Spring 2018
®
Skeet Reese Bassmaster/James Overstreet
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12- to 15-pound-test Hi-SEAS 100 % Fluorocarbon line with a 130-pound-test SPRO Power Swivel and a 1/0 TroKar TK110 hook with the worm Texas Rigged on a 12- to 18-inch leader of the same line.
“The worm casts well, and the swivel gives it some weight to sink a little between twitches,” he said. “I catch a lot of fish in the spring on this rig.”
SKEET REESE – SELECT SWIMBAITS BY WATER TEMPERATURES
The eight-time Bassmaster winner has made a swimbait a major part of his success on tour. He used the oversized lures to win in 2010 at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia, and again in 2015 at Lake Guntersville in Alabama. Each of those wins were on different style swimbaits.
He said the conditions dictate what bait he chooses.
“I throw the Berkley Sick Fish if the water is colder,” said Reese. “The tail has a less aggressive kick to it as it swims, and it works really well on a jighead, which makes it better in deeper water around staging areas; so that is my early pre- spawn swimbait.”
Once the water warms and he feels like the fish are moving shallower and becoming more aggressive, the Bassmaster Classic Champion turns to baits that have a wilder, more aggressive action.
“I want to be able to fish these baits shallow and tighter to cover later in the spring,” he said. “When that is the case, I turn to a 7- or 8-inch hollow-belied paddle tail swimbait on a weighted TroKar TK170 Magnum Weighted Swimbait Hook. These baits have a lot of tail kick and rolling action that matches the mood of the bass this time of the year.”
His final tip is to match the power of his rod to the weight of his line and the hook he is using.
“I’ll use one of my signature 7’4” Spinnerbait XL Tournament Series rods when I’m using a jighead and 15-pound-test Berkley Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon to help minimize breakage,” he said. “When I turn to 20 or 25-pound- test Trilene and the Magnum Swimbait TroKar Hook, I use my 7’6” Heavy Cover rod because I know the line and hook can handle that kind of strength.”
WRAPPING UP
Using these kinds of tips can help
increase the size of your catch during slugfest spring shootouts and they can also help you catch a few extra bass when other
anglers may be struggling. •