Catch the Most and Biggest Bass in Any Lake: 18 Pro Fishermens Best Tactics

This is clearly an effective method of thinning the bass population providing recreation at the same time. It may take two to three years to bring the population back into balance. These fish will be too large to be eaten by the bass. The large panfish will spawn in the spring and produce a supply of forage. Black bass should not be confused with a multitude of unrelated fish species found around the world and called "bass", such as the butterfly peacock bass Cichla ocellaris , speckled peacock bass Cichla temensis , Papuan black bass Lutjanus goldiei also called Niugini bass , Australian bass , rock bass Ambloplites rupestris , American striped bass, and British sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax.

In modern bass fishing competitions, caught bass are placed in a live well, and released as soon as caught and weighed by officials. Competitors are penalized heavily for dead fish and in some cases dead fish are not weighed. Fish turned in for weighing are immediately released or placed in tanks and treated for stress and glyco-protein slime coat injury, then released back into the water. There are several major bass fishing competitions in the United States, with the two most dominant circuits being Bassmasters and the FLW series.

The state of Illinois was the first to make competitive bass fishing a state-sanctioned high school sport in They offer 22 sectional tournaments which cater to high school teams across the state. Teams which qualify at the sectional level compete for the state title in May. States across the country have taken to Illinois' lead. Kentucky was the second to follow suit in Private groups have seen the opportunity to grow the industry as well through exposure of high school student to tournament bass fishing.

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The Bass Federation, for example, offers high school tournament series in over 40 states, eventually crowning a State Champion and giving them the opportunity to compete on the national level. The top fifteen finishing teams in each of these regional qualifiers advance to the Regional Invitational tournament and have an opportunity to advance to the FLW College National Championship and fish for a place in the following year's Forrest L Woods Cup Professional Bass Tournament.

Similarly, the Bassmaster College Series divides the nation into 5 regions. They only offer one qualifying opportunity at the regional level as opposed to the three offered by the FLW College Series.

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The top 15 from each of the 5 regional qualifiers advance directly to the Bassmaster College Series National Champion and compete for a position in the following year's Bassmaster Classic. The Cabelas Collegiate Bass Fishing Series compiles a ranking of "School of the Year" points, which are often coveted by schools across the country.

These points are gathered through successful tournament finishes in tournaments recognized by the Association of Collegiate Anglers. Cabelas Collegiate Bass Fishing Series also hosts a large-scale national open.

The Indiana University was the first to establish a tournament fishing club in , with Purdue University creating one soon afterwards. The University of Illinois was third to make a tournament bass fishing student organization, and the trend has grown tremendously ever since. Competitive bass fishing has also spread to anglers in other countries such as Japan , Korea , Italy , Australia and South Africa. Australian tournaments are based on a native freshwater fish called Australian bass that is unrelated to largemouth bass. With the rise in popularity of competitive bass fishing came the multibillion-dollar industry of professional bass angling.

The rise in popularity and the companies that have supported the sport have now made it possible to turn bass angling into a professional sport. A professional bass angler is a person who competes in bass fishing pro circuit and may also have company sponsorships. Professional bass anglers are not able to simply sign up for these professional circuits. The angler must compete and win local and smaller events to in order create a reputation.

Many professional bass anglers also get company sponsorships.

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These sponsorships help fund the expenses of being a bass angler. In turn the angler is also promoting the company that they are sponsored by. When the angler is not competing it is essential to attend public seminars and give presentations. Stick in the Middle Big girls holding in wintertime haunts 20 feet down or deeper are often lethargic, and although they may eventually slide into ankle-deep water to lay their eggs, your best bet for prespawn sows willing to feed is in midrange depths of 8 to 12 feet.

With that in mind, Reehm works secondary points made of clay.

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Bulk Up Where many might use a lizard imitation at the end of the rig, Reehm prefers a watermelon Zoom Brush Hog because it provides more bulk for fish that want the most bang for their bite. Mike Bucca of Georgia makes the double-jointed Bull Shad Swimbait in tournament sizes of 5 and 6 inches, but he also makes a 9-inch brush-tailed beast that imitates the local prey perfectly. Cashing in with one means striking at the right time of day in the right kind of water. Set Your Sights Bucca says a major benefit to chucking giant swimbaits is that they expand the strike zone, meaning the fish can see and hear them from a long distance, which makes it less important that you cast to a pinpoint location.

Shoot for 50 If he had to choose one particular time to look for big mama, it would be right when the water hits 50 degrees in spring, Bucca says. It happens a lot earlier than people think. Just be sure to carry a lure retriever. Crankbaits that hit the bottom in 20 feet of water have flooded the market. Putting a lure like that to work, however, means rethinking how you crank. Get a Beef Stick A big crank requires a big stick. Combs likes a stout 7-foot inch cranking rod from Power Tackle, but to keep the wobble up, he uses a sensitive, small-diameter pound fluorocarbon. Combs will throw his over a shallow point or bar and work it into the depths.

Some anglers may be intimidated by the idea of sight fishing for the bass of a lifetime. After all, if you can see her, she can see you. Use that cover to your advantage by moving in close enough to see which way the female is facing, and then readjusting your angle. Be Patient If you get too excited and pull a bait off the bed when the fish approaches, it will get the message that the bait is no threat. Monroe prefers to soak a soft plastic in a bed, barely twitching it in place, until the big girl is agitated into striking.

Amp the Aggravation A lure that undulates in place allows you to milk a cast and push the agitation needle to Throttle Back If you want to aggravate a big girl, keep your lure in her face. Know the Color Code In muddy water, Long leans on a black-and-red jig. My customer sticks a fish and it weighs After high fives all around, we release her and go back over the hump the other way. When we realized it was a bass, our jaws hit the boat. That fish weighed In it happened again. Right after boating a 10, we caught a 13 on the next pass at a different hump.

The older I get the more special it becomes because I know the odds are against me. On our first encounter, I hooked her with a 9-inch Bull Shad and lost her at the boat. During that battle she lost a chunk of skin off the top of her head, leaving a very distinct white mark. I have seen this fish at least 50 times since, so now she is educated. Last year I walked the woods in full camo to get a different casting angle. I even designed a new bait just for her. On the second cast, she nailed it. So when they do make a move, they want a lot of calories and protein for the effort.

The watchword now is to fish slowly — and if that doesn't work, go slower. The bait or fly needs to be in contact with the bottom. You want to let the current do the work of enticing that fish to bite yet another reason for using soft hair and feather fibers.

The offering, be it bait or fly, needs to be resting on the bottom, with only occasional added movement by the fisherman.

Winter fishing is a test of patience. Go slow and you'll catch fish. To avoid getting hung up on the bottom structure, fishermen need to ensure the hook point is buried in the tube. Fly-fishermen can minimize the snagging problem by using jig hooks or laying strips of lead-free wire on top of the hook shank as a counterbalance forcing the hook to ride point up.

Lighten up on the gear and you'll catch more fish.

Best Tactics for Catching Winter Smallmouth Bass

Rarely does a winter smallmouth smash the bait or fly. Instead, the take is subtle, more like the line momentarily catching on a weed or leaf, leaving you to wonder was it a fish or not. Light, sensitive rods allow the fisherman to detect the gentle take. Equally light lines sink faster than heavier lines due to their slim profile. That means you can use less weight to get the lure into the fishing zone. The lure acts more like natural food and when the smallie mouths it, the light line readily transmits the message to the fisherman. Summertime river fishing can be run-and-gun where one person is on the oars running the boat downstream while his buddy pounds the banks.

Winter fishing is just the opposite. If you are fishing from any kind of watercraft, it needs to be stationary. You can make the perfect cast to the perfect spot, but if the boat is moving, that movement is dragging your bait away from the fish-holding area. Smallmouth are very reluctant to chase in cold water. A boat-holding anchor is your friend. Smallmouth respond to weather changes and fishermen should as well.

Cold fronts put the bass in a funk and drive them deep.

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A nice warm again a relative term winter rain will raise the water temperature and spur the fish into eating. A few days of sunshine and no wind will spike the water temperature a few degrees and bring the fish into the shallows. Target shallows that are close to the deep-water holding areas, because the smallies won't travel far.

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When noting temperature changes, the trend is more important than the actual temperature. Increasing temperature is good for catching. Decreasing will send the fish back into the doldrums. Protect yourself against cold, rainy and maybe even snowy conditions.