Fantasy blog: Let’s go to Paris
All in for the long haul10.Jun.2009
Paris, France might be the city of love, but Paris, Tennessee is the city of bass.
As the FLW Tour stop on Kentucky Lake draws closer, there has been a lot of talk about Paris (the one in Tennessee) because Paris is the designation for the area around the Hwy. 79 Bridge which has produced a majority of the bass tournament wins on Kentucky Lake over the last couple of years.
A strong influx of milfoil and hydrilla in the Tennessee River from the Hwy. 79 Bridge (Paris) to the Hwy. 70 Bridge (New Johnsonville) over the last few years has allowed bass in this 25-mile stretch of river to grow fat and healthy.
It’s no secret: the Paris to New Johnsonville area has been red hot. I covered a Stren Series here last July and it was dominated from this region of the lake. And judging from the recent BASS Elite Series that took place last week, this portion of the river is still producing a majority of the top weights.
There is, however, one problem with Paris, the fabled city of bass: it’s a long, long way from Kentucky Dam where the FLW Tour is putting in for the first two days of the tournament. As a frame of reference, here is a rough distance index of how far Tour pros will have to run in order to reach Paris and beyond:
The Kentucky Dam to the Hwy. 80 Bridge (KenLake) is about 18 miles. The dam to the Hwy. 79 Bridge (Paris) is 40 miles. And for those really brave souls, the dam to New Johnsonville is a strong 70 miles.
So how far will the pros go? At least a handful of pros I talked with during practice said that running beyond New Johnsonville – some 70 miles – is not out of the question for them.
What kind of bearing does that have on Fantasy Fishing picks? As for me, I’m making wholesale changes to my picks to go mostly with pros who I know are committed to fishing way south to Paris and beyond.
Yes, the run is risky and it means less fishing time, but I believe that’s where the better quality fish are located. I’ve talked to a couple dozen pros over the last few days and the ones who said they’re committed to Paris and beyond are the ones I left on my list. If you’re looking for a few last-minute picks, feel free to check out my “Paris Only” picks in the Pundits’ Picks section of Fantasyfishing.com.
As the FLW Tour stop on Kentucky Lake draws closer, there has been a lot of talk about Paris (the one in Tennessee) because Paris is the designation for the area around the Hwy. 79 Bridge which has produced a majority of the bass tournament wins on Kentucky Lake over the last couple of years.
A strong influx of milfoil and hydrilla in the Tennessee River from the Hwy. 79 Bridge (Paris) to the Hwy. 70 Bridge (New Johnsonville) over the last few years has allowed bass in this 25-mile stretch of river to grow fat and healthy.
It’s no secret: the Paris to New Johnsonville area has been red hot. I covered a Stren Series here last July and it was dominated from this region of the lake. And judging from the recent BASS Elite Series that took place last week, this portion of the river is still producing a majority of the top weights.
There is, however, one problem with Paris, the fabled city of bass: it’s a long, long way from Kentucky Dam where the FLW Tour is putting in for the first two days of the tournament. As a frame of reference, here is a rough distance index of how far Tour pros will have to run in order to reach Paris and beyond:
The Kentucky Dam to the Hwy. 80 Bridge (KenLake) is about 18 miles. The dam to the Hwy. 79 Bridge (Paris) is 40 miles. And for those really brave souls, the dam to New Johnsonville is a strong 70 miles.
So how far will the pros go? At least a handful of pros I talked with during practice said that running beyond New Johnsonville – some 70 miles – is not out of the question for them.
What kind of bearing does that have on Fantasy Fishing picks? As for me, I’m making wholesale changes to my picks to go mostly with pros who I know are committed to fishing way south to Paris and beyond.
Yes, the run is risky and it means less fishing time, but I believe that’s where the better quality fish are located. I’ve talked to a couple dozen pros over the last few days and the ones who said they’re committed to Paris and beyond are the ones I left on my list. If you’re looking for a few last-minute picks, feel free to check out my “Paris Only” picks in the Pundits’ Picks section of Fantasyfishing.com.
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