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If not for a hole in the fence of a South Texas deer hunting ranch, and a flooded bush in Lake Fork, the Toyota Texas Bass Classic that’s taking place this week may have never happened.

“I was on a deer hunt several years ago in South Texas and noticed a hole in the fence,” explains top pro, and proud Texas native, Kelly Jordon. “Out of courtesy, I drove around to the neighbor and told them about it. They were grateful that I made them aware, and invited me to sit down to lunch.”

“Because of all the logos on my truck, they asked me about my career as pro angler,” explains Jordon.

As fate would have it, “KJ’s” newfound friend and fence owner was Texas Parks & Wildlife Commissioner, Donato Ramos, who along with fellow Commissioner Dan Friedkin, shared a great desire to create opportunities that would fund urban youth fishing initiatives. Jordon told the men of his dream to combine a high profile bass tournament with his love of music.

Eight years later, Jordon’s dream, paired with leadership from Ramos and Friedkin, has generated $2 Million in funds for the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department’s conservation and youth fishing projects, which largely targets kids that would likely never pick up a rod, to in turn, fall in love with the feeling of a tug on the other end of their lines.

And as for the flooded bush on Lake Fork, it’s still there – just like it was two decades ago when Jordon caught a bass from it that hooked his heart and soul on the 27,000-acre reservoir responsible for raising the majority of the biggest bass ever caught in Texas.

“I eyed that same exact bush this past Tuesday in Penson Creek where I caught my first bass on this lake 25 years ago during Spring Break of my freshman year of college,” remembered KJ over a plate of scrambled eggs and homefries at Lake Fork Marina & Motel where he greeted so many of the legendary fishing guides that passed his table to meet their clients for a day on the water.

Jordon relates well to Fork’s fishing guides because from 1995 to 2002 he was one. And his knowledge of these waters, and their famed 30-year history, are on par with the best to have ever cast a deep diving plug here.

But it’s changed.

Low Water

The sentimental flooded bush were KJ caught his first bass is pretty much high and dry. Water levels are as low as he’s ever seen them. It was rare for this reservoir to ever get more than a foot or two low – this week, “KJ” says it’s more than 3-feet below normal.

Grass a Goner

The aquatic vegetation that serves as steroid shot to most any bass fishery is pretty much non-existent here now – including the hydrilla that made Fork especially magical. Jordon blames an especially harsh winter for killing off the treasured vegetation.

Chalky Water

When Jordon was guiding here, the lake was only a decade old, the waters were sort of a black tannic color. Now they are less clear, and of a chalky, stained, color – and in some areas, a bit muddy.

Dang the White Bass

Jordon says the huge increase in numbers of white bass have changed Lake Fork a lot. “They weren’t here 15 years ago. Now you can’t get a crankbait to pass over a structure spot without the white bass eating it – seemingly before the largemouth ever get a chance. What concerns me most is that it seems the white bass have taken over that really fertile 18-25’ depth range the largemouth use to prosper in.”

Still an Amazing Fishery

If what you’ve read thus far seems gloomy – hold on – this place is still going to kick out giant weights this week. “It still kicks out giant bass,” says Jordon, referring to individual fish in the 12 to 16 pound range. “You’ll need 30 to 35 pounds a day to do well in this tournament, and don’t be shocked if you see a 40-poound limit,” warns Jordon.

Mules on Beds

“The winter was so harsh that it pushed the spawn back an entire month. Water temps are 67-72, so there are still a few giants on beds and tons more guarding recently hatched fry in less than five feet of water,” says Jordon.

Lures that Might Win

In no particular order, Jordon is picking a football jig, a big Texas-rigged worm or lizard, large California style swimbaits cranked through Lake Fork’ shallows, and a Carolina Rig.

How’s “KJ” Gonna Do?

“I don’t think my in-depth knowledge is such a big advantage right now because the hard-to-locate deep structure spots are either covered in white bass, or the largemouth simply haven’t moved out there yet to a true post-spawn phase – don’t be surprised if you see me up there fishing the bank this week,” he grinned.

“It won’t be that long – ’til you start gettin’ bored. I’ll be smilin’ on the river, reelin’ in one more… He can’t even bait a hook.” – lyrics from this Sunday’s featured Toyota Texas Bass Classic concert performer, Justin Moore.

Alabama’s Gerald Swindle is in his 17^th year as a pro angler. He’s competed from California to Vermont and won more than $2 Million dollars fishing lakes and rivers across the country, yet he had never been to famous Lake Fork until he began practicing for this week’s prestigious Toyota Texas Bass Classic.

Here’s a look at how the 2004 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year is approaching the 27,000-acre reservoir that’s produced 12 of the Top 20 biggest largemouth ever caught in Texas.

Time and Temperature

“The first thing I want to know at this time of the year is: what phase of the spawn the fish are in – and knowing the water temp is a real good place to start in finding out the answer to that,” says Swindle.

After a very harsh winter, Lake Fork’s bass are running about a month behind based on water temperatures that are still in the high 60’s to low 70’s.  Swindle knows that those are ideal spawning temperatures, and sure enough, while some bass are post-spawn, many fish are still on beds or guarding fry hatched just days ago.

Shallow to Deep, Deep to Shallow

“Even though I know there are plenty of fish up there ‘dirt shallow’, I started looking for deep fish on secondary points, humps and roadbeds just out from the spawning flats – by just riding and looking at my Humminbird 1198c,” says Swindle. “Seeing fish shallow is pretty easy, but finding ‘the mother load’ school of big post-spawners that you can win with takes a lot more time to find.”

Unfortunately Swindle never found what he was looking for out deep, so he began pushing shallower. “When I got into 6-feet of water, I could see some still on beds, and caught a few good ones on Booyah’s vibrating swim jig.”

The Hunt is a Hard One

Swindle rides around for close to an hour at mid-day. Scrambling, looking with both his eyes and sonar. “This water up here is too stained and muddy for me, so this will be my first and last ride up the river on Fork,” he says as he points his Triton south to cleaner water to keep looking. “Those flat, expansive, muddy creeks up river lack contour. It’d take me two years to locate a school in these flooded trees, and I only have two days.”

“I scramble a lot out here, because I get run out of the pocket a lot – you what I mean?” Hard evidence of his rushing around can be found between the 17 Quantum rods and reels he uses in the course of this particular practice day.

For the record, those rods include: a Zara Spook, shallow jerkbait, double willow leaf spinnerbait, ¾ ounce jig for punching through thick and shallow vegetation, a topwater frog, a crankbait that will dredge at 14’, ½-ounce pitching jig, vibrating blade jig, a crankbait that will touch 10’, a swim jig, a buzzbait, a 3/4 –ounce pitching jig, a soft 6” California style swimbait, a squarebill crankbait, a Zoom speed worm, and even a Carolina rig.

The pattern within the pattern

“Eventhough you find fish shallow, I can’t stress enough to the beginning angler to pay attention to the details – what we call ‘the pattern within the pattern’,” says Swindle.

“For example, it’s not enough to know you caught three bass in a shallow cove on a chatterbait,” he warns. “The questions you need to ask are: what were they living on in that cove? Stumps? Vegetation? Big Stumps? Any ol’ stump? What kind of vegetation? Exactly how deep? And then go to different parts of the lake to try to replicate that pattern.”

Swindle will also continue to drift deeper to search some more. “By the end of three days of practice I’m either gonna be on a shallow water pattern that I’ve got a ton of confidence in, or a highly specific deep water spot or two in 10 to 20 feet of water where the mother load lives.”

The hunt is a hard one

“At the end of 12 hours of looking for a winning pattern, I’m mentally and physically exhausted. It ain’t all butterflies and puppy dogs out here,” says the tell-it-like-it-is pro, as Eric Church songs play from an iPhone to keep him company during the long lonely practice day.

By 7:00 p.m., Swindle is indeed toast. He began at sunrise, and as the sun sets, he’s hit the wall mentally and physically. He caught one bass that pushed 6-pounds on a deep crankbait, but try as he might, he could not catch another one from that deep structure location, nor any other deep spot. So he’ll roll into the next day with confidence gained from the handful of 3 to 5 pounders he plucked from stumps and vegetation in less than 5-feet of water. But it won’t be enough to win. So the search continues.

A 12 hour day, 17 rods, and aggravating wind gusts to 25 mph that bounced Swindle and his boat off shallow stumps like a ping pong ball – all in an effort to find the massive 30-pound limit Lake Fork is surely capable of producing this week.

But first, he has to find it.

“Tomorrow I’m taking me fishing. Hang a sign on the door of my life. Tell the world that I’ve gone missing.” — Eric Church