The Starting Spot: Johnston Wins St Lawrence, Flying Bass Hits Truck, and Florida’s Giant Smallmouth

The Starting Spot Daily Bass Fishing Headlines are the perfect way to start your day with some of the top bass fishing articles on the internet. It’s the quick, informative, how, where, and who you need to know. So, rub the sleep from your eyes, pour that first cup of the day, and head to your Starting Spot.

The Starting Spot: -Johnston Wins St Lawrence Open -Flying Bass Hits Truck -The History of Giant Florida Smallmouth | Photo by Kurt Mazurek

In today’s 8-4-25 edition of The Starting Spot:

-You know if there’s a professional fishing tournament on a premier smallmouth bass fishery like the St Lawrence River, the likelihood of it being won by a Johnston brother is always high. Last weekend it was Chris at the Tackle Warehouse Invitational. This weekend it was Cory at the Bassmaster Open.

-One in a million shot! A Wisconsin motorist catches flying largemouth bass with the front of his truck while traveling down the highway.

-Did you know that Florida was once considered the trophy smallmouth bass capital of the U.S., with multiple fish registered over 10-pounds, and one hitting the 14-pound mark? Me neither. But there may be a good reason for that. In this story, Ken Duke shares an interesting look at the history of the world record smallmouth bass.

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Cory Johnston claims the title at St. Lawrence River

by David A. Brown

In a story on Bassmaster.com:  Cory Johnston’s high standards kicked in the extra motivation he needed to turn in his best performance of the week and tally a three-day total of 74 pounds, 15 ounces to win the St. Croix Bassmaster Open at St. Lawrence River presented by SEVIIN.

With three decades of local fishing, the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series star from Otonabee, Canada took seventh place on Day 1 with 24-7 and gained three spots with a second-round limit of 24-1.

For many, that’s pretty good fishing. Not for Johnston…MORE.

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Flying Bass Falls from Sky, Hits Family Truck

by Bob McNally

In a story on Wired2Fish.com: Albert Cutler and his family were returning home from Sunday church service about 10:30 a.m. on July 27. Albert was driving alone in his truck. His wife Stephanie, son Quinton age 13, and 7-year-old daughter Bernadette were in another family vehicle ahead of Albert’s truck.

“I looked up and saw a bald eagle flying low, struggling with something in its talons,” Albert tells Wired2fish. “I’ve never seen an eagle near here in the seven years we’ve lived in the Oconomowoc, Wisconsin area. But there it was, flying very erratically.”

Albert says the bird was flying low, just 20 feet above Wisconsin Highway 16 near 1,200-acre Okauchee Lake located in Waukesha County, west of Milwaukee…MORE.

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Florida’s Record Smallmouths: Part 1

by Ken Duke

According to an article on TheNationalProfessionalFishingLeague.com: If you look to the International Game Fish Association or Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame record books, you’ll see that the current world record smallmouth bass weighed 11 pounds, 15 ounces and was caught by David Hayes in 1955 from Dale Hollow Lake.

But did you know that the world record smallmouth was once a 14 pounder from Florida?
That’s right … Florida.

And before the 14 pounder, the previous record was nearly 13 pounds … also from Florida. And there was reportedly a 14-08 from Florida in 1942 that was never given world record status.

What’s up with that … and what happened to all the giant brown bass from the Sunshine State?…MORE.