Targeting freshwater drum.

Can anyone give any tips on catching freshwater drum? I fish mostly at Whitney on the upper end in the Brazos.

Thanks
Bobby

+1
I still need to catch this fish. I've seen and heard people catch them targeting bass or cats, but that's just a happy accident. How does one target them specifically?

Whitney and the river are good places. They like to eat minnows. To be more selective they really like small to medium crawfish. Of course a lot of other species like minnows and crawfish too.

We caught two by accident fishing for bass the Ned rigs, watermelon colors. Week before Christmas. Both were a bout 1.5-2 lbs. Just casting to the shore around the docks on Lake Granbury and bumping bottom on the way out.

Brazos from PK to below Whitney is awesome for drum! Bottom feeders, will take a lot of baits. Find rocks, gravel, sand and you'll find drum. We would always catch them on bycatch when I used to fish the Brazos but have fished for them on purpose elsewhere since then. Find a rapid and fish in both the slower current and the slack water. Sand bass are usually at the faster part of the rapid, fish the "slower" more downstream part of the rapid for the drum. Will bite anything from jigs you'd use for sand bass, curly tail grubs, cut shad, live minnows, worms........all that stuff. Worms work best as bait IMO, but I like to put out shad and catch both cats and drum, while casting a white jig or grub for them and catch some sandies too. Slow swim lures keeping constant bottom contact.

Look up drum article by Keith Sutton.

Eric

Thank you guys. Lots of good info. I appreciate it

The key to drum is to try NOT to catch them. I’ve caught a ton on crappie jigs while crappie fishing. Seems they like to hang out on bottom under the schools, get your jig too deep and get a drum. Before PK died back when I was a kid we would routinely catch them in there on crawdads and they were the biggest I had ever seen around here. When big schools get together during the spawn in a river you can actually hear them drumming.

I catch them catfishing on frozen shrimp. If you get the tap tap bite just give the line a small jerk and they will go for it. Over 5 pounds is the largest I have caught in the river here. Put up a nice run when hooked.