Been studying this and have learned a lot lately..  A couple of questions for the veterans on here.. 

 

1. Has following this theory made you a better angler?

 

2. Is this a reliable resource for tournament fishing success?

 

3. Do smallmouth also follow this theory? 

Some of us are not familiar with it. Could you elaborate a little?

 

I remember Buck Perry from In Fisherman, but that was years ago.

Search Buck Perry Series on youtube.. there are 5 or 6 20-30 min episodes of him conducting a seminar explaining his fish movement theory… extremely beneficial to watch

 

He also has written several books

I think this info is reliable. 

As for tournament success I'm not sure. 

Many people will have strong opinions on this.   I used to be a strong believer in his teachings.   I now look at it a little differently.   He proposed the importance of structure in locating fish.   Every time I hit the water I'm constantly thinking about structure.  He has had an enormous impact on the way I think about fishing.   I spend a hours looking at lake contour maps as I think about were I want to fish next.   This process is all about evaluating structure using mostly techniques that he first proposed.  I appreciate very much his contributions to this sport.   If you follow his teaching you will catch fish.  Many people understand the importance of structure without knowing that it started with him.

 

That said,  it's important to realize that much of what he believed about fish movement has been disproven since he first proposed his theories.   Buck said "Deep water is the home of the fish".   We know that some fish stay shallow most, if not all of the time.  We know that fish can travel across open water without "sign post".   No tracking study that I'm aware of supports his theory that fish move from deep water to shallow water based on weather patterns.

 

Personally,  I completely ignore his teaching on weather and fish movement.  Still, I find fish on the breaks just like he said.  I don't really care how they got there or why.  

 

Concerning smallmouth.  He believed that his theories applied to all game fish.

My thoughts:
 

1. Yes

2. Yes, but banning trolling eliminated a lot of the faster speed controls. Newer high speed reels have somewhat offset this, but you still have to control depth at the same time.

3. Yes, in many cases, though they are much more pelagic in nature than originally thought in some bodies of water.

I agree pretty much what has been stated so  far. I think that you must consider the lake you are fishing to what is deep water.  There is alot of shallow flats on Santee Cooper  & fish are there year round but in the warmer months it's harder to find the big girls (10+). It is best to be looking for structure in 20 to 30 ft, Is that deep? Or move out to the main part of the lake in the 50+ depth. I caught my PB 12 1/2 lbs in 1 1/2 ft in February the temp was 51, move out to 8 ft temp was 48 & I caught 1 fish but he was not 14 inches. I did catch several fish back in the shallow part of that flat. As you move off that flat the ditch drops to between 15 to 20 ft as you get to the main lake. When the water temp gets to 70+ I still fish the shallow flats but under Cypress tree & have not caught a 10 + but plenty of 14" + plus over the years. I wonder where the bigger fish went? they can be found near the flats on good structure in 15 to 30 ft of water. Is that deep or shallow?

I’ve never seen any of his writings except a few tidbits on here , I could definitely use some advice. My deep smallmouth spots have been a bust the last two weekends, it’s usually a guarantee anytime in December 

8 hours ago, scbassin said:

There is a lot of shallow flats on Santee Cooper  & fish are there year round but in the warmer months it's harder to find the big girls (10+). It is best to be looking for structure in 20 to 30 ft, Is that deep?
 

I wonder where the bigger fish went? they can be found near the flats on good structure in 15 to 30 ft of water. Is that deep or shallow?

Relativity aside, ‘Yes’ - that is ‘deep’ in both cases. Buck defined deep water as any water having a depth of 8 to 10 feet or greater. YMMV

In February the angle of the sun starts to warm the shallow water on the Northern side of the lake. When the temperature hits 50 to 55 you can find the big girls in a couple of feet as that warms up 1st.  A days days after she spawns she moves off leaving the male to guard the fry. They don't move very far at 1st ,they stop & rest & fatten up in that 10 to 15 feet as the water is warming in the 50 to 55 range& as the water continues to warm they will move to the points in that 20 to 30 feet range. They have moved deeper before the heavy fishing pressure begins in March. I have been Fishing on Santee Cooper since 1969 & it took my fishing partner & myself a couple of springs to figure it out.  There are plenty of fish shallow but your to catch a 10lb + is to look a little deeper after that 1st spawn. Now a days there is a ton of fishing pressure every weekend from March thru June.