Keys :
• start by finding mats on the outside edges of spawning areas .
• cover water , and try different types of mats .
• a hard bottom is key .
• dirty water will shut them down . isolated reeds mixed with mats of hyacinths hay fields where bass spawn inner wall of vegetation photo By d . W . reed ii
Rig Specifics : medlock ’ s punching setup starts with an old 7- foot , 8-inch XXh carrot stix Gold flipping stick and high-speed reel spooled with 65- to 80-pound-test braid . he notes that there are many good braids , but it ’ s important for it to be smooth and quiet through the guides . he then pegs a 1 1 / 2-ounce tungsten sinker above a snelled 3 / 0 or 4 / 0 strike king hack attack heavy cover Flipping hook and a Gambler Why not in black and blue or green pumpkin .
5 . Lavictoire ’ s Yellow Slime Setup
Where : lake champlain When : July and august
Thomas Lavictoire Jr .’ s Stats :
Hometown : West rutland , vt . Top 10s : 22 Winnings : $ 172,006
Background at first look , the deep , clear natural lakes of the northeast might not seem to offer much to the die-hard puncher . deep and clear , sure , but clear and stable water also allows for tremendous vegetation growth , which provides ample cover for thick-shouldered largemouths that want to bury up in it .
When it comes to digging them out , there aren ’ t many with more experience than thomas lavictoire Jr ., who ’ s won a lot of money on lake champlain – much of it by punching through thick mats on champlain ’ s famed southern end .
“ my favorite time to punch mats is when everyone else starts getting miserable ,” lavictoire says . “ that ’ s when it ’ s been 90 degrees for a week and the mats are thick and covered in that nasty yellow slime . When everyone else is out deep , i ’ m usually up in 3 feet of water absolutely knocking their lights out .” the “ slime ” or algae that lavictoire is talking about is the stuff that bogs down a trolling motor , won ’ t let a frog even make an impression and forces an angler to clean off his bait after every flip .
“ i don ’ t know why everybody thinks the bass leave when it gets like that ,” lavictoire says . “ if anything , once that algae starts growing , the mats provide even more shade and food for baitfish , which in turn draws in more bass .”
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