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Innovative Sport Group (ISG) is fast becoming recognized as a leader in the fishing industry of innovative, high quality tackle products. Each product we manufacture has been designed by serious anglers and extensively field tested throughout the country, before becoming generally available to the angling public. This way we know they work!! Every product carries a money-back guarantee, if for some reason the angler is not happy with it. It is rare to find a company in the industry, with so much confidence in our products; they are willing to make such an offer. ISG lures and tackle are presently designed for the Bass, Musky, Walleye and Panfish anglers. Our staff is devoted to continually developing new and improved products for the fishing industry. You will notice each product is significantly different from anything like it on the market. This is the main reason they have been, and will continue to be, successful in helping anglers catch fish, whether they be a tournament angler or one who can only fish occasionally. Innovative Sport Group products latest product includes the all new Super Salty Will-O-Stiks and Dream Tubes. ISG teamed up with Great Lakes' experts Joe Balog, 2001 Everstart National Champion, Steve Clapper, won multiple Great Lakes' championships and David Hayward, who also has won multiple Great Lakes' championships. The objective = design the ultimate tube. We have accomplished our mission with the Dream Tube.
ISG NEWS
Erie Experience Leads Clapper To Victory
Steve Clapper wins the Canadian Open by just 4 ounces. High winds, lightning and a tough bite threw anglers off their game plans at the Canadian Open, but Ohio's Steve Clapper relied on his instincts and knowledge of Lake Erie to find the fish he needed to win the event. Held at the Detroit River, the Canadian Open offered anglers the opportunity to fish the river, Lake St. Clair or Lake Erie. Clapper chose Erie, a lake he knows well, and the decision led him to a total weight of 57.20 pounds and a .25 victory over Ontario's Josh Myers. He believed he could find larger smallmouths in Erie and his hunch proved pivotal in the victory. Practice During practice, Clapper couldn't find the fish he knew he would need to win the tournament and he wasn't optimistic about his chances during competition. "In practice, I was really struggling," he said. "It was one of poorest practices I've ever had. I like to fish deep water and they just weren't there yet. They were in transition." He tried St. Clair and found some fish, but most were too small for the tournament. "It was then that I decided if I caught 5 fish in Erie, they would be better fish," he said. "So I decided to stick with that." Competition
- Day 1: 5, 19.45
- Day 2: 5, 19.65
- Day 3: 5, 18.20 (57.20)
Clapper knew the fish were in transition, so he looked for them in a variety of locations throughout the tournament. Each day offered new a new challenge in his effort to locate them. On day 1, he found fish in both locations he tried and finished with 19.45 pounds and was in 3rd place in the standings. "The first day, I caught my limit fairly quickly in one spot," he said. "Then I pulled up to a place looking for bigger fish in their summer haunts. I caught two big ones, a 4.60 and a 4.75." On day 2, he tried to pull some more big fish out of his day 1 location, but the fish had vanished. "I started there on the second day," he said. "I had one fish jump off and couldn't get another fish. I went back to the other area, but all the fish had evacuated and I only caught two." He decided to concentrate on summer locations in hopes that some of the transitioning fish were already there. He eventually found a school of larger fish and bagged 19.65 pounds. Day 3 proved to be the toughest of the tournament for everyone. Storms moved in and brought high wind, rain and lightning. He traveled 44 miles to Pelee Island and got caught in the worst weather of tournament. "We fought our way out in the morning and caught the big stringer the day before, but never got a bite," he said. "I went to another spot that produces in summer, then it got real bad with 7- to 8-foot waves." He fished a few rock piles and managed to boat 4 fish. Time had nearly run out, but he was determined to catch one more. "I only had 4 fish and didn't want to leave before I caught another one," he said. "Then we caught one that was barely a keeper. I measured it and it was 14 1/8 inches long. I told my co-angler this little one might be gold." The fish did put him over the top in the standings, but he almost didn't make it back to the weigh-in. He had to fight the high waves and race the clock to get back in time. "I didn't leave much time to get back," he said. "It was brutal. I made it with eight minutes to spare." He didn't think he could've won the tournament without his years of experience on Lake Erie. "I have quite a bit of experience fishing Lake Erie," he said. "I think the key was my persistence and knowledge of running big water, and being able to hang in there." Gear Notes - Clapper used two main baits throughout the tournament, a Poor Boy's Goby with rattling eyes, and an ISG tube bait. "The two biggest fish I caught on the first two days were on the new Poor Boy's Goby," he said. "It's hard to beat, because that's what's making these smallmouth grow so big."
- He used G. Loomis rods and Shimano reels, with 8- and 10-pound Seaguar InvizX fluorocarbon line.
Notable - Clapper's scariest moment of the tournament came when he saw lightning strikes at Pelee Island. "We layed down in the bottom of the boat for about an hour," he said. "It was a terrible storm."
- His ride back to weigh-ins on the final day caused some damage to his boat. "I broke the trolling motor bracket and I had a gallon of oil explode in the rod locker," he said. "It saturated everything. It was a real mess."
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