John Murray Wins BASS Toledo Bend

Familiarity and confidence were two overarching themes to John Murray's approach to the Toledo Bend Elite Series. He stayed in the same house in the same bedroom as he has in the past, going so far as to tell housemate Brent Ehrler to steer clear of his preferred room. Not that Murray is outwardly superstitious, but at Toledo Bend he relied on old habits and a spot he trusted to deliver the biggest win of his already decorated career. This was at least the sixth tournament he's fished at the massive reservoir that sits on the Texas-Louisiana border. Over the years, he's developed a comfort level there that revolves around one section of the lake, specifically an old house foundation amidst a throng of stumps on one of the longest points he's ever found. "I came to the realization earlier this year ... everyone says it's totally a confidence thing and it is," he said. "I had gotten to a point where I didn't have any confidence in my abilities."

The difference at Toledo Bend was the positive experiences he'd had there in the past. Aside from his Open Championship win in 2003 (he won by 16-plus pounds over Gary Klein fishing the same part of the lake), he had two top-30 finishes in the four previous Elite Series visits there. "I was at a great lake where I have a lot of confidence," he said. "I decided I have to rely more on myself and that's been my focus this year. "This is a huge step for that. I always tell myself 'I've been on tour for 11 years and not won.' What kind of confidence does that give you? Now that I've won, my goal is to finish strong and be in the (2018) Classic."

While some competitors hunted the shallows in search of the latest wave of spawners and others probed deep water for post-spawners, Murray stuck with what he knew. Several years ago, when the water was several feet low at Toledo Bend, he saw the foundation that was surrounded by a good many stumps. He figured when the water came back up it'd be a place to revisit. "Originally, it was an area no one liked because it's a huge area and you have to idle into it," he said. "You have to fish it to find where the fish are. That's what started it all." That played into his strategy to stay away from the areas where boats were sure to be bunched up. "I purposely chose areas where I didn't see many boats," he said.

He initially combed the area with a Gene Larew Biffle Bug, but later discovered "they wanted something up and moving," he added. That's when a deep-diving crankbait and a beefed up jerkbait entered the equation. He caught a 5-pounder and an 8-pounder near the foundation in practice and split in search of something else. "I went down to the dam and caught two big ones and that's where I started the first two days, but only caught one," he said. "I said, 'I need to stay north,' but I hadn't expanded. I'd never found anything else." The point on which the foundation sat was unlike anything Murray has found in his 30-plus years of competitive fishing. "It's almost a mile from the bank out to the tip with stuff on each side," he said. "There are a lot of stumps and there are a few little sharp breaks, but most are gradual and subtle. "It looks a lot like San Carlos Lake in Arizona near where I grew up. The biggest, longest points on the lake are what I like and this was one of the longest ones I've ever found. That's what has always drawn me to it."

Competition:

Murray's tournament didn't start anything like how it finished. He went through three limits in the first couple of hours after heading south to reach the 10-pound mark. He came back to the foundation and cranked two 6-pounders to get up to 17-03, which was good for 13th. "I knew I had a shot at a big one, but you just never know," he said. Murray struggled Friday when the wind slacked off. Again, he went south to start and generated one keeper bite. When he came back to the foundation, the crankbait bite had died. He lost one key fish when he tried to swing a 6-pound class specimen into the boat, only to have it break him off. "They didn't bite under calmer conditions," he said. "I spent half of day 2 out there and didn't get any bites. They could've been out deeper and I tried it, but I don't know if the wind from day 1 pushed stuff around." He resorted to a souped-up dropshot to catch the majority of his fish and didn't finish his limit until late in the day. Without it, he probably would've missed the cut. "I was coming in with 5 minutes left, figuring I'd missed the cut," he said. "I stopped to try for a fifth keeper and caught a 2 1/2-pounder and made the cut." His 11-07 stringer dropped him back to 34th, setting the stage for his weekend rally.

The crankbait bite lagged again on day 3 and he relied heavily on a big jerkbait, either a vintage Super Rogue or a Lucky Craft LC 128. He boated two 7-plus pounders, including a 7-10 that fell for a clown-pattern Rogue. "I never caught more than two out of there that size," he said. He rocketed up to 3rd with a 23-07 stringer on Saturday. With the wind blowing more than anticipated, Murray gave the crankbait another try on Sunday. He was running low from snagging so much around the foundation, but his hunch paid off. His first fish was a 15-incher around 7:40 a.m., then a few minutes later, he caught 7 1/2-pounders within a couple casts of each other. "Typically, if some fish are around, more will be there," he said. Murray noted the bait in the area were down in 10 to 12 feet and the bass would slide up and down the sides of the point, using it as a highway of sorts." As often as Murray has fished the spot, he knew he had to make a specific cast in order to activate the fish nearby. He never could identify what was off to the side of the foundation, but it was snaggy. However, if he was able to deflect his bait off of it, it was almost a guarantee that he'd get a bite. "I always thought it was a stump, but I'm not sure what it was," he said. He later added another fish in the 6-pound class and had two smaller fish to go with three giants. His 24-15 was the second-heaviest stringer of the tournament.

Winning Gear:

Jerkbait gear: 7'11" medium-action Lew's Super Duty casting rod, Lew's Custom Pro casting reel, 14-pound Lew's APT fluorocarbon line, Lucky Craft LC 128 (light shad), vintage Smithwick Super Rogue (clown).

He chose the LC 128 in overcast and breezy conditions.

The clown-pattern Rogue caught the 7-10 kicker on day 3. The jerkbait generally worked with higher skies and less wind. "I used it mainly up on the flat in about 5 feet," he said. "That jerkbait would go 2 or 3 or 4 feet. I caught two of my big ones that way on the flat."

Cranking gear: 7'8" heavy-action Lew's David Fritts Perfect Crankbait rod, same reel, same line, Strike King 5XD (sexy shad).

Murray also pitched a Gene Larew Tattletail worm on a dropshot around visible stumps closer to shore in the same area. That was a key presentation on day 2 when conditions got tougher.

Murray had initially intended on throwing a River2Sea Whopper Plopper and the S-Waver jointed swimbait, but was caught off guard by the crankbait and jerkbait patterns. "I was unprepared for the winning bite," he said.

Main factor: "Figuring out they were eating bigger white bass. Other guys were throwing smaller jerkbaits. The Rogue is a bigger-sized lure and has won me many boats out west. That Pointer 128 has also won me a bunch of money at Clear Lake, so it was a confidence thing."

Performance edge: "There were a lot of things, but I have to credit my Lew's tackle."

Toledo Bend Winning Pattern BassFan 4/12/17 (Todd Ceisner)

Christie focused on the northern parts of the lake simply to stay away from his competitors and locals, who headed south. "Strictly boat traffic," he said. "It's really hard to fish around all the competitors and all the locals." He started the tournament closer to the blast-off point and walloped 21-05, including a 9-10 kicker, mostly with a spinnerbait in dirty water, a result of Wednesday's heavy winds. He remained in the same area the morning of day 2, but sensed a move up the lake was necessary. "I still caught some, but the water was getting clean real fast," he said. "I decided to head north after that. I was pretty much chasing water color as much as anything after day 2." He stuck with a spinnerbait after switching areas and varied what he threw based on water clarity. He targeted hard, visible cover, like wood.

"Most of it was anything hard," he noted. "It was a combination of the shad spawn and fish spawning. I felt like I was getting the best of both worlds there. "Once I get the spawn into my head, it's hard to get it out. Once I feel like fish are spawning, I want to fish for those fish instead of post-spawners." With that mindset, he fished in cuts and pockets and anywhere he figured they'd spawn. He caught a mix of pre- and post-spawners throughout the event. "I probably weighed two-thirds post-spawn fish," he said. "On Sunday, I had all pre-spawners. I don't know why they moved up. Maybe it was the wind or moon."

Spinnerbait gear: 6'10" medium-heavy Falcon Cara Head Turner casting rod, Lew's Custom Pro casting reel (6.8:1 ratio), 22-pound Sunline Shooter fluorocarbon line, 1/2-oz. Booyah spinnerbait (chartreuse/white).

In clear water, a silver and gold blade tandem worked for Christie. On the final day, he threw one with a red kicker blade and also had a silver-silver combo rigged up.

He also weighed in a couple fish on a 1/2-oz. Booyah Bankroll jig (black/blue).

Main factor: "I have to give it to the 9-10, that's what got me kicked off, and just fishing my strengths. That's a big lake and you can get intimidated with the wind."

Performance edge: "I caught a lot of fish this week with the Power-Poles down. I was making multiple casts to the same target. That was a big deal. Also, on my Garmin units, I could put my cursor at takeoff and it would give me an estimated arrival time based on the speed I was going. I wanted to fish until the end and it was great because when I'm driving 17 to 20 mph in the rough water and you're wondering if you're ever getting back, that thing would tell me I'm going to get there. Trusting that was a big deal."

Toledo Bend 2-5 Patterns BassFan 4/14/17 (Todd Ceisner)

Jamie Hartman arrived at Toledo Bend thinking he could do some damage off the bank on post-spawn fish. "I came with the notion that these fish would be done spawning and be grouped up offshore and ready to eat," he said. "I graphed and marked a ton of stuff offshore like brush piles and outside channel swings. I put 2 days of practice into that and it wasn't working. I just couldn't get it going." He caught a few fish, but they weren't the quality he knew he'd need come tournament time. "I scrambled and backed more into the creeks instead of going back out," he added.

He found one area that proved productive every morning. It was the intersection of two creek channels that featured a high spot. "I could sit out deep and throw up on the split," he said. He'd employ a small, compact finesse jig and a magnum shaky-head there, but the bite would consistently die off before long. That forced him to hit other spots and eventually do some sight-fishing when the conditions allowed. "I caught them out to 32 feet this week, so that helped," he said. "It wasn't what I expected. Between the finesse jig and the magnum finesse worm, those caught my bigger fish. From there, depending on where I was at, I changed what I was throwing all the time."

Finesse jig gear: 7'3" medium-heavy Cashion casting rod, Lew's Tournament Pro G casting reel, 15-pound Hi-Seas fluorocarbon line, 1/2-oz. Riot Baits Minima jig (peanut butter & jelly), Riot Baits Tantrum trailer (green-pumpkin).

Hartman typically prefers the 3/8-oz. version of the Minima jig, but had to upsize for the 12- to 15-foot depths he was working. The Tantrum is a yet-to-be-released craw bait from Riot that has a thicker body. The jig was a key producer in the morning and when he'd cover water toward shallower stretches along hay grass. Magnum shaky-head gear: Same rod, same reel, same line (15-pound), unnamed 3/8-oz. shaky-head jig, Zoom Magnum Finesse Worm (redbug, green-pumpkin, watermelon red). He swapped colors depending on water clarity and sun position.

Sight-fishing gear: Same rod, same reel, same line as jig, 3/16-oz. unnamed worm weight, 3/0 Owner EWG worm hook, Riot Baits Little Fuzzy (green-pumpkin).

Main factor: "Decision-making. That was big. I needed to know where to start and how long to stay and where to go to second and third. On the final day, I jumped spots and came back and got some bites."

Performance edge: "Without a doubt, my Lowrance electronics got me those offshore fish. I had one graph on my dash before practice and the Lowrance crew was nice enough to meet me on the dock on day 1 and I ran dual graphs on my dash. You could see so much more with that big screen."

Toledo Bend 2-5 Patterns BassFan 4/14/17 (Todd Ceisner)

Casey Ashley's practice wasn't much to brag about, but he was able to develop a morning-afternoon combo that carried him through the tournament. He steered clear of the southern end of the lake just to avoid the crowds that he figured would only grow in size as the weekend approached. "I just don't fish south here," he said. "There are too many boats. I can't fish in a crowd." He caught a modest 13-03 on day 1, then shot into the top 10 on day 2 with a 23-09 stringer. He'd caught a good one on a topwater early in the day, then stumbled on the area and found a deeper spot where he used a football jig to pick off fish hanging around sunken logs and timber.

"It was a secondary offshore place in front of a big spawning flat," he said. "I figured whatever was there would be using it to go in and stopping there on their way out." On day 3, he caught a few on a spinnerbait in an area where shad were spawning up high on standing timber, then went to his jig spot and caught 16 1/2 pounds to move up to 2nd entering the final day. "On Sunday, I did the topwater deal and then went to that other spot to finish it out," he said. "I figured more fish were there."

Jig gear: 7'4" heavy-action Quantum PT Tour casting rod, Quantum Smoke HD casting reel (7.3:1 ratio), 20-pound Hi-Seas fluorocarbon line, 3/4-oz. unnamed football-head jig, Zoom Z Craw trailer (green-pumpkin). He slow-rolled the jig like a spinnerbait in 7 to 9 feet of water. Spinnerbait gear: 7' medium-heavy Quantum Tour PT casting rod, Quantum Smoke casting reel (7.3:1 ratio), same line (20-pound), homemade 3/4-oz. double-willow spinnerbait (white), Zoom twin legs trailer (white). Ashley used a #4 gold blade in front and a silver #5 on the back. He also caught some topwater fish on a popper bait, which was effective around bream beds as well.

Main factor: "Keeping an open mind."

Performance edge :"All of it. My Triton and Mercury to my Quantum rods and reels to my line. I needed it all."

Toledo Bend 2-5 Patterns BassFan 4/14/17 (Todd Ceisner)

Brandon Palaniuk got burned by offshore fish at the Bassmaster Classic. He wasn't going to let it happen again at Toledo Bend. He started practice on a small patch of emergent water willow and eventually caught the bulk of his weight over the final two days of the tournament there. "I made one pass (in practice) and had 10 to 12 bites, but I didn't get any big bites," he said. "I caught maybe one 3-pounder. That told me there were still a bunch of fish shallow. "I was so tired of idling at Conroe and marking stuff and not catching anything that I spent the majority of time shallow. It's April in this part of the world, so you should be able to still catch 'em."

On the second day of practice, he tapped into an offshore grass bite and spent the final day expanding on that concept. "I probably had 22 pounds, but wasn't getting a lot of bites," he added. "It was definitely a pattern. I could look at the map and say, 'This is where I'd catch one,' and I'd go catch one. I thought it would get better, but it seems like it went away. It was interesting." With a vibrating jig, he targeted hydrilla in 4 to 10 feet of water in a creek south of the takeoff area. "I was fishing staging areas outside of spawning bays - shallow humps that had good hydrilla on it," he said. "Those fish were just sitting up higher." He had nearly 20 pounds on day 1 and 13-11 on day 2. On Saturday, he opted to start on the shallow water willow. "I think the progression of the warmer nights got those fish back to where they were in practice," he said.

Bladed jig gear: 7' medium-heavy Alpha Angler Rebound fiberglass casting rod, Abu Garcia Revo MGXtreme casting reel (7.0:1 ratio), 15-pound Seaguar InvizX fluorocarbon line, 1/2-oz. homemade vibrating jig (green-pumpkin orange), Zoom Z Craw trailer (California 420).

Swimjig gear: 7'3" medium-heavy Alpha Angler Zilla casting rod, Abu Garcia IV7 (Japanese model) casting reel, same line (17-pound), 3/8-oz. unnamed swimjig (white), Zoom Super Speed Craw trailer (white). The swimjig also had a few black and chartreuse strands for some contrast. He caught so many fish on it, he went through three jigs because eventually the skirt would get thinned out. Prior to the season, Palaniuk had about 20 of his Abu Garcia reels serviced by ZPI, a Japanese company that initially specialized in super-tuning Formula-1 race cars, but has since expanded to smaller mechanical applications such as fishing reels. He's noticed a considerable increase in performance so far this season. He fished the swi jig just beneath the surface in 12 to 18 inches of water. "It didn't need it to sink that far," he said. "Those fish were feeding on shad or spawning in that grass. I figured that out Sunday."

Main factor: "Having an open mind and not getting caught up in what should be happening at Toledo Bend and not getting caught up in looking for a deep hole."

Performance edge: "The Alpha Angler Rebound rod. With those fish I was catching, that rod hooks them so well on a bladed jig and keeps them buttoned. I didn't break a fish off all week."

Toledo Bend 2-5 Patterns BassFan 4/14/17 (Todd Ceisner)