scaleface

Why stick with a jig ? A Texas rig fishes the same way in the same places . The bites feel the same , the hook-sets are the same . I feel a Texas rig will get more bites . I like to pitch Yum Dingers with a 1/4 ounce weight in woody cover .

The only cash tournament I won , not counting club tourneys , cousin and I anchored for two days on a point because of the wind . Almost 500 boats and we had the spot all to ourselves .

I keep picking long shots that for one reason or another I feel have a shot at the top ten . Its been a disaster . I'm going with some obvious picks this time . A Chris Zaldain San Jose, CA - B Jamie Hartman Utica, NY - C Jeff Gustafson Keewatin, ON - D Brandon Cobb Greenwood, SC - E Paul Mueller Naugatuck, CT

I follow the BASS elites . I like the tournament format . I pay zero attention to that new circuit . Thats sort of like watching Mike Trout playing beer league softball .

I like them spring , summer and fall .

Not necessarily . I caught a lot on top waters , spinnerbaits ,and lipless crankbaits too. My favorite though is either a jig or Texas rigged craw .

Known as dogfish around here .

Another thing stripers like current largemouths dont . I have caught largemouths in current but even then its usually on rip rap where there are plenty of current breaks for them to wait in ambush .

I like rattleless better on most days , even then they are not quiet with those hooks clanking against the body . A good quiet crankbait is the Rapala Fat Rap . Balsa wood , so they dont make a lot of noise , they cast well unlike Shad Raps . One of my favorite lures for just running down the banks and casting at targets or parallel casting . I like to position the boat so that the lure is running on or near the bottom for most of the retrieve . Keep the bait in high percentage areas as long as possible . Crankbaits are one of the hardest lures to select correctly because they run at different depths .

I enjoyed the heck out of last weeks tournament. The fishing was tough . The players trying to catch a 16 inch fish was fun to watch . Zaldain impresses the heck out of me . If I could fish with any pro I'd pick him .

Went yesterday and the water temps were in the upper 70's and the thermocline is getting deeper . Caught 30 bass , 22 of them were on a point in 15 to 20 foot of water .Caught those on a worm . I fished three creeks and struggled , catching only 8 bass . Six came on a Ribbet . I was expecting much better fishing in the creeks . I dont know what temps the shad start migrating . When they do the bass will follow . Every body of water is different .

I was camping at Mark Twain lake and the first day the wind was blowing so hard I didnt launch the boat . 40 mph sustained . I bank fished on the windy , main lake bank and caught bunches of fish . Largemouth , whites , walleye , crappie , channel cats and a big flathead . Next day when the wind subsided I launched the boat fished the same bank and blanked there .

I've done some river fishing on the mississippi . Dikes , rip rap banks , backwaters , creeks and tributaries are where Ive caught them .

Sometimes crankbaits scare the fish . I had a good deep worm bite going today , 15 to 20 foot . I started throwing a deep diver and came up with nothing . Went back to the worm and the fish were scattered. It took awhile for them to regroup .

I had my first guy to fish on sunday this year . Kyle Monti . Also had two in the bottom 10 , again .

Not really . Its pretty common to cover water and knock the snot out of them .

I think covering water with a bobber and a minnow would be a challenge . I even cover water fast deep, how would one do that with a minnow ?

Thats how I select lures . There will usually be several that are suitable . I just go through them until I find something thats working . Thats the simple plan anyway .

Man , that is a shallow lake . I would stay near the deep water even if fishing shallow . I like the looks of the area east of the three islands . It seems to rise up with a deep hole on both ends , sort of like a reverse saddle . What is the acreage here ?

When fishing something like a texas rigged plastic worm in shallow cover ,the cast are usually short . I dont dead stick . As soon as the worm touches down , i start working it back . Sometimes I hop it all the way to the boat and sometimes I reel it in as soon as its past the cover . I get a lot of bites though , after that worm has left the cover . I think there are three reasons . Bass are not always tight to the cover , sometimes they follow the lure out and sometimes the visible cover is just the tip of the iceberg . If I'm fishing deeper like on a flat or a point , the cast will be longer and I'll hop it all the way to the boat as long as it doesnt fall off the edge and sinks to deep . . Once again as soon as it settles I start the retrieve . I hop and drop as fast as I can and still remain in contact with the bottom . Thats just the way I fish . It drives me nuts when I'm fishing with somebody who goes slower LOL .

I took my boat out for the first time this year , yesterday . When I got to the ramp , my Igloo cooler lid was missing and all the ice melted . I picked up two bags of ice at the marina , dumped it in and stuffed a life jacket and the throw cushion on top . I had ice all day and dumped it out when I got home . Those flotation devices work great . LOL

Id rather watch a tournament like this then a 100 lb shootout .

Buzzbaits run sideways . Use it to your advantage .

I went with 7 foot med hvy offset . Anything longer than 7 foot wont fit in the bed of my truck .

I think for numbers , more often a dedicated bass angler will catch more bass with artificials simply because they will present the offering to more fish . I've had numerous 70 fish days with a few 100's.