Some events can go better than expected on the Bass Pro Tour. That was the case for Brent Ehrler when he made his return to the Upper Mississippi River last week for REDCREST Presented by Venmo. The California pro didn’t have a lot of background fishing in La Crosse, Wisconsin, but the little experience he did have wasn’t the best.

“The previous two times I fished on the Upper Mississippi River, it didn’t really click for me,” Ehrler recalled of his 50th- and 87th-place finishes on the Upper Mississippi in Bassmaster Elite Series events. “Going into REDCREST, I didn’t have high hopes at all. To finish in seventh place and have a good ending to the season like I did, it’s all I could ask for.”

Finally Figuring It Out

Ehrler was able to take home $21,000 from REDCREST, bringing his season winnings total to $114,600. The Daiwa pro was able to find a couple of patterns thanks to current and cover that made the biggest difference for him during his four competition days.

“River fish tend to be a little bit different and respond to different things,” Ehrler said of the largemouth and smallmouth that populate the Upper Mississippi. “In the past, it didn’t really seem like I could land on a good group of fish. This year, it kind of clicked for me and I found a couple of different patterns that caught me some decent fish. That gave me some confidence to not have to rely on one particular pattern or bait.”

Brent Ehrler used a couple of baits to catch a majority of his fish during REDCREST. Photo by Phoenix Moore

Right Baits, Right Time

Ehrler relied on one-two punch of baits that he used for a majority of the time. The first was a Lucky Craft Gunfish 95 topwater that he turned to time and time again in areas with little current.

“I caught a lot of fish on that bait,” Ehrler said of the Gunfish. “Over the course of three days, I caught at least 40 fish on that bait alone. Without that bait I would not have made the cut.”

When the bass stopped biting the topwater, it was a collaboration of Yamamoto Custom Baits and a Daiwa Neko Skinny Worm. He was able to catch a lot of fish on a worm fishing riprap or any other form of hard cover.

“If one of those fish missed my topwater, I would throw that worm and get them to bite it almost every single time,” Ehrler explained.

Ehrler now heads into the offseason feeling confident and ready for next season. The California pro can hang his hat on a solid regular season followed up by a redemptive performance on the Upper Mississippi River.