 Although David Dudley of Lynchburg, Va., didn’t win the event either, his four-day catch of 56 pounds, 2 ounces was good enough for a third-place finish. It was also good enough to put a smile on the angler affectionately known as the “Manteo Machine.”
“I’m happy,” said Dudley, who now boasts a staggering $2,475,000 in career FLW Outdoors earnings. “I did better every day and had the biggest sack in the finals. I climbed a mountain this week I reckon.”
According to Dudley, his climb wasn’t easy by any stretch.
“I’m definitely happy to have caught what I did in the finals,” said Dudley. “There was a lot of (holiday) boat traffic out there. It was a trying week for me. On the last day of practice I got onto something which usually means that you have to practice a little bit more during the tournament until you figure things out. So it was tough. But I’m happy.” Complete Story |
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When big money's on the line, and Dudley has a genuine shot to win, he generally does. He's won an AOY title, the Forrest Wood Cup, the Ranger M1 and has pulled about $2.5 million dollars out of FLW Outdoors competition.
Despite past winnings, he feels the economic pinch like everybody else, and his desire to win tomorrow is clear in his voice and candor.
"This is financial," he said. "I've won about everything there is, but right now, at this time of my life and with what's going on, this would be a financial win vs. anything else."
So far, some lost fish have stood between him and the lead, although the same could be said for everyone else in the Top 5. A 4-pounder broke him off today that could have put him into the 21-pound range, and he also got stuck with a small fish. So he's definitely on quality. |
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Castrol pro David Dudley of Lynchburg, Va., finished third with a two-day total of 34 pounds, 11 ounces worth $45,000.
Dudley spent the week fishing out on the main river channel, targeting a mixture of rock and grass.
He used a ½-ounce rattling lipless crankbait in a “baby bass” color and fished the lure on 17-pound-test Berkley 100% Fluorocarbon line with an Elite Tech Riggin’ Stik.
“This type of fishing is all about covering miles of water and finding the little sweet spots by feeling what your bait is doing,” Dudley explained. “That Berkley fluorocarbon allowed me to feel the difference between rock and grass, and that’s so critical. You can cover miles of pure grass and then feel just a rock or two in there, and that’s where you’re going to get bit. But if you never feel that difference in what your bait is hitting, you’ll never know that sweet spot is there.” Read More |
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Dudley the closer: Part 2 |
For the first part of his career, Dudley prided himself on being a “junk fisherman,” meaning his favorite fishing technique was to run down a lake and fish anything that grabbed his intuitive attention.
“Junk-fishing is one of the best ways to hone pure instincts,” Dudley explained. “I love riding down a lake in a tournament and waiting for that gut feeling that says, ‘Pull over and fish that.’ It might be a lay-down, a dock, a point of vegetation, a current break, a piece of riprap – whatever. To me, that’s one of the purest forms of instinctual fishing, having no real direction or plan – just a deck full of rods and endless opportunities to cast at anything, catching a fish here and a fish there. Read More |
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Dudley the closer: Part 1 |
Anyone who has been around the sport of professional fishing for a long time probably has a “Dudley story.”
A Dudley story is any tale that involves well-known pro David Dudley of Lynchburg, Va., and the very peculiar ways he goes about his professional fishing career.
Perhaps one of the best examples of a Dudley story comes from legendary pro Rick Clunn, who happened upon a young and stranded David Dudley while practicing for a tournament on the James River many years ago.
“David had run out of gas in the middle of the river,” Clunn recalled. “I offered to take him to a nearby marina (about four or five miles away), but he insisted that I just tow him over to the bank. There was a big farm up on the bank, and someone was running some kind of machinery up there.” Read More |
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