2015 KBF Open Recap

Posted by CJ Espey on 24th Mar 2015

2015 KBF Open Recap

by: CJ Espey

Finally March 9,^,2015 has arrived. I have been waiting for this day since March 16, 2014, the last KBF Open. The reason I had been waiting so long was because the 2014 Open brought me a skunk and I couldn’t live it down. This year the Open was being hosted on Kentucky Lake, right on the border of Tennessee and Kentucky. The biggest mistake I made the year before was arriving at 1:00 am the day before the tournament started. The one practice day I got was horrible conditions and left me lost with no idea what to do on tournament day. I promised myself that I would not let that happen again and allow myself at least 3 days of practice. So this year I was leaving on Monday, allowing for 3 days of practice prior to launching for the tournament. Even though I was very excited for this year’s Open, I was not excited for the 13 hour ride.

So once Monday March 9^th at 3:30 am arrived, I swung buy my friend Mikes house and we were off to Paris, Tennessee. For me the drive down was horrible, but once we arrived we were both ready to hit the water the next morning. That night consisted of studying maps, checking gear and making sure everything was ready for the first practice day. We both decided the back of a creek far off the main lake would be our first spot. The wind was supposed to be blowing around 10mph or more. This creek had everything we were looking for; shallow water close to deep water for staging fish, boat docks and a fish attractor. The only thing this creek was missing was fish. We fished all day there and the only person to catch a fish was Mike. So the KBF skunk continued for me. We decided to pack up for the day, grab some dinner and figure out a new spot for the next day.

After dinner we were back at the room looking at maps again. This time we decided on a big creek just off of the main river that also had everything we were looking for. The only difference between this place and the place the day before is it was just off of the main lake. We launched at a local marina and right off the bat Mike lands a decent fish about 17”. At this point we knew that this spot would be much better. After a little paddling around and watching the fish finder I came up to a point off the main creek that I marked a ton of bait and big fish on. A few cast in I landed my first fish that measured about 16”. The skunk was finally off and the pressure to catch a fish was gone. I got this fish on a 1/2 oz rattle bait. I stayed on the point for a little while longer and Mike had drifted down to the same place I was. He takes one cast with a big swim bait and I look over at his rod and it is bent over. This was a big fish and I knew it was over 5lbs. After taking Mike for a nice ride, he finally landed his personal best 5.5lb Large Mouth that measured 20”. This was one of the fattest fish I had seen for being 20”. At this point the other two guys, Joe and Brian, finally arrived and we were all fishing the same creek. Mike and I moved down the shoreline some and I was still throwing the same rattle bait. I took a cast up to the shore and my line just stopped. I thought I was hung on a rock until I saw the line moving to deeper water. At this point I was yelling for Mike thinking I had a 10lb bass. Once I got it close I realized it was not a bass, it was an 11lb freshwater Drum. It was a great fight and a fun ride but it wasn’t what we were there for. The rest of the day brought Mike and me a few bass, but we knew it wasn’t enough to win us a tournament. As we were getting ready to pack up we decided to hit some rip rap because the sun had just come out and we thought the fish would be moving. Still throwing the rattle bait I casted up into some rocks and I felt the bait just stop dead. I set the hook and again I knew this was a nice fish. I landed it and it was a nice fat 5lb fish measuring 19.75”. At this point we were finished for the day and felt this spot was our go to place for the tournament.

So after a satisfying day on the water I had reached out to a friend of mine from down there and he was going to be in the area. He was coming up for a few days and was bringing his boat. The next day Mike and I were going to hang out with him and see if could find any schools that we could guarantee a ton of fish from. So we meet him at the boat dock and there were a ton of boats launching and waiting. There were two other tournaments that were being fished Saturday and Sunday and everyone was starting to arrive for practice. We fished most of the day just catching a fish here and a fish there. We never really found that big school of fish. As the day went on we pulled into a small bay that was funneling water though a narrow 6ft channel. The water in the bay was about 5 degrees warmer than anywhere else we fished on the lake. This was a great sign that this bay could be the spot we were looking for. Within 30 minutes of arriving we landed 5 fish all over 18”. At that point we left the bay and decided that the bay was going to be our spot and just hope the fish stayed in there. All the baits were caught on the same 1/2 oz rattle bait. We finished up for the day, met the other guys for dinner and went in to rest up for the next day.

The 4:30 am alarm came really quick and the weather was looking horrible. It was the hardest rain I have seen this year and it was cold. We got on the water at 6:00am just to make sure we got to our spot and waited for the sun to come up. Finally at 7:30am the sun is up and our lines are in the water. Within 45 minutes of casting our 1/2 oz rattle baits, I hooked up with a fish that was over 5lbs and measured 20.5”. I pulled up on land to get the picture just to make sure she didn’t flop off the board. Getting the picture was nearly impossible because it was raining so hard. It took about 20 minutes to picture the fish and a lot of help from Brian. We release the fish and went back to fishing. As soon as we get back to our spot Brian hooks up with a 19” fish. Again we struggled to get the picture but we did and it was release. After the first flurry of bites the rain got even harder and the water started to get very muddy. The bite really slowed the rest of the day but about an hour before we had to leave it turned back on. Brian and I each landed another 19.5” fish. My total was now 40” and Brian had 38.5” of fish. Both of us were very confident in our totals and we headed back in soaked and cold. We turned the fish in at the check in spot and had to wait until 7:00 pm to find out the result.

7:00 pm rolls around and the meeting started. They started by announcing the top 15 and started with number 15. Mike’s name was announced at 12^th with 34.5 inches. They continue to announce more and more people and Brian and I are yet to be called. We had no idea we were in at least the top 5. Then number 4 is called nothing, number 3 nothing, number 2 Brian is finally called and sitting in 2^nd. So I knew at this point I was the day one leader. They called me up to the front and told me I had won some prizes. The first prize I got was a $100 Power Team Lures giftcard. The second prize made this whole trip worth it. I won a 4 day all inclusive trip with Chad Hoover to Ray Scott’s private bass retreat. I was very excited to get this prize, especially knowing there is a great chance to catch a fish over 10lbs. The meeting concluded and we were off to dinner and bed. I could hardly sleep because I wanted to get back on the water.

Again the 4:30 am alarms goes off and again the weather is bad. It is raining hard and it is cold. This really concerned me because this much rain would make the water muddy and drop our small bay a few degrees. This time we arrive at 6:00 am and there was already a kayaker launched and on the water. He saw us yesterday and must have realized 3 of us were in the top 15 fishing in this spot. The good thing is he was not in the spot we were catching them. The sun comes up and again the bite turns right on, just not for me or Brian. Joe catches a 6.5lb 21.5” fish right next to me and Mike gets a 19.5” fish not far from us. The morning goes by and I only have two fish at 13.5” and 13”. There is no way I will stay in the top 15 with these two fish and no 3 fish limit. So finally after 12:00pm I hooked into a 19” fish and now I have hope. The rest of the day I caught a bunch of smaller fish and not able to get rid of the 13” fish. It was about time to leave and we all call last cast. The last cast of the day I throw on top of a sunken tree, it wraps around a brand, falls into the water and the line was tight. I thought I was hung on a tree because it was tight as soon as I reeled. But the line started swimming and I knew it was a good fish. I landed it and it was a 17” fish and I knew I had a chance. I honestly didn’t think I could win with the 13.5”, but I thought there was a chance. We got off the water and checked our fish into the check in spot. Now we had to wait until 8:00 pm to find out the results.

Finally 8:00 pm comes around and the announcing began. They again started out with the top 15 people because that is who got paid. So they get down to the top 10 and Mike and I still haven’t been called. We know the sizes being called are not close to what Mike and I have, so we should be at least top 8. Then it’s down to the top five and number 5 is called. It’s not either of us. So now it is down to the top 4 and they call all of remaining anglers up to the front. At this point we all know we are winning at least $1500 and a chance at manufactures money. The first name called for 4^th place is Mike. He won $1500 with a total of 88.25”. The next name called is my name. I came in 3^rd and won $2000. I knew the 13.5” fish would come back to bite me. All in all it was an awesome tournament and tons of fish were caught. 2 of the guys that I went down with caught their personal best fish. Kentucky Lake was the best place any of us had ever fished.