I recommend searching the forum for the posts of @WRB-2.0 and reading every one of them. He was the most successful big bass hunter I've ever come into contact with and shared his knowledge extensively on this forum before his passing. You will gain more from reading his posts than any book.

What is your biggest catch so far? If everyone here is saying the same thing, you should listen.

Very few people on earth have caught a DD bass, the access here to people who have done it is unparalleled. Look at largest catch on their profile and weigh their advice accordingly.

9 hours ago, Team9nine said:

I believe he did catch all those big bass.

Me too. Nobody fished harder than Cullen...seemingly. Of course, his account of how he fished could be fabricated, but if you're going to achieve what he achieved, that would give you the best chance. Perhaps fishing with FFS at OH Ivie 300 days a year or fishing at Lake Baccarac 300 days a year with guides would give you your best chance.

9 hours ago, Team9nine said:

Just suggesting there have been a lot of big fish catches and catchers questioned over the years, and in some cases the stories or accusations have proven true, or info later came out that shed a different light on the matter.

Yeah, no doubt. There have been phonies, liars, and fakes. I just don't want to go to the dark side and doubt everyone. I've seen that in the musky world and the pull of the dark side is strong.

9 hours ago, Team9nine said:

I'm guessing you're aware of the incredible mess all the musky record catches

One of the reasons I quit musky fishing was because of the cynicism that afflicts so many musky anglers. I once spent a week fishing with a guy who caught three 50-inchers* that week and was with another angler when she landed an absolute beast. All four fish were doubted. I heard the doubters and they doubted my affirming the catches.

*If you don't fish for muskies, a 50-incher is beyond a DD bass. Tim has caught a LOT of 48-inchers, but to my understanding, not a 50-incher yet. They are rare.

3 hours ago, Pat Brown said:

I consider myself a big bass hunter

I do too, Pat.

3 hours ago, Pat Brown said:

for every big bass I catch, I probably catch 50 smaller ones

That's a great ratio and speaks to your skill.

3 hours ago, PhishLI said:

Books and pointers are fine, I suppose. However, there isn't a book written that'll shortcut you into achieving a blackbelt though. That takes a lot of time on the mats, azz whoopings, the ability to visualize and process data, and a degree of innate talent for the game. Without the latter and a developed instinct, catching bass, whether big or small, will mostly be the result of random dumb luck.

That's a great analogy. I know a kid who caught a seven-pounder at a bog I fish. He had photos and I don't doubt it was a seven-pounder. It was big. That summer, he was at the bog more than me and not only couldn't he catch another big fish, he struggled to catch any fish. So, you're right about "random, dumb luck." Luck can deliver a big fish, but to catch one big bass for every 50 bass like Pat Brown, you have to be a bass whisperer.

3 hours ago, PhishLI said:

Once it happens it tends to keep on happening, if you have the head for it.

Years ago, Phish, in one of our PM exchanges, you stated that not everyone has the innate aptitude to catch bass. I've never forgotten that and I do believe it's true.

There were a few days last year when the Kid had brought a friend to his grandpa's pond. That put the Kid in the stern of a tandem canoe, his friend in the bow, and I was in my solo canoe. Now, the Kid had always outfished me...by a few bass...because he'd always been in the bow and I literally aimed him at bass.

Now he had to have his own hunches about where the bass might be. Several times, the boys paddled over to me and asked me how many I'd caught. I typically was doubling what the two of them were catching together. Now, the Kid has an innate talent for fishing and he has the drive, but he doesn't have decades on the water. One day, he might be a better angler than I ever was, but he hasn't put in the time on the water...yet. So, it's aptitude plus experience...and even then, we can be humbled.

@strat54: It's great to have new blood at Bass Resource. Welcome! And it's cool that your tapping the collective wisdom of the Bass Resource gang. Together, we've spent centuries hunting for bass. If you want to catch a DD, fish where DDs live. I live in Maine, so don't come here. If you simply want to catch big bass for the area, Maine is a great place to fish.

Well this topic took off. I saw it as; "I don't want to do the research, I just want free answers", type of thread.

Carry on

EDIT: I just reread the OP and realized that I was being a little too subjective and disingenuous.

Sorry OP ... Good luck in your chase

I’ll give my useless two cents lol…

I’ve spent the last 10+ years chasing big fish with swimbaits. And I typically fish A LOT! When I was a little younger I fished every night and all weekend. From shore, yak, or boat when I could catch a ride. I learned some things from being on the water so much and focusing on big fish. Here’s a few things:

1. First thing you need to ask yourself is this: Am I going to chase “big” fish or “trophy” fish? There’s a HUUUUGE difference. I live in Maine. A “big” fish is a 5+. That fish could win a tourney lunker any day. A trophy would probably be an 8+. Most people here, even tourney guys, will never break 7. You can catch a few 5s on a great day, but not catch a 6 for a couple seasons. So decide which you are going to target. The style of fishing will be drastically different.

2. If you want to quickly figure out if a lake has bigs, night fish it. Big fish are smart. They often only feed at night and don’t show themselves during daylight. Also, imo, numbers will help predict size. If there’s plenty of 3s, it has some 5s. If you catch a 5 within a few trips, it has em 6-7lbs. You(or I) are not so good that we caught the biggest fish in the lake on our first trip.

3. Get used to swimbait fishing and remember a swimbait does not necessarily mean a big swimbait. My two tying PBs were both 7lbs 9oz. One caught on a 4” bluegill hard swimbait and one on an 8” wake. Time otw will show you when to go bigger and when to go smaller. It will also show you when a swimbait just can’t stack up against conventional, although I think there are few circumstances for this once you learned a swimbait.

4. You won’t know til you try. Lake size, depth, apparent forage doesn’t always dictate fish quality. I’ve caught 5+ from 20 acre lakes with 50 fow, bodies with a max depth of 6’, and 4,000 acre lakes. It doesn’t matter.

5. You can catch a giant anytime. But your odds are tenfold from ice out thru prespawn. First 3 weeks of ice out are prime. My last 7 came in April.

6. Have the right tackle/gear. Gear for consistently catching 3 is not the same as gear for consistently catching 5-7lbers.

While I’ve never caught a trophy, I’ve caught a lot of 5 and 6lbers over the years. Broke my pb smallie two years ago with a 5-4. Caught 6 or 7 in the 7lb range and caught my biggest 5 fish bag a few years back with 27-11 out of a yak….and all on swimbaits.

Lastly, if you want a copy of Bill Murphys book I have one you can have if you just cover shipping.

18 minutes ago, Swimbaitstud said:

I’ll give my useless two cents lol…

I’ve spent the last 10+ years chasing big fish with swimbaits. And I typically fish A LOT! When I was a little younger I fished every night and all weekend. From shore, yak, or boat when I could catch a ride. I learned some things from being on the water so much and focusing on big fish. Here’s a few things:

1. First thing you need to ask yourself is this: Am I going to chase “big” fish or “trophy” fish? There’s a HUUUUGE difference. I live in Maine. A “big” fish is a 5+. That fish could win a tourney lunker any day. A trophy would probably be an 8+. Most people here, even tourney guys, will never break 7. You can catch a few 5s on a great day, but not catch a 6 for a couple seasons. So decide which you are going to target. The style of fishing will be drastically different.

2. If you want to quickly figure out if a lake has bigs, night fish it. Big fish are smart. They often only feed at night and don’t show themselves during daylight. Also, imo, numbers will help predict size. If there’s plenty of 3s, it has some 5s. If you catch a 5 within a few trips, it has em 6-7lbs. You(or I) are not so good that we caught the biggest fish in the lake on our first trip.

3. Get used to swimbait fishing and remember a swimbait does not necessarily mean a big swimbait. My two tying PBs were both 7lbs 9oz. One caught on a 4” bluegill hard swimbait and one on an 8” wake. Time otw will show you when to go bigger and when to go smaller. It will also show you when a swimbait just can’t stack up against conventional, although I think there are few circumstances for this once you learned a swimbait.

4. You won’t know til you try. Lake size, depth, apparent forage doesn’t always dictate fish quality. I’ve caught 5+ from 20 acre lakes with 50 fow, bodies with a max depth of 6’, and 4,000 acre lakes. It doesn’t matter.

5. You can catch a giant anytime. But your odds are tenfold from ice out thru prespawn. First 3 weeks of ice out are prime. My last 7 came in April.

6. Have the right tackle/gear. Gear for consistently catching 3 is not the same as gear for consistently catching 5-7lbers.

While I’ve never caught a trophy, I’ve caught a lot of 5 and 6lbers over the years. Broke my pb smallie two years ago with a 5-4. Caught 6 or 7 in the 7lb range and caught my biggest 5 fish bag a few years back with 27-11 out of a yak….and all on swimbaits.

Lastly, if you want a copy of Bill Murphys book I have one you can have if you just cover shipping.

Nice Bass !

I fish for big brown bass in northern Michigan.

I do not throw the type of swimbaits you do.

But I am right there with you on just about ALL the rest.

And IMO, it's far from useless.

Your response here screams like a basshead who's put in the work.

Nicely Done.

The one thing I'd add is . . . .

IME, one big reason folks that endeavor to catch Big Bass do not,

is because they give up easily.

Targeting trophy bass requires immense mental fortitude, patience,

and the acceptance that many trips will result in little action.

Good Luck this spring.

I'd be happy to welcome you into the 8 lb club.

A-Jay

For what it is worth none of the authors on trophy bass fishing have ever experienced FFS or live scope technology before writing their books. Their success was based on learning & experience accumulated the old fashioned way while fishing big fish trophy waters. Adapting what you can learn from them to your use of new technology will require a lot of water time. Good luck with your quest.

8 minutes ago, Dwight Hottle said:

For what it is worth none of the authors on trophy bass fishing have ever experienced FFS or live scope technology before writing their books. Their success was based on learning & experience accumulated the old fashioned way while fishing big fish trophy waters. Adapting what you can learn from them to your use of new technology will require a lot of water time. Good luck with your quest.

And I’ll add two things to this. I’m a firm believer that fishing for giants looks a lot different in SoCal vs. Florida vs. Maine. And second, I think we can all agree it was easier to catch a giant 10 years ago, let alone 40 years ago when Murphy was doing it. Not taking away from him being a great fisherman, but it’s a fact. Giant fish are less common and tougher to get to bite than they once were.

21 minutes ago, Swimbaitstud said:

And I’ll add two things to this. I’m a firm believer that fishing for giants looks a lot different in SoCal vs. Florida vs. Maine. And second, I think we can all agree it was easier to catch a giant 10 years ago, let alone 40 years ago when Murphy was doing it. Not taking away from him being a great fisherman, but it’s a fact. Giant fish are less common and tougher to get to bite than they once were.

I'd say, given the way information is available now (all kinds of information),

compared to what bassheads had to work with 40 years ago,

I think it's a wash. It was, still is and will always be hard to find, and catch the smallest population

of bass per acre in any body of water.

But some of us will be putting this to the test, both domestically and internationally.

Hope we get to use the scale—a lot.

A-Jay

2 hours ago, Swimbaitstud said:

I’ll give my useless two cents lol…

I’ve spent the last 10+ years chasing big fish with swimbaits. And I typically fish A LOT! When I was a little younger I fished every night and all weekend. From shore, yak, or boat when I could catch a ride. I learned some things from being on the water so much and focusing on big fish. Here’s a few things:

1. First thing you need to ask yourself is this: Am I going to chase “big” fish or “trophy” fish? There’s a HUUUUGE difference. I live in Maine. A “big” fish is a 5+. That fish could win a tourney lunker any day. A trophy would probably be an 8+. Most people here, even tourney guys, will never break 7. You can catch a few 5s on a great day, but not catch a 6 for a couple seasons. So decide which you are going to target. The style of fishing will be drastically different.

2. If you want to quickly figure out if a lake has bigs, night fish it. Big fish are smart. They often only feed at night and don’t show themselves during daylight. Also, imo, numbers will help predict size. If there’s plenty of 3s, it has some 5s. If you catch a 5 within a few trips, it has em 6-7lbs. You(or I) are not so good that we caught the biggest fish in the lake on our first trip.

3. Get used to swimbait fishing and remember a swimbait does not necessarily mean a big swimbait. My two tying PBs were both 7lbs 9oz. One caught on a 4” bluegill hard swimbait and one on an 8” wake. Time otw will show you when to go bigger and when to go smaller. It will also show you when a swimbait just can’t stack up against conventional, although I think there are few circumstances for this once you learned a swimbait.

4. You won’t know til you try. Lake size, depth, apparent forage doesn’t always dictate fish quality. I’ve caught 5+ from 20 acre lakes with 50 fow, bodies with a max depth of 6’, and 4,000 acre lakes. It doesn’t matter.

5. You can catch a giant anytime. But your odds are tenfold from ice out thru prespawn. First 3 weeks of ice out are prime. My last 7 came in April.

6. Have the right tackle/gear. Gear for consistently catching 3 is not the same as gear for consistently catching 5-7lbers.

While I’ve never caught a trophy, I’ve caught a lot of 5 and 6lbers over the years. Broke my pb smallie two years ago with a 5-4. Caught 6 or 7 in the 7lb range and caught my biggest 5 fish bag a few years back with 27-11 out of a yak….and all on swimbaits.

Lastly, if you want a copy of Bill Murphys book I have one you can have if you just cover shipping.

Could not agree more. I am not a trophy hunter by any means but I’ve seriously considered giving up tournament fishing for that reason.

The overall lunker for my club in PA is almost always below 6 lbs

each year. The 3-4’s aren’t plentiful either. This year the lunker for 11 tournaments was 4 lb 11 oz.

Some of that has to do with the water fished, time of year, and time of day. We have no control over that, we just deal with what we are given. The other part is being forced to fish faster, oftentimes covering lots of water, with baits that I know will get bit—because it’s noon and I havent caught a keeper. Tactics are very different.

As I’ve grown in the tournament scene, I’ve noticed that each year my average 5-6 fish bag increases, but my lunker fish per tournament has decreased.

This year, I didn’t clear 5 lbs.

A tournament angler is looking for five or six active 2lb fish which beats searching for a rare 6-7 lb bass. The former results in more points to the yearly standings than the latter.

Alternatively, a trophy angler is waiting for one big bite. They are willing to accept “defeat” on numerous occasions by fishing slowly and methodically, picking apart high potential areas.

40 minutes ago, stk44 said:

Could not agree more. I am not a trophy hunter by any means but I’ve seriously considered giving up tournament fishing for that reason.

The overall lunker for my club in PA is almost always below 6 lbs

each year. The 3-4’s aren’t plentiful either. This year the lunker for 11 tournaments was 4 lb 11 oz.

Some of that has to do with the water fished, time of year, and time of day. We have no control over that, we just deal with what we are given. The other part is being forced to fish faster, oftentimes covering lots of water, with baits that I know will get bit—because it’s noon and I havent caught a keeper. Tactics are very different.

As I’ve grown in the tournament scene, I’ve noticed that each year my average 5-6 fish bag increases, but my lunker fish per tournament has decreased.

This year, I didn’t clear 5 lbs.

A tournament angler is looking for five or six active 2lb fish which beats searching for a rare 6-7 lb bass. The former results in more points to the yearly standings than the latter.

Alternatively, a trophy angler is waiting for one big bite. They are willing to accept “defeat” on numerous occasions by fishing slowly and methodically, picking apart high potential areas.

Jeez you need to move northeast. Never am I looking for 2s in a tourney haha. But I’ve found the same overall. Just got back heavily into tourneys two years ago and this past year I never broke 6lbs. In previous years I was catching 4 or 5 over 6. That said, I am more consistently catching 5lbers in summer on conventional baits now

51 minutes ago, stk44 said:

Alternatively, a trophy angler is waiting for one big bite. They are willing to accept “defeat” on numerous occasions by fishing slowly and methodically, picking apart high potential areas.

Those of us on this side of the line define defeat differently.

It's not a fishless days, defeat is dropping a giant at the boat.

#horror

https://youtu.be/yfnYSE-HjIE?si=q2WoUWq79OSl-X1U&t=887

A-Jay

Just now, Swimbaitstud said:

Jeez you need to move northeast. Never am I looking for 2s in a tourney haha. But I’ve found the same overall. Just got back heavily into tourneys two years ago and this past year I never broke 6lbs. In previous years I was catching 4 or 5 over 6. That said, I am more consistently catching 5lbers in summer on conventional baits now

We definitely are not out there looking for 2’s, but an average WINNING bag (on the waters) we fish is about 11 lbs for 6 fish. That’s probably skewed somewhat from 2-3 river tournaments, but still.

This has been a bad year though. I usually get at least one 5. Many years I will get one close to 6 and a couple low 5’s. Erie and a couple glacial lakes up north usually help the average, but I never get enough time on those waters.

1 minute ago, stk44 said:

We definitely are not out there looking for 2’s, but an average WINNING bag (on the waters) we fish is about 11 lbs for 6 fish. That’s probably skewed somewhat from 2-3 river tournaments, but still.

That’s brutal! The lowest weight I ever won with that I can remember would 13-14lbs with 5 fish. Typical club tourneys here are 5 fish and usually take 15-16 on the low end to 22-24lbs in some spring tourneys. Lots of 3-4lbers here

12 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Those of us on this side of the line define defeat differently.

It's not a fishless days, defeat is dropping a giant at the boat.

#horror

https://youtu.be/yfnYSE-HjIE?si=q2WoUWq79OSl-X1U&t=887

A-Jay

Ugh, I can only imagine. That is the hardest part for me—being able to push past that and keep a positive mental attitude to not let it ruin the rest of the day. No matter how many videos I watch on PMA, it still hurts.

17 minutes ago, Swimbaitstud said:

That’s brutal! The lowest weight I ever won with that I can remember would 13-14lbs with 5 fish. Typical club tourneys here are 5 fish and usually take 15-16 on the low end to 22-24lbs in some spring tourneys. Lots of 3-4lbers here

2 years ago I was in the top 5 with 1-12” fish. The guy in 6th place had the same weight as me but he was penalized for a dead fish. 🤣

No excuses though. It’s not that bad here. I will get a trophy fish someday and I’m sure if I target them I could greatly increase my chances.

Get out there and fish and write your own book! Most of these well known big bass hunters/catchers did just that. It’s also a mindset: it wasn’t until I started thinking big bass that I started catching big bass. Just works, no books necessary.

I happened across this post and thought I would add my two cents. Doug Hannon was fishing at a time when big bass were much more common in Florida than they are now. This does not minimize his achievements or make his books or teachings obsolete. He limited his bass fishing to small clear natural lakes deep in the Ocala National Forest, not far from my home. At that time, those lakes saw very few anglers. Since then, most have silted in or gone dry multiple times. This was before Rodman was created and the Ocalawaha river ran free. Florida still has some of these, many are on private land. That said, there are still plenty of large bass still in Florida, but few anglers ever catch them. The reason is fishing pressure. On any given weekend, the parking lot at the ramp near my house is overflowing with cars and trailers on both sides of the street. With this much pressure, bass develop the ability to ignore the most common fishing presentations. If the water is murky this gets much worse. It gets to a point where bass fishing becomes real work, not pleasure. Many new anglers give up on big bass fishing, thinking the water is fished out. If you are seriously committed to targeting only double digit Florida bass, you should master flipping heavy cover. It's hard work, but if you have enough patience, it produces results.

On 2/6/2026 at 1:39 PM, bowhunter63 said:

In pursuit of giants. Bill Murphy

For reading, this book is dry, but it has good information. Bill did not fish lakes with a lot of grass or pads, so it's lacking in that aspect. I have both of Josh Alwine's books and have not read them yet, but have high hopes. The Murphy book is definitely worth the money and I will finish it when I can, but man is it dry.

I like Tim Holschlag's smallmouth books a lot and have not found a copy of Big Bass Zone yet.

6 minutes ago, Drew03cmc said:

For reading, this book is dry, but it has good information. Bill did not fish lakes with a lot of grass or pads, so it's lacking in that aspect. I have both of Josh Alwine's books and have not read them yet, but have high hopes. The Murphy book is definitely worth the money and I will finish it when I can, but man is it dry.

I like Tim Holschlag's smallmouth books a lot and have not found a copy of Big Bass Zone yet.

Hit up Amazon for BBZ. He just released a new copy January of 26

2 hours ago, bowhunter63 said:

Hit up Amazon for BBZ. He just released a new copy January of 26

10-4, thanks for the heads up!

I live in Texas so probably have some similar waters. Some thoughts:

1) Josh Alwine's books really are worth the read. Won't cover it all, just read the books.

2) I have zero big bass more than about 1/2 a tail swish from deep water; deep is relative but call it 10 feet. Pay really close attention to how far a bass would have to go to run to safety.

3) if the timing is right a feeding flat right next to deep water can be pretty good

4) Per survey and catch data, I really try to stay away from water less than 5' deep. Not impossible, but both the state electroshock data and my own catches support this. Another way to think about it is "outside grass line and deeper" if you have grass.

5) if you fish the same spots with the same lures and the same cadence as everyone else, expect to get the same results. As an example, one of WRB's "regrets" was not learning swimbaits in the early days. If you drive your boat around flipping at obvious cover, nothing is going to happen interesting.

6) IMO, lean hard into FFS. The shore fish get hammered in Texas, and these fish didn't get to be big because they are dumb. They are big because they are skittish and have good genetics.

7) Gizzard shad is a major forage base for big fish here. Proceed accordingly.

8) If you treat really big fish like they are a different species, everything starts to make more sense in terms of their behavior. IMO < 4lbs, 5-9, 10-13 all behave differently. I'm frustrated a little now because my habits are getting me the middle class (which is still great) but isn't putting monsters on the board.

9) Prey and bass biology is worth some of your time.

10) in general, I get bigger fish fishing slower, and deeper when I'm not scoping. Steadier too. For whatever reason the erratic movement gets me more fish but not big fish; not true when you are scoping and playing cat/mouse though.

11) Prespawn for big fish starts way earlier than most believe.

12) time of day/feeding windows matter a lot, feeding windows are very much something I need to learn and understand better. But they don't have to eat all day when they can run up (or down) and eat a 6-8" gizzard.

If you're serious about it and willing to put the time into it. The books authored by Hannon, Murphy and Siemental are pure knowledge, they give you the framework. Take what they've written and bend it to your means. I read everything Doug Hannon put out when I was a very young kid, sucked it up like a sponge and applied it where I could for the means that I had. Murphy extrapolated on that even further. Siemental's Big Bass Zone dropped the final bread crumbs I was looking for to put the puzzle together with big bass, whether swimbait's, reaction baits, topwater, jig's or a bobber rig with a tiny little hair jig. All of what those guys wrote coupled with coming from a hardcore, multi-species fishing array of family members, East Idaho fly fisherman, strict bass fisherman to offshore salmon, marlin, tuna, you name it, to nothing but chasing striper from the ocean through the bay and into the delta. I had the knowledge pool to draw from. Those 3 books played a huge part in me being able to put it together and all of it plays a huge part in the baits I build now.

Bill Murphy's book is a good start for learning how to fish structured lakes. However, strategies can be wildly different depending on your region. Unless you happen to live in the same area as the author, no book or internet advice is going to be able to tell you about your specific waters.

One thing I'll tell you is trophy fishing is a game of odds. Start by looking through your DNR survey data and any records you can find about past catches. Find the lakes that have the best potential around you, then narrow it down to one lake and really focus that lake for a season. What most trophy hunters have in common is that they fish at most a handful of lakes that they know intimately.

On 4/7/2026 at 2:09 PM, Drew03cmc said:

For reading, this book is dry, but it has good information. Bill did not fish lakes with a lot of grass or pads, so it's lacking in that aspect. I have both of Josh Alwine's books and have not read them yet, but have high hopes. The Murphy book is definitely worth the money and I will finish it when I can, but man is it dry.

I like Tim Holschlag's smallmouth books a lot and have not found a copy of Big Bass Zone yet.

I hadn't heard of Holschlag. Just ordered 2 of his books, Thanks for the heads up. There are a couple copies of the original Big Bass Zone books available on Amazon as well as an updated edition that I wasn't aware of

Every time I go out, I go with only the thought of finding fish regardless of size. I consider it a game of darts, can I hit that piece of choice cover, or can I hit the structure point, can I get under that dock, or place a bait right in the middle of that down timber. If I am on target I’m happy regardless of what I’m catching. I know if I’m on target a big fish will be somewhere in the vicinity.

My personal best is 11.4 and was caught at noon after not catching a fish for 4 hours. With a weightless Fluke, on my lightest spinning rod, with 8 pound mono, in the back of a lily pad field. So you never know, and you sure as s*** have to be lucky regardless of how good you think you are. Time on the water always provides your best opportunity. Be observant, be often, be positive, and enjoy every moment.