During spring, summer, fall, and winter there are prime times to do two of the hottest techniques on the tournament trail, and walk away with a nice bag. These two techniques are called flipping and pitching they can produce huge bass when done at certain times. Some nice size keeper bass have been caught using this during tournaments across the United States and Canada

Countless lures can be used when flipping and pitching. One of the top producing lures for this technique is a flipping jig. There are many different styles and colors of flipping jigs out on the market from black and blue, orange and brown, even sour apple. A trailer is a great additive when flipping with a jig. A trailer will give the bait a completely different look and profile. There is a bunch of different plastic trailers out on the market, they are supposed to resemble a crawfish, and you can even use a tube bait for a trailer. I like to use scent on my trailers even if they already have salt in them. When the winter and cold water months come try flipping a jig with a pork trailer, the pork will give the bait a slower fall rate, and give the bass more time to take in the bait. Uncle Josh and Strike King make a good pork trailer made for jigs. When picking a trailer I like to match the trailer to the skirt of the jig.

Another versatile bass catching bait is a tube bait rigged Texas Style, using this bait often produces a reaction strike due to the bait's erratic action. Rigging the tube Texas Style will make the bait virtually weedless causing less hang-ups in thick cover. When the cover is not so thick try Tex-posing the hook in the bait, this will help the hook penetrate the bass's mouth more easily. When you Tex-pose, you should insert the hook as normal but instead of resting the hook inside the bait instead bring it all the way through then insert the tip back into the bait. I like to use natural colors that mostly imitate crawfish, or even shad. Crawfish can sometimes blend in with the bottom color of the lake so try to match the tube color with the bottom color.

To give the bass something new to look at then just a plain tube, try one of the many "thing" baits out on the market. You can even take a piece of Alka-seltzer and shove it up inside the tube. Many people will even take a cotton ball, soak it in their favorite attractant, and put that in the tube. If the fish are very sluggish and not moving around a lot, scent will be a big plus, because the bass will hang on to your bait longer and this gives you more time to set the hook.

I also like to pitch and flip straight tail worms and even cigar shaped baits. The baits I prefer when doing this are the baits by Gary Yamamoto Custom Baits, these baits are loaded with salt. The salt content will give you a few more seconds to set the hook. With the four inch Senko, I prefer a 3/0 or 4/0 hook. I also like to use Bear Paws Custom Baits Slick Stick. These baits are loaded with scent and you can even get them in custom colors to match the situation that you may be faced with. I rig both Cut Tail worms the Senko and the Slick Sticks Texas weedless. The key is to balance out the hook with the plastic to give the bait a vertical fall. In some cases, I prefer the Cut Tail worms by Gary Yamamoto Custom Baits, this bait falls pretty much like the Senko, but with a little more tail action. This technique is for pitching lay downs and brush. In some cases when I get into the thick stuff I will Texas rig these baits.

One of the newer pitching methods on the tournament trail is pitching spinnerbaits and crankbaits into thick cover. When pitching a spinnerbait you want to pick out a bait with a high quality steel ball bearing swivel. A few companies that make baits with these kinds of swivels are Terminator and Strike King. I prefer the Terminator baits due to the titanium wire. This will make the bait more durable. When you pitch with a crankbait pick out a bait that sinks or even suspends, it will help you not get hung up by replacing the stock hooks with some weedless trebles. Using these different techniques will give the bass a different bait to look at.

When flipping, most people will use a seven and a half foot heavy action rod and twenty to thirty pound plus monofilament. This is necessary when flipping and pitching due to the chances that you might get hung up. With the seven and a half foot rod, it gives you enough advantage to get even then biggest bass out of the thickest of cover.

When you flip, you should let at least fifteen feet of line out and grab the line nearest to your reel with your fingertips, and swing the bait back with the rod tip. Try not to let the bait splash into the water (in case the fish are spooky). When doing this shake the rod then raise, and lower your rod tip to give the bait enough action to entice the bass.

When pitching many people use a seven and a half heavy action rod. When picking out a pitching rod be sure to get a rod with a soft tip, a soft tip is mandatory to shoot the lure out. You should let enough line out so that the lure is even with the reel on a tight line. Many people hold the lure in their non-casting hand. Then you point the tip at about eleven o'clock to the sky. Next, you should roll your wrist down making the rod tip go down to about 10 o'clock. Then with a quick snap, you raise your rod tip letting go of the lure and sending it flying to your target. Be sure to keep the lure close to the water so that when its reaches its target it does not make a big splash. You should then let the lure sink to the bottom on a semi-slack line; this is when the fish will most likely hit the lure. You must be a line watcher. Last, shake your rod tip, raise, and lower the bait, just like when you are flipping.

Just a little point when pitching, try to keep your tricep flush against your body and your forearm should be out in front of your body making a 90-degree angle. When doing this your tricep should be relaxed against your side. When doing this right you will gain more accuracy and the bait will not make a big splash. Then once the bait hits the water the arm you made the flip with will move up once the bait hits the water. Follow the baits fall by slowly moving your arm back to your side.

To get this right when practicing try strapping your tricep to your body so that doing this becomes more natural. Another thing you might want to try is to use different hands to flip and pitch, doing this and finding the right hand will give more added accuracy. Also doing this on a boat is an additive because there will be obstructions in your way so you will need to switch hands.

This concludes flipping and pitching. Doing some of the things I said should help you when the fish are back in the cover and hard to get. Give flipping and pitching a try, I am sure you will be pleasantly surprised!

Tight Lines and Good Fishing!
Steven Narup

If you have any questions you can email me at: [email protected]