Heavy Baits Were Critical In Fast-Moving Water

By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor

The spotted-bass bite in the raging waters of the Alabama River was excellent last week. At least 90 percent of the field weighed a limit on each day of the event and an average of just under 15 pounds a day was required to make the Top 12.

Competitors who fared the best understood that heavy baits were required to entice the biggest fish in the system. Standard stuff weighing less than a half-ounce would go right over their heads and frequently got snatched up by smaller specimens that weren't much help in terms of getting into contention or even making a paycheck.

Here are some pattern details for competitors who finished closest to winner Edwin Evers.

2nd: Brent Chapman

> Day 1: 5, 17-12
> Day 2: 5, 23-05
> Day 3: 5, 18-03
> Day 4: 5, 14-13
> Total = 20, 74-01

Brent Chapman went south of the launch in Montgomery, Ala. on the first 2 practice days and fared okay, but he wasn't approaching the 20 pounds per day that running mate (and eventual 11th-place finisher) Randy Howell was reporting from up north. Howell had already determined that he was going to focus on the Bouldin Dam Canal, so he spent day 3 helping Chapman in the area below the Jordan Dam.

"We went up there together and he was the one who figured out the spinnerbait deal," Chapman said. "He told me to make sure I hit this one little eddy, but at the time he didn't realize just how good it was. I found that out on the first day of the tournament."

He averaged nearly 20 pounds a day over the first 3 days while doing most of his damage from that one small break in the rampaging current. Most of the fish took the blade, while some were enticed by a wobble-head jig or a hollow-belly swimbait.

He opted not to make the treacherous trip up there on day 4, after the flow had receded dramatically, and regretted that decision when Evers ended up surpassing him.

> Spinnerbait gear: 7' medium-heavy Wright & McGill Rick Clunn Signature Series rod, Wright & McGill Skeet Reese Victory 621 casting reel (6.2:1 ratio), 40-pound Gamma Torque braided line, 3/4-ounce War Eagle spinnerbait (spot remover).

> He used a variety of other spinnerbaits as well, some as heavy as 1 ounce.

> Swimbait gear: 7'6" heavy-action Wright & McGill Skeet Reese Signature Series swimbait rod, same reel, 20-pound Gamma fluorocarbon line, generic 1/2-ounce jighead, generic hollow-belly swimbait (threadfin shad).

> Jig gear: Same rod, reel and line as swimbait, 3/4-ounce Mesu Baits Wobble Head, TightLines UV Beaver (black/blue).

Main factor in his success – "Committing to that area and making those runs."

Performance edge – "By far the most important thing was my Odyssey batteries for allowing me to hold in that current and withstand it all day long."

3rd: Steve Kennedy

> Day 1: 5, 15-12
> Day 2: 5, 16-01
> Day 3: 5, 23-03
> Day 4: 5, 17-05
> Total = 20, 72-05

Like Chapman, Steve Kennedy did most of his damage in the rapids below the Jordan Dam. Unlike Chapman, he made the journey on day 4, but the area surrendered only one good fish that day in the greatly reduced current.

"Regardless of the conditions, I was going to do what I had to do to get up there," he said. "I'd only fished two or three tournaments on the river and I'd never been able to get above the bridge at Wetumpka.

"I went on day 2 of practice, and then I didn't even go out on the third day. I knew I was going to go up there and have some fun."

His methods were very similar to Chapman's.

"The main deal was a 1-ounce spinnerbait. When the river was ripping, you could get in any current break or eddy and flutter it in those little gaps. When you caught one, there were usually five more sitting there."

The swimbait was a pattern than Ott DeFoe put him on and it carried him on the final day.

"I downsized the bait and the line and put a hurting on them. That was a lot of fun."

> Spinnerbait gear: 7'6" heavy-action Kistler LTA rod, older model Shimano Curado casting reel (6.2:1 ratio), unnamed 20-pound fluorocarbon line, unnamed 1-ounce spinnerbait (white or chartreuse/white).

> Swimbait gear: 7' medium-heavy Kistler LTA rod, older model Shimano Chronarch 50 MG casting reel (6.2:1 ratio), 15-pound unnamed fluorocarbon line, 1/4-ounce unnamed jighead, 5" unnamed swimbait (shad).

Main factor in his success – "Just committing to fishing up behind that dam."

Performance edge – "The heavy spinnerbait was a big key. A lot of guys weren't getting their stuff down fast enough, and that's what you had to do to get the better fish."

4th: Alton Jones

> Day 1: 5, 16-06
> Day 2: 5, 20-04
> Day 3: 5, 17-04
> Day 4: 5, 17-10
> Total = 20, 71-08

Alton Jones was the only Top-5 finisher who fished south of Montgomery. He locked through to Jones Bluff Reservoir each day.

"I was just fishing the banks down there where the water had flooded into the bushes and trees," he said. "I had a great practice and I found those fish on the first day, but the real key was the scouting trip I made before the cutoff.

"I was so dialed in by the final day of practice that I didn't even go out. I worked on my tackle and spent some time with my wife and rested up for the event. There haven't been too many times in my career when I've skipped a practice day, but I just felt like anything else I might find would just be a distraction."

He flipped vegetation for the first 3 days and threw a jig along bluff walls when the water receded on day 4.

> Flipping gear: 6'9" medium-heavy Kistler Z-Bone rod, unnamed casting reel (6.5:1 ratio), 50-pound PowerPro braided line with 25-pound unnamed fluorocarbon leader (4'), 1/2-ounce unnamed tungsten weight, 3/0 Reaction Innovations BMF flipping hook, YUM MightEE Craw with added black/blue or green-pumpkin punch skirt.

> Jig gear: Same rod, reel and line, 1/2-ounce Booyah jig (black/blue), YUM Chunk trailer (blue).

Main factor in his success – "For the first 3 days it was realizing how shallow those fish were – they were in a foot of water or less – and the last day they were in 8 to 10 feet. It was a matter of adjusting with the changing water conditions."

Performance edge – "My Yamaha SHO. I was making extremely long runs – 60 miles each way. When you're doing that, you've got to have a motor that's really reliable."

5th: John Murray

> Day 1: 5, 18-09
> Day 2: 5, 14-01
> Day 3: 5, 14-01
> Day 4: 5, 18-12
> Total = 20, 65-07

John Murray flipped up the top bag on day 1, then caught twin 14-pound sacks the next 2 days to stay within shouting distance of the top slot. He followed that up with the heaviest stringer of the final day to equal his best finish since 2008.

"I had an okay practice and I caught them the way I like to – up in the river," he said. "I know they live there. I was confident I could catch some, but I wasn't really confident with the flood conditions. Almost every day was totally different."

He spent most of his time near the Bouldin Dam Canal and occasionally ventured into that ditch. He had a half-dozen key spots spread along a 5-mile stretch of the Coosa.

He did most of his final-day work with a crankbait after the water had thinned out.

"Those fish were in 5 to 12 feet on the sandbars and you had to crank the bait very fast."

> Flipping gear: 7'6" medium-action Team Lew's rod, Team Lew's Pro casting reel (6.4:1 ratio), 15-pound unnamed fluorocarbon line, 1/2- or 3/4-ounce River2Sea Touch Down jig, Gene Larew Double-Tail trailer (brown/purple).

> Cranking gear: 7'10" medium-action Team Lew's cranking rod, Lew's BB1 casting reel (6.4:1 ratio), 12-pound unnamed fluorocarbon line, unnamed medium-diving crankbait (chartreuse/blue).

Main factor in his success – "Concentrating on that area. I'd caught big stringers there three times in the past and I knew they lived there."

Performance edge – "I'd say the Lew's reels. The casted farther than I needed them to and I could get a really good angle on those sandbars."

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