Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2025 i Bassmaster

Competitive bass anglers aren’t like baseball players who go running for shelter and send someone out to cover the playing surface at the first sight of inclement weather. Bass anglers fish through pouring rains, frigid cold, scorching heat and driving winds. But even the toughest of the tough have to know when to cry, “Uncle.” In Florida, when the Spanish moss is standing straight out and the waves are splashing high enough to soak it from underneath, it’s a safe bet you’ve reached “crying Uncle” territory. That’s what happened at the Strike King Bassmaster College Series event at Harris Chain of Lakes presented by Bass Pro Shops — as much as it dismayed a bunch of anglers who showed up ready and willing to brave the elements for the first…

It’s your turn to write a cutline for your favorite magazine. Follow B.A.S.S. on Facebook (@bass) and Instagram (@bass_nation) and comment with a clever caption on this cartoon that will be posted on our feed on Feb. 25, 2025. If your caption is chosen, it will be printed in an upcoming issue. Last Month’s Post Last Month’s Caption Winner: “Ye call it ‘catch and release’—I call it ‘plunder and return.’” @sorrellsdylan…

Should the sun position factor into boat position when you’re setting up on cover? What about boat position when wind is a factor when targeting standing timber or brush? Nick Mansell, Instagram Bassmaster Elite Series pro Caleb Sumrall Wind tends to be more of a factor than the sun, except when fish are on beds. When they are bedding, you must keep your shadow off the bed, so you’ll want the sun in your face for that situation. If I can’t position the boat properly, I will back way off and make longer casts. When I’m fishing in a lot of wind and it’s too deep to use my shallow-water anchors, I want to be downwind of the target. This allows me to control the boat more easily and prevents…

Strike King Homing Minnow $6.99-$8.99 | strikeking.com Features: Perfect for cold-weather schooling fish, this pre-rigged swimbait is ready for action straight out of the package Available in 3- and 4-inch sizes and in weights from 1/8 to 3/8 ounce, you’ll be able to target bass in both shallow and deep water Features flat sides and a 90-degree line tie, providing easy control and visibility when used in conjunction with forward-facing sonar Both sizes are available in 10 forage-matching colors Spro RkCrawler 55 $12.99 | spro.com Features: If you are cranking in cold weather and your lake has hard cover, tie on one of these The deflection properties of this diver are legendary, and it hunts when cranked at multiple speeds Just a little over 2 inches long, weighs in at…

IF YOU LOVE bass fishing and care about the world records, there’s a problem. With advances in DNA testing, the American Fisheries Society (AFS) has recently adopted the designation of new black bass species, including a split of what was once largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) into largemouth bass (Micropterus nigricans) and Florida bass (Micropterus salmoides). The Micropterus genus is now made up of 14 species, with more almost certainly to come. It wasn’t that long ago that there were fewer than eight. That’s interesting … perhaps even enlightening. The International Game Fish Association (IGFA) — one of the organizations that has taken upon itself to maintain fresh and saltwater fishing records — has decided to follow AFS recommendations by differentiating between largemouth and Florida bass for record-keeping purposes. The IGFA…

I’ve seen guys fishing from boats that have covers over their outboards. What are the advantages, and are there any drawbacks? Roy Cousin, Pierre, S.D. Today’s cowlings have an automotive finish and can get scratched easily. Justin Russell of Russell Marine Products (russellmarineproducts.com) says the cover provides protection for the cowling from unsightly damage caused by bugs, limb scratches, errant casts and debris. When it comes time to sell the boat, your cowling will look like new. Besides that, they look cool on there. There aren’t many drawbacks, although you must make sure the straps are cinched tight and the cover is properly positioned to ensure motor vents aren’t blocked. Being lightweight, the covers are also proned to blowing off in the wind. You have to take the cover off…

SOME TIME DURING the week of Aug. 12-18, 1984, a Lamiglas flipping stick blew out of the boat of a competitor fishing in the Bassmaster Classic that week on the Arkansas River in Pine Bluff, Ark. The rod, with its small Ryobi reel and rigged with a black jig with a gray smoke-colored plastic trailer, washed up on the shore in the Dumas Pool where a 10-year-old boy and his father found it two days after the Classic ended. Now, 40 years later, the boy who found that rod — and who used it to win his first bass tournament — is one of the most accomplished flipping fishermen in tournament bass competition today. He’ll fish his 19th Classic this year, possibly adding that title alongside a 2014 Bassmaster Angler…

WATER DEPTH, SIZE, complexity, fixed or floating, sand or seawall — lots of details crunch into the dock calculation. The most consistent anglers carry a mental checklist that not only steers them to the superlative structures, but also helps them quickly eliminate the ones not worth their time. Giving this its due regard, such summaries certainly guide the general search. That’s not a bad thing, but often a specific tale of exact details yielding tournament success teaches master-level lessons. If that sounds good, consider these examples from a trio of top-tier dock pros. mul•ti•ple op•tions \Wes Logan\ Event (2024 Gamakatsu Bassmaster Elite at Toledo Bend) 1 Dock Details: While practicing for the 2024 Elite season-opener, Wes Logan located a special dock in the first third of a midlake creek. During…

Date: March 29, 2024 Venue: Lake N, a small reservoir Water: 58 degrees, stained Weather: Clear, light breeze, high of 70 Pro: Brad Whatley, 43, Bivins, Texas. Whatley’s second-place finish in the 2018 Central Opens point standings earned him an Elite Series berth for 2019. Since then he’s qualified for two Bassmaster Classics. Whatley missed three Elite derbies in 2022 due to a medical hardship (Crohn’s disease); following a successful medical procedure he rejoined the tour for the last two tournaments of the season. Boat: Phoenix 920 Elite II with 250-horsepower Mercury outboard, Minn Kota trolling motor and shallow-water anchors, and Humminbird and Garmin electronics BRAD WHATLEY IS a hardcore Texas tournament hammer, a veteran power fisherman who has pocketed boatloads of cash via what those 20-something Elite Series whippersnappers refer…

1 [Dissecting Grass During The Spawn] Many anglers feel lost when trying to formulate a plan on a lake with lots of grass. But a few simple tips can get you out of the weeds and on track for landing big springtime bass. Where Do I Start? The golden question. It’s not uncommon to be a little lost when fishing a body of water that features an abundance of grass like Lake Guntersville, Sam Rayburn Reservoir or the Upper Mississippi River. During spring, finding a main creek arm and then identifying the routes bass take from prespawn to spawn can be a solid initial plan. From there, you can work your way further toward the spawning areas or to the main lake, depending on the conditions. Keep It Moving At…

TOOLS ENABLE TASKS. Tasks define intent. Fairly, it follows that intent requires a firm grasp on variables. With speed, range and rough-water stability at a premium, Cole Sands runs a Skeeter FXR Apex for his Bassmaster Elite Series competition as well as his Chickamauga Lake guiding. But offer him a chance to zip upstream on a jet boat and he’s all in. Why? It’s a fun way to explore the microcosm of a larger premise that fits many rivers throughout the nation’s premier bass fisheries. Constantly moving water — it’s both reality and rapture, and success awaits those who learn its ways. “I have a couple of buddies with jet boats, and that’s some of the most fun fishing you’ll ever do,” Sands said. “We’ll target smallmouth, and the biggest…

THIS IS THE time of year when you’re likely to see a swim jig dangling from at least one of a basser’s rods. It’s certainly the favorite time for swim jigging for Bassmaster Elite Series pro Bryan Schmitt, arguably one of the best among Elite pros when it comes to swimming a jig. “If I had to pick one time that is my favorite, it’s during the spawn — early prespawn, spawn and even early postspawn,” says Schmitt. “After that, I really like it in the dead of summer.” While those may be his favorite periods, the Maryland angler cautions anglers against believing it’s strictly a seasonal lure. He has one tied on throughout the year and has developed a specific system that he believes makes it deadly year-round. Schmitt…

When Buddy Gross began to rise in the ranks of professional bass fishing, the Chattanooga native began to adapt his Tennessee style of power fishing to other regions. In early March, when the Elite Series rolls back to Lake Okeechobee, Gross will be busy fishing for spawning bass using a hybrid pattern that blends power fishing gear with a bait often deployed with finesse tackle. For readers who sit decidedly in the baitcasting camp, Gross’ method can prove to be an effective remedy for the spincasting blues. “In the far South, you can expect that some fish have already spawned by now,” says Gross. “There’s at least been one wave of bass that have spawned, but there’s most likely another wave preparing to move in on the next moon. So,…

Congratulations to the newest members of the Bassmaster Lunker Club™. Membership in the club is free and open to any B.A.S.S. member who catches a largemouth bass weighing 10 pounds or more, a spotted bass weighing 5 pounds or more, or a smallmouth bass weighing 6 pounds or more, from Jan. 1, 2024, to the present. New Lunker Club members will receive an official certificate with holder and a gift pack. 15-8 Tas Moua 1 Bass Lake, California 2.5-ounce BGC Deep Shad (shad) 6-11 Michael Cusano 2 Chaumont Bay, New York Texas-rigged Yamamoto Senko 5-3 Jordan Hardin 3 Buggs Island Lake, Virginia 1/4-ounce jighead minnow 10-4 Kathy Easterling 4 Lake Fork, Texas Strike King Jointed Structure Jig 12-2 Larry Easterling 5 Lake Fork, Texas 3/4-ounce Jewel football jig 10-3 Herb…

When the schedule was announced for the 2025 Newport Bassmaster Kayak Series presented by Native Watercraft, the very first derby was highly anticipated. The anglers would clash rods on Arizona’s Lake Havasu, marking a rare Western event for Bassmaster competitions. The anglers in that region of the U.S. responded well, as 111 competitors, the vast majority of which hailed from either California or Arizona, plied the blue-green waters of Havasu in search of winning limits of largemouth. The scene couldn’t have been more picturesque, as the slap of paddles and electric props echoed through the Mohave Mountains standing sentinel beyond the lake reeds lining the water’s edge. Although anglers from California and Arizona took seven of the Top 10 spots when the event concluded, it was legendary kayak angler Drew…