BOHANNAN’S BEST ADVICE
FOR GETTING BIT
Maintaining optimum boat posi-
tion is always a big part of
Bohannan’s wintertime crankin’ strat-
egy, especially on Ozark lakes where
the banks are rocky and steep. The
Ranger pro says any place where a
major creek winds close to the bank
can pack some of the best potential.
He also keys in on areas where a 45-
degree bank with big rock and deep
water transitions to a flatter gravel
bank and shallower water.
“I’m always going to start on
either side of where the creek winds
up against the bank and make a real-
ly long cast to keep the bait down,”
he says. “I’ve had some really good
winter tournaments at Table Rock
where I had to position my boat right
up against the rocks, literally almost
touching them, in order to make the
right cast. The fish aren’t holding
deep, but they are positioned on a
deep bank. Paralleling the bank helps
keep the bait in the strike zone for a
longer period as opposed to only four
or five cranks if your boat isn’t sitting
right.”
wInTEr 2020 I FLwFISHInG.com
Bohannan’s
winter
crankbaits
Strike King
1.5 Deep
Strike King
Lucky Shad
Terry’s Selection Tips
bolton is a rapala guy, which
influences his crankbait selection any
time of year. For starters, he’s always
got a shad rap tied on when the
water gets cold. shad raps are clas-
sic cold-water bass crankbaits, but
they come with some inherent chal-
lenges, with the most obvious being
that they’re difficult to cast.
these days, however, bolton also
relies heavily on the dt series of
crankbaits, which can be just as dead-
ly at times on wintertime lunkers. the
series includes six balsa crankbaits
designed to cover the water column
from 4 to 20 feet.
“there are some subtle differ-
ences in the dt lineup, but they all
have a pretty tight action that mimics
the movements of the shad,” he
says. “shad aren’t very active at all in
cold water; they are just barely mov-
ing along.”
bolton made a strong case for the
dt series last january during the Flw
tour event he won on sam rayburn.
lipless baits typically rule on the sto-
ried east texas grass lake during the
winter months, but abnormally high
water levels had most of the hydrilla
beds well underwater.
the Kentucky pro adjusted by
rotating between a dt10, dt14 and
dt16, which paid off with a four-day
weight of 91 pounds, 3 ounces. he
targeted inside and outside grass
lines at varied depths, as well as a
By adjusting his line size, Terry Bolton
is able to hit any depth with the
crankbaits in Rapala’s DT lineup.
the bait is built from the same
mold as the standard shallow-diving
1.5 square-bill, but is outfitted with a
longer bill and a stationary internal
weight to aid in casting and promote
maximum diving depth while
enhancing the hunting action.
bohannan claims he can consistently
bomb 30-yard casts and bump bot-
tom in 10 feet with the 7/16-ounce
lure on 12-pound-test p-line tactical
Fluorocarbon.
“it’s one of my new favorite win-
tertime crankbaits, especially around
rock,” says bohannan. “it’s got that
old-school hunting action to it that
triggers those reaction strikes, sort of
like the old wiggle wart does. it may
wind up taking the place of the
wiggle wart for me the way it’s look-
ing so far. i think it gives the fish a
different look they haven’t seen
before. i had some great days testing
it on beaver last winter in 47-degree
water.”
his preferred colors are common
for that region.
“i want something crawfish-look-
ing, like brown craw or chili craw,” he
says. “in clear water, 52 degrees or
less, i love red.”
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