Scott Patton Talks Jigs Fishing!

Scott Patton Fishing

ESPN Bass Master Pro and Guide

Talks about Fishing a Jig

Jigs are one of the most versatile and productive lure you can fish. You can fish it as a swim bait or fish it on the bottom.  You can also fish it any color scheme to represent any type of prey! Jigs come in a variety of weights and styles, from 1/8 thru 1 ounce are the most common. I usually will fish the 1/4,3/8  and 1/2 most of the time and also a ¾ ounce jig are good for deeper water or when trying to penetrate thick grass or wanting the bait to fall faster to create a reflex strike.

My most commonly fished jig is a ½ ounce; it’s my jig that I will start with. As far as colors, I like natural colors the best, whether I’m trying to imitate a crawfish, bluegill, or shad, the three major source of food for the bass.

One of the main things I look for in a jig is how weed less the head design is and the hook. I like a good strong hook, and I like it to be large enough to hold a good fish, this is a problem with a lot of smaller jig, the hooks are not large enough to hold a bigger fish three pounds or more. So when choosing your smaller jigs make sure that the hook is large enough to hold the bigger bass. I use a lot of small jigs when the water is cold, clear or fishing for smallmouth. These small jigs will catch a lot of big bass so be aware of this.

On about any jig you can give it a larger profile or smaller profile by the size of the skirt. If you need a smaller profile there are two things I do to the skirt. One is to take out some of the strands of the skirt, and the other is to trim it with a pair of scissors! Also you can use smaller trailer chunks on the jig. The same goes when trying to increase the bulk or size of a jig. I will go to a bigger size chunk, I like the super chunk, big salty chunk, or a brush hog makes a big bulky trailer.

I prefer a 7ft to 7ft 6 inch heavy action rod whenever I’m fishing a jig, by using an underhand pitching technique. I will use 20 to 30 lb test line, depending on the situation. In most cases I will use PBS Fluorocarbon, and I use mono or braid if the water is stained.

As far as mistakes I see anglers making while fishing in my boat is they fish the jig to fast, pulling it out of the cover from the bass. I will catch some many fish by pitching the bait in the heart of the cover and leaving it sit there, without making it move at all. Then I will lightly shake the bait with my rod tip, and then pausing letting it sit motionless, then repeating this process, for up to a minute or two before taking the bait out of the cover.

Scott Patton fishes the ESPN Bassmater  tour and is a guide on Kentucky lake.

He is sponsored by Nitro Boats, Tracker Marine, Bass Pro Shop, Mercury, ZOOM, Costa, Bluegrass Lures

Website www.scottpattonfishing.com

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