In upstate NY, we have a good mix of smallmouth and largemouth. I prefer to fish for largemouth (I think they're much easier to pattern), but I wanted to see if anyone here fished exclusively for one species of bass.

I'm fishing exclusively for a DD LGM on my homelake.....the side benefit is catching smaller LGMs and Spots ?

 

Maybe some S FL guys do because it's one of the few regions in the nation where sub species don't overlap.    

 

It's pretty hard to just target one of the big three given their presence is in equal numbers in said body of water.     

SLR is a good example where one might actually be able to target SMs offshore deep, and then LGMs shallower, in grass, etc.   

No.

I target LM, but I catch some SM in the process. I caught only SM for decades, which is why I fish for LM now. 

I only target largemouth. If I want smallmouth, I've got to go to south Missouri, in the Ozarks.

29 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

I target LM, but I catch some SM in the process. I caught only SM for decades, which is why I fish for LM now. 

Was it a conscious choice to change?

I don't target only one species. If I am fishing a place that has both LMB and SMB I tend to target the SMB just to see if I can figure out the puzzle to catching them.

I target both.

1 hour ago, KSanford33 said:

Was it a conscious choice to change?

 

That's a good question. I did choose to focus on LM. A change of pace is fun, the Maine LM are bigger than the Maine smallies, and I've fallen in love with fishing weeds. I'm still happy to catch SM, but when if I catch a couple, I don't linger in that area.

8 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

 

That's a good question. I did choose to focus on LM. A change of pace is fun, the Maine LM are bigger than the Maine smallies, and I've fallen in love with fishing weeds. I'm still happy to catch SM, but when if I catch a couple, I don't linger in that area.

Is your PB a smallie or LGM?

 

I personally can't wait until you catch a 6+ LGM, and I 100% know it's going to happen in 2023.   @PhishLI agrees with me ?

1 hour ago, JediAmoeba said:

I target both.

Same, but I would estimate that 75% or more of mine is chasing largemouth.  The only two places to really target smallmouth are a sizable lake that is 90 miles away, or a river.  And drought the last two seasons has really affected the river fishing.

Sadly there are only a few lakes that have smb here in socal, the best one is private and I have no access

 

 

 

 

 

@AlabamaSpothunter and Phish, if I do catch a six-pounder, you'll hear my holler!

4 hours ago, KSanford33 said:

In upstate NY, we have a good mix of smallmouth and largemouth.

If I head upstate or Connecticut, I'm going for smallmouth. They're only in two lakes on the island, and I'm only willing to fish at one of them. It happens to be my childhood lake, and they didn't exist there back then. They were transplanted by a family 30 years ago, so there's a decent population there now.

 

I have big LM bass dreams at this spot though, out of nostalgia, so that's what I'm going for primarily. But when you hook a smallmouth using a MHF rod and straight braid, the fight is vicious. So much more intense than when hooking them on a medium spinning rig. It really feels like something's going to break.

Got a 21 1/2" SM there a few years ago on casting gear, and it was absolutely sick! Top 10 fishing memory for sure. Just stocked up on 4" rainbow trout laminate senkos, stupid tubes, and bought a chrome Rat 30 for the smallie prespawn.

On the River I almost always start for Smallies but if Largies or Spots wanna play i have no problem with that .

In Fl. its primarily the  Largemouth.

90% LMB, 10% SMB

Smallies 98% of the time. If I am chasing LMB it’s because I’m on a lake which is fairly rare.

I fish for both LM and SM, but since putting a 6-4 SM on the wall in 2018, I've focused more on LM, looking for a 7+ to join it.

Do Any of You Fish Exclusively for One Type of Bass?

 

Yeah the ones that bite my lure!

No, I fish for both species. I'm lucky ! On the lake I most often fish, going from smallmouth to largemouth is a matter of motoring a couple of hundred yards.  If the smallmouth are not cooperating or cooperating too much and I want a change of pace, I just change places.  

 

 

 

All largemouth because that's all that is available where I fish. Smallmouth are native to our streams and rivers but my ability to walk and wade streams has been severely limited in recent years. Knee surgery last Nov. will help mitigate that this season. A bad right ankle still creates problems, though. Really miss wading creeks.

I only target FL Largemouth because I live where they do. 
 

 

 

 

 

Mike

All species. Depends on where I’m fishing. “When in Rome”

I could but it would be counter productive.  Largemouth, smallmouth, and spots frequent the same water on Table Rock and Stockton where I mostly fish.  It is common to see all three on a point or cove.