Leading Tournament Tactics:

 

Introduction:

A phenomenon well understood by the tournament fishing brigade is that of fish becoming smarter. The idea goes against the theory of fish having a 3 second memory, but tournament anglers see this effect quite often. During the course of a tournament where fish are pressured, they typically become harder to catch over the ensuing days. Over the course of a year, populations of fish become increasingly harder to tempt when using the same techniques over and over. And if you think this is starting to make fishing sound harder then you probably don’t want to hear about the theory of Morphic Resonance. This theory is based on scientific research that suggests as animals learn lessons of survival, they start to reproduce these improved instincts into their offspring. From an angler’s perspective, this means the big fish we are catching and releasing today (or hooking and losing!), are reproducing fish that are less likely to fall for similar techniques tomorrow. This does sound as if life is getting harder for us, but there is an upside. Technology is advancing rapidly, as is angler know how. This means we generally still have the upper hand when it comes to battling our piscatorial prey.

 

Weightless Presentations:

I enjoy the fact that fish become harder to catch at times because it pushes anglers to develop our skill levels and technical base. The result is that tournament anglers are continually striving for more effective techniques. The basis of a lot of our techniques is in the improved presentation of artificial baits. Fortunately, we have tackle companies like Tackle Tactics helping us to achieve this goal.

A large development in tournament technique has evolved over the past year in the form of near weightless presentation. Jigheads such as the “Hidden Weight System” have enabled anglers to fish very natural, seductive presentations to cautious fish. The result has been some great bags and several tournament wins to anglers using such techniques. One of the most recent such victories was recorded by Tim Morgan and Carl Jocumsen in the Brisbane Tackle and Tinny Show Bream Tournament.

 

Background:

The advent of the Hidden Weight System or HWS came about through many frustrating refusals by fussy fish. During these times, anglers were casting heavier jigheads to fish often suspended above the bottom. These fish watched as artificial baits sank un-naturally past them before swimming away leaving anglers scratching their heads.

The first HWS jigheads were designed for soft plastics like the now famous 3 inch Berkley Bass (Dropshot) Minnow. These plastics were cast to fish feeding over shallow flats or sheltering high around structure such as pontoons and oyster racks. The fish that had previously watched heavier jigheads drop past them climbed all over these new presentations! As with any new technique, the finer points typically take some time to refine.

The first HWS jigheads were used to rig predominantly 3” stickbaits. These plastics were cast to fish feeding close to structure or over sandflats. The retrieve consisted of a jerk and pause cycle. To do this, anglers would cast the plastic to the designated strike zone and allow the jighead to sink for a few seconds. The plastic would then be quickly jerked a few times before the retrieve was stopped to allow the plastic to subtly sink again. The wounded baitfish imitation has been extremely successful on many species of fish with many takes occurring as the plastic was paused. This technique still accounts for a lot of fish (particularly across wind swept flats!).

 

Advanced HWS Techniques:

It has been interesting to watch the development of HWS techniques evolve from using predominantly faster style retrieves to more slowly fished presentations. Another development has been in the variable size of plastics being used in conjunction with HWS techniques.

The basis for recent HWS improvements has been in placing lightly weighted plastics right in to fish holding structure and then allowing the offering to sink very slowly through the strike zone. The plastic is often left in the strike zone for some time with only very minor movement being applied before the lure is retrieved and cast to the next likely looking location.

The best way to properly describe how to fish some of the different plastics on the market is to describe how to rig them, where to fish them and some finer points of a successful retrieve. Descriptions of three of my favourite HWS plastics are shown below.

 

The 6’ GULP! Sandworm:

This plastic is one of the most natural looking artificial baits to hit our shores in some time. To top it off, fish love the smell of it. Successful fishing of this plastic has a lot to do with presentation. I have found that weightless style presentations have been by far the most consistent at taking quality fish.

After experimenting with several ways of rigging this plastic, I have settled on one that seems to work more often than not. Because fish in some systems have a penchant for sucking in the tail of the bait and swimming off with it, I now always use a stinger hook arrangement. I attach a short length of mono to the upper section of a HWS No 2 light jighead between the eye of the hook and lead keeper (top of hook). A No 6 or 8 Daiichi hook is then attached to the end of the mono. The whole sandworm is then rigged on to the HWS jighead and pushed up over the keeper. The reason for fishing the whole sandworm is that the increased surface area of the plastic allows for a very slow seductive sink (this is important!). The Daiichi hook is then threaded through the worm once and pulled right the way through. This process is repeated another two times before the hook is rigged into the lower section of the plastic. By threading the hook through several times, there are no sections of mono hanging out of the bait making it looking un-natural.

The rigged sandworm is now ready to be cast at waiting fish.

The two main areas I target with this bait are either shade producing structure or sand flat zones that hold fish. The light weight but bulky bait means the worm can be cast into tight spots very quietly and from a long distance. This reduces the chance of spooking shy fish. In many cases anglers can see fish patrolling sand flats picking up sandworms from good ambush locations. A favoured past time of mine is to search sandflats looking for good ambush spots and casting the worm to such places. As the bait sinks I watch the line for any sign of movement which may suggest a fish has moved off with the bait. If I believe this has happened I lift the rod and set the hook. This is an exciting and easy way to fish!

 

       

   

        

 

 

   

   Rigging a 6’ soft plastic worm with a stinger hook is easy. This rig when fished effectively is  deadly in most conditions.

 

The 2’ GULP! Grub:

A recent spate of fishing trips that encountered very shy fish resulted in the extended use of these plastics. The small profile bait fished on HWS jigheads was the recipe required to undo a lot of these fish. The reason I favour using the 2’ GULP! Plastics, is that they cast well. This means they can be cast those extra crucial metres often needed to fool spooky fish.

The TT No 2 light HWS jighead is perfect for these plastics. To improve hook up rates try to rig the hook close to the edge of the plastic. One side of these 2” grubs is a bit flatter than the other side. This means the hook can be rigged close to the edge of the plastic quite easily. The result of rigging the plastic this way is that a good amount of hook is sticking out of the plastic ensuring a higher hook up rate.

A favoured means of fishing this plastic is to patrol waterways while casting this plastic into shaded fish holding locations. Once the plastic has begun to sink, watch the line very closely for any sign of movement. If the line speeds up or stops prematurely, strike!

 

         

Very fussy fish will sometimes only fall for small offerings. Rigging 2” plastics such as that shown in the photos will undo a lot of cautious feeders.

 

The 3” Minnow (GULP! or Bass Minnow)

The 3’Berkley minnows have caught more fish than I care to think about. There are many ways to fish these plastics but I was shown a very effective technique a few months ago. The technique is most effective when used with the 3’ GULP! Minnows but will work equally well with all manner of stickbait.

Rigging the plastic is fairly simple. Ensure that the plastic is rigged up straight along the hook when viewed from all angles.

When casting the plastic I aim to look for areas that offer fish some good structure. Bridges, pontoons, trees and oyster racks form the type of structure I typically target. This technique relies heavily on getting the cast as close to structure as possible. A good cast is one that clips the target structure at the waterline (so right up tight is the answer!).

Having let the plastic hit the water, I then let the offering sink slowly beneath the surface. If the lure is not taken as it sinks I proceed to shake the plastic. The aim when shaking the plastic is to make the lure flutter but remain in the same position in the water. It sounds difficult but can be done quite easily if a good amount of slack line is hanging from the rod tip as you shake the lure. Practice while watching the lure will help you get this right in no time. The effect is very impressive whereby the plastic simulates a wounded baitfish very closely. If fish refused the offering on the drop, they will often come back for a crack once you shake the lure. Spend some time on the water practicing this one, I know you will like the results!

 

    

 

       

  

  Rigging 3” soft plastic minnows has become very popular among tournament bream anglers. Fluttering these offerings down beside structure or ripping them over sandflats continues to produce good fish.

 

Tackle:

Fishing HWS techniques is made a lot more effective and enjoyable when using the right gear. To fulfil these requirements I have set myself up with a 7’ TDA light spin stick that is matched with a 2000 or 2500 size TDA SOL. This equipment is light, responsive and a pleasure to use. I load the SOL with 4lb Berkley Fireline and match this with 2 metres of 4 to 8lb Berkley Transition Vanish leader.

 

Summary:

Tackle Tactics have produced some innovative jigheads that helped us remain a step ahead of fussy fish. Get out on the water and practice some of the techniques described above. I know with some persistence you will be very happy with the results.

I am very much looking forward to further developments in the growing TT arsenal. If the future products are as good as the current ones we are in for some exciting fishing!

 

   

 

   

 

   

                                      

Some of the locations well worth casting a HWS rigged soft plastic. These structures will harbour many species of fish that will find it hard to resist a soft plastic slowly drifted past them.The shoreline structure shown will be home to many cruising fish. Shoreline 1 was host to broken weed and sandy areas. Casting plastics rigged on HWS jigheads in between the patches of weed is a great technique for picking up cruising fish. Windy shorelines are favourite structures of mine to fish. The wind often concentrates food and fish become a lot less spooky in the noisy natural conditions. Cast HWS rigged plastics along such structure and hold on!

 

   

 Playing and landing an average Southern Queensland bream.

 

 

The author with a couple of bream caught in a recent Gold Coast bream tournament. These fish were caught using HWS techniques and contributed to a fourth place finish and a share in some prize money.