Bass Digest/April, 2014
My lure won't go through the cover
The heavier and more compact your bait is, the better it will slide through the cover. The easiest way to get your bait through the cover is to use a heavier weight. I try to match my weight to the type of cover I'm fishing, hyacinth and weed matts need the heaviest weights (1.5 to 2.5 ounces), grass comes in a close second (1 to 1.5 ounces) and anything less dense can make do with a much lighter weight (0.5 to 1 ounce). The other way to get it through the cover is to slim down the profile, try a craw instead of a beaver-type bait or even try a fluke or senko. As a last resort, to get through that stubborn top layer, let the bait crash into cover without slowing down the entry.
Often when punching grass there are multiple layers to get through and with each rise and fall of your lure you will feel it drop into the next layer. If you do not reach the bottom layer you will more than likely not get any bites. So make sure you have the correct bait and lure that you are getting it all the way down into Mr Fishy’s home.
How do you hook these things!
Technique. It's a word used often, for a good reason: a small difference in technique is the difference between the average and the best. The basics are simple: hold the rod in two hands at all times, palming the reel and putting your index finger on the line. Then make sure when your bait enters the water, that your rod is held at about 45 degrees and that your line does not go slack. Keep In contact with the bait the whole time. You will be surprised at how many bites you were missing once you master the technique. The actual feeling of the bite is something you will pick up over time. It ranges from a "tick" to a violent pull. But most of the time it is towards the more subtle end of the bite spectrum. The main reason for fish coming loose is when you take too long to detect the bite and not striking hard enough. A fish in cover will often move around in cover once your bait is in its mouth. Take too long to detect a bite and you will find that you are wrapped around bunch of vegetation deep underwater with no chance of getting the fish or your tackle back. Then we come to the striking part, the simple fact is your line is touching and possibly wrapped around things that you cannot see, most of the strike will be absorbed by whatever your line touches. So when you set the hook make sure you
give it a proper whack. If you want to really take your technique to the next level, watch Youtube videos of the pros who are really good at punching like Bub Tosh and Ish Monroe. Study and copy their technique and you will not go wrong.
The heartbreak of losing a big one is too much
At some punching sessions you will land 100% of your fish hooked whereas at others you may only land 50%. Some of this is due to factors beyond the angler’s
control, but there are many ways to increase your success ratio. Firstly tackle: are you using the correct hooks? Heavy gauge straight shank 4/0 heavy cover flipping hooks are my choice and they definitely make a difference to the hookup ratio. With line, anything below 50lb braid is asking for trouble. Rods are a much tougher subject, but generally rather go for too much power than too little power. You need to be able to power a beast through and over a thick mat of hyacinth or grass. An important thing to remember is once you have hooked the fish, carry on pulling. You need to keep that head facing towards you. If the fish gets pinned against cover and it won't move, keep just
enough pressure to keep it pinned and go and collect it. Always stick your hand in to the cover rather than pull the line with your hand. Not only will you lose less fish this way, but you will also avoid serious injury. Braid can cut like a knife.
Punching is hard work and boring
Flip the lure in the grass, move up and down a few times, leave to soak and then repeat - sounds almost like the directions on a shampoo bottle. Now, imagine doing that 1000 times in a day and only catching 5 fish. Sometimes this is how punching goes when you are a newbie. But that's no reason not to try, especially when some of the world’s biggest tournaments are being won with punching. I never get bored of
punching as I can use it in so many different ways. often I use it as a power fishing technique to draw out any big fish along the shoreline. This consists of quick casts and constant movement along the bank.
Also it's a very effective follow up technique: try tossing your lure into a spot you have just lost a fish on frog or using a fluke or crank to pull fish off a drop-off with floating weed and then going in for the kill with your punching rod. There are many ways to keep it
interesting.
6. The Fight is over before it began
Punching is not for everyone. The thrill is not in fighting a fish. You are using tackle made for the task, pulling very big fish out of heavy cover, fast. The thrill of punching comes from finding the fish, feeling the bite, hooking it and getting it out of cover.
Once that's done there is not much else the fish can do besides shake
the hook. So it's a trade-off, bigger fish or an acrobatic fight? I
pick bigger fish.
We are in autumn now and the fishing are going to start feeding more
aggressively and for longer as we transition into winter. It's a great
time to learn a new technique such as punching and once you land a few
bucket mouths, it will be less challenging.
Article & Images by Jonni Wills