Did dead fish cost Lucas the tournament?

I heard Justin say Sunday morning on live while he was fizzing a fish that he already had a pound and half penalty for dead fish.
He lost the tournament by 13oz.

Sounds like you answered your own question already.

Nope. He won the derby.

Josh Bertrand won by 13 oz. so the dead fish did cost Lucas the tourney

Did Josh have any dead fish penalties?

Yes it cost him the win, Lucas had 1lb 8oz in fish care penalties the first three days, IDK if he weighed any dead fish the last day. I did not hear if Bertrand had any dead fish.

Should be a 100k lesson for him to take care of his fish with ice and all...

And VT-2 vents too!

That had to hurt!

Kentucky??

He looked more excited than Josh, that Josh had won...Its BASS fault for scheduling this event for right now, when the fish are deep, and vulnerable. Clips and needles are not the cure.

Yep. I knew it couldn't be the anglers fault.

REALLY???

what?

It's not in BASS to schedule a safe time for the fish. It's on the angler to take care of them.

I was trying to say, after the fish mortality we saw, it makes sense to me, that BASS reconsider when the st.lawrence event is held. They leave the south to get out of the heat, to avoid mortality....

I don’t agree.

The anglers were making 120 mile trips, at 70mph, to get to spots, in rough water. That hurts the fish just as much as not fizzing.

....and you have every right to not agree.

Look how far of a ride some of the fish make at the classic to weigh in. Is that the anglers fault to?

of course. The angler has to protect their catch. Period.

I would be quite a lot more satisfied, if 100% of fish were weighed on boat and released. There isn’t anything exciting to me about watching a guy tote a fish that’s dying held up high from his boat to the scale...

Nick they go north when the water isn't hard, because they can't go when it is.


Anglers fish down here when the water is 95 degrees and they know how to keep them healthy.

Barotrauma is difficult to anticipate. I’ve seen smallies come off bottom in 45’ and be okay. Largemouth in 20’ die from it.

I don’t think an angler should have to fizz every fish that floats, I think that fizzing should be used for emergencies, because it’s risky. You saw all the floating fish last week, so reschedule it for when it fishes shallow. No angler is going to declinate his morale compass to those 2 pounders up shallow, when everyone else is pulling 6’s from 30+ feet. Other option? Stiff mortality penalties.

seasons dictate it more than open water. Seen plenty of dead fish in the summer time down here...

Bottom line. Weigh and release in the boat. Educate on proper fizzing technique, and schedule events in the best interest of the fish.

I’d be interested in a catch and cook at weigh ins, but I bet a 6 pound smallmouth tastes like a shoe sole.

Don't know why people are so shocked. A lot of fish die in summertime tourny's. We all know this. Remember a few years ago on Falcon? WOW

I agree with Nick. If every boat has an official in it anyway, why not weigh the fish and release them on the spot?

You guys with all the answers ought to go to work for BASS and solve all their problems for them. Don't know they got along all these years without you.

Exactly how many fished died??

They'd probably die in the boat.

I have learned TONS watching BASS and have many favorite anglers that I enjoy watching. That said, BASS, just like any other organization always has room for improvement. Only a man with the call name Gig Em Aggies could be perfect I guess....

Oh contraire mi amigo, did not suggest I was perfect you did that. I have no suggestions for BASS like some others. They have done very well without mine or any others advice so I keep my suggestions to things I know about. Now I can cure your slice for you if you like.

I fixed my slice after college when I quit playing golf...
I was just talking a little trash. The Red Raider in me couldn't resist.

That said I also enjoy watching Major League Bass Fishing and enjoy their format. They weigh fish and release on the spot. I don't see BASS completely changing their rules but I could see them changing the weigh in aspect.

BASS has used the MLF format for the last two years at Bass Fest at Rayburn and Travis and will next year in May at Fork.

By the way it was the Texas Toyota Bass Fest that invented that format in 2007 at Fork. I had something to do with that decision.


Our club fishes the catch, record and release every Thursday at Fork year round. It just makes sense for us and also that way we can count the slot fish.

No amount of fizzing will help those fish. Those 5lb smallies are old. It'd be like a livewell full of 8-10lbers in Texas. That amount of stress can't be eliminated. The water is cool, it's not an ice issue. Scheduled earlier in summer when they are shallow really is the only option.

Good stuff Bruce Allen, and thanks for the info.
So how do you keep people honest? Honor system I guess?

Trash talk huh. Well it was pretty mild, lol. I use to love to watch when Leach was the coach, it was worth the time just watching and listening to him. PO, he got railroaded. Kingsbury will do a good job, he makes stars out of QB's. Got Johnny football a Heisman and Mahomes will probably start for the Chiefs before the season is over.

Don't know how many of you have ever been to a BASS weigh-in but the care and effort they use to protect and release alive the resource is extraordinary. Considering what the bass go through after being caught and by the time they reach the weigh-in it's amazing the mortality isn't higher. Just a guess, but I'm thinking there are probably more bass eaten on some lakes in a week than BASS loses all year and it's no sin to eat them by the way. I doubt they will ever go to the MLF type weigh-in, too many people show up to see the anglers, their boats and of course the fish. The MLF format was more or less made for TV and not live spectators.

Catching them as deep as they were is the issue. They could take a little better care of them in the boat buts only going to change it a little when you keep them and run a ways.

To get a crowd with this format you need another attraction other than the anglers. The concerts in the earlier TTBC did the trick. Tournament can't stand alone one that format.

If BASS is going to remain in the forefront of the sport, why would they not consider change. Why do they need live wells? They have Marshalls, can’t they operate a scale? Who really truly enjoys watching Tripp, Mercer, and some angler hold up a limit of nearly dead fish? I sure don’t. I don’t think there is anything ethical about letting most of those fish go to be ate by turtles, at least put them in the crisco. seriously.

I mean as much as I love hearing boom Shaka laka gi gi gi gi GIANT BASS!!!!

So how exactly would you propose they have a weigh in without any fish?

A scale. Just like MLF or other events.

Cut out the live and basstrack and have some sort of suspense filled event in the afternoon similar to a weigh in that reveals the results. Done.

Think how much faster and further those 21’ boats could run wo 250+ pounds of water in a well

Not going to happen, at least for the most part. As said before, MLF is made for tv, not spectators. They have a small scale expo at every BASS and FLW, a huge expo at the Classic and the Cup. They're selling tons of stuff to spectators that want to see fish at the weigh in. You may not enjoy watching a weigh in but about 40,000 do at the Classic.

Dead fish penalties are a part of tournament fishing. Every angler knows that. All tournament anglers try to avoid dead to avoid the weight deduction. Sometimes fish die and it’s not the end of the world.

Think of how many anglers catch a few bass within state laws and fillet them and eat them. Most tournaments have a good live fish release.

Think of how many and caught in gill nets on Falcon and Amistad and eaten. Apparently it hasn’t ruined them.

Look, i get it, my opionion is different than yalls. I understand some fish live, some fish die, and it isn’t the end of the world, and it has little to no effect on the fishery. Got it. I get that. HOWEVER, this is about impressions and being leaders in conservation and ethics, what would you think if you went behind stage and saw 100+ dead and dying 4+ pound smallmouth in the tanks? BASS should at least address it, call a spade a spade. TEACH anglers how to handle fish, shoot, I heard Lucas say on Live that he didn’t know how to fizz a fish, WHAT?

I guarantee if someone with some creative juice put there brain to it, they could make some sort of event comparable to a weigh in be just as satisfying as watching the fish get yanked out of livewells. The MLF format doesn’t have to be fit just for TV. If 40K people enjoy that at a classic, I bet there are just as many or more folks just like me that thinks that its ruining our sport. To me, its about catching fish, tournament anglers are in it to compete, are they really in it to hold up all their fish with the TD?

Weigh ins are antiquated. I’m an advocate for no livewells on elite series boats in 2019! May all the scales be calibrated properly! Cheers fellas, hope you don’t miss seein the carnage.

Advocate for the crappie guys to let their fish go... all fish lives matter

See, that comment doesn’t make sense. Crappie fisher keep and eat their fish. Are you volunteering to eat the 6 pound smallmouth out of the St. Lawrence?

Then you should advocate for all boats to have their livewell removed to stop the carnage. Not just the best in the world. Go ahead and advocate for the crappie guys to let their fish go. All fish lives matter

Sure if they die then someone should eat them.

I agree. Are you volunteering? I sure as heck am not eating a 5 pound smallmouth fillet, no way.

I just hate seeing the double standard when it comes to the pros. They visit a few lakes a year and take the best possible care of their fish because 100k is riding on the line. Some fish die the world goes on. Advocating for those guys not to have live wells is ridiculous. Come on.

the Muskie fisherman in me agrees with this statement. My livewells just gets filled up with Muskie baits. All fish are out of the water for ...maybe a minute.

Yeah that would be so horrible! I’m out... hats off to your strong stance on conservation

Look, they set the standard, whether you like it or not. It isn’t a double standard, it is THEE standard. They set the trends, they set the BAR. I don’t think it’s ridiculous at all to be critical or to advocate for change, either to the schedule or to the process of weighing/handling fish. If 25% mortality is occurring, why can’t we strive for 5%? Trust me, i’m just as critical of the club or small timers dumping their dead fish at the ramp at about 4 on Saturday afternoon. It’s “part of it it” right? Does it really have to be?

I feel like i’m Beating this topic up. But just look, look back to the first BASS events, when they kept 10 fish limits, they dropped to 5 and kept them alive, Its just change,and its the reality, that we need to do as good of job as possible to maintain the sport everyone loves. And I think maintaining is being progressive, and doing as best we can as sportsman to release fish healthy. From my perspective the best way to do that is boat side, AT LEAST WITH THE ELITES.

I’ll bite one more time. Are you advocating for all boats to not have have a live well?

Nope, i’m not. But I think in 10 years the elites wont have a need for one.

Then yes you are creating a double standard. You stating they set the bar is an opinion. Stating they shouldn’t have live wells and the rest of us having live wells is a double standard.

Again hats off to your conservation.

Look, maybe you are an ELITE series guy, i’m not. Its not a double standard if i say they are SETTING the standard, that everyone else follows. I’m not saying take away live wells, i’m Saying that with time, there won’t be a need for one, just give it some time. it’ll happen.

Last little jack pot tournament i fished, a guy got pissed he couldn’t keep his fish he weighed in. Trends and standards flow from the top down, that’s how i see it. I’m sure that BASS does everything they can to limit mortality, why not show it? Educate. Put a YouTube video out, behind the scenes elite series fish care, I bet it gets 500K views on YouTube. I’ll watch it twice.

Did you see the lady on BASS live Saturday demonstrate how to fizz a bass ? About a 5 minute monologue and close up of how, where and when to fizz. Very informative. There are also some fish care video's on youtube for anyone interested in them.

Nick you should have been on Falcon in 2008 when BASS was down there. Your head would have exploded. There was dead fish everywhere alll the way from two to ten pounders floating . But I will beat a hundred to
a donut that next year there will be know where near the amount of fish killed .

The dead fish don't bother me. What i've been trying to say is that they are unneccessary blemish on our sport. There isn't a need to have a pile of dead fish at the end of a weigh-in JUST so you we can all see fish at a weigh in. I guess weigh ins just arent that exciting to me, I'm far more interested in the challenges, stradegies and tactics. I don't think its just me, but maybe it is, no big deal.

I thought a MLF formatted tour would never happen AND would be unpopular

^^^^^ I was thinking about this thread a few days ago.....
And yea, BASS doesn't seem quite as unshakable anymore.

Popularity of the new format and series is obviously TBD, but no doubt things are changing.

I support Nick's Idea, we can and should do better. Its 2018, we can and should leverage technology to do this better