Fifty-seven anglers turned out to a well-publicised Wivenhoe BASS Electric tournament Sunday, June 14 only to find the fishing tough. Fifteen bass were brought to the scales and it was the Barkhuizen brothers in their Tabs 4.2 Bullshark and Torqueedo 2.0 that faired best.

From the Logans Inlet start line, the pair headed to the first point on the right hand bank heading into the main basin. Seeing a school of fish on their sounder hanging on a steep bank, getting the fish to bite proved to be difficult. Instead, opting to pitch their lures to the nearby shallows proved to be the winning technique.

Glyn used a Megabass Pagani rod matched to a Daiwa Alphas Ito with 15lb Unitika braid and 8lb Unitika fluorocarbon leader, while Simon used a new Samurai 302 rod with the same reel and line combinations.

Simon was the first to score his two bass on a slow rolled Jackall TN60 in blue gill before Glyn seized this lure and claimed his limit including the winning big bass of 1.875kg which had swallowed the lure right down its throat head first.

The technique was to pitch the Jackall to the shallow edges, if the lure was catching weed during the slow rolling retrieve then a simple lift of the rod until it was clear followed by dropping the tip again to keep the lure in line with the descent of the bank.

“It was important to roll the lure back to the boat as some fish followed the lure half way back before hitting the lure,” Glyn said.

With a bounty of prizes on offer thanks to ABT sponsors and retail members, five qualifiers went through to the BASS Electric Convention to be held at Lake Boondooma, Oct 3-4. The next event is at Lake Cressbrook June 28, with the second Wivenhoe event planned for July 19.

For more information visit www.australianbass.com.au or 07 3387 0888. – ABT