is putting brushpiles in a lake cheating?

the winner of the recent bass open on grand lake claims he won the tournament on some green brush piles he had put out just prior to the tourney...big debate going on BBC lounge as to whether this is cheating...also there's is some discussion of whether putting crawfish,shiners,dog food into brushpiles is legal or not...
my thoughts are almost anything is legal unless it involves getting fish out of a basket or hooking tied off fish....if a fish is free to swim anywhere in the lake and you can entice the fish to bite your bait,it's a legal fish....also believe putting brushpiles in a lake is good for the fishery especially our aging reservoirs where the cover has deteriorated...

I don't think so. Between side imaging and 360 I can find them and abuse them. Is that cheating?

It is NOT cheating as long as it is legal to do so on said lake

Is it littering?

No different to me than someone who spends 200 days at a given lake out of the year. Yes they have an advantage but anybody else can do the same thing if they choose to do so and have the resources/flexibility of schedule

Is it trash?

If you want to put the time in to do what others won’t, you deserve to beat them.

Sunk some brush at Fork last week and before that at Texoma. It's the right thing to do.

Thing of it as public housing for fish.

Not cheating at all. The people that think it is. Are the ones that get beat all the time

Sinking brush piles is not cheating

Baiting a brush pile prior to a tournament is typically not allowed.

if a person wanted to sink some dog food into a brushpile,how much time before the tourney would you have to do it...2 days,2 weeks,2 months?
wasn't able to pull up the rules for BFL tournys and it's been several years since I fihed them but don't recall reading anything about no dog food in a brushpile...my own thoughts are that putting dog food in a brush pile is no different than just putting out a brushpile….you re trying to attract fish with either....

When I read tournament rules; there is often a rule against “baiting a hole”
Putting dog food on a brush pile prior to a tournament is baiting a hole

The dog food will attract blue gills/other sunfish; the bass will follow

Baiting a brushpile prior to a tournament is unsportsmanlike, and would also fall under any generic unsportsmanlike wording in the tournament rules

A friend that baits a brushpile and then gives you the coordinates of the baited hole is also unsportsmanlike

how many tournament trails have a rule against
putting out brushpiles?
putting dog food in a brushpile?

Haven’t seen rules against putting out brush piles
I remember some famous fishermen public-ally putting hundreds out prior to the Bassmaster Classic a few years back

I see verbiage against “baiting a hole” regularly in tournament rules

I'm not putting any dog food on my brush........cat food maybe but no dog food.

In my opinion, the purpose of putting dog food in a brush pile would be to attract fish to a location unknown by other fishermen, so it creates an advantage that's frowned upon. On the other hand, the purpose of merely sinking a brush pile would be to attract fish to a location unknown by other fishermen. See the difference?

Exactly, I don't see it either.

Or those that are too lazy to put out brush piles:)

And they are the ones who get beat.

I'd go with CCTX's interpretation.

I'm just hoping I can catch enough fish for people to think I'm cheating:)

on a related note, is wearing a sweet jersey cheating?

Tom Brady probably puts a few out. I guess he is the goat after all.

If it’s not prohibited in the rules then probably just a competitive advantage anyone can use.

Is it cheating if I eat the dog food on crackers while fishing for bass in a brush pile I sank?

All dog food ever got me was a bunch of catfish and turtles

Robbie Rose was the "king' of brushpiles, and building and sinking them.

Or so he claimed

Isn't that ironic

does anybody know what B.A.S.S. or FLW says in their rules about brush piles or placing of dog food in them....I couldn't find their rules in either website but did find the rules for Alabama Bass trail which is one of larger tourney trails in my area and there is no mention of brushpiles in their rules nor baiting of fish...

Tournament rules have wording to follow state and water body rules and regulations. If that specific water body in that state allows for the sinking of brushpiles; then you may do so prior to the off the water/off limits time period.
For most major tournaments, that is 28-30 days. The off limits period includes recreational swimming, scuba diving, being a passenger in a friend's boat, etc, etc, etc.

From American Bass Tournament rules (chumming is prohibited. Baiting a hole is chumming)



From the 2019 Elite Classic Rules

No

This was a Costa tournament, the only off limits are the evening before the tournament. And that dude has owned Grand Lake for several years.

Yes, in this specific case, it's been reported that the older brush piles weren't holding fish and had been pounded all summer. So, close to the tournament day he put out some very green (still had leaves on them on tournament day) brush piles.

Within the rules, but yes, locals have an advantage in tournaments

I don't think brush piles should be the debate here, but if the Costa off limits period is only 12 hours, maybe that is what should be discussed.

Man thats it... I am getting me some deer hide lures and going to town! I will be bigger than AP Bassin!

Only natural lures allowed are pork rind and pork strips.

Deer skin will get you disqualified.

Is it ok to bait your brush piles with live crawdads? Asking for a friend.

No! That would be "chumming".

So joe says there is no difference, but there is, unless it's against the law or tournament rules to sink brushpiles. In that case, there would be no difference.

So would it be a red flag if someone were purchasing massive amounts of crawdads from a bait shop?

In my opinion, yes. Someone was baiting their new, green brushpiles with crawfish prior to the Grand Lake event? Is that what you're alleging?

I'm not alleging anything. Just asking questions.

Step 1. Drop a lot of brush.
Step 2. Take a 5 gallon bucket and load it with crawfish and crawfish food.
Step 3. Poke a small hole in the bucket for crawfish to come and go as they please from the brush.
Step 4. Fish brush with crawfish imitating bait.
Step 4. Win

Is the how it works?

I have no issue with folks planting brush. It's a lot of work and doesn't guarantee success; just putting a pile out doesn't mean the fish will flock to it and you still have to catch them. And, it's only a matter of time before side imaging finds the new ones and the process has to start all over. Hard to stay in front of it for long.

my understanding of "chumming" is that it's a saltwater technique that involves dumping baitfish or cut bait out of a boat WHILE YOU ARE FISHING to attract fish to come near your boat and bite your bait you are fishing with.....
I can see where that might be unsportsman like but it's really no different in principal than someone using a swimbait to attract a bass then quickly following up with a senko to catch the fish....
I don't think someone putting dog food in a brushpile prior to a tournament should be labeled as chumming....

Hell no.

Have done that before for crappie up on Livingston.

I have no issue with putting brush out.

I was thinking abouy making a bamboo brush pile for a spot I fish. Would dumping rock or granite around it help?

Yes Sir.

You can’t violate state law. Most lakes you can’t dump things in. Would you do it in front of a game warden? If it’s just brush and nothing foreign like metal trash to hold it down then ask your local game wardens if it’s legal

I have now learned that putting dog food in a brush pile is helpful lol. I’m to lazy for brush anymore don’t live close enough to the lakes I enjoy fishing and don’t wanna trash my boat doing it

What boat?!

Lol didn’t want to trash my boat currently I do not own anything that floats lol

Half the stuff the state dumps in as fish attractors are plastic.

Not cheating Alton Jones made a career out of doing just that.

I can remember laying on the deck of Chris B's boat hanging onto a 15' weighted down cedar tree over the side as he moved the boat into position for the "drop". I was up there hanging on for dear life snortin and gruntin and I just hear his voice saying "hold it, hold it... just a little farther, now make sure it lays down we dont want it standing up". We always used downed trees on the bank, made for some good cover but for some reason those brushpile fish would only bite on prefish days. Chris caught a 9 off one of em, thought that was pretty cool to catch a toad on the brush we put out. I am also very appreciative of everyone putting brush out these days, with side imaging I'm finding enough piles to not even have to sink my own anymore.

I fished with a guy on Fork that is a very popular fishing guide. As we were fishing he got pissed and started cussing out some guy fishing ahead of us. He said that was his spot the other guy was fishing and he( the guide) had spent a lot of time sinking brush there. He nearly came to blows over it.
Sorry, but if you sink brush in a public lake, your spot is now everyone's spot. Its a public lake.

Not really, Bamboo willgrow plankton and the treadfins will move into the tight limb structure. Bass and crappie will slowlycircle the brushpile to pick off Shad.

3/8oz chatterbait with a 5" swimbait in Shad colors will regularly produce some 5 to 6lb Bass. Especially early in the morning.

Unfortunately that is not the mindset with a lot of people. I have witnessed a guide at Fork come into a spot and cuss a guy that had been in that spot for over an hour. It could have been another guide that set him off maybe. Guy was by himself that day though. Either way entitled thinking is becoming the norm in society.