Bassmaster Classic: Palaniuk Puts Together a Plan

Originally posted on Men's Journal | By Kurt Mazurek | Last updated Mar 21, 2024 7:01 AM ET

Today was my first time on Grand Lake in Oklahoma, site of this year’s Bassmaster Classic. It was the final official practice day before the Classic competition begins and it was a great day. Best of all, I got to see the lake from the passenger seat of the 2022 Elite Series Angler of the Year, “The Prodigy”, Brandon Palaniuk’s boat.

I have been fortunate enough to ride with quite a few pros over the years, and I noticed pretty quickly, Palaniuk is operating at an exceptionally high level. I don’t mean this to be as “flowery” as it’s going to sound, but everything about his approach strikes me as flowing and efficient. There’s a fluidity in his moves, both mechanically and mentally. And while he’s constantly analyzing, adjusting and refining his fishing, he’s simultaneously friendly, cracking jokes and really great to chat with.

I learned a ton today through watching and listening. Palaniuk was incredibly generous with the details of his approach. I’m sure when the event is over he’ll share those details with everyone. But out of respect for him and this level of competition, I am unable to divulge any of the specifics of what I observed at this time.

So, I asked him to summarize his day in a way that was okay to share now. While it might not be the juice about the lures, spots, etc., it’s still a great little nugget of useful, high-level, fishing insight from one of the greats.

Palaniuk said, "Overall, it was a good day. I was able to dial some things in and gain some confidence. And that’s the biggest thing, the confidence. Coming into a three day event I really needed that confidence boost."

"That confidence comes from putting the pieces together to the point where I could say, 'I should get bit right there', and then get a bite. And not only that, they were the right size fish."

"Any time you can do that, you’re able to start running a pattern around the lake. And once you’ve got that, then you have a good enough understanding to know how to adjust as conditions change."

"I had a good first day of practice, followed by two not-so-good days. But then a good day today, which really is what you want as you’re heading into the tournament.”

Will his plan hold up as conditions change? Will he be able to make the necessary adjustments to stay on the right bites? Only time will tell for sure, but I know what I saw today was…let’s say, pretty convincing.

This article first appeared on Men's Journal and was syndicated with permission.

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