Penny Berryman                                             Patti Campbell

It has been a long summer for many WBT anglers who are anxiously awaiting the final event of the 2007 WBT season. The Red River tournament will decide which 12 pro- anglers and co-anglers earn the right to fish the WBT Championship on Lake Keowee near Greenville, SC during the 2008 Bassmaster Classic. Will the current Top 12 anglers in each division hold on to their spot or will some have trouble conquering the ever-changing Red River and open the door for other anglers who are also within reach of achieving the dream of a lifetime?

They say; “it ain’t over, ‘til it’s over”, so what is it like being under the added pressure of holding the 12^th and 13^th place spots going into the final event? Pro-anglers Penny Berryman of Hot Springs, Arkansas and Patti Campbell of Waxahachie, Texas know all too well how it feels and took the time to share their thoughts as they prepare for “Big Red”.

Berryman currently holds the 12^th place pro spot. Qualifying for a “Classic Championship” is nothing new to this veteran angler who has qualified for 27 different “Classics” since 1985. She has also learned to take nothing for granted in the sport of fishing. “Even if you are at the top of the leader board one day, there is always a possibility that you could come in without anything on the following day. Fishing is like that. Sometimes everything that you thought would happen just unfolds as you planned and other times you realize that you are hunting a creature that can swim away and make a fool of you.”

Pre-fishing is critical, Berryman says, especially if it is “unknown” water. “On the Red River, there is a lot of different types of water to fish, so it is good to be familiar with the different situations I might be fishing ahead of time so that when I come back for competition, I have plenty of the right kind of tackle.”

Being “on the bubble” is an interesting place to be according to Berryman. “It is the magic cut-off number for anglers that get to go to the Championship and because of that, it’s importance is magnified.” No one can control what any other angler is catching – or not catching – during competition, but Berryman tries to control the variables that affect her fishing for each day. She wants to be as prepared as possible for what might – and sometimes does – happen during tournament competition.

More than anything else, Berryman tries to keep an open mind to all the situations that may come into play. “Last year at Bull Shoals, I knew that I was on some dandy smallmouths, and possibly enough to win the event. I also know that smallmouth are somewhat temperamental. Even after I had to eventually give up on them, I never imagined that I would not catch any keepers out of that lake. I had located several places pre-fishing where I felt my partner and I could catch several good “keepers” even if my main plan didn’t pan out. It was frustrating and heartbreaking to come to the final weigh-in without anything to show for all my hard work and effort. When I have an event like that, I usually want to go back to that lake again and figure out what I could have done differently, so I can learn from my mistakes.”

Berryman feels that with the summertime flooding of the Red River in Oklahoma, which eventually flows down to the Shreveport Pool and beyond, that pre-fishing will be very interesting. “So many variables will come into play. The current will be stronger, of course, and there may be newly formed sand bars along with newly placed logs and debris that may hold fish. It will be a whole new waterway to discover by tournament week, but I am looking forward to the challenge!”

Pro-angler Patti Campbell feels very blessed to be in 13^th place going into the September event. Had her boat not broke down in Guntersville earlier this year, she might have been in an even better position. Last year, Campbell did not fish the first event at Neely Henry and finished 68^th out of 122 anglers for the year. This year she says she is more focused and determined. “Consistency has been the key to my success this year. I set 2 goals going into the 2007 season. The first goal was to make the Top 25 every tournament. So far, I am 3 for 4. The second goal was to make the Championship. I am very close to achieving that goal.”

Campbell contributes this year’s success to her husband. “He has traveled to all the tournaments with me and provided the love and support that has kept me going. If I make the Championship, he would be so proud and it would be a dream come true for me. I have not been fishing on the Red River for several years and to date, I have not been pre-fishing for this tournament. I hope to make several trips before the off-limits. The Red has been really high and if it keeps dropping it will have a totally different look and feel on tournament day, so I am waiting until the time gets closer. I will prepare for it much like I do the other tournaments. I will pre-fish with my husband, we will “hopefully” get on a pattern and that is what I will utilize during the tournament.”

Co-anglers Kim Stapp of Ringgold, Georgia and Brenda Bates of La Porte, Texas are currently in 12^th and 13^th place respectively. They also feel the pressure of fishing “on the bubble” and hope they draw pro partners who are on fish and can provide them with the opportunity to claim a Top 12 berth. If Stapp succeeds, she will be making her second appearance in a WBT Championship event. Stapp finished 7^th at the inaugural  2006 WBT Championship on Lake Mitchell near Birmingham, Alabama in February of this year.

The stage is set and the field of women anglers are ready to test their skills. Some will remain in the Top 12 no matter how they finish on the Red. Others will have to fish hard to keep their dream alive. For Berryman, Campbell, Stapp and Bates, being “on the bubble” will require them to do the latter.