Entry 88-4

Mark Rose

Me and My Lizard

Editor's Note: Thirty-one-year-old Mark Rose of Marion, Arkansas, has fished professionally for several years and has several top-10 finishes. In the past, he's worked as a district executive for the Boy Scouts of America's national office. He went pro with Strike King several years ago. Although he's never won a tournament, Rose proves his consistency by always fishing near the top. This week he'll share with us what baits work best for him.

Rose: I am a lizard fan during the spawn. I really like Strike King's 3X Salt-Impregnated Lizard. The original 3X Lizard would float, and now we have the salt-impregnated lizards that sink. Both these kinds of lizards are very lively. Most of the lakes that I fish have a tremendous amount of fishing pressure on them. So, I believe the more lifelike that your lizard appears to be, the more bass you'll catch.

My favorite way to fish the 3X lizard is to cast to a bass' bed with a heavy lead, and then let that 3X lizard begin to float. I can leave the lead laying on the bottom then and pull the lizard back down to the lead making it look more lifelike.

When I am not sight fishing, I'll usually rig the lizard with a 3/16- or a 1/4-ounce weight and cast it into the holes in the grass, or flip-and-pitch it into the cover. I believe the 3X lizard is extremely deadly after the spawn when you rig it Carolina-style and fish it along deep creek channels and out on points. When I Carolina-rig a lizard, I like to have about a 3-foot leader from the lizard to the barrel swivel below my sinker.

When I fish in dirty water, I'll put a bead below my sinker and above my barrel swivel. Under these conditions, I'll fish a short Carolina-rig with a leader that may only be 1- to 1-1/2-feet long. In stained-water conditions, I feel the bass are attracted to the sound of the bead hitting the sinker; therefore, they look for the bait closer to the sound than they do when the water isn't stained.




 

© 1996-2008 Strike King Lure Company