Feature Story

By Jason Duran

It is Championship week. As the 2024 Alabama Bass Trail Championship approaches, anglers are gearing up for a high-stakes showdown on the storied waters of Lay Lake. From Bassmaster Classics to ABT Divisionals and many other events, Lay is known for its rich history in bass fishing. The ABT Championship is the best of the best in team fishing. The top 75 teams from the north and south divisions plus 5 college teams, 5 couple teams, 5 student teams, and the 10 winners from the divisional tournaments make up the 175 teams all converging on Lay Lake for the two-day shootout, promising a thrilling test of skill for the best teams in bass fishing.

Noah and Cole Godwin have made waves on the Alabama Bass Trail through the years. In 2020, they won the first tournament of the season on Lay Lake and the last tournament of the season on Lake Jordan. Winning an ABT tournament is hard enough, but two in one year says something about the caliber of fishermen these guys are.  Demonstrating a combination of technical skills and time on the water working to understand the lakes in Alabama, this brother duo has been a standout season after season. They have had three top 10 finishes in 2024.  They ended the year in 3rd place in the AOY for the South Division. In last year’s ABT Championship, they finished in second place only 0.25 pounds behind first place.  With the championship returning to Lay Lake, where they have had lots of success, they’re primed for a big finish with hopes of being on top this time.

This week, teams will be faced with a mix of shallow grass beds, offshore structures, and a wealth of docks, laydowns, and submerged brush piles. Lay Lake is renowned for its diverse habitat.  This variety will push teams to demonstrate versatility and adapt quickly to shifting conditions. Key areas to watch include the grassy shallows in the lower lake and the deeper ledges and creek channels in the middle sections.

The lake is home to both largemouth and Coosa River spotted bass, each of which requires different strategies. Spotted bass tend to congregate on the rocky points and current-driven areas, while largemouth are likely to be found in the lake’s backwaters, near vegetation and shallow cover. This mix adds an additional layer of strategy, as teams must decide whether to focus on the often-aggressive spotted bass or chase the bigger largemouth. Noah and Cole believe, “It will take a mixed bag to win. Teams could possibly go up and catch a largemouth up in the grass shallow, and then go out deep and catch spotted bass. There are a lot of fish up close to the bank, but it is hard to catch a limit of the 3-pound fish needed to win. So, teams will probably need to do both. It is going to take between 31-33 pounds in two days to win this event.”

Weather is always a factor when the ABT comes to town. This week, we have had the first taste of cooler weather. The first practice day, temps are supposed to be starting at 38°. This makes for changing conditions for the teams. This sudden drop in temperatures could make fishing tougher during practice, pushing bass deeper or making them more lethargic. The tournament forecast looks like warming up for tournament days. The warmer weather could bring out aggressive feeding, especially around the lake’s grass flats. Teams will need to be ready for anything. Noah said, “The water hasn’t cooled off a whole lot. When the water does cool off, anglers will really be able to catch them better in the coming weeks. We just aren’t there yet.”

The team shared, “The lake is in a fall time pattern. However, fish are really scattered out. We have noticed that we can do the right thing, just in the wrong area. That is exactly what some teams will have happen to them this weekend. They will be fishing the right way and not catching them, and just across the lake, a team will be doing the same thing and catching them. We really hope this cooler weather will help cool the water off a little more.” As water temperatures cool, fish will be on the move, switching from their summer patterns to fall feeding behavior. Baitfish, especially shad, will play a major role, with anglers expected to key in on schools of shad in both shallow and deeper water. When asked the key baits that will play this weekend Noah and Cole said, “Frogs and swim jigs in the grass and teams that go out deep will be using Jerkbaits and a Damiki style bait and probably using Live Scope.” Making the right bait adjustments will be critical as the bite changes throughout the day. Noah shared, “It is hard to put together a pattern doing one thing, and the team that wins could end up junk fishing both days and end up winning.”

This being a two-day event, teams will have to adjust their strategy from the regular season one-day events. It is often said that you cannot win the event on the first day, but poor decisions and lack of adjustment could cause teams to lose it on the first day when they come to the scales empty handed or with a smaller than expected limit. The teams shared, “We have been practicing different this time. Last year we fished in an area and did really well. The next day, there were a few more teams in the area, and we couldn’t get to the fish. This year we are not even practicing in our main areas and hoping to save some of that for the last day. We are going to use our experience on the lake and build on that.”

 “When we saw the schedule come out and the championship was on a Coosa River lake, we felt we would have a good shot since we love to fish in the fall on the Coosa River.” With a championship title on the line and a field of the best teams in bass fishing competing, the Godwin brothers will need to rely on each other’s strengths and stay focused through every challenge Lay Lake throws their way. If they can maintain their composure and execute their game plan, Noah and Cole Godwin have the potential to make a serious run for the 2024 Alabama Bass Trail Championship crown.

There will be a mandatory in-person pre-tournament meeting on October 17, 2024, at Shelby County Arts Council, 105 W. College Street, Columbiana, AL 35051. Launch & Weigh-In is on October 18-19, 2024, at Beeswax Landing, 215 Beeswax Park Road, Columbiana, AL 35051. Launch will be at 6:30 A.M. or safe daylight. First flight due in at 3:00 P.M. Friends and family are welcome to attend this event, bring lawn chairs, and see some of the best bass teams in the country cross the stage. Everyone can watch the live weigh-in and over 4 hours of on-the-water live coverage each day on the ABT Facebook page, YouTube, and the ABT website.

The 2024 Alabama Bass Trail Sponsors Include: Phoenix Boats, AMFirst, Landers - McLarty Chevrolet, McGraw - Webb Chevrolet, Rapala, VMC, Crush City, Buffalo Rock, Academy Sports & Outdoors, Jack's, Garmin, Alabama State Parks, Halo Fishing, Snag proof, NetBait, Bait Fuel, TH Marine Supplies, Power-Pole, Pro Guide Batteries, American Trailer Rental, Yamaha, Anheuser-Busch, Big Bite Baits and FishAlabama.org