Intermiadate angler looking for some help

[Yankee]

My buddy and I are going to fish on Lake of the Ozarks next weekend, and we have never been there before, nor fished any lake of that size. We would really like to get on some good quality fish, just to have a good time with. Does anyone have and pointer or locations I should be looking for? 

[fishinwrench]

Where do you plan to launch from?

[Madmar]

We fished a charity tournament September 8th out of PB2.  Most checks were won by fishing shallow (last few docks in coves) using trick worms.

[Yankee]

I plan on going out of PB2

[fishinwrench]

Cool.  Well your best bet is probably going to be heading ALL THE WAY up the Glaize as far as you can go and work your way back out fishing visable cover.   Most everyone else is still fishing deeper drops and brush but you don't have time to locate that stuff, so stick to what you can see.  Buzzbait, Chug Bug or Spook, Spinnerbaits, and Swim jigs.    If you find yourself on a long stretch with no cover then pound the bank with a lipless crankbait or a square bill (you'll be surprised what you can catch just burning down a nothing-looking bank).   

Once you catch a few you can decide how to best utilize your time.  

[MOsmallies]

On 9/14/2018 at 8:09 PM, fishinwrench said:

Cool.  Well your best bet is probably going to be heading ALL THE WAY up the Glaize as far as you can go and work your way back out fishing visable cover.   Most everyone else is still fishing deeper drops and brush but you don't have time to locate that stuff, so stick to what you can see.  Buzzbait, Chug Bug or Spook, Spinnerbaits, and Swim jigs.    If you find yourself on a long stretch with no cover then pound the bank with a lipless crankbait or a square bill (you'll be surprised what you can catch just burning down a nothing-looking bank).   

Once you catch a few you can decide how to best utilize your time.  

Great advice there. If you slow down, a shakey head is a great option as well

[shrapnel]

Fish are everywhere, deep, shallow, but fishing is tough right now for most.  I heard only 13lbs won the Bass Cat Tournament, and the BFL only took 15lbs a day to win.   Very low weights for LOZ with some of the best local sticks out there.

[Lvn2Fish]

2 hours ago, shrapnel said:

Fish are everywhere, deep, shallow, but fishing is tough right now for most.  I heard only 13lbs won the Bass Cat Tournament, and the BFL only took 15lbs a day to win.   Very low weights for LOZ with some of the best local sticks out there.

Shallow was the main pattern for the BFL. I wouldn’t read too much into the low weights. The fish still bit pretty good on Saturday. Sunday was a little different story but there was a lengthy fog delay that contributed to some lower than normal weights. They definitely bit better Saturday. Everything I seen was from 15ft in . A lot of dry spells followed by quick action. I really had to commit to going shallow and stuck with it all day long Saturday and Sunday. 

[Daryk Campbell Sr]

Yankee,  welcome.  Please comle back and let us know what worked for you.  

[shrapnel]

17 hours ago, Lvn2Fish said:

Shallow was the main pattern for the BFL. I wouldn’t read too much into the low weights. The fish still bit pretty good on Saturday. Sunday was a little different story but there was a lengthy fog delay that contributed to some lower than normal weights. They definitely bit better Saturday. Everything I seen was from 15ft in . A lot of dry spells followed by quick action. I really had to commit to going shallow and stuck with it all day long Saturday and Sunday. 

I read plenty into the low weights...lol.  Some of the best fishermen on LOZ brought in some of the lowest weights of the year = fish not biting very good.

So you fished one of them, what did you weigh in if the fish bit pretty good on Saturday?