FLW this weekend

[zarraspook]

I caught a 10lb striper 7 years ago, while fishing for largemouth, on a brown/red/black pig and jig...

I thought maybe he hit it because of the way I way working it. Not because it looked like food...

[Guest]

And Morgan leading with 28 & change.

Tuff day today.

Not going to top 60lbs at this rate

[fishman783]

I fished Beaver Lake for the 1st time earlier this spring. I think Beaver Lake is a challenging lake to fish, but in no way is it a poor bass fishery. I can't think of many lakes where I could fish the same stretch of water and catch all three species of bass, but I was able to do that on my trip.

I think that the water stability factor plays the largest role in bass production on Beaver. Seems that the lake can fluctuate the most from year to year during the time when the bass spawn which doesn't guarantee a successful spawn from year to year. I think that beaver lake is a tough lake to fish and to consistently catch fish shallow because of the clarity of the water(very clear water) and the absence of dense shoreline cover. Fish are very spooky in clear water and are more susceptible to fishing pressure in the shallow water because of that. For the most part in my experience as a fisherman I think shallow fish are more of a resident fish (except during spawn when they move shallow in waves) so they do not replenish like fish will that roam in schools on offshore structure. I think fishing pressure shallow at beaver is more magnified due to the lack of options for dense shoreline cover and water clarity. If you look at the pro anglers that have been the most successful at beaver in past years they are the pros that go out and fish each day based on instinct (fish the conditions weather/wind each day) and don't get locked down to the same stretches of bank each day because that will rarely hold up for 4 days.

There are lakes that get far more pressure than Beaver Lake (Lake of the Ozarks and Grand Lake) that produce more and bigger sacks of fish at tournaments, but these lakes water levels are more consistent year to year (=greater potential for successful bass spawn), have more available shoreline cover (promoting larger fish population density), and are not as clear, which I feel allows them to hold up far better to the fishing pressure.

I think that Beaver Lake should be appreciated for what it is, a challenge. The angler that is able to adapt his style of fishing the best each day will win. What's the fun in going to a lake and catching them the same way as you do on every other lake. It's just the same in golf when the pros complain about how tough the us open is, the ones that embrace the challenge are often the most successful.

[Feathers and Fins]

Great analogy Fisherman, the lake is without doubt a tough one to fish. But there has been a lot of good weights from local tournaments this year. The pro’s I watched beat the banks and just about every show you watch they are doing the same thing.

I don’t know how many times I have reported the offshore bite on the lake and other anglers have said the same thing, it is not like it’s a secret or the information is not public about it as this is a public forum. So the question comes up. Why do these (Pro’s) not heed the advice of people who are on the lake way more often than them and get off the bank and target those offshore fish?

No you will not get a 30lb daily weight off Beaver unless a Leprechaun is sitting in the boat with you but last I checked the goal is to

1. Get a limit
2. Have enough weight to place you in the top 20 by Saturday and top 10 on Sunday.
3. Win tournament.

Ok getting a limit: Public Knowledge ( accessible to the anyone with some net search ) the average size fish on Beaver is 1.75 lbs that means a limit runs about 8.75lbs for 5 fish. 17.5 pounds for two days.

An angler needs to get those 5 fish then search out some bigger fish of the 3lb range for culling 2 would put them at 11.25 per day putting them at 22.5 for two days. That puts them in the top 20 as we sit now. 22.13 is top 20 to fish Saturday.

Today is going to be windy but warm and that means fishing windswept points. Those fish are running about 2.25lbs or were when I was out earlier which = 11.25lbs and they were very willing to bite. I would target them and get a limit and then hop to other points trying to cull for three pound fish till 1pm then go look for big girls around shad balls for a monster cull. Best case scenario you cull to a 3lb average on the points for a 15lb day and best of the best you are able to hit an open water fish to get you to 18lbs.

Its nice to armchair. But it just keeps making me wonder why they are beating banks and not hitting points on the wind or fishing the offshore fish. I would love to know if any of them are throwing a Jerk-bait or a Ned. Yes the horrible Ned, we know it produces.

[bferg]

I think the reason more guys don't fosh offshore is because most of these guys aren't comfortable with that style of fishing. Most of these guys are from fhe south- shallow and/or stained water is their comfort zone. And most lakes the FLW visits sets up well for that. I have always thought this lake would set up well for a swimbait guy to win but that hasent been the case for whatever reason.

I think the other thing is how inconsistent finding the shad COULD be at lest if you are not familiar with Beaver- you could spend a good chunk of your day just looking for Shad balls....

These guys are always looking for a "pattern" that can hold up for 4 days. That is what makes Beaver a challenge- finding a pattern that works 4 consecutive days is tough on this lake.

[Feathers and Fins]

More like next to impossible lol. But there is patterns that do under the right circumstances Wind = ( Wind Swept Points ), Deep water = ( Drop Shot ) over structure, Warts on steep banks, And jerk baits or cranks over medium depth structure. The lake just is not set-up for 0 to 8ft except in rare cases. As for finding shad that is so simple, find the big center console boats that are STRIPER GUIDES there is a reason they are there and that's FOR STRIPERS that want SHAD.

[Quillback]

Today's paper had some coverage - Co-angler winner caught limits of smallmouth, c-rigging a Zoom Z-craw.

[Stump bumper]

Today's paper had some coverage - Co-angler winner caught limits of smallmouth, c-rigging a Zoom Z-craw.

Last day he switched over to Keitech in sexy shad that were given to him along with some super glue. That is what I read online.

[Quillback]

Uh-oh, 2 stories on the winning (co-angler) bait..

[Feathers and Fins]

SEXY SHAD?????? Is that a shad in a mini-skirt ?