Outdoors

"I am proud to represent Alabama at the national tournament," said Burroughs.

With a three-day total of 26 pounds, 5 ounces, Burroughs positioned himself one step closer at a chance for $1 million. Lake Norman can be a tough place to fish, even for some of the top anglers.

"It was hot, very hot during the tournament," Burroughs said. "The first day it was 100 degrees, and the next day was 98."

The state TBF helped pay the expenses of the 12-man Alabama team. Also, the families of the competing anglers got to accompany them to Lake Norman and the TBF arranged day trips and excursions while the anglers were out on the lake competing.

The top angler of each region in the TBF National will earn a trip to the FLW Cup in 2009 for a chance to fish with pro anglers from the FLW Tour and BASS Series for a shot at the million. Anglers begin at the local club level and fish state tournaments to qualify for the state team and move on to the divisional events.

Pier pressure

"Lake Norman is a huge lake with hundreds of docks," Burroughs said. "And the docks are floating. There are no poles on the piers like on lakes around here."

Burroughs said he knew the bass would want some shade to escape the bright sun and high temperatures. The bass would hang out under the floating piers and feed on bluegill (bream). He discovered that the bass were holding on some of the older floating piers with Styrofoam underneath that helped the docks stay afloat.

"Algae would grow on the Styrofoam and this would attract the bluegill and the bass would follow," Burroughs said

By developing a "milk run" Burroughs would only target the piers with the Styrofoam flotation. When he came to piers that had the newer black plastic-style floats he would pass those by, knowing they did not hold any bass. Sometimes there were four or five or even more bass under a pier.

"If I missed a fish under a pier I could come back a few hours later and usually catch that fish from the same pier," said Burroughs.

It was back in April that Burroughs was fishing a FLW Tour event as a co-angler on Lake Norman and was able to practice and do a little scouting. The pro anglers who were fishing as his partners were sight fishing, which did not give the backseat angler much of a chance at fishing. But, during the practice time Burroughs was able to locate some areas, learn about the lake and mark a few GPS waypoints.

Gear to go

Burroughs used basically two lures during the Divisional on Lake Norman to catch his limit of bass, a SpotSticker Jig with a hand-poured SS Magic worm and a Bo's Jig. Each of the lures was in a green pumpkin color and he used a trailer on the jig.

"The SS Magic worm had a bluegill tint that matched really close," Burroughs said.

To present the SpotSticker to the bass, Burroughs used a Kistler rod, 6 feet, 6 inches in length with a medium action. Coupled to the rod is a Shimano Stradic reel spooled with Seagar Invizx fluorocarbon line in 8-pound test. Fishing the Bo's jig he used an All Pro 6 feet, 10 inch rod with an ABU Gracia Revo reel loaded with 15-pound test line.

"With the clear water the fluorocarbon line made a big difference," said Burroughs. "The fish cannot see the line."

Another goal for Burroughs this year is to win the Alabama TBF Angler of the Year points race. Currently he is the top spot with a 39-point lead. The final tournament will be a two-day event in September on Lewis Smith Lake. A good finish there should keep him on top.

It might be difficult to believe that a retired baseball coach turned bass angler would have a shot to cast for bass with a $1million check hanging in the balance. But it is true, even when fishing in the FLW events, that with the caliber and skill of Burroughs, his last step is not only possible, but also a little closer.