Entry 188-2

How I’ll Fish the 2007 Classic with Denny Brauer

Part 2: What I’ll do in Bad Weather

Question: Denny, let’s look at some scenarios that will probably happen at this year’s Classic. What will you do if you have brutally-bad cold weather? The temperature may be in the 20s or the 30s, with the wind chill factor in the teens. How and what will you do to give yourself a chance to win?

Brauer: The good news is we’ve got a few days of practice before the tournament. If we have that kind of weather, I expect the tailrace area and anywhere you find hot-water discharges to be good places to look for bass. There will be huge concentrations of baitfish anywhere you locate warm water, and as you know, where you find the bait, you’ll discover the bass. Even though these warm-water discharge regions may be community fishing holes that everyone knows about, they may very well be Classic-winning spots. I’ll also be thinking about deep water and fishing slowly with the jigging spoon along the edges of creek channels and crawling a jig on the bottom. These two well-known wintertime patterns always have and always will produce bass.

Question: Your strength is flipping and pitching in shallow-water cover. How will bad weather affect your fishing style?

Brauer: Cold water and cold weather will devastate all my shallow-water tactics. Let’s face it, bass don’t want to be in shallow water when the weather’s really cold. There are two times when bass really don’t want to be in shallow water – wintertime and summertime. If we get bad cold weather, the bass will pack up their bags and leave that shallow water. Even though flipping is a great tactic for catching bass in cover in the wintertime, I’ll have to decide if there are enough bass left in shallow water to be worth my time to flip for them, or, if I should concentrate my fishing where most of the bass will be – on deep-water drop-offs.

If the water’s clear and cold, I’ll have less of a chance of catching bass in shallow water by flipping or pitching Strike King jigs and tubes. However, I’ll still probably fish to my strengths, and at least test out that shallow water, if the weather will let me. If I can make that shallow-water bite happen in cold weather, I’ll have a good chance to place well in the Classic. But if that bite doesn’t work out, I still feel confident in my ability to catch bass with a jig, fishing deep and/or with a jigging spoon. I really believe that a jigging spoon can win the Classic this year.

The jigging spoon is a productive wintertime bait for both largemouth and spotted bass, and Lay Lake has both species. The way this year’s Classic is shaping up, the event may be won on a jig or a jigging spoon, or both. Regardless of how you fish, or you like to fish, you have to be realistic. During the hard, cold, winter months, the bass either like to find warm water, or hold in deeper water that may be warmer.

Next: Bring Out the Suntan Lotion

Contents:

• Part 1: What About February Bassing in Bama?
• Part 2: What I’ll do in Bad Weather
• Part 3: Bring Out the Suntan Lotion
• Part 4: What Weather I’ll Pray For
• Part 5: Top Two Lures for the Classic