Saturday, April 25, 2009
Late catch puts Tyler in hunt at Bassmaster Elite Series
Mark Tyler loses a big largemouth early, but boats another later.
Mark Taylor
Mark Taylor's Outdoors column and notebook appears regularly in The Roanoke Times.
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HUDDLESTON -- At 11 a.m. Friday morning, Mark Tyler was wishing his arms were 6 feet long.
A moment earlier, Tyler was preparing to grab a 4-pound bass that would have given him a huge boost in the Bassmaster Elite Series Blue Ridge Brawl at Smith Mountain Lake.
Then, with the fish just inches from Tyler's grasp, the hook popped out.
As the big bass slowly glided into the depths, Tyler -- already on his knees -- started to lunge before his senses kicked in.
He rose and went back to the boat's front deck and started casting again. Tyler was silent, but his body language said plenty.
He was steamed. And for good reason.
Even weekend anglers hate losing a big fish.
When you fish for a living, losing a big fish can be a huge pay cut.
Tyler knows this well.
At the most recent Elite Series tournament, Tyler finished in 51st place.
The prize payout for 50th place was $10,000.
The payout for 51st?
Zero.
"Ten thousand dollars is a lot of money," said Tyler, who also narrowly missed the top-50 cut in the season's first two events. "I don't care who you are."
Granted, for a few of bass fishing's biggest names, a $10,000 hit would be more tolerable.
One of those big names, Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., was back in a familiar position after Friday's action.
Photo by Mark Taylor | The Roanoke Times
Mark Tyler of Vian, Okla., boats a 4-pound largemouth bass during the Blue Ridge Brawl.
With a five-bass catch of 17 pounds, 2 ounces, the all-time leading money winner in BASS history has a lead of 14 ounces over Fred Roumbanis of Bixby, Okla.
While VanDam has some company atop the tour's hierarchy, most of the pros are like Tyler, men who are working hard to earn a decent living as full-time anglers.
During the off-season, they line up sponsorship deals, such as the deal Tyler secured with his primary sponsor, Travelodge.
Exposure helps keep sponsors satisfied, and doing well in tournaments helps with exposure.
So losing a key fish can not only hurt immediately, but also over the long term.
Tyler, whose top finish in an Elite Series event is fourth, was silent for five minutes after his heartbreaking loss.
"What did I do wrong there?" he finally asked himself.
Tyler fished well on the tournament's first day and started the day in a tie for 12th.
Another decent day and he'd almost certainly make the top-50 cut to advance to today's action. A good day and he'd be in a good position to make the top-12 cut for the final day, with a chance to win the $100,000 top prize.
Tyler, 36, came close to making the final cut the first time the Elite Series visited Smith Mountain Lake. But at the June 2007 tournament he finished 13th, 1 ounce from fishing the final day.
The way Friday started, staying at the top of the field was looking dicey and Tyler was starting to fear he might not make the top 50.
Although he had a fish pushing 4 pounds in the morning, he had only one other small keeper when he hooked and lost the big fish. But there wasn't time for sulking.
Scouring the shoreline looking for spawning fish, Tyler found a small keeper and got it to bite. Then he caught another dink. An hour later he put a 3-pounder in the boat.
"At least I got a limit," said Tyler, whose key lures were a variety of soft plastic lures and a small Optimum swim bait.
Then he caught a 2-pounder, which allowed him to release his smallest bass.
Tyler figured his weight was about 11 pounds, be he feared that still might not be enough.
Then, at 2:30 p.m., he spotted a 4-pound largemouth bass on a spawning bed near a dock.
"That's a good fish," he said. "That's the one I need to get back in this game."
Tyler was due back at weigh-in site at 4:10 p.m.
"We're not going anywhere until I catch that fish," he said.
For 20 minutes, Tyler cast a variety of soft plastic lures at the fish, which didn't seem interested. By then, a kayaker had eased into the cove and was watching the action.
Suddenly, Tyler set the hook.
He had the fish on.
Quickly but carefully, he fought the bass until the fish was at the boat's side. He reached down, grasped the fish by its lower jaw, hoisted it aboard and whooped.
The kayaker, lake resident Pat Santoro, cheered.
"I watched another guy try for an hour to catch that fish this morning," said Santoro, who had been out for a walk when she saw that unsuccessful effort.
Tyler was finally smiling.
"Pat, I may just have to have you follow me around the lake," he said. "You're my good-luck charm."
Santoro laughed.
"I don't think I could keep up," she answered.
The fish gave Tyler's catch a 2 12-pound bump, pushing his two-day total to 28 pounds, 15 ounces and pushing him into ninth place.
He was assured his first payday of the season, and there's still a chance it can be a good one.
