FISHING CLUB JOURNAL
Kings of Big Bass
The 1998 Catch & Release Contest recognizes thousands
of outstanding catches made by Club members. Leading the
contest are top fishermen from around the continent. One of
them is Texan Chuck Bauer, who tallied an unbelievable 46 bass
over 20 inches last year. His largest bass was a 25.5-incher.
Ironically, Bauer's total is not enough to win the
multiple-entry award. His biggest bass will not be selected as
one of 1998's Top 30 Releases either.
Bauer's total was so amazing, however, that we called him
to find out more about his techniques. We learned he catches a
lot of monster bass because he only targets monster bass.
"To catch big bass, you have to get out of the small
bass box," he says. "Fellow members Paul Duclos and
Bob Crupi taught me that. Everytime I go out, I know I will
catch a bass over 22-inches and I have to do things
differently to accomplish that. When other anglers are beating
the bank for 3-pound bass, I want to be deep, sitting right on
top of the spots where big bass are most likely to
congregate."
Bauer relies heavily on live bait for his success. "I
know many fishermen are against the use of live bait. However,
Paul Duclos and Bob Crupi both told me the same thing, 'Would
you rather have a real steak or a rubber steak?' The same
applies to big bass. Bluegills, waterdogs and crawdads are my
rule of thumb. With live bait, I am very slow and methodical.
I prepare myself mentally to achieve the patience it takes to
consistently catch big bass."
Bauer's home water is Lake Ray Roberts, Texas. "I
truly believe Lake Roberts holds a number of 14-pound bass.
Plus, it doesn't get the pressure that Lake Fork receives. I
had one day last year at Ray Roberts with four bass totalling
34 pounds."
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