Had a pretty good club tournament, for me at least, at Lake Oconee here in middle GA Sunday. Had heard fish were hitting on top around mayflies early then drop shot rig around rocks and docks later, so was ready with both when we took off at barely safe light, 6 am.

First place I stopped was a main river point with a wooden sea wall around it, the same place I had caught some fish three weeks ago in the other club tournament I posted about. The tall grass behind the wall hanging over the water, trees and docks were full of mayflies, and bream and birds were feasting on them. Started throwing a buzz bait and immediately caught a squeaker keeper - just touched 14 inches on my Golden Rule. I was happy I would not zero but hoped to cull that one!

During the next hour I landed 5 bass and a hybrid. All the bass were just under the 14-inch mark and had to go back in the water. Then a fish sucked the buzz bait under and I set the hook, and watched a 2.5-pound fish jump and throw it! Don't know how he did that since I was using a trailer hook! I kept going back and forth switching between buzz bait and Chug and Spit and catching a few throwbacks, then at 7:30 caught a 14.5-inch keeper.

Out on the point I switched to a Fat Free Shad and caught my best keeper, a solid 2.25-pound fish I did not even have to measure. By now the sun was out and bream had quit hitting. The next point has a small rock pile on it in about 8 feet of water so I ran the crank bait across it - nothing. Then I drug a Carolina rigged minilizard across it - still nothing. I picked up a drop shot rig with a 4-inch Zoom Dead ringer on it and it hardly touched down before a fish hit. I fought it to the boat and like an idiot tried to lift it over the side, and watched it flop off! I was fishing alone - my usual partner was at the Southern Regional at Santee Cooper, but I need him to net my fish!

I figured it was just my luck that day but at least I had two keepers. A few minutes later another fish grabbed the drop shot worm and started swimming off - and I broke off on the hookset! The little curl on the end of the line told me I broke the knot! I had tied a Palomar knot but am not used to tying it - after several tries tying a new rig and breaking the knot, went back to my old clinch knot. It held and worked fine, but I am not sure it keeps the hook standing out like the Palomar does. Was using 8-pound PLine.