Holloway, Hooksets, and Hindsight; Recapping The 44th Annual Holloway Reservoir Bass Tournament
The last Saturday in May is a significant day for bass anglers in Michigan. While the Great Lakes state offers year-round catch and release bass fishing, organized tournaments with an end of the day weigh-in use this weekend as the official start of the season for anglers of the competitive nature.
One of the most popular inland tournaments on opening weekend in southeast Michigan is conducted by the Lake Nepessing Bass Club (LNBC) on the beautiful Holloway Reservoir, a 1,987-acre impoundment of the Flint River, located Genesee and Lapeer County. This tournament is anything but a slugfest. Anything over ten pounds will have a team close to being in the money. In a setting where ounces can mean the most, missing one fish could very well be the difference between a top three finish vs somewhere in the middle of the field.
The Holloway offers a wide variety of opportunities for people to enjoy the outdoors with abundant access sites. On Sunday, May 26th, 2024, a field of 45 boats met at the launch early for check-in and preparation for a day on the water with a chance to win big. Anglers beforehand were focused on their game plan, but also cheerful and generally happy to partake in pre-tournament banter. The camaraderie in bass fishing is truly one of the greatest things within the sport.
The weather forecast was cloudy with a high of 75. The wind progressively increased throughout the day from the east/southeast with gusts up to 20mph. Main lake water clarity had some visibility at 2-3 feet, while the upper end of the lake was more stained from Mt Morris Rd into Columbiaville, offering minimal visibility. Water temperatures were in the low 70s throughout the system.
At 7AM blast off, rigs of all lengths and engine sizes took off in order of the draw to begin. Before all too long, a fleet consisting of Nitro, Ranger, Phoenix, Vexus, Astro, Lund, Bass Cat, and other boat models were rooster tailin’ to their first spot at high speeds. 45 teams on the water, all with the same objective to catch the five heaviest largemouth or smallmouth bass. Until 3pm, anglers covered as much water as possible, throwing a plethora of baits to entice a bigger bite.
“We had a lot of different stuff to throw, but in the end, we only caught fish on two things, one fast and one slow, a Z-Man Evo chatterbait and a Powerbait General wacky rig. I would be covering water, looking for aggressive bites, while my tournament partner, Dominic Turcott, would slowly break down structure (mostly timber) methodically.”- Andrew Woodman (Left).
Local anglers, Brad Campbell and Alex Nikora III, look forward to this event every year. The two have a history on this system, knowing the ins, outs, and curveballs the temperamental Holloway can throw. Even for those with experience and a lifetime of knowledge, the reservoir can be impressive one day and a cold witch the next. “This is a tough lake with great competition. It was difficult, but if I am fishing, I am happy.”- Alex Nikora III.
Coming in fourth place weighing in 11.60Lbs, with a dead fish penalty, Caleb Cook and Joe Westphal of Lapeer, Michigan, earned themselves some prize money fishing out of a 1990 Champion Bass boat. Cook shared that he found best results by using his graphs for finding cover where the bottom was harder, especially singling out areas that were deeper. During the competition, he and Joe Westphal worked a variety of baits from the surface down, like a frog or a swim jig, slowly to finely comb area for bites. “Most of the water we were fishing was dirty, but there would be small areas that are more cleared up where we seemed to find better bites.”- Caleb Cook. Great work on the water, Caleb and Joe!
“Once the boat traffic started to pick up, so did the wind, and the bite became a lot harder to come by. This was our first real experience with this tournament. The event itself was done very well by the LNBC. Those involved putting it on should be very proud!”- Brad Indish.
(Left) Brad Indish, of Oxford, Michigan, and his brother, Jason, finished in second with 11.97 along with securing the biggest fish of the tournament at 3.06lbs. They share that they decided to fish the event last minute after spending what would have been their days practice fishing by fixing their Minnkota Ultrex trolling motor on their Skeeter boat. At the 42nd place to blast off, they found themselves a piece of shoreline and went to work quickly with a limit by 8:45 AM. Way to go on the second-place finish and big fish, team Indish!
Five largemouth for 12.03 Lbs was what it took to win the 2024 Holloway Reservoir Bass tournament.
Earning the titles of champions to the 44th annual Holloway Reservoir Bass Tournament, Parker Westphal of Brutus, Michigan, and Connor Brown of Lapeer, Michigan, sealed the deal with five largemouth weighing 12.08 Lbs. They took their Nitro Z-20 into areas not every boat could go or was willing to. The duo began their day in a usual location they have fished in the past, expecting a quick limit that turned out to be anything but. With one fish at noon, they went on to check out an area that they had fished in years past, but not recently. After making this move, a blitz of four more fish to satisfy their limit snapped quickly over a span of thirty minutes. From then on, they were culling for bigger fish by 1:30PM with upgrades that were pushing 3Lbs a piece. Congratulations getting the job done, Parker and Connor! Well deserved effort and strategy to earn the title as champion.
Special occasions like the annual Holloway Bass Tournament don’t just happen. It is especially important to recognize the commitment and efforts by those who put on this event. To Mr. Dave DeMott, Mr. Paul Sacks, Mr. Larry Gargus, the event sponsors, and all of the Lake Nepessing Bass Club members who worked so hard so that this could take place- the field of anglers thank you tremendously. A wonderful time was had by all, and there is already excitement buzzing as we look forward to next year.
“This was an unexpected win for sure. We knew that we would place well but had reservations about being able to seal the deal with a win. I have been fishing this tournament since I was 12 years old and to win it finally was incredibly special- a feeling I will NEVER forget.”- Parker Westphal. .
