stuff. You know, like I said right
before you want, it's either thesite master or or the herring
master. And you guys were going head to
head. I mean, I know you did site
fishing in the afternoon, but itwas a really, it was a really, I

(01:24:15):
think it was cool for the industry for, I mean, it was
just one of those moments that was very cool.
It was cool to witness. Battle between.
Shallow. And offshore fishing.
And somehow I I never expected it to pan out like it did.
You pride yourself on being. An offshore guy, yeah, I mean,
people can say I just catch him because.
Of live scope, but I don't know does that bother you?

(01:24:39):
When you hear. That because it's people that.
Don't don't know anything about it anyways because everyone has
it on their boat so yeah, whatever.
Watching you fish. You said how fast you were
fishing dude. How many spots do you think you
hit in a day? Really not as many as like.

(01:25:01):
If it was in a couple weeks fromnow and they're really in brush
and offshore, I mean, I would hit at least 70 in a day, but.
I was hitting thirty spots probably.
I was rotating four or five different ones because just
waiting to pull up, maybe schoolin or be set up a little
different, but I was hitting. Hitting a lot and I'm.

(01:25:21):
Some places I was just like. Exploring the whole area around
there. It's just a big area, you know,
around the hump or saddle that where the herring spawned and
they moved back off. So I was just going around kind
of hunting them down and findingthem.
Do you take? Mathematics into like when I
watched you, I'm like, I mean I.Think it's the story of that.

(01:25:44):
Technology, whether you're usingit the way you were or Wesley
Gore, you know, fish and fry garters on docks.
And I'm like, he is, if you mathematically look at what he's
doing to traditionally fish thatdock, how everybody's fished
them for generations, let's say conservatively, it's a 4 minute
fish to like hit all the pilingsand feel like, you know, you

(01:26:07):
fished it. He's blowing through docks and
he's just like, weren't it's, it's eliminated all of the
downtime. So he, you know, statistically
on live we talked. About it and it was like.
Man, if you look what he's doing, he's hitting three days
worth. Of.
Docks in one day. Do you look at the herring deal

(01:26:29):
like that? Because for sure you assess it
so. Quick, it's like.
The freaking Terminator. You and you move on.
Yeah, I mean it's. It definitely helps.
Just eliminate. Bad water and figure out what
they're biting that day like howthey're set up, what the clouds
are doing, what sun's doing whenI mean it just helps you figure

(01:26:52):
something out for that specific day like this.
The third day I it got sunny, itwas first sun we'd really had,
and they'll come up, hit a Chrome top water whenever they
like first get out there even ifit's pretty calm and went fish
some brush piles. Actually my dad and Mark Harden
sank back in I think 2018 or 2019 something.
Me and Mark fished A-Team team series and my dad and him came.

(01:27:16):
Up here and sang brush. For it and we didn't catch them
out of it then, but it really paid off because I caught two
big fish out of them so. But just just knowing that, I
mean. Like this, this time of year in
Lanier, I go out there and have piles everywhere.
So there were just on certain little kind of back points and
secondary points kind of hidden a little bit and I just got

(01:27:37):
through a top water catch, giantpost pond fish.
Watching you in live. You would put your throwing
motor down, make one, cast 2 casts and be gone.
What are you? Is that just looking?
For fish or what? How are you making such a quick
decision? I mean, although the fish.

(01:27:58):
Are so smart on these herring lakes, especially Hartwell.
There's so many tournaments hereand I mean, you pull up, you
make one cast, they follow your bait all the way to the troll
motor and then there's no reasonto keep fishing there because
they aren't going to bite. They don't hit it right when it
comes over them the first time. They usually usually won't bite.
You kind of called this from dayone.
Not your victory, but when I talked to you the first day of

(01:28:20):
the tournament, you know, we dida morning interview and you're
like, I, I feel confident I can catch 15 lbs of spotted bass,
and then it's all going to come down to a sight bite in the
afternoon. So rare to go into an event,
whether you had won this or not,you called exactly how this
event was going to be won. Yeah, it's pretty, pretty crazy.

(01:28:41):
I mean after the second day. On the third day, I was really.
Struggling and my fish had just kind of moved and I don't know,
I think it was because the sign they just kind of moved out and
they might have been like on thebottom where I couldn't see them
and they were not biting this good.
And I was like, man, they're they're they're leaving.
I got I got to figure something else out and I went through the
top water and caught some. But then the final day it was

(01:29:02):
cloudy in the morning. I ended up catching some bigger
spots. Again, this is weird and I'm not
comparing. You to this guy because I
wouldn't compare anybody to him but watching what's happened
with this technology and watching I feel like we've seen
different levels of this technology and now we're we're

(01:29:24):
confronted with Matt. Pangarak calls them super.
Scopers or somebody who, like you guys, have eliminated all of
the fluff. It is like we're here to catch
fish. But weirdly, it struck me and it
made me think. Of Van Damme like.
And what how Van Damme changed the sport in the way that he

(01:29:45):
just speed up. He just put his.
Bait in front of more fish. Like if you look at what the
sport was pre Kevin Van Damme, people fished a lot slower.
Kevin Van Damme comes along and there was fast anglers and those
fast anglers looked at him and were like, dude, what you're
doing is a whole other level. This is involving.
Technology. But is it the same thing
happening again? Think so?

(01:30:05):
There's I think. There's I think there was more
fish. Back back, back then I think I
don't know how to. Explain it but.
I don't know. I'm not, I'm not old enough to
really have fish back then. But from what it seems like the
fish, there was way more fish back then and you could side
scan and really find them. Like now on a ledge.
There wasn't a side scan even. When he started, well, you know

(01:30:28):
what I mean. Yeah, I mean, I mean.
I don't I don't imagine there was a time in the.
World where there was no signs. Yeah, that's crazy.
That's crazy, but he he just understood the.
Offshore. Better than everyone, I mean.
Fishing out there where they live, I mean.
A lot of them live shallow year round, but most places like

(01:30:49):
different fit this place they live, majority of them live
deep. So there's so many different
variables. It's harder.
I don't, I don't even know how to answer that question.
But so many variables to to fishing and how much it's
changed over the years. The fish.
I think the fish are smart, so smart nowadays.

(01:31:09):
I think it's the same. Again, just comes down to
mathematics though, like he justburned his bait in front of more
fish and whether it was shallow or deep.
I mean, his weapon was speed, but that's exactly what I see
from you guys. Like it feels like it's.
Just I'm going to hit more. Spots, I'm going to put it in
front of more and ultimately, like, just like the dock thing,

(01:31:32):
you're fishing three days worth of docks in one day.
You're hitting three days worth of herring spots in one day.
Has that been a progression? Like you told me before, you got
a forward facing unit when you were like 17, so six years ago.
Has it speeded up for you? Yeah.

(01:31:52):
I mean, just eliminate so much bad water and.
Figure out how to get the biggerones to.
Buy you can tell size sorta so Imean I don't.
Know where do? You there's so many variables
it's hard to. It's hard to grasp and put into
words. Yeah.

(01:32:13):
Yeah. Where do?
You think that technology goes in the future?
There's no talent there's. Probably crazy stuff they're
working on right now. I don't know.
It's going to be crazy. You obviously have heard the
negative. About it, I mean, I don't think
you can not hear the negative about it, do you?
Does that negative exist amongstanglers of your age?

(01:32:35):
I mean, is there 2120 year old, 22 year old kids that you know,
that are just like, yeah, I don't want it.
There might be. Like one or two.
But now everyone likes it. It's just the way it is.
Nowadays. I'm sure it'll probably get
banned or something will happen.Something different is going to
change. Just too much stuff going.
On but I don't know why. Everyone has it on their boats

(01:32:57):
and if if it. Was that easy to do?
Then it would be someone different.
I call these in the Southeast, there's like TVA and all that.
There's like 10 people that thatwent a lot of stuff and it's not
the live. Scope that's.
Making them catch them. It's just the ability to.
Do it and figure the fish. Out.
And make it happen. If it went away, what would it

(01:33:17):
do to? Your career.
I mean, I could still fish. Offshore.
But don't know these places, it would be hard to catch any.
They're so smart. Everywhere we go, fish are so
educated and it would be tough but you feel.
Like you. Would you would adapt?
Yeah, I would. Still, we already catch them.
Yeah. Yeah.

(01:33:38):
That's what I've said from the start.
I'm like, it's not an easy technology to use clearly,
because if it was, we've had thelast conservatively the last two
to three years, everybody who hasn't been strong with that
technology has done nothing but work on that technology.

(01:33:58):
And if it was easy, they would have figured it out by now.
And my theory is if you guys arewilling to put the time in and
get as good with that, well, youcan put the.
Time in and get as. Good with anything else.
And you didn't start fishing when you were 17.
That's just how you got fishing since I could walk.
When did you? First think you would be a.

(01:34:19):
Tournament angler, Was it beforethat?
Yeah. I mean, I fished.
Tournaments with my dad and stuff since I was a little kid
and always went to his weigh insurance and I've been around
it so much. So what does your dad think of
that? Technology.
He likes it, he likes it. He's still.
Got some baits whenever like we fish team tournaments, he likes
to throw around the back of the boat and throw around.
I'm like just throw this, come on.

(01:34:39):
He's like, no, he keeps throwinghis top water stuff.
Like that? I think he likes it.
I think it's hard to. Erase that though, like that's
that's where I think the biggestadvantage you guys have if if.
Your most recent successes? Over the last six years have
been done, a lot of them with that, yeah.

(01:35:02):
No different than Jason Christie's successes have been
done with a spinner bait. So it's so hard to block out
your strongest weapon, and that is clearly one of the strongest
weapons that you guys have rightnow.
Who do you think is the? Best with it.

(01:35:24):
Like who do you watch use it? And be like gosh, Koya is pretty
badass. With.
It why? Just he's.
He's good with it. He, I mean, he was one of the
first. Ones, you know, do the minnow
stuff kind of blew that up and. I think he has some crazy baits.
Yeah, no one knows about so there's SO.

(01:35:47):
Many nowadays. Yeah, there's, there's a lot of.
Really good ones. With it.
Those crazy. Baits, do you think?
Weirdly, to me it feels like theentire.
Industry is site fishing right now.
It's no different than what DrewCooks doing.
You are shaking a bait in front of a fish, whether it's in 30
feet of water or three feet of water.

(01:36:08):
It is site fishing whether you're seeing it with your
glasses or you're seeing it withyour graph.
Is that symbolizing it too much or is that the theory I mean
that I I used? To joke about that back years
ago, like, oh, how'd you catch him?
I was like, oh, side fishing. Yeah.
This back no one really. Used live.
Scope like it, like it's used nowadays and like, oh, I was
side fishing. They know I'm.

(01:36:29):
Like way out there in the middleof the lake, but.
It is this something? You plan to do your whole life I
guess. So now.
But it wasn't. Years, like a couple years ago
now wasn't my plan, but now I think it is.
Especially after this. Yeah, it's crazy.
What was your plan? A few years ago, what do you?

(01:36:51):
Think you you would be doing when you were 23?
I never really had a plan. I don't I.
Don't know, I just kind of go with the flow and see what
happens and that's how it's beengoing.
You're a very mellow dude. It.
Shocker, his phone's ringing. You're a very mellow person.

(01:37:12):
Do you? And, and I'll be honest, you
don't. You're not super comfortable
with this kind of stuff. No, I'm not good at this stuff.
I got to get better. At it, but I'm trying to.
I think I'll get better as time goes on my interviews.
Have they not gotten better? Yeah, no, they've gotten better
and and. You're do that.
I don't think there's such a thing as not being good with it.

(01:37:32):
There's not being comfortable with it.
Yeah, that's which I think is also.
Normal. Like it is.
Weird to sit and. Have a recorded conversation
with any other time in life thatthis happens, You're in a
deposition. Or getting.
Interviewed by the law. It's not a normal thing.
But I think I've always said like, just be real.

(01:37:54):
Be who you are. Does it?
Like, do you? Think of this.
Job like that with I got to get better at this and I have to
work on that and here's my strengths my weaknesses I've got
better bed fish in this year I used.
To never never like it, never doit.
But I practice this year a lot and it's worked out for me.

(01:38:16):
How many? Key bed.
Fish, did you end up getting in this?
I just caught I caught 2 in thistournament.
That's it, Yeah. So you never ended up getting 1
yesterday? Because you did go chow.
Yeah, I went look and I found a couple fry garters.
One was like 3 1/2, maybe 4 lbs.But I couldn't get it to buy it.
So I was, I went in it for probably an hour and a half and
I was like, I just got to stick to my roots and get back out

(01:38:36):
here. I'm like, like how much of that?
Was a a need to catch bigger fish or a feeling that I've
caught as much as I can catch out here.
I just, I knew I could. I had a.
Chance to catch a six pounder ona top water over a brush pile.
I knew that they were there. I mean you could tell when
largemouth are in a pile that kind of take over an air take

(01:38:57):
take over a pile and they just they look different, act a
little different. I knew I could maybe get one to
come up and. Bite so I'd.
Rather, I think that would be way cooler than stealing one off
its off its eggs. You do you not like.
Bed fishing. No, I had no problem with it.
I don't know. I'm sure some of the spots I

(01:39:18):
caught were were on the bed too.So, yeah, yeah.
Who was your guy? Growing up, did you watch?
Pro fishing growing up, did you have guys that you looked up to?
I don't know. I mean I.
I I haven't watched it that muchmy whole life.
I haven't watched a ton of a tonof it.
So why do you want to do? This if you I.

(01:39:39):
Love fishing, I love fish. I think they're so cool.
I love water, being on the water, being around just cool
places. Has it always been that way?
When? How young were you?
When? You realized.
Man like Waters. Were I just want to be at a
lake, I want to be at a river. We had a lake house when I was.

(01:40:01):
A little kid and it was only like a mile from my actual house
where we live now and. I would get red wigglers.
And night crawlers every day I caught thousands and thousands
of blue go. There's a picture of me when I
was like this tall walk around with a brim in my mouth,
walking, holding it in my mouth.But probably I mean then.

(01:40:23):
I always take my dad's baitcaster she'd get.
He'd get mad at me I'd got and throw him in the yard, throw his
lures around, beat. Him up.
I like to practice. Yeah, just.
Messing around, breaking stuff. Which all.
Seems normal to me. I mean, I I did the same thing,
practice cast nut cans and I think every angler did.
It just seems weird to me that like you were never really like

(01:40:46):
everybody, like I grew up watching so and so.
But you is you. So what drives you just to be
the best at fishing? Yeah, I think so.
I. Think so?
Just want to go. Wherever we have to go, I just.
Want to find the biggest ones? Find the best pattern.
Your entire house made the cut. Yeah, pretty awesome.

(01:41:09):
Pretty awesome. Lil burgomish.
Cap in the top ten too. We've been four of us.
Yeah, it was. It's.
Crazy me and Tucker, I can't believe it came down to me and
him first and seconds. It's unreal.
Spent a lot of a lot of time fishing together and stuff the
last couple years and special. What do you?
Would you beat him by? 12 ounces or something?
Not much. Yeah, not much.

(01:41:29):
It was. 12 or 14 something, something like that.
If he had beat you, how do you? Think you'd feel to that I
wouldn't be mad at all. I'd be so happy.
Really. So.
You were win win, you know you're.
Yep. Was cook your biggest?
Worry or did you know by the time you got this time had some

(01:41:51):
big bed fish he was saving? Her.
Yeah. So I was like, oh.
Man, he's he's. Gonna have like 8 pounder or
something today. Paid A7 pounder that he.
Worked. Forever like in it what?
Here's some like my brother. And everyone said they were.
Watching, they said it was the most painful thing to watch.
He's like, oh, she's nosing downon it.
No, it's like, yeah. He said it was stressful.

(01:42:13):
Yeah. No, it was.
Stressful, but it was awesome. It was really awesome.
Like you had two guys going headto

(01:42:40):
And it was, it was really cool. I mean, and Cook did some, did
some wild things. And it turns out I think he
needed to, you know, with what you caught.
I mean, I'd have to. Talk to him about it but.
That's what you want. I mean, to me that's, that's the
battle that you want. Winning this.

(01:43:06):
Does it satisfy? You or does it make?
You say, man, I want more of that.
It's pretty satisfying, but definitely.
Want to win? Win another one or I don't know.
Just keep doing good. The beginning of the season?
I asked. You what you wanted to
accomplish. You told me making the classic
would be very cool and that was kind of your goal.
Is that still your goal? For sure, for sure, I think.

(01:43:30):
I said that too, like maybe win one or something.
I never expected to win one my first year.
It's, it's unbelievable. Has this changed anything?
Like does the goal like you're in contention for rookie of the
year after winning this? So you're like, man, I need a
rookie year would be cool just because you.
Only get one shot at it, so it'dbe awesome.

(01:43:51):
And all the guys that are rookies, it's going to be hard
to do. They're all so good.
I know Easton got off to a bad start, but he's coming.
Yeah, he's coming. Were you?
More. Shocked.
Watching Easton win the bass. Master Classic are more shocked
with his two train wrecks in Florida.

(01:44:12):
I was shocked with the train wrecks.
Classic. Not a surprise for one bit, I
said to A. Media person yesterday he's won
the classic. And made the last. 2
championship Sundays and I'm still more shocked by what
happened in Florida. That's how solid he is.
Why do you think he's as good ashe is?

(01:44:34):
He's have you spent a lot of time with?
Him. Not a time, no.
I. Mean we talk a little bit, I get
weigh insurance and stuff, but Ithink he just really understands
fish and how they act, where they go, why they're somewhere
and he can, he can. Catch them.
I mean, yeah, obviously. He's yeah, see the best scoper.
Is. Probably him, yeah, it's pretty

(01:44:56):
good. And it's not the live scope I
mean. Yeah, he's using it, but he's
really figuring out the fish. And yeah.
Yeah. It's.
It's also like you see the work ethic that a lot of you guys
have. I mean, you spend a ridiculous
amount of time, I don't know howmany days in a row I.
Fished. I went to Lanier every single

(01:45:16):
day before this, just practicingand preparing and getting really
dialed in. I just noticed for the first
time. You have ink in your hand.
Yeah. Me.
What is that? Me, Tucker.
And. Hayden got it.
Now it's a secret what it means.You can't tell me what it means.
No. Let.
Me see it, What does it say? Secret.
Me, Tucker and. Hayden Marbut we we all got them

(01:45:38):
so and it's a secret. Yep, it's on the right hand
where we hold our. Rod so pretty sweet.
Sam, are will you ever? Tell.
Anyone. Nah.
Do you think they'll ever tell? Anyone I.
Don't think so. Wow.
Yeah, pretty. Cool.
What it means. I mean, now I want to know what
it means. Now I'm going to spend the rest

(01:45:59):
of my life trying to figure out it says something, but.
I don't know. There's another word on there
that's all right. You can never.
Figure. It out OK.
That makes it. Cooler, yeah, that's I don't
know. Is that the only tattoo you?
Had alper I never get another one I never.
Expected to get a tattoo but we talked about it and we had so
much success over the past couple years so we all decided

(01:46:23):
to get. One whose idea was it?
I think. Hayden whenever.
He, he was. Leading the Toyota Championship,
he said he was going to get it across his chest and then.
It just. Spiraled after that we talked
about like 30 times and then finally we just decided to do
it. But you were never a tattoo guy.
Before that. Ever before now.

(01:46:46):
What are you scared of in? Life.
I don't know, not being able to go fishing a.
Lot so you don't have any like phobias like.
Scared of heights I am kind of scared of heights like.
At the classic, you know that the up the upstairs, did you

(01:47:08):
ever go up there but with it like the.
Lounge or whatever? No, just like the upstairs where
there was. Like port of the Expo?
No, I never was over there like.Looking down, stuff like that.
Scares me. It's just a glass thing.
A glass thing. I don't know.
Freaks me out. Heights.
I don't like snakes either. I don't like snakes.
Tucker he likes. Snakes.
He'll, he'll just. Grab one.

(01:47:29):
He'll just. I think he tried to grab one in
practice. I was swimming beside his boat
and he tried to reach down and get it.
He likes them. Yeah, he loves them.
Wow. We're in.
We're. In.
Lake Ontario one time and there's a big one swimming out.
We're like half a mile from land.
He threw over there, hooked it, brought in the boat, unhooked
it. I took a picture of him with it
and then he let it go. It climbed up in my motor, so he

(01:47:51):
had to grab it again and get it out of my motor and let it go.
And then a big seagull swooped down and grabbed it.
Like the Oceanic goals, the big ones were like, Oh my gosh, but.
He's not scared of. Him.
He's a weird little dude, isn't?He he seems so polished, Yeah,
but. He's not as.
Polished. He's pretty.

(01:48:11):
I don't know. He's pretty polished, I'd say he
doesn't like that dog of his. Mother's He hated that I brought
it. Up on stage.
He loves it, it sleeps with him every night.
That How did that whole group get together, the four of you
guys, I guess after we qualifiedat.
Martin Last year we all all wentback to my house and we just had

(01:48:33):
like a. Big party, tons of people.
Came over and I think we just decided that night we're going
to, oh really? Travel together?
Yep. Has you guys worked together?
You told me that we're kind of trying.
To figure it out like the first two, we were like we were
working with each other. But we do, I don't know, trust.

(01:48:55):
I don't know. We trust each.
Other, but that was just the first, first couple ones we'd
all been together and we're I think we're feeling each other
out all of us. So, but now I think we've got it
dialed in and. Trust is a probably the most
important. Part of one of those, I mean, I
think that's why Corey and Chris, as far as a team thing,
it's your brother, you know you,they got a big advantage there

(01:49:17):
and they share bank accounts, soyou know there's a financial
reason. But at the end of the day,
success makes it. Tougher.
Because you mean you're going tohave somebody hosting a trophy
and somebody not and that makes you want to for sure kind.
Of like. Ricky Bobby and shake and bake.
Yeah. What was his?
Name his name Cal I. Think it was.
Not junior. Yeah, yeah.

(01:49:39):
Not only whenever I see them. It reminds.
Me of that like first day I was bed fishing and I seen I.
Think is it Chris has the under.Armour.
So he ran in this pocket and there's just two pockets like
around the corner. He runs in and then two minutes
later his brother in the power pole wrap runs in.
I was like, Dang, that's crazy. I've run a Yamaha outboard.

(01:49:59):
For over 30 years it has got me home safe each and every time.
If you enjoy this podcast, remember Yamaha supports it and
they care enough about you to make this ad read very short.
Now back to the show. How has.
That been. You know your new angler on the
Elite series. It What's it like standing back

(01:50:22):
there with? A lot of those dudes.
That's cool, I mean. Never expected to be fishing
against them. All and to be in back lines with
them. Yeah, it's it's crazy.
Do you think it's easier? For you.
Because, I mean, there's people.Kyle Patrick's a prime example.
Kyle. Huge geek.
For the sport. Very similar to me, you know

(01:50:44):
what I mean? Like where he's paid attention
to the history of it. He can tell you everything.
Not being a crazy fan, not not that you weren't a fan, but you
know what I mean. You, you don't have like a
favorite pro grown up. Do you think it makes it easier
or? Like less intimidating maybe?
So maybe so. Who's?

(01:51:06):
Been the most intimidating guy. On tour So far, none of them.
Really. Everybody's very.
Welcoming. I wouldn't say welcoming now.
I mean, some of them definitely pray aren't big fans of the of
the young guys, but no one's been an asshole to me or
anything. So it's all been really good
kind of fun I think. I think it's.

(01:51:26):
It's. Weird, because people want it to
be different, you know, like youhear people and they're like,
they're like, I don't know why. If you go down the street, the
guy that owns the pizza shop, guess what?
He's probably not best friends with the guy who owns the pizza
shop across the road. They're competitors.
Like you guys are here to compete against each other and

(01:51:47):
and being civil and but, but it's 102 guys.
Everybody's got a different personality and you're all
frigging alphas. Like you all are here because
you want to be the best. Oh yeah.
Well, I think everyone's. So.
Competitive and stuff, so I think.
That kind of effects that a little bit, but no one should
ever be really mad. I mean, we're fishing for a

(01:52:09):
living. Tired of people complaining
about stuff and, I don't know, fishing.
For a living. Can't be mad about that.
Yeah, I would imagine that. I mean I.
Can't see it from your eyes, butI would imagine that's very
frustrating to be like, man, I'mhere and this is what I've
dreamed of and we're complaining.

(01:52:30):
Yeah, it's kind of. Gets upsetting sometimes but I
don't even think about it. I just go out there and go fish
and do. You think that'll ever change?
Probably not. It's always going to be.
Complainers and whiners, stuff like that.
So I don't know, I just want to have fun with it.
Yeah, kind of how the world. 'S gotten I mean everything is

(01:52:50):
AI mean every storm has a name. It's no longer like a winter
storm. It's an Arctic blast or and it
gets more traffic. Like, I mean, if me and you did
this podcast and we said, hey, here's what pisses off the new
elite series champion. It would get 10 times the amount
of traffic. Does anything piss you off?
Nah, it was the last time you. Got really.

(01:53:11):
Mad in life at anything. I don't know, stubbing your toe,
Yeah. The morning of the.
Third day I was. Running up the stairs, I thought
I broke my toe. I I was barefoot and I just I
tripped and then somehow kicked the next air that that made me

(01:53:33):
mad. It doesn't matter who you are,
what you've. Accomplished that sucks.
It's, it's, it's a horrible level of pain.
What's next for you just. Going to keep fishing.
Try my best, try my hardest and see what happens.
Just keep my. Head down, keep working.

(01:53:55):
Did you get a chance? To talk to Drew Cook.
After the weigh in, mm Hmm. What did he say he was?
He was excited. For me, and I know it didn't
turn out like he wanted to, but it's just how it goes sometimes.
But back in 2020. 2 I did the. Southern Division opens and we
went over to their house. I forget who I was staying
there, but he had just won Santee Cooper and he had the

(01:54:16):
trophy in there. So it was pretty cool that I was
standing up there with him and it was the first trophy I'd ever
seen in person and it was his. So it was wild to be on the
stage with him yesterday when itall went down.
It was, it was awesome. Do you remember what he said to
you? I mean, I saw him give you a
quick hug when he went on stage,the same thing.
Congratulations. Stuff like that.

(01:54:36):
Yeah. What is the coolest call or text
you've got? Like who's the most shocking
person that reached out to you? I've.
Had so many I don't know. But there are some really cool
ones, like people haven't seen in a long time that I was really
close with stuff they've texted me or called.
Man, awesome. I always.

(01:54:59):
Find when people work towards this goal, there's a there's a
lot of people that support you, but there's always people that
are like, yeah, you'll never do it.
You'll never make it. Is there people that pushed you
along the way through that lack of faith?
Yeah, I would say so. People being like, ah, he ain't
that good or whatever, but I don't care.

(01:55:19):
I just want to go fish, catch big bass.
That seems to be. It for you.
I mean just fishing. What's working out pretty good?
Oh yeah. No, it's been.
It's been good. We got 900 texts.
Now I don't know which. I'm popping up.

(01:55:40):
You're going to be busy. Texas next.
How you feeling about that? I'm pumped.
I went to Lake Fork. Last year it was after you
follow Oklahoma Open and I got like 100 and something place so
I was mad. So I went.
I went there and I think it's going to.
Be fun, yeah? I think it'll all be.
Offshore. Hopefully I want to see another,
another bad fish. You don't?

(01:56:02):
No, they make me so mad and theyswim away, don't come back or I
don't know. I would think growing up where
you grow. Up the bed fishing would be a
thing. It is for like 2 weeks out of
the year. But it's fun.
I've always went down in my whole life.
But like big spots and fish offshore.
Yeah, you hunt as. Well, right.

(01:56:22):
What do you hunt for? Deer.
Ducks. I mean, all of it.
Pretty much, yeah. Is that?
Different than fishing like whatthat gives you?
No and. It's very similar.
It's very similar like trying tofind, you know, a deer with a
big rack, the biggest rack that you can find and.

(01:56:45):
Go, I mean figure out how to. Kill them or.
Yeah, get proud of them. I mean, just get around them.
So it's very similar. The way you fish is a.
Lot like. Hunting.
You know what I mean? You're knocking, checking boxes.
You're just with every one of those.
It's like hunting. Especially fork is probably be,
you know, catching really big ones be like hunting a grizzly

(01:57:07):
bear with a spear or something. Yeah, so I think it's cool when
you're making all. Those stops when?
I'm seeing you quickly assess anarea and move on, are you?
Absorbing knowledge from those. Areas or is it literally you're
just looking for fish? Yeah, I mean, for sure.
Absorbing knowledge, see in the bottom, see if there's holes.

(01:57:28):
Like it's weird. The last several years the grass
is getting like, so I'm not evengrass.
It's like this slimy stuff and then there's like some Moss and
it'll grow. I haven't seen it probably
taller than two feet, but it grows.
Really fast and it'll be in like.
I don't know I'm. Looking for places that doesn't
have. Much of that, yeah.
So yeah. Is.

(01:57:49):
That something that. You went into the tournament
looking for, is that something like, how much of this was
fluid, like you put it together throughout the tournament?
And how much of this was on Thursday or on Wednesday night
when you went to bed before the first day of the tournament?
You were like, I know what I'm doing.
Yeah, I knew what I was going todo.
After officially there all day all week last week and just

(01:58:11):
wanted to go do what I. Love to do and.
It worked out. Is would that be your dream?
Elite Series tournament. A linear tournament be pretty
awesome. What would be different?
Between that tournament. And Hartwell, as far as like
what spectators would see. You just see like. 20 bags over
20 lbs every day of spotter bass.

(01:58:32):
So it'd be pretty, pretty sick. Yeah, there's some big
largemouth. Linear too.
There's getting more and more every year, so you'd see a lot
of sight fishing stuff like thatas well.
Be a fun one. It would be.
Sick. Maybe we'll go one.
Day. I hope so.
I hope. So I mean it'd.
Be a great tournament I mean we were there a number of years ago
it was a great tournament and it's just gotten better why does

(01:58:53):
it keep getting better same thing this like too I.
Mean no one knows. There's so many tournaments, the
fish are so smart but still takes big way to win everything.
It's unbelievable. We keep thinking it's going to
get worse and it just gets like a pound heavier every year.
Takes to win we. In the.

(01:59:14):
North, I watched it happen with small mouth where largemouth
would win, and then small mouth where small mouth were these
mystical characters at one time,where people are like, oh,
they're here today, gone tomorrow.
But the small mouth then startedgetting bigger and bigger, and
now very few tournaments are wonwith largemouth.
It's all small mouth. It feels like the spots are

(01:59:34):
getting bigger. They are, but it's just.
Like. Kind of a niche dealer and like
I guess this area of the countrywith the blue back herring and
how the lake set up so many humps and points.
Just the topography of. The Lakes is.
The best, I mean it's perfect habitat for them though.
All the timber out there deep and live in pretty.
I'd say there's we only fish forprobably 80% of them.

(01:59:57):
Yeah, the other ones are so deepand there's so much timber.
It'd be it's harder. You can't target them.
It's nearly impossible. So do you think we'd ever have
a? Situation where the spots would
dominate tournaments here or they just can't get big enough I
mean, yeah, they. It's weird, Hartwell.
The largemouth. Are up one day and then
completely gone. Same thing like offshore brush

(02:00:19):
piles and stuff. Catch 25 lbs one day.
The next day you won't even see a largemouth.
Does that have to? Do with the blue back.
Carrying do you think? Water temperature and just I
don't know, I've never figured out the largemouth that good
here or linear. I just never ran into them a
ton. Why do bass love blue?

(02:00:39):
Back earring I guess they taste good.
Evidently I mean. It changes how they it makes
them so smart though. Makes them so stubborn.
Just the blue backs are so fast and the water so clear.
They just become better hunters,Which.
Makes them harder to hunt for sure, I mean.

(02:01:00):
There's so many. I mean, everywhere you look out
there in like the middle of the lake or wherever, there's bait
everywhere. I mean, why would they eat a
lure? Yeah.
Of your 4 roommates, who's the last?
One you want to have to follow into the restroom.
Probably Lowberg. He ate like. 4 big.
Kahunas from Jersey. Mike's where was it at?

(02:01:23):
Okeechobee, or I think it was Okeechobee, never went to the
bathroom. Oh damn.
Still. Don't know what happened.
No, I don't know. But.
All of us were all right. It's a good group.
Oh yeah, that's so much. Fun.
What's that tattoo in your hand,Man?

(02:01:43):
Secret. Damn.
It thought I could convince you.Will you ever tell me?
Nah. I mean, you win the Bassmaster.
Classic. If I win the classic, I'm going
to tell you. OK, make a deal, yeah.
You win the classic, you'll tellme.
All right, that's the deal I gotto get in the Classic.
First, well, you're we're. Well, on your way, I mean, you

(02:02:07):
and Tucker trading blows and rookie of the year.
It's it's going to be going to. Be interesting and.
A meal. He's coming.
He'll catch him. We're.
All really good labor. He had a tough start, but he's
he's, yeah. He's he's back.
He's. Start catching Was that was that
hard? Like when you're all rooming
together because Loberg, I mean,he's done very well.

(02:02:31):
He's a great angler, but when? You guys are doing?
What you're doing and he's. Struggling is that?
Is that hard or is it just like,hey, I mean, it's fishing?
That's what we do. So.
Yeah, it's definitely difficult.Like I've done.
Done bad and everyone else has caught him this year.
And then, I don't know, just putmy head down and go fish.

(02:02:52):
And I think that's what that's what he's done too.
And it's for all of us. We're going to struggle.
It's going to happen. I mean, can't catch him every
time. You ever watch a Greg?
Hackney Interview. I've seen several of them.
You know you ever. Realize how he says.
You know what I mean? Never realized.
It he says a lot. You realize I don't know.
Is your. I know.

(02:03:13):
You know what I mean? Has that always been the way?
Yes. So I don't want to be.
Like certain about anything. I never want to be certain about
anything. Why?
I don't know. Are you a confident person, do
you think? I think so.
You competitive? Person like.
In other ways outside of fishing, yeah.

(02:03:34):
Like what Cornwall get to the ramp for?
The roommates or doing I don't anything.
That's just bred into you. Why do you?
Want to get the ramp? 1st just to be like I'm here
yeah, but it never happens. Lubric's.
First one every time, so. Where do you set?

(02:03:55):
Are you one of the? Later ones like yeah, I would
say so. So you're.
Not a morning. Person.
Nah, Tucker hates the morning too.
Yeah, and offshore fish. They don't bite.
Till the afternoon, anyway. All afternoon.
Anglers. Yeah, yeah.
Well dude, you're an elite Series champion.
It's crazy. Freaking nuts.

(02:04:16):
Did you have a moment yesterday with?
Like what did you do last night?We all.
Went and ate Mexican, got a table.
For like 25 people or something and then just went and hung out
at the house. Logan Parks came over him and
his wife stayed too. It was just a good time.
We all just hung out, sat in theliving room and I mean, well,
just talked. It was awesome.
Yeah. You drink.

(02:04:37):
Yeah, just a little bit. Nothing.
Crazy. Not a big drink.
Nah. Just sit and look at that
trophy. At all?
Yeah, we put it in the middle ofthe table.
Well, like. We sat there for like an hour.
I was like screw this, I'm goingto get the trophy.
My biceps are hurting that hold it for so long yesterday things
heavy Yeah your. Your reaction on.
Stage was awesome, your reactionoff Mike was even more awesome.

(02:05:00):
But that is I don't know why they make them so heavy.
I like it. It's cool, it's cool.
But it is. Shocking.
I think it's £44.00. I knew it had to be close to 50.
Yeah, it's shocking, though. Everybody does the same thing.
They always didn't. They're like, what the IT was
crazy. What did?
You think as soon as you woke up.
This morning. Like, did you wake up and be

(02:05:22):
like, I'm an elite? Series champion or was it?
I don't know, I mean. I got up at like 9 so I slept.
In a decent bed but I got up andI was like man I can't believe
it's happened yeah I still it's going to take a while to realize
it we're. Getting used to it dude.
Nobody's taking. It away from you and I got a
feeling it's it's your first of many maybe so knock.

(02:05:49):
On wood. You.
Superstitious guy? A little bit.
Not really. Well, you knocked on Woods here.
Got to be. A little bit.
What other superstitions you got?
That's about it now that I can think of, but I.
Got several. Yeah, yeah.
I went to Chick-fil-A. Every night.

(02:06:11):
Did you feel bad? I mean it was the Whataburger.
Event. Did you feel bad about that?
Wow, it was just so easy. There was a there was a
Starbucks, a Chick-fil-A. And a gas.
Station all in the same parking lot, which is perfect.
So go there, get the same meal every time, same drink every
time because you were catching them.
So if you hadn't caught him one day, that would have changed up

(02:06:32):
probably. So is that always the way?
Like when you're. Catching them, yeah, it just, it
just worked out so perfect. How it they all were in the same
parking lot and it was just, it was perfect.
Yeah, yeah. Well, I know you don't like
doing these, but I appreciate it.
I've enjoyed it. I'm trying to.
Talk more. I don't know.
Sorry, guys. No, you don't have to apologize.
You. You.
Like it to do more of these and.You'll get more.

(02:06:56):
Comfortable with it if you keep winning these.
I mean, you're probably going todo a few podcasts in the next
couple weeks, I think so, yeah. So how do we help you be better
at it? It's just practice, yeah.
Just keep doing them. Yeah.
Will you tell? Those dudes with the tattoos
about those other podcasts when they're very good at getting

(02:07:17):
stuff out of people. No, I don't.
I don't. So who knows?
Just the people. That have it just us three.
I mean, some people know. What that what the word means,
but they don't know the other parts part of the word, so it's
all good. So amaze.
Yep, well. I look forward to learning.
More about you and Congrats. Fun.

(02:07:38):
Let's hope. We have another spot of bass
tournament one day I'm sure hearing spot of bass I'm sure
we. Will I?
Mean at very least, I mean they did not build that facility at
Hartwell for us not to go back there.
I'm sure we'll be back there. I'm sure, I'm sure we'll have a
class in there again. How would a classic setup for
you that time of year? Probably pretty good.

(02:08:02):
Probably pretty good as long as it stays cold, yeah?
Like 80° or something in March. But.
Probably pretty good. Well.
I look forward. To maybe we could get 20 lbs of
spots that time. Of year, that would be, yeah.
Could you do it three days in a row?
Probably. I'd love a Lanier Classic.

(02:08:23):
Gosh, that would be awesome, I think.
We'd have the. Facilities there to do it, I
think. Where would you have the weigh
in? I mean, there's so many arenas.
3 minutes from the dam or yeah, I mean, definitely could do it.
They had the cup there. Yeah, I forget when that was
2013 or something like that. Actually, you just brought.

(02:08:45):
That up and was just about to finish, but you had a big finish
at the red Crest. How much did that?
Help you in this tournament. Did a lot of bed fish like.
Because you'd only use live scope for one of the three
periods, so bed. Fish to survive the day and.
Then I had some offshore stuff that it was bed and fish too,
but they're just, I could catch them so quick and it's, you

(02:09:06):
know, catch all you can big ones, but they were big enough.
Got 4th. And that it was it.
Was awesome, but bed fishing I'mpracticing getting better at it.
What did that limit it? To 1/4 do to you I I just didn't
know how to practice. Yeah.
The main thing, not knowing how to practice.

(02:09:27):
Was like trying to find a smaller, like just keep her fish
and a lot of them because usually just looking for five
bites and it was strange. So I was like tying on little
baits and stuff. I would never throw.
Just like I was going to go fisha pond for a little bass.
But it was cool. It's weird watching.
That as a fan, because that was what I kind of pushed.

(02:09:48):
I wanted me and Davy. I wanted Bass to do that, not
choose your period. But we wanted the if we're going
to make it illegal. Except for the last.
Two hours and have like the power hour thing and and when
I've watched what happened at MLF.
I almost think the power hour. Works better because you can't

(02:10:09):
choose, you know what I mean? It's the final two hours
everyone's doing at the same time, but it it, it feels.
Like. And I don't know him, but when I
watched Drew Gill compete and different guys that are very
good at it over there, it feels.Like it makes them.
Better at it because you you know what I mean.

(02:10:30):
You take somebody who's really good at something.
I mean it's and I don't think it's forward facing Soners no
different. But you tell Drew cook you can
only side fish for two hours of this.
You were going to see a much different Drew Cook side fish
and that's it. Did it feel like that to you?
I guess. So I mean.
Definitely couldn't mess up at all.

(02:10:51):
Yeah, you lose more. It really hurts then, yeah.
All right. Well, I've enjoyed.
This it was fun. Elite Series.
Champion Paul freaking Marx. A great conversation with two
great dudes. Paul Marx was very rattled.
He was quite nervous. I don't know why.

(02:11:13):
I mean I guess those are the trials and tribulations of when
you win an Elite Series event and only your 4th Elite Series
event. I mean give him some podcast
time. I enjoyed it and I will find out
what that freaking tattoo means.Hey, quick reminder.
Abu Rivo premier. I want to give it to you, all

(02:11:35):
you got to do is be a decent folk and go over to Spotify and
Apple. Leave us a five star rating and
review and we will pick maybe you and send you this.
Bad Mamma jamma. You will love it.
I love that you guys TuneIn eachand every week.

(02:11:55):
Have a great week, enjoy being and as always, Bob Cobb, take it
away. Thanks for watching.
Please like, comment and subscribe because Bob Cobb of
the Bass Masters told you to youhere.

All Episodes

Episode Transcript

Popular Podcasts

Stuff You Should Know

Dateline NBC

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

.css-15opob5{left:0;position:absolute;top:0.8rem;} All Episodes

.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Drew Cook and Paul Marks "Head To Head" on MERCER-210

Episode Transcript

Popular Podcasts

.css-r6mb8g{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:1;overflow:hidden;}Stuff You Should Know

Dateline NBC

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

All Episodes

Drew Cook and Paul Marks "Head To Head" on MERCER-210

Stuff You Should Know