"PATIENCE and practice" is the advice for fishermen from former Taree resident and Australia's number one bream angler Kris Hickson.
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Now Port Macquarie based, Kris works at his father Jim's Taree based business, Manning River Marine.
Kris's number one title is the accumulation of his results from his best three tournaments of 2015.
But when you are number one where do you go?
"I just want to keep giving it a good crack and keep where am I," said Kris.
Instead of venturing to countries like Japan and the United States to pursue the sport, he hopes to ignite interest in Australia. "I'd love to see more support here," he said.
Kris, who has been competing for 12 years, does a lot of travelling to competitions across Australia.
"In a full season I'll be doing around 14 to 15 tournaments," he explained.
In 2015 Kris travelled to Victoria and Queensland for tournaments, and this year tournaments will be held in Tasmania and Western Australia. In a tournament, amateurs who don't have a boat are paired with professionals like Kris who do have a boat.
Kris said this was a great way to pass on tips and encourage others to improve.
In terms of his own improvement and development Kris is also having a crack at other types of fish. In 2015 he achieved a second in a grand final at Lake Glenbawn, NSW, with bass fishing.
Kris explained fishing for bass attracts a different set of techniques and locations.
"Bass tournaments are generally held in impoundments but are venturing into rivers this year " he said.
Kris said he hoped to continue to pursue both bream and bass fishing in competition.
In the meantime Kris will continue to sneak in a line on his way home from Taree to Port Macquarie.
"I've always got the Hobie kayak on my car's roof - ready to go," he added.
