We watched Chris Jones some on Saturday. Saw him catch a few good ones in the morning. Saw him again at the end of the day. He idled out to the couple of spectator boats and said he was leaving for weigh in and thanked everyone for watching him. We stayed well off any of the anglers so we wouldn't disturb them. His water was probably the highest pressured in the tournament.

Absolutely Brad!!!!

I was a backup Marshal. I had to show up at 4am every day and didn't know if I was going to be chosen or not. Friday there were no backups needed. Saturday I arrived and was paired up with Tommy Williams. He qualified via the win at the Lewisville Open. When he showed up I climbed in the truck with him and we sat there until the storm passed. We chatted about all kinds of things. Super nice guy. I dumped him in the water and parked, went got in the boat, and we beached for the morning events. His first spot was only about 7-8 mins from the ramp. He was sharing water with Matsushito and Todd Auten. Tommy was pretty laid back as he had felt he had no shot to win any longer due to only catching 1 keeper on Friday. He proceeded to land his first keeper a few mins in and was steadily catching fish all morning. He had his limit by about 11am and was culling by 12. He mainly flipped brush and threw a swim jig. His best 2 fish came on the swim jig. He chatted with me all day long. Best part of the day was his first keeper. He said..."now I get to walk onto that stage and hold a fish up for everyone." This was his first classic and he was so pumped to just be there and not have the walk of shame.

Saturday night I got a phone call from the Marshal coordinator and she asked if I wanted to go Sunday. Of course I said yes. I was paired up with Jeff Gussy Gustafson. I was super pumped because he's strong at off shore fishing and I knew the weather was going to put that as an option as opposed to flipping bushes. Same morning process took place but this time the Johnston brothers, Chris Jones, Chad Pipkens, Bill Wilcox and several of the BASS TV personalities were surrounding Gussy's boat and chatting. They pulled Jones off to do his interview and we were all just sitting there enjoying it. All those guys are just every day joes like us but they fish on the highest stage. I watched all these pros pull out baits and such to sign for kiddos that were walking around. They ALL stopped every time and posed for pictures and high fives. This made my weekend. The fans were truly what it's all about for them and they all are motivated by that.

We launched and ran to our first spot which was up shallow. Gussy stuck 2 short fish pretty quickly. As we rounded this point, He spotted Chris Jones on the adjacent point about 400yds away or so. He said, "This is Jones' area, we're leaving." We proceeded to head over to the marina area. As we ran around that point, Cherry was fishing by the state park ramp right there. We had to maneuver around about 30 spectator boats to get into the marina. We were in there for about 20 mins when we spotted Chris Johnston. Gussy pulled up the TM and we left again. He said, "Chris has a shot, I'm not messing that up." This same scenario happened 3-4 more times during the say. I can't say more to the courteous nature of Gussy and how he handled it.

While I don't feel like I learned anything from either pro that I was fortunate enough to ride along with, I have to say one thing: The precision with which they conduct their day is what sets them apart. The way they operated their boats, perfect. The way their boats were organized, perfect. Both of these guys were almost perfect with their pitching and flipping. Their baits entered the water so quietly and effortless. I firmly believe that's one main reason why they got so many bites compared to what I would normally get in a day there at RR. THAT was my take-a-way. Precision and Accuracy is a must.

The front row seat to the Classic was something I will cherish for the rest of my life. I would highly encourage everyone to take the opportunity to do this if possible. I know I will do it again if I ever get the opportunity.

Man. These experiences make me feel a little jealous. Sounds like it was a fun time. I have only fished in tourneys, and it usually ain’t fun…contrary to what some would think. It’s work. Just riding around with a pro in the biggest tourney in bass fishing, without a care in the world would be cool.

Did you ask him. Beans or no beans in chilli ?

Very cool experience.

great write up....appreciate you sharing your experience with us.....did you have to pay to be a back up marshal?.....

Chris Jones is a super good guy and this lake set up perfect for him. When he gets the swim jig out he’s getting ready to do damage.

Thanks for sharing the experience!

No sir. Backups do not pay. However, you have to show up regardless if you get a spot or not. This is the same process they follow for all elite events. The folks who paid to be marshals are guaranteed a practice day and the first two days of the competition. From there different process takes place where backups and Nation members get priority. Any given event BASS needs 8-10 backups and most often all will get at least 1 day to go....pretty cool deal. Im thankful.

Wow, great read guys.

Great experience for you. Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing.