Lot of Drew Gill in this one not just because he won but because in Wheeler-esque fashion he gives a LOT of juicy details that I just can't leave out man! It is 🧃 – enjoy!

Gitcha Blaster video fix here:

Drew "bull" Gill is now at 1 win for every year he's been a tour pro. Not bad!

Yep the Guntersville MLF BPT was a mostly Scope deal because of the time of year, but because it was Gville it could not be won just doing that. The guys had to have something else going on.

Drew figured his shallow deal out on day 2 and rode it to the win – which basically was a 1-fish win over rookie Jacob "sky" Walker. Here's the deets.

Going in and practice

> "What I was expecting was, Okay it's cold...big fish are gonna get caught, but it's gonna be kinda grimy for Guntersville...a little bit slow. ...the shallow bite's not really gonna play, it's gonna be like hang a jerkbait and try to get outta your own way whenever you don't have Scope.

> "...the no-Scope bite, I did not see them smashing them the way they did. That part really caught me off-guard....

> "The Scope deal was pretty par...for what I thought it was going to be. You're going to have to find a basin...with some deeper water that has some baitfish around. ...just find a place where the baitfish and bass collide, where their existence is congruent enough that you can use the baitfish to catch the bass.

> "I probably only practiced for about an hour and a half to figure out what I was going to do without Scope. ...let's go to the bottom end of the lake where the water's the cleanest and try to make it where a fish can notice my bait from as far away as possible. I couldn't be more wrong.

> "In the winter tournaments I'm very hardcore on not looking for a no-Scope deal til you've got your Scope deal figured out. In this one [the Scope period] wasn't everything but it was substantial. Last year at Conroe it was everything.

> "So I was not done looking tiI I knew I found THE place for me to go.

> "I really only found 2 places I felt god about. 1 I felt mediocre about, 1 I felt great about [which is where he] ended up winning every single Scope period."

The Scope spot: A causeway bridge

> "It was just a bridge, but here's the thing about bridges. People use the term 'bridge' but a bridge on Guntersville and a bridge on the St Lawrence River are 2 very different things. [On Gville] we're talking about causeway bridges. That's what makes Guntersville bridges so special.

> "...it's almost a dam. it's a big concrete and riprap structure that separates one portion of a creek from the main lake. Through a very narrow gap is where all the water has to move. When they're pulling water and all the water is coming out of the creek, it washes the water out from under the bridge and makes a very deep hole.

> "...I knew the bait was probably going to be piled up under those bridges. It always is in the winter at Guntersville.

> "In the mornings, the bait would get kinda out from the bridge...tighter to the bridge as the day went on.

> "In dirtier water in the winter, generally bass don't go looking for bait. They live where they live, and if bait is present nearby, it can activate 'em. You've got to find a place where there's a baitfish population, and a place for bass to reside. That bridge has a roadbed out front...8-10' deep, a perfect place for bass to sit.

> "In the mornings the bait would spread out so wide...all the way to the roadbed. And the bass on that roadbed would get activated. ...as the bait shifted around, it would activate different parts of that roadbed, the bridge itself, the riprap...and as the bait moved it would pull bass to it.

> "So I had to fish my Scope deal in the morning.

> "I was trying to use my boat positioning to corner [the bass]. I cared about where the edges of that school of bait were [relative to] the end of that roadbed [and other bass residential areas].

> "When the wind started blowing [the bait] would sift toward the riprap. I tried to get between the bait and the riprap to where...I could cut [the bass] off [coming and going]. Because when they go into the bait you couldn't see them, so you had to catch them inbetween...using the bait to draw them out."

> "Guntersville is not a generally a clear lake, so the bass don't like to live 20' deep on the bottom under the bait this time of year. So you've gotta find a place that has shallow-enough water near the bridge for bass to want to reside in.

> "You could not have drawn up a more perfect place. There were 100s of them there."

Tournament

You know how he caught 'em every day in the 1st period, here's the other periods each day:

> Day 1: "I went downlake to throw a jerkbait and it spectacularly did not work out. It had to...for me to have no hope in going back down there."

> Day 2: "The wind got blowing out of the west a bit and chopped up the water, and I landed on a pretty good crankbait bite. ...water about 4' visibility when it was calm, but when it blew some of that silt and sand off the top of the bars...turned it to 1-1.5' visibility. The fish were still there and they would bite a crankbait really well.

> "Day 3 it didn't blow...so I had to throw a jerkbait to get by. Same areas, main-river bars...."

> Day 4: "The wind did not blow in the 2nd period but it kicked up in the 3rd period, chalked-up the bars, I picked up the crankbait again and put down 20 lbs in that last period to seal it up."

Baits

> Minnow: 4.25 Big Bite Baits Spotlight Minnow (blue gizzard – "I really like the white belly in stained water, especially around bait – it flashes hard"), 3/16-oz 90-degree ball head with a 2/0 hook, 22-lb braid to 12-lb Seaguar JDM Grand Max Fluoro, BPS Johnny Morris Carbonlite Tech Spin Reel (2000), 7' 4" L Phenix Feather Spin Rod.

[That color is the bottom one, which he ran out of, and that head is a 1/4-oz that he "adjusted" with pliers to make it weight about 3/16.]

> Why the smaller reel: "I like the decreased weight. And I'm not making long casts with it, I'm making short pitches. I wanted to keep it within 40' to where my line angle was super steep when I was shaking my minnow. The flatter your line angle, the less your minnow rolls, and they only bit it if it rolled really aggressively."

> Crankbait: Shallow (4-6') crankbait (crawdad = brown back, tan sides, orange belly) with #4 G-Finesse Trebles tied on with braid (50-lb Seaguar Smackdown Stealth Grey Braid – he only lost 1 fish of 29 bites the final day), 14-lb Seaguar JDM R18 Fluoro (heavier line to control depth – the grass was 4' deep), BPS Johnny Morris Reel (8.3), Phenix X12 Composite Casting Rod.

> Why a high-speed reel: "That's what I like to crank grass with. A slow reel doesn't have the torque to pop it [out of the grass, and] with the rod [only] you're gonna snatch it way too hard." He says he does a quick pop with the rod tip and the reel to get the bait out of the grass without moving it too far from where it was.

> Jerkbait: Jr size (pro blue) with #6 G-Finesse Trebles tied on with the same braid, 12-lb Seaguar JDM R18 Fluoro, BPS Johnny Morris Signature Casting Reel (8.3), 7' 1" ML Phenix Feather Rod.

> Jerkbait action: "...only single snaps. I'd pop it once and give it a little shake at times."

> Why he likes the R18 Fluoro: "It's very dense and the thing I love about it for moving baits is it's very supple [even in colder temps]. It casts incredibly well – very smooth casts so it's really accurate."

Electronics

He was running Garmin LiveScope:

> "I ran it tighter than normal...80' out, mid-20s down.

> "Every bass I've ever weighed on Scope has been on amber [color palette]."

Shoutouts

> "It was my first tournament in a Nitro and I won it. That was cool."

1. Going into this one you were hurting a little physically. Did you tell everyone that to try and do an Easton-esque sandbag? 😁

> "I did not. Honestly it was more of a, 'Hey if I have to leave this tournament early...just know that that's a possibility.' Less of a sandbag, more of a cautionary deal."

2. Did you have to go through Michael Neal's boat or anyone else's to make sure you had enough packs of Spotlight Minnows?

> "No I had all the Spotlight Minnows I needed. I've got an entire Bass Pro Extreme Boat Bag with 'em and they stack really good in there. I have 65-70 packs in that bag."

3. The Chowan River, Murray and Gville make it sound like you're a shallow-water guy. True or false?

> "...in terms of the Scope deal, this one [at Gville] was a little different because it was a winter time thing, but I love a shallow Scope fishery. When you add trash fish, when you add off-color water and you add cover to the mix, it makes things a whole lot more interesting....

> "So I really do like places that are shallow and off-color for my Scope utility."

4. You gonna stick with 1 tour-level win a year or...?

> "I'd like to make it more than 1 but I'm definitely not going to be audacious and say that I'm not satisfied with 1. I'm still as motivated as ever to win the next tournament.

> "I'm not gonna say that my 2026 isn't made by winning 1. I think that kind of disenfranchises it when you win 1 and the first thing you say is I can't wait to win another. I can't wait for sure, but I want to appreciate it."

5. Since your unofficial nickname is "blue," if you could have a hard bait color named after you would it be 'wild gill,' 'sun gill,' 'cichlid' or 'royal purple?' 😁

> "[He thought for a bit.] 'Royal purple' sounds sick. Sounds like a cool color."

Bonus Q: You said in a post that "when water temps drop, precision, patience and intention matter most." What does the intention part mean?

> "Making every cast with a purpose. Because when it's cold, your casts are for more inefficient. Meaning almost always when water is very cold, your approach is going to be much slower.

> "An effective cast in June...maybe takes 18-20 seconds. In the winter time, an effective cast...over the same distance might be 50 seconds, might be a minute. [So] you're 3 times less efficient than you are other times of the year.

> "And you have less daylight if you're just fishing dawn to dark....

> "...if you are not fishing with extreme intentionality, with every cast, with a purpose, you are putting yourself at a severe disadvantage. Because in the winter you cannot make up for your effectiveness with more efficiency. ...Efficiency doesn't crack the code when the water is very cold. It's a different pace...."

A lot of guys were fishing a lipless, Gville also being a known lipless lake. Drew didn't. He fished a lipped crank. Here's why:

> "...it had to be hydrilla not eelgrass [to fish his] crankbait super-efficiently. I wasn't getting all gunked up with eelgrass and junk.

> "The hydrilla allowed for intermittent cover...patchy.... It allowed moments where you're crankbait could actually reach the bottom...allowing me to navigate the environment [vertically].... The grass was the physical means for my bait to change its place in the water column."

That actually was why he didn't throw a lipless:

> "It's obviously really hard to beat at Guntersville this time of year. But...that water clarity was getting worse [which makes bass] a little bit apprehensive to chase a bait over distance.

> "With the 'Trap, if you can fish it perfectly...you can catch them really well. But there's a little element of user error [like] if you snatch it too far and one's behind it, he's gonna lose track of it.... So you have to really control your tempo and your pace.

> "But when you're in clumpy stuff like hydrilla, it's sometimes hard to control where your [lipless] is in the water column because of how inconsistent that hydrilla is. That lipped crankbait keeps the plane of the grass and the bottom...it tracks the plane, the surface those bass are relating to....

> "...when water clarity starts going down...[the fish] make an adjustment...as to how they feed.... And I think a lipped crankbait is really hard to beat when you get a little bit of stain because it takes the user error of me pulling the bait away from them out of it.

> "The bait is going to keep itself on that right plane on its own for me, where I can't mess it up."

Jacob Wheeler's peers say that one thing that sets him apart is how quickly he reacts to changing conditions. In other words, he sees what's changed on the water and immediately changes. No waiting a little bit, no second-guessing.

Drew Gill does that too – here's more about it:

> "With the Bass Pro Tour, it's really hard for you to convince yourself to continue to fish a mediocre or lackluster deal because the field pushes you so hard.

> "In a 5-fish tournament there's times where I'll force something because I know it's got the grade of fish to do well even if it doesn't set up right. But in an every fish counts tournament, you gotta got where the bite is. You've got to listen to the conditions that are present and...go where the bite is.

> "And if a window of opportunity arises, you gotta jump through. Because that's what that format is all about, especially when you're on a good fishery like Guntersville.

> "When you chance to make an adjustment and really catch 'em – when you have that lightbulb moment...when you have an idea where it's not just a thought, when it's like 'that should be the deal' – I never say no.

> "That's my big thing. Especially when it's crunch time, final days...if I have an idea in that pops into my head [and] I can't get it out of my head, I do it right then. I don't hesitate.

> "Because it's so pervasive the number of time that you do that too late. And you go, 'Man what I woulda done with another 45 minutes.'"

That quick last-period adjustment basically enabled him to win by 1 fish.

Man that's happened to me just out fun-fishing! Wish I woulda changed sooner!

Quick note: If you are motivated to learn about bass fishing in new ways – new ways to think about bass and bass fishing – find a pod and listen to Drew talk.

2nd: Jacob "Jay" Walker

> Jighead minnow: 6" Deps Sakamata Shad (silver shiner), 3/16-oz Owner Range Roller Jig Head, 18-lb Sunline Almight Braid (orange) to 12-lb Sunline Sniper Fluoro, Shimano Twin Power Spinning Reel, 7' 2" ML custom Phenix K2 Spinning Rod.

> About that rod: Rod: "It was built by my good friend Jack Baron at Anglers Resource. This rod comes from the current 7' 6 ML they offer but I’m trying to build the best rod on the market for a 6-inch Sakamata."

> Bladed jig: 1/2-oz Z-Man JackHammer (fire craw) with a Yamamoto Zako (fire craw) or Crush City Mayor (red craw), 40-lb Sunline SX1 Braid, 7' 4" MH Phenix Rods M1 Casting Rod. 

> He fished the JackHammer in 2 different cover situations: Shallow underwater ditches that were subtle depth changes – like a 2' deep flat with a 3-4' ditch; and fronts of pad stems. "In the front of pad stems there’s eelgrass then in front of the eelgrass is hydrilla. That would give me 3 different changes of vegetation in 1 cast."

[For why braid on the JackHammer, check the Tip below.]

3rd: Jacob "I am the OG JW!" Wheeler

> Lipless crankbait and bladed jig: Rapala Snare (classic craw) or 1/2-oz Z-Man JackHammer (Hite's hot craw), 14-lb Sufix Advance Fluoro, 7.2:1 KastKing Skeet Reese Icon Reel, 7' 4" MH Duckett Jacob Wheeler Select Casting Rod.

> Smallmouth swimbait setup: 3.5" Rapala CrushCity Mayor (pro blue red pearl) on a 1/2-oz VMC Redline Tungsten Swimbait Head, 14-lb Sufix Advance Fluoro, 7.2:1 KastKing Skeet Reese Icon Reel, 7' MH Duckett Jacob Wheeler 2.0 Casting Rod.

> "Rock bars way up the river."

[I told Jacob a while back he needed to stop spending so much time at rock bars, maybe the blues scene was more his deal...🤣]

4th: Zack "Wylde" Birge

> 1/2-oz Yo-Zuri 3DB Vibe Lipless Crank (prism crawfish), 16-lb Yo-Zuri T7 Fluoro, 8.1 casting reel, Alpha Angler Mag Rebound Rod.

> "Eelgrass edges in 5-6' and hydrilla edges in 3-5'."

5th: "Riprap" Banks Shaw

> Jighead minnow: 3.5" Rapala CrushCity Mooch Minnow (green shad) on a 1/8-oz VMC Redline Tungsten Swimbait Head, 14-lb Sufix Advance Fluoro, 10-lb Sufix 832 Braid, prototype 13 Fishing Spinning Reel (3000), 6' 10" ML 13 Fishing Myth Spinning Rod.

> "Fishing around baitfish schools in 10-16'."

> Lipless crankbait: Rapala Snare (ghost sexy shad), 14-lb Sufix Advance Fluoro, 13 Fishing Casting Reel (7.1), 7' 3" Myth Casting Rod.

> " Fishing eelgrass flats in 4-6' with depressions, points or anything different in with the grass."

1. Jacob Walker fished an ABT tourney on his off day!

He won the Qualifying Round and had a bye into the Championship Round. So on Saturday he fished an AL Bass Trail tourney on Smith Lake, got 19th and won $1,500! 🤯 Dude is ate up!

2. Banks Shaw had a boat fire on day 4

I didn't see it but word is it caught on fire, possibly from spare camera batteries. Luckily he is okay and should have enough time to find a new boat for the next one.

3. 4 baits Blake Capps likes right now

Bassmaster post says for OK but it applies to more than that:

Clockwise from top L that's a BOOYAH Covert Finesse Series Double Willow Spinnerbait with a YUM Pulse trailer, a BOOYAH Mobster Swim Jig with a YUM Craw Chunk, a Heddon Super Zara Spook and a BOOYAH XCS Squarebill.

Looks like Blake's been taking classes at Jason Christie U! 😁

4. Tristan McCormick is so serious about the Elites...

...he cut off all his hair and trimmed his beard. Also says in that deal that he's tight with KVD so maybe that had something to do with it!

5. James Watson new Ultimate Match Fishing co-host and ref

Ultimate Match Fishing, Joe Thomas' show. Smart move Joe! Word is Joe wants a much calmer, cleaner show so...😁

6. Jimmy Houston has his own ammo

Jimmy Houston Legacy Series Ammunition by Hyperion Munitions.

7. TX: Here's a list of where the state is going to spray

Headlines of the Day

Officials issue warning after fisherman spots dangerous creature in lake where it doesn't belong – here's what they encountered

A largemouth bass in a ME lake. Der.

Officials ask public for help as harmful creatures spread in lake: 'Can have detrimental impacts'

Smallmouth bass in a Canadian lake. Der.

Really hope it's AI "writing" these clickbait headlines and not living, breathing people man dang.

How Jacob Walker was fishing for those grass fish

BPT rookie, from the MLF site – he was fishing a bladed jig on straight braid:

> "If you get wind it'll blow that fluorocarbon over and you'll have a big bow in your line – and a lot of times when these big ones come up and bite it, they're eating it and moving toward you. They're always moving after they eat the bait. And so having that braid allows me to feel the bite.

> "And you get one of those big 6-7 lbers, they've got big mouths...when they eat that bait and move toward you, that braid doesn't stretch.

> "That's why you see me hammer them. Like, I hammer them as hard as I can with braid, and my drag is tightened down as far as it can get."

He also told us:

> "I throw braid over fluoro when I'm catching those real big ones up shallow like that. They don't have a huge water column to fight in, so when they bite and decide to fight they'll make super hard fast runs left or right.

> "That braid doesn't stretch and allows for a really good hookset and the power to fight back in the super shallow water."

"...as crazy as it sounds coming from an old jig guy, the goofy-looking dice baits that have entered the market are not so goofy. They catch 'em."

- Greg "the Spinny Attack" 😁 Hackney talkin' on the Bassmasters. A little more:

> Our lakes are getting older, clearer and experiencing intense fishing pressure. Fishing dirty water is now a niche situation.

> I learned that you want the slow fall to retain the shimmy action that seems to trigger a bass' curiosity. I basically deadstick it or may shake it a little if I see a bass bird-dogging it. 

> On a weighted head, the Tumbleweed is fished like your standard wacky rig, except it gives something different to appeal to their curiosity.

> I still love my big rods, big line and big baits, but I just ordered nine Lew's Mark Zona Signature Series Spinning Rods.

Insanely wild 'n craziness lens deal from this @robmatsuura shot. Might make you dizzy if you look too hard at it! 😁

Fishers of Men Tournament Trail

Bass Chaplain podcasts

Contact Chris Wells the Bass Chaplain

CullGear.com - Versaweb

Advanced Angler

StrayCasts crazy web show!

BassEdge Radio

Champion Jigs

Trophy Bass Co.

National Professional Anglers Assoc.