Over 1000 10+lber.'s this old gent could teach us all somethings 2024
0119 reply :
Check out www.gon.com/article.phpid=2352
This guys story holds many lessons for all of us.
Link doesnt work for some reason. Its under the recent issue. A fellow named Pat Cullen in Valdosta Ga. using only black buzzbaits fishing at night using a Abu 5500C3 on an ugly stick. Great story
shimmy reply :
sidenote, they were pretty much all private ponds. And yes, that does make a difference!
Bass Tracker 20 reply :
Wow That guy is amazing! I bet he is full of storys 
basspro215 reply :
QuoteWow That guy is amazing! I bet he is full of storys
is that sarcasim i here 
bassnbtom reply :
whoa I don't understand I'm in valdosta! I would like to know where he fishes!
0119 reply :
I dont see where a private pond has anything to do with it. It wasnt bill dances closed to the public strip pits full of structure. Most if not all farm ponds are shaped like a dinner plate or shallow bowl. Zip for structure. I think an interesting side note is screw the almighty bait monkey. Aint no need for a steez or stella or even a st. croix. Plain old walmart tackle can get the job done. Not that I would do that.
Bassin_Fin@tic reply :
Private pond has everything to do with it. :
Try holding that kind of track record on a crowded public lake where you struggle to catch 5 dinks all day.
Daniel My Brother reply :
If the only thing you get from that article is that he's fishing private ponds, you're missing out on a lot of good information.
GREAT story. Thank you for posting
shimmy reply :
it is an incredible feat, however, i read the story a while ago and am jealous of people like this fortunate enough to fish private ponds in Georgia. My only point was there is a reason he caught more ten pounders than any other elite tournament angler in the world and it's not because they are not using buzzbaits and ugly sticks
fourbizz reply :
No one, and I mean NO ONE, has ever been the big bass bad *** that Butch Brown is. He himself has over 1000 doubles, up to 19.3 lbs, fishes ultra high pressure SoCal lakes, uses artificials,and is a very genuine and nice guy to talk to.
Mattlures reply :
Bizz I gotta disagree with you. I think Butch is #2. Mike has a 20 and several high teens, plus he dominates the tournaments. Many times he wins team tournament fishing by himself and he usualy wins by 5+ pounds.
Plus he ownes most of the lake records in socal.
He has caught trophy bass out every lake here at least 20 different lakes. He is also extremly versitile. He has lake records sight fishing, on swimbaits, on jigs and on senkos.
No disrespect for Butch though, I do think he is a stud
As for the article, I am sure the old guy is a great fisherman but his success is centered around the private ponds. Imagine how many huge bass the guides have caught on Baccarac and El Salto
I do like his choice of baits though. The buzzer is one of my goto night time big bass bait.
0119 reply :
If public waters are so hard to fish I'll take them any day. 3 days fishing in Kentucky Lake last week with over 50 bass each day. More bass over 3lbs. on average than any days on any waters Ive fished down here with these so called monster strain bass.
Mattlures reply :
3 lbers are irelevant to the acomplishment. 3 lbers live everywhare a bass lives. They are young and dumb. Anybody can catch them and anybody who has fishes has caught them. He fishes private ponds with little preasure. It makes a huge difference. I am sure that he would still catch big bass in public lakes just not as many. He uses a proven big bass technique. Buzzers at night are a great choice. Plus he fishes a ton and I am sure he is very good. The numbers are just decieving becuase of where he fishes.
Taylor Fishin 4 life reply :
ha i live in valdosta
0119 reply :
My point is not about 3lb.er's its about pressure. I fish swamps, ditches, sloughs and back creeks with no pressure and find it funny how a trip to a huge public water like Kentucky Lake yielded such great and frankly easy results. Comparing the old timers situation to anybody or any fish from california is whats irrelivant. Freakishly huge fish borne of a peculiar situation where they were humanly introduced is like comparing Valdosta bass fishing with bluefishing in New Jersey.
Daniel My Brother reply :
Finding the private water to fish is obviously part of the hunt for him. He doesn't own these lakes, he finds them on a map and puts in the time with the owners to gain permission.
The lakes may be private, but you and I have the same chance of gaining access to them as he does. He's just better at this than most.
There are dozens of threads on here every season from people wanting to know how to catch big bass. Maybe the best answer would be to learn what kind of beer the farmer up the road drinks.
Randall reply :
I don't knock the guy for his catches and I liked the article but private ponds and lakes if you fish the right ones are much easier to catch big fish from. I fish a small lake at night a couple times a year. I can get a 10 pounder most nights in summer and an eight pounder almost everytime I fish it. It's just not the same as fishing pressured public water during the day and I don't fish it to often because it's pretty easy to catch the fish there. It's not as much of a challenge to me but it is still fun to catch them. I have a buddy out fishing there now and I would bet he already has a couple eight pounders caught on a buzzbait or swimbait. Last week he sent me a photo of a ten pounder they caught at the ramp on one cast before they ever put the boat in.
Mattlures reply :
QuoteMy point is not about 3lb.er's its about pressure. I fish swamps, ditches, sloughs and back creeks with no pressure and find it funny how a trip to a huge public water like Kentucky Lake yielded such great and frankly easy results. Comparing the old timers situation to anybody or any fish from california is whats irrelivant. Freakishly huge fish borne of a peculiar situation where they were humanly introduced is like comparing Valdosta bass fishing with bluefishing in New Jersey.
Ok comparing LMB from Ca to Ga LMB is like comparing them to tuna???? alrighty then.
Anyways CA has nothing to do with it and I never made the comparison.
My point was that his numbers are decieving because he fishes places that have little presure. That makes a huge difference weather its in GA or CA or Japan.
If he was to catch those same numbers on public lakes then he would be a champion.
He obviously know how to fish and target big fish but again the biggest part of his success is his access to privite ponds that hold a lot of unpreasured big bass.
If I fished lake Baccarac in Mexico 300 days a year how many 10+lbers would I have after a decade? or 3 decades? I give him props, He put in th ework to find all those ponds and gain access. He isnt cathing them because he is lucky. He knows what he is doing, but he defenately has better oportunities the 99.9999999999% of the rest of the bass fisherman in the world.
paul. reply :
fascinates me how sometimes we wanna put asterisks beside accomplishments we will never approach ourselves. maybe it's just easier to do that than to admit how we wish we could do something like that, but never will because we don't have the opportunity and/or the ability. as far as i have read, this guy never cheated or did anything even questionable with his fishing. he just went out and worked hard at something he loved using the methods that made him happy. and he's caught over 1000 trophy bass. regardless of whether we wanna recognize or not, and regardless of whatever asterisks we wanna put by this man's name, this guy has done something incredible. and regardless of what constitutes a "trophy" bass where we happen to live, 1000 trophy bass is a number most of us will never even sniff. why can't we just be happy for the guy? i say fish how and where you wanna. enjoy yourself and use the tactics that you like as long as it's legal. and then recognize other people's right to do the same without trying to minimize their accomplishments.
BassThumb reply :
Good article. Thanks for posting this. It's a great accomplishment, regardless of the circumstances. Although, I think it's ridiculous to discount the fact that they are from private ponds. C'mon...seriously. Those are virgin bass we're talking about.
This link works:
http://www.gon.com/article.php?id=2352&cid=153
0119 reply :
And Mattlure my point is pressured waters have nothing to do with it. The term pressured water is only an excuse not a reason for a lack of success.
And my point was farm ponds more than not have no structure and are harder to fish than structure ladden waters. And my point was a $400 Steez or Calais doesnt neccessarily help you get success.
Catt reply :
Pressured VS Un-Pressured bass are totally different animals
There are guys I know here in Southwest Louisiana with DD catches in the hundreds from private pay ponds, lakes, & marshes. But put them on Toledo Bend or Rayburn they struggle to boat a limit.
Boogey Man reply :
Kudos to the guy.
Imagine how big those bass were be if those ponds were stocked with rainbow trout.
shimmy reply :
QuoteAnd Mattlure my point is pressured waters have nothing to do with it. The term pressured water is only an excuse not a reason for a lack of success.And my point was farm ponds more than not have no structure and are harder to fish than structure ladden waters. And my point was a $400 Steez or Calais doesnt neccessarily help you get success.
Given your logic, i can't tell if you're arguing just to argue or if you really have no idea. If you don't know the difference between a georgia private pond and kentucky lake as well as other pressured public waters then this argument is useless.
Fish Chris reply :
Around here, fishing in private ponds would make a HUGE difference alright....
I mean, if that all you ever fished, you'd probably never get a 10 lb'er !!!
Seriously though.... their might be a private pond or two, somewhere up here in Nor Cal, managed specifically for a handful of giants, where the small fish are constantly caught and removed, and lots of attention is placed on a fat, constant, food supply.
But WAAAAY more common in the private ponds around here, are decent numbers of easy to catch 4 to 7 lb'ers.
You want good numbers of 10+ lb'ers in these parts, you need to go to heavily pressured, public waters, where mostly dinks get caught (and hopefully removed) while giants pig out on hatchery trout, and don't get caught by the average angler near so often.... and the guys that do catch them with regularity, usually have already learned the importance of releasing those giants.
It's human nature to think that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence.
But as far as I'm concerned, certainly with trophy bass fishing in Nor Cal, those private farm pond owners can just stay over there catching their 4 to 7's. I'll fish the heavily pressured, public waters for my 10 to 15's (or bigger ) thank you.
As for Butch Brown vs. Mike Long..... Ahhh geeez. Both of those guys are big bass gods. Both have caught far more 15+ lb'ers than I have. And (to back my point) both have caught the vast majority (maybe all) of their huge bass in heavily pressured public waters.
BTW, I've never fished So Cal, but from what I hear, there are a LOT more 10 to 15+ lb'ers swimming around down there, than their are up here. Maybe if I had lived in So Cal, instead of Nor Cal, I'd have 200 DD bass, instead of 89. But I can pretty much guarantee that both BB and ML would still be way out in front of me ! Those guys are just bad a$$ trophy bass guys !
Peace,
Fish
bigbill reply :
I noticed all my smaller ponds have bigger bass in all of them. I'm talking 10lb bass++. There not being caught mainly because of the time that we go. I'm fishing between 3:30am to around 9:30am. I mainly fish from shore 99.99% of the time. I'm disabled and can't fish as much as i'd like to but the little time i do put in i notice there are bigger bass out there waiting for us to catch we just need to go every day. Watch the weather patterns too. I notice that the bass can turn on before the rain storm hits, during a lull in the rain storm and after the rain has ended. You just need to keep going and trying. I find the 2 to3 hours before the front hits to be the best time to catch bass.
At Infisherman they go for catching record breaking fish during the moon phases. If i look back in my records when i have caught the bigger fish i'll bet the fronts with a full moon phase has something to do with it. InFisherman says to fish days before the full moon and days after the full moon.
I'm not saying to fish during thunder storms with lightening but i do go out and give it a try in the light/soft steady rain.
I'll bet we have big bass all over our country, while they might not be as large as the ones being bred in CA i'm sure we have state record breakers in each state, i'd bet on that from what i'm seeing here in Ct.
We just need to fish more and fish everyday.
I noticed i go fishing from when the season starts everyday at 3:30am for about 3 months before i get completely burned out. I'm so burned i miss the hot summer fishing and i may fish the fall till november.
With my health getting worse i still try to fish as much as i can.
My hottest lure for big bass has been the Rebel BIG claw crawfish crankbait in green/black back. I throw it out in the channel and give the rod a sweep back so it dives down then reel it slow. A shot of yum craw scent helps too.
My hottest topwater bait has been the BPS Topnocker in color #25 again cast it out and walk the dog. I move it three times in short movements then stop/pause and repeat. Or you can nock it by little twitches and it almost pops out of the water and back down in the same spot.
These are my hottest lures in my area your area it maybe different but its all about the lure size, lure color and the presentation too plus the time your fishing too.
Bass fishing isn't luck, luck is at the casino, its skill in bass fishing and all the info you need is here on this site. And remember the best teacher is time on the water fishing. BB
TIP: Reel your reel smoothly. Watch how your hand makes a circle with the reel handle. You need to make a smooth even circle with the reel crank handle. If you reel uneven the lure will go fast and slow up on every turn of the crank. You need to make every turn an even speed, its the perfect presentation that catches fish with lures.
BTW; I use lures only.
paul. reply :
QuotePressured VS Un-Pressured bass are totally different animals
Catt, weren't you one of the guys who said that a bass' abilty to learn was minimal or nonexistent? please correct me if i'm wrong.
if they cannot learn then pressured vs. unpressured bass are NOT totally different animals. they are exactly the same animal with exactly the same level of vulnerabilty.
Big Bait Fishing reply :
QuoteBizz I gotta disagree with you. I think Butch is #2. Mike has a 20 and several high teens, plus he dominates the tournaments. Many times he wins team tournament fishing by himself and he usualy wins by 5+ pounds.Plus he ownes most of the lake records in socal.
He has caught trophy bass out every lake here at least 20 different lakes. He is also extremly versitile. He has lake records sight fishing, on swimbaits, on jigs and on senkos.
No disrespect for Butch though, I do think he is a stud
As for the article, I am sure the old guy is a great fisherman but his success is centered around the private ponds. Imagine how many huge bass the guides have caught on Baccarac and El Salto
I do like his choice of baits though. The buzzer is one of my goto night time big bass bait.
don't meen to disagree with you Matt but mike long is not #1 .. i do hear from alot of people that he does catch alot of big bass on live crawdads though ............. :
Mattlures reply :
pgersumky Mike is#1 of all bass fisherman including the Elite pros. I am sure you hear every rumor imaginable. Anytime anybody achieves greatness there will be jealousy and haters. Do not belive what you hear. He is watched everytime he fishes. He wins more tournaments then he doesnt win. I am guessing your opinion is influenced from guys who dont like him. Meat him yourself. Fish by him and see. You would change your opinion. Go to one of his seminars with an open mind and block out what you have "heard". I hear things to about everybody who catches big bass in CA. EVERYBODY! Mike is not a crawdad guy but like everybody who has ever chased big bass I am sure he has used them before ,so what. I have used dads, shiners,and crawlers and I ocasionaly still use crawlers but just about all of my big bass come from swimbaits and sightfishing but if I could get them on dads then I would throw dads.
0119 yeah OK WOW!
Fish Chris ha ha I think the exact oposite then you. I think Norcal has way more big fish ha ha. We may have a higher top end but we got tiny lakes comparred to you guys. Your right about greener grass! Anyways the article says he searches out ponds that are holding numerous trophy bass. That is obviously a diferent situation then the ponds in your area holding 4-7lbers. We catch big bass in preasured public lakes becasue thats where we have to go to catch them. There are many places in the country like GA and TX where private ponds are very common and where people are managing them for trophy bass.
senko_77 reply :
Quotesidenote, they were pretty much all private ponds. And yes, that does make a difference!
Shimmy, I look forward to your input every time there is a thread where someone caught big bass. You are the most jealous person I have ever seen on BR and it always makes the thread way more fun when you come riding in touting why it isn't a "real" catch. I would love to come up to your home waters and show you how to really catch fish. Maybe next year during the Opens.
Keep it up man 
Glenn reply :
Quotefascinates me how sometimes we wanna put asterisks beside accomplishments we will never approach ourselves. maybe it's just easier to do that than to admit how we wish we could do something like that, but never will because we don't have the opportunity and/or the ability. as far as i have read, this guy never cheated or did anything even questionable with his fishing. he just went out and worked hard at something he loved using the methods that made him happy. and he's caught over 1000 trophy bass. regardless of whether we wanna recognize or not, and regardless of whatever asterisks we wanna put by this man's name, this guy has done something incredible. and regardless of what constitutes a "trophy" bass where we happen to live, 1000 trophy bass is a number most of us will never even sniff. why can't we just be happy for the guy? i say fish how and where you wanna. enjoy yourself and use the tactics that you like as long as it's legal. and then recognize other people's right to do the same without trying to minimize their accomplishments.
Hands down the best post I've seen here in a long time. I absolutely agree 100%!
8-) 8-) 8-) 8-)
8-)
Osprey39 reply :
QuoteQuotePressured VS Un-Pressured bass are totally different animals
Catt, weren't you one of the guys who said that a bass' abilty to learn was minimal or nonexistent? please correct me if i'm wrong.
if they cannot learn then pressured vs. unpressured bass are NOT totally different animals. they are exactly the same animal with exactly the same level of vulnerabilty.
That's not true. Here's a couple of articles you might want to check out:
Is Bass Catchability Hereditary
Largemouth Bass Angling and Catchability
Fish aren't capable of reasoning but that doesn't mean they can't learn. After you read the first article, imagine what would happen on a heavily pressured public lake where people actually harvest the fish they catch in some cases. That's probably why lakes that were great in the 70s and 80s are not as productive as they once were.
paul. reply :
thanks for the articles osprey. good stuff. just so there's no misunderstanding, i wasn't saying that i think bass are incapable of learning. i have been convinced for a long time that they can indeed learn. i'm just trying to figure out if Catt has done a 180 on us. if i remember correctly (and i might not ;D), seems like a while back there was a thread on the subject of bass learning, and Catt argued pretty strongly that bass could not learn, or at least could not learn much. i think the thread was originally started by Matt and i bet he remembers it too. there was a bunch of posts back and forth on that thread arguing both ways. i think it was eventually closed due to it all being a matter of opinion and no definitive conclusions being reached. anyway, now Catt is saying pressured fish are completely different from non-pressured fish. it can't be both ways. i'm just trying to figure out if Catt has changed his mind.
Catt reply :
QuoteQuotePressured VS Un-Pressured bass are totally different animals
Catt, weren't you one of the guys who said that a bass' abilty to learn was minimal or nonexistent? please correct me if i'm wrong.
if they cannot learn then pressured vs. unpressured bass are NOT totally different animals. they are exactly the same animal with exactly the same level of vulnerabilty.
Yelp but they can be spooked
=Matt 5.0= reply :
I would LOVE to find a place that had easy to catch 4-7lbers.... :-[
Glenn reply :
Quote... there was a bunch of posts back and forth on that thread arguing both ways. i think it was eventually closed due to it all being a matter of opinion and no definitive conclusions being reached.
And so this one is headed that way to. So let's end this tangent now, ok boys? Let's get back on topic.
Thanks!
shimmy reply :
QuoteQuotesidenote, they were pretty much all private ponds. And yes, that does make a difference!Shimmy, I look forward to your input every time there is a thread where someone caught big bass. You are the most jealous person I have ever seen on BR and it always makes the thread way more fun when you come riding in touting why it isn't a "real" catch. I would love to come up to your home waters and show you how to really catch fish. Maybe next year during the Opens.
Keep it up man
Hmm...I could have sworn i said i was jealous of all the big fish he caught. As in most of my posts i make it clear that i am jealous of big bass. Besides this article and the fish in a barrel lake you fish, i don't take away from others catch. If you can show me than i would be pleased and obliged to apologize.
Second of all, show me how to really catch bass??? I have never said i am the best but am up for a challenge any day. The lake you post all of your pictures from come from a lake people are dropping over 400 bucks a day to fish. And yes, as i stated on your thread, i am jealous of that place! So yes you are stating the obvious. However, as i always point out, you get guys like RoadWarrior, Mattlures, Paul, Big-O, Fish Chris and many many more on this sight who catch giants amidst all the pressure. They are great fisherman and you won't find a thread of me ever questioning their skills.
I'm glad you do enjoy my posts and anytime you wanna show me up, i'd love to take the friendly challenge. You ask me not to get ahead of myself as you jump right in and tell me you'd teach me something about fishing!!! That's kinda funny I like that competitive side you have though, that's what makes a good fisherman.
tight lines
paul. reply :
o.k., couple more things and i'm done on this thread. glenn is right. i don't want it to get closed and i certainly don't want to be the reason it gets closed. first, thanks for the clarifying response catt. i think i understand where you're coming from now.
second, shimmy i wanna thank you for putting me in that group. very cool of you. that is flattering beyond belief. but the truth is i don't belong there. not even close. not even in the same ballpark as those guys. i have caught some nice fish from public water, but all the really big ones have come from ponds or small watersheds. some pressure but truthfully not much. sometimes, i am just catching the same few big fish over and over again. and all the asterisks you could possibly put beside big fish catches (minimally pressured water, small water, live bait, sight fishing) apply to a fair portion of the big ones i've been fortunate enough to catch. i guess that's why i identify with the guy in the article so much. but even then, i'll never even get close to that dude in terms of numbers of big fish. there are a few names on this thread that you could put on your list of big fish sticks instead of me though. one is Catt. another is Senko 77. another is randall. another is fourbizz. heck, you have caught some really nice fish too shimmy. plenty of other folks on this site better than me too. but i'm not concerned about rankings. i just try to have fun doing something i love using the methods that make me happy - just like the old guy in the story that started this post.
so there. we are now back on topic.
Hooked_On_Bass reply :
Quoteo.k., couple more things and i'm done on this thread. glenn is right. i don't want it to get closed and i certainly don't want to be the reason it gets closed. first, thanks for the clarifying response catt. i think i understand where you're coming from now.second, shimmy i wanna thank you for putting me in that group. very cool of you. that is flattering beyond belief. but the truth is i don't belong there. not even close. not even in the same ballpark as those guys. i have caught some nice fish from public water, but all the really big ones have come from ponds or small watersheds. some pressure but truthfully not much. sometimes, i am just catching the same few big fish over and over again. and all the asterisks you could possibly put beside big fish catches (minimally pressured water, small water, live bait, sight fishing) apply to a fair portion of the big ones i've been fortunate enough to catch. i guess that's why i identify with the guy in the article so much. but even then, i'll never even get close to that dude in terms of numbers of big fish. there are a few names on this thread that you could put on your list of big fish sticks instead of me though. one is Catt. another is Senko 77. another is randall. another is fourbizz. heck, you have caught some really nice fish too shimmy. plenty of other folks on this site better than me too. but i'm not concerned about rankings. i just try to have fun doing something i love using the methods that make me happy - just like the old guy in the story that started this post.
so there. we are now back on topic.
Paul, you are very modest. That is quite commendable.
senko_77 reply :
QuoteQuoteQuotesidenote, they were pretty much all private ponds. And yes, that does make a difference!Shimmy, I look forward to your input every time there is a thread where someone caught big bass. You are the most jealous person I have ever seen on BR and it always makes the thread way more fun when you come riding in touting why it isn't a "real" catch. I would love to come up to your home waters and show you how to really catch fish. Maybe next year during the Opens.
Keep it up man
Hmm...I could have sworn i said i was jealous of all the big fish he caught. As in most of my posts i make it clear that i am jealous of big bass. Besides this article and the fish in a barrel lake you fish, i don't take away from others catch. If you can show me than i would be pleased and obliged to apologize.
Second of all, show me how to really catch bass??? I have never said i am the best but am up for a challenge any day. The lake you post all of your pictures from come from a lake people are dropping over 400 bucks a day to fish. And yes, as i stated on your thread, i am jealous of that place! So yes you are stating the obvious. However, as i always point out, you get guys like RoadWarrior, Mattlures, Paul, Big-O, Fish Chris and many many more on this sight who catch giants amidst all the pressure. They are great fisherman and you won't find a thread of me ever questioning their skills.
I'm glad you do enjoy my posts and anytime you wanna show me up, i'd love to take the friendly challenge. You ask me not to get ahead of myself as you jump right in and tell me you'd teach me something about fishing!!!
tight lines
It's a shame that you have only been here since Oct. of 2009 and didn't get to see me when I was into tournament fishing. 3 double digits all caught from public water including a 14.7. One of those double digits was the biggest caught in the BFL Bulldog division since 1997 and the Bulldog division has been FLW's most active division for years. Not trying to sound cocky, but that just scratches the surface of what I've done. Need some more?
I fish at the "fish in a barrel" place you refer to because I work there. Then I go back to my home lakes that are pressured just like yours and lay the whooping on them there, too. Most of the time I don't post pictures because I like to protect my spots and it's not a big deal to me to brag on an internet forum about EVERY single fish I catch that is 4lbs +. I post the pictures of fish in NC because there fun to look at with those massive bellies.
When I swing through the area sometime next year, I would love to wet a line with you and you can show me how the big bass guru does it ;D
fourbizz reply :
Senko77 is our prodigy. He is a stick. He WOULD teach you something about fishing. ;D
fishinghusker reply :
to some of us, 3 lbers are pretty good, especially here in Nebraska, our average are probably 1-2 pounds..which is largely due to the fact that it's colder longer here, less of a growing time..i would be happy to bring in 3 lbers all day
Matt Fly reply :
What do you call a 70 acre stock pond that Dottie lived at? A private pay pond that isn't highly pressured. LOL
Highly pressured lakes are open 24/7, 365 days a year, LOL and I didn't even mention that some of those lakes are closed to skiing only and no fishing on certain days, its alternated between fishing and skiiing.
LMAO, thats pressure?
Osprey39 reply :
Any of you tough guys that want to come to New Mexico and show me how it's done, come on out!
(seriously, I wouldn't mind learning a thing or two, lol)
shimmy reply :
big bass guru...hmm i just don't ever in my life remember ever calling myself that on this forum or anywhere! The lakes i am restricted to fish out of, it would be interesting to see how you do from them. It's only a win win situation for me if you did drop by and show me something from these lakes because they are desolate enough as it is. Now, don't be a man of words, i expect a heads up when you're down this neck of the woods and let's take your boat out! This raft can only fish pressured waters that are small and i'd love to hit some lakes.
3 double digits in a tournament in public waters is truly amazing. That is an incredible accomplishment and it clearly deserves respect. Let alone your 14.7 is just ridiculous. These types of accomplishments are impossible to discard hence why you have never seen me question accomplishments as such.
In terms of bragging about EVERY fish over 4 pounds, to each his own. While i don't do that about every fish over 4, if i have a fun outing i just might say something about it just like you do for outings that are fun for you. That's what this site is all about. To most people on this site, a 4 pound bass is a great fish to catch any day. Plus you need to keep in mind, in some waters, a 4 pounder is a "huge" fish. It is funny to me though how out of nowhere you feel the need to prove yourself as a better angler than me. I love the competition of fishing and if you truly are a veteran of fishing than you know that you can lose on any given day. And again in all seriousness, if you did show me a thing or two on these small heavily pressured waters i'd only be grateful and i am man enough to admit when i have lost a battle here and there...but...are you??? :
Aside from all trash talking, i think what makes fishing so fun is that you can beat the tar out of someone one day and get spanked the next. Fishing is truly amazing.
Either way, if you don't make it down here and it's all talk, i do hope you keep catchin them cause that's what it's all about. And if you are the little "prodigy" as fourbizz says, then i hope you make us proud.
Mattlures reply :
Matt Fly Dixon lake is over 80 ft deep with crystal clear water. It is open 7 days a week to fishing and no water contact. and was arguably the most preasured lake in the country. You do not know what you are talking about.
They have about 30 rental boats that were usualy all rented out every time I went there. The shore was lined with another 50-100 guys. The lake is not fun to fish like this. They have reaised the prices so the preasure is less plus Dottie dying has helped but its still crowded. I didnt fish there this year becuase it cost too much. All our lakes out here are extremly preasured. I have been to Texas recently I saw a couple lakes and you could actualy see large areas of water inbetween boats. Your lakes are huge, they do not recieve 1/4th the preasure per acre then the so Cal lakes do. Its not even close, it would be a lot more fun to fish in Texas. I dont think you guys know what combat fishing is.
Matt Fly reply :
I'm well aware of how big that stock pond is, and there is no water skiing on that lake, lol geez, it is only 70 acres, but its not the only lake in the Socal area I was in reference to.
Dixon is no different than a bunch of private Texas lakes, pay and you can fish them, except we don't have the one bass that has proven to be world record that everyone seeks. Thats what made Dixon famous, cause it sure wasn't booked during the week every week in the 90's.
By the way, there are a bunch of lake Dixons in Socal, they just didn't have a world record swimming in them thus we don't hear about them at all.
You would of never heard of Dixon if it wasn't for one fish.
In Texas, our public waters, you don't have to be open at certain times to pay for launch permits and extra fishing fees since we have a license, but then again, I had a valid license too in Cali and still had to wait till sun up every day before I could fish.
LOL, Your pressure is on lakes that limit the number of boats due to lake size, open half the day, and no trotlines, no night fishing and for years, you guys could only use one pole at a time. Now you can buy extra license to use a second pole.
We have trotlines, 24 hr fishing 365 days, free ramps, no daily usage fees, no 5 dollar trout stamp every day you use that lake even though your a bass fishermen.
Just what Socal lakes are open for night fishing or open 24/7, 365 days a year?
Thats pressure....... 8-)
Dan: reply :
Regardless of WHY Dixon is pressured, it sounds like when an angler can fish it, he must compete with many other anglers on a small body of water. That sounds like pressure to me.
Glenn reply :
Ok guys, let's not turn this into yet another CA vs. TX lakes ticking contest. It goes nowhere.
senile1 reply :
QuoteQuotefascinates me how sometimes we wanna put asterisks beside accomplishments we will never approach ourselves. maybe it's just easier to do that than to admit how we wish we could do something like that, but never will because we don't have the opportunity and/or the ability. as far as i have read, this guy never cheated or did anything even questionable with his fishing. he just went out and worked hard at something he loved using the methods that made him happy. and he's caught over 1000 trophy bass. regardless of whether we wanna recognize or not, and regardless of whatever asterisks we wanna put by this man's name, this guy has done something incredible. and regardless of what constitutes a "trophy" bass where we happen to live, 1000 trophy bass is a number most of us will never even sniff. why can't we just be happy for the guy? i say fish how and where you wanna. enjoy yourself and use the tactics that you like as long as it's legal. and then recognize other people's right to do the same without trying to minimize their accomplishments.
Hands down the best post I've seen here in a long time. I absolutely agree 100%!
8-)
I absolutely agree. That was beautiful, Paul.
Daniel, My Brother stated:
QuoteIf the only thing you get from that article is that he's fishing private ponds, you're missing out on a lot of good information.GREAT story. Thank you for posting
Excellent point, Dan. There is a lot of good stuff here from how to locate and choose good ponds to the quality of equipment used.
KU_Bassmaster. reply :
No. Mine's bigger
Jake. reply :
QuoteI'm well aware of how big that stock pond is, and there is no water skiing on that lake, lol geez, it is only 70 acres, but its not the only lake in the Socal area I was in reference to.Dixon is no different than a bunch of private Texas lakes, pay and you can fish them, except we don't have the one bass that has proven to be world record that everyone seeks. Thats what made Dixon famous, cause it sure wasn't booked during the week every week in the 90's.
By the way, there are a bunch of lake Dixons in Socal, they just didn't have a world record swimming in them thus we don't hear about them at all.
You would of never heard of Dixon if it wasn't for one fish.
In Texas, our public waters, you don't have to be open at certain times to pay for launch permits and extra fishing fees since we have a license, but then again, I had a valid license too in Cali and still had to wait till sun up every day before I could fish.
LOL, Your pressure is on lakes that limit the number of boats due to lake size, open half the day, and no trotlines, no night fishing and for years, you guys could only use one pole at a time. Now you can buy extra license to use a second pole.
We have trotlines, 24 hr fishing 365 days, free ramps, no daily usage fees, no 5 dollar trout stamp every day you use that lake even though your a bass fishermen.
Just what Socal lakes are open for night fishing or open 24/7, 365 days a year?
Thats pressure....... 8-)
But in general, aren't the Texas lakes large enough to handle that pressure more adequately than the small Southern California lakes?
Mattlures reply :
I concede, there is no contest. Texas wins hands down. TX has many huge lakes to choose from plus when flying in it seems like everybody has a private pond. The state of TX actualy likes fisherman and encourages them to fish and hunt. Their lakes are open all the time. and I believe you only have to buy a licsence and not launch fees and daily permits. There are more 10lbers caught in TX and the bass fishing is better(easier) and far less preasured. They even stcok geneticaly superior bass fry into the lakes. Its not even close. TX is a much better place to be if your a bass fisherman, or hunter.
In So Cal our lakes are super deep and super clear, They ususaly have half of them closed at any given time and they are always crying about low water. We have to buy a licsence, launch fee, daily permit, and sometimes pay for parking too. Some lakes are only open 4 days a week and only a few allow night fishing. Soo when we decide we are going fishing on say a Wed we only have a couple places to choose from. That means everbody else in So Cal are fishing in the same couple lakes that Wed. The water dist would rather not even let us fish the lakes. Our lakes are the most preasured lakes in the country. The bass are spooky and hard to catch. When the lakes do get stocked with trout the shorelines are crowded with shore anglers so you cant even get your boat in close. Our laked do not get stocked with bass. The only thing CA has going for it, is huge bass. There arent that many of them but they are here. Other then that TX is 10X better. My mom lives in TX and she keeps trying to get me to move but i was born in So Cal and I dont want leave. But I can honestly say TX is a much more fisher/hunter friendly state and they dont have all the stupid politics that we do.
WRB reply :
Interesting thread.
Butch Brown's pond by the way is doing well the past few weeks and has attracted some of the best trophy bass anglers in the world. Consider the pond is less 1,500 yards long (1/2 mile), open to the public and open to night fishing at times, most of the top sticks are fishing live bait, defines high pressured bass.
It would be interesting to know what Pat Cullen's PB bass is? For someone who counts so accurately, no mention how he weighs bass.
I can relate to not weighing every bass and just estimating weight, unless the bass is a giant near or over 15 lbs and stopped counting back in the early 70's. Unless you keep a log book and enter the weights as you catch and weigh them, keeping exact numbers is impossible.
The debate over public bass waters and private should be simple to understand; 10 lb+ bass are rare and don't get a chance to achieve 10 lb+ weights unless they live long enough and have optimum conditions. I get a chance occasionally to fish private lakes with big bass populations and the bass are far less wary and easy to catch in lakes when they haven't experienced fishing pressure. It's not that these bass are stupid, they haven't grown up competing with man for survival.
Chris; the CA delta may have more 15 lb+ bass then all of SoCal lakes combined and no closed areas for the bass to hide in.
What nearly everyone who hasn't fished CA lakes doesn't understand is how small most of these trophy lakes are, less than 2 miles long on average and how restrictive the fishing rules are. Nearly every lake has a closed to entry zone 500 yards from the dam, for example. Most SoCal lakes are closed to night fishing, with a few nights open during the summer. All these lakes have weekly tournaments that average about 100 boats. Highly pressured bass, it's amazing that any grow to exceed 10 lbs+ in these public lakes. Without the closed zones, the bass may not survive to become giants.
WRB
Glenn reply :
Well, I tried, but the Cali vs. TX lakes debate continues. Just deleted yet another post on the topic, so now I'm closing this thread. Guess you guys can't take directional hints.
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