> Day 2: 5, 14-01 (10, 26-01) - Ish Monroe came in 2 pounds heavier than on day 1 and slid inside the cut line.
"I fished a lot of the same areas, but I slowed down my jerkbait presentation a little bit and went with a bigger River2Sea Trophy Minnow," he said. "I wanted a lot more (weight), but I had a few big bites that I didn't execute on at all. Tomorrow I'll go with the same program and try to catch a 20-pound bag."
He caught six keepers and his bag was topped by a 4 1/2-pounder.
> Day 1: 5, 12-00 - Ish Monroe was able to get a big bite (he weighed a 5 1/4-pounder), but it was the other fish in his bag that were lacking.
"I said to myself if I could get four 2 1/2- to 3-pounders and one big one, I'd be all right," he said. "The problem was that I couldn't get to that average – they were all smaller.
"About every 45 minutes I'd get a bite, but I didn't execute like I should have."
Ish Monroe fished his first bass tournament when he was 14 years old, and he still remembers finishing 11th. Today, 23 years later, the Yamaha Pro is still competing fulltime; in fact, he's fishing more multi-day national events than any other pro in professional bass fishing."I just love to fish," laughs Monroe, who's become known as "Tournament Tough" around pro fishing circles. This year he plans to compete in as many as 25 national tournaments on the Bassmaster® Elite, FLW,® and PAA circuits. He's also entered in several Bassmaster® Opens, and might enter some others if his schedule has any openings. Counting both official practice as well as the tournaments themselves, he will spend 150 or more days in competition.
"My season began the first week of March this year, and I fished five straight events back to back," says Monroe, "but after that fifth tournament I knew I was ready for a break. "At 1 p.m. on a Saturday afternoon I really hit the wall while I was on the water. I recovered enough mentally and physically to compete the next day, but then, after about four days of relaxing at a friend's home, I was ready to go fishing again."
Photo - Seigo Saito - OKEECHOBEE, Fla. — When Ish Monroe wins in the Bassmaster Elite Series, he goes big.
Monroe of Hughson, Calif., won the Power-Pole Slam Sunday on Lake Okeechobee with a four-day total of 108 pounds, 5 ounces. It was his second Elite win. His first, six years ago on Lake Amistad in the inaugural event of the newly formed series, was also by more than 100 pounds — 104-8 to be exact.
“Winning with over 100 pounds is awesome,” said Monroe, who took home $100,000 and an instant berth into the 2013 Bassmaster Classic. “I really wanted to break my own record today, and it feels really good.”
His Sunday check pushed his Bassmaster career earnings to over $1 million. Weighing more than 100 pounds of bass over four days gave him a second entry in what’s known as the Century Club, an exclusive group of Bassmaster Elite Series pros who have busted the mark. Read More