This Mindset Helps You Catch More & Bigger Fish Everywhere

Matthew Brannon has cracked the code on catching big bass consistently across the country, and on this episode of the Serious Angler Podcast he breaks down exactly how. Matthew is a California angler who has put in serious time on big bass fisheries from coast to coast, and he shares the techniques that translate no matter where you're fishing, whether you're chasing giants or grinding out numbers.

We get into how his day job with the Coast Guard has shaped his understanding of marine electronics and fishing technology, and how that knowledge translates directly to finding and catching more bass. Matthew also breaks down his tournament mindset: instead of grinding numbers on milk runs, he covers as much water as fast as possible to put himself in front of as many big bites as he can.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Alright, welcome to Sears Sanger Podcast, everyone. As always, I'm your host, Bailey Igret, and we are in Racine, Wisconsin this week. Uh, I shouldn't say this week, today, because this week we are in Wisconsin. That is actually happening. We are here for the Bass Mr. Kay series event on the Wolf and Fox River. And for folks that are listening, you hear the audio difference, or folks that are obviously watching on YouTube, we are not in the studio today. We are in the great state of Wisconsin trying to catch some bass. Uh, but we have a little deal today in Racine, and then we are headed back north to the Wolf and Fox River. And uh, I had fully intended on getting this intro shot in the studio, uh, but literally, my house has been utter chaos. Um, it's been just nuts with a lot of stuff going on behind the scenes uh and stuff you guys will see later on. But we're trying to prep and plan and basically make happen now. Um, but there's a lot of a lot of craziness happening in the household. But today, awesome show. We have Mr. Matthew Brandon who's a boat hammer, a kayak hammer, uh pretty much a hammer all over the country. He's very well traveled, he's from all over the place, from Santa Cooper, from uh Louisiana, from California, from Alaska, all over the place, and he just straight up just catches them everywhere. Uh he kicked our tails at Clear Lake, uh, caught a freaking monster bag. Uh he's straight up just catching gigantic 30, 40 pound bags over on Clear Lake in California. And Mr. Matthew Brennan will be joining us here on the show, and I'm excited to get this guy on because he's an awesome dude, uh, a great person for the kayak uh and really just the fishing community in general, but also has a pretty cool and unique uh gig over at the Coast Guard, which is something to do with marine electronics. So very interesting conversation. Hopefully, you guys enjoy without further ado, Mr. Matthew Brandon. Well, folks, we are with one of the uh the freaking hammers of the West Coast, and I say the West Coast, but Matt, you are originally from the East Coast, correct?

SPEAKER_01 1:52

Yep. I uh I grew up in South Carolina. My dad was Navy, so he's retired, and that's where he retired was right there on Santi Cooper in Monts Corner. Um, so that's what I call home. But I mean, even before that, we lived in Chicago, we lived in San Diego, um, did a stint overseas in Italy. So, I mean, I've I've been all over, and then of course, with me being active duty Coast Guard, I've done New Orleans, Jacksonville, Florida, Charleston, South Carolina, here, Alaska. So I've gotten to fish everywhere.

SPEAKER_02 2:20

If you could choose one of the locations that you've been at to like retire and stay, what what what tops the list for you?

SPEAKER_01 2:28

Man, I want to retire at Gunnersville. Um, but everybody else. But it's not it's not because of Gunnersville. I mean, I love Gunnersville. I I duck hunted there all through high school. Um, I fished there a bunch of times. Fishing wise, Clear Lake's where I'd want to be. But that's just not, you know, I want to I'm I'm basically gonna do what you do, you know. I'm gonna run around and chase the Bassmaster Trail. And to do that, Gunnersville makes more sense because of its central location.

SPEAKER_02 2:55

God, I'm I'm gonna have to keep doing this thing until you do that because then everybody's screwed. I've been telling people, bro. I have been telling people I was like, guys, the day that you, Damien, and Joey Silva come out east and do this thing full time, we are all fishing for fourth.

SPEAKER_01 3:13

Like we are Blake Abbey always jokes about that too. He said he's done when I retire.

SPEAKER_02 3:19

I mean, there's a reason why every time Damien's come east, he's always top five, dude. That's like that's one thing I'm already going. You'll learn real quick on this show. We call it rabbit holes uh for a reason, is because we can never stay on track of what we want to talk about. But uh dude, your guys' community was so awesome when I was out there for that Clear Lake event. Like granted, yes, we only had what was a 78 or something before the event at awards, registration, everyone I met on the water at the ramp. It was all super kind, super easy to talk to. Where out east, like I'm not saying people aren't like that, majority are, but you got a lot of people you run into that are head down, don't care to talk to you. Like, you say hello, and a guy looks up at you on the boat and he just keeps going. Well, like there's none of that that I experienced out west.

SPEAKER_01 4:07

A lot of the guys that have been in this for a while out west, anyway. Um, James Snyder and I started Yakabass in like 2000, I think it was 2015. When I moved out here in 2012, there was no kayak bass fishing. Um, that was KBF had just got started in 2011. And I moved that next year out here. So bass fishing from kayaks competitively was in its infancy anyway. Right. Um, and there was just nothing here. So James and I actually I put together a series and never got it off the ground. I never even tried. Another guy had done it at the same time, and he was like, hey man, instead of splitting up the few people out here, would you just come fish mine? And I did. And that guy was a crook, took all our money, all that stuff. But that's where I met James Snyder. And I told him, I said, Man, next year, let's just do our own thing. I said, I already know how to do it, I've already done the groundwork, and we got we got Yakabas off the ground. So when it first started, it was not about tournaments. Um, I got outvoted on that one. It was a sense of community. So we held gatherings where we got people together, like one of the members or one of us would would teach a new technique to the crowd. We would fish for the day and then come back and do a cookout afterwards, and everybody would get to talk about their experience on the water and whether the technique worked for them. And so, like, like Damien, I've fished against Damien. I think he was just out of high school when I started fishing against him out here. And so, a lot of those guys have that sense of community more than I mean, obviously we're competitive, but you know, it's also about you know, you run into some guy on the water and it's like, hey man, you broke off your last whatever, you know, here. I got you, man. And you should give them one. Yeah, so that was really cool.

SPEAKER_02 5:47

Everyone was was super awesome out there, and I I was already telling my wife, literally, when I was still out there, like I was staying at my buddy Chad's house, who had a house in the lake. And I had it, I had I had amazing people that literally like put me up in the penthouse when I was visiting, so it was perfect. I was living lavish, but I was like, we need to come out here, not live out here, but like visit frequently because one of the fishing's incredible. The the views, oh my gosh, dude. We just don't get anything close to the views out there when it comes to whether you're driving or fishing. Um, but just love, love, and that was the bigger reason why we uh we started the seriously western segment on this show is just because the west does not get enough love that it deserves, uh, when it kind of especially comes to the media side.

SPEAKER_01 6:30

Yeah. Well, in the boat side, you know, there's there's a lot of hard feelings when when bass pulled out of here uh years ago, you know, and so we had we had local stuff, the wild west bass trail kicked off, and then we had one bass, you know, and those kind of took the place, and it was it was very much localized, like the west coast kept to the west coast and nobody went back east. And yeah, it's nice to see like Bassmaster coming out there now for the kayak series and hopefully something for the boats in the future, you know, to try and get that inclusion again because we do. I mean, look at the look at the pros that come out of here. Cody Meyer, Brent Ayler. I mean, there's a pile of ish. Yeah, Chris Zaldain, you know. I mean, it's always been a place that that really farmed top-level anglers.

SPEAKER_02 7:15

Yeah. I don't know a West Coast guy that's come east that uh didn't do well, right? Uh whether Kayak or Bo. I mean, Justin Lucas just won again on Lake Erie, basically across the country from from where he originated. Uh but dude, I mean, people that that may not know you, because it's not like you have a big vocal social media presence, things like that. You're you're you're you're steady taking trophies under the radar, is what I like to call it. But you you do so on the kayak side, but also the boat side. And a fish boat. Was the boat side first for you? Was the kayak side first for you? How did that how did that all come to fruition?

SPEAKER_01 7:56

My dad was kind of a regional pro back in the day. Um, he started a few bass clubs, uh, he started Stargazers down in San Diego back in the I guess the early 70s. Um, so me growing up, it wasn't going fishing with grandpa for bluegill off the dock. It was if you want to go fishing, you're gonna drag a plastic worm behind a boat. So I actually started fishing tournaments with my dad when I was probably nine, and I stayed in the boat world um until 2009. Um, I had moved to Alaska and sold my boat before I went up there. When I came back, I was married with kids, and instead of getting into another boat, I ended up getting a kayak, and that was the first year of the pro angler, and that was my first kayak.

SPEAKER_02 8:38

And you I'm assuming you've been in the pro angler since.

SPEAKER_01 8:41

I've never fished from anything else.

SPEAKER_02 8:43

Yeah. I'm in the same same boat in regards to well, literally and figuratively. Uh but dude, it it's cool to see the guys that that cross over in both worlds. Yeah, I guess now if you had to choose, is there one or the other you would stay in?

SPEAKER_01 9:00

If it was strictly tournament fishing, it would be kayak.

SPEAKER_02 9:05

Is that women or ROI?

SPEAKER_01 9:08

Uh a little of both. I mean for the boat stuff, I don't travel for the boat stuff. My boat's small, I got a little 17-foot ranger. Um, so I don't I don't, like I said, I don't travel with it, but the kayak stuff, I really I don't know. I like the I like the kayak tournament community, I think, more than I like the boat tournament community. You know, there there's a lot of friends in the kayak side where like even across the country, like Christine and G, you know, that's who I stay with when I travel back east for tournaments. I stay with them and Scotch, Matthew Scotch, um, Russ Snyder, you know, so I've I've made friends and and those friendships remain across the country. Whereas in the boat guys, most of the guys that I fished back east with in boat tournaments, I mean, we still chat every once in a while, but it's not that close, almost family feel that you get in the kayak community when you make those long-term, lifelong friends.

SPEAKER_02 10:01

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SPEAKER_01 10:50

Absolutely. Um well, the moving around is where I think I get my diversity and my ability to compete regardless of what waters I go to. Um, you know, Santi Cooper's a shallow power fishing was a grass lake when I was growing up. It's not so much now, but um, I remember miles of topped-out matted hydrilla and punching and frog and all that stuff when I was little. Um so it was funny when I moved here, the first tournament I fished was a belly boat tournament. They let me use my kayak. Um, and I went to the lake. It's Lake Sonoma, it's a clear highland reservoir. I showed up with all my bait casters, 18 to 20 pound test on everything. And the guys are like, nah, bro, that's not that doesn't fly here. You know, it's it's all spinning rod, it's all finesse techniques. And I had just moved here. I think I've been in California for like a week. It was a night tournament, and I launched, those guys were telling me it's all finesse stuff, blah, blah, blah. I didn't get to pre-fish. Um, so we take off and we come to weigh in the next morning. This was a live weigh-in. So you had to have a cooler with live well on it and all that stuff or aerator. So we show up and I'm watching the weigh-in, and I waited till last, and it was like 11 and a half pounds was leading. And the guys are like, Hey man, did you did you catch anything? Do you want to go ahead and weigh? Are you good? And I said, What's leading? They're like 11. I said, Oh, yeah, I'm weighing. And I had 18 and a half pounds.

SPEAKER_03 12:12

Um just laid it out on them.

SPEAKER_01 12:14

I threw a three-quarter ounce spinnerbait and a Roman Bay negotiator swim bait all night long and smashed them. And that doesn't suck, you know, and it was like I hadn't, I don't, I think I owned two spinning rods at the time, and I never carried them bass fishing. They were from saltwater days. Um, and you know, so I had the power stuff down, but then moving here, I've had to learn the finesse stuff to be able to compete on some of our lakes out here. You get the the mother load that's got all spotted bass or majority spotted bass, you know, and you're and you're fishing for 80 inches, so it's a lot of drop shot, a lot of uh wacky rig senko. So I've had to learn the finesse techniques out here. But like when I lived in New Orleans, you know, we get big rains out here and things get muddied up and the anglers all freak out because the water's muddy. Well, I lived in New Orleans for four years and I didn't fish anything that didn't look like Hershey's chocolate milk. Yeah, so I'm very comfortable fishing, you know, dark water or dirty water. So that ability has made me a uh, I guess just a more versified angler that I can travel and fish and do okay in in tournaments.

SPEAKER_02 13:20

Yeah, you're more prepared for whatever kind of environment you're gonna be presented with. That that's cool, dude. Uh I I just love the fact too that they're they tried a little doggy too, and you're just like, no, here you go. Here's 18 pounds. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:34

Well, they ended up they ended up not letting me fish those tournaments anymore. What? Because of the kayak or just because you just figured something? They s well it was because I won, but they said it was too big of an advantage, so they changed the rules and they they quit allowing kayaks after that.

SPEAKER_02 13:50

Or too big of an advantage.

SPEAKER_01 13:52

Yeah. Uh but it was funny because when at launch everybody came and looked at the kayak because nobody had seen a pro-angler, and they were like, Oh, that's cool, but I'd rather have my kickboat, you know, it's more versatile. I was like, Okay, sweet. And then it ended up being the reason that I wasn't allowed to fish with him anymore.

SPEAKER_02 14:07

Go figure. Yeah. Uh that's funny. Uh well, dude. So one of the things we were talking about offline, and I I I didn't want to my goldfish memory. I was trying to make sure we we I keep reminding myself that way we talk about it, is so your gig in the Coast Guard now is really sounds like you specialize a lot on the marine electronics side of things.

SPEAKER_01 14:27

Yep, I am a marine electronics technician, so been doing it for 24 years.

SPEAKER_02 14:32

So we uh what is what is that? I guess if you can summarize that, what does that entail mostly?

SPEAKER_01 14:39

We install, troubleshoot, and repair any kind of marine electronics equipment, whether it's uh communication stuff, radios, that type, radars, depth finders, uh weapons control systems for things like the C Wiz, the close-in weapon system on our big ships. Um, but yeah, anything electronics-wise, we are responsible for the installation, maintenance, and repair of.

SPEAKER_02 15:02

You haven't thought about putting uh the sea whiz on the pro angler if somebody gets too close.

SPEAKER_01 15:08

All those the pesky boaters that like to pull in on us.

SPEAKER_02 15:11

You're a little too close. Uh dude, okay, because somebody's gonna comment and ask, so I'm I'm gonna go ahead and ask it, but are these boats running any sort of forward-facing sonar or the like?

SPEAKER_01 15:23

Um, not forward-facing. Uh, when I was on the ship in Alaska, it was a buoy tender, so we did uh offshore buoys, uh navigational buoys and aids navigation. We had a side scan sonar capability, and it was funny because on the kayak I had, let's see, when I came back, so the same year that I came back to the lower 48 and got my first kayak, Humminbird already had side scan technology. The boat that I was on up there had side scan, but you had to lower this thing off the back of the ship on a tether and it looked like a torpedo, and that did the side scan for you. And I'm thinking, why are we doing this? Like for $500, I can get you a Humminbird that'll do the same thing, you know. But but that's it. I mean, there's no there's no real practical use for forward-facing sonar in the Coast Guard, really, and I wasn't thinking the military, but we use side scan on that ship to find buoys that had sank.

SPEAKER_02 16:20

Oh, okay. That's that's cool. So you're I know obviously now since you completely kicked our tail with with scope and uh all that on clear lake, but uh how much of that do you think helps you when it comes to the fishing side, just being in touch with all the electronics and all that stuff?

SPEAKER_01 16:39

The day-to-day fishing, not that much. Um, but like I am known for stopping what I'm doing in a tournament on the water, whatever, to help people that are broke, you know, have electronics issues. Um, at the ABA championship on Havasu a couple years back, I actually spent on day two, I was second place going into day two, and on day two, I spent the first probably 30 or 45 minutes rewiring a guy's troll motor on his autopilot. Um I stopped a tournament, it was on Barriessa. Um, I think it was a no limit, native no limit. Um, there was two guys fishing together and both of their depth finders died. One of them ended up being the depth finder itself, so there was nothing I could do. The other guy, his charger didn't work overnight. So I actually rewired my kayak to run off one battery instead of two, how I normally do, and gave him my second battery so that he had a depth finder during the tournament. Um, so I mean I do that to help out. Um I would say the only place it really comes in handy is the understanding of the marine electronics stuff, like uh like a forward-facing sonar transducer, understanding that it's a crystal piezos that outputs that signal that gets the return back, and that's a radio frequency signal. And um, so there's things that happen on my boat, like when I have an issue with my own electronics, you know, and I go, okay, so I have one one of my arrays is going out, so I can adjust my transducer. I mean, it's not the perfect world fix, but you know, it'll get me through a uh a tournament anyway, or a day on the water.

SPEAKER_02 18:09

So that's that's cool. And I was gonna say, not that you need it, but I feel like if you're gonna be part angler competing and part service trailer, you should be at least granted a few couple inches. Well, that's cool, man. I mean that's that's that's a major respect thing, but also it's I imagine too, and so you see somebody coming to you, they're like, okay, they're at least gonna one, they're trying to dot me, or two, they they know I'm gonna I'm gonna have to fix somebody's somebody's deal here in a second.

SPEAKER_01 18:38

But that goes back to that whole community thing, you know. I mean, yeah, I am a super competitive person, but at the end of the day, I also want everybody to have fun. So I mean, I'm not gonna leave somebody stranded with their autopilot on the ramp who could be fishing when I know that I've got everything in my truck to get them back up and running.

SPEAKER_02 18:52

Yeah, that's awesome, dude. Yeah. Uh well man, being have having traveled all over from the South Carolina area to New Orleans, now being on the West Coast, and it's basically seeing all facets of of bass fishing without I mean I'm not asking to give up any juice here, but like what's kind of been the mainstays for you when it comes to just bites that or or techniques that just get bit everywhere.

SPEAKER_01 19:19

Chatterbait, 100%. Um so I tell this story at some of the seminars I've done. You know, when I was little, I got the Bass Pro Shops catalog before my birthday and before Christmas, and I marked everything I wanted in there. And if it was a worm, you know, I wanted green pumpkin, green pumpkin red flake, green pumpkin blue flake, and thought I had all those shades or needed all those shades. And I've really pared it down now. So, like a green pumpkin shad or a green pumpkin chatterbait works all over the country, so that's something I always carry as a staple. Um, a 4.3 or 4.8 Kai tech on an owner flashy swimmer murders them everywhere in the country. Um I would say those two probably primarily like if I had to pick two things that I could throw on any body of water around the country, it would probably be those two. I know you like the crank. I am not a crankbait guy at all. Like I rarely ever even touch one. Um, I know that that's that is one of my weaknesses in fishing that I should probably do something about, but I just I've done so well on other things this whole time, it's hard to break that chain. Um but if I had to pick one like that, yes, a square bill or like a a smaller medium diving crankbait, a lipless. Um, whether you're an East Coast guy that throws the Bill Lewis rattle trap or if you're a West Coast guy that throws the Lucky Craft LV 500, um, liplesses have smashed. I've done really well. Uh Gunnersville, I took third in a Hobie down there on a on a lipless. Took second at a Hobie in Wisconsin on a lipless. You know, they work regardless of the the body of water. Um that'd probably be my top three. A lipless chatterbait and a flashy swimmer with a kayak.

SPEAKER_02 21:04

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SPEAKER_01 21:48

So I have changed that in the past couple years. Uh, Dominic Done, double digit angler, he had a podcast for a while. He uh he's fished against me a few times and he fussed at me one time. He's like, you know, if you would just Get over that whole spinning rod thing and learn to to finesse fish with a spinning rod, he goes, you'd be so much more dangerous. And I kind of took that to heart. And I have uh I think I own eight or nine now, and they make regular appearances. Heck yeah, dude. Yeah.

unknown 22:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 22:19

Matter of fact, go ahead. No, you go ahead. I was gonna say, matter of fact, the uh Chamber of Commerce tournament on Clear Lake that I won this year, I set my personal best five fish limit and two-day limit and caught a double digit, and that was all on a mina with a spinning rod. God, you got them on the train.

SPEAKER_02 22:36

Dominic had to just go and ruin it for everybody.

SPEAKER_01 22:39

Yeah, yeah. I had uh the the wife and I put up 40 and a half pounds on day one and 36 and a half pounds on day two and won it by over a six-pound margin. That doesn't suck. Not at all. It was pretty fantastic.

SPEAKER_02 22:53

Yeah, because it seems like anytime I open social and you guys have made some sort of post or like I talk to you over DMs, it's like, oh yeah, we had 30 something this day, 30 something that day. I don't think I think you're allergic to catching anything under 30 at this rate on Clear Lake.

SPEAKER_01 23:06

Well, this year on Clear Lake for sure, the uh our average size has been climbing. We had a uh a fish kill in 2018, and the lake is on an upswing right now. So, like last year, if you were in a boat tournament, you had to hit 32 pounds if you even wanted a shot. Um, this year those fish are gone up to the next class, and this year it took 40 pounds. Like you had to hit 40 pounds if you wanted a shot. So those we had we had a tournament this year. Well, it's it's spring, yeah. But we had a tournament this year that was one with 45 pounds.

SPEAKER_02 23:44

I looking at was it the the one bass in January, or was that the pro am in January, or maybe both, it might have been or over 40.

SPEAKER_01 23:54

Yeah, all over 40. Um, Chris Perez and Kent Simpson had the 45-pound bag in a BBT tournament this year.

SPEAKER_02 24:02

That is just it's pretty wild. Disgusting is what it is.

SPEAKER_01 24:06

But the the thing with Clear Lake is like, you know, you get those massive bags in the springtime or in the winter on a lot of lakes around the country, but then when the summertime rolls around and those dog days, you know, that it dies quick. And Clear Lake this year, it has stayed like 30 to 35 pounds is what you need in the tournament right now.

SPEAKER_02 24:25

It it's impressive, is what it really comes down to. And especially looking at like the Skeet Reese tournament. And yeah, I have to keep giving him a shout-out just because I like to half rub it in, but also still just impressive. But Chad losing big bass by one like a tenth of an ounce or something ridiculous. Yeah, yeah. One one one hundredth of an ounce, I think is what it was.

SPEAKER_01 24:46

It was a nine a drop of water difference, yeah, for sure. You know, he caught a 12 and a half like three weeks ago, two weeks ago.

SPEAKER_02 24:53

Yeah, yeah, and posted on his story like it's nothing. Yeah, I'm like, dude, is this a PB? Nah.

SPEAKER_01 24:58

I'm like, you West Coast guys, get on my nerves a little bit. That weekend there was there was a 12 and a half and two at 11 and a half caught up there, and one of the 11 and a half was caught by a friend of mine who had uh 40 41.2 pounds for his best solo bag ever.

SPEAKER_02 25:15

And that's in the summer.

SPEAKER_01 25:16

Yeah, that was two two or three weeks ago.

SPEAKER_02 25:20

That is unbelievable. Yeah, uh do when it comes to fisheries like that where you know it's gonna take that much weight, and obviously it's it's not even just like every single fish out there is swimming around is eight plus pounds, because I mean anybody that obviously has fished out there, there's a very healthy population of two to three pounders.

SPEAKER_03 25:40

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:41

How does one how one how do you approach a tournament like that knowing it needs that weight? And then to add on that, what do you think is the biggest mistake people make going into a tournament like that when the caliber of fish is you know it's gonna take over 30. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 25:57

All right. So we have the West Coast Championship coming up next weekend. So that's a this is a good lead-in for that. Um, it's uh you got guys that come from all over. We got guys from like six different states that show up for this tournament. As far as the biggest mistake, I think a lot of guys go out and they are looking for a key spot that holds the fish they need in one spot, and that's just not how it works most of the time. Um, so you get guys, they'll they'll run down a bank and they'll they'll hit a rock wall and they'll be cranking it with a you know DT10 or something, and they'll catch one big fish and they'll go, sweet, that's my spot. And then that's all they fish in the tournament, and that's just you got to cover water, um, especially in the summertime. In the wintertime when they do school up, yeah, sure. My 76 and a half pounds in that chamber tournament came from one spot two days in a row, and that's all I fished. Um, but that's not how it works in the rest of the year. You you have to cover water, you have to have backup locations. If it's a multi-day tournament, you better have backup ramps because generally I can take you right now to a spot that's gonna have, and and I'd almost put a paycheck on it. I could take you right now to one spot on Clear Lake and it's gonna have a group of fish that's probably 40 fish. Um, and that's great. And it sounds great when you only need five a day for a two-day tournament. But I know from having beat on those fish before that I'm gonna catch anywhere from two to about six, and that school's done. Like it's it's close, it's shut down. Yeah, it may fire back up the next day, it may not. So you need more than one of those spots to be able to run to. Um, I think that's what got Simon and the Bassmaster. I think Simon fished the same spot both days. So day two, he had a rougher time because he'd already burned those fish the first day. Um, whereas I fished two different, completely different ends of the lake in that tournament on day one and day two. So that's yeah, that's one of the big keys. Um, another one is people fish history. Um last year for the West Coast Championship, a bunch of the guys found a lot of success in one little spot on Clear Lake. Several of those guys are YouTubers and put up videos. I'll guarantee you next week there's probably 30 people in that area. Might work great, might not, but you can't you can't bet on that history. Yeah. Um, and I say that I do some YouTube stuff, and I haven't done anything this summer because of what I've been doing lately is so so unique.

SPEAKER_02 28:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:29

Um, so I have not put up any videos because I know people do watch my stuff to see where I'm at and they'll go there, whether it's a place that still is on and producing or not, you know, people will show up there.

SPEAKER_03 28:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:41

And so I just I haven't put anything out. But I have so much time on Clear Lake. I was uh Dominic again, he was gonna come up the other day to fish, and he's like, if you send me waypoints, I'll come up and fish. And I said, honestly, I said, I said, you could tell me right now, you could pick the ramp, and I will stay within two miles of that ramp and I'll still put 30 pounds in the boat. Doesn't matter what part of the lake you send me to. But it's because of how much water I'm willing to cover. Right. I mean, that's that is a huge thing that I do. I run a torqued, I run multiple batteries in my torquedo, and I will I will burn bank like you would not believe. People that fish with me are like, dang, I can't, I can't fish that fast. Like, you need to slow down. Even on the boat, you know, I'm on I'm on like speed seven on the troll motor, just ripping down the bank. Yeah. And and it's because I know, you know, it's yeah, I could stop. There might be one spot that's got multiple fish, and I could stop and maybe pick them apart. But to me, in my opinion, I am better off moving and putting my bait in front of a fresh fish. And the more of those fresh fish I can get by bait in front of, the the better chance I have of putting more fish in the boat. So I that's why I power fish. Even with finesse techniques, I power fish.

SPEAKER_02 29:54

Yeah. Trial by numbers versus trying to find the sneakiest of the sneaky and yep, hope that you can get more.

SPEAKER_01 30:01

I don't I don't want to grind and slow down and and soak a Ned rig on the bottom or something like that to try and get a fish that that might eat. I want to I want to get in front of an actively feeding fish as much as possible.

SPEAKER_02 30:13

I I love that. And to your point too, on the the YouTube side, I never thought that. And because granted, I think I was a little bit jaded in when I do the YouTube stuff. A lot of people in our community here in New York, I think are just either one, they don't think to go where I've because I'll I'll show everything, you know, and still have successful tournaments and then have spots year after year to myself. But I think it was also a respect thing, too, that they like didn't think you know, like, oh that Bailey's fishing there, he's gonna be there, let's not go there. Type of I don't think it was as much that as much as I would like to think, but it was funny when I talked to Chad where I was like, Oh, hey, how's like the like fishing? Like after I, you know, we fished that event and went home. And he's like, dude, I've never seen so many people fish that spot you're at. I was like, I'm like, dude, there's no way it's because the videos he goes 100% because of your videos. He's like, because I asked somebody, and I'm like, well, that's just one that's crazy. But to your point, I think more people look at YouTube for that reason. Um, not that it's any discredit to them, because I look at YouTube for the same reason too. Like, there's a reason I watch the Bassmaster reruns before I go to Santee Cooper, it's for that exact reason.

SPEAKER_01 31:24

Uh well and I mean, not even like that somebody wants to burn your spot or anything, but like like one of the guides at Clear Lake, he's a friend of mine. Um, I posted a clip. I had Amanda out. I was teaching her how to fish a quickie.

SPEAKER_03 31:38

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 31:38

And it's a super recognizable spot. She caught several fish there. I mean, nothing giant, but I mean she had like some fours, a five. Um, and it was funny because the next day, my buddy that's a guide had his boat sitting there, and it's a set of poles, and he had his boat sitting beside the poles, and there was an earthquake. And so you see the poles shaking in the water, and that's seen that video, it went viral crazy, you know, and and it was funny because I hit up Zach and I said something to him, and he's like, Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. I was there, and I was like, and I'm thinking, you know, did he go there because my clip the day before was of Amanda catching fish on the poles? I mean, it's a community whole, you know, everybody fishes it, but you know, it's that thought, it's like, man, who's watching and what are they doing with that information?

SPEAKER_02 32:25

Yeah. Uh it's it's been a couple run-ins now, especially at home, even just fun fishing, or I'll see people on stuff that I've recently been to, or somebody will they'll be on something because usually my videos are like almost a month ahead, and so I'll get a DM and they're like, Man, I tried to hit that spot that you were at recently. And I'm like, Well, man, because that's a month ago, bro. They're gone now. But it's it's just it's funny to see that correlation. But uh man, back back to the the conversation when it comes to uh an area like that where that somebody runs into and they find one fish, say say in your in your case, you catch a big one and it might look like a spot on a spot. How much longer are you giving it after that fact to see can I get two off of it? Or like are you just saying I got one and keep going?

SPEAKER_00 33:12

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SPEAKER_01 33:41

It depends on what I see on the screen. And and that's and it's scoping, but whether I mean whether it's I'm scoping with a technique like a minnow or whether it's I'm scoping just to see structure and lining up casts on grass lines or rock piles. Um, if I see active fish, I mean I'm I'm gonna definitely make more than one cast. Yeah, but I won't I won't screw around and spin, you know, let's say I see six fish and they're just huddled down a foot off the bottom, you know, and I'm throwing a bait to them and there's no reaction, I'm leaving. I'm not gonna sit there and and roll through six or seven baits and techniques and soaking a bait to see if they'll hit it dead sticked or drop into a a wacky rig Senko and you know 18 feet of water where you gotta sit there and eat a sandwich in between casts to make sure it gets to the bottom. You know, I'm not I just I'm not gonna do that. I'm gonna I'm gonna move. You're playing the end. And and and Clear Lake is such a good lake all over. I can bet that you know within within 200 yards, I'm gonna find something else.

SPEAKER_02 34:40

Yeah, love that. Dude, I mean that the area that I fish, granted, there were definitely big fish there because I dumped like a seven or an eight the first day. I really wish like I there was someone around me that had scope where I can just be like, hey, dude, can you just I'm just curious, can you just pan? I just want to look. I just want to see well, uh I can tell you that skeet reese tournament.

SPEAKER_01 35:03

There was two nines caught right there off that little point.

SPEAKER_02 35:05

Oh god, don't tell me that.

SPEAKER_01 35:07

Yeah, 100%.

SPEAKER_02 35:09

Yeah, yeah. Uh Chad had told me something similar after the the tournament was all said and done because of course we went out finally. Like, you know, I go get to go see my and stay with my buddy. We can't talk about clear like the whole week. We finally got to fish together, you know, on his dock after the fact. And he was telling me all about how it's just like, oh yeah. I mean, he goes, he goes, it's a good thing I had a ramp right here at the house. It's literally two docks from that spot. Because he's like, he goes, that's a major player in a lot of these these events. And he's like, You wouldn't believe how many big fish are there? I'm like, don't tell me that because I'm sitting there envisioning it. And I'm like, I bet you it was a freaking 10-pounder right now, staring at me in the face, laughing at me. He goes, A DT, you joker? You're not gonna eat that thing. Uh it is a really good spot. Such a great fishery. Um and it's do you feel like that is well I want to preface this question with this is the people, it's just like Lake Fork, because I've been there a couple of times now. It gets all this glory because people see all the highlights and the best of the best posting up from there and the results, things like that. But you go to these lakes, and they're don't get me wrong, they're amazing, but they are a lot harder than people give them credit for. Do you think that with a place like Clear Lake and how it sets up and how difficult it actually is to catch fish and big fish often, that's why it's churning out so many good anglers from the West?

SPEAKER_01 36:35

I don't know that it contributes to that, but but you're right about any of the lakes. I mean, look at OH Ivy, you know, OH Ivy, Josh Jones goes down there and smashes Sherlunkers left and right, and then you have a tournament there, like a like a local club tournament there, and it takes 13 pounds to win. Um that's how Clear Lake is. Uh, if you look at any of the tournaments at Clear Lake, including the Bassbuster kayak series, yeah, I had uh I had over 200 inches to win that tournament, but you get halfway down in the standings, and man, people weren't even putting up limits on two days in a row.

SPEAKER_03 37:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 37:05

Um, fork's the same way. My first two trips to Fork, this was boats back in the day. Um, I lived in New Orleans, I fished there a couple times a year, but uh my first two trips to Fork, I think we only caught a handful of decent bass in two trips. Now, once we figured it out, it was piece of cake. But that's that's how ClearLake is day in and day out, year round. You look at tournament standings in the top 10 guys, their their limits are like wow factor, and then it just dies. And it's like our evening tournaments. We do a Wednesday nighter up there, three fish limit. It's been taken 20. We had one that was one with 24, but anywhere from like 19 to 21 pounds is generally what wins for three fish. There's only 14 boats pretty much on average. The the bottom third, they won't have a limit, maybe won't maybe not even catch a fish. Yeah, it's it's like you said, you know, it it it shows out for those that know the lake, but if you don't know it and you're not on them, it's it's a brutal grind.

SPEAKER_02 38:10

Yeah, it it's it's so true. Because like coming out of that clear lake event, our buddies back home were like, Wait, you got eighth? And I'm like, Yeah, and they're like, You didn't even touch 90 either day, and I'm like, No. And they're like, I thought clear lake was good, and I'm like, Y'all just don't get it. Like, the only lake that holds up to the the I guess the rapport of it in the south, especially, or any popular lake is Gunnarsville. Gunnersville, you can catch a pile of them everywhere doing whatever you want. Beyond that, it's like the north because you're dealing with dumb fish. Otherwise, you're exactly right. Like, I mean, dude, I think there was a seven or eight inch difference between me and seventh, and it's like it was a very, very steep drop off, and it's almost one where I just don't even like looking at the standings again because of just how bad you waxed the floor with us. Um, but it it's it's cool. I I it's when you look at it, it can be intimidating, but I look at it as uh it makes me almost respect the fishery and especially the anglers that know it even more because it's it's an admiration thing, too. It's like that's time, especially when you got up on stage and you were like, Yeah, I fish this place like three, four times a week. Like, this is home. I'm like, I looked at Blanchard, who was sitting next to me. I'm like, I didn't stand a chance.

SPEAKER_01 39:21

I you know, I I've tried to get Greg to fish with me so many times, and there's always something going on, and he's never made it not once. And that's every time we have a tournament where I went up there, he's like, Man, I should fish with you. I was like, I try.

SPEAKER_02 39:35

You gotta get on that dude, is one of the most stubborn, stuck in his ways angles I've ever met. Holy smokes.

SPEAKER_01 39:41

Then again, with Clear Lake, you can go behind anglers and still like me, I go behind anglers all the time and still feel comfortable catching fish, even though I fished behind Chad for probably an hour in the Skeet Reese tournament, going down a line at just this one area, and I probably caught seven or eight fish behind him. And he was he was less than a hundred yards in front of me.

SPEAKER_03 40:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 40:07

Um, I fished a tournament the other day, or not a tournament, the last day before off limits for this West Coast Championship. I was up there and there was a tournament going, and this this two old guys in a boat were in front of me, and I pulled up and started fishing right behind him. And the guy turned around and he goes, You don't care about fishing behind us? I was like, brother, we ain't fishing for the same fish. And he's like, What do you mean? And I stuck one like seven pounds, and I was like, that's what I mean. Like, I'm looking at what you're doing, and I'm looking at what I'm doing, and we are not competing for the same fish. Yeah, that is amazing.

SPEAKER_02 40:35

That's such a dude, that's such a hard mindset to uh acquire there. That's tough.

SPEAKER_01 40:41

I don't always do it. If if I was on Caddo Lake, um, you know, I went down and fished the Bassmaster there here recently. Um, you know, if I'm on Caddo Lake, I'm probably not gonna fish behind somebody. You know, it's uh shallow grass fishery, power fishing. If the guy in front of me is throwing a chatterbait, I'm probably not gonna feel real comfortable going behind him with a chatterbait. Yeah on Clear Lake, I don't know. It's just it's different. You know, there's so many people like you, you know, like we just said, uh I know you like to throw cranks. I've seen you on the video cranking. I know you've fished the crank and the the bass master here. I would fish behind you in a heartbeat because I know I'm not gonna throw a crank.

SPEAKER_02 41:15

Well, yeah, yeah, this scrub, yeah. We're gonna catch all the fish behind this guy.

SPEAKER_01 41:22

It's just yeah, it's it's a different technique, you know. I yeah, I'm not gonna do that. I might be dragging a football jig behind you.

SPEAKER_02 41:29

Yeah, and that's just that's uh that is a a killer's mindset and a level of confidence that I think takes a lot to to get to. I don't think you're gonna have somebody off the rip that goes and does that knowingly anyway.

SPEAKER_01 41:42

Um it's a learned thing because Clear Lake, as you saw, is always slammed with boats. Oh, yeah. You are always going to be behind somebody else.

SPEAKER_02 41:51

Yep, absolutely. Uh love that, dude. And there's so much more I could we could dig into here. We're gonna have to get you back on the show, but I want to be respectful of cognizant. I told you 30 minutes, we're already going up on 40. Uh, folks, this guy has a real, real important job, and I'm sitting here at my desk working from home for the day. Uh but dude, seriously, one, I appreciate the time. This was sick getting you on here, man. And more people need to know about you because like I said, respect needs to be be given where it's due. Um but dude, it's your first time on the pod, and the way we like to cap these shows off, we always like to ask this question to their their first first time on here is if you got to sit down with three different people, they could be alive a thousand years ago, live today, it doesn't have to be fishing. What three individuals would you invite to sit down, have a steak, and a beer, and pick their brain?

SPEAKER_01 42:42

Oh man. Doug Hannon could probably be one of the top bass professor. Um probably old Phil the duck commander, because I'm an avid duck hunter. Heck yeah. Um I've actually shared a blind with his son, but never him. Which one? Um Chase. Okay. Uh number three. Golly. I love these questions. Let's go with Brandon Polinek. Heck yeah, dude. I chatted with him at iCast and had a good time BSing over at the Yamaha booth, and uh, I think I would like to share a boat with that dude.

SPEAKER_02 43:28

Yeah, I mean, talk about technically another West Coast guy if you want to be you know specific here. Uh but I think of our time, one of the greatest from a mindset and strategy standpoint anglers that we've we've ever seen so far.

SPEAKER_01 43:43

Yeah, I tried to talk him into coming to Clear Lake, we'll see if it happens.

SPEAKER_02 43:46

He'd be dumb as for as much as he likes the big bait game and all that stuff. He'd be I feel like he'd fit in quite well.

SPEAKER_01 43:53

Uh we we have a tournament, we have a tournament coming up this next February that is during the offseason for a lot of those guys, and it was done that way on purpose. Um, I know Steve Kennedy's gonna be there. We'll see who else shows up.

SPEAKER_02 44:05

Oh, heck yeah, dude.

SPEAKER_01 44:07

It's another it's another big bass event, kind of like the Skeet Reese one.

SPEAKER_02 44:10

Heck yeah.

SPEAKER_01 44:11

So it's gonna be put on by uh Garrett and G-Rat Bates, they're running it up there.

SPEAKER_02 44:15

Okay, awesome. So, yeah, well, dude, that is the first time we've ever had the bass professor mentioned in it. Doug Hannon. And the first time, surprisingly, that ever anyone's ever said Phil.

SPEAKER_01 44:26

Ah, no, Phil Robertson. That's uh he'd be something to hear his stories, yeah. Yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_02 44:35

Dude, that is one wise table you chose, that's for sure. Yeah. Uh but man, seriously, appreciate the time. This was awesome. And again, uh, we'll love to get you back on here and dive deeper into some more of the mindset and strategy and all that stuff. But uh we'll be keeping up with you, man. And uh good luck in the derbs coming up. I feel bad for everybody else. And uh just keep being you, man. Appreciate the time.

SPEAKER_01 44:57

I appreciate it, Bailey.

SPEAKER_02 44:59

All right, and that's gonna do it for today's show, guys. Uh, quick one. Uh, thank you to Matthew Brandon for joining us, guys. We are in Wisconsin, and uh, but that being said, we do have more shows coming for you guys. Don't worry, just because I'm out doesn't mean you're gonna miss next week. We have uh Mr. John Murray coming on the show. We have a real biology episode going next week, and I will be connecting to Starlink uh because actually my pal Jake Angeles and I, who are who are traveling together for this event this week, uh both have Starlink, so we'll be putting Starlink on the houseboat. And uh the house boat we're literally staying on the Wolf River, which is sick uh that we actually have like a houseboat on the river, and that's pretty snazzy, pretty cool. But I'm probably gonna start going down a rabbit hole, so I'm gonna stop myself here. Hopefully, you guys enjoyed today's episode. Please like, subscribe if you're watching on YouTube, leave a rating review if you're on podcasts, and we'll see y'all on Monday.