Entry 32-4

When Strike King Saved the Day and Other Pertinent Fishing Information with Denny Brauer

Positive Change

Editor's Note: Fifty-three year-old Denny Brauer of Camdenton, Missouri, has competed in bass tournaments professionally for 23 years. He won the BASS Masters Classic in 1998 and has had 61 top-10 finishes. An avid angler of Strike King Lures, Brauer has helped Strike King design some of their most-popular products.

Question: Denny, what causes you to change baits or styles of fishing?

Brauer: A change in sky conditions, such as going from sunny to cloudy or cloudy to sunny, results in my making a change. It really depends on the conditions when I caught the fish. If it was sunny and I caught fish on a spinner bait and then it got cloudy, maybe I would change to a buzzbait. The reverse is true, too. If I caught them on a top-water bait when it was cloudy and the sun came out, I might switch to a spinner bait.

If I caught fish on a green pumpkin jig when it was sunny, then if it got cloudy I might switch to a darker jig like black or blue. Sky conditions not only create a transition in what lure and pattern you fish, but they also create a color transition in the bait you use. The lures I start fishing with that day dictate the changes I'm going to make when the fishing conditions change.

Wind also makes me change tactics and baits. For instance, I might be on a great spinner bait pattern when the wind is blowing and then the wind may calm all the sudden. In that case I'd switch to a tube, a worm, a jig or maybe even a crankbait instead of continuing to fish the spinner bait.

If you're catching bass because the wind is creating wave action causing the light to not penetrate as deep into the water, once the wave action slacks off, and more light penetrates, the fish get spooked and may bury-up in the grass. In this situation, go to a softer presentation like a tube or another soft-plastic bait like a 3X worm or lizard.

Water clarity is another condition I deal with quite a bit. I may be fishing an area and catching bass on a particular technique when the water either clears or becomes stained. This forces me to make an 180-degree change in my lure selection.

I've had days when I've been able to catch fish on fast-moving baits and suddenly I'll get rain water, which muddies the water. Then you won't be able to catch those bass using fast-retrieve lures like spinner baits and crankbaits. When the water conditions change, I have to switch lures to get into thick cover. With these conditions, I'll use a flipping technique with a jig, if the water is dirty.
 

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