Do you know any fishermen who have strict rules they think smallmouth always follow? Take a look at some of my buddy’s, curious what you all think 😆

[Dwight Hottle]

1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

Lake Erie, PA with a little OH mixed in 

Fixed it for us. Thanks

[Spankey]

Pretty much all nonsense to me. Not sure what comment is more of a joke than the other. 
Don’t let those fools get under your skin. You’re smarter than that. You have become a good smallmouth fisherman in a short period of time. I remember when you first joined and I’m glad you did. Those guys should be following your lead. 
The most moronic has to be the comment on monofilament line. 

[JHoss]

On 11/6/2024 at 12:36 PM, Ohioguy25 said:

- Never retrieve upstream, baitfish only swim downstream 

While most of your friends rules are nonsense in my opinion, I find the idea of retrieving down stream to be more effective than the opposite more often than not. I don't believe its because bait fish only swim down stream, but because ambush predators like smallmouth typically hold facing up current or in an eddy facing the faster moving water. And I believe you're more likely to get a bite when presenting a bait into or across a fish's face instead of coming from behind it. 

 

I recently fished a largemouth tournament on a river with elevation driven current. I finished 3rd over some guys who usually get the better of me and I, largely, attribute that success to fishing into the current and retrieving with the current. I fished one stretch for about an hour with the eventual Anglers of the Year in the exact same area. They only caught 6 fish the entire day while I caught 6 in the single hour we shared an area. The biggest difference I observed was that I made it a point to fish into the current all day while they mostly fished with the current. 

[Ohioguy25]

31 minutes ago, JHoss said:

While most of your friends rules are nonsense in my opinion, I find the idea of retrieving down stream to be more effective than the opposite more often than not. I don't believe its because bait fish only swim down stream, but because ambush predators like smallmouth typically hold facing up current or in an eddy facing the faster moving water. And I believe you're more likely to get a bite when presenting a bait into or across a fish's face instead of coming from behind it. 

 

I recently fished a largemouth tournament on a river with elevation driven current. I finished 3rd over some guys who usually get the better of me and I, largely, attribute that success to fishing into the current and retrieving with the current. I fished one stretch for about an hour with the eventual Anglers of the Year in the exact same area. They only caught 6 fish the entire day while I caught 6 in the single hour we shared an area. The biggest difference I observed was that I made it a point to fish into the current all day while they mostly fished with the current. 

That is a great point and makes perfect sense, people give fish too much credit