Winning Pattern
Nors Followed Grass
To District Victory
(reprinted by permission by BassFan.com)

Friday, August 11, 2006

Photo: Texas District 50 Chris Nors caught 21.24 pounds on day 2 at Choke Canyon to win the ABA Texas District 50 Championship.

Chris Nors of Austin, Texas found a hot stretch of grassline and followed it to a victory at the American Bass Anglers Texas District 50 Championship at Choke Canyon Reservoir.

Exceptionally hot weather kept the weights down during the 2-day event, but Nors caught 33.49 pounds to win by more than 3 pounds.

Practice

Nors practiced before the championship and thought he'd discovered a good pattern. He found larger fish along shallow grasslines in 4 to 6 feet of water, but near the end of practice, his pattern changed.

"They moved to the deeper grasslines," he said. "They were in 9 to 10 feet, in front of it. Right at the end of practice I decided to fish the deeper grassline."

There were still smaller fish in the 2- to 3-pound range along the shallower grasslines, but the 4- to 5-pound fish were in deeper water.

He also noted during practice that the heat had slowed down the bite. "The bite had been dropping off for about a month before the tournament.

Competition

> Day 1: 5, 12.50
> Day 2: 5, 21.24
> Total: 10, 33.49

Nors wasn't totally convinced that his initial pattern had changed, so he started the tournament on the shallow grasslines. He threw a frog and caught fish, but they weren't the size he'd hoped for.

He ended the day in 8th place with 12.50 pounds. His total would've been higher, but he lost two key bites.

"I lost a couple of fish that would've put me higher," he noted. "They were about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds apiece. I would've had 16 or 17 pounds. I thought it would cost me the tournament."

On day 2, he concentrated on the deeper grasslines. He flipped a jig and a tube and found larger fish and more fish in one concentrated area, but his largest fish came right away in the morning.

"I fished 200 yards of grassline all day," he said. "I caught 60 keepers off that grassline. The first five bites were the fish I kept. The fish got smaller as it got later."

Among the first five fish he caught was a 7.16-pound toad, his largest of the tournament.

"It was the second fish I caught," he noted.

He only saw a few other boats in the same area during the day, so he had his grassline pretty much to himself.

"I was the guy that was there the longest. Some would pull in there, but they wouldn't fish 10 yards, then they left."

At the end of the day, he knew he had a good sack, but didn't think it was enough to win on a lake that routinely gives up 30-pound limits.

"I didn't even think I'd place in the money," he said. "But nobody else got anything. I think the heat had a lot to do with it."

Winning Gear Notes

> Flipping gear: 7'6" heavy-action Team Daiwa S rod, Daiwa Advantage casting reel, 56-pound Sunline braided line, 3/4-ounce tungsten weights, 5/0 Gamakatsu hook, Vertical Jig X (cayuga craw) and Vertical Tube X (watermelon red).

> Key tip – "I'd flip it in there and leave it for about 2 minutes and shake it, then pull it out."

Notable

> Main factor in his success – "Just being patient and slowing down."

> Nors has fished the ABA for 4 years, but this was his first win at the District Championship. He was the district's Angler of the Year 3 years in a row, but missed it this year.

> He's qualified for the ABA Championship, but has a conflict with a BFL event and will fish that instead.

> Dean Jones finished 2nd with 29.27 pounds.