One cast. One tree. One unforgettable bass.

Hey, Keith here.

Catching a truly big bass hits different. The weight. The head shakes. The moment you realize it is not just another fish.

Most of the time when it happens, we're not even trying to catch a trophy. It just seems to show up.

But here is what I have learned.

If you slow down and look back at where that fish came from and why it bit, you can start to make those moments happen more often.

I’ll never forget what Greg Hackney said about catching big bass.

He said the most consistent place to find a giant is where nobody else is fishing.

That comment stuck with me. When I think back on a big bass I caught with an H&H Cocahoe Minow, that pattern shows up again and again.

Today, I want to show you how to stack the odds in your favor for catching bigger bass. 

BEST LINKS

What I looked at this week

• Greg Hackney: How to catch a really big bass (Mossy Oak)

• How to target big bass specifically (Wired2Fish)

• Old school tips to for catching giant bass in small ponds (OutdoorLife)

• I’ve NEVER seen this many GIANT bass in a POND! (KickinTheirBASSTV)

• Evaluating H&H lures (underwater footage) (East Bay Lures)

Deals of the week

• Walmart has a Berkley Choppo on sale for $11.99 (regularly $20.99)

• Dick’s has H&H Cocahoe Minnows on sale reduced from $4.99 to $3.47

• Academy has a 6-foot Fitec castnet marked down from $52 to $34.99

DEEP DIVE 

The camping trip that changed how I fish for big bass

When I was 14, my family took a camping trip to Buccaneer State Park in Mississippi. From our campsite, we could reach two lakes by trail. It took about thirty minutes to walk to either one, but I was determined to fish both.

I had a small Johnson’s Beetle Spin tied on, and my friend Gary, a saltwater angler, was with me. He had an H&H Cocahoe Minnow rigged, and he handed me one to try.

I put it in my pocket and figured I’d use it in the marsh someday.

We fished the first lake. I caught a few small bass. Gary didn’t get a bite.

At the back of the lake, water was spilling over rocks and draining into the woods. I knew from exploring creeks as a kid that water always leads somewhere. So I followed it.

Gary stayed behind, but I pushed through the brush.

After twenty minutes of thick woods, the trees opened into a small two-acre pond. When I went to cast, I saw that my beetle spin must have snagged off somewhere. The only bait I had was the cocahoe minnow in my pocket.

So, I tied it on.

The pond was alive. I caught two bass around a pound and a half. Then I cast to a pine tree that had fallen into the water.

The thump came instantly.

The fish jumped and I saw how big it was. My drag screamed. I walked down the bank as I reeled to close the distance. When I finally grabbed it, I could not believe what I was holding. The fish weighed seven and a half pounds.

Looking back now, it all makes sense.

• The pond was difficult to reach.

• Almost nobody fished it.

• The bait had size and profile.

• I cast to the best piece of structure in the pond.

Everything big bass anglers talk about was right there.

5 ways to increase your chances of catching a trophy bass

1. Look for places that are inconvenient to fish.

If it takes effort to get there, most anglers never even try. Big bass grow old in places where they are not bothered. Long walks, tall grass, brush, or a trail nobody uses are all clues. Overlooked water holds the biggest fish.

2. Choose a bait with size and presence.

A big bass wants a meal that is worth the energy to chase. Swimbaits, full-size jigs, large worms, and creature baits signal that payoff. You might get fewer bites, but the bites you get will matter.

3. Fish one piece of structure thoroughly.

Big bass pick prime real estate and stay there. A single laydown, culvert, dock corner, or point can hold the fish you are looking for. Make multiple casts at different angles. Slow down and soak it.

4. Pay attention to water movement.

Flow brings oxygen and food. Any creek trickle, drain pipe, or overflow area can act as a feeding station. These are high-probability spots for better-than-average fish.

5. Trust the feeling when a spot feels alive.

Maybe it's bait flicking. Maybe it's just a feeling. If something tells you to stay, stay. Big fish often feed in short windows. 

Using technology to find overlooked water

One of the biggest advantages we have today is being able to scout new water without ever leaving home. Before I head out on foot to look for a pond, creek runoff, spillway, or small hidden lake, I always check it out digitally first.

I pull up satellite imagery to see what is actually there. This is one of the easiest ways to find water that other anglers are not fishing.

Google Earth is perfect for this. You can examine older satellite images year by year and sometimes see ponds during lower water conditions, which can reveal brush lines, depth changes, and creek channels that are normally hidden. It also helps you locate trails, clearings, and ways to get to water that may look landlocked at first glance.

AllTrails is another great tool, especially for finding footpaths and nature trails that may run past ponds that don't show up on fishing maps.

If you have access to XMaps, you can use it to check property boundaries so you only fish where you're allowed to. It surprises me how many small public-access ponds exist that nobody ever thinks to fish.

The more time you spend looking from above, the less time you spend searching on foot. 

And when you do show up to one of those tucked-away waters, there's a good chance you are about to fish a spot the bass have never seen pressure in.