ProAm Bass Fishing Pro bill beck Tournament Recap

The kickoff tournament of the 2007-08 Heartland Pro-Am season sponsored by Tracker Marine / Nitro Boats, proved to be a very tough event for 188 anglers on Table Rock Lake. major weather changes had occurred after an unseasonably warm October. Clouds and strong winds whipped the lake into a froth the week prior to the event and broke up the thermocline. This scattered the fish in depth zones from 3 all the way out to 100 feet of water. Added on top of the change, was the dreaded second day after a cold front and everything lined up to a very tough day of fishing.

Local guide, Bill Beck, was able to figure out an extremely deep bite and edged out the field on a very difficult day. Although only six keeper sized fish came to the boat, a win is not surprising as Bill always challenges for the title on Table Rock. He has had 10, top-10 Heartland Trails finishes on Table Rock Lake alone. Of those 10 events, six were victories. Bill's winning 15.76 lb. limit was anchored by the 2nd big bass of the event, a very solid 4.94 lb. largemouth.

Bill fished ledges early with a 5/8 oz. Jewel football jig to catch three keepers. The ledges had drops in the 20 to 30 foot range but the fish weren't holding on one specific depth. Bill had a deep bite which turned on after 10:30am and then he targeted submerged trees in 55 to 100 feet of water. His electronics were key to identifying over 40 individual trees spread from the Baxter area to the dam and dropping a white 1/2 oz. War Eagle Spoon through the limbs to bass feeding on schools of shad.

Bill was very lucky to land his kicker fish. He was working a few fish suspended in a deep tree at about 45 feet when he saw two large streaks come up from the bottom to 55 feet and head back down. Bill quickly dropped the spoon to 55 feet and gave it quick jerk. One of the streaks turned around and slammed into the War Eagle Spoon. It was his kicker fish but the fun had just started. Bill though it wrapped or sawed its way through every limb in the tree on the way to the boat. He has to strip off 30 feet of frayed 12 lb. Seaguar line to continue fishing.

His Heartland victory was worth $3,3435 with 2nd Big Bass money plus the $250 Mercury, $100 CarStar and $25 Solar Bat incentive monies.

Bill is sponsored by Champion Boats, Mercury Marine, Hughes Custom Baits, Solar Bat, Battery Outfitters, Jewel Bait Co., MotorGuide, Pinpoint, Table Rock Tackle & Marine and Ulrich Marine.

2nd Place...Jimmy Davis, Jr. of Willard, MO

A few things can be counted on in this world; death, taxes and the Davis brothers fishing docks with a jig. Jimmy Davis, Jr., separated himself from the pack with a 5.22 lb. kicker largemouth but was unable to hold on for the win with 15.11 lbs. He and brother Jackie collected a Top-10 finish in the Team Series the day prior, but they split ways when it came to the Pro-Am. Jimmy hit a home run under the docks while Jackie struggled in open water.

Jimmy was fortunate enough to boat his first keeper by 7:30 am and then dumped his Big Bass in the livewell at 10 am. He wasn't sure about the bite as those were his only two fish up to that point and Jimmy then went fishless for another long stretch.

Instead of giving into the urge to make a change, Davis stuck to his guns and ground out a limit plus two fish to cull with. This says a lot about the mental side of tournament angling. A hasty change in tactics would have likely resulted in a middle of the pack finish for Davis.

Jimmy couldn't pinpoint a specific bank composition to locate his fish on, rather he merely relied on presence of shade around the docks. He fished various types of docks that had been productive for him in the past, a few miles each way from the Kimberling City bridge.

His weapon of choice was a Davis Brothers 1/2oz. brown and purple jig with a green chunk trailer. His bites were very shallow in the clear Ozarks water; all of his fish came in three to seven feet of water. His total winnings for 2nd place and Big Bass was $2,440.

Jimmy Davis is sponsored by Pro Guide Batteries and Minn Kota.

3rd Place...Wes Endicott of Joplin, MO

After winning the Team Series on Saturday, Wes Endicott capped off his weekend competitions with 3rd Place in the Pro-Am event. Wes can always be counted on to challenge for the win whenever he hits the water at Table Rock lake.

The veteran dropped 12.92 lbs. to add to a multitude of top finishes in his Heartland career.

A brown 3/8 oz. homemade round-head jig tipped with a green pumpkin craw trailer zapped a solid limit of smallmouths from boat docks in the lower lake area. The productive boat docks were located near the main lake and over pea gravel in three to 10 feet of water.

Endicott was awarded $1,000 for his finish plus the Tracker Trophy incentive money of $500.

Wes Endicott is sponsored by ProCraft Boats, Mercury Marine, Action Optics, Basszone.com, MotorGuide and Red River Tackle Company.

Perry Stone Wins Amateur Division...