THE LATEST NEWS
Pro Bass Anglers Increasing #AnglersForAutism Awareness
Salem, Va. – April 1, 2019 –The professional bass anglers on the Bassmaster Elite Series are stepping up their promotion of Autism Awareness during the month of April this year. During their two Elite Series events, the pro anglers will be competing for the third annual Autism Angler of April award. The trophy will be awarded to the angler who finishes the highest in those two bass tournaments while wearing the custom autism awareness bracelet.
Pros will also be optionally pledging donations to various autism charities and using the hashtag #AnglersForAutism to create a link for the cause.
“The bass fishing community has really embraced our autism push that we are do every April. The pros, the fans, B.A.S.S., and everyone has helped us make this campaign great,” says pro angler John Crews. “This year, we are going to award the awesome trophy and are stepping up our social media game with the #AnglersForAutism hashtag. I am making a pounds pledge of $2 per pound for every bass I weigh during the month of April and donating that to Blue Ridge Autism and Achievement Center.”
In order for the angler to win the Autism Angler of April trophy this year, the anglers who wear the blue autism wristbands will be tracked by the amount of AOY points they earn in the two Elite events in April, which are Lake Hartwell and Winyah Bay. The step up this year for the pro anglers is going to be that they are encouraged to pledge a certain amount of money to their local or a national autism charity. The next step is posting about their pledge on social media and then B.A.S.S. and the pros sharing the other pros social media posts using that #AnglersForAutism tag.
The blue Autism bracelets will also be available for sale at the two April BASS Elite events expo in the B.A.S.S merchandise booth. They can also be purchased online at missilebaits.com and at mylittlebuddysboat.com. The Autism bracelets will sell for $10 each and 100 percent of the money going to an Autism charity.
Eli Delany, an Autism activist and avid bass angler, is the president and founder of My Little Buddy’s Boat Inc., an Autism non-profit. Eli is one of the main people that has pushed the Autism flag into the forefront of bass fishing. He has worked on several efforts such as the Fishin’ With a Mission decal program. Many bass pros have had the decal on their boat for years.
Remember that April 2 is World Autism Awareness day and April is Autism awareness month. The winner of the Autism Angler of April award will be crowned at the BASS Toyota Texas Fest at Lake Fork in Texas. Be sure to follow each angler on social media and at the weigh-ins to see where and how much they are raising and catching.
The Best Flipping Hook
Ish Monroe’s New Jack Flippin Hook. Monroe’s New Jack Flippin’ Hook is new concept in Flippin’ hooks incorporates the line tie and the soft plastics keeper into one position that allows anglers to tie almost every popular knot out there, yet still cantilevers like hooks that anglers tie a Snell knot on. Thanks to the welded line tie on the shank of the hook, the New Jack Flippin’ Hook allows the angler to run their line through the top line tie, then tie most popular knots to the second eye, and the motion of a hookset allows the tungsten weight and the hook to pop up and drive the hook point home. Made of River2Sea’s Double Strong wire, Ish Monroe’s New Jack Flippin’ Hook is available in sizes 3/0, 4/0, 5/0 and 6/0 and will hold up to heavy hooksets and heavy tackle. www.river2seausa.com
Follow Ish on his Facebook page.
see the full River 2 Sea line up here.
How Butch Brown Fishes the Thumper Tail
The thought of swimbait fishing can be intimidating to some anglers. The big baits require upsized gear and a different approach to fish them correctly, but maybe it doesn’t have to be that way. Noted big bass hunter Butch Brown is one of the best in the world with a swimbait and his way of fishing baits like the Optimum Baits Thumper Tail is remarkably similar to the way many bass anglers fish traditional reaction baits.
When to Thump
Brown fishes a wide-range of swimbaits and is one of the anglers who helped turn the Deps Slide Swimmer 250 glide bait into a must-have for fans of big baits. Since glide baits are visual lures, he admits that they are not the way to go when the water is stained or dirty. These situations are a place where when he picks up a Thumper Tail.
“It puts off way more vibration, and if the water is a little murky, you need some extra help. The thump that these baits provide is key, and you can feel it as you are bringing the bait in,” he says. “They have more thump than a Huddleston, which I’ve caught some really big ones on, but not when the water is stained. Those do not have as much vibration and are a more visual big bait.”
Think of it Like a Spinnerbait
How Brown likes to fish the Thumper Tail is much like fishing a spinnerbait, just with a much bigger bait. “I’ll either use a slow wind or slow-roll it, just like you would with a spinnerbait,” adds Brown.
He will pay close attention to his electronics to see what depth range the fish are relating to and will make sure his bait is in the strike zone. “If you notice the fish are all down in the 15-20-foot range, you want to keep the bait right there.”
Cranking a Swimbait
While Brown often retrieves his Thumper Tail like a bass angler fishes a spinnerbait, he approaches it much like someone moving down the bank with a crankbait as he parallels the shoreline.
Butch with a Thumper Tail bass caught working down the bank.
“I like to stay about ten feet off of the shore and cast parallel to the bank; it is no different than fishing a crankbait. You are searching until you find the fish,” says Brown. “It helps to know the area you are fishing so you can follow the contours and fish a specific depth zone.”
Depending on the depth he is fishing, Brown alters his approach as he moves down the bank. “I usually don’t want the bait banging into the bottom the whole time and usually keep it six inches, or a foot or two off of the bottom to avoid the rocks and stickups,” he shares. “The fish seem to bite the Thumper Tail on the wind when it is moving and that is what makes it such a good search bait.”
When approaching a point, he will do one of two things: cast across the point or fish the bait uphill. “If I locate fish on points, my first step is to cast over it and bring it back. After that, I’ll get tight to shore on the point and cast out to the end of the point,” says Brown. “By working the bait uphill, you can give the fish something they are not used to seeing as much.”
Butch’s Thoughts on Colors
A few of the many colors offered.
The Thumper Tail comes in a variety of colors from the trout imitators to Pearl White. Each has their time and place, and Brown adjusts which one he uses based on water clarity and the tried and true method of matching the hatch.
For stained or dirty water, he likes Light Hitch because it stands out with a bright stripe down the side. Other times he prefers to have a natural color like Saiko Trout or Dark Trout when fishing cleaner water.
The Thumper Tail in Light Hitch
“All of the colors are for different conditions, and I like to keep track of what the fish are eating and try to match it. If I notice that the stocked trout are getting chased a bunch, I like the Lit Up Trout because it has a lighter look,” he says. “I learned a long time ago from tuna fishing that the best baits you can rig up are the ones that are lighter colored and stand out, those are the lively ones. Those active sardines and anchovies in the tank get bit right away.” He feels that the same principle applies to bass chasing their next meal as it does to tuna offshore.
6” or 9”?
The Thumper Tail comes in two different sizes, and even though Brown is known for throwing large baits, he is a fan of the smaller version when conditions call for it.
Both sizes of the Thumper Tail
“You are going to appeal to bigger fish with the 9” bait, but the 6” is a great summertime bait. I also use it a lot when I go to lakes that don’t have many bass over six pounds,” he says. “The smallmouth and striper chew it, too. It is a fun bait to fish, and you definitely get more bites with it.”
Most of the time, though, he is sticking with the original Thumper Tail that comes in at 9” long and weighs over five-ounces. It is a true big-fish bait and has accounted for many of them over the years.
Butch Brown has few equals when it comes to throwing big baits. His numbers of double-digit bass are legendary, and he has spent years dedicated to trophy hunting. The Optimum Baits Thumper Tail was his design, and it fits a niche in the swimbait game when a little thump is needed to get bit.
Lake Hartwell: Just ask Colton
If you’re looking for insight on what to expect at the Bassmaster Elite Series event on Lake Hartwell this week, you might want to stop by Ralph Hayes Toyota – South Carolina’s most long established Toyota dealership, located three minutes from Hartwell’s shoreline.
Once you get there, ask for Colton. You won’t find him in a front office, but instead let your ears lead you to the back of the building where you’ll hear the roar of the industrial power washer 18-year-old Colton Turner uses to detail vehicles in order to pay for the white 2007 Tacoma he bought.
“It’s my baby,” he’ll tell you of his Tacoma. And the former angler from the B.A.S.S. sanctioned Palmetto Boat Center High School Trail will also tell you anything you need to know about fishing on Lake Hartwell. As a high school angler, he qualified for the State Championship four straight years.
“Oh, there’s no doubt, bass fishing is very much a part of the family culture here at Ralph Hayes Toyota,” says Stan Hill, the dealership’s Director of Training. “And when anybody wants to know about how to catch a bass on Hartwell around here, they just ask Colton.”
So we did. We asked Colton what B.A.S.S. fans could expect on Hartwell this week, and here’s what he had to say.
“I think you’ll see a lot of guys fishing a jig around boat docks or targeting pre-spawners with a crankbait out there in 15-feet of water,” says Turner. “There are definitely bass spawning here, the water temp is right around 60 degrees, but guys who don’t want to spend a lot of time trying to catch fish off beds will probably try to catch quality fish of docks with a jig.”
You can also count on spinning rods linked to wacky-rigged soft stick baits to get major playing time around Hartwell’s docks this week.
“We had a big team tournament here last weekend with 52 teams that know the lake well and 16 pounds won it,” says Turner. “But the thing that surprised me most is we saw fish schooling on the surface even though the water temp is barely 60 degrees. So don’t be surprised if somebody weighs fish this week throwing a topwater or small swimbait at schooling fish if they’re fortunate enough to see that kind of activity,” warns Turner.
Powroznik Rallies for Win in Bass Pro Tour Stage Three Raleigh
RALEIGH, N.C. – When it all comes down to it, the Major League Fishing format has always been about identifying fishing conditions on the fly, and making the right adjustments as those conditions change.
MLF pro Jacob Powroznik learned enough from the first fish he saw on Championship Sunday to tell him all he needed to know. That fish, which rolled on a floating worm in the first pocket that the Virginia pro fished on Shearon Harris Reservoir, clued Powroznik in that the lake’s largemouth were in extremely shallow water and spawning.
Powroznik didn’t catch that fish, but it caused him to pick up a wacky-rigged 5-inch V&M Chopstick and start fishing for spawners. It was the right decision: Powroznik connected with 20 fish for 63 pounds, 4 ounces to earn a shiny new red-and-silver trophy and the $100,000 first-place check at the Bass Pro Tour Favorite Fishing Stage Three Raleigh presented by Evinrude.
“I saw that fish swim over on that floating worm, and I knew right then fish were spawning,” Powroznik said. “They were really shallow, and I picked that wacky-worm up right then and didn’t take it out of my hand the rest of the day.”
From sight fishing to casting Powroznik, one of the most skilled sight-fishermen in the field, dedicated some time early in the day to bedding fish, but then pulled off the beds and started casting to shallow water when mid-day clouds spoiled the visibility. That, too, proved to be a key decision.
“I love sight fishing, but the farther you stay off of them, the better,” Powroznik confirmed. “Those fish were in a foot of water, so they wanted something real subtle. It’s probably a good thing that it got cloudy and I couldn’t see those fish anymore, or I might’ve spent the day trying to get fish to bite sight-fishing to them. It turned out that it was better to cast to points that were a little further out toward the mouths of those pockets instead.”
It was far from a runaway for Powroznik.
Wheeler made a strong run Jacob Wheeler (who finished second with 59-10) piled up 44-3 through two periods, most of it on a frog. Wheeler finished out Period 2 with an 8-5 that pushed the Indiana pro to a seemingly comfortable lead of 9-11 heading into the final period.
Wheeler’s frog bite slowed down over the final two hours, though; Powroznik, meanwhile, worked his way through a 32-pound final period to chip away at Wheeler, eventually catching two 4-pounders and a 6-4 in the final hour to take a lead that he never relinquished.
“Obviously, to come up a little short, it always stings a little bit,” Wheeler said. “The conditions got right for a topwater and I got dialed in on that and took the lead. I knew at Shearon Harris you had to keep catching them, because you know there’s really good fish to be caught. Ultimately, I could sit here and complain, but there are plenty of other guys who would like to be in the position that I was.”
Rounding out the Top 10
Takahiro Omori finished third with 52-11, followed by Edwin Evers (43-13) and Mark Daniels, Jr. (30-13) to round out the Top 5. Ott DeFoe finished sixth with 26-1, followed by Jeff Sprague (25-14), Alton Jones (21-8), Jared Lintner (13-8) and Russ Lane (11-13).
Moving on to Stage Four
The 80-angler Bass Pro Tour field will have a short rest week before returning to competition April 9-14 at Lake Chickamauga in Dayton, Tenn., at the Econo Lodge Stage Four Dayton presented by Winn Grips.
QUOTABLE
Takahiro Omori (3rd/52-11) – “Well, the most likely thing was in the afternoon I was in the right area. In the morning, I wasted a lot of time, out in the mud. Once you get in the right area and get hooked up with the right bait, you know you’re going to have fun. It’s springtime, so it’s good.”
Edwin Evers (4th/43-13) – “I’m just on a little roll, man. I’m really excited about Major League Fishing, and it’s kind of reinvigorated my career. I’m ate up with it right now. I’m enjoying it again and it’s been a long time since I’ve enjoyed it. I’m just having a lot of fun, making good decisions, and having fun catching them. It’s humbling to be able to have three Top 10s like that, I don’t know what to say about it. I’m just going to be thankful for three great tournaments, which I am.”