Clear Lake Left Most Toyota Pros Feeling Foggy

The Bassmaster® Elite Series tournament at gorgeous Clear Lake sent three of the four nationally sponsored Toyota pros home from the Sierra Nevadas feeling foggy.

Mike Iaconelli was the one exception. Ike remained consistent and eventually finished 25th with 54 pounds. For the most part, Iaconelli ignored the vogue swimbait bite and focused on his strengths, which involved dragging finesse baits across the shallow lake bottom.

“The majority of my keepers came from isolated rock piles in 10 -12’ of water not terribly far from the launch ramp. Green pumpkin was the color of choice for both the ½ oz. Berkley® Gripper Jig and the 3/16 oz. weighted Shaky Worm,” said Iaconelli.

Like teammates Kevin VanDam and Gerald Swindle, longtime Toyota Pro Terry Scroggins failed to make the Day 2 cut. With clear hindsight, the always-friendly Florida pro said he felt like the fish swam past him. “I was focusing on the outside of the flats and catching small keepers, and I think the larger fish had passed right by me on their way to spawn near the shallower portion of the canals and ditches. Plus, I moved around way too much. The lake fished fairly small. A huge percentage of the competitors were in about one-third of the lake, and when it’s that crowded you gotta put your head down and fish.”