OSU grad has spent his life searching for the biggest bass

Jay Yelas never thought much of working in an office when he graduated from Oregon State in 1987.

All he really wanted to do was go fishing.

So that’s what he did.

Over the past 21 years, Yelas has fished the country and become one of the top pros in the process.

“It’s something I always dreamed of doing since I was a kid,” Yelas said. “I can’t think of a better job, just traveling around fishing.”

Yelas started by fishing all the area tournaments he could while he was a student at OSU. After he graduated, Yelas and his wife Jill packed up and moved from Corvallis to Phoenix so he could fish the tournaments in the Southwest.

Then they headed to Tyler, Texas, when Yelas began competing in the top tournaments. The location allowed him to move easily throughout the South, Southwest and East Coast where most of the Bassmaster and FLW events are held.

Yelas, his wife and daughters Hannah (12) and Bethany (10) recently moved back to Corvallis after 17 years in Texas.

He has fished a variety of waters such Lake Okeechobee in Florida, the Mississippi River, the Potomac River, Lake Minnetonka and the Columbia River.

Yelas got pretty good along the way. In 2002, he was the Bassmaster Classic champion and the FLW Tour angler of the year. He was the Bassmaster Tour angler of the year in 2003 and won an ESPY as the best outdoor athlete.

Winning the Bassmaster Classic was a big step for Yelas.

“It kind of solidifies your career and establishes you as major champion,” Yelas said. “It’s kind of like in golf, where you have the masters and the U.S. Open, those major championships. It’s the same way in fishing. You’ve got four major titles and once you win those, it really establishes your career as a champion.”

The success didn’t exactly go to Yelas’ head.

The ESPYs were held in Hollywood and Yelas said he followed Emmitt Smith. Smith got his award to loud cheering and clapping.

“Then they announced, ‘Professional fisherman Jay Yelas.’ And you could have heard a pin drop,” Yelas said with a chuckle.

Last year Yelas finished first on the FLW circuit and was again named the tour’s angler of the year. He finished 17th this season and is in South Carolina preparing for the season-ending Forrest Wood Cup, the one big event he hasn’t won.

There’s $500,000 up for grabs, but getting through an event can be very demanding. A pro fisherman doesn’t exactly put up a “Gone Fishin’ ” sign and then spend a day half-asleep lullabyed by the rock of the boat.

Bass fishing tournaments typically run four days with four additional days before the start allotted for practice. Each contestant is allowed to count five fish a day and the winner is determined by the total weight caught. The fish are released back into the water.

Sticking with a strategy can be tough when there are so many boats and so little space.

“The challenge of catching it during a tournament, it’s not just like going out there and fishing just for fun because there are a lot of factors,” Yelas said. “You’ve got 200 boats out there and everyone is vying for the best spots. Sometimes you have to find spots that are off the beaten path, little hidden spots that other people overlooked and that’s hard to find but they can really pay off when you find them.”

Competition is intense. Conditions can be worse.

For the Forrest Wood Cup, Yelas expects hot temperatures and high humidity every day. There are few breaks from daylight to evening.

“In the wintertime you’ve got to put up with cold, freezing conditions,” he said. “We have high winds and stormy weather to put up with and we have long hours. You do that for eight days. You’re getting up an hour or two before daylight every morning for eight days straight.”

Sometimes even the wildlife will come into play. The most common occurrence is for a fisherman to land something other than a bass, which could be a pike or a big catfish.

There are dangers lurking on shore and in the trees. Snakes will try to get into the boats from the water or drop in from above.

Alligators don’t always care for the intruders. Sometimes they’ll just follow a boat. Sometimes they’ll attack.

“I’ve had alligators charge the boat,” Yelas said, “when they’re protecting their young, if you get too close to them. Sometimes you don’t even see them. They’ll be on the bank under a bush or a tree and they’ll come charging out at your boat and bump your boat. All kinds of harrowing experiences like that.”