FRISCO, Texas – Matt Herren is one of those grinders on the Elite Series – a guy who has a bunch of decent finishes but no wins – so it’s great to see him get a huge victory in an event like the Toyota Texas Bass Classic.
On Sunday, Herren outlasted 37 other pros on Lake Ray Roberts, catching 51 pounds, 12 ounces over three days to walk away with $100,000 and a new Nitro Z20 with dual Power-Poles.
“To beat these 38 guys in what I call a fruit-jar get-up, I’m kind of numb right now,” he said.
More like gold jar. Most of the anglers agree that the TTBC is the third crown jewel of bass fishing with the Bassmaster Classic and FLW Cup. Herren’s only other win was a $100,000 FLW event on Lake Dardanelle in 2007, so it had been awhile.
On stage at Toyota Stadium, he said that he had wondered, after taking second or third, “When is my time?” That time came Sunday. And Herren was pretty proud to beat the top 15 from last year’s point standings in both the Elite Series and FLW Tour, plus some big-name exemptions.
“They’re not fishing for points,” Herren said of his competitors, “they’re fishing for blood.”
Herren first smelled blood in the water on Tuesday, when his plan to stay fluid came as the lake began to drop.
“I got in the mindset that it was going to change every day, and you were going to have to stay loose and adjust,” he said. “I need to do what I’m best at. I fished shallow targets.
“I love recognizing patterns, and this lake changed every day and I went out with one simple mindset – Lord, give me a bite, and let me go with it. And that’s how this week went.”
Congrats, Matt! That’s one big feather in the cap.
ZALDAIN SWEATED OUT TRUCK FOR WIFE
Chris Zaldain is probably good for a couple birthdays, several Christmases and an anniversary or two. And his wife certainly won’t mind this re-gifting.
By weighing the largest bass in the Toyota Texas Bass Classic, Zaldain won a 2016 Toyota Tundra, which he announced on stage he was giving to his wife, Trait, for her birthday Sunday. They joked backstage earlier that she turned, ah-hem, 23.
“We couldn’t ask for anything more for Trait’s birthday,” Zaldain said on stage with his giant key. “We’ve been looking at a Toyota Tundra for a while now, and now we have one.”
Zaldain caught his 7-pound, 12-ounce lunker around noon on Day 1. It helped him to a 21-4 bag that gave him a lead of almost 2 pounds. He fell to fifth after Saturday and finished ninth.
“It happened so fast,” he said of the catch. “When it hit, it hit like a ton of bricks – or it hit like a truck. When I set the hook, I brought it out of the tree and swung it in the boat, and it was just an unbelievable feeling.”
Zaldain said he didn’t holding his breath on it remaining big fish over the last two days, so he was rather surprised it did.
“I honestly didn’t think it would hold up,” he said. “After yesterday, how tough it was on the guys, and then only 10 guys being out there today, I had a good feeling it might hold up.”
PACKING ONE BAG MEANS UNPACKING ANOTHER
Andy Morgan was ready to get out of Dodge, er Frisco, fast because it didn’t appear he would make Saturday afternoon’s cut to the Tundra 10.
His somewhat fortuitous Day 2 – loading his livewell with a 22-0 bag – kept him in the game. It also ended up winning the award for the highest single-day weight.
“I’ll be honest. My bags were packed,” Morgan said. “I had everything loaded up in the truck.”
His talk turned to the great job the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the benefactors of the Toyota Texas Fest, do with their fisheries as well as their wildlife.
“You never know when you come to Texas. There’s always something to shoot at and there’s always something to catch,” Morgan said. “They take care of these lakes. You always have a chance. There’s always a bunch of big fish in the state of Texas and I went out on Day 2 and caught them.”
