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Real good tackle and whatnot sales this weekend. TW's is on, but also hit all the companies' websites for sometimes even better sales.
This weekend I'm gonna send out a "most wanted" list of stuff I think is cool and you might want too – gotta help Santa fill that stocking! 😁
Hope you and your fam have a great Thanksgiving. I'm thankful for God, bass fishing, the bassin' biz (especially the fine folks who support the BB), and YOU. You are appreciate and loved man. For real!
If you're serving the rest of us on Thursday, much appreciated and bless you – stay frosty and hope you get to rest on a different day...and fish!
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Gitcha Blaster video fix here:
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If your email program cuts off the bottom of the email click "View this email in your browser" up top to see the whole thing. Sorry bout that – email programs keep changing stuff.
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How 2 Cali outlaws rode into LA and won the MLF Team Tourney
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Yep those hombres – Justin Lucas and Brent Ehrler of course. And of course they can fish lights out but it's been a little since they were holding up a big ol' trophy.
Here's how they got it done in LA, on 3 different lakes: Caddo, then Cypress Bayou (sounds deep and clear lol), then Cross Lake.
How Justin fished
Caddo
> 3/8-oz vibrating jig (gp shad) with a Berkley Power Stinger (TN shad), 17-lb Berkley Trilene 100% Fluoro, Abu Zenon MG-X Reel (6.6), 7' 5" MH Abu Winch Rod.
> Berkley J Walker 120 (ghost white), 30-lb Berkley X9 Braid, Abu Zenon X Reel (8.3), 7' M Abu Veritas Rod.
> Why 30-lb line: "That's a light rod and that line has a break strength of 42 lbs. ...on a 7' M rod you're just never gonna break that line."
> "Our best spot was the mouth of a pocket where a boat lane met it on the edge of some pads. We found those fish on the vibrating jig, then we realized they were schooling in the area.
> "We came back to start period 3...watching them bust. We rolled back up with the vibe jig, caught a few and then Ehrler picked up a jerkbait and I picked up the topwater...."
Cypress Bayou
> "...I caught most of mine on a dropshot." 6" hand-poured worm (purple), 1/0 straight shank hook, 3/16-oz tungsten pencil weight, 8-lb Berkley X5 Braid (flame green) to 12-lb Berkley Trilene 100% Fluoro, Abu Zenon X Spin Reel (3000), 7' MH Abu Fantasista X Rod.
> "I used a really short leader so could pitch it around the docks easier.
> "It was actually cloudy, and the fish weren't really on the pilings – they were more inbetween the pilings. They wanted to be near the edge of the docks, not on specific pilings.
> "I did catch 1-2 on a [Berkley] MaxScent Magnum Hit Worm (black and gp), Neko'd." 1/0 straight shank hook, 1/16-oz tungsten nail weight, same rod/reel/line.
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> Why he uses Veritas rods, which are not super high end: "I use a lot of Veritas rods for moving baits. ...for $100-120 they do everything I need them to do with crankbaits, topwater, jerkbaits...moving baits.
> "...if you're going to spend money on a rod and you want a really super-light sensitive rod, it's worth doing that for baits you drag on the bottom, where sensitivity is more important – jigs, worms, dropshots. But as far as any kind of moving baits go, you can do everything you need to do with an Abu Garcia Veritas Rod."
How Brent fished
Caddo
> "The first round I caught 'em on a 1/2-oz [Z-Man] JackHammer (white) with a 'sight flash' Yamamoto Zako." 20-lb Sunline Sniper fluoro, Daiwa Tatula Elite Reel (6.3), 7' 4" MH Daiwa Tatula Elite Ehrler glass Vibrating Jig Rod.
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> "We were winding around sparse hydrilla and lilypads. We were fishing a swamp on that bay, there were lilypads that had salvinia blown into it...almost like a mat. Out in front of the mat was sparse hydrilla....
> "We ended up finding them [later] somewhat schooled up a little bit in this one area. I caught...2 on the JackHammer and I was like, I know they'll bite that jerkbait. So I pulled out that jerkbait and just blistered them...3.5' of water.
> "The jerkbait I like in any shallow water is the [Lucky Craft] Slender Pointer (chartreuse shad). ...I threw the 112 and it was going a little to deep...went to the 97. It's a smaller bait and it runs shallower. I changed out the hooks to Gamakatsu G-Finesse Medium Heavy Trebles (#6)."
> 14-lb Sunline Sniper, Daiwa Tatula Zillion SV Reel ("anytime I go to a smaller bait I really like that Zillion SV"), 6' 9" ML Daiwa Tatula Elite Topwater Jerkbait Rod.
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> "...same targets I was fishing the JackHammer around. ...a little bottleneck, kind of a bigger section of the lake funneled down between a hard line and those matted lilypads and salvinia. It created like a bottleneck.
[He said it was a little darker and a little windier later in the day.]
> "They were pretty tight to the hard line and they were moving around."
Cypress Bayou
> "I started off catching them on a Lucky Craft 1.5 ('pro threadfin' ⬅️ his fave color). I ran a round bend Gamakatsu on the front, and a standard EWG (both #4). I do that on a 1.5...I want that EWG on the back because a lot of times when they nip at the tail of the bait you barely hang 'em, and that EWG-style hook is better for landing fish than a round bend."
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> Why 'red bug': "I flew out with very little tackle – 1 bag and that was it. I brought Sensei Worms. I was thinking dirty water so obviously I needed gp, b/b – it didn't feel like b/b so it felt like 'red bug'."
Cross
After they basically goose-egged at the dam:
> "...we started hopping around the lake looking for rock. Lucas ended up catching them better than me – I was trying to play cleanup behind him. I caught several on the 1.5 running behind him, but you had to be on the bank and it wasn't conducive to having 2 guys going down the bank....so I kept rotating different things to try to get a bite.
> "Then finally I picked up my flipping stick with a brand new Yamamoto Yama Bug. It was the first time I'd ever fished it. I knew it was good bait. A lot of times you look at baits...when they came out with this one I go, 'I know I can catch them on that.'
> "I ended up bringing 3-4 packs, all I had – they were just sample packs. I went on a little flurry and caught a couple big ones behind Justin, pitching around sea walls and real shallow dock poles.
> "Probably the third-evert time that thing hit the water in my hands I caught one on it." [And at the end of a tourney they could win = confidence.]
> Yamamoto Yama Bug (b/b), 3/0 Gamakatsu Heavy Cover Straight Shank Flipping Hook, 3/8-oz Ark Tungsten Weight, 22-lb Sunline Sniper, Daiwa Tatula Elite Pitch/Flip Reel, 7' 6" H F Daiwa Tatula Elite Ish Monroe Flip Stick.
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Couple more Qs
What was the biggest key this week?
> Brent: "Having a good partner."
> Justin: "...Brett and I fish really well together. We have similar fishing styles and we're both comfortable power-fishing or finesse-fishing – when one person's doing one, the other person does the other. I think it makes for good strategy."
Brent Q: Is the Lucky Craft 1.5 different than other 1.5s?
> "Yes, it's better. Everything else is a copy. Look at every stick bait – nothing is ever the same as the Yamamoto Senko. It's the same thing with a 1.5 – everyone's copied it.
> "The components [Lucky Craft uses] are higher-quality. Everyone came out with a different product that was a copy and then they tried to make it a price-point bait whereas Lucky Craft was the original one that just made the right bait. They have the right colors...."
[A truly amazing number of colors are on TW – 80!! I have to assume TW carries 'em all for a darn good reason.]
Justin Q: At any point did you pull out a Choppo and if not are you feeling okay?? 😁
> "[Laughs] I pulled it out and tied it on, but I never did throw it. I felt like the conditions never lined up perfectly for it. But I was locked and loaded with Choppos."
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A little dive into AR's new Legacy Lunker Program
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Couple months back AR Game & Fish (AGFC) announced that they are starting their own "lunker bass" program, like the TX ShareLunker program which is stellar. AR will start what they're calling the Legacy Lunker Program on Jan 1 (here's a quick YT video about it).
Why are they doing it? What exactly are they doing? BB's Andy "and Opie" Greene called Will Lancett to find out. He's the Legacy Lunker program coordinator and is a diehard bass angler too – here he is as a co at the recent MLF Toyota Championship (good to see!):
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Here's 5 with him:
1. How long have you worked on this program, and why is now the time to launch it?
> "We've been working on it for a couple of years. Our AR Black Bass Program sent surveys and asked our anglers what they wanted. The #1 response was to have a lunker program like TX .
> "Now is the time because we just completed a huge renovation at the Joe Hogan State Fish Hatchery. That's where we're going to launch the program. It's the place we'll house the donated fish to spawn them, collect their fingerlings, and then move them back out to the lakes.
> "We've also partnered with Red Hills Fishery, a private hatchery in GA. Many of the industry leaders in bass genetics work at Red Hills. They're helping us run DNA analyses on the female bass that get donated, and they're providing some of the highest-quality male bass (called TITAN MAXX bass) to spawn with our females. Those males are the best you can get."
2. What's the goal of your program, other than just growing bigger bass?
> "The goal is to create excitement for our anglers and build a legacy around trophy bass fishing in AR. Our slogan for the program is: 'Advancing Science, Creating Excitement, and Building a Lasting Legacy.'
> "We did a soft launch last spring, taking in donated fish from people who called us. We set our minimum weight at 10 lbs [TX is 13 lbs]. We took in 5 fish ranging from 10 to 13.5 lbs. That was without announcing the program.
> "We want to take those fish and spawn them with the best male genetics we can get, and then pump those fingerlings back into our lakes to get more trophy bass."
3. How will it work exactly?
> "The donation period each year will run from Jan 1 through Mar 31. If you're fishing at a public lake in AR that is open for everyone to fish and you catch a 10-lb or larger bass, you'll call our hotline to report the catch. We'll immediately initiate a response team to go and pick up the fish and take it to the hatchery.
> "The bass will be kept at an indoor facility where it will be fed, cared for and pampered. In Apr, we'll allow the bass to spawn with a male provided to us from Red Hills. We'll hatch the fry, grow them a bit, and then release the donated female to the lake from where she was caught. The angler who caught her is invited to be there for the release.
> "We'll stock some of the fingerlings into the same lake, and we'll keep some of the fry at the hatchery to spawn year after year to make our own unique genetic line to stock throughout the state."
[Here's the AR trophy bass gang – dangerous group, don't let those smiles fool you! 😁]
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4. How is it similar and different to the trophy bass programs in TX and FL?
> "It's very similar to the TX program. Their people have worked with us to launch our program. They've shared their processes of picking up fish, breeding them, returning them and working with sponsors.
> "TX has a fish-donation program and an angler-recognition program. We'll do the same.
> "FL only has an angler-recognition program. But FL has a raffle and gives away a boat every year. We're doing that too. We've partnered with Xpress Boats to give away an X21 PRO with a Yamaha 250 for the first 3 years. [They've also partnered with PRADCO and Bass Pro Shops for other prize packs.]
> "Our program is different because, unlike TX and FL, we're working with Red Hills to obtain and use the best genetics that we can get. Red Hills is our ace in the hole. They track genetic markers in bass that lead to trophy bass.
> "They'll pair a female with certain markers with a male that has other markers that the female lacks so that the offspring has the most markers – creating the best chance that the fingerlings will grow into trophy bass."
5. When should anglers expect to see results from it?
> "Our goal is to see some of our progeny reach trophy size in 6-10 years. It can take quite a long time for a bass to reach that size in AR, depending on what part of the state the fish is in.
> "If you caught a 13-lb bass in TX and donated it, they'd be able tell if it was related to a fish from 1988 that was part of their program. As our program continues through the years, we'll be able to do the same."
Follow-up: Can anglers track the catches?
> "We'll celebrate and track all catches that are part of the program. Eventually – not immediately – you'll be able to see the results of fish submitted to our program in a database on our website.
> "We'll also make social media posts of our entries through our AGFC page and our AGFC Fisheries Division page. And we're working on an app so that you can submit your catches from your phone."
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Bonus Q: Since all lakes are aging, will AR also be doing habitat work as part of the program?
> "We're already doing a lot of habitat work as an agency – building habitat structures and sinking trees and blocks. My last position with AGFC before taking this job was as a reservoir habitat biologist.
> "If we're getting a lot of attention from a certain lake with our lunker program, we'll likely work with our reservoir habitat team and fishery biologists to focus on that lake."
Angler Recognition Clubs coming soon
- Junior Lunker Club: 6+ lb year-round submissions for anglers under 16
- Great Eight Club: 8+ lb year-round submission for anglers of any age
- Double Digit Club: 10+ lb year-round submission for anglers of any age
- Legacy Lunker Club: 10+ lb fish donated to our spawning program, submitted between Jan 1 and Mar 31
_____
Quick 2c: GREAT. With bass being the most popular gamefish in the US and thus in many states, you'd think more DNRs would be trying to do something like this. Big props to AR and the folks who made this happen.
And if you live in AR, please understand that you are lucky (even though Bowman lives there lol). Why? It's one of a literal handful of states that really embrace bass fishing. Just a handful.
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If you're older and/or fish big water maybe you've been using 'em, but check this:
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That's new elite qualifier Matt Messer from KY doing the forward-facing thing. Just one example of many young'ns doing that (and not so young'ns). The butt seat lean is in mang! 😁🤙
Btw Matt prefers to fish shallow, butt...(I mean but 😆) – info from here:
> "It was a grind – I spent a lot of time and never really went fun-fishing the entire season. It was a lot of time staring at screens and trying to get better at those types of techniques.
> "I always say, 'There are no bonus points for catching shallow fish.' I had to be more consistent in the Opens this season."
Example: At Okeechobee he Scoped (in a canal) with a Berkley MaxScent Flatnose Jerk Shad on a 3/16-oz Berkley Fusion19 Hybrid Jighead – like pretty much all the high finishers at that one – but he also had a punching bite going on a Berkley MaxScent Creature Hawg.
One butt seat Q that just occurred to me: Did KVD kill the butt seat? 🤔😁 Thank about it!
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Heavy blade, Hinged minnows, Minnow trick, Dice tips!
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Interesting it's not clear.... They have some real good, different colors in that minnow.
3. 2026 NPFL field has...Rick Clunn!
They're at 130 (and counting?). Here's some folks fishing it you might have heard of, in alpha order:
- Todd "not Mike" Auten
- Tommy "hardhead" Biffle
- Zack "on track" Birge
- Scott "won 2 this year" Canterbury
- Hank "wild" Cherry
- Luke "I am your father" Clausen
- Rick "no gusto retiremento" Clunn
- Brandon "on the" Cobb
- Drew "prep" Cook
- John "I am not that GA dude" Cox
- Cliff "off the dang grid" Crochet
- Wes "Lee" Gore
- Buddy "you ain't no" Gross
- Greg "back for the attack" Hackney
- Ray "you can call me Ray" Hanselman
- Matt "the greatest dang blue" Herren
- Russ "in the passing" Lane
- Logan "I ain't afraid of no ghost" Latuso
- Shane "sBaits" LeHew
- Jared "the milkman is at the door" Lintner
- Wes "Lee" Logan
- Bill "TMNT" Lowen
- Andy "billy goat" Morgan
- James "bigfoot lives" Niggemeyer
- Jacob "J-Pow" Powroznik
- KJ "bow to the" Queen
- On Em "Matt" Robertson
- Boom Boom "Fred" Roumbanis
- Gerald "Spo-G" Spohrer
- Scott "E" Suggs
- Gerald "$6 million man" Swindle
- Randall "just jigs" Tharp
- Martin "Mediterranean" Villa
- Greg "oree" Vinson
- David "moon" Walker
- Pat "Rick" Walters
- Worldwide "James" Watson
- Brad "Lee" Whatley
- Jason "and the Argonauts" Williamson
I think most of those guys fished it last year. Also some long-time studs on the list like Lendell Martin and Darrel Robertson. Should be a time!
Notable guys who fished it this year but are not on the list for '26 are: Jason Christie, David Fritts, Caleb Kuphall, Kyle Welcher and Tyler Williams.
4. More info from B.A.S.S. on the Big O EQ DQs
Both were allegedly info-related. Not much if any news about Tai Au's DQ. The other angler DQd was TX's Jaden Parrish, who was also fined after the Rayburn Open this year.
Tai chose not to fish Okeechobee, Jaden went the other route: protested and fished while B.A.S.S. chewed on the protest.
Some more deets in that B.A.S.S. post, but unless you're familiar with it I think we need a flow chart showing the process to really understand it. Or at least I do....
5. Rickey Clunn says don't overreact right now
To politics...I mean cold fronts: 😁
> The biggest mistake I see anglers make in Nov is overreacting to cold fronts. Yes they change things, but not always as drastically as we think.
> As long as the water temperature stays relatively stable, bass will remain active even if the shad move a few feet deeper [meaning so you can't see 'em with your eyes].
6. Have you seen the Buckeye Scoop Jighead?
Scoop scope head! 😁 New head, supposed to help with the roll (top-weighted) and has HEAD LIFT. Head LIFT! Ever heard that before??
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I gotta try it! You?
7. Gitcha Humminbird and Minn Kota discounts!
Deals are running through 12/1:
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Discounts are on TackleWarehouse.com – here's Humminbird, here's Minn Kota.
I have and can recommend the XPLORE 10. Wish I had the 12 though lol.
8. TX: 8.8 was the biggest largie shocked up at Nasworthy
> Fish are reaching the legal length of 14" at 3.8 years old, which was also consistent with previous Nasworthy surveys.
Shoot I thought every TX lake had a few 10+ bass in it?
9. VA: Snakeheads don't compete with bass?
Biologists tagged and tracked snakeheads in Potomac tributaries:
> Results suggest that while snakeheads do consume native species like killifish, the majority of their diet is bluegill.... While sharing a prey base with bass, competition does not appear to be occurring due to lower snakehead abundance and an abundance of prey.
> "In many waterways it appears that snakeheads are coexisting with bass and other fish species, that they have limited available habitat, and that the snakehead population has started to plateau, and even decline, in some waters."
Only strange cats are into catching 'em: 😁
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10. AL: Chris Lewis new Wildlife and Fisheries director
11. DC: Bill floated to improve federal fisheries data
Not freshwater but potentially a big and needed step in the right direction if it's solid (I didn't read it) and passes:
> "For too long NOAA has relied on outdated data collection methods...which have significantly overestimated recreational fishing activity...by 30 to 40%. These inflated numbers resulted in unnecessarily short seasons, abrupt fishery closures, and economic harm to coastal communities, even when stocks are healthy."
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Patrick Walters' search baits on herring lakes are...
From the Bassmasters ^:
> My go-to search engines for covering massive amounts of water are a 1/2-oz double willowleaf spinnerbait and a squarebill, like a 1.5-style crankbait.
> I will also keep a medium-runner, such as [a Rapala] DT-6, on the deck as well when probing breaks that are a little deeper.
He says when he finds active fish, he switches baits:
> Once I get a bite and find a school of bass pushing herring up against a point or shoal, I'll switch back to the Fluke or topwaters to really work on them.
Says his cleanup deals are a Carolina rig or a shakey head with gp and 'red bug' colors. Whooda thunk!
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"Day 1 I caught 2 bass, the biggest one maybe being 12 inches. Day 2 I never had a bite until the very last cast, and I caught this 8-lber."
- Bryan New "and improved" talkin on Bassin'masters 'bout fishing for 2 days on Lake Biwa, Japan, which he said was:
> ...extremely tough. Extremely – all capital letters – TOUGH."
Literally sounds like NJ. Yep it's that tough! (Except apparently for Greg DiPalma. 🤔)
Apparently Bryan had a time. Personally I can't wait to hear him speak a little Japanese...😁
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Too cool. Japan is big-time on my bassin' bucket list!
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Name that bait! Hint: It's an oldie but goodie. (Answer here.) Is it me or is that gold a little different than other golds? 🤔
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Jay Kumar's BassBlaster is a daily-ish roundup of the best (sometimes worst) and funniest stuff in bassin', hand-picked by me – Jay Kumar. I started BassFan.com, co-hosted Loudmouth Bass with Zona, was a B.A.S.S. senior writer and a bunch more in bassin'. The Blaster is the #2 daily read on any given day in the wide world o' bass so thanks for readin'!
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Check out BassGold.com! It's FREE!
Sign up another bass-head!
If you're forwarding every Blaster to other bass crackheads, tx much – or you can email me the addys and we'll take care of it! We'll never send spam or whatever....
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GITCHA HANDS ON THE BEST STUFF!
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Gitcha BB social at these links
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