Anyone know anything about Dallas? FL is talking us out of moving here, for reasons I've already mentioned and more and more HOA horror stories – like if you rent in one, your rental company sends a person out to take pictures of "violations" you can't dispute at $40 a pop. Crazy.

Also seems like FL's access to some water is decreasing because of all the new peeps, many of whom are high-$$$ folks, plus overwhelmed city and state agencies. Just what I've been told by outdoors folks.

Anyhow, LA is still in the mix and now my wife wants to check out Dallas. I know nothing about that area so am looking for some intel on some "nicer" areas maybe with a downtown, neighbors not 20' away, and not too far from a good bass lake...if that's possible.

Meanwhile in FL:

Yesterday my son got an education in peacock bass, bed-fishing and flipping – the latter because where he fished growing up, we had no flipping believe it or not. He caught a couple nice ones, I caught a couple small ones (checked peacocks off the bucket list but no pics), a good day...but it was HOT!

Weird deal: You know how largemouths look bigger in the water than they are? It's the opposite with peacocks. No idea how or why, but interesting.

Ed's your new hero non-tech peeps! He did use FFS a little (not for minnow-feeding), but caught 'em mostly on a jig, ChatterBait and topwater. Ed also basically tried NOT to win – he was staying out of everyone's way because after his medical exemption he didn't want to mess anyone up (good IG vid about that by his former roomie Derek Hudnall here). Or maybe he's just the king of sandbagging...😁

Here's how he got 'er done – cut down a little from the full post on the BB site.

Going in and practice

> "On Champlain I like to try to get away from people, and a lot of the stuff I used to try to do that on has become popular. Between that and me not wanting to screw anyone up since I was just there trying to get a check, I wanted to try to find some different stuff.

> "I found an area down-lake and instantly caught a couple 4-lb largemouth, then a little later in the day I hooked a 2.5-lb largemouth and there was a 5 right behind it. ...same thing with smallmouth – I hooked a couple 3-lb smallmouth and there were a couple 4-lb smallmouth right behind them.

> "So it was an area where I saw some big fish...not a popular area of the lake so I'll just run down there. I had never been there before...."

Tournament

> "I ran down there the first day, caught what I had and kinda left. I didn't want to beat it up too bad. I guess I probably should have stayed a little bit longer and caught another decent one. I had a 4-lb average and my smallest was 3.5.

> "I had 19-05 but I had a dead fish. The second fish I caught in the morning, about a 4-lb smallmouth, I hooked him deep.

> "Given practice I thought I'd be in the 20s. That's why I left...maybe I can find a big fish somewhere else. With the dead fish penalty, I was in 38th.

> "Day 2 I looked on Google Earth...there's a little point kind of close to the ramp...maybe there's a released fish or 2 over there. My 3rd cast I catch a 4-10 largemouth....

> "Then I ran down to those fish and caught several good ones. It was easy that day. They were eating a ChatterBait, they were eating my jig. I think I had the 2nd-biggest bag of the tournament and big fish that day or tied....

> "I just wanted to make sure I made the top 50 because I was in 38th. I moved up because people didn't catch them as well. I moved up to 2nd and was like, Holy cow that's outta control.

> "The next day...I guess I'll go back down there. If I can just catch 18-19 lbs, I'll stay in the top 10 and will be able to fish the final Monday. I wanted to do that because oddly enough I've made top 10 in all 3 [Monday-ending Elites] this year.

> "I go out day 3 and...caught them pretty good. What was interesting was me and Jake, the cameraman, could see a mudline that was 50 yards away. An hour later it was 25 yards away, and I look up an hour later and it's almost on top of my stuff.

> "I fished for [another] hour and didn't catch anything...fished areas that were a little cleaner. [But then he went back and] caught a 4 and a 5-12. It's all relative – it probably went from 3-4' visibility to maybe a foot and half...they didn't seem to care."

He culled one more time with a jig off an island – a 3-07 for a 3-01 – and had 22 lbs:

> ...went to the weigh-in and ended up moving up into 1st. At that point I didn't think any fish were left in my area. ...I wasn't gonna bail on my area and go to the Inland Sea and catch 18 lbs of smallmouths, and the only place I knew to catch 20 was down there.

> Day 4: "I caught a couple small smallmouths right out of the gate, but the largemouths weren't biting or weren't there

> "...I piddled around for a while. ...wanted to fish a spot I fished in practice...didn't catch anything on it but I didn't try my jig on it....

> "[On the way there he] saw a flat point that came off one of the high spots, and off the end was a small circle. ...[dropping his troller in] and just below my boat I see like a dozen fish. I whipped the boat around, got in the proper position...caught several of them right there...culled pretty much everything out...that was my weight: 16-14.

> "I felt I still need a 4.5-5 lber to win. I figured I'd lost, screwed it up and blew it, but I was hoping to stay in the top 5. I've never gotten a top 5 [top 10s though]."

The spots

> "The largemouths were almost all around the chunk rock mixed with grass, anywhere from 4-7' and they invariably would be around the boulders. The 3 high spots were similar but 1 was bigger and better.

> "The smallmouths would always be in the slightly deeper water, basically around the grass. They weren't messing with the rocks too much, but I think that's because the big largemouth were there."

His main spot was a slow-tapering high spot:

> "...smallmouths were on one end [the deeper end]...slightly closer to the main lake."

Baits

> "The bait that made it all happen was a compact jig. I was throwing the Missile Baits Mini Flip Jig in 1/2 and 3/8 in gp with a Missile Craw Father trailer (gp), but I lost them all in practice and the 1st day. So I just had to use one of my homemade jigs that's kinda similar, the same gp color, and a Missile Baits Chunky D because I ran out of those Craw Fathers."

[John Crews you didn't have any more of that stuff in your truck? 😁]

> 7' 6" H Shimano Expride Rod, Shimano Chronarch MGL Reel (8:1), 20-lb Berkley Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon ("there's a lot of zebra mussels on the rocks").

> 1/2-oz Z-Man JackHammer (gp) with a 4.5" Missile Spunk Shad (goby bite). "I think that's a good perch imitation. It's a good bait on Champlain and [in other] northern lakes." 7' 2" MH Shimano Expride Rod, same reel, same line.

> "I caught a couple key fish on the SPRO Walking Haint in chrome – I like chrome, I've always thrown chrome. It's the fist tournament I've thrown [that bait] but I really like it. I've always been a Spook guy." 7' 2" MH Shimano Expride Rod, same reel, 50-lb PowerPro Super8Slick Braid.

Electronics

> "Even though I was fishing a little bit shallower, like 4-8' generally, I did use my LiveScope a bit to see where the holes are in the grass, where the boulders were, where the grass doesn't grow, little high spots, little rubble piles and stuff. You can see that a little bdtter with LiveScope...Garmin 8612....

> "When fishing grass especially, I really like the blue palette. It lets you see fish moving around in grass really easily."

He said he didn't cast to particular fish and didn't see any of them eat his bait.

Shoutouts

> "It was great having my family here. It was the first Elite Series tournament after 6 years that they were able to make it to, so that was the neatest part of the whole thing.

> "My roommates are always great and supportive. John [Crews] is one of my sponsors, and Bryan Schmitt is always unbelievably helpful. It's sad that Derek [Hudnall] isn't rooming with us anymore...."

1. I'm no lawyer [Ed is], but winding up in the hospital, missing 2 tournaments, fishing a "bad" area on Champlain and winning by just 1 oz seems like a very risk-filled winning strategy. What was your thinking there? 😁

> "[Laughs] I just really do like to try to get away form people, and this tournament – coming back from a medical exemption and just fishing for a check – I really didn't want to get into people's way.

> "...my desire not to mess anyone else up [from getting points], I just wanted to try to find some different areas, and I ended up going down there and got lucky...found enough down there that I was able to pull it out. A lot of risk, but it ended up working out."

2. There was a rumor going around that when you had your medical exemption you actually had one of those Elon Musk brain implant chips put in. 😆 Is that true?

> "That is not true, but if it would help me win another one, I'd consider it."

3. You had 2 top 10s this year and were rolling when you had to take a break. Were you feeling it?

> "Yeah. I mean fishing has always been streaky for me and for almost everybody. And I knew that having to pull out of Wheeler...I went down there, practiced, had to hospitalize myself, got out and was gonna try to fish the tournament, but...wasn't gonna work. Kidney stones, if they're big enough, it's crippling pain. You're non-functional.

> "I was 53rd in AOY, I was 23 points out of the Classic and I felt like I had a real chance to make the Classic which is always my goal. Being forced to withdraw...it really deflated me at the time.

> "But this one worked out so maybe that's the balance. Fishing always seems to have balance...always some cruelty...and some highs go along with it. It's a strange game."

4. All you guys get to this level by winning and doing very well. Then you get here and a lot of guys never win – it's just the way it is. What do you say to those guys who get to the top level and go years and years without a win?

> "I say that there's a tremendous amount of luck in this sport. When you get to the top level, everybody is so good, the odds of me being able to beat 100 other people over the span of 4 days is very small. And some of these guys are the Michael Jordans of the sport...these guys are so good....

> "I've had a lot of people come up to over the past couple days...they haven't won an event and these guys are killer fishermen...constantly in the top 20 in AOY....

> "...the movie "The Color of Money" [about playing pool]...there's a line in there where Paul Newman says to Tom Cruise 'the balls roll funny for everybody.' Meaning that stuff happens and you can't control it. That's just the luck that is a factor.

> "It's crazy to be able to win a tournament. The competition is just so good. Everything has to work right, your boat...you can't lose fish...this happened to be my week."

5. Gotta ask – did you use your FFS augmented reality glasses at all at Champlain??

> "I did not. My neck hurt though, so I will say that I probably should have. But in any kind of brighter sunlight conditions they're not quite as functional. But if someone would refine them I think they would be useful."

Bonus Q: Is it harder to live with John "work out and social media" Crews or Bryan "Mini Magic Worm" Schmitt?

> "[Laughs] It's probably harder to live with John...because he makes really, really smelly Brussel sprouts and it stinks up our whole house. For that reason I am choosing Crews."

[Lol what?? Yo Crews, those veggies are once a year only and they have to be cooked with bacon! 😁]

St Lawrence MLF Bass Pro Tour

Startin' 'er off with the St Lawrence where several guys fished shallower than you would expect, maybe because of the catch 'em all format:

Dropshot = 60% – cut down/modded Big Bite Baits Quarantine Craw, Googan Rattlin’ Ned, Megabass Hazedong Shad, Geecrack Imo Kemushi, Big Bite Baits Scentsation Slim Minnow, Yamamoto Scope Shad, Yamamoto Shad Shape Worm, Zoom Z Drop

Finesse jig = 30% – Beast Coast O.W. Sniper Jig 20%, Fitzgerald Bryan Thrift Tungsten Micro Jig

Jerkbait = 30% – Bill Lewis Scope-Stik, Megabass Vision 110, OSP Varuna

10% each = Damiki rig, FFS bait (Bill Lewis Depth Strike), Bladed jig, Tube, Shakey head

So much for the FFS + Damiki combo being a big player BUT pretty much all the guys had FFS on all the time to see structure and make more-accurate casts.

Champlain Bassmaster Elite

Lot of FFS + Damiki in this one but not only and Ed didn't do it. Also green fish were more important, which used to be the case but it looked to be going more brown once FFS came out.

Damiki rig = 60% – Bass Pro Shops Jerk Shad, 5" Yamamoto Shad Shape Floater, 5" Zoom Winged Fluke, Big Bite Baits Slim Minnow, Z-Man Jerk ShadZ

Jig = 30% – Missile Mini Flip Jig, Berkley PowerBait Flippin Jig, Davis Wood Jig

Dropshot = 30%

10% each = Bladed jig (JackHammer), Topwater walking bait, Hair jig, Jerkbait (Rapala PXR Mavrik 110), Powershot, Big swimbait (Bass Mafia Loaded Daingerous, Roman Made Negotiator)

Shoutouts

Cory Johnston (5th) Scoped with this prototype 6th Sense bait – which to me looks like a soft-plastic with a Scrounger-type deal on there?

Jacob Foutz (8th) Scoped with a 7-INCH Z-Man Jerk ShadZ – you don't see that every day:

What are the biggest new trends in bass baits and gear for 2024-25 and why? Find out in Episode 7 of the Abu Garcia REVO Tips, Techniques and Trends of the Month – plus one way to learn how to fish with FFS fast!

Here's the rundown:

1. New FFS baits 👀

2. Matte colors 🔥

3. New big swimbaits 👀

4. New FFS terminal tackle 🌮

5. How to learn FFS fast! 🎯

Baits 'n stuff mentioned or shown in this episode:

Abu Garcia REVO reels

Rapala CrushCity Mooch Minnow

Berkley Drip Minnow

Big Bite Baits Nekorama worm

Rapala CrushCity Janitor

Yamamoto Nuki Bug

BOOYAH Flash Point Jerkbait

Bill Lewis Depth Charge

Berkley Krej

Berkley PowerBait Power Switch

Berkley Finisher

Megabass Vision 110

Great Lakes Finesse Drop Minnow

Buckeye Freestyle Head

Gamakatsu G-Finesse Stinger Drop Shot Hook

Berkley Fusion19 Hybrid Jighead

Queen Rollin Strollin Jighead

Abu Garcia Max Spin Reels

Abu Garcia Veritas Rods

Seaguar JDM PEX8 Braid

Sufix Revolve Braid

Berkley Forward Braid: not available yet

6" Bucca Trick Shad

FishLab BBZ Hard Swimbait

Berkley Unrigged CullShad

1. Spencer Shuffield fished a prototype Yo-Zuri jerkbait...

...at the St Lawrence:

> “The first 2 days I was catching them over shallow humps with a prototype Yo-Zuri jerkbait in 'matte shad' that will be out in the spring. It’s a mid-depth diver that will get down to 8-12' deep – I was getting it down 9-10' with 12-lb line."

Spencer has shown himself to be a sho-nuff stick.

2. Chris Lane says the St Lawrence fishes like Gville

> “It’s a lot like Guntersville, where most stay out deep but you can always catch them shallow there if the conditions are right. You can also do well here and there by staying shallow the whole time.”

That makes "scientific" sense too if you look at their water body types.

3. Andrew Nordbye gets Wired2Fish Coffee to...

> Wired2fish Coffee has signed a 2-year partnership with Andrew to support his MLF angling efforts and his ability to spread the gospel through his content, Fishing with Nordbye.

Wow I am pleasantly surprised to hear that!

4. Here's your Bassmaster AOY standings

Justin has for sure been fishing great but having a Johnston breathing down your neck at the St Lawrence is 😱. JT Thompkins, Trey McKinney, John Garrett and Wesley Gore are the top 4 in ROY standings.

Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year

1. Justin Hamner -- 671

2. Chris Johnston -- 658

3. Jacob Foutz -- 652

4. JT Thompkins -- 634

5. Trey McKinney -- 633

6. Jay Przekurat -- 633

7. Cory Johnston -- 630

8. Cody Huff -- 628

9. John Garrett -- 622

10. Wesley Gore -- 621

5. NY: MLFers and Johnston Outdoors cleaned up trash...

...at the Massena launch park. #stout

6. MI: State now high on impact of fishing tourneys

Good to hear.

7. NY: Reminder you need a tourney permit after Jan 1

> DEC officials say the permit system is necessary to "inform and improve fisheries management and provide, if necessary, protections for black bass populations," the website states.

> The new permitting process comes as some locals have vocalized concerns of overfishing from so many tournaments in the area, in particular on the St Lawrence River.

Sounds like there's no problems and the tourneys are catch and release so – let's regulate it! 🤪 Lmk know if you know different....

8. Big River2Sea sale on Tackle Warehouse

Including Ploppers, S-Wavers, Ish frogs and a lot more.

9. Cotton Cordell has 3 new limited-run Big O colors

Gitcha old-school on!

> G-Finish is an incredibly delicate painting technique that combines pearls and other luminescent colors with a clear dip, which creates a surface on the lure that refracts even the smallest amount of light creating a true baitfish-like flash. Each Big O color was developed by...Frank Scalish.

> ...built on the trusty C77 size Big O, which is ideal for cranking through shallow cover in 3-5'.

10. New Montevallo U show on Pursuit

> Each week on Pursuit Channel, viewers will see Montevallo’s students participating in a variety of awesome hunting and fishing trips across the country as well as gaining a wealth of knowledge in conservation and game management practices.

No homework?? Class time? 🤣 Just messin', cool deal and good recruiting tool!

11. AR: Wiper and white bass catch/keep tourney Sept 21

Greers Ferry, to get rid of those fish to free up more forage for bass and other species.

12. Water Gremlin assets will be auctioned Aug 27

Including "ready to sell finished goods."

13. SC: State dropped 450 grass carp into Broadway Lake

Sounds like a small Anderson County lake. Hope that system is contained.

14. CT visiting boat launches looking for hydrilla

> “We are in the middle of a fight right now with hydrilla, and each punch definitely hurts a little more."

15. CO: Anti-milfoil herbicide will be used at Boulder Rez

Can't tell when but it's the first time herbicide has been used there.

16. Fitzgerald Fishing gets Funke

Figured with the 2 Bryans (Thrift and Schmitt) they were already funky...😁 Just messin', had to do it!

> ...Alex Funke as Sales Manager. In this role, Funke will be responsible for managing all dealer sales, driving revenue growth and expanding market share.

> With 10 years of experience in the fishing industry, Alex brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to Fitzgerald Fishing.

Congrats to him – great name man!

17. AR: PRADCO test tank dedicated to long-time employees

I kinda love that.

18. Keep an eye on...

TN is 23rd state to start an Office of Outdoor Recreation

Keep an eye on it because, among other things, every time a new bureaucracy gets created that means more politics, more red tape and – guess who pays for it?

MS governor appoints new fish and game commissioners

Doesn't sound like real diehard hunters and anglers – not unusual. Just a reminder that these are the people (politically appointed) that are voting on fish/hunt regs...like game cams and maybe FFS.

Fishing is causing frightened fish to flee when they should flirt

Headline about fishing for salty groupers but you get the drift. Everything in the summary (I skimmed it) seems to be theory except this, which seems pretty odd:

> "We couldn't get as close to them [as a decade ago], they would swim away as though we were predators."

Headline of the Day

Crawfish Frogs Reintroduced at Angel Mounds

Crawfish frogs?? In IN:

> The adult frogs, which can grow the size of a fist, rely on quality grassland habitat with high densities of crayfish burrows....

Good older deal on finesse jigging

Good stuff from former Bassmaster pro Jeff Snyder, a reminder that finesse jigging isn't just smaller jigs:

> ”In finesse jigging, I want to keep the jig in 1 spot for an extended period of time. I’ll make the perfect pitch to a visible target. If the jig reaches the bottom without a strike, then I’ll deadstick it there up to 5 times as long as a conventional jig presentation.

> "While the jig is resting on the bottom, I’ll simply shake the rod tip now and then. If I can’t draw a strike, I wind in quickly and pitch to the next target.”

> Another of Snyder’s techniques is to yo-yo a jig. When fishing brush or deadfalls, Snyder purposely throws over a limb, winds the jig off the bottom a couple of inches, and works it like a yo-yo by raising and lowering the bait an inch or 2.

> "...you must have confidence. Each bit of cover potentially has a bass holding on it that is unwilling to move in order to scarf up a meal."

> Bites can be incredibly subtle – a slight twitch in the line rather than actually feeling a solid rap that many anglers expect with a jig. You must also be mentally prepared for a bite at all times.

"The fish are more pressured than they used to be, but you still don’t have to reinvent the wheel to do well."

- Keith "XD" Combs talkin' 'bout fishing up north. Also said:

> "If I can get away with baitcasting tackle, I certainly prefer that."

😁

Gussy saw a smallmouth waving to him on his Aqua-Vu! 🤣 Crazy!

Gussy was like, "Where were you when I only had 12 fish at the Classic?" 😁

Dolce & Gabbana launches Fefé, a luxury perfume for dogs

Just $108 for 3.4 oz. At least a couple vets don't like the idea:

> “The smell of breath, the smell of earwax are disguised by the perfume. So, it could be a problem even for us vets."

I guess I need to be smelling my dogs' earwax now??

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.