Entry 119-2

Five Great Light-line Tactics with Mike Wurm

Bet On Those Little Crankbaits

Editor's Note: Mike Wurm, a 51-year-old professional bass fisherman and member of Strike King's Pro Fishing Team from Hot Springs, Arkansas, first fished competitively in 1978 and began fishing professionally on the BASS circuit in 1992. He's had eight top-10 tournament finishes and has competed in five Bassmaster Classics.

Wurm: When you mention the word crankbait, most fishermen get the image in their mind of a big deep-diving crankbait that you cast out and reel down to 12- to 15-feet deep. The crankbait I've won the most money on and the one I won't go on the water without is the Strike King Series 3 crankbait. I'll have a Fire Tiger Series 3 crankbait tied on one rod at every tournament I fish. I'll usually cast this lure on 10- to 12-pound-test line.

Another crankbait that doesn't receive the publicity that the bigger crankbaits get but that's also deadly effective is Strike King's Bitsy Pond Minnow. At many times of the year, if you're looking at the size of the shad that the bass are eating, you'll see that the shad are really small. When the shad that the bass are feeding on are very small, more than likely you'll not get many strikes if you're fishing a big crankbait. I've found that when shad are small, I can use that Bitsy Pond Minnow and make even big bass bite.

Another time when the Bitsy Pond Minnow can be the most-deadly bait in your tackle box is in the fall of the year when the bass start schooling on top. You'll often see bass blowing the bait on top of the water. If you'll go to those schools of bass and cast those Bitsy Pond Minnows, many times they'll take those crankbaits when they won't take anything else.




 

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