The 2024 Southeast Region Individual Trail made their final two stops of the 2024 season, at Sam Rayburn out of Cassels Boykin on Saturday and Sunday, June 8 & 9, 2024. June 8th was originally scheduled for Lake Stillhouse, but due to recent flooding in the area the lake was closed and June 9th was a make-up tournament for a May tournament on Lake Conroe when the lake was closed the evening prior to the tournament.

Sam Rayburn was a little over six feet above pool and according to pre-tournament talk, there were a variety of ways to catch them.

On Saturday June 8, 2024, Vidor Bass Anglers Association member Justin Royal bested the field of 58 anglers with a limit of bass weighing in at 20.86, Justin states that he was targeting a gizzard shad spawn on the original bank lines in the mornings with a Carolina Rig with a 6th Sense Flush on a Reneau Tackle “The One” 04 7’10” rod, once the shad moved off the bank, he would follow them out utilizing a 6th Sense 500DD in the Shook Shad color, a 6th Sense Magnum spoon and a hair jig, paired with a Reneau Tackle “The One” 03 7’10” rod.

Robert Royal with the Vidor Bass Anglers Association finished second with a five bass limit that weighed 20.26 pounds, his bag was anchored by an 8.15-pound Rayburn sow, which earned him the second big bass of the day honors. Robert started on a willow point throwing a swim-jig on a Reneau Tackle Pow-R-Point 580 7’6” rod, he was able to box a couple of keepers before the sun got up, once the sun came up he went to the flooded brush armed with the Pow-R-Point 580 7’6” rod, rigged with 20 pound fluorocarbon with a 3/8 ounce weight and a craw type bait, he wrangled the 8.15 pounder from a clump of willows, he then proceeded to his secondary spot, another flooded point with an assortment of cover including cypress trees, he finished his limit here and upgraded 3 times by rotating between the 3/8 ounce weight craw type bait and Reneau Tackle Pow-R-Point 970 7’3” rod rigged with 65# braid with a 5/8 ounce weight with a creature bait in the cypress trees.

Vidor Bass Anglers Association member Brandon Simoneaux finished third overall with a five bass limit, tipping the scales at 19.63 pounds. Brandon states that he spent most of Friday graphing the main lake, with no luck, so he decide to look closer to the bank and found a school of fish at the mouth of major spawning cove, armed with that information he refocused his search and was able to locate a second school the same way. Brandon was able to locate these fish again on Saturday and utilized a combination crankbaits and live scoping them with a jig head minnow.

Dillon Y’Barbo with the Vidor Bass Anglers Association had the Big Bass of the event with 8.66-pound Sam Rayburn beauty. Dillon also captured the Southeast Region Big Bass of the Year honors with his catch.

On Sunday June 9, 2024, Dustin Berry with the Vidor Bass Anglers Association topped the field of 62 anglers with a 5 fish limit of bass weighing in at 24.51 pounds. Dustin reports finding his fish during practice on Friday. Dustin was utilizing a Carolina rigged fluke in 15 feet of water between the grass line and bushes near the back of a cove. Dustin stated that the bite window was primarily between 7-10 AM.

Vidor Bass Anglers Association member Justin Royal finished second with a limit of bass weighing in at 19.92 pounds anchored by the big bass of the day a 7.54 pounder. Justin stated that he ran the same pattern as Saturday, it just took a little longer on Sunday for his fish to get active. He was targeting a gizzard shad spawn on the original bank lines in the mornings with a Carolina Rig with a 6th Sense Flush on Reneau Tackle “The One” 04 rod, once the shad moved off the bank, he would follow them out utilizing a 6th Sense 500DD in the Shook Shad color, a 6th Sense Magnum spoon and a hair jig, paired with a Reneau Tackle “The One” 03 7’10” rod. Justin states that he caught well over 60 fish each day.

Dillon Brock with the Nacogdoches Bass Club captured third place with a 5 fish limit weighing in at 19.12 pounds, anchored by a 6.01, the second biggest bass of the day. Dillon states that he started the morning off with a frog in some flooded bushes and trees and caught a couple doing that, once that faded, he started fishing Cypress trees with a 3/8-ounce chatterbait and a damiki rig, Dillon said he found a magical spot in some shade and was able to cull up to his final weight by 9:00AM. Dillon states that he lost a couple big ones that would have certainly helped.

A special thank you goes out to the Southeast Region Director Matt Russell for steering us through a chaotic last 2 months of the season, as well as all of the Southeast Region directors and club volunteers for their time and sacrifices.

Written by: Robert Royal Southeast Region Secretary.

Individual Results
Big Bass Results
Club Results
AOY Standings | Club Standings

The 2024 Club Division Southeast Region Individual Trail made their fourth stop of the 2024 season, at Richland Chambers out of Oak Cove Marina on Saturday, April 6, 2024, with 35 anglers competing. Due to projected high winds at this was designated a trailering tournament.

The Southeast Region had not been to Richland Chambers since the 2018 season and I was unable to attend, due to other obligations, so I am not sure what the dock talk was going into the tournament. However, looking at the results it was overall pretty tough, but as we always say someone catches them and this tournament was no different.

Nacogdoches Bass Club member Jacob Bruener bested the field with a limit of bass weighing in at 23.54, winning by over a seven-pound margin. Jacob made the trip from the B.A.S.S. Nation Super Regional on the Arkansas River in Muskogee, Ok in time to get on the water for a couple of hours Friday evening. Jacob stated that he had a couple of bites on a frog and decided that he would go with that pattern on Saturday. Jacob said that he targeted shoreline grass and brush and a combination of the two.

Bryan Trahan with The Vidor Bass Anglers Association finished second with a five bass limit that weighed 15.94. Bryan states that he did not catch a bass all day in practice on Friday, so while sitting at the ramp Saturday morning waiting for take-off, he made the decision to tie on a frog and go fish how he likes to fish. Bryan said he stopped in a small cut up the Richland arm that had some emergent weeds in about two feet of water, Bryan worked through that with a White Spro frog and it didn’t produce any bites, so he decided to work them again, except really slow almost working the frog in place, this cadence produced two solid fish telling him what he needed to do. Bryan continued to run this pattern to fill his limit, making his last cull at 2:35PM with a five-pounder. Bryan stated that he did lose several good fish during the day, but after an extremely slow practice he could not be happier with how the day turned out.

The Bass Club member Jody Rhoden finished third overall with a five bass limit tipping the scales at 13.75. Jody states that he found his fish in practice on Friday, by catching a five and a seven pounder at that point he cut his hooks off. Tournament day started off pretty slow, caught one on a swim jig, lost several on a frog, finally got the swim jig bite going again and caught his last fish flipping a bush at 2:05. Jody said it was a tough day overall, but it worked out. This is back-to-back Top 3 finishes for Jody.

Gary Robin with the Vidor Bass Anglers Association had the Big Bass of the event with 8.45-pound RC beauty. Gary’s Big Bass anchored his 2 fish bag for 10.47 pounds earning him the last check. Gary currently holds the lead in the Southeast Region Big Bass of the Year race.

Dillon Y’Barbo with the Vidor Bass Anglers Association had the second Big Bass with an 8.26 pounder that anchored his 3 fish bag for 12.69 earning him fourth place overall. Cool side note the overall big bass and the second big bass came from the same boat.

Thank you to the members of the assisting clubs as well as the Southeast Region Directors for their assistance in conducting a smooth tournament. The Southeast Region next individual event is on Lake Conroe out of April Plaza Marina, on May 18, 2024.

Written by: Robert Royal Southeast Region Secretary

The 2024 Southeast Region Individual Trail kicked off Saturday January 27, 2024, out of Cassels Boykin Park with 75 anglers competing. Due to the low water levels and projected high winds throughout the day, this was designated a trailering tournament.

Rain throughout the week had led to dirtier water and a slight rise in the lake level.

At the conclusion of the weigh-in Vidor Bass Anglers Association member Justin Royal had topped the field with five bass weighing in at 19.03, Justin’s winning weight was anchored by a 5.19 lb. Rayburn sow. Justin reported that he had his winning weight by 7:30 AM that morning, while he caught several more keepers throughout the day, he was not able to improve on his original 5 fish weight. Justin stated that he targeted grass with a 6th Sense Swank 77X in the Gold Reactor color paired with a Reneau Tackle “The One” 02 7’6” rod. Justin would like to thank the following sponsors Reneau Tackle, 6th Sense Fishing, Waterland Glasses, Jordan’s Marne & Pro Fuel, Hayabusa USA, Power Pole Total Boat Control, Yamaha Outboards and Sam Rayburn Performance Rigging.

Chris Glass with The Bass Club finished second with a five bass limit that weighed 16.25 pounds anchored by the second largest bass of the tournament weighing in at 5.89 lbs. Chris said that he found some fish Friday that were up shallow, both North, and South of the 147 bridge. He waivered on which spot to start on first Saturday morning but felt fairly confident about both areas and the quality of fish that were there. He made a last-minute decision to start North Saturday morning and then he headed South of the 147 bridge to finish out the day. He focused on areas that were 4.5 foot deep and shallower with grass using his Hummingbird Mega 360 mounted on Precision Sonar Mount. He utilized Pride Rods Chitter Chatter II and a Mag Rocket working a chatter bait and a light Carolina rig with a 3/16oz Titan Tungsten weight through the grass to catch his five fish. Chris would like to thank the following sponsors PRIDE Rods, Daiwa Reels, Titan Tungsten Weights, Sunline fluorocarbon, Hummingbird, Precision Sonar Mounts, Lowrance and Hummingbird mapping.

Seven Coves Bass Club member Robert Thierry finished third overall with a five bass limit tipping the scales at 15.71 pounds. Robert stated that he targeted a grass ride in 3 to 8 feet of water with soft plastics, said he caught at least two limits throughout the day and lost a few.

A special thank you goes out to the regional clubs that provided members to serve as tournament volunteers, as well as the Southeast Region Directors for their assistance in conducting a smooth tournament.

The next Southeast Region individual event is on February 24, 2024, on the Sabine River out of the City of Orange Ramp.

Written by: Robert Royal Southeast Region Secretary

Justin Royal with 3 of the 5 that anchored his 19.03 pound limit.

SE Region Director Matt Russell and Justin Royal with the 1st Place Plaque.

hris Glass shows off 2 of his 5 that anchored his second-place stringer of 16.25 pounds.