Bass Fishing May - Jun 2018 | Page 66

Practice
Contrary­to­the­tournament,­kenney’s­practice­peri-
od­is­geared­toward­covering­water­in­an­effort­to­“just
get­bites”­and­start­finding­potential­productive­areas.
his­mornings­are­spent­capitalizing­on­the­tendency­of
shallow­fish­to­roam­and­feed­in­the­low-light­period.
“you­actually­kind­of­do­it­backward­from­in­the
tournament,”­he­says.­“in­the­morning­you­go­race
around­the­banks­throwing­something­moving,­trying
to­find­some­areas­where­fish­are.­you’re­not­trying­to
dial­anything­in.­that’s­for­the­tournament­day.
“so­usually­every­morning­i’ll­fish­shallow­until­10­or
11­and­then­idle­around­all­afternoon­out­deep.­to
find­those­deep­fish­just­takes­hours­and­hours­of
idling.­there’s­no­real­dialing­in­deep­fish,­in­my­opin-
ion.­We­all­know­the­stuff­they­bite.­you’re­just­trying
to­find­the­spot­that­they’re­on.”
there­are­more­hours­in­practice­to­search­than
there­are­hours­to­fish­in­the­tournament.­With­this
system,­kenney­capitalizes­on­typical­fish­behavior
and,­hopefully,­comes­out­the­other­end­with­an­effi-
cient­game­plan.
Making­MonEy­With­a­sQuarE-bill­
Early­in­his­career,­Jt­kenney­relocated­to­Florida
from­Maryland­and­eventually­broke­out­by­winning­a
tournament­in­the­sunshine­state.­Ever­since­then­he’s
been­pegged­as­a­heavy-cover­flipper.­
boy,­has­the­media­gotten­his­specialty­wrong.­
“nobody­ever­writes­anything­about­me­and
crankbaits,­but­i­bet­50­percent­of­the­fish­i’ve­caught
in­tournaments­have­come­on­a­crankbait,”­he­says.
May­and­June­are­prime­crankbait­months­for­a
variety­of­depths,­and­one­of­kenney’s­favorite­baits­is
a­1.5­or­2.5­shallow-diving­square-bill­model.­here­are
his­ground­rules­for­fishing­it.
1. Stay efficient –­“to­me­it’s­an­efficient­way­to
cover­water­with­something­i­have­a­lot­of­confidence
in.­i­can­have­the­trolling­motor­on­70,­and­i’m­not
impeding­the­action­of­the­bait­if­i’m­going­that­fast.”
2. Land more fish –­“they­usually­get­that­bait­or­at
least­get­one­of­those­treble­hooks­inside­the­mouth.
When­that­occurs,­unless­you­really­screw­it­up,­you’ve
got­him.”
3. Check the sun, wind –­speed­of­retrieve­can
vary­dramatically­from­one­scenario­to­the­next,­but
wind­and­sunshine­are­major­influencers­of­the­tech-
nique.­on­a­windy,­rainy­day,­kenney­burns­it.­on­a
“typical”­day,­he­experiments­with­retrieve­speed.
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“of­course,­at­noon,­on­a­flat-calm­day,­i’m­probably
not­throwing­a­crankbait.­Everything­has­its­window.”
4. Deflect like a “minner” –­“bass­eat­‘minners,’
and­it­looks­a­lot­like­a­minner,­and­you­can­bounce­it
through­stuff,”­kenney­says.­“When­you­can­take­one
and­throw­it­in­and­bounce­it­off­a­dock­or­laydown­or
something­like­that,­it­triggers­bites.”
5. Watch the temp –­ken ney­first­reaches­for­a
square-bill­around­the­spawn,­once­the­water­temper-
ature­in­the­shallows­creeps­up­to­about­55­degrees.­
6. Riprap is right –­“that­time­of­year,­there’s­noth-
ing­like­a­square-bill­on­riprap.­i­talk­about­that­in­a­lot
of­seminars­i­do:­just­being­efficient­and­not­messing
around,­like­not­having­to­get­your­crankbait­unhung
from­the­riprap.­anything­you­can­do­to­get­40­or­50
more­casts­in­a­day­is­a­big­deal.”
FLWFISHING.COM I MAY-JUNE 2018