ON TOUR
FLW TOUR
detaIls
Feb. 2-5, 2017
presented by lowrance
hosted by Marshall county convention and visitors bureau
ROSE’S LESSON IN STAGING BASS
p
ARKANSAS PRO PLAYS THE PRESPAWN GAME FOR GUNTERSVILLE WIN
rofessional anglers often use the
term “staging” to describe pres-
pawn bass. But what exactly
does that mean?
How do bass stage? Where do bass
stage?
What is all this staging business?
Mark Rose’s FLW Tour win on Lake
Guntersville during the first week of
February provides a perfect example of
what staging bass are all about. For four
days Rose relied on “textbook staging
spots” to haul in 79 pounds, 11 ounces
worth of bass for victory. His winning
pattern could literally be used to teach
Staging Bass 101.
staging in stages
Pro bass anglers might not be fish
biologists, but through thousands of
hours spent on the water they have
observed some common denomina-
tors about bass behavior. The concept
of staging bass is one of those theories.
The basic principle is that as bass
move in to spawn, the bigger females
gather up and move together in small
groups. Just how many females are in a
group is dependent on the fishery and
conditions, but the common guess
among pros is that roughly five to 10
move together at a time. As they move
in, they seek out safe, secure places to
By Rob Newell
hold up, acclimate, feed and wait until
the conditions are right to move up
and spawn.
Exactly how females go about this
process varies greatly based on bass
species and subspecies, region of the
country, type of cover available, etc. As a
result, the prevalence of this staging
process varies as well, but is most evi-
dent in the grassy reservoirs of the
Southern states and Texas, such as Sam
Rayburn, Toledo Bend, Seminole and, of
course, Guntersville, the staging behav-
ior of bigger female bass is undeniable.
One of the most common places
bass stage in these lakes is along inside
Cranking riprap was a solid back-up plan for Rose, and it allowed his staging grass line to replenish.
68
flWfIshIng.com I aprIl 2017