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> Day 3: 5, 20-07 (15, 48-09) Elias said the bites he was getting in practice finally showed up again today and it helped him secure his second Top-12 cut of the year.

"My big fish hadn't bit yet and they finally did today," he said. "I just hope I can catch them again tomorrow. The way they're jacking with the water and the way I'm fishing outside grass, when the water rises the fish go in the grass and when they drop it, they come back out to where I'm it. It's like a cat and mouse game."

His first 2 days were slow in terms of the numbers of fish he was catching, but today he figured he caught three limits, all on a crankbait.

"I caught two good ones pretty quick, then struggled for a long time," he said. "I caught most of my fish between 1 and 2:30 this afternoon. With all of the fluctuations here they get triggered and do their deal and with what I'm doing if they show up, I can pop a big bag quick." Read more

Sunday through Wednesday...that's when you learn not about the competitor, but about the man.  I believe that if you want to know where a man is going...you need to know where it is he's been.

Sunday through Wednesday...when the stories of their lives are told.

And yesterday, Tuesday, my roommate Paul Elias told me of a man, a neighbor, whose kindness may have forever changed Paul's life. Here's that story.

BassFan.com - Another competitor had set up camp in Elias' primary locale this morning, so he couldn't fish the spot that produced almost all of his 18 pounds on day 1.

"That made it hard on me," he said. "I went over and fished it for a little while after he'd caught three or four, but I think that place is kind of wasted.

"It got slower on me. It was either because of (the difference in) the day and the current, or I'm running out of fish."

He managed just eight keepers, the biggest of which was close to 4 pounds. The only bite he lost was the first one of the day.

"It wrapped me up in a log and I couldn't feel the fish, so I ended up breaking my line and then it jumped three times. That one would've helped me another half or three-quarters of a pound.

"It seemed like the current was pushing a lot harder today – I lost a dozen jigs. You've got the eddy current and the regular river current, and the eddy was really pushing."

Photo: James Overstreet/Bass Day 1: 5, 18-04 Elias sacked more than 18 pounds despite not having a fish that cracked the 4-pound mark.

"They were just all solid 3 1/2- to 3 3/4-pounders," he said. "I caught most of them off one spot and then I ran around a culled a couple of times.

He said he had an excellent practice.

"I had about 20 pounds the first day we were here. I've got a pretty solid pattern going."

He went through about 15 keepers on the day and didn't lose any that would've helped him. He's in the final flight for day 2 and how he fares might depend on whether he can access his best spot.

"I had one angler who kind of hassled me in there so I really don't know what's going to happen. I'd be real confident if I knew I could have that spot, but that's probably not going to be the case. I might just have to go around and hope they're on some of the places they weren't on today." Read More

Paul Elias, for instance, is sitting in second with 18-4. His position by itself doesn’t really stop the presses. Elias is a giant in the fishing world. He wins tournaments. But for us old-timers, who remember 1982 when Elias won the Bassmaster Classic here, that is something that produces a grin and a, well, “Holy Snot!” Complete Story

I have sat back and listened and read all of the controversy over the Alabama/umbrella rigs. I have kept fairly quiet about it because I felt that most people would think anything I had to say positive about the Alabama/umbrella rig would be because I was making money off it. After listening to all of the naysayers and so-called "pro fishing purists," I cannot sit back and be quiet any longer.

I read all of these negative articles about umbrella rigs and none of the people writing them give any good, educated, factual information about the technique. The main reason for this is because there is not enough factual information about it, because it is still too new of a technique.

Read more ...

Oklahoma’s Fred Roumbanis edges out Paul Elias to win the PAA Tournament Series on Alabama’s Neely Henry Lake

Gadsden, AL – Fred Roumbanis started the final day of competition in the Bass Pro Shops PAA Tournament Series presented  by Carrot Stix on Alabama’s Neely Henry Lake in a bit of a funk.

After finishing the second day of the tournament in sixth place with a two day total weight of 25.76 pounds, the Bixby, Oklahoma pro was less than two pounds off the pace set by Greg Hackney, but felt as though he’d let a golden opportunity slip through his fingers after failing to boat three key bites that would have increased his total weight by over four pounds.

Friday’s lost fish were a distant memory by the conclusion of Saturday afternoon’s final weigh-in, which was held at Bass Pro Shops in Leeds, Alabama.   With a limit weighing 12.95 pounds, Roumbanis edged out Mississippi’s Paul Elias by a mere .24 pounds to hoist the PAA Tournament Series trophy with a final weight of 38.71 pounds. Story - Results

BASS TALK LIVE REPLAYS

Elite Series Pro, Paul Elias, discusses his feelings about the Alabama Rig and the possibility of banning the AR on the tours.

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