Welcome To My World On Tour

I grew up in the Eagle Furnace community of Rockwood, Tennessee. I have always been fascinated with fish and have been chasing them as long as I can remember. I can remember dad making crank baits and putting them in egg cartons to store them and as a young child, every time I would go to the grocery store, I would stand at the eggs and say “fish.” I remember going to my grandmother’s house and making hooks out of needles and using sewing yarn as line to catch minnows out of the creek. Living near Watts Bar Lake, I fished out of a 14ft. John Boat until I was 16. My brother and I paddled that boat all over that cove. This is where I learned to bass fish. I went to Rockwood High school and was the president of the bass club. My principal Leroy Wilson was the first person to start a High School fishing club. I started fishing little jackpot tournaments on Watts Bar and that is where my love of tournament fishing began.

After High School graduation, I attended Roane State Community College. I went to work for a Machine Shop and then worked as a lineman for TVA. While I was working for the TVA I fished BFL and a circuit call the Hungry Fisherman Series. I quit my job because of a near fatal accident while working for TVA. I had only been married for a few months and my wife Stephanie thought we would starve to death. God had a different plan! I fished my first FLW event in 1997 on Kentucky Lake. I finished 11th just missing the cut by 3 oz. I made enough on that event to pay my deposits and 1 balance for the ’98 season. I couldn’t have done any of this without my mother and father and my strong Christian foundation. Here it is approaching my 20th wedding anniversary and 17 years on Tour. The season of 2015 came with many changes and a fresh start for StraderFishing. My wife and I decided to take StraderFishing to a whole new level with her running the business part. I can say that this season has been the best yet.