®
SWIM JIGS
KEY to Lintner’s nationwide arsenal
By David A. Brown
A
dmittedly, Jared Lintner wasn’t always down
with swim jig; but not for any doubt or disdain -
the two had simply never met. Of course, once the introduction was made, Lintner quickly realized the
benefits…
“Up until I fished my first two seasons on the
Bassmaster Elites, which was 2006-2007, I had never even
thrown a swim jig,” he said. “I kept hearing guys saying they
caught them on a swim jig, and I was like ‘What are they
talking about?’
“Traditionally, in my circle of friends and in the area
where I grew up, a swim jig just wasn’t something anybody
knew. For whatever reason, it just didn’t come out west.
Since then, I’ve learned a lot and the swim jig has become
one of my go-to baits on the West Coast.”
Worth an upfront mention, Lintner typically uses the
Freedom Tackle jig heads, which feature a rigid coil system
that allows anglers to add the hook of their choice and
change as needed to fit the situation
at hand. This flexibility expands his
swim jig versatility by allowing him to quickly change his hook size or style to fit the trailer of his choice.
“Anytime from the pre spawn into the fall, a swim jig is a good choice, especially if you have a grass scenario,” Lintner said. “Basically, eight months out of the year, I have one tied on. Depending on what structure and habitat I have, that’s how I’ll select the size of the jig, the size of the trailer and the colors. There’s a lot that goes into it.”
Key areas for swim jig selection include:
HEAD GAMES
As Lintner notes, anglers hear “swim jig” and typically envision hydrilla, reeds, tules and the like; but while these shallow vegetation elements certainly cover a lot of the common swim jig habitat, Lintner holds a more open- minded view.
On a lot of west coast lakes, all we have is brush, laydowns ad chunk rock,” Lintner said. “When selecting a
page 20