Southern-Style Dropshotting

The biggest bass weighed in on the BASSMASTER Tour this season was caught by Tom Mann Jr., a 9-06 largemouth at Lake Seminole.

He didn't catch it as you might expect, namely by using a power technique in shallow water. Rather, he fooled that whopper by dropshotting a green pumpkin Zipper worm in 20-23 feet of water in one of Seminole's deep, clear creek arms.

Since Mann is from the South and has been a tour pro for some time, the fact that he would use a relatively new, western technique at that lake might sound surprising. But as he notes, he's a "light-line, finesse-type fisherman. That suits me and I love doing it." That's because he was raised on Lake Lanier, "the deepest, clearest lake in state of Georgia.

"I've been dropshotting for several years," he says, "we just didn't call it dropshotting." Western anglers "didn't invent it. It's been around for a long time, but we hadn't done it to the extent that it's been carried into tournaments."

In other words, Mann is familiar and comfortable with dropshotting, though he notes that he's "not like Aaron Martens or some of those guys who do it all the time. For me it comes into play when the fish are extremely tough or extremely deep -- when you're more or less begging for a fish," especially in deep, clear water.

Not Hard, But A Few Twists

"It's not a hard technique," Mann says. "It's also not a hard rig to tie or use. You just have to go out there and do it. It's very similar to shaking a worm, which many people have been doing for a long time.

"But a lot of people have trouble tying the rig, putting the hook up the line like that, and (if done incorrectly) it can cause a tremendous amount of line twist. You have a couple of small remedies for that.

"One thing you can do that will help right away is to use a baitcasting reel," he says. "If I'm not dropshotting in water over 25 feet deep, I'm always dropshotting with a baitcaster. You'll still have some line twist, but that way it's not as bad.

"When you get over 25 feet and you're fishing vertically, it takes forever to strip line off a baitcaster so you have to use a spinning reel," he adds.

The other way to eliminate line twist is to add "the smallest barrel swivel you can find 4-5 feet up the line. You totally eliminate line twist and there's no difference in feeling a bite."

Bulk Up

Another way Mann makes dropshotting easier is to use heavier equipment. "You talk to the Japanese guys or the California guys, and they're using 4-6 pound line and little light-wire hooks," he says. "Everyone thinks you have to use that stuff, but to me that's a myth.

"I think people are being taught the wrong thing about dropshotting. Everything that's being made for dropshotting is being made dinky.

"I hardly ever dropshot with less than 8-pound line (XXX Super Mono), and a lot of times I use 10. Sometimes I go down to 6.

"I do use small worms," he says. "They seem to work best, though it depends on the forage." But "small" for a Georgia fisherman is different than for a California fisherman. "More times than not I'll use a 5-6 inch worm," Mann says. "And I think that's why when dropshotting I catch more big fish.

"With a 3-4 inch bait and a little hook you usually catch dinky bass, and you lose fish. If you're around any structure whatsoever (and fishing light gear), the fish will get in there and hang you up."

Mann prefers to use a No. 1 offset worm hook, the same hook he uses for shaking worms. He also is designing two dropshot rods for All Star that will have a little more backbone than typical dropshot rods.

The Rig: No Palomar

Tying a dropshot rig is easier to learn by someone showing you than by reading about it. Nonetheless, here's a primer on the rig.

"First learn how to tie the hook on the line," Mann says. "In all the articles, everyone says you have to use a Palomar knot. But I use a Trilene knot. It's the same knot I use for everything because it's stronger.

"The hook has to be tied up the line about 14 inches. Tie that on first. Once you get it tied on, hold the hook so the point is up, and take the tag end of your line and go back through the eye. That will make hook point stand up," which is essential for bait presentation and hookups.

"Once I do that I use an Extra Edge DropShot Sinker, which has a built-in barrel swivel and built-in quick clip. You just run (the tag end of) the line through quick clip, and the swivel helps eliminates line twist. That's your basic rig right there.

"It's simple," he says. "The only tricky thing is taking that tag end and running it through the hook eye again. You do that because you want that worm perpendicular to your line."

Shake It, Don't Bounce It

When it comes to fishing the rig, Mann has another tip. "One thing I see people doing wrong when dropshotting is that they want to move it too much," he says. "What you're trying to do with a dropshot rig is keep it in one place the whole time. Don't bounce the weight around.

"You just want the worm shaking and moving the tail a little bit. It's a vertical presentation. You want to put it right in the fish's face and aggravate it into biting."

Just Do It

"A lot of people don't want to fish offshore," he says. "Ninety-nine percent of bass fishermen want to see the structure they're throwing at and want to be moving their lures.

"Well, you can do that and when the fishing quit biting, go back with a dropshot and catch more. I've been shaking worms here for 30 years, and have caught big stringers and won tournaments doing it.

"If you want to try this type of fishing, if you want to learn it, you have to go out there and just do it," Mann says. "You won't learn it in 2 hours. It's a deep, vertical presentation, and at times is an unbeatable technique. If you learn it, you'll have another weapon you can use."