Kyle Hall caught these absolute giants from O . H . Ivie Reservoir in Texas by making selective casts to big fish spotted on LiveScope . He caught a 13.58- pound bass in 2023 , pictured left , and a monster 16.10-pound fish in 2022 . accepted into the state ’ s program that uses these fish for a selective breeding program to enhance genetics in their stocking efforts .
Hall ’ s goal every time he visits this big-bass factory is to catch a largemouth over 13 pounds and he does it by being selective about where he casts . Hall often spends his days constantly scanning ( rod by his side ) until he finds what he ’ s looking for , waiting for the perfect moment to make a cast . “ The day I caught that 13 , I made five casts in three hours of fishing and would only make a cast when I saw a big one on LiveScope ,” Hall said . “ I just scanned around until I found a fish worth casting to . There were only two fish I saw in that whole time and a few of those casts were bad casts . Once I saw that fish and made the perfect cast , it bit . After that , I came in to weigh it and call Texas Parks and Wildlife for them to come pick up the fish .”
Cox also does most of his best work for giant bass while he ’ s looking at them , but instead of his electronics , it ’ s usually just his eyes and a pair of polarized sunglasses . Fishing for spawning bass is right in his wheelhouse and what he ’ s always the most excited about during the spring months .
“ If I look back at all of my big bass over the years , the biggest ones always seem to come by sight fishing , where I was searching for the biggest bass I can find ,” he said . “ Besides sight fishing , flipping , punching mats , or occasionally throwing a vibrating jig have caught some of them for me , but it ’ s hard to beat bedding fish when you ’ re searching for a giant . That ’ s when they ’ re most accessible and you can keep looking until you find ‘ the one .’”
Reese , on the other hand , has always been a swimbait specialist ( some would say “ fanatic ”), but frequently finds himself torn because his job as a professional angler is to catch keeper-sized bass . But , when tournament checks and points are not on the line , you ’ ll find him fishing big swimbaits .
“ As a tournament angler , it ’ s hard to lock into the big bait deal because you ’ re fishing for keeper bass ,” Reese said . “ There ’ s truth to the whole ‘ the bigger the bait , the bigger the bass ’ thing , but for a tournament angler , swimbait fishing can be the kiss of death and you might not catch anything . But if I ’ m fishing for fun , I ’ ll throw a swimbait because it ’ s undoubtedly the best way to catch a giant .”
INGREDIENT # 2 – The right conditions
We all enjoy those pleasant days on the water when the sun is shining , but the more adverse the weather , the better for catching giant bass , according to Hall . Some of his best trips to O . H . Ivie have been in extremely cold conditions . “ I think the more miserable the weather , the better chances you have for catching a big one ,” he said . “ I ’ ve been out there when it was 10 degrees , with a wind chill below zero and caught big ones . For one , there will be fewer people fishing , but it can also change the behavior of fish .”
52 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | APRIL-MAY 2023