Patrick Pierce

Rising gas prices have anglers watching their budgets as tournament season begins. (PAA: Chris Dutton)

by Alan Clemons -PAA Communications

Tournament season has begun and anticipation is high with thoughts of a fresh start with a new year, but with that comes one nagging twinge of anxiety.

Gas prices are increasing due to unrest in the Middle East. Just last week, the price of a barrel of oil topped $103 for the first time since 2008. The Associated Press has reported that Libya’s output of production is down by at least 750,000 barrels per day from its usual 1.6 million barrels, according to the International Energy Agency.

The price per gallon for gas and diesel fuel in much of North America, Europe and Asia has jumped significantly in just the last few weeks. It’s not surprising to see an extra dime or nickel, or more, on the gas station sign prices from one day to the next. Some predictions put prices for gas at $4 or more by summer.

Capt. Bert Deener

Jigs, the rubber or hair-skirted, not-too-spectacular-looking lures, have been around almost since bass fishing began. Until recent years when anglers started winning big tournaments, they flew mostly under the radar. Only a handful of serious anglers understood just how versatile they were. Being a bass tournament angler and jig manufacturer—my company is Bert’s Jigs & Things—I am privileged to design jigs for both professional anglers and weekend warriors from around the country. Three jig patterns stand out for fall bass fishing.

Few presentations trigger bass strikes more effectively in shallow water than quickly retrieving a rod-thumping, wide-wobbling, shallow-diving crankbait. The lure looks so inviting that few fish can resist its appeal. Patrick Pierce, B.A.S.S. Central and Southern Tour bass pro from Jacksonville, Florida, uses shallow cranks as one of his primary tools to bring quality sacks to the scales during spring.

Flipping may be the best way to bag a heavy stringer during the hot months, but it takes more than a heavy rod and a big weight. Florida pro Patrick Pierce knows lots of the intricacies of flipping you may be overlooking.

On paper, flipping and pitching sound simple. Get the funky "casts" down, find some grass, and start filling the livewell. But as Jimmy Houston once said, "If bass fishing were that easy, it wouldn't be a sport, it would be a habit."

Patrick Pierce's relationship with flipping, however, can be classified as an addiction rather than just a habit.

Combing the grass

Bass are like people in some regard. They're apex predators, don't like to be out in the sun when they don't have to be, have some places they're more comfortable than others and like it when their food is brought to them. Grass offers a bass all of this. It's the La-Z-Boy of the lake.

When you're in a lake inundated with grass, it can be difficult to identify bass-holding grass from bass-free grass. Pierce says to look for ambush points that have current flowing by them.

"Points catching wind seem to be key spots to flip if there is no natural current in your lake," he says. "The bass will sit in there and wait for something to wash by. It's a reaction bite."