HEAD GAMES - Part Two -Attitude Key To Overcoming Hurdles

Part two of Jonathan Lepera's article on how the biggest touring bass pro's deal with the mental side of fishing. This time its the best of all time KVD along with JT Kenney and Brandon Palaniuk. From Bassfan.com Attitude is Everything Research led Kevin VanDam to a prime area for the 2011 Bassmaster Classic at the Louisiana Delta. But despite numerous visits during practice, there were few indications that it would produce the winning fish “ other than his instincts. He didn't give up on the area, and his return to the spot during the last hour of practice removed all doubt. He triggered three bites, including a 10-pounder. While he had no clue that he had located the fish that would win him the tournament, he refused to abandon his intuition and went on to win his third Classic. "If I can't win at it, I don't want to be doing it, VanDam said. "Some people are wired differently as far as their attitude. Some people are glass-half-full; it's how you look at things, how competitive you are, and how bad you want to win. I started playing Little League at 7 years old and we won our league championship every year but one through age 14. I started high school ball and kind of got away from it because the coach and I didn't see eye to eye on fishing. Attitude ultimately determines success; the needle can never move into the negative. VanDam credits his mom for his competitive drive and his wife, Sherry, for his formidable mindset. Sherry keeps him extremely organized, allowing him to focus on keeping his equipment, tackle, and garage in order. "You have to have everything right to be able to focus on the other side, he said. "˜It's all about the attitude' is a mentality that we've lived by since day 1. Don't matter how today went, don't matter what it looks like, don't matter if the weather forecast is horrible “ you must make the most of it. Not qualifying for the 2015 Classic put an end to his streak of 25 straight appearances in that event, but he didn't revamp how he goes about his business in the wake of the disappointment. "You are going to lose a lot more than you are going to win, he said. "I thought about it a lot. As it was happening, the season was winding down and I knew I had to perform. It's not like I could have done anything different because I was making mistakes or that I have a bad formula for how I do things. I know my system wasn't broken, it's just inevitable. He knows that experience can be his bane and his boon, both providing him with valuable insights and making him closed-minded on other occasions. "I've been cognizant when I've had tough tournaments where I've fished the past, he said. "Having past experience and knowledge is invaluable when you use it properly. One thing VanDam doesn't do is let negative vibes creep into his mindset. "You worry about variables you can control and put the ones out that you can't, he said. "When you lose a fish, there's nothing you can do to bring it back. Learn from what it took to get that one to bite to try to get another one. It's no different whether you have a bad tournament or a bad season; you have to have a short memory. You can't let it hurt you. VanDam believes no opportunity should be shrugged off. A bad first day might take him out of contention to win, but he knows he could still climb to 20th place. Bouncing back from failure is something he learned from watching his mentor Denny Brauer during the formative years of his career. "The year Bryan Kerchal won the Classic, Denny finished dead last, he said. "The next year, he won, but he fished with the same mentality on both days “ leave it all out there. On day 3 at his recent win on Toledo Bend, VanDam had three fish in the livewell with 2 hours to go and four fish with 15 minutes to go. He eventually filled out his limit and it weighed 25 pounds. "I knew that I had to stick with my game plan and get those quality bites, he said. "That time, it worked out and times in the past, it hasn't. You have to trust your gut instinct on a deal like that. I had a lot of confidence in what I was doing and that eventually I would run into them. That's what you have to tell yourself. Toledo Bend is one of the best lakes in the country, so if you fish the right pattern and be persistent, and it's got to turn. No amount of mental preparation can prepare one for an emergency summons from home, especially the day before an event. It was 19 years ago that VanDam's children were born prematurely as the Top 100 event at Lake Sinclair approached. An early prognosis of good health gave VanDam the green light to go fish, but his mind was certainly scattered. "That was the most challenging time of my whole career, he said. "You can't miss an event and qualify for the Classic. I called home and found out my boys had to have the Patent Ductus Litigation procedure “ minor heart surgery. He hypothesized that his 8th-place finish was nothing more than luck. His sons graduated from high school this past spring and have designs on fishing competitively in college. Read more: http://www.bassfan.com/news_article/7629/attitude-key-to-overcoming-hurdles#.V4gtt1fM3Pc#ixzz4EQxLcZxs