Kenneth Cleveland of Valley Bass Club won the boater division of the California B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier on Castaic Lake, March 17-18.
Kenneth Cleveland and Jim McLaughlin earn spots on 2019 State Team
CASTAIC, Calif. — Kenneth Cleveland of Bakersfield won the 2018 California B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier 1 on Castaic Lake, March 17-18, by a pound and a half.
Cleveland, who is a member of the Valley Bass Club, has only fished Castaic a handful of times, but his pre-fish made the difference. Before Saturday’s launch, he had determined that what he was going to do was drop shot, and where he was going to do it was at Kong Island and a big stretch in the back near the dam.
“I drop shotted two different worms,” said Cleveland after his victory. He used two colors — a cinnamon blue and a custom color that he describes as smoky — in a 6-inch Stroker Worm and a 4-inch Butler. “I fished it anywhere between 15 and 25 feet of water.”
His friend and fellow competitor, Ray Huff, makes Stroker Worms, and the pair had handpoured a “couple hundred” before the tournament started. By the end, Cleveland only had nine left.
Cleveland said he thinks the…
