TW_Staff
04-29-2009, 10:02 AM
Kevin Vandam locks up his 15th B.A.S.S. win on Smith Mountain Lake. With a different approach than most in the Elite field, VanDam sight fished for smallmouth bass. While most of the field was sight fishing, no one else was actively seeking smallmouth.
"It turned into a pretty magical week for me," he said. "As the event unfolded, everything fell into place and I made all the right decisions at the right times. It's really pretty rare for it to work out like that."
"I didn't think a lot of guys would be looking for smallmouths, and I knew there were a lot of good ones in there, so I decided to try to find smallmouth that were spawning."
"I was catching them on baits I hadn't thrown or even tied on. I know I got one on a topwater and one on a wacky-rigged (Strike King) Ocho. They were acting funny and I'd just get the idea that I should throw this or that.
"Largemouth were back in the protected pockets, while the smallmouth like the main lake," VanDam said. "I couldn't tell by looking at them, but the points that had gravel on them were the best areas. When there was gravel, you would maybe find three beds or so, then the next three points would be clay or rock."
His major reason for pursuing smallmouth over largemouth was for their aggressiveness. Catching a smallmouth off a bed takes less time than largemouth, giving VanDam more time during the day to look for the bigger cruising fish.
Winning Gear Notes:
Sight-fishing gear: 7' medium-action Quantum PT Superlight (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QSCR) or 7'4" medium-action Quantum KVD Tour Edition spinning rods, Quantum Energy (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QEPBS) PT 40 spinning reels, 8-pound fluorocarbon line, 1/8-ounce Strike King shakey-head (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpageTERMSTRIKE-SKTSH.html) jighead, size 2 Mustad dropshot hook (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=MWGDSH), Strike King 3X finesse worm (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SXFW) (dirt).
"The key to that worm is that it is real stretchy and buoyant," VanDam said. "When that worm falls into a bed, the tail sticks straight up and that is huge when the bass are spawning."
He also caught fish on tubes, a Strike King 3X Centipede, Strike King Bitsy Bug Jig (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SKBB), Strike King Baby Rage Craw (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SKRCR) and dropshot rigs at various times throughout the event.
He sprayed all of his baits with Mustad Ultrabite Pheromone Bass Attractant and kept his Biosonix (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=BXRFSF) unit on at all times to keep the fish activated.
The Field:
Matt Herren:
"My practice went about like I expected," he said. "When I went into this deal I realized that the fish were spawning, so I didn't practice anymore – I just looked. I'd fished enough events on deep, clear-water lakes on the FLW Tour to know that in the ones where you can see them on the beds, you'd better be sight-fishing or you're going to get skinned."
He fished up both rivers that empty into the lake – the Blackwater and the Roanoke.
"I had to find new water every day, and I spent the last 2 days in the Blackwater."
Sight-fishing gear: 7'6" heavy-action Kistler Helium (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=KLTXC) or 7'1" Kistler Argon (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=KAF) rod, Shimano Chronarch (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SCHD) or Shimano Core (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SCOCR) casting reel (6.3:1 ratio), 15-pound Berkley Trilene 100% fluorocarbon (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=BTFCC) line, 1/4- or 3/8-ounce Tru-Tungsten weight (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=TTBW), 4/0 Reaction Innovations BMF hook, Reaction Innovations Beaver (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=RISB) (juicy, white trash or black neon) or Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=RISKD)(pearl blue shad or Houdini)
Performance edge – "My MinnKota Fortrex (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=MKFBM) (trolling motor). I ran it into the ground every day."
Kelly Jordan:
"I found some deeper beds that I think a lot of other guys missed and I fished them pretty methodically," he said. "It was kind of a combination of hauling butt down the bank and the Shaw Grigsby method of seeing everything that's in there. I hedged my bets a little that way.
"If I had it to do over again I'd make a couple different moves. With a couple of those bigger fish that wouldn't bite, I'd have sat way off and blind-casted to them."
Sight-fishing gear: 7' medium-heavy Fenwick Techna AV (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=FTAVC) rod, Abu Garcia Revo (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=AGRP) casting reel (6.3:1 ratio), 65-pound Spiderwire Stealth (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SWS) braided line, 3/16- and 1/4-ounce Lake Fork Tackle Mega-Weights (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=LFTMW) (tungsten), 7/0 Owner Wide Gap Plus (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=O5139) hook, Lake Fork Tackle Baby Fork Craw (he used several colors, but all were of a green or watermelon base).
Performance edge – "The Lake Fork Tackle Baby Fork Craw. That thing is dynamite on the beds."
Greg Hackney:
"That lake has some of the best sight-fishing fish I've ever seen," he said. "About 99% of every one I fished for, I caught in the first 20 minutes. You couldn't ask for better, except that the big females would just not lock onto the nest.
"Every morning I started off at a really slow pace and built momentum all day. If I found a fish that weighed 2 pounds in the morning, I'd go ahead and catch it so if I didn't find better fish later on, I wouldn't have to worry about the clock. I was real patient."
Sight-fishing gear: 7'2" medium-heavy Quantum Greg Hackney signature series rod, Quantum PT Tour Edition (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QTPVCR) casting reel, 20-pound Cajun fluorocarbon or 50-pound Cajun braided line, 3/16- or 3/8-ounce Tru-Tungsten (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=TTBW) weight, 5/0 Youvella flipping hook, Strike King Baby Rage Craw (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SKRCR) (green-pumpkin).
Flipping gear: 7'11" heavy-action Quantum Greg Hackney (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QSSCR) signature series flipping stick, Quantum PT "Burner" (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QTPVCR) casting reel (7:1 ratio), 50-pound Cajun braid, 3/8-ounce Tru-Tungsten slip sinker, 5/0 Youvella flipping hook, Strike King Rodent (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SKPR) (green-pumpkin).
Performance edge – "My Strike King sunglasses. Shaw (Grigsby) keyed me in on that yellow lens and I was able to really see a lot of detail."
Aaron Martens:
"Practice was incredible – I don't know how many 20-pound bags I could've caught," he said. "But in the tournament it was really hard to find quality fish near a bed. Most of them were swimming around under docks and it was hard to find the big females."
He focused on a couple of creeks off the main channel. In addition to sight-fishing, he also threw a dropshot rig and skipped docks with a Scrounger jighead.
Sight-fishing gear: 7'2" medium-heavy Megabass Aaron Martens signature series pitching rod, unnamed casting reel (7:1 ratio), 20-pound Sunline Shooter fluorocarbon (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SLSHF) line, 1/4-ounce Tru-Tungsten weight (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=TTBW), 3/0 Gamakatsu straight-shank (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=GWHRB) hook, Yamamoto Flappin' Hog (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=YFH) (watermelon-red).
Dropshot gear: 6'10" Megabass Aaron Martens signature series spinning rod, unnamed spinning reel, 8-pound Sunline Sniper fluorocarbon (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SLFCS), 3/16-ounce Tru-Tungsten dropshot weight, 3/0 Roboworm ReBarb (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=RWRBH) hook, 4" Roboworm Fat Straight Tail worm (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=RFST) (Aaron's magic).
Performance edge – "The Megabass pitching rod and the Shooter line. The rod allowed me to work the fish quickly and that 20-pound Shooter is invisible. It seemed like braid spooked the fish a little."
TW Staff
"It turned into a pretty magical week for me," he said. "As the event unfolded, everything fell into place and I made all the right decisions at the right times. It's really pretty rare for it to work out like that."
"I didn't think a lot of guys would be looking for smallmouths, and I knew there were a lot of good ones in there, so I decided to try to find smallmouth that were spawning."
"I was catching them on baits I hadn't thrown or even tied on. I know I got one on a topwater and one on a wacky-rigged (Strike King) Ocho. They were acting funny and I'd just get the idea that I should throw this or that.
"Largemouth were back in the protected pockets, while the smallmouth like the main lake," VanDam said. "I couldn't tell by looking at them, but the points that had gravel on them were the best areas. When there was gravel, you would maybe find three beds or so, then the next three points would be clay or rock."
His major reason for pursuing smallmouth over largemouth was for their aggressiveness. Catching a smallmouth off a bed takes less time than largemouth, giving VanDam more time during the day to look for the bigger cruising fish.
Winning Gear Notes:
Sight-fishing gear: 7' medium-action Quantum PT Superlight (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QSCR) or 7'4" medium-action Quantum KVD Tour Edition spinning rods, Quantum Energy (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QEPBS) PT 40 spinning reels, 8-pound fluorocarbon line, 1/8-ounce Strike King shakey-head (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpageTERMSTRIKE-SKTSH.html) jighead, size 2 Mustad dropshot hook (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=MWGDSH), Strike King 3X finesse worm (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SXFW) (dirt).
"The key to that worm is that it is real stretchy and buoyant," VanDam said. "When that worm falls into a bed, the tail sticks straight up and that is huge when the bass are spawning."
He also caught fish on tubes, a Strike King 3X Centipede, Strike King Bitsy Bug Jig (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SKBB), Strike King Baby Rage Craw (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SKRCR) and dropshot rigs at various times throughout the event.
He sprayed all of his baits with Mustad Ultrabite Pheromone Bass Attractant and kept his Biosonix (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=BXRFSF) unit on at all times to keep the fish activated.
The Field:
Matt Herren:
"My practice went about like I expected," he said. "When I went into this deal I realized that the fish were spawning, so I didn't practice anymore – I just looked. I'd fished enough events on deep, clear-water lakes on the FLW Tour to know that in the ones where you can see them on the beds, you'd better be sight-fishing or you're going to get skinned."
He fished up both rivers that empty into the lake – the Blackwater and the Roanoke.
"I had to find new water every day, and I spent the last 2 days in the Blackwater."
Sight-fishing gear: 7'6" heavy-action Kistler Helium (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=KLTXC) or 7'1" Kistler Argon (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=KAF) rod, Shimano Chronarch (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SCHD) or Shimano Core (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SCOCR) casting reel (6.3:1 ratio), 15-pound Berkley Trilene 100% fluorocarbon (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=BTFCC) line, 1/4- or 3/8-ounce Tru-Tungsten weight (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=TTBW), 4/0 Reaction Innovations BMF hook, Reaction Innovations Beaver (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=RISB) (juicy, white trash or black neon) or Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=RISKD)(pearl blue shad or Houdini)
Performance edge – "My MinnKota Fortrex (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=MKFBM) (trolling motor). I ran it into the ground every day."
Kelly Jordan:
"I found some deeper beds that I think a lot of other guys missed and I fished them pretty methodically," he said. "It was kind of a combination of hauling butt down the bank and the Shaw Grigsby method of seeing everything that's in there. I hedged my bets a little that way.
"If I had it to do over again I'd make a couple different moves. With a couple of those bigger fish that wouldn't bite, I'd have sat way off and blind-casted to them."
Sight-fishing gear: 7' medium-heavy Fenwick Techna AV (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=FTAVC) rod, Abu Garcia Revo (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=AGRP) casting reel (6.3:1 ratio), 65-pound Spiderwire Stealth (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SWS) braided line, 3/16- and 1/4-ounce Lake Fork Tackle Mega-Weights (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=LFTMW) (tungsten), 7/0 Owner Wide Gap Plus (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=O5139) hook, Lake Fork Tackle Baby Fork Craw (he used several colors, but all were of a green or watermelon base).
Performance edge – "The Lake Fork Tackle Baby Fork Craw. That thing is dynamite on the beds."
Greg Hackney:
"That lake has some of the best sight-fishing fish I've ever seen," he said. "About 99% of every one I fished for, I caught in the first 20 minutes. You couldn't ask for better, except that the big females would just not lock onto the nest.
"Every morning I started off at a really slow pace and built momentum all day. If I found a fish that weighed 2 pounds in the morning, I'd go ahead and catch it so if I didn't find better fish later on, I wouldn't have to worry about the clock. I was real patient."
Sight-fishing gear: 7'2" medium-heavy Quantum Greg Hackney signature series rod, Quantum PT Tour Edition (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QTPVCR) casting reel, 20-pound Cajun fluorocarbon or 50-pound Cajun braided line, 3/16- or 3/8-ounce Tru-Tungsten (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=TTBW) weight, 5/0 Youvella flipping hook, Strike King Baby Rage Craw (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SKRCR) (green-pumpkin).
Flipping gear: 7'11" heavy-action Quantum Greg Hackney (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QSSCR) signature series flipping stick, Quantum PT "Burner" (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=QTPVCR) casting reel (7:1 ratio), 50-pound Cajun braid, 3/8-ounce Tru-Tungsten slip sinker, 5/0 Youvella flipping hook, Strike King Rodent (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SKPR) (green-pumpkin).
Performance edge – "My Strike King sunglasses. Shaw (Grigsby) keyed me in on that yellow lens and I was able to really see a lot of detail."
Aaron Martens:
"Practice was incredible – I don't know how many 20-pound bags I could've caught," he said. "But in the tournament it was really hard to find quality fish near a bed. Most of them were swimming around under docks and it was hard to find the big females."
He focused on a couple of creeks off the main channel. In addition to sight-fishing, he also threw a dropshot rig and skipped docks with a Scrounger jighead.
Sight-fishing gear: 7'2" medium-heavy Megabass Aaron Martens signature series pitching rod, unnamed casting reel (7:1 ratio), 20-pound Sunline Shooter fluorocarbon (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SLSHF) line, 1/4-ounce Tru-Tungsten weight (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=TTBW), 3/0 Gamakatsu straight-shank (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=GWHRB) hook, Yamamoto Flappin' Hog (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=YFH) (watermelon-red).
Dropshot gear: 6'10" Megabass Aaron Martens signature series spinning rod, unnamed spinning reel, 8-pound Sunline Sniper fluorocarbon (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=SLFCS), 3/16-ounce Tru-Tungsten dropshot weight, 3/0 Roboworm ReBarb (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=RWRBH) hook, 4" Roboworm Fat Straight Tail worm (http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descpage.html?PCODE=RFST) (Aaron's magic).
Performance edge – "The Megabass pitching rod and the Shooter line. The rod allowed me to work the fish quickly and that 20-pound Shooter is invisible. It seemed like braid spooked the fish a little."
TW Staff