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Hope we're not fergettin' that Mark has won and done it all. He's one of the guys I hope some of the younger pros call "sir" or "Mr" when they meet him, and not just because of the age difference.
Right now he's 10th in the MLF BPT AOY points after finishing 2nd at the Harris Chain. Good start, wanted to catch up with him, here we go:
1. Why do you think you're having such a good start this season?
> "I really don't know. I'm not doing anything any different than normal.
> "I was disappointed in that first event at Conroe to get off to such a good start – of course not fishing FFS and we got that cold front. I really struggled on day 2....
> "Then...I love fishing in FL so everything there just kinda worked out. I never had fished that lake before...Apopka, and spent only 3 hours on that lake in practice...but I saw the potential. During the event I was able to work my way into a lot of fish.
> "Those fish were there – it was a perfect scenario for a big win. Unfortunately the weather got me the 2nd day, when the wind almost doubled in velocity....
> "But I'm not dong anything different this year than I normally do."
2. Do you plan to use FFS as little as possible this year or not necessarily?
> "I can't say that I won't use it. I would prefer to use it as little as possible. It's not what I enjoy doing. As good as it is, it's just not what I like to do.
> "But I also know that there will be events like the one we're getting ready to fish at Murray – you're gonna have to do some of it.
> "...to really make [FFS] work for you, you've gotta be 100% all in on fishing with it. And if you're not 100% all in...it can actually bite you...hurt you. At least that's my opinion.
> "...you look at the guys in my generation and even younger than me...well-established pros that have had a lot of success over the years, and now they're trying to be part-time forward-facers. More times than not that'll hurt you.
> "Don't get me wrong – you can use it, you can integrate it, into your traditional fishing. It certainly helps you with boat positioning, looking at cover and even seeing fish. But there's a difference between [that] and actually targeting particular fish that you see. I use it a lot but not necessarily where I'm trying to...catch a particular fish with it.
> "If you're not 100% committed to it, I think there's times when you're better off not turning it on. The guys who dominate with it, they never take their eyes off it. I'm just not one of those guys.
> "Very few anglers, if any, that have been doing it 30-40 years have learned to be 100% dedicated to forward-facing."
3. Why do you typically do so well in FL? Because that's the toughest state for a lot of guys.
> "It's 2 things. It's reading and picking apart the water. But probably the biggest thing is the ability to slow way down. That doesn't bother me – if I'm confident I'm around fish, I don't mind slowing way down, even in this every fish counts format.
> "Most guys fish right over those fish in FL. They go too fast, they don't soak their bait, they don't let it sit, they don't make the right cast and they don't make repeated casts.
> "Slowing way down, that's the key in FL. And most guys don't do that. When the fishing's easy, you don't have to do that. But when it gets a little difficult....
> "The other thing is all that water we fish down there is highly pressured. So...those fish are pretty cagey."
4. Will you sling a Senko at every event this year?
> "I'll have a Senko tied on at every event. Will it play as big as it did in FL? Not at every one, but I feel like I'll catch fish everywhere I go with a Senko. No matter what time of year, it's that type of lure, it's that versatile. I'll always have one laying on my deck."
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