(Editor's note: The following is the latest installment in a series of fishing tips presented by The Bass University. Check back each Friday for a new tip.)
Many pros tout their own versatility and refuse to name a favorite technique, but give Caleb Sumrall some thick grass and a punching rod and he’s in heaven. “It’s like my favorite technique in the history of ever,” he said.
That’s because grass mats are a complete ecosystem. When he gets around them he knows that bass are living there and feeding. In fact, asked the best time to punch, he answered, “If it’s floating, it’s mat season.” That’s why he keeps the big stick on the deck of his boat year-round, even if it’s only used for two key flips during a tournament.
“Grass is life,” he explained. “Those bass can stay in there 365. They do not have to leave, regardless of the conditions.”
He uses two different 7’11” Kistler Helium 3 rods for the technique – a 5-power for floating mats and a 6-power when a lot of the grass is anchored to the bottom. When the latter situation is the case, he fears that a fast-moving bass can swim around the roots and make it harder to extract. In both cases he pairs the rod with an 8.1:1 Bruin Outdoors baitcasting reel with the 22 pounds of drag maxed out. “You don’t want anything slipping,” he explained, and the fast gear ratio enables him to make “a million drops in a day.” He spools it up with 65-pound braid.
Sumrall typically keeps multiple weights rigged up – most often 1 ounce and 1.5 ounces – to adjust the rate of fall. He wants to use as little as possible without overpowering the mats. If you have to, shake it a lot to get the bait through go heavier. He puts the tungsten in front of a 4/0 straight-shank Gamakatsu heavy flipping hook and ties a snell knot. Other knots are okay at times, he said, but when a fish catches you off guard the snell will increase your hookup percentage.
His number one soft plastic for this technique is a Missile Baits D-Bomb, often in some combination of black and blue, although he’ll move to shades of green pumpkin when the fish are feeding on bluegills or if the water is especially clear.
As Sumrall approaches key mats, he works hard to keep the boat a consistent distance away, and first targets the edges before gradually going deeper. Eventually, he’ll drop it right on one’s head.
“This is not a coaxing deal,” he said. Thus, the initial raise of the rod is critical. If the fish feel you, they’ll often drop the bait. If there’s no pickup on that initial bite, he’ll most often yo-yo the lure once and then make another flip. A straight up and down presentation is also important – a lure that makes a pendulum motion rarely triggers bites. He’s always looking for differences along a grass line. It could be a log, a tire, a hole, or where two grasses come together. Even a small depth change can make a huge difference in terms of productivity.
Just remember, you may get fewer bites than with other techniques, and you’ll rarely go 100 percent on the day, but the quality more than makes up for it.
“That braid-singing in that mat is what I live for,” he concluded.
If you want to learn some of the other secrets of how Sumrall punches hydrilla mats, including his critical advice on rod positioning, check out his full on-the-water video, available only by subscribing to The Bass University TV.
