Larry “Doc” Seger wins CPAA Angler of the Year and PAA berth for 2011
Seger affixes a hook or weed guard to these jigs by drilling a tiny hole behind the eye of the hook, and he inserts and glues four pieces of fiberguard into the hole. The size of the jig hook is a No. 1.
When the wind blows, he and his client always opt for the 1/16-ounce jig. On those windless outings, however, the delicate pace rendered by the Salty Sinker and 1/32-ounce jig usually elicits the preponderance of bites.
He uses a super glue to affix the Salty Sinker to the jig, which allows him and his clients to catch 10 or a few more bass before the Salty Sinker becomes too tattered to keep using.
Seger likes to use his Salty Sinker rig with a Bass Pro Shops’ seven-foot, two-inch Johnny Morris CarborLite Series Spinning Rod, which possesses a fast action and medium power. His rod sports a Bass Pro Shops’ JM50 Johnny Morris Signature Series Spinning Reel that is spooled with 10-pound-test Bass Pro Shops’ XPS 8 Advanced Braid. To the braided line, he uses a Seaguar knot for attaching either a six- or eight-pound-test Bass Pro Shops’ XPS Fluorocarbon leader. The leader is five to six feet long, and when he and his clients are fishing around flooded trees, bushes and brushpiles, they use the eight-pound-test leader, and the six-pound-test leader is used for probing underwater terrains that are virtually free of snags.
From early December until the end of February, Seger and his clients use the 2 ½-inch Salty Sinker rig inside feeder creeks, where they focus on bluff ends and around boat docks. At these wintertime lairs, they catch largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass as shallow as a foot or two of water to as deep as 20 feet of water. Some of the bass that inhabit the boat docks are caught adjacent to the dock’s polyethylene floats, and these bass are suspended under the floats in about two feet or less of water. Seger and his clients inveigle the suspended dock bass during the initial fall of the Salty Sinker rig or by slowly swimming it under and next to the floats. They also use the Salty Sinker to probe the bottom of the lake under the dock, and they accomplish this by slowly dragging it on the bottom in five to 20 feet of water. A lot of the boats docks are embellished with man-made brushpiles, which alters the bottom-dragging retrieve.
The bluff ends are usually embellished with flooded timber, and some of the bass that they catch are suspended in these flooded trees. Seger and his clients entice these suspended bass by casting the Salty Sinker to the edge of a tree and allowing it to fall vertically along the outside edge of the tree. Once it reaches the bottom, they drag it along the bottom until reaches 21 to 22 feet of water.
During early March and stretching until late May, Seger and his clients focus on prespawn, spawn and post-spawn bass. To do this they probe ledges and gravel-laden shorelines and points that lie in one to 10 feet of water. Seger positions his boat a long cast from the shoreline, and he and his clients cast the Salty Sinker rig to the water’s edge, and they retrieve it by dragging it along the bottom.
Day in and day out, the drag retrieve that is devoid of angler generated shakes, hops, and pauses has been Seger and his clients’ most effective one. He says “we let the rocks put the action to the jig and Salty Sinker, and we get 50 percent of our bites as it darts, pops, hops, and ricochets off of a rock. The other 50 percent of the bites occur on a straight and unembellished drag. Most of the time, we don’t feel the bite; instead, we lose contact with bait; it is a vacuum”
Seger also sprays the Salty Sinkers with Table Rock Bait & Tackle Company’s Chompers’ Formula G, which is garlic scent. He sprays the baits after about every 30 casts. Depending on the day, he says it increases the number of bites by 30 to 50 precent. He said: “I have tested its effectiveness by spaying one client’s bait and not spraying the second client’s bait. The client’s bait that I sprayed gets way more bites. Ultimately, the second angler wants his bait sprayed. And as the outing wears on, both anglers constantly remind me to spray their baits.”
By wielding this Salty Sinker rig, he and his clients have relished some 100-bass days, and some of the bass that this finesse tactic has beguiled have been lunkers. In fact, on one outing in March of 2013, the five biggest bass that Seger and a client caught weighed 22 pounds, and one was a seven-pound largemouth bass and another was a six-pound smallmouth bass. The biggest smallmouth bass that a client has caught on it weighed six pounds, 10 ounces.
Seger says it is a bait and method that anglers of any age and skill level can quickly learn how to cast, retrieve, and catch bass of all kinds. His six-year-old clients, as well as the ones who are in their 80s, have used it to catch an impressive array of bass during the past two years. In his eyes, it is almost a magic bait.
The Midwest Finesse Ways Of Doc Seger
Larry “Doc” Seger of Kimberling City, Missouri, is a veteran and talented fishing guide. He is also a successful tournament angler, who has been plying various regional and some national circuits for nearly a quarter of a century, and in 2010 he won Central Pro-Am Association’s Angler-of-the-Year award.
In 2011, Stacey King of Reeds Spring, Missouri, showed Seger one of the original Midwest finesse tactics, and by 2012, it became a vital tool in Seger’s guiding strategies on Table Rock Lake, Missouri, and across the past two years, he has discovered that it is especially effective from early December until late May.
For Seger, this finesse method revolves around attaching a 2 ½-inch Table Rock Bait & Tackle Company’s Chomper Salty Sinker to either a 1/32- or 1/16-ounce round-headed jig. The Salty Sinker is a five-inch soft-plastic stickbait, and he cuts it in half. Seger and his clients use two colors of the Salty Sinker: watermelon candy and peanut butter and jelly. They use the watermelon hue most of the time, but when the water becomes stained, they wield the PB&J one. The heads of the jigs are painted either green-pumpkin or purple, and he normally affixes the watermelon-candy Salty Sinker to the green-pumpkin jig and the PB&J Salty Sinker to the purple jig. He admits that Table Rock’s largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass don’t seem to exhibit a preference for the color of the head of the jig, but in Seger’s eyes, the purple jig looks better on the PB&J Salty Sinker and the green-pumpkin one looks better with the watermelon-candy bait.
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Helps Amateur Anglers Reel in the Big Ones
I have to admit, I thought I might be standing on the shore looking like an idiot.
Here I was on a media trip to the Bass Pro Shops Legends, a PGA Tour Champions Tour event near Branson, Missouri and staying at the incredible Big Cedar Lodge for the better part of a week, and I was scared.
Scared, that I was in what I was told would be a "fun" fishing competition on a morning that I would not be playing golf.
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Central Pro-Am Association's Angler of the Year, Larry "Doc" Seger
The biggest winner at Central Pro-Am Association’s (CPAA) sixth final Pro-Am Tournament at Table Rock Lake on August 21 was Larry “Doc” Seger, from Kimberling City, MO, who finished 18th and out of the money with a three fish limit weighing 9.68 pounds. The winner of the tournament’s first place prize of $2,250, with a five fish limit weighing 17.09 pounds, was Mark Wiese, Jr. from High Ridge, MO.
It would be a fair question to ask, “How can the biggest winner of a tournament be someone who didn’t even place in the tournament?” The answer is, “It can’t,” but if the question was “Who was the biggest winner at the tournament” the answer would be “Larry ‘Doc’ Segar.”
Although he didn’t win the tournament, his consistent performance over the entire six Central Pro-Am Association’s (CPAA) Pro-Am Tournaments for the 2010 season, including his participation, placement and total weight in this tournament, has earned Seger the coveted title of “Central Pro-Am Angler of the Year.” Jim Thomson, a local Branson, Mo businessman and long time tournament fisherman who owns CPAA said, “This award is based on an anglers consistent level of performance over the entire six tournaments of the season. The measurement of that performance is based on points that are awarded at each tournament for participation, tournament placement and the total weight of the fish caught. The “Angler of the Year” is the one who has the most points at the end of the series.”
Thompson said the Angler of the Year wins their entry fees to all the 2011 CPAA Pro-Am Series tournaments and qualifies for the “pro division” of the 2010 Central Pro Am Championship Tournament, with a guaranteed first place prize of $12,000. The tournament will be held on Grand Lake in Grove, OK on October 2nd and 3rd.
Thompson is really excited about the additional prize that the CPAA Angler of Year will receive this year because of CPAA’s relationship with the Professional Anglers Association (PAA). “As a result of that relationship,” Thompson said, “The ‘CPAA Angler of the Year’ wins an expense paid ‘ride’ to fish the entire 2011 PAA Tournament Series, including paid entry fees, food, fuel and lodging allowances for the entire season.” He went on to point out that the base prize with entry fees etc. is worth over $18,000. He points out that in each PAA tournament the fisherman are competing for in excess of $200,000 in cash and prizes.
Danny Blandford, PAA’s Business Development Manager said, “This is truly a one of kind opportunity, which no other tournament organization has to offer. We at the PAA feel that a program such as this illustrates the commitment of Central Pro-Am to their anglers and this partnership.”
Tammy Johnson, the Director of Operations for the Branson Tourism Center, one of Branson’s largest and most respected vacation planning services and owner of BransonOnTheWeb, one of the major sponsors of the tournament, said that Branson, Missouri will be hosting the final PAA Tournament Event for 2010 at Table Rock Lake October 14 through 16. She points out that the PAA anglers fishing in that tournament will be competing for over $400,000 in cash and prizes.
During an interview with Larry “Doc” Seger on August 21 at the weigh-in for the CPAA Pro-Am Tournament he said that he has been fishing the CPAA circuit since 1991 where he started as an Amateur (fishes from the back of the boat which is controlled by the Professional). He pointed out that his story is reflective of how valuable the CPAA is in the development of professional fishermen saying, “I started out 20 years ago as an Amateur in the CPAA and now here I am the ‘CPAA Angler of the Year.’” Seger also pointed out that he is a member of the Nitro Boats and Bass Pro National Teams. He said, “Over the years I have won a number of tournaments and placed in the top 10, but I have never won ‘Angler of the Year’ before, but this sure was a good year to win.”
He is very excited about fishing the PAA tournaments in 2011 along with the potential increase in revenue that fishing them could bring. He points out that it would be very difficult for any professional bass fisherman to compete without the support their sponsors and expressed his appreciation to Nitro Boats, Bass Pro, Tracker Marine, Solar Bats. TC Cranks, Luck Strike and Chompers for their sponsorship.
Posted in Branson Outdoors, Fishing, Tourism
Doc's Guide Service
Premier Branson and Table Rock Lake Fishing Guide
Well, thanks to professional angler, Larry "Doc" Seger, there was no reason to be frightened while fishing on this unfamiliar lake, and thanks to "Doc" for taking me under his wing and making it an incredible experience.
"Doc" can do the same for you and your family and group.
As the owner of "Doc's Guide Service" on Table Rock Lake near Branson, Doc say's it's guaranteed that you will catch fish.
"I've never had anyone not catch fish," explained Seger and we navigated the waters and nooks and crannies of Table Rock Lake on this cool April morning.
As Seger states on his website, you will be in good hands.
I love this lake. I'm a touring pro and fish all over the country. I've been angler of the year central pro am and the premier Branson Fishing Guide. Let's take a tour of beautiful Table Rock Lake and I'm going to show you what you're going to be fishing, why you want to hire a fishing guide and the boat you'll be fishing from, everything is provided. Come on and let's go fishing.
In one day, I see Seger backs up all his claims.
Seger, a seasoned pro who has seen it all, immediately puts you are ease.
He asks you questions about your family and job and he's happy to answer any question thrown his way.
"I like to talk, if you haven't noticed," interjects the soft-spoken Seger as we are casting for bass. "You spend a lot of time out on the boat and the water and you talk."
Seger assumes the role of tour guide as the day progresses. He's a walking encyclopedia of Table Rock Lake and the area in general. He's the high school history that you actually like, but you are out on the open water looking for some of the biggest bass in the country.
Back to this "little" competition I was in.
It turns out it wasn't little at all. There was a stage set up in true "Bassmasters" form, for a weigh in, TV cameras and prizes for the top catches.
Teams needed three fish for the weigh in and with Seger's two and my nice Spotted Bass, we were in the weigh in and held the lead in the tournament for a short time.
What a day and what a great experience fishing with an experienced pro like "Doc" Seger.
You can have this same experience, with Doc at your side when you are in the Branson area or staying at Big Cedar Lodge.
Play some golf at great courses like Top of the Rock or Buffalo Ridge and then go fishing.
"Doc" will have the boat ready for you.
Per Doc's Guide Service, here are some facts about Table Rock Lake:
Table Rock Lake is located in the beautiful Ozark Mountains near Branson Missouri.
Table Rock Lake has more than 48,000 acres of crystal clear water and over 860 miles of shore line.
Table Rock Lake was ranked by Bassmaster Magazine as one of the top 10 bass lakes in the country.