Secrets of the Bass Tournament Pros
Tips That Will Make You a Better Recreational Angler
By Jerry Curtis
Competitive
fishing has made me a better angler. Yeah, tournaments generate some controversy,
but I’m a better angler thanks to fishing hundreds of competitive
angling events during the past 25 years. That’s
the simple truth, and I’m sticking to it.
Tournament angling demands efficiency. I participate in tournaments for the camaraderie, excitement, and thrill of competition. But as in any sport – whether it be triathlons, fantasy football, bodybuilding or tournament fishing – you’ll research and practice more when you pay an up-front entry fee. It’s human nature. Here are some tips I’ve learned from tournament fishing that will make you a better recreational angler.
Sight-reading. As soon as I know the location of my next fishing
contest, I begin researching the water and the weather. You know the
drill: lake maps, local bait shops, game and fish department web sites,
the Internet. Via simple research from home, the average tournament
angler has a remarkably firm grasp on a given body of water before he
sees it. Musicians call this sight-reading. They’re given a piece
of
sheet music and told to play it before a panel of judges after studying
it for a whole 60 seconds. Talk about pressure! But tournament anglers
approach an event the same way. The type of water -- river, lake, or
reservoir -- is the clef. Contours and depth are the time signature. The
Secchi reading (turbidity or murkiness of the water) is the key. Once
you learn to recognize the similarities between different bodies of
water, you’ll find – like a piece of music – that you
can apply a set of
rules and techniques for specific types of waters. Like I said,
efficiency is the name of the game.
Recreational “prefishing”. Tournament prefishing
allows me to search and
build confidence before game day. Trolling and casting crankbaits is
standard operating procedure. A recreational angler should approach a
new lake the same way. Cover water and find fish. Use those electronics
and that underwater camera to explore that structure you sight-read in
the days prior to your trip. Then when you find that big, sweet rock
atop a weed flat (what tournament guys call the “spot on a spot”)
mark
it with GPS and a marker buoy to fish it thoroughly. Fish it later under
different conditions. And use a black buoy. Other anglers tend to hone
in on bright orange or yellow buoys. Go figure.
Soft presentations. Ever hang around a pool hall? Inevitably,
a
muscle-clad youngster will march in, start slamming the cue ball around
the table, and maybe win a game or two. But hang around long enough, and
an old-timer with the soft touch will send the punk running for home.
Show me a boat with identical twins, one amateur and one pro, and I’ll
pick out the pro every time. It’s the guy with the soft touch, who
approaches the shallows quietly, speaks in a low voice, and deftly
places his Texas rig in the right spot with barely a ripple. If everyone
fished that way, the bass wouldn’t have a chance.
Try new techniques. When flipping first hit the bassin’
scene a decade
ago, thanks to the proliferation of thick vegetation much of which was
exotic, a few of us (including yours truly) stole a tournament or two
because we were willing to fish the heavy vedge. Flipping remains one of
my specialties because it’s effective, plus I love the exciting,
in-your-face action of this style. Be on the lookout for the next hot
new phase of bass fishing. Maybe it’s a deepwater technique, though
given the power and toughness of the latest rods and superlines, I think
we may see renewed emphasis on horsing lunker hawgs from the thick
cabbage and lilies in 2004.
Keep it simple. Usually, a winning bass angler captures an
event using
the old standbys: Texas or Carolina rigging, bouncing a jig, wacky
rigging, or crankbaits. Like any sport, understand and practice the
fundamentals before focusing too much energy on the latest craze.
Try new lures. Yeah, this runs counter to the previous advice,
but it
gets back to remaining versatile. At every tournament, I bring one new
lure. After a few casts, I’ll know if it’s a waste of time,
but just
bringing that “secret weapon” boosts my confidence. And you
just never
know! At a recent event, I brought a lure that I considered a “fisherman
catcher” not a fish catcher. It tore the bass up!
Use good equipment. I’m not suggesting that you buy
a truckload of
top-of-the-line gear. But I’m amazed at how often an amateur will
hoist
one of my rods, then burst into surprise at how well it loads and allows
precision casting. Once you understand the basics of fishing and start
hitting the water regularly, invest in some quality rods and reels. Rig
them with good line. I still like mono during the spring and early
summer before the weeds get thick, then I switch to a new superline.
Trust me, you will know where that extra money went.
Don’t blab. It’s the oldest fishing rule in the
book: Don’t give away
your hot spots. Yet so many anglers ignore this one. Guess what? Top
tournament pros follow this rule, and it’s one reason they’re
successful. Go ahead and talk technique, and weather and water
conditions. Just don’t advertise prime spots.
Simple fundamentals -- they work for tourney pros, and they’ll
work for
you, too!
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