OK. This tournament was held on the Illinois River out of Stratton State Park in Morris Il.
I have only fished in this river three times before in the previous 3 years. I fished a buddy tournament there last year and zero'd. Anyway, I wasn't feeling too well physically that morning and just knew I was in for a long and probably disappointing day. But I don't allow my discouragement or lack of confidence stop me from competing. I said to myself that morning- "don't think about the weigh-in or winning,just about fishing."
I went in the opposite direction I've gone the previous times. I pulled into the first Marina I saw which was around Seneca. It was maybe 10-15 minutes before I had my first keeper. I felt better. At the very least, I could weigh in a fish. Soon after I caught another. Then I hooked a big daddy that promptly bent and spit my jig & pig right back out. I felt ,well you know that feeling. Anyway, I buzzed on down to a couple other marina's and tried them out but didn't stick around too long because I saw other tournament guys in there and knew I'd be hitting used water. So, I headed out right back to my first marina. I caught a shorty right away. Then, I pitched that jig back to the tree where the biggun was.He took the bait right away. I had him hooked good this time. My legs were trembling fighting this fish. It turned out to be the big bass of the day. In actuality, that fish wasn't all that big after all. It weighed 2.96 pounds. But big enough to put me over the top on a river that was hiding its bass very tight to cover. I ended up weighing 4 fish for 7 pounds. I had a limit of 5 in my livewell, but one was borderline and I wasn't taking any chances.
Next stop, June 7th at Lake Shelbyville in central Illinois. Any tips for me? Thanks
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