Tournament

ABT 100 Weiss Lake Preview with Jones and Goza
By Jason Duran

After a very chilly 18° start to the season at the first event at Logan Martin, teams are now ready for stop number two at Weiss Lake. 100 teams are fishing for a total purse of $100,000 with a first-place payout of $25,000. Teams have been reporting great fish catching. The team of Bradley Jones and Broox Goza believes Weiss Lake is ready for a great event this weekend.

Typically the pattern for the end of May is a little bit of everything. “There is a grass bite, a dock bite, and fish can be caught offshore. The fish seem to be well past post-spawn and headed toward a summertime bite but the water temperature is not hot yet. Currently the water temp is 76°. The key to winning this weekend will be a team that will catch three or four in a really fast period. This could come in several ways: a team possibly will fish the right stretch of docks, flip the right weed bed, or pull up on the right offshore hole at the right time and will be the winner. They won’t be surprised they caught the fish but they will not go out in the morning thinking they are going to win.” 

“This past week was the Memorial Day tournament of around 100 boats. We fished it and we had some rough storms blow through that delayed blast off an hour. We sat in the truck, and it came a big rain.  Everyone that we talked to said the first hour of fishing was a good bite. We think that weather helped the weights a lot. The winners caught 19.5 pounds and there were a few bags over 18 pounds. There is rain in the forecast this weekend, but I don’t think we will get those types of storms. This ABT event with only 100 boats makes it a lot better. Just like this past week, teams will be able to fish the areas they want to if they all just scatter out. With 225 boats, you have to sometimes fish where you don’t want to.” 

The lake can be divided into three main areas. Upstream, towards Georgia, is typical river fishing with current, stained water, and lots of blowdowns. Teams can fish creek mouths and currents. Moving down the lake, often referred to as the main lake area, there are lots of docks to fish, as well as some key offshore areas that produce good fish. Heading further down toward the dam is an area known as the powerhouse lake, which also has docks and offshore fishing opportunities. Teams will start off using shad-style baits in the morning and fishing for active fish with topwater baits. As the day progresses, teams will switch to fishing the grass and docks with soft plastics and jigs. Those who choose to fish offshore will be using crankbaits and big worms.

When asked about what it would take to win this weekend, Broox said, “Barring some storm or rain event, I would think it would take 18.5 to 19 pounds.” Bradly said, “It’s going to be really near 21 pounds or maybe just a little under.” Bradley said, “It’s time, and somebody’s going to get them. If somebody catches 23 pounds, I am not going to be surprised.” The team believes it’s the right weekend for this event. “Teams that catch the abundant 3-pound spotted bass can quickly move up the leader board and pair those up with some key large mouth to make the difference.” The team said that they are going to be practicing every morning till the day of the tournament, and they believe the morning bite will be key to winning this event. 

The Pre-Tournament Virtual meeting was held on Monday, May 27, 2024, at 6:00 P.M. and is available on the ABT 100 Facebook Page. All anglers should check text messages and email for any updates and changes for this event. Tune in to the Alabama Bass Trail 100 Facebook page and the Alabama Bass Trail 100 Website (www.alabamabasstrail100.org) for live on-the-water coverage and live weigh-in. All friends and family are welcome to attend this event; bring lawn chairs. Launch and weigh-in will be held June 1, 2024 at Leesburg Landing, 1085 Riverside Street, Leesburg, AL 35983 Launch will be at safe daylight. Download and listen to the ABT Podcast on your favorite Podcast app by searching for “Alabama Bass Trail Podcast.”  The Podcast is released each week on Tuesday. 
 
The sponsors of the 2024 Alabama Bass Trail 100 include; Phoenix Bass
Boats, Landers McLarty Chevrolet, McGraw Webb Chevrolet, Bajio
Sunglasses, Garmin,  Power-Pole, America’s First Federal Credit Union,
CrushCity, Bait Fuel, Pro-Guide Batteries, Sweet Home Alabama,
Alabama State Parks, Jacks, Snag Proof, Yamaha, T-H Marine Supplies, Big
Bite Bait Company, VMC, Black Rifle Coffee Company, Anheuser - Busch,
Inc., fishalabama.org, Rapala, Halo Fishing, NetBait.