Bass fishing in the winter can be a lot of looking and not a lot of fishing. Because when you find fish in the winter there is usually either a large group or big ones on key places. So being good with your electronics is a big help in winter fishing. John Soukup has spent a lot of time honing his skills with Garmin Livescope. He showed us his system in this video filmed in December fishing in Oklahoma. He then applied this same system to a NPFL tournament on Eufaula, a body of water he was completely unfamiliar with, to win the $50,000 prize in March.
His search for tournament winning bass utilizes Garmin Electronics installed a specific way by The Bass Tank to scan large areas of the lake to intersect with bass transitioning in and out of zones during different seasons of the year.
In this video, you will see Soukup breakdown a lake he had never been on with Garmin LiveScope and figure out the fish on a tough high-pressure day in a maze of standing timber. Sometimes lakes full of cover can be overwhelming for anglers on where to start fishing, but Soukup explains how he narrows sections of the lake down, approaches individual trees, studies fish’s reactions and behaviors until he hones in on areas, presentations and lures that get bass to bite.
We spent a full 12-hours on this body of water that day. So long, in fact, that we depleted almost all of our camera batteries until he unlocked the code in the last hour or two of the day resulting in a huge limit over 26 pounds including his personal best 11-pounder while also catching a 7-pounder and losing another 7-pound class bass. He was an arm’s reach from a 25-pound limit with three bass once he unlocked the areas and types of trees the bass were using.
Whether you are an electronics guru or a new angler just wanting to get better at breaking down your local fishing lake, take it from John’s knowledge in this video on how to best find the winning group of fish for your next tournament or maybe your personal best bass.
See how John Soukup won the TNPFL on Eufaula here.
SOUKUP’S FISHING GEAR
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- Boat – Xpress Bass Boat
- Electronics – Garmin
- Rods – Denali Lithium Rods – Buy at Tackle Warehouse
- Reels – Daiwa Casting Reels – Buy at Tackle Warehouse
- Jerkbait – Megabass Ito Vision 110+1 – Buy at Tackle Warehouse
- Alabama Rig – Yum Flash Mob Jr. Umbrella Rig
- Swimbaits – Megabass Hazedong Shad – Buy at Tackle Warehouse
