Entry 123-5

Mark Davis - Weird Ways to Catch Bass

Finesse Worms in Public Waters

Editor's Note: Mark Davis has been successful in his fishing career. He's not afraid to try different and unusual tactics and baits that most anglers don't think will work under certain conditions, but they just do. Most anglers who know Mark think of him as a creative fisherman. In other words, he's not locked into only fishing particular baits at specific times of the year, under certain water and weather conditions. Davis has the ability to think outside the box and willingly uses various strategies that most people won't attempt to fish with, and therefore catches bass that most people won't take. This week let's look at some of the off-the-wall tactics that have enabled Davis to catch fish in ways no one else has considered using.

Davis: Fishing public waters is getting harder and harder. There's more competition for the bass than ever before, and sometimes just getting a strike is a major issue. No matter how good a fisherman you are, what kind of lures you use, or how many tournaments you've won, if you're not getting any bites, you can't catch bass. If you can't catch bass, you're not going to have a successful day of fishing or win a tournament. Here's a tactic I use when I hit the wall and just can't seem to get a strike.

I'll use a Strike King finesse worm and put a small finishing nail, about 1 or 1-1/2 inches long, in the head of the worm. I like the Strike King 3X finesse worm the best. I'll rig the worm on 6-pound-test line and spinning tackle. The hook is the real secret to this tactic. I use a short-shank live-bait hook. If you'll put a great big old gaudy hook with a long shank on it in that finesse worm, you won't catch very many bass. But that short-shank live-bait hook will allow the worm to wiggle more. You'll be surprised at how many bass you can catch using this tactic.

Just because the hook I use has a short shank doesn't mean I want a light wire hook. I'll use a No. 1 short-shank bait hook in the center of that small worm. Using this rig, you can fish in clear water where just getting a bite can be really tough. When times are tough, and you just need to get a bite, you'll be surprised at how many bass you can catch from 1- to 10-feet deep using this rig on either 6- or 8-pound-test line.

The secret to this tactic is to let the worm fall all the way to the bottom. Most of the time your strikes will come on the fall. But often the bite will come when the bait is laying still on the bottom. This tactic works great around boat docks, on the outside of grass edges or around stumps or logs. Although most people think of fishing a finesse lure in reservoirs, don't overlook this technique when you're fishing river systems because it can be deadly effective on them too.

Contents:

• Part 1: Weird Ways to Fish a Crankbait
• Part 2: Fishing a Jigging Spoon
• Part 3: Shallow-Water Crankbaits Fished Deep
• Part 4: Dropshotting a Wacky Worm
• Part 5: Finesse Worms in Public Waters