One Water Dominance
Posted by Pete Robbins on Sep 6th 2021
When I recently wrote about Chris Johnston’s Toyota Series win on the St. Lawrence River, I failed to mention the fact that his success in that event wasn’t a standalone phenomenon. He’d won the Elite Series event there in 2020, came in 2nd in 2019, and came in 5th this year.
Maybe I’m missing something, but the only one-water-one-angler run I can recall like that in Tour-level and AAA competition is Robert Lee’s epic run on the California Delta a generation ago. In fact, the Californian may have one-upped the Canadian by winning four Bassmaster Delta events in a row – three Western Invitationals against stacked fields, and then a Bassmaster Tour (predecessor of the Elite Series) tournament in 2003.
Without discrediting or minimizing either accomplishment, there are several things that differentiate them.
First, Johnston’s brother Cory has also done quite well on the St. Lawrence in recent years. He was 2nd last week, 4th the week before, 7th in 2020 and 36th in 2019. That means that every time you’re lining up against them, two checks—two GOOD checks—are already accounted for.
I’m sure some people would say that diminishes what Chris has accomplished because they’re sharing information. Others would say that it makes it more impressive, because he has to share his best water with another competitor. I don’t know which way I fall on that, so I’ll just leave it out there.
The other issue is Lee’s perfect record. He fished his last B.A.S.S. event in 2005, and ended up four-for-four on the Delta. That’s something that can’t be beat, although Johnston still has a lot of runway in front of him to catch up on the absolute number of wins, assuming his brother doesn’t get in his way.
Am I missing anyone else? Someone who has dominated at the Tour or AAA level on one particular body of water in the modern era? I can think of several anglers who’ve won multiple times on a single fishery, but none were this feared. If you have other examples, let me know.
