SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – We’ve had some great fisheries for Bass Pro Shops REDCREST since the first one on the Mississippi River in 2019, but in my mind, Table Rock Lake this week is the perfect venue. There are so many things to love about the lake and how it should fish, plus there is so much more to the area for fishing fans to explore. This part of Missouri is one of the hearts of the bass fishing world, and this event could be our best one yet.
What makes Table Rock so good?
While Table Rock is well known by bass anglers and is a historical tournament lake, it’s been a few years since the Bass Pro Tour visited. We came here twice in our first year in 2019, for back-to-back events in May, after flooding on Grand Lake changed our schedule around. While the fishing was good then and we caught a ton of fish, fishing Table Rock in April this time should make for an even better event.
Fish should be spawning this week, plus you’ll have some prespawn and postspawn fish as well – so it’s a time of year when you can catch them literally however you want. In theory, this is the best possible timing for a bass tournament in Missouri, and I honestly couldn’t think of a better situation for a good tournament with lots of fish catches.
This time of year on a really diverse lake like Table Rock, there will be so many techniques in play, and I can’t see one dominating. I think the Top 10 will be a mix of just about everything. There will be plenty of fish caught ‘Scoping, for sure – there always is – but that’s not going to be the only way to catch them.
You can run up a river and throw a squarebill if you want, you can flip laydowns and bushes if that’s what you like to do, or you can strictly finesse fish. That’s what has me most excited about this one, because it will likely be a little bit of everything. And every one of those techniques give you a real chance to win REDCREST.
The other thing that makes the lake so good is that it fishes very big. It’s a large lake to begin with, but everything is fishable, and with so many creeks and pockets, you could go all day without seeing another competitor. That’s going to be a huge change from our last two events in Texas – they both produced good fishing, but they were smaller lakes, and everyone seemed to be fishing in the same general zones. This is one thing that makes me excited about this tournament: you can run and fish a pattern and actually breathe.
Plenty to do in the area
Over the years, I’ve fished Table Rock several times and have been to Bass Pro Shops’ headquarters and Wonders of Wildlife Aquarium a handful of times. Plus, Ranger’s headquarters in Flippin, Arkansas, isn’t too far away. One thing about this area is that it’s full of things of interest to bass fishermen, but there’s a lot more to it that makes it fun for the whole family.
Table Rock is right outside Branson, which has many attractions, and there are tons of things to do there. Plus, you have all of the Bass Pro things at Top of the Rock with cave tours and fun for the whole family. Not only are hitting the fishery at the right time, but the whole event should be a lot of fun for everyone who comes out. I don’t feel like it’s a stretch to say that this will be the best REDCREST yet.