FLW Co-Angler - What Would You Do?

[Flysmallie]

For the record the pro that front ended me was a good guy. We had an enjoyable time on the water. But again he was upfront with his intentions. He even waited patiently in the boat while I weighed my fish before going to get his truck. 

[Gavin]

Be kind to others. If not take your reward.

 

[Champ188]

10 hours ago, Flysmallie said:

For the record the pro that front ended me was a good guy. We had an enjoyable time on the water. But again he was upfront with his intentions. He even waited patiently in the boat while I weighed my fish before going to get his truck. 

If the pro finds a shallow bite in practice that requires casting parallel to the bank, he would be taking himself out of contention by not fishing that way for the benefit of his co-angler because you can bet the guys he's competing against are doing whatever it takes to catch fish.

I know from Central Pro-Am experience that by the time you pay pro entry fee, truck and boat gas/oil, lodging and meals for a few days, you've invested at least $1,000 in each tournament. Yes, the co-angler has spent a good bit of money, too. But the rules allow you to position the boat however you need to in order to catch fish. Your competition is doing just that without a thought to their co-angler.

And therein lies the issue for me ... if you don't cut the guy off in the back, you're screwing yourself. If you do, you're screwing him. Sometimes you're on a pattern where both of you can fish effectively without the co-angler being pigeon holed. But for a shallow-water guy like me, that's not the case a lot of the time.

That's why these days I prefer guiding over tournament fishing. I get to help my fishing partners catch fish and get paid for it. Win-win for me.

[Browning Guy]

I fished a CPA behind Bob Harter out of Tulsa.  It was on Grand.  He told me he was catching fish on points.  I caught a keeper first thing on one of the spinnerbaits I make.  He never looked back.  I caught a second within 10 minutes.  He glanced back.  I caught a third soon after.  He asked what brand is that bait.  I told him homemade and offered to put one together for him he said no, no keep fishing.  Caught a fourth 20 minutes later and he said "let me see that thing".  I showed it to him and offered several times to make one up right quick.  He said no, no keep fishing and get your limit while he was digging in his tackle.  Unfortunately it took another hour to get my fifth.  I cut my bait off and gave it to him and then made up another one identical and gave it to him.  He ended up catching three.  He obviously could have accepted my first offer, but he wanted me to get my limit first. It was a good experience for me to fish with Mr. Harter.  I only mention his name because he deserves recognition for his actions/attitude that day and serves as a reminder of the fun I had fishing as a co-angler 97% of the time.

Fishing behind some of these guys is difficult from the standpoint that many are human fish dredges that leave little in their wake, but looking back.... trying to figure out a way to fish differently, slow, fast, baits, etc. is critical.  Little variances can be all the co needs to be successful.  Frustration can quickly set in, but that is the responsibility of the back seater to figure out a way to make things work.  Not always easy and often times a challenge, but satisfying when things work out, especially if both catch fish.

[Champ188]

5 hours ago, BrowningCollector.com said:

I fished a CPA behind Bob Harter out of Tulsa.  It was on Grand.  He told me he was catching fish on points.  I caught a keeper first thing on one of the spinnerbaits I make.  He never looked back.  I caught a second within 10 minutes.  He glanced back.  I caught a third soon after.  He asked what brand is that bait.  I told him homemade and offered to put one together for him he said no, no keep fishing.  Caught a fourth 20 minutes later and he said "let me see that thing".  I showed it to him and offered several times to make one up right quick.  He said no, no keep fishing and get your limit while he was digging in his tackle.  Unfortunately it took another hour to get my fifth.  I cut my bait off and gave it to him and then made up another one identical and gave it to him.  He ended up catching three.  He obviously could have accepted my first offer, but he wanted me to get my limit first. It was a good experience for me to fish with Mr. Harter.  I only mention his name because he deserves recognition for his actions/attitude that day and serves as a reminder of the fun I had fishing as a co-angler 97% of the time.

Fishing behind some of these guys is difficult from the standpoint that many are human fish dredges that leave little in their wake, but looking back.... trying to figure out a way to fish differently, slow, fast, baits, etc. is critical.  Little variances can be all the co needs to be successful.  Frustration can quickly set in, but that is the responsibility of the back seater to figure out a way to make things work.  Not always easy and often times a challenge, but satisfying when things work out, especially if both catch fish.

I've never personally met Bob but have been around him at a lot of tournaments. He's obviously a very nice guy and a credit to the sport. Glad to hear you had a good experience with him and nice of you to share that story here.

[gurumalone]

i fished with greg ,in 1998 his first pro am,i was the pro he was the co angler,we went up the kings river,i threw a wiggle wart and he threw a spinnerbait,we both both caught fish,i told him to throw towards the front of the boat and he did,if i could not catch them with a crankbait maybe he could with a spinnerbait,He was a nice guy to fish with then,i have got talk to him few times since,he has been a class act every time i talked to him.

[Fish24/7]

in that situation I would have fished my strengths, my confidence baits.... if possible

learn how to fish "everything" ,versatility is a must from the back seat position.

 over a decade I fished there until I finally had my own boat.

 

 

 

 

[Sore Thumbs]

You can't go wrong with a shakey head or drop shot when you are in the back. In bfl if the co angler can just catch one keeper a tournament they make the regional. Your chances increase dramatically with finesse presentations. 

[Smalls21]

i fished in the back of the boat in club draw tourney. not the same as being in a big money tourney but i caught a limit out of the back of the boat on the ned rig. after the 4th keeper, my partner switched from throwing cranks and spinnerbaits to throwing a ned rig as well. so being in the back of the boat is not always a bad thing in my opinion.

[Sore Thumbs]

If the Angler and co angler work together and try different baits. Eventually one of them usually figures it.