Lake Borumba hosted the Humminbird BASS Megabucks with 24 teams hitting the lake's fish rich waters for one of the most anticipated event of the tournament calendar. The skins based, three session event say a host of teams share in the spoils with ten teams reaping the cash and prize rewards.
Securing the champion team title for 2009 was Team Bass Bounty comprised of Dave Reynolds and Dylan Mott (11/12, 12.18kg). Grabbing the number one spot in the opening session the pair were never bettered and kept the chasing teams at bay to claim overall honours for the event.
Hot on their heals were Team SEQ Fish (12/12, 11.15kg) and Team Fish n' Bits (12/12, 10.38kg) who cashed in when it came to bass and cash to finish the tournament with a healthy catch card and bank balance.
Session 1 1st- $1500- Team Bass Bounty- David Reynolds and Dylan Mott- 4/4, 5.37kg
Drawing first blood for the event was David Reynolds and Dylan Mott from Team Bass Bounty who opened their Megabucks account fishing a timber lined stretch in the Jabba Creek arm of the dam.
Identified as a go-to spot during the prefish the pair bagged out early, filling their well within the first hour of competition. Fishing to the tress to catch their fish the pair identified the larger trees as the consistent fish holders.
"While we picked up the occasional fish that moved through on the sounder it was targeting the bigger sized trees that got the best results", explained Dylan.
Using a combination of Evergreen Little Max blades and jighead rigged soft plastics the pair altered their retrieves, ranging from a constant slow roll to a lift n drop retrieve.
"Most of the fish were suspended so we always made sure we let the lure sink to the bottom before we started the retrieve", explained Mott.
The kicker fish in their session winning bag was the event's leading Big Bass after session one, with the 1.54kg bass coming early in the session on a soft plastic. With over a 1 ½ kilo lead over second place the pair finished the session $1500 richer and with a healthy lead of the chasing teams.
Lure- Evergreen Little Max blade (red & black) and 1/2oz TT jighead rigged Slider and Atomic Paddle Tail Grub (Tennessee shad)
Notes- Alternated retrieves and lures to present fish with varying stimuli.
Session 1 2nd - $900- Team Aussea Resources- Peter Leggett and Kerry Symes- 4/4, 3.71 kg
Hitting a rocky steep bank in the main basin Symes and Leggett cashed in for the session courtesy of a spinnerbait approach. Fishing a bait laden bank they found during the fish the pair started shallow early, slow rolling a 1/2 oz Smak spinnerbait down the slope and into deeper water.
"The key was to keep the lure close to bottom and make sure it didn't ride high in the water and out of the strike zone", explained Symes.
Later in the session as the sun got higher the pair upsized their spinnerbait to a 5/8 oz size and fished wider and deeper.
"The fish moved deeper and stayed tight to the bottom", explained Symes.
To stay in touch with the fish the pair modified their technique adding regular pauses to the retrieve to allow the lure to flutter back down to where the fish were holding.
Landing ten fish, including eight legals for the session the pair ended the session with worrying confidence in the techniques ability to hold together for the afternoon session.
Lure- 1/2 oz & 5/8 oz Smak Spinnerbait (tandem blade configuration, IB colour)
Notes- Targeted bait holding in the area and fished shallow edges early when the light was low then worked deeper as the sun got higher.
Session 1 3rd - $650 + $1515 (1st Pro)- Team Fish n' Bits- Ashley Sims and Matt Anderson- 4/4, 3.58 kg
Picking up the biggest pay cheque for the session ($2165), Sims and Anderson targeted suspended fish to fill their bag and kick start their tournament in grand style.
Fishing timber and an open water stretch near the entrance to the timber area in the upper reaches of the dam the pair used a metal blade approach to catch their fish.
"We were fishing in 25 feet of water and the bass were holding at about 15", explained Anderson.
Sinking their Evergreen Little Maxes to the bottom the pair would slow roll their lure back through the fish, adding a rip n' drop to the presentation as the lure got near the sounded fish.
"The fish more often than not hit the lure just after the rip, nailing it as it started to sink back down", explained Sims.
Landing ten fish for the session and with a bite that sustained throughout the entire session the pair were confident the pattern would continue into session two.
Lure- 1/4 oz Evergreen Little Max (purple stripes)
Notes- Caught their bag in 11 minutes and landed the kicker fish in their bag on their 3rd cast.
Session 2 1st- $1500 + $1515 (1st Pro)- Team Humminbird- Tim Morgan and Carl Jocumsen- 4/4, 5.19kg
Returning to their winning form of two years ago was Carl Jocumsen and Tim Morgan from Team Humminbird. Fishing the same area as session one winners Team Bass Bounty Morgan and Jocumsen used a similar approach, slow rolling plastics through suspended, tree hugging bass.
"The better fish were definitely in the biggest trees, so made what we call death cast into the tops of the trees timber before counting the lure down for ten seconds then beginning the retrieve", explained Jocumsen.
While the depth throughout the area varied from 25-60 feet the depth the fish were holding at remained constant, with the ten second count down delivering their lure right into the strike zone.
"The fish were really active in the afternoon they were moving around and you'd see them come through on the sounder", explained Morgan.
To maximize casting distance and to allow them to cover as much was as possible the pair used 4lb braid mainline and 8lb leader. With nearly a 700 gram lead over second place Morgan and Jocumsen easily one the session and claimed the Pro Bonus to adding to the 1st place cheque.
Lure- 1/4 oz Nitro jighead and 60mm Squidgy Fish in Gary Glitter colour.
Notes- Presented lure into the tops of the trees where the best fish were holding.
Session 2 2nd- $900- Team SEQ Fish- Matt Johnson and Steve Otto- 4/4, 4.50kg
Just missing out on a cheque in session one Johnson and Otto from Team SEQ Fish showed they're one of the consistent teams of the tournament. Fishing for a timber bite in the same area as the other prize winners Johnson and Otto keyed in on suspended fishing holding 10-15 feet down and electric motored through the area working over the cruising fish with a slow rolling soft plastic presentation.
"The area was about the size of two football fields, so we motored our way through it rotating and resting it as we went to give the fish a chance to recover then come back on the chew", explained Otto and Johnson.
A cruising approach wasn't their only trick with the pairing using a two pronged lure approach to fill their well each session.
"Two lures and colours stood out, so we used them both at the same time to maximize our chances", explained Johnson.
A Squidgy Fish and Slider Grub were the money baits with the pair rigging them both on a ¼ oz jighead. The approach delivered them approximately twenty fish for the first two sessions and a sense of exited anticipation heading into the final session.
Lure- Squidgy Fish in black and gold and Slider in smoke blue gill.
Notes- Rotated location and fish, and used a two lure approach to maximize success.
Session 2 3rd - $650- Team Bass Bounty- David Reynolds and Dylan Mott- 4/4, 4.34kg
Picking up where they left off in session one Reynolds and Mott once again bagged out fishing blades and plastics to suspended bass holding on the timber laden stretch at the start of Yabba arm of the dam.
With the word on the honey hole definitely out after their success in session one, the pair now had increased company with more boats moving in to catch fish.
"There was more competition for space and greater pressure on the fish in the afternoon", explained Reynolds.
"Surprisingly though the fish bit well and plenty of guys bagged out for the session", he added.
While falling short of their XOS 5.37kg session one bag, the pair compiled an impressive 4.34kg bag and added another cheque to the $1500 first session winnings.
Lure- Evergreen Little Max blade (red & black) and 1/2oz TT jighead rigged Slider and Atomic Paddle Tail Grub (Tennessee shad)
Notes- Alternated retrieves and lures to present fish with varying stimuli.
Session 3 1st- $1500- Matt Mott and Paul Cooper- 4/4, 4.01kg
Continuing on from his victory only a few day prior at the BASS Pro Grand Final, Matthew Mott teamed up with Paul Cooper to take out the third and final session of the tournament.
Looking for a location similar to the hot spot the previous session winners had been pulling their fish from, Mott and Cooper searched further a field, locating an area in Kingham Creek that resembled and produced just like the one they were trying to replicate.
"It was very similar with standing timber, a drop off and active bass combining to make it one of the best bass bites I've had in some time", explained Mott.
With the boat holding in water ranging from 30-45 feet the pair would make long search cast, before counting the lure down for 17 seconds and slow rolling it back to the boat.
Casting a Slider Grub in baby bass colour rigged on ½ oz Nitro and TT jigheads the pair would stay fast to a constant retrieve, even when repeated hits ensued with no hook-up.
"It was crucial to keep rolling the plastic and just wait for the fish to eventually eat it and load up the rod", explained Mott.
Landing 30-40 fish for the session the pair experience repeated double hooks and a fish cast for at least an hour.
Lure- Slider Grub (baby bass) rigged on 1/2 oz Nitro and TT jigheads.
Notes- Maintain a slow rolling retrieve and wait for bass to eat plastic and load rod.
Session 3 2nd- $900 + $1515 (1st Pro)- Team Fish n' Bits- Matt Anderson and Ashley Sims- 4/4, 3.94kg
Picking up their firth cheque, including their second Pro cheque ($1515), Anderson and Sims switched up their technique in the final hour of the session to catch the kicker fish in their bag and finish the tournament at the top of the money winning tree.
With two fish in the well and their tree pattern dying the pair changed location and hit a steep rocky bank they'd found during the prefish. A known fish holder the duo also swapped lures to a spinnerbait, using a spin rod approach to allow them to make long, deep, search presentations.
"Our first run through was with a ½ oz Bassman in ayu colour, and it was on the first cast as the fluttered down deep that the big fish hit", explained Anderson.
Pulling the scales down to 1.71 kg, the fish delivered them an added $1000 bonus as the event's Big Bass.
Repeat runs along the bank with an even deeper running 5/8 oz Bassman spinnerbait drew more fish with the pair finishing the session with just under a four kilo bag.
"The slow rolling presentation seemed to really press their buttons, I'm just so glad we decided to make the late change rather than persevere to the end with what had been working", explained Anderson.
Lure- 60mm Squidgy Fish (Gary Glitter) rigged on a ¼ oz jighead, ½ & 5/8 oz Bassman spinnerbaits (ayu).
Notes- Changed from their proven, yet late dying pattern to a deep water spinnerbait to fill bag, which including the event's Big Bass.
Session 3 3rd - $650- Team Tivoli Marine- Glyn Barkhuizen and Joe Allan- 4/4, 3.37kg
Fishless until the last session Barkhuizen and Allan headed out on the final morning with the goal of following their instincts.
"Nothing had really work up until them so we just decided to hit locations that in our gut we thought would hold fish", explained Allan.
Settling on a 20-40 feet deep timber strewn drop-off in Kingham Creek, the pair worked likely looking holding point with a deep, slow rolling, soft plastic approach.
"There were no fish on the sounder but we were confident that we could get them of the sunken timber", explained Allan.
Sinking their jighead rigged Atomic Ripper Paddle Tail all the way to the bottom, the pair would the roll them back to the boat, waiting for hits to come before setting the hooks on the aggressive tree dwelling bass.
The bulk of the activity came in a half hour window, where we landed six fish and upgraded twice", explained Allan.
Weighing in their first fish for the tournament and scoring a cheque for doing so, Barkhuizen and Allan's experience illustrates perfectly the session-by-session nature of the skins structured Humminbird BASS Megabucks. This attribute combined the team format are sure to see the event continue as one of the most popular events on the BASS calendar.
Lure- Atomic Ripper Paddle Tail (smoke black core, and rainbow trout) rigged on ¼ oz TT jigheads.
Notes- Backed instincts and fished a likely looking spot rather than fishing already occupied locations.
| Megabucks: Humminbird BASS Megabucks Team Results | |||||
| Session: 1 | |||||
| Place | Team | F | W | Payout | |
| 1 | 1 | BASS BOUNTY: David Reynolds & Dylan Mott | 4 | 5.37 | $1,500 |
| 1 | 2 | AUSSEA RESOURCES: Peter Leggett & Kerry Symes | 4 | 3.71 | $900 |
| 1 | 3 | FISH N' BITS: Matthew Anderson & Ashley Sims | 4 | 3.58 | $650 + $1515 (1st Pro) |
| 1 | 4 | SEQ FISH: Steven Otto & Matt Johnson | 4 | 3.4 | |
| 1 | 5 | EAGLE/LOWRANCE: Tony Payne & David Young | 4 | 3.24 | |
| 1 | 6 | RIVERCITY OUTBOARDS: Stephen Kanowski & Jami Kanowski | 4 | 3.17 | |
| 1 | 7 | BASSIN.COM: Justin Scott & Dan Ryan | 4 | 3.12 | |
| 1 | 8 | HUMMINBIRD/ MINN KOTA: Craig Simmons & Kristoffer Hickson | 4 | 2.92 | |
| 1 | 9 | MINN KOTA: Matthew Mott & Paul Cooper | 4 | 2.88 | |
| 1 | 10 | QFM: Steve Morgan & Peter May | 4 | 2.81 | |
| 1 | 11 | HUMMINBIRD: Tim Morgan & Carl Jocumsen | 4 | 2.73 | |
| 1 | 12 | EVINRUDE 200 HO: Mike Connolly & Simon Barkhuizen | 4 | 2.5 | |
| 1 | 13 | POWER & MONEY: Wayne Gordon & Ross Murray | 3 | 1.68 | |
| 1 | 14 | BERKLEY: Trevor Burgess & Callum Munro | 2 | 1.3 | |
| 1 | 15 | BASSIN NSW: Ken Murray & Bruce Anderson | 2 | 1.08 | |
| 1 | 16 | SECRET CREEK LURES: Jody Vernon & John Picton | 1 | 0.87 | |
| 1 | 17 | TOTAL HORDINGS: Daniel Clancy & Luke Parsons | 1 | 0.56 | |
| 1 | 18 | SECRET CREEK SPINNERBAITS: Toby Wilson & Gregg Flett | 1 | 0.52 | |
| 1 | 19 | SAMURAI REACTION: Steve Eldred & Adrian Melchior | |||
| 1 | 20 | TIVOLI MARINE: Joe Allan & Glyn Barkhuizen | |||
| 1 | 21 | PML (PIMP MY LURE): Dan Stead & Peter Morgan | |||
| 1 | 22 | DAVOS BAIT & TACKLE: Mark Pertot & Mal Favager | |||
| 1 | 23 | HARDMAN OUTDOORS: Marty Vanvegchel & Mick Clarke | |||
| 1 | 24 | MEGABASS: Michael Starkey & Vincent Bleakley | |||
| Megabucks: Humminbird BASS Megabucks Team Results | |||||
| Session: 2 | |||||
| Place | Team | F | W | Payout | |
| 2 | 1 | HUMMINBIRD: Tim Morgan & Carl Jocumsen | 4 | 5.19 | 1500 + $1515 (1st Pro) |
| 2 | 2 | SEQ FISH: Steven Otto & Matt Johnson | 4 | 4.5 | $900 |
| 2 | 3 | BASS BOUNTY: David Reynolds & Dylan Mott | 4 | 4.34 | $650 |
| 2 | 4 | MINN KOTA: Matthew Mott & Paul Cooper | 4 | 3.18 | |
| 2 | 5 | HARDMAN OUTDOORS: Marty Vanvegchel & Mick Clarke | 4 | 3.12 | |
| 2 | 6 | FISH N' BITS: Matthew Anderson & Ashley Sims | 4 | 2.86 | |
| 2 | 7 | BERKLEY: Trevor Burgess & Callum Munro | 3 | 2.29 | |
| 2 | 8 | HUMMINBIRD/ MINN KOTA: Craig Simmons & Kristoffer Hickson | 3 | 2.04 | |
| 2 | 9 | TOTAL HORDINGS: Daniel Clancy & Luke Parsons | 3 | 1.8 | |
| 2 | 10 | AUSSEA RESOURCES: Peter Leggett & Kerry Symes | 1 | 1.57 | |
| 2 | 11 | SAMURAI REACTION: Steve Eldred & Adrian Melchior | 2 | 1.13 | |
| 2 | 12 | BASSIN.COM: Justin Scott & Dan Ryan | 2 | 1.09 | |
| 2 | 13 | RIVERCITY OUTBOARDS: Stephen Kanowski & Jami Kanowski | 1 | 1.08 | |
| 2 | 14 | SECRET CREEK LURES: Jody Vernon & John Picton | 1 | 0.83 | |
| 2 | 15 | PML (PIMP MY LURE): Dan Stead & Peter Morgan | 1 | 0.57 | |
| 2 | 16 | SECRET CREEK SPINNERBAITS: Toby Wilson & Gregg Flett | 1 | 0.51 | |
| 2 | 17 | QFM: Steve Morgan & Peter May | 1 | 0.5 | |
| 2 | 18 | EVINRUDE 200 HO: Mike Connolly & Simon Barkhuizen | 1 | 0.49 | |
| 2 | 19 | POWER & MONEY: Wayne Gordon & Ross Murray | 1 | 0.47 | |
| 2 | 20 | EAGLE/LOWRANCE: Tony Payne & David Young | 1 | 0.4 | |
| 2 | 21 | TIVOLI MARINE: Joe Allan & Glyn Barkhuizen | |||
| 2 | 22 | DAVOS BAIT & TACKLE: Mark Pertot & Mal Favager | |||
| 2 | 23 | MEGABASS: Michael Starkey & Vincent Bleakley | |||
| 2 | 24 | BASSIN NSW: Ken Murray & Bruce Anderson | |||
| Megabucks: Humminbird BASS Megabucks Team Results | |||||
| Session: 3 | |||||
| Place | Team | F | W | Payout | |
| 3 | 1 | MINN KOTA: Matthew Mott & Paul Cooper | 4 | 4.01 | $1,500 |
| 3 | 2 | FISH N' BITS: Matthew Anderson & Ashley Sims | 4 | 3.94 | $900, $1515 (1st Pro) + $1000 Big Bass (1.71kg) |
| 3 | 3 | TIVOLI MARINE: Joe Allan & Glyn Barkhuizen | 4 | 3.37 | $650 |
| 3 | 4 | HUMMINBIRD/ MINN KOTA: Craig Simmons & Kristoffer Hickson | 4 | 3.32 | |
| 3 | 5 | SEQ FISH: Steven Otto & Matt Johnson | 4 | 3.25 | |
| 3 | 6 | BASSIN.COM: Justin Scott & Dan Ryan | 4 | 2.48 | |
| 3 | 7 | BASS BOUNTY: David Reynolds & Dylan Mott | 3 | 2.47 | |
| 3 | 8 | BERKLEY: Trevor Burgess & Callum Munro | 4 | 2.24 | |
| 3 | 9 | EVINRUDE 200 HO: Mike Connolly & Simon Barkhuizen | 3 | 2.1 | |
| 3 | 10 | AUSSEA RESOURCES: Peter Leggett & Kerry Symes | 3 | 1.89 | |
| 3 | 11 | DAVOS BAIT & TACKLE: Mark Pertot & Mal Favager | 2 | 1.29 | |
| 3 | 12 | RIVERCITY OUTBOARDS: Stephen Kanowski & Jami Kanowski | 2 | 1.23 | |
| 3 | 13 | BASSIN NSW: Ken Murray & Bruce Anderson | 2 | 1.08 | |
| 3 | 14 | QFM: Steve Morgan & Peter May | 2 | 1.03 | |
| 3 | 15 | HARDMAN OUTDOORS: Marty Vanvegchel & Mick Clarke | 1 | 0.87 | |
| 3 | 16 | HUMMINBIRD: Tim Morgan & Carl Jocumsen | 1 | 0.62 | |
| 3 | 17 | SECRET CREEK SPINNERBAITS: Toby Wilson & Gregg Flett | 1 | 0.6 | |
| 3 | 18 | PML (PIMP MY LURE): Dan Stead & Peter Morgan | 1 | 0.59 | |
| 3 | 19 | TOTAL HORDINGS: Daniel Clancy & Luke Parsons | 1 | 0.52 | |
| 3 | 20 | EAGLE/LOWRANCE: Tony Payne & David Young | 1 | 0.49 | |
| 3 | 21 | MEGABASS: Michael Starkey & Vincent Bleakley | |||
| 3 | 22 | POWER & MONEY: Wayne Gordon & Ross Murray | |||
| 3 | 23 | SAMURAI REACTION: Steve Eldred & Adrian Melchior | |||
| 3 | 24 | SECRET CREEK LURES: Jody Vernon & John Picton | |||
| Megabucks: Humminbird BASS Megabucks Team Results | ||||||||||
| Overall | ||||||||||
| Place | Team | F1 | W1 | F2 | W2 | F2 | W3 | TF | TW | Payouts |
| 1 | BASS BOUNTY: David Reynolds & Dylan Mott | 4 | 5.37 | 4 | 4.34 | 3 | 2.47 | 11 | 12.18 | $2,150 |
| 2 | SEQ FISH: Steven Otto & Matt Johnson | 4 | 3.4 | 4 | 4.5 | 4 | 3.25 | 12 | 11.15 | $900 |
| 3 | FISH N' BITS: Matthew Anderson & Ashley Sims | 4 | 3.58 | 4 | 2.86 | 4 | 3.94 | 12 | 10.38 | $5,580 |
| 4 | MINN KOTA: Matthew Mott & Paul Cooper | 4 | 2.88 | 4 | 3.18 | 4 | 4.01 | 12 | 10.07 | $1,500 |
| 5 | HUMMINBIRD: Tim Morgan & Carl Jocumsen | 4 | 2.73 | 4 | 5.19 | 1 | 0.62 | 9 | 8.54 | $3,015 |
| 6 | HUMMINBIRD/ MINN KOTA: Craig Simmons & Kristoffer Hickson | 4 | 2.92 | 3 | 2.04 | 4 | 3.32 | 11 | 8.28 | Humminbird 586 sounder |
| 7 | AUSSEA RESOURCES: Peter Leggett & Kerry Symes | 4 | 3.71 | 1 | 1.57 | 3 | 1.89 | 8 | 7.17 | $900 + Humminbird 383 sounder |
| 8 | BASSIN.COM: Justin Scott & Dan Ryan | 4 | 3.12 | 2 | 1.09 | 4 | 2.48 | 10 | 6.69 | |
| 9 | BERKLEY: Trevor Burgess & Callum Munro | 2 | 1.3 | 3 | 2.29 | 4 | 2.24 | 9 | 5.83 | Humminbird 788 sounder |
| 10 | RIVERCITY OUTBOARDS: Stephen Kanowski & Jami Kanowski | 4 | 3.17 | 1 | 1.08 | 2 | 1.23 | 7 | 5.48 | |
| 11 | EVINRUDE 200 HO: Mike Connolly & Simon Barkhuizen | 4 | 2.5 | 1 | 0.49 | 3 | 2.1 | 8 | 5.09 | |
| 12 | QFM: Steve Morgan & Peter May | 4 | 2.81 | 1 | 0.5 | 2 | 1.03 | 7 | 4.34 | |
| 13 | EAGLE/LOWRANCE: Tony Payne & David Young | 4 | 3.24 | 1 | 0.4 | 1 | 0.49 | 6 | 4.13 | |
| 14 | HARDMAN OUTDOORS: Marty Vanvegchel & Mick Clarke | 4 | 3.12 | 1 | 0.87 | 5 | 3.99 | |||
| 15 | TIVOLI MARINE: Joe Allan & Glyn Barkhuizen | 4 | 3.37 | 4 | 3.37 | $650 | ||||
| 16 | TOTAL HORDINGS: Daniel Clancy & Luke Parsons | 1 | 0.56 | 3 | 1.8 | 1 | 0.52 | 5 | 2.88 | |
| 17 | BASSIN NSW: Ken Murray & Bruce Anderson | 2 | 1.08 | 2 | 1.08 | 4 | 2.16 | |||
| 18 | POWER & MONEY: Wayne Gordon & Ross Murray | 3 | 1.68 | 1 | 0.47 | 4 | 2.15 | |||
| 19 | SECRET CREEK LURES: Jody Vernon & John Picton | 1 | 0.87 | 1 | 0.83 | 2 | 1.7 | |||
| 20 | SECRET CREEK SPINNERBAITS: Toby Wilson & Gregg Flett | 1 | 0.52 | 1 | 0.51 | 1 | 0.6 | 3 | 1.63 | |
| 21 | DAVOS BAIT & TACKLE: Mark Pertot & Mal Favager | 2 | 1.29 | 2 | 1.29 | |||||
| 22 | PML (PIMP MY LURE): Dan Stead & Peter Morgan | 1 | 0.57 | 1 | 0.59 | 2 | 1.16 | Humminbird 798 sounder (random draw) | ||
| 23 | SAMURAI REACTION: Steve Eldred & Adrian Melchior | 2 | 1.13 | 2 | 1.13 | |||||
| 24 | MEGABASS: Michael Starkey & Vincent Bleakley | 0 | 0 | |||||||
| 58 | 45.44 | 46 | 37.96 | 51 | 37.39 | 155 | 120.8 | |||
| 0.779 | ||||||||||
