To the OP, why would you buy and build at a place you hate?

Do you take meds? Angry old man? Someone slipped in and BOOM, BOOM #$%ed your old lady while you were trying to catch a fish? Your dad didn't take you fishing? Your mother wouldn't hold you?

I want to begin a discussion about tournaments on Lake Fork. I am in process of building a home on the Lake after much thought about which lake to retire upon. I choose Fork for a number of reasons. I knew the lake was very pressured, and I am prepared to deal with that. What I would like some help understanding is why the local folks are so welcoming to these national tournaments. They will bring more attention to a small (in comparison to other reservoirs) lake. The pressure on the fishery will diminish the fish stocks in the lake. Catch and release though widely practiced probably results in a substantial percentage of mortality--- my guess 20%. The tournaments are relentless and every week. I fear they will kill the goose that lays the Golden egg. It isn't just bass tournaments, crappie and catfish are under attack as well. They aren't catch and release for the most part.
I know that business in the area need the dollars, but you have to wonder how much they will make if they destroy the fishery. I just don't see national attention as a good thing. I am glad the legends folks left the area proclaiming how friendly the local folks were; after all we are Texans.. Still, I just don't understand how there isn't more local concern for the fishery in general. Why does Texas parks and Wildlife sponsor and support this event? It's feather in their hat today for a depleted "has been" fishery tomorrow. The reservoir is aging and the guide numbers are staggering. Why does the SRA sponsor this event? What do they get from the notoriety? Why did folks volunteer for various tasks to facilitate the tournament? Just opening these thoughts for discussion and perhaps a little better understanding..

I'm betting your attempt to stir the pot didn't go as you planned.
I've been fishing Fork since the days when we snuck in (I was younger then) and fished the brood ponds.....long before the lake was finished. The lake has had a few "downs" and to be successful on it, you have to evolve with it. If your doing the same thing you did 10 years ago, or even last year, your catch rate will be affected. As stated, one of the premier lakes in the NATION and it's not going anywhere. People have been crying doom and gloom for years but mother Fork just keeps producing.

I am Not missing,,, still working for a living.. Retiring soon.. I think you guys are misunderstanding the point of the conversation. I am just seeking understanding about the dynamics that drive the Bass fishing on Fork. I was aware of the tournaments and pressure, but I suppose the Elite tournament kind of was more than expected. This was just an information seeking thread. I expected a very pro tournament response under the bass section here on the fishing forum. I must say I did not expect such lack of civility. I am not going to respond in kind because that is not the general nature of this forum. I am moving to Fork partly for the friendly folks that I have met in the area. I enjoy all types of fishing including bass fishing. I really had no agenda here. I just thought it odd that a national spotlight would be considered a good thing by local folks.. The argument about tournaments creating a lot of stocking therefor negating the negative pressure on the fishery is a weak one. A 3 inch bass takes how many years to become over the slot?? No need to suggest I buy elsewhere or that I fall in the lake and not come out. I was hunting and fishing on Fork when it first opened. I had kids and began a business that slowly replaced all my fishing time. I have family in the Fork area and need to stay close to the Dallas metromess. I always wanted to return later in life and fish my last days. I suppose I have become apprehensive about the pressure hence the thread. I really appreciate the feed back (well most of it)

Bois d�Arc Lake is going to render Fork obsolete so there will be no worries.

If you knew all this ahead of time then why are you still moving there? Are you going to complain about it for the rest of your life. If so I suggest you need to find a different lake to retire on. Life is too short to put yourself in a place where you are going to always find faults and live to regret what you did.

Bois d�Arc Lake is going to render Fork obsolete so there will be no worries. I can just imagine how many DFW area fisher people are going to be there for at least the first 5 years. Its at a minimum an hour closer than Fork

We need about 10 Bois d'Arc lakes in North Texas. DFW is the reason Cooper isn't one of the nation's great bass lakes and other lakes will be drawn down to meet the Metroplex's incredible use of water as well. We have had numerous years of plentiful rain so the problem hasn't reared its head lately, but it will.

We need something to scatter the fishermen as well, especially in East Texas. Since the 2011 drought when DFW area lakes were too low for people to launch I think half the state decided fishing over here is better so they keep scheduling their tournaments here whether their lakes are full or not.

Fork is a different matter. It always received tremendous pressure no matter what. I wonder if it received more and bigger stockings because it grows more big fish or if it grows more big fish because it is stocked so often and heavily.