Fishing Fridays Radio Interviews Drew Benton – Fishing 2nd Bassmaster …

Hello everybody, and welcome to dig in fishing. Im your great number, Michael Grady. Im excited today because today we have drew bitten here, the Bassmaster elite series. Drew had one, two major wins and the first in a FLW tour, Lake Okeechobee, and the second bath master Toyota, Texas fast. Drew will also be fishing in a second Bassmaster typical in Knoxville, Tennessee, and a associate of weeks. Welcome drew. Hey, thanks for having me. So drew, what are you up to today?

Well, as you know, Im up here in the panhandle where Hurricane Michael, just this wrath a few months back and today Im working around the house trying to get everything back in order. Im in between events, so Im kind of wearing two hats. The one pop right now I, Im in Daytona Beach, Florida and I can absolutely tell anybody listening if you havent seen pictures of what a that hurricane did to the panhandle, like bomb went off up there. It really looked like a war zone and nevertheless does and a lot of, a lot of parts of my county is just a, Ive lived by a bunch of hurricanes in Florida. Weve never left and its just, it nevertheless amazes me the amount of force that came along with Hurricane Michael.

Well, Ill tell you after being in taught it for 25 years, I can absolutely tell you one thing is true. Id rather the wind every once in a while blow sideways and throws a hurricane at us as opposed to a hundred inches of snow.
25 below zero. Yeah, thats right. I dont do that much cold. I lived down here in the south for a reason and I dont mind going up up north and fishing those small mouth fisheries in the summertime when were escaping that a hundred under degrees and a hundred percent humidity down here. But you know, this time of year and, and on an early spring, the south of the place for me.
Yeah Buddy. I, lets talk fishing, man. How did you tell our listeners, how did you get started
fishing? Well, I average my love for facial started fishing for Brandon and calf on math budge. My granddad as most kids, you know, and I really didnt start back until I got to high school age and start fishing around a little ponds and lakes around the house to my friends. And thats really how I got my start. Just Wade fishing, floating, floating down equal fine and a little repairs around the house and float tubes and, and just fishing for Bass. That boy,
so you did that as a kid. So what made you get into competitive fishing?
So know I played baseball all by high school and college and I was to pay the person and you know, we had little tournaments here around the house, Tuesday night tournaments, Saturday events and, and you know, whenever I was 16 I got me a little bass tracker and you know, we started getting in those little local tournament doing really well. And then I just started climbing the ladder. I branched out to regional events. Im like seminar old, you follow and joined a bass club and you know, it really just took off from there. That competitive aspect of a, that fishing, whats the best of both worlds? For me, it gave me that competitiveness that I rule and you know, the love for the outdoors. We associate the combination of both and it was just, it was just the perfect set up for me.
Well let me ask you, now that youre fishing at the highest level, whats the biggest challenge or problem you found in competing with some of the best there are?
You know, clearly the biggest challenge that I can think of would be that no matter what, you can do everything or I in this job, you can make the right calf, make the right decisions, but youre nevertheless going after a while and then, and that x factor along with weather and everything else that can, can be thrown at you. Its, its got, thats what makes it the most challenging. You can do everything right on your part and you nevertheless not get paid at the end of the day. And thats just, thats just part of the game that we play.
Luck is part of it. Huh?
Ill say look as much as just those uncontrollable factors. Gotcha. You know, like youd practice for an event, youve got some fish found and it rains three inches the night before and it just blows out your area or you know, just, just x factors that mother character and the aspect of, you know, youre chasing after awhile. Biblical tales pull him off. I average, thats just part of it.
Gotcha. Well, do you have an ads? What have you learned? You know, because clearly, you know, you did well in FLW and now youre in the elite or what have you learned thats really helped you succeed?
Mostly just keep an open mind, you know, he developed a game plan of course in practice and kind of get an idea what you want to do. But you know, youve always got to keep an open mind while youre out there fishing in the tournament. Im a lot of things develop during the event. My respect, a good point would be a Texas stuff. I didnt figure out the window until the afternoon or the first day of the event and I had no idea that I was going to win that tournament. Had no idea I was on the one that pattern. It was just keeping an open mind and you know, fishing what was in front of me and you know, taking things wants to for the time.
You mentioned that you put together a plan for the tournament of the lake. Can you talk to us a little bit about what your processes and going by and putting together a plan for a particular body of water?
Yeah. Typically I take into account, you know, what stage the Fisher in, whether its pretty identify on post far. Try to find that out before, you know, before I already put the boat in the water, that that gives me an idea of the top areas I need to look at it. It kills me. Or the fish is going to be shallow. Are they going to be in those stage and top areas of steeper edges? Are they going to be on those places that they come and risk after they create or are they going to be out thorough in their summertime pump? They, I average it just gives you a better idea of locations for Luke and that thats kind of the, the most planning I do. And then I hop into just trying to locate, just try and get a bite or two. Let the fish tell you what you know, whats going on
when it comes to putting together your plan or implementing it. Do you use any tools or any information supplies?
Oh yeah. My units are, you know, they just take all the guesswork out of all that I can. I can study the mapping on Mahler and she and this and see where the channel switching edges are, where you know, ditches and, and travel points are, I can, you know, use the structure stands the fine, you know, rock Colins structure out, you know, off points and road beds and things like that. And truly Im in the summertime that you can truly stay the schools of fish. That is a big tool in addition as you know, satellite imagery, Google maps, bing maps, using those to see, you know, a satellite picture of the like and can see where grass grows or worse sandbars are. Were a little depressions are on flat, things like that. Thats all very, very helpful and useful tool that you can use before you already get to the leg where you meet to the quantity of water and you can do a lot of homework, you know, using those tools and, and, and take a lot of the guesswork out before you truly get on the water.
Yeah. And I asked this a lot of a lot of the elite guys, do you truly write down your plan in a, in a book or do you just kind of keeping your head?
No, I dont. I dont write it down. I keep it in my head. You know, Im very forgetful person. If you, if you know me, a matter of fact with the interview, if you, if you wouldnt let me, it was a while ago and he reminded me out or forgot about it. But when it comes to fishing, it comes to getting bikes and things like that. For at any rate reason I can remember that stuff and he just stays in my head. I dont really have any excursion anything down
cause this, its what you love to do. Thats right. So let me ask you, wait, you know, you put together your plan and you kind of go out there and you get some experience in your practice. Whats the, what kind of results have you gotten from, you know, some of your different, you know, things that you do over and over and over again?
I feel like as long as I go in and just try and get an idea and dont really get too hung up on one thing, one pattern, I just kind of get an idea of starting point for the event. Not necessarily, you know, Im going to do this, this doesnt work, Im going to do this. And if that does Oregon, me see I feel like if I just figure out, you know, an idea somewhere to start and then kind of list the tournament developed to me, you know, develop itself to me and I just kind of keep an open mind and to kind of roll with the punches. I find myself far more successful man. If I get hung up on one thing and, and just, you know, try to make the fish, you know, I think youre way more successful if you let the fish telling you what to do. You just kinda put yourself on those high percent
when youre kind of working, working along, you know. Do you kind of keep the time in your head about how long its been in between fish or that kind of thing? Or do you have a set time? Im so, in other words, you said if your course of action is kind of fluid but you get them be like, wow, nothings happened in 20 minutes, I got to do something else. Or are you just, well just go with whats happening.
Well yeah, in a way. I average every body of water eat different, you know, some, some like, you know, he might be stop for for seven bucks a day. while I feel like Chino that have a big fish population, youre hitting bit, you know, steady and you, youve got to kind of take that into account and factor that in. So yeah, theres gotta be a top, you know, kind of a mental time clock in your head. Im going off of here. If youre spending too much time doing one thing and not get bit, you clearly get to move on, but you got to take into the account of body of water youre on. I average up north, if youre not getting bit, you know, you better be doing something else cause the efficient, very strong up there. They got big populations of fish and I dont get fish for Austin.
But when youre down here in the style, say for example on you know, body of water life, but the typical venue, you know, itll be march, itd be three create. You know, you might not necessarily get the number of bikes you would at a place like Saint Lawrence River or a saint player nowhere. But you, you know, you, you got to stick to, you know, the areas that you have confidence in and in the techniques do you have confidence in and allow those bikes to town. But there definitely has to be no time clock factored into that if youre not getting bid at all.
So what youre saying is the Saint Lawrence is different than tohow are Okeechobee, Huh?
Yeah, absolutely it is. Can you know, fishing Saint Lawrence, its just so complete of fish. I average youre going to get it pretty much everywhere you go on that place. And the big cheese for a place like that. So is the quality and you know, a three and three quarter pounder and a four pounder are very, very different. Youve got upon those were found by, thats the whole meaningful there. And, and when you say time wise, if youre getting a lot of three and very quarter, three and a half down by cause youre getting bit, youve got to go do something different. I average youre not, youre, youre discounting yourself hugely by not going after that, that bigger quality by in other places. So you gotta you gotta move around and figure out how to get those four pound by just cause youre getting bit does not average youre on the right track. Those places, again, its all according on to the quantity water youre fishing.
Gotcha. So what would you say is the biggest thing youve learned or the most successful thing youve learned this made you better since you started fishing? You know, F FLW and of course your leasers. Okay.
The, the biggest thing is its being able to be versatile. You have guys that you would call your, your thorough water. You got to you guys or just shallow water guys know we could be, you know, dropping on them up north and theyre going to go try to find some field shallow. And from what Ive found, hes got to be versatile. You cant, you cant be that guy that youre just known for being shallow water are known for being a great thorough water angler. Youve got to get out of your comfort zone and youve got to figure out ways to catch them in those times that theyre going to be called off, you know, out Ill show or you know, vice versa. Its just the character of the game. The most successful guys in the sport are versatile and thats the biggest thing Ive learned.
Gotcha. So when youre going and making up your plan, youre also taking a look at thoroughness of water in different areas, Huh?
Yeah, yeah. I average, for example, this, if Im thinking that, that, you know, everythings spawned a priest on, Im going to be looking in those areas that are, you know, five foot or less. Hmm. Possibly little depression, stitches, you know, leading into spa and pockets and things like that. And then if you know, Im know the everythings post bond, more luck in June, the summer pattern, I probably wont be looking at shallow, you know, unless its a grass leg, were officially a shallow year round, you know, most of those facial move out to a three river channel age or a thorough draw off or something like that. So you know that that kind of gives me an idea of a starting point at the minimum.
Gotcha. Well lastly, if we come to the end of our interview, I want to ask you and I ask everybody these two questions. Number one, what is your most successful phishing secret?
Oh, well Ill, Ill answer that because Ive had a lot of questions and Saint Johns river, I have, Ive had a, you wouldnt believe the number of emails messages on social media now. I had a, a pump up sprayer on the back of my boat with a little blue solution mix stuff in it. And everybody wants to know what is in that pump up sprayer. Well, Im sight fishing in the spring. You clearly have a lot of pollen on the water that time of year in addition as any kind of wind that blows. Its hard to see. You might be able to see the bed, but she cant get a good look at the fish and see what he knows. Fast fishes the well I can do, but a little bit of a blue dawn dish washing liquid, which is, you know, environmental. We say Im not, you know, mix it up a little like water, but it doesnt pump up sprayer and I can spray it like theres little ripple in the water. I can spray it, you know, a 10 by 10 area and itll click that lower off where I can see, see really good and see what that fishes see how hes acting or if theres pollen in the water and spray it and then I can disperse that pollen and stuff. Thats probably one of the biggest figures Ive got. And its Kinda, its, its known. Its not a big secret or anything, but a lot of people have asked me, you know what that is? And thats, thats what it is.
I had to tell you thats the first time Ive heard of it and that is, that is awesome cause youre kind of using it as a surfactant so you can truly cut down on the declared. Right? Yup. Thats amazing. All right. So question number two. Whats your most successful or your favorite lure or bait?
Oh, thats a tough one. I have to say though, you know, going all over the country, a bay that catches them everywhere. Its probably a little crying. They and Bagley makes a fantastic one. Its called a sunny day. Its a little six to eight foot diver. Of course you can put heavier lawn on a fishery shall or, but she put 15 pound test. Its kind of down about 60 its a tight wobble, small crankbait. It gets a ton of bites and it catches big ones. Its a, its a Balsa Lewer that comes by any cover you can imagine. And its got a tight Subaru listed action with great pillars, the match to any kind of Fords you want. And itll catch them from Florida to New York. So thats a, thats a bait that I throw a ton. Im going to have a lot of competence.
Nice. Youve given our listeners a ton of great information. I really appreciate that. This is specialized fishing. So do you have anything that you want to promote?
Well, you know, we couldnt do this without any of our sponsors and that, you know, when, when you asked me one of the hard things, the hardest things that Ive learned about, you know, this sport, its hard to, to answer that without mentioning the, you know, the sponsor aspect though, you know, its two jobs and fishing and promoting and you know, every year we got more fishermen and its harder and harder to get sponsored dollars cause I get divided up. You know, I knew about Bagley being boat, millennium, Marine Lorraines strength Pole, doomsday nickels, Lewers, Phoenix, Rod, CJR owner hoods. All those companies are, you know, kind of a team that has put together and they work really well together. And you know, Im just, Im glad to be a part of their family and you know, I couldnt do that. Im so, theyre products that will, that will put more efficient everybodys boat, and Id just be sure to check them out.
Awesome, man. Thanks for the great information and thanks for being on our show.
All right. Thank you for having me. I appreciate it.
All right. Good luck in the elite series this year. Thank you.
Thanks again for listening.