Kevin Hawk – Making Moves

I started bass fishing in high school and it quickly became my biggest passion—one I’d find a way to do full-time.  I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to fish tournaments full-time now for the past five years and have worked with a single-minded focus to be successful.  During that time I won the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup, clinched the 2012 Bassmaster Southern Open Division Angler of the Year title, and qualified for the Elite Series.

Of all the tournament circuits I’ve fished the Elite Series has proved to be the most challenging.  The Elite Series frequently visits power fishing venues like Toledo Bend, Kentucky Lake, and the Mississippi River.  These big bodies of water often require an angler to fish reaction baits while covering water quickly to find the right size bass to compete for the win.

My biggest strengths are fishing light-line finesse tactics on clear bodies of water like the St. Lawrence River.  However, I’ve made significant gains building my power fishing skills by moving from Southern California to Alabama and fishing places like Lake Guntersville on a consistent basis.  While I’ve proven I can compete on many other tournament levels I haven’t proven I can consistently compete on the Elite Series.  In three seasons I haven’t finished higher than 71st in Angler of the Year standings and failed to requalify for the 2016 season.

I still need to build my power fishing skills and the speed in which I cover water to compete, so I’m going to continue working on my weaknesses and may try to requalify for the Elites in the future.  While I’m disappointed I won’t be competing on the Elite Series this year I’ve found I can continue living my passion through guiding.

I started guiding part-time two years ago on Lake Guntersville an Smith Lake in between Elite Series tournaments and during the off-season.  Guiding gave me another income source to help fund my tournament competition and I quickly discovered not only did guiding fulfill my passion for bass fishing, but I genuinely enjoy teaching others through my fishing experience.  So I’ve decided to guide full-time moving forward knowing it will give me the opportunity to continue living my passion.

I’ve been a Rahfish supporter for several years and am fired up to now being a contributor to the community.   You can count on timely articles each month focusing on everything bass fishing.  My goal is to help the Rahfish community become better anglers by delivering in-depth information I’ve gained through my extensive fishing experience.  If there’s any topics you’d like me cover I’m open to suggestions as well.  Feel free to contact me via Instagram, Twitter, FB, or through my website.