Zell Rowland is a well-known master of topwater fishing. Put another way, what Denny Brauer is to flipping and pitching, Rowland is to topwaters.
In the following, Rowland gives BassFans a few tips for fishing two of the best- known topwater lures in bass fishing: the Zara Spook and the Pop-R, the latter of which Rowland is single-handedly responsible for reviving.
Topwater Tips
> "To work a topwater right, you have to use slack," Rowland says. "It's hard to get used to. You have to be able to jerk a rod and turn a reel handle at the same time. What you're actually doing is popping the rod like you're giving short hooksets. You throw the rod down and jerk it back again. You throw slack into the line and then reel it back up -- because every time you throw (slack), you have to take it up to throw some more."
> Although everyone does that "walking the dog" technique with a Spook, Rowland says he also does it "a lot" with the Pop-R.
> "I like throwing a Spook when I know I'm at a lake where there's a lot of big bass, and also large baitfish," he says. "I like a little bit of ripple on the water, but it's not necessary."
> "Catching topwater fish is no different than Denny Brauer catching them flipping," Rowland says. "Once you figure out where the better-quality bite is coming from, you're going to catch them. It's like Denny going down a bank, flipping bushes. He can tell you before he gets a bite where he'll catch them. It all gets back to being able to run a pattern and know there's enough of that type of water to catch them all day."
> On certain tournament days, Rowland says he will throw topwaters all day. "Some days there isn't a cloud in the sky, it's 90 degrees and I'm still catching them," he says. "The bass aren't lying right in the sunlight. They might be on the front edge of a weedline or a shallow drop-off, and when they see that bait coming across the water, look out."
> Rowland's rule of thumb is to start with a smaller bait. Usually that means the smaller-sized Spook Jr., but "it depends on the lake," he says. "If I go to a place that's fairly new that doesn't have big fish in it, I'll start with the smaller bait to get more strikes. The minute I upgrade in bait size, the fewer bites I'll get. There are days when I'll tie on a Super Spook and throw it all day. I know I might not get but 8 bites all day, but if I catch 5 they'll be good ones."
Rowland's Top 3 Topwater Tips
1) Always remember to fish with slack in your line.
2) Always fish with extremely sharp hooks.
3) Always pay attention to how you're working the bait so when a bass bites you'll know why.
- End of part 1 (of 2) -
Rowland often "walks the dog" with a Pop-R.
