Went out to my local lake today (Puddingstone) since I have the day off. Water temp was 73 deg F on February 15 what the heck. Blanked. Could not find the fish. Nothing shallow. Couldn't graph anything. Everyone I talked to with one exception blanked. The one exception was at the end of the day we went to the feeder creek on the east shore and a couple of shore fisherman cought 6 bass up to 4 lbs. The bass had pushed shad up to a little cove. Water was about 3' deep back there. I wasn't about to encroach on them. Anyone in SoCall have any success in these wacky conditions? I mean 73 deg F should be post spawn but middle of February should be winter patterns.

That sounds like some tough situations! it sounds like if those shore fishermen had picked up bass in 3 feet deep its possible that those were pre spawn fish already? Not sure it its a little early. If I was you I would go back to that spot early in the morning and fish a topwater lure around that area and a squarebill as the sun hits the water. Find other places that are similar to that spot and see if they pay off. And don't forget to have some kind of a finesse bait tied up also if you cant get a reaction strike you could try that. I've never fished Puddingstone before but those are some sugg... Anyways good luck!

Sounds like a great day in SoCal to be on the water contium, but it doesn't sound like you found any signs the spawn had take place.  I like fisherrw's suggestions if you're going to be on the water today.  But it's possible those bass were enjoying the warm water temperatures to fatten up on those shad as part of the prespawn.  In conditions where they're bustin shad along the bank I'd maybe go with a lipless crank or a spinnerbait to "match the hatch".  Unfortunately you weren't able to see the fish those shore anglers caught to determine what part of the spawn those fish were in...  

BTW, I was also on the water yesterday, 77 degree air temp which is why you post caught my attention. The water temp was 56.7 degrees on the Delta, and I did manage to put a few in the boat out of 2-4 feet of water.  Fat, chunky, prespawn little guys.  This was right before two sea lions showed up...

Good fishing contium, and let us know how you did