WBA tournament casts in the Basin

OTHELLO – The Washington Bass Association, composed of members from around the state, met at Potholes reservoir this weekend for their Team Club Tournament on Potholes.

“It’s just for those in the WBA,” WBA President PJ Koshi said. “It’s a club tournament only.”

The tournament was organized in a way that gives anglers a rest during the day.

“We’re doing a slightly different format, something we have done in the past,” Koshi said. “This time on Saturday we’re having a siesta in the middle of the day.”

Koshi said that the decision to include a break in the middle of the day was done for many factors, with the main being travel.

“The travel factor for us,” Koshi said of the decision. “We’re a Western Washington-based group, so we’re going to be going over there camping and when you’re camping at Potholes, you’re not really there to do a whole lot else.”

Fishing was divided into sections from dawn on Saturday morning to 11:30 a.m., then back out at 4:30 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Saturday evening. Fishing continued on Sunday from dawn until 1 p.m. Each session had a fish limit, with five in the first session, three in the second session and five again in the third session.

The break allowed anglers to get in the shade and rest up before heading back out.

“So, why not take the middle of the day and kind of get in the shade?” Koshi said. “Go back, get some food, stay hydrated during the heat of the day and then go back out and fish more in the evening - when the fishing typically is pretty good and it’s starting to cool off instead of getting hotter.”

Staying hydrated and out of the heat was an important thing for anglers this weekend, with high temperatures across the Basin.

“The strange format was really helpful in countering that,” Koshi said of the heat. “Giving us the opportunity to not be on the water from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., so we were off of the water during that period of time which was very nice.”

The anglers were able to beat the heat and find success when casting out.

“None of our members had any issues,” Koshi said. “I mean, the fish are used to the water there and it’s very hot anyway, so they were catchable, there was action - I don’t believe any team did not weigh in the limit of fish.”

Koshi said that the weekend saw good fishing for those in attendance.

“The fishing was pretty good,” Koshi said. “The challenging part for most everybody was finding the larger bass. The bass over three-, three-and-a-half pounds were hard to find and catch.”

With a total weight of 39.66 pounds, the team of Joel Alinen and Dave Bruggman won the tournament. Following behind in second place were Koshi and Connor Olsen with 35.79 pounds and in third were Derek Eggimann and Gabe Todd with 35.01 total pounds.

The next WBA Team Club event will be held at Moses Lake on August 20 and 21. Those interested in joining the WBA can email Koshi directly at pjkoshi@gmail.com for more information on registration and dues.

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabaisnherald.com.