Lake Champlain is arguably the most storied New York bass tournament venue and as far back as tournament records go, so does the question on whether largemouth or smallmouth will win the event.
With this event being a little closer to the end of August, smallmouth are likely to weigh a little heavier. On the flip side, I have heard rumblings about the south end of Champlain producing some good largemouth. The truth is, tournament history shows that a hybrid approach is also a viable option. Bryan Schmitt proved that in 2021 when he won.
With two events left to go, if you are near the top, it might be time to play it safe with a few calculated risks. If you are below 90% it is time to take some serious gambles and go big or go home with some risk-taking on lower percentage anglers. That being said, I am going to keep picking the way I have all season but will give you a couple sneaky anglers to consider if you feel like you need to take some low percentage gambles.
BUCKET A: SCHMITT
To be the man, you have to beat the man and Bryan Schmitt is the man on Lake Champlain. On top of that, Schmitt’s balanced approach of targeting both bass species makes him a pretty safe play.
Aw Shucks
If there is a winning bag of big largemouth to be found down near Ticonderoga, Steve Kennedy is probably going to find it. When Kennedy has had his best Champlain events, he typically does it making the long southern runs. Kennedy is a high risk, high reward pick for this event.
BUCKET B: FEIDER
I have always had this feeling that Seth Feider would get his first blue trophy on Champlain. It sets up like Minnesota. Feider can find his comfort zone chasing smallmouth or flipping milfoil for hefty largemouth and his track record shows his comfort on this water.
OG IKE
Mike Iaconelli’s early tournament success can be traced way back in his career to Champlain, at less than 5% player percentage, Ike feels like a steal of a pick. Ike is fishing strong in 2023 and this should be his best chance for a win this year.
BUCKET C: FELIX
Austin Felix had a bit of a mis-step on Day 2 at Lake St Clair, but we will chalk that up to the chaotic nature of his week having to switch boats after getting rear ended by a bus on his drive to the lake on his way through Chicago. Felix has had strong Champlain finishes, expect the Sleepy Assassin to be fishing on Sunday.
Smallmouth Hitman
If you are avoiding the high percentage, obvious Canadian anglers at the top of the player percentage, consider Jamie Hartman as a super value pick. Hartman is originally from New York and has Elite wins in the Empire State.
BUCKET D: ITO
After the last event, Taku Ito is still in Bucket D but now he is at the top and I expect him to move up and out after Champlain. He served my team very well at St Clair and we are going to keep going with the hot hand here and rely on Ito’s smallmouth prowess.
Big Tex
Keith Combs was my other pick if I didn’t go with the favorite in Ito. Combs has many solid finishes on Champlain. He knows how to catch both brown and green fish on this massive fishery. If you are looking for a balance of historical track records with a lower owner percentage, Combs is your guy.
BUCKET E: LOUGHRAN
The Bassin’ Barrister is coming off a solid smallmouth event at St. Clair and his last two finishes at Champlain have been solid. Ed Loughran has plenty of experience on Champlain and he tends to make things happen up north. That all adds up to what feels like a safe play in Bucket E.
Front Facing Play
John Soukop is not having the rookie season that he or we thought he would have. One of these days Soukop is going to blast them and Champlain feels like it could be it. The smallmouth should be out roaming on bait and that could be very good for this Okie.
Mercury Bassmaster Drain the Lake Challenge
Only two events remain for the Mercury Bassmaster Drain the Lake Challenge. This additional Fantasy Fishing game not only offers a fresh way to play the game, but a completely separate prize pool. Drain the Lake is an elimination or survivor style game where you can only use an angler once all season.
Did you have enough good anglers left on your roster to hold on?
Here is my Bassmaster Drain the Lake roster:
• Seth Feider
• Bryan Schmitt
• Alex Wetherell
• Jamie Hartman
• Greg DiPalma
• Mike Iaconelli
• Jeff Gustafson
• Carl Jocumsen
