Zoneloc On Tour: Jones Jr., veteran attitude.
Apr 3rd, 2017 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified Apr 3rd, 2017 at 12:00 AM
Zoneloc pro Alton Jones, Jr. only has two Bassmaster Elite Series events and one Bassmaster Classic under his belt, but he’s already acting like a veteran pro.
Sure, having Zoneloc pro and former Bassmaster Classic champion Alton Jones as your father helps as far as fishing goes, but the mindset of Jones Jr. is pretty darn impressive and only he can control that.
For example, he just fished his first Bassmaster Classic. Massive pressure for any angler, but especially true for a rookie pro at his first championship. When Jones Jr. speaks about it, you get the sense it’s part of the job and he’s getting ready to qualify to get back and take another swing at it.
“I have to say it is weird that the Classic has already passed,” said Jones Jr. “I was really looking forward to it. I was somewhat nervous, but not really any more nervous than at other tournaments.
“The Classic is a winner-take-all event, so I took some risks that I normally wouldn’t do at a regular season event. This time it didn’t pay off for me, but since there are no points in the Classic, I didn’t lose anything. It didn’t cost me points or money.”
Jones Jr. came out of the Classic experience with even more positivity for the remaining Bassmaster Elite Series season.
“I am feeling as good as ever about my first year as an Elite Series pro,” said Jones Jr. “It’s all about points, points and more points for me.
“I want to win the Rookie of the Year title and hopefully be in the hunt for the Angler of the Year title, too. If an opportunity to win presents itself, I know I can get that done as well.
“I treat all of the tournaments just like I’m fishing another derby. I never fish against other anglers. It’s me versus the fish. I want to go out and kick the fish’s tail every time.”