shallow thinker

Same here. A 9 lb limit by 8am... but weighed just under 11 lb. Didn't get big bites but the afternoon was fun with school sized fish. The winner had 30.5 lbs and lots of 5-6 pounders in that weigh in line. Lake O is awesome right now.

I use either a mono or flouro leader on all set ups with braid. This was a carry over from using leaders in saltwater but I think it has a couple of advantages for freshwater. For very light braid (up to 30 lb test) I like to double the braid using a bimini then attach to the leader (double Uni). Yes, the knot is large but I try to limit the leader to a foot or so and this means I'm not constantly winding it through the rod tip. Heavier braid goes straight to some 30 lb leader. I find that I have fewer knot issues with this set up then tying braid to lures or hooks. Thin braid sneaks through the little gap in some hooks. I sometimes have knots slip with the braid directly to the bait but that doesn't happen with mono or flouro. (Yes, I could learn a double palomar or some other knots) I also like mono for making very quick loop knots. Another neat thing about using a leader is that it gives me some sense of where my bait is when pitching or flipping. That bimini sits 2-3 feet above the lure so I can tell if my bait penetrates the cover or is getting hung up. Lots of guys tie braid directly to tackle... My preference is to use a short leader.

Good one. I was out on Saturday in that fog. Got one over 4 and saw 3 bigger fish while covering water (prefishing). Looks like the wind is going to blow some this week. Hope it lays down for KOTG.

Everyone has their preferences... mine is for braid when fishing frogs and horny toads. I'm making long casts into thick cover. When I set the hook I hit them hard and winch fish out of those pads or hydrilla. There's no stretch in braid, the smaller diameter allows long casts even with 30-50 lb rating, and it does a better job of cutting through the salad once a fish is hooked.

Ouch, its a good thing that I have a day job. I'd starve on tournament winnings. My partner was out of town so I fished alone. I started off catching little 12 inch squeakers on a shakey head and it never got any better as the sun got higher. My bag was 5-6 lbs if I'd have weighed them. At least I learned some good patterns for mudfish and warmouth.

Like others have reported, I found good numbers of small fish out on the alley on Friday. It didn't matter what you threw the fish were cookie cutter size. I had nothing till 10am and then it was game on. Tomorrow I will look at the marsh areas to see if there's enough water to run and some better fish. Sunday's update.... the marsh is too skinny to fish. I idled into area 1 about a 1/2 mile. It's 14 inches deep and now the domain of the duck hunters. Back in L67A I did OK pitching the pads. I also tried few banks up on the alley and found some fish deeper than on friday.

The only peacocks I've caught this year were in Markham Park. Nothing in the glades, Hillsboro canal or Lake Ida. Bass survived as everyone else has said. Its freaking cold again this week so the exotics may get whacked again. The good news is that we'll be back to the 70's air temps by the weekend. I hope the snook can get through it this time.

I would have paid a million bucks for a power pole yesterday! We left our fish at 11am and power drifted the rest of the day. Still a good time and well run event. Did you guys see Denny Brauer filming near the weigh in? He was in a wrapped Strike King rig.

I've went through 2 Guest chargers in 9 yrs. They were 5/5/3 amps. The last one melted down while on the water so I moved away from having a built in charger. (I am 100% sure that it was properly wired) I now have a 3 bank 10/10/5 amp Pro Mariner that stays in the garage. I found a heavy duty cable at a marine salvage yard and wired the socket into the boat and the plug onto the charger. Works like a charm.

A second vote for Sawgrass. Go east from the dock. I took my nephew out there on Sunday. He caught a dozen on a Senko type bait. I threw lots of things but mostly got bit on a small chug bug, texas worm... and then a paddle tail plastic about noon. Fishing got better later in the day. The paper says a tournament was won at Holiday Park last weekend with just 8 lbs. I think you are better off at Sawgrass

I've used 10lb fluoroclear on spinning rods for the last 2 seasons. I like it for shakey head or unweighted stick baits. It feels more sensitive than mono & it has fewer hassles than some of the 100% fluorocarbon lines.

Hmmm, I fish a medium-heavy 7' All Star rod with 30-50lb Suffix braid. I fish lots of canal edges and heavy cover over shallow flats. Fishing fast, making lots of long casts wears me out with a heavier stick. My catch ratio is pretty good even though I'm tackled up on the lighter side. It comes down to personal preference so try out different set ups to see what feels right to you.

Yes, the zoom hooks are good but you should also look at some of the weighted single hooks like the ones sold by Stanley. The head is shaped like one of the saltwater skimmer jigs with a screw attachment for the bait. I go with a 4/0 or 5/0 hook and 1/8 ounce. The weight helps me throw the bait further and lets me occasionally sink the bait around the edge of cover. Some days you get follows but won't get bit until you let the frog sink.