I'm interested in this issue of fishing for numbers vs. fishing for big fish. I like to get a lot of bites, and I tailor my approach to that goal. However, there are a lot of people, more probably, who think the other way. I'm just curious how many on each side of this issue.

I voted the 5 big ones, just because of tournaments, but it really depends on whether I am out to relax or win a tourney.

Sheesh, I'd be happy catching any.

 

I voted big due to the criterion of 1 fish of 5-7lbs each hour sounds exciting. 50 fish in 5 hours seems like it might get mundane? Although I'd love to find out either way 

For me its a no brainer I would take one 7# fish over 20 1# fish any day of the week and I certainly would take 5 near that size as well.  I would say you get to a point where that many fish gets boring especially smaller ones.  If your learning a new lure or technique the more then better.  This year my focus is on larger fish, my mentality changed recently in part because of this AWESOME site.

5 Larger fish for me too, I am in no hurry to do anything, 5 big fish in a 4 to 5 hr period aint too bad as long as I did not have to cover the whole lake to get em.

 

I fish deep anyway, I am used to the bite being slower and i'm quite comfortable being that way.

 

If my family is with me I would answer differently though.

I fish for fun.  Throw all the dinks my way. 

I fish a pond absolutely FULL of dinks, and I mean about ten fish every 30 square feet. Catching them is so easy and gets tiring after a while. Yeah it's fun, but it gets old after about 10 fish. I easily catch 20-30 in a few hours and I'm starting to look for other places to fish. There are no big fish in the pond. I checked the biologist's report a while ago.

228 fish from fry-1 pound

356 fish from 1-2lbs

42 fish from 2-3lbs

30 fish from 3-4lbs

16 fish from 4-5lbs

6 fish from 5-6 lbs.

This is a gigantic pond that takes 20 minutes to walk around.

It asked for a fishing trip, not a tournament, so I will take a whole bunch of fish of every shape and size. now if I am pre fishing for a tourney or in one I would rather have the larger fish, but only 5 fish in a day is definitely a grind. 

 

Mitch

i would have to go for the hogs.....something about the feel and the memory a 5 plus pound bass leaves on ya

Today i am much better at catching numbers than i was 12 years ago. It was a challenge to catch eight or more fish on a given day. Now days after much more time fishing ,reading, researching, and changing my approach it comes easier. Over the past few years, ive tweaked my approach from targeting as many fish as possible to targeting bigger bites.

Im no professional, but I like to think that i can succesfully go after a bigger bite and get at least one on a given day. So thats what i try to do. But ill still fish a pattern conducive to putting fish in the boat.

whatevers biting, i really dont care. size, numbers, etc..ill take them all...

I'd prefer big bass because those are the bites that tell you that you're doing something right. Those small, younger bass sometimes seem to be over aggressive and will hit just about anything. Sometimes you can even catch tons of small bass in the usual areas when the big ones are sitting on beds. In my opinion, the small bass don't really tell me what the quality fish are doing.

There are times when a lot of bites is just what the doctor ordered, especially if I am taking some of the younger members of my family fishing.  However, most of the time I am looking for bigger bites. 

 

Five big fish in a day is not a grind.  The excitement from each one of those fish will carry you much further than the excitement of a whole slew of 1 - 2 pounders.  How many of you have caught a huge fish and found yourself shaking afterwards with excitement?  That doesn't happen with the little fellows. 

I'd have to go with the bigguns because around here the places I fish we don't get too many over 3-4 lbs

I'd have to go with the bigguns because around here the places I fish we don't get too many over 3-4 lbs

Sorry to post that twice

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/108475-little-fish-or-skunked/?hl=quantity

 

 

Here is a thread that RW started awhile back.  It is along the same line as this.

i would rather have 1 big bass than a bunch of smalls but then again im more of a snook fisherman and even big bass dont fight half as hard as a snook but my spillways are closed mostly so the snook fishing for me is too slow right now

I'm pretty lucky in that the lake I fish, if I get 50 bass, odds are there will be 4 or 5 big bass in that number. If all the bass were 10 or 12 inches, after 5 hours, I'd change to another lake. For me, the thrill of the big fish wears off quickly, going two or three hours with no strikes at all is not what I like to do. I need consistent action to keep my interest up. It's a big reason I don't get excited about musky fishing. All musky anglers have to do is SEE a couple of fish in a day and they're happy. I've had 10 hour days where I caught 5 muskies and was not that thrilled with the long lulls in between bites.  To each his own.

There are times when a lot of bites is just what the doctor ordered, especially if I am taking some of the younger members of my family fishing.  However, most of the time I am looking for bigger bites. 

 

Five big fish in a day is not a grind.  The excitement from each one of those fish will carry you much further than the excitement of a whole slew of 1 - 2 pounders.  How many of you have caught a huge fish and found yourself shaking afterwards with excitement.  That doesn't happen with the little fellows. 

 

I agree completely! A 40 fish day, esp with a couple of 3 lb fish is a great time. Give me a day like that with my grandkids, and I am as happy as a man can be. A day with 5 fish over 5 lb is much more rare for most of us. My goal, with few exceptions is to catch the biggest fish available. I still get that charge of excitement when I put a good fish in the boat, and when I figure them out to the point I can put several in the boat there is great sense of satisfaction. For me, that is the challenge and joy of bass fishing.    

I'm greedy... I WANT THEM ALL!!

I'm greedy... I WANT THEM ALL!!

Hijack!!! DUDE WELCOME BACK!!

Who's Jack? lol.I know it's been a while since I've been on.

Hijack alert rather. Good you are back

I know just messing

 

I might stick around for a couple of days lol.