Noel makes best of tough tourney conditions

Brad Noel of Jackson won the Bass Busters of Southeast Missouri bass fishing tournament at Lake Egypt in southern Illinois on Jan. 30.

Cold overcast weather did not deter tournament activity on this popular early season powerplant lake. With several tournaments in progress, the competition and fishing pressure in the warm-water discharge was intense. However, the crowded conditions did not distract Noel from catching his winning bag of fish and the big bass for the event from this area.

Noel spent his day ripping a 1/4-ounce chrome and blue-back Rattle Trap through shallow grass on main lake points. All his fish came from less than 4 feet of water.

Eric Niswonger took second by fishing the warmer water as well but with a different approach. Niswonger used a Lucky Craft Pointer 100 jerkbait to catch his fish. He focused his time on main lake grassy points as well, but the jerkbait targeted slightly deeper and less aggressive bass. Both anglers reported a tough day with few bites.

The conditions were cold and cloudy with air temperatures from 30 to 39 degrees. Winds were from the northwest at 5 to 10 mph. The water temperature at the power plant discharge was in the high 40s, and the water in the balance of the lake was in the mid- to high 30s. There was no ice on the lake.