Thanks again guys. It is always easier for me to put myself in the shoes of the tournament officials in cases like this. Here they are, getting constant feedback from the game wardens to look at this map online. So much, that it becomes the center of all their feedback. Easy to believe that the website is the authority, since the wardens are always using it. So I don't fault BASS at all. They made the best decision with the information they had at a late hour in the evening. I can see their logic. Sure, it easy for me to see the good things here. Good people with good intentions, and good processes - like the appeals process. If there is something to learn from this event, trust me, they will. Mainly because they want to do the right thing and be the best at what they do.

What made it easy for me keeping a cool head was I believed in the process, and I had great support from family, friends, and sponsors. But I can tell you, I will sleep better tonight!

While I am not a huge fan of how the DQ went down, I am impressed by the appeal process. In most major league front offices, they dont like to admit they were wrong and they usually give the power to 1 individual in regards to the decision (almost always the same guy who made the decision to start with). An impartial panel, allowing Mike to present his argument, and a witness.. Ill be damed if all that doesn't make a lot of sense.

Congrats Senor Kernan.

As far as the individual who filed the protest. Congrats on embarrassing yourself, your sponsors, and almost the whole of BASS. You are lucky that it was an individual of Mike's calibur that was involved.

Congrats Mike!
We wish BASS would have allowed you finish the event, then made there ruling. Often cases are fought out in a court of law for 2 reasons. Money or to change policy!
Though I know this was not a court of law nor do I suggest this be made in to a judicial process, I do hope this changes BASS corporations policy on how to mangage such events in the future.

Tight lines my friend!

Congrats Mike, You handled this like the gentleman you are. By the way Brock loves the cover.

I think its great he got re-instated, glad to see that he finished 12th. That's a strong showing. I dont get people being mad at Dennis though. Maybe I am missing something? If he is sponsored by them, or lives there wouldn't he know more than anybody whats private and whats not? Looks like he brought it to the attention of the tournament director and left it at that for them to decide. Like he said, if it was public he would be the first to go in there and fish, and Velvick thought it was private too. I think they did right that if it wasn't posted anywhere and no body told him until the second day then he had every right to think he could fish there and shouldnt be dq'ed. It does look bad that Dennis made the cut because of it but, I guess
I give him the benefit of the doubt that he would bring it to the attention of the TD and let them decide because he questioned it. Isn't that just protecting the field? Seems to me the fault should with those that hastily disqualified without getting a proper hearing or explaination rather than the one that protested it. Its not like you can protest someone and automatically they are DQ because of it, its just bringing a question to the TD for them to make a proper decision and the buck stops with the TD and what they decide? Dennis didn't DQ him, Trip did I assume. In the end though, for the circumstances, the correct decision was made eventually.

Here is what I see and notice right off the bat... In the past few years these protests, the appeals and everything but the decisions have seemed to be hush-hush and not for public consumption. This is the first I can recall with this much transparency. I hope this serves as an example and moving forward these things continue to be just as transparent. As a fan of the sport I would much rather have the info than all the talk in the past about how they won't be making any public statements.

And Congrats to Mike.

Just wished Mike could have had the chance to fish the next day. That would have been sweet!

Goes without saying....your day holding that trophy is coming! I know BASS appreciates your professionalism, in all of this. Catch those big sacks at Guntersville and the rest of the year!

Elton Brock

Don't know Mike either, but love the class he has handled this with.

I also don't blame Mike, the protestor, or the sponsor. The entity at fault here is the Louisiana gov't.

I grew up in Louisiana and lived there the first 27 years of my life. As a kid we fished anywhere that wasn't gated off. There was never a problem. All of a sudden gates started going up. At least then we knew where we couldn't fish.

But then we started getting run out of large bayous that were supposedly private. How many actually were I don't know, but as a teenager we often just left to prevent a confrontation. But there was never anyway of knowing which canals were private or not.

People were also notorious for posting no hunting signs on public land and no fishing signs on public waters out of greed.

But time after time again, its gone to court and the landowners have won almost every time, if not every time.

Basically the burden is on the fisherman to know what is private what is public. There should be state issued posted signs provided so the greedy can't keep people out of public waters with hand painted signs. And if you are going to dig man made canals and rob the public of the public's fish, you need to damn off your canals. We aren't talking about private boat slips here.

Its possible to go in some places and be surrounded by 600 acres of private water with no land in sight and public water surrounding it. The oyster fisherman are able to lease the oyster reefs and keep fisherman from fishing their reefs. Its ridiculous and seems to be getting worse rather than better.

Good luck next time, will definitely be following you and pulling for you.

If/when a raw deal comes my way I just hope to have his calm resolve and "be like Mike."

Congrats Mike. Professional.

Since I have been in Texas 25+ years early on I was ignored by a lot of the so called big sticks until I started taking their money. Mike & a few others were always the exception to that rule. Mike is a good Christian man & I know this not by him telling me or anyone else telling me but by his actions! I am proud to call him friend & I was very happy to hear that Mike was exonerated from this mess. And now have even more respect for the man Mike Kernan seeing how he handled this whole affair.

Now get out there & keep making us proud Mike & may God Bless you & your family.

Glad to hear that this situation was rectified in Mike�s favor. Congrats to Mike and his sponsors. You guys know how to pick a winner.
Back on the road to the Classic. Go get 'em Mike.

Great to hear this came out in your favor Mike! Louisiana politics are many times affected by a term they refer to as lagniappe....