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Since joining the on-line community a few years ago, I've
chatted, posted, and emailed a lot of bass fishermen about
approaches and techniques. We've long heard B.A.S.S. trumpet the
impact of their professional trail on weekend fishermen, but
until you've talked to people all over the country, it's hard to
appreciate just how big of impact that has been. Lures, patterns,
presentations, equipment, all have been adopted throughout the
country and even the world based almost solely on tournament
success at the professional level. It has certainly been a great
thing in uncounted ways and has definitely improved the level and
success of bass fishermen everywhere. But there has been a trap
many, and perhaps all fishermen have fallen in, depending too
much on what the pros have done, learning by example instead of
working out the problem based on knowledge and theory. We
unthinkingly buy the latest hot bait, work the latest rage for a
pattern or technique, approach a lake based on how a pro
approaches it, generally rely on memory rather than thinking.
The thing the vast majority of fishermen forget is, this
isn't how the pros do it! They don't fish a tournament based
on what is working for someone else. A pro relies on his own
knowledge and intuition, and you only see the results of who
guessed right this week. Sure, information is shared among the
pros, and the wise professional would never overlook an approach
that is beating his own. But for the most part, they fish to
their own personal strengths using what they think will work and
relying on their own experience. And perhaps the most overlooked
factor in our follow-the-leader world is, unless you are a
touring pro, you will probably have better success doing
something different that a pro.
It's a different world the pros live in. They are
experts in the craft, for sure, but have substantially different
problems to worry about than you do. It's a new and strange lake
every week. Different conditions, different water, different
pattern. And you never read about 10th place, so you're always
fishing for the win, a big gamble you normally loose in any
sport. They also simply have a lot more time over a very short
period to work out a pattern on a particular lake. If you took a
week of vacation and fished every day, would you fish it the
exact same way every time out? And perhaps the thing we forget
the most is, they don't always catch fish. In fact, I dare say
the average stringer for the average pro on the average day is
less than your average club fisherman. I remember the rather
confused look on one of my hero's faces a few years ago. Rick
Clunn, one of the best fishermen ever to climb in a boat, was a
favorite to win the Bass Masters Classic since they were hitting
crank baits that year, one of Rick's true strengths. The
tournament was indeed won with near record weights coming on
crank baits. Rick? Two fish for just over 3 pounds in 4 days of
fishing. But would you want to put your money in against him for
a tournament held this weekend on your home lake? And, of course,
perhaps the biggest difference between a pro and a weekend
fisherman, the pro is there is make a living, not necessarily to
have fun.
So, if we're not suppose to do what the pros do, what are we
suppose to do different? Maybe nothing radically different, but
we need to take advantage of the opportunities that a pro can't.
First is our approach to our home waters. Jimmy Houston wrote
in his recent book that, "I never fish over 10' deep. The
10% of the lake that's shallow has half of the fish and I don't
have time to learn the whole lake." What's wrong with that
statement? Basically, the last part. You do have time to
learn the whole lake, and it's well worth your time to do it.
From knowledge of seasonal patterns, we know the fish don't
always prefer the shallows, moving deep in summer and winter. The
fish that do stay shallow get a lot of pressure from other
fishermen and are either caught and kept when they reach 3 or 4
pounds, or they grow wise and wary of any bait we throw at them.
So, if you want to target the fish that has less pressure, tend
to be bigger fish, and are less affected by weather or temporary
conditions, it pays off to learn those deep haunts where the big
fish live. You don't have to do so all of the time, or every time
out. But on those days when the shallow fish don't cooperate, why
not burn a little gas, move way off shore, and see if you can
find something interesting. A lot of great deep structure or
cover is marked on maps. There are old road beds, farm ponds,
bridges, even entire towns flooded by the reservoir in deep water
just waiting for you to explore them. If the wind or waves means
it's not a good day, try next week or next month. It may take
years to really get to know a lake and explore her secrets. A pro
has only a few days to learn a lake. You live there, take
advantage of the fact.
Along the same lines, pros tend to cover large areas of water
and cherry pick the fish. The pro doesn't have the time to locate
those honey holes that normally have at least a few fish. The pro
has to keep moving and searching, try 40 or 50 spots in some
cases in a single day, (you haven't lived until you spent the
day in the back of the boat with a pro fishing a run and gun dock
pattern.) Do the math. With running time, you're talking
around 3 - 5 minutes per hole. The fish had better bite quick to
catch up with these guys. This may be great, (unless you're
buying the gas), as long as the fish are predictable and
cooperate when you get there. But you've got the time to find
those reliable spots over time and concentrate on those. There
may 50 similar points on your lake, but you have time to cull
down to the 5 or 6 best ones that normally hold fish without
hitting every point every day. This lets you stay in productive
water longer, giving you a much better chance at boating fish.
Any you can keep in mind the Fisherman's Mantra, "Never
Leave Biting Fish Looking for Other Fish." To a run and gun
pro, 2 or 3 minutes without a bite means move. If you know
you're in a good spot, then keep in mind that if you catch 1
legal fish every hour, you'll be culling and have a good limit by
the end of the day.
Following that train of thought, you'll notice that other than
Larry Nixon, (another of my heroes), the Texas Rig plastic
worm is an obsolete antique among the pros. The pros are fishing
for big fish and need to cover water, so a Carolina Lizard is the
preferred tool of the trade. You can see this trend in the local
tackle stores. Where once half of the store was filled with
plastic worms, now spinner baits, crank baits, and such have
pushed them into one or two small aisles mixed in with just as
many lizards, soft jerk baits, and craws. Yet, at one time, the
estimates were as high as 90% of all fish were caught on plastic
worms. What Happened? Well, even though there are a 1000 ways to
effectively fish a plastic worm, they are all pretty slow
presentations, extremely unsuited to run and gun styles. So, if
the pros gave up on them, most of the locals did as well. But I'm
here to tell you worms still work as well as ever and I can't
think of anything as reliable as the plastic worm under all
conditions in all seasons. Again we've let our thoughts on what
works for a pro on a strange lake overrule our own experience in
well know waters.
The same can be said for any of the slow presentations. If you
know you're in a good spot, slow down and work it
thoroughly with a known good bait instead of chasing fish that
may or may not be there in less productive water. Think of how
much fun catching fish on a slow top water can be. Why do we all
think we're Zell Roland and skitter a Pop-R or maybe a buzz bait
across the top, and if that doesn't work, give up on one of our
favorite, and most productive baits? Even slow rolling a spinner
bait in deep water is being forgotten when it was all the rage
only 5 years ago. I recently saw an article in a local paper
giving advice from one of the touring pros. This pro said the
only productive way of fishing a spinner bait was right under the
surface and you had to be able to see the bait at all
times to know when to set the hook. Bull Hockey! Over the
last 10 years, many more fish have been caught on spinner baits
by working them in 10' -15' of water over heavy cover right down
on the bottom by pros and weekend fishermen alike. Perhaps
America's Favorite Fisherman, Bill Dance, (Number One on my
list of heroes), has tried to teach us for years that spinner
baits put more vibration and are easier to work with a single
blade than with a tandem. Another World Class spinner bait
fisherman, Hank Parker, rarely uses anything under a ½ ounce
bait in water over 3' deep. But head to the tackle store and try
to find a single blade bait or one ½ oz or better. Slow rolling
baits take valuable tournament time and is unsuited for covering
vast amounts of water quickly, (I say that because that's
what's preached, actually I cover the water pretty good with a ½
oz single willow leaf.) The poor weekend fisherman reads all
of this stuff in the magazines and believes it, passing up what
his own experience and the advice of other excellent fishermen
tell him.
Now for a few dirty words, things that illegal to do in a
tournament, but are perfectly legal ways to fish that we now
thumb our noses at just because they are against tournament
rules.
Try Trolling. Yeah, idling around with the big motor and with
a bait trailing out behind. Before the advent of tournaments and
trolling motors, (note the name), this was the way
to catch numbers and big bass. Entire classes of baits were made
just for trolling applications, (now mostly in the hands of
collectors or prized possessions of the few that still practice
the technique.) Trolling is not illegal in walleye
tournaments, and is standard tournament practice for locating
fish. It still works big time for locating bass as well. If
you're out prefishing or searching for new off shore structure,
chances are pretty good you're spending a lot of the day idling
around with the big motor anyway. Why not set a deep running
crank bait behind the boat just to see what you missed? Mark a
school of something suspended in 15' off the edge of a ledge?
Don't know if it's crappie, bass, bait or trash? Troll through
the middle of them and if it's bass, you're sure to find out! One
of the pros dirty little secrets is that they also spend
prefishing time trolling. Head for the lake on a Tuesday practice
day and watch how they map out likely looking points or weed
beds. Why do it? It's effective! If it's not against the rules or
laws, then it's foolish to pass it up if you're out to find
concentrations of fish.
Another variation is now called "strolling". This is
simply using a trolling motor for it's original intent. Take a
big heavy Carolina rig, spinner bait, or similar, set it out
behind the boat, put the trolling motor on medium speed, and go
run the edges of your favorite structure. Works like a champ!
This is an old guiding trick that's one of the easiest ways to
locate fish and have a new fisherman catch a few. Again it's
great for mapping new structure while checking for fish at the
same time. And you may find more than fish as well. I've stumbled
across a number of dynamite brush piles located on ideal
structure using this technique. I also use it routinely when
moving between two primary areas close to each other on some
larger structure. More than once I've found the fish feeding well
off of where I expected them to be on a shallower or deeper
pattern. And like guiding, this is a great way to introduce kids,
wives, or other new fishermen to the sport without slinging a
spinner bait into the weeds all day without a bite.
Probably with worst dirty word to tournament types, "live
bait." In Florida, just about every guide uses live shiners
when they take out their customers. It's more than just a tough
day on the water if you can't get bit using shiners around weed
beds. So, if you're dead set about wanting to catch big fish,
you'll never beat live bait. Artificials normally catch more
fish, but don't come close to the average size. For the trophy
hunters, live bait is the way to go. If you're out running a weed
bed or shore edge, why not set a shiner out behind the boat? Even
you're prefishing for a tournament where live bait won't be an
option, wouldn't be nice to know the fish are there but just not
hitting what you're throwing? If you've got a 12 year old in the
back of the boat holding his first 8 pound fish, it really won't
matter if he caught it on a shiner or a plastic worm, the smile
is just as big. I've heard all the arguments about the
"sporting chance", about hurting the fish when they
swallow a hook, and it depletes the big fish population. I don't
buy into any of it. Research and studies have long since shown
there is no impact on numbers or average size of the bass
population on lakes where live bait is used regularly or on
artificials only. It may hurt your feelings if you're in a
tournament not getting a bite while you watch a shiner or
crawfish fisherman boat fish after fish, but it's sure not the
other guy's fault.
What to talk about extremes in spot fishing? Try Stitching! If
you're unfamiliar with the term, this technique requires that you
double anchor the boat to keep it from moving. Then use a natural
weight bait, (like a crawfish for live bait or a Slug-O for
artificials), throw it out there and let it settle to the bottom,
(a process that can take a minute or two all by itself.)
The point the rod towards the bait and use your left hand to
gently and every so slowly take up the line alternately holding
it with your index finger or pinkie and draping it across your
hand. The bait will crawl across the bottom and about a foot a
minute. Make sure you use plenty of pauses between stitches, (also
make sure to let go of the line if you get bit.) This
technique can easily take 15 to 20 minutes a cast. Does it work?
You Bet! If you're in spot with even a few fish hanging out,
chances are you'll catch a fish on every cast, including the
biggest one down there.
Or take it even one step further, Dead Worming. Take your
worm, throw it out there, then don't move it. This is one
technique that any tournament angler should get good at. Takes
infinite patience and a lot of confidence in your spot, but given
that, it's deadly on the most sluggish fish. Perhaps the most
famous example of dead worming was Larry Nixon a couple of years
ago in Arizona. In prefishing, he had located a big bed some 60
miles up river from the launch point. He had seen a big female in
the area, but every time a boat came anywhere near the ledge
where the bed was, she'd take off to deep water. The last day of
the tournament, Larry was way behind in weight, and after
catching a small limit, decided to gamble on getting a big fish.
He took the one hour run up river, and sure enough the big fish
took off to deep water as soon as the boat approached. Larry took
a little craw and dropped a few feet in front of the bed. He then
fed out line while the boat drifted down river several yards
until he past the next bend, and then just sat, (can you
imagine being his draw partner during all of this?) Sure
enough, about a half hour later, Larry felt a little tick and set
the hook. Larry's bass went over 12 lb. which earned him Big
Bass, won the Tournament, and was responsible for a number of new
sponsors and bonuses for breaking the Arizona state record during
competition.
Not enough patience for hawg hunting? Rather catch a bunch and
have steady action? Try Micro-Light fishing. I've got a little
rod I keep in the truck for fishing emergencies, (like passing
a borrow pit on the way home from work.) This rod is 5' long,
rated for 1/32 oz to 1/8 oz lures and 4 lb. line maximum. I use
3" Slug-Os, 2" Shad Assassins, 4" hand poured
worms, 2" Gitz-Its, and 2" craws along with the
standard ultralight hard bait fair. It will be a sad day when I
can't boat 50 fish with this little rig. Now admittedly, 40 of
them will be well below the legal limit, and I might only land a
single two pound fish in a day, but it's serious fun and
extremely reliable in the shallows. Again, if you're taking a new
fisherman with you, remember to have fun, and this defines the
term.
Follow-the-leader is not limited to articles in magazines. Any
given tournament day will prove the old saying, "boats
breed." Woe to he who catches a nice chunk in plain view on
a slow day. You can get surrounded by boats faster than Custer
was surrounded by Indians. There are just a ton of guys out there
who prefish with binoculars. I'll be the first to admit I've
taken a close look at where or what someone is throwing if they
are catching fishing and I'm shooting blanks, it's part of the
game. But what do you do when the invasion starts on the few fish
you've got located? Just continue to fish! I can't count the
times that I've sat in the middle of a pack of boats, caught a
nice limit, cashed a check, and none of the 20 boats around me
could catch cold. The reasons are simple. First, I'm fishing my
water, so chances are pretty good I've setting on the best
spot in the area, know exactly what structure/cover I'm throwing
to, having worked it out in prefishing. Second, I'm fishing my
bait, which is what I've decided will give me the best chance to
catch fish under those exact conditions. Third, if I'm catching
fish, then I've already found the right presentation, speed,
color, etc. to fish my bait, in my water, and
everyone else has to guess. Most of the time I can't even keep up
with someone else in my own boat throwing the same lure if he's
on a roll, with him trying to help! How is someone suppose to do
it from a hundred yards away? If you're on fish, don't worry a
second about another boat moving in on you. Chances are good that
even if that boat starts catching fish, it's fish that would not
have fallen prey to what you're throwing, else they'd already be
in your livewell. And if you're stuck being a follower rather
than a leader on a given day, be smart about that too! Check the
bait and presentation as best you can, matching it to sometime
similar but that is also one of your strengths and that you have
confidence in. And don't try to out compete someone on their own
water, find something similar. It's a very rare situation indeed
when the fish are only feeding in one single spot on the whole
lake. Rather than jump in there with all of the rest, check your
known spots or a map for something that's the same pattern, but
isn't getting the pressure. Even if the spot that the other boat
is fishing is one of your own best spots, go to a back up. You're
best days will normally come when you have a population of fish
all to yourself and you can experiment with them to your leisure.
Just don't get run off a good spot because another boat shows up.
Maybe the biggest difference between what the pros do and what
you should do in a club tournament concerns what fish you target.
In a big tournament, you've got over 500 other pros to beat out
and a nice limit doesn't get you even an at-a-boy, much less a
new sponsor. So you're always looking almost exclusively for that
big bite. You figure you need a 3 to 4 pound average on any given
day to even come close. Come club tournament time with 40 - 50
other people and a point championship to worry about, it's a
whole different game. In club competition, it's getting that
limit every time out that's important, and the size will take
care of itself. If you weigh in a limit every tournament over the
year, you're almost sure to cash a check or two on the way and be
in the running for your championship. It's tough to do if that's
your goal, and almost impossible if you're hunting for big fish
all the time. And this is a decision you have to make before you
go out, not after you're on the water. A pattern most club
fishermen will notice is that the day's big fish came early, but
only on the good days will it be the anchor for a limit. More
times than not, the big fish will have one or two other fish with
it, but the tournament will be won with a stringer of chunks,
most of which were also caught early. You can't do both. You
either have to target the chunks and throw the baits that get you
the limit, or you have to dig in for that hawg and hope you can
find something to go with him. Fishing for big fish is done with
big fish baits in heavy cover working slow and thorough. Fishing
for limits is done in an area or pattern with smaller and/or
faster baits covering water and taking the fish that are active
and feeding. Prime time for either case is first thing in the
morning on your best spot and you can't be in two places,
throwing two different things at once. Make the call of which way
to go before launch, and make it clear to the day's partner
before you start, (saves valuable fishing time otherwise
wasted on arguing on the type of water you need to be fishing.)
My personal choice is I always go for the limit then take what I
can get flipping or working deep offshore structure later in the
day. Then again, I've never won a B.A.S.S. national tournament
either.
So, all of this said, what does it mean? In a phase, "Trust
yourself." Everyone who is successful is learning all of
the time, weekend sport fishermen through the tournament
professional. You can't just close your eyes and ignore what the
professionals say, but you can't depend on it either. To be
successful and enjoy what can be a frustrating sport, you must
learn to think things through for yourself, apply what you have
learned, and learn from the experience you have on the water,
good, bad, or indifferent. There is always something new to
learn, the trick is to not forget what you know already. When the
chips are down, it's just you and the fish in an uneven battle
where the fish has all of the advantages. The pride in catching a
trophy or winning a tournament is not that you were lucky on that
day, it was that you applied what you knew and used your skill to
execute a plan that worked that day. When necessary, trust your
own judgment, ignore the pros, and reap the benefits of doing it
your own way.
Paul Crawford
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