Team Toyota’s Brandon Lester has made eight Bassmaster Classics in 11 years as a pro, he’s considered one of pro bass fishing’s most consistent check cashers, but last week at the Elite Series event on Toledo Bend he’s never been so mad at himself.
“When I got off my boat at the end of Day 2 last week at Toledo Bend, I was never at such a low point in my career. I had spent all day staring at a sonar screen. I never made a cast at the bank, and I knew I was about to miss the Day 3 cut as a result. That’s not me, and that’s not happening this week on Lake Fork,” says Lester.
Hence, when asked what two lures he plans to serve up a ton on Fork this week, he named a ChatterBait and a small creature bait.
While a blustery cold front that rolled across middle America Wednesday may have put Lake Fork’s largemouth in a temporary bad mood, the always approachable Tennessee pro says the lake’s in great condition, and the first two days of practice told him not only what areas of the lake are surrendering bites, but also that there’s plenty of Lake Fork bass heading shallow toward the bank to spawn.
Water temps are 58-66, the lake is pretty much at full pool, there’s tons of shallow water habitat, water clarity is healthy, and a few bass had already started to spawn prior to Wednesday’s big cold front. Thursday will bring more raw weather, but the weekend forecast calls for a warming trend that could create fireworks.
“Fishing pressure is always a factor at Lake Fork, but I fish Guntersville a ton, and fishing pressure is massive there too. These fish just seem to adapt, and thank heavens, still bite. You might only get 10 bites a day here, but one of them might weigh 10 pounds, and 20-pound daily limits are the standard here,” says Lester.
This event may also be won with forward-facing sonar, but Lester is confident there’ll be plenty of Top 10 finishers who kick it aside on Fork. One of them will be his close friend and roommate John Cox.
“Cox still doesn’t have forward-facing sonar on his boat, so he dang sure won’t be using it, and if I spend 15% of my time looking at it this week, I’ll be surprised,” says Lester.
Any more than that, and he’ll likely wind up disappointed in himself, but that’s not happening again this week.
