The report is a little late but I've been busy as hell.

I had a chance between finals and graduation to hit the freshwater one last time before moving down to SPI. I've been hitting the rivers and lakes hard for a BFA LMB and wanted to squeeze opportunities in every chance I got. Time after time I was pulling in 19-20" but just couldn't bust 21".

On May 9th I had a full day off but the weather forecast looked poor. My KW teammates and I decided to fish below the Lake Dunlap Dam in the stretch just before Lake McQueeney. Thunderstorms were rolling in all day and I couldn't hit the water until after lunch. I arrived at a friend's house as my teammates were putting in after waiting out a pop-up t-storm. Air temp was in the low 80s, water temp in the high 60s at depth. Clarity was about 2' (which is pretty good considering the rain). Pressure was all over the place due to the storms rolling in.

A few teammates paddled ahead of me and we began blasting the banks and flats. 5 minutes in to the trip I pulled out a respectable 19" fatty largemouth in the shade near a dock and some lily pads. I let her swim off and began to wonder if she would be my biggest of the day. I then began talking to my teammates as they blasted a felled tree near some lily pads and I was discussing why I like a bullet weighted craw in the spring and how I've gained a new level of confidence in blue fleck. As I'm speaking I cast at the log they had been working for some time. My craw lands just on the water's edge of the log and I pop the rod tip back pulling the craw over the lily pads. The craw had just enough speed to clear the lillies and slowly fall over the edge. At that time a modest rush of water proceeds from under the pad and engulfs my lure. I quickly asked my teammate if he saw that and he replied "hell yeah." At that moment I set the hook and the fight was on. She quickly tried to take the line around the lily pads and as I pull against her weight I can tell she is hefty. I keep her from the lily pad escape but she quickly diverts her efforts to wrapping under the log. After a two minute fight she gives up on wrapping my line and begins the hook-throw method. She leaps out of the water and my buddies begin screaming (hell I was screaming too). The whole time I'm praying for the tackle to just hold on to her. She gave me a good ride and instead of reeling her to me, I reeled myself to her. After a fight of about 5 minutes she gives in, exhausted. My net just barely held her length and the aluminum handle flexed under her weight. I pull in my new PB Largemouth at 23.25" and just shy of 8 lbs.

Caught on a Havoc Pit Boss in Okeechobee Craw, with a 2/0 red Gamakatsu EWG with 1/8 oz. W bullet weight on 10# Trilene mono, rigged Texas style.



I finished the day with a huge smile on my face and a sore arm the following day.

Congrats that is a pretty fish. I got to fish Dunlap before and it is a wonderful fishery.

Good write-up, story and fish. Congrats.

Very Nice.

Nice fish are biting and I am loaded down at work. is for you. is for me.

grats

Nice write up and nice bass. Nothing like a good fight.

Congrats. The bar just got a little higher

10lb around lily pads? Braver than I. Nice read and great fish!

Nice Post and super fish. Congratulations on the PB!

big ole fat bass on lite tackle! that is awesome congrats!

Okeechobee craw havoc pit bosses have been my go to bait a lot this spring as well. Anywhere with clearer water or lightly stained green water with at least 1-2ft visibility, they have been producing big fish for me. I have had good luck producing numbers with the weight off, but bigger fish with a green w/red flake tungsten bullet weight.

It's been nice to diversify with a new confidence soft plastic for these conditions. I too had never had faith in blue fleck before now, but this year it has been one of my top 3 soft baits I tie on. Nice to see others doing well with it too, beautiful fish!

formula462, I'm used to fishing crystal clear water on the Comal and use the lightest line I can get away with (not a fan of braid when I burn the banks in freshwater).

Mulholland, it has been a go-to for me also this year. If the water flow rate is slow (less than 100 cfs; I fish rivers mostly) I'll fish it weightless. If I get a short strike on the craw I'll follow it up with a weighted Grass Pig Jr in the same color pattern (this usually results in landing a bass on the Grass Pig at least 75% of the time).

Good job on the your pb!

Very nice!!