Tournament Fishing with Kevin VanDam
From Goat to Hero – Day 1
 Editor’s
Note: Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Michigan, currently
ranks number 29 on the B.A.S.S. trail, and led in the
last B.A.S.S. Elite Tournament held on Kentucky Lake
in Benton, Kentucky, for two out of the four days of
the tournament. This week we’ll learn how VanDam
found, caught and lost fish, and what elements caused
him to drop from first to third place. We’ll also
learn how to find and catch bass in the summer by following
VanDam through the tournament and learning why he made
the decisions he made. This week, you’ll be able
to get inside the head of Kevin VanDam and learn what
makes him tick.
Question: Kevin, on the first day of the tournament,
where and how were you fishing, and how did you jump
into the lead?
VanDam: As soon as we left the launch site, I went straight
to my best hole. When I got there, another competitor
was sitting on that site. I was really bummed-out because
I knew there was a big school of bass on that spot.
I saw that angler catch a couple of bass. I went to
my second best spot and didn’t get any bites.
I was feeling low. I just kept running my route. Then
when I reached my third spot, I finally got a bite and
caught a big 7- or 8-pound bass. I knew he definitely
could put me in the lead if I could catch a few more
like him. Just as I lifted that big bass, he came off
my lure. I was having a lousy tournament. However, on
the next four casts, I was catching bass that weighed
from 2- to 4-pounds each. Then, I started feeling a
little bit better. I caught the first four fish on a
jig. When the bass quit hitting the jig, I tied on that
big Strike King Series 6 crankbait. I consecutively
caught 2 0
bass fishing this Strike King Series 6 chartreuse with
a blue back color lure.
Question: Why did you decide to change over to the
crankbait?
VanDam: The first few casts I made to this spot were
with a crankbait. I hung the crankbait up on a brush
pile. Instead of going up to the brush pile and retrieving
the crankbait, I broke the bait off. Then I picked up
the jig and cast it out to the spot where I’d
hung the crankbait on the brush. That’s when the
big bass that I’d lost bit the bait. Then I threw
right back to that same brush pile and caught four more
bass with the jig. However, after I caught those four
bass, I made several more casts but didn’t get
a bite. I knew that when you caught bass that fast there
usually were more holding in that same spot. I tied
on another Series 6 crankbait like the one I’d
hung earlier and cast it back to the brush pile and
caught over 20 bass on that ledge.
Question: Kevin, let’s go back and look at the
beginning of the day. How do you recover mentally when
all night long you’ve been dreaming about this
large group of bass you’ve already located, but
when you get to that spot there’s another competitor
fishing there?
VanDam: I was very disappointed. I knew that spot was
holding a large school of bass. However, that’s
tournament fishing. You can’t fence in a spot
and keep other competitors out of it. When you  find
someone else on your spot, you have to depend on your
other places to produce the bass. In every tournament,
I have plenty of backup plans. I know you can never
count on one site to win a tournament because too many
variables can cause that place not to produce. Therefore,
when I practice, I find as many places to fish that
are holding bass as I can.
Question: Kevin, after you were disappointed because
another competitor was on your best spot, you went to
your second-best spot, didn’t get a bite, went
to your third-best spot, hooked and brought a 7- to
8-pound bass within grabbing range, and it got off your
lure. How did you recover mentally from all this disappointment?
VanDam: I’ve learned over the years that when
I lose a big bass, there’s nothing I can do to
bring it back – he’s gone. The best thing
you can do is remember what you’ve done to get
that big bass to bite and repeat that same cast to that
same spot and work your lure the same way in hopes of
getting another bass to bite. I’ve learned many
years ago that you can’t allow losing a bass to
get you frustrated or cause you to lose your composure
or abandon your game plan. You can’t let losing
a bass ruin your day of fishing because the fish is
gone. You have to regroup mentally and use that loss
to hopefully catch another fish.
Question: Once you switched to the crankbait, you caught
more than 20 bass consecutively. How big were
those bass?
VanDam: The fish weighed 2-1/2- to 4-pounds each. I’d
put together a good stringer on the first morning of
the tournament. I had about 15 to 16 pounds total for
five bass. I was feeling a lot better than I had been
feeling earlier in the morning.
Question: Did you hit any more hot spots that first
day after you had a good limit of fish?
VanDam: Yes, I did. I kept hitting more spots and looking
for bigger fish. Later in the day, I fished another
one of my spots and caught a 5-pound bass, which gave
me an 18-pound-plus stringer for the first day. Since
I was able to cull a couple of 2- and 3-pound fish,
I felt like I had a good stringer for the first day.
At the end of the day, I was in first place with 18
pounds plus. There were a lot of others who had 16-
and 17-pound stringers, and others who had 13- and 14-pound
stringers. I was kind of surprised that 18-pounds plus
was leading after the first day. Don’t get me
wrong, I always enjoy leading in a tournament. I also
realize that I’m fishing against the best anglers
in the world. I didn’t feel that lead was very
secure. I knew the fishing would be tough every day
of the tournament. Kentucky Lake gets as much fishing
pressure as any lake in the nation.
Tomorrow: From Goat to Hero
– Day 2
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