Cream rises to the Top

It should come as no surprise that Michael Matthee caught most of his fish on a Caffeine Shad at the SABAA Super Team Final on Heyshope Dam the first weekend of December. Michael’s unbroken winning streak can be explained by a simple cup of coffee, namely that the cream always rises to the top. Earlier in the year Michael wrangled a top position at the FLW-AFRICA fish-off on the Vaal River, earning him a berth at the FLW Costa Series Tournament on Kentucky Lake, USA. Michael went on to place first in the FLW Costa International Division and 9th overall, amidst a field of American pros and a guaranteed position at the Forest Wood Cup to be held in August. But that’s not all . . . Michael and his partner, Glen Naude, fishing as Team Viper Doors, placed top ten in the EBASS Tournament Trail that qualified them to compete at the inaugural 2017 SABAA Team Super Final at Heyshope Dam. They placed second overall, once again earning a trip across the pond to compete in this year’s Bassmaster Tournament Team Trail Championships. The Matthee name constantly flashes atop SA leader boards. Michael has won multiple events, remains a phenom in Divisional angling and one of a few anglers country wide who constantly show, place or win - the crème de la creme. Team Go Fish remains another tourney duo consistently riding a wave of success. Team mates Louis Cooper and Buks Human won the FLW Mpumalanga Cast4Cash Division in 2016 then took top position and Angler of the Year (AOY) in the newly minted Anglers4Anglers 2017 Circuit. They too competed in the SABAA Super Final and finished fifth amidst a strong field of competitors. The question must be asked – why do these same names, and a few others, routinely appear atop the scoresheets? What do top anglers do differently that make them stand out? You may be surprised to learn that both winning teams value the same skill sets of ‘Experience’ and ‘Versatility’. “I fish completely different to the other competitors, I’m always looking for something different,” Michael admits. He tells me that if the other guys are fishing plastics, he might throw cranks or spinnerbaits, or vice versa. But it’s not as simple as it seems - although he may be casting different baits than the crowd, it is not a random selection. “You have to know when to throw what bait and that comes from experience,” he points out. The winning angler spends a lot of time on the water learning how to be versatile and successful at the same time. A great example of versatility was day one at the SABAA Super final where Michael and his partner landed five scoring fish with five different techniques. “There are four main fishing hotspots on Heyshope and we stuck to the community areas,” Michael says. “Most everyone was fishing a similar pattern, but we fished a wide range of things and every twenty minutes we would change up to trigger bites,” he adds. Louis and Buks preach a similar sermon, suggesting there is no substitute for experience. Louis says logging hours on the water is important, but he also provides a caution, namely that the value of practice is not simply in logging hours, but how the time is used. “We spend a stupid amount of time on research,” Louis says. “We study new tactics and lures to get the edge on new technology. Time on the water is spent refining techniques that make us more versatile as anglers. We also invest a lot of time in finding special places off the beaten path, often in deep water that enables us to spend our time catching unpressured fish.” Simple, easy to understand yet invaluable lessons for any angler preparing a rise to the top.