FLW Tour Recap: Potomac River

Kellogg’s pro Dave Lefebre provides an inside look at the latest FLW Tour event in Maryland

(Editor’s note: Veteran bass pro Dave Lefebre has agreed to take time to share his insights into each FLW Tour event of the 2011 season. After every event, Lefebre will give his thoughts on tournament strategy, winning techniques and other behind-the-scenes stories/information that is compelling to our readers. The following blog represents his sixth installment. Lefebre ultimately finished the Potomac River event in 32nd place with a two-day total of 26 pounds, 5 ounces and walked away with $10,500 in winnings.)

The second stop on the FLW Tour Open trail was an event many of us have been looking forward to for a long time. The mighty Potomac River produced big time as usual, with Luke Clausen taking home the trophy in the end. I’d say the overall weights weren’t quite as big because it was a postspawn situation and the fish were skinnier, but it was still a great tournament with lots of limits.

This was the first time we’ve ever held a Potomac River tournament out of National Harbor (in the DC area) and I predict it won’t be the last. You talk about a perfect place for an outdoor weigh-in – it simply doesn’t get any better than that! We had big crowds each day and the backdrop was picture perfect.

I really like big tidal-water fisheries. Places like the Potomac River offer so many more variables that it can make your head spin if you let it. The bass are basically everywhere, and a tournament like this can be won in a variety of different ways and using a wide selection of techniques. The x-factor of course is being in the right place at the right time, which is dictated by the constantly rising and falling tides. And the tides are never predictable either; it’s a mind game, and that’s why I like the Potomac.

I like to run the tide when I can, which means running as far south as I can and working my way northward throughout the day, hitting all the best spots and the perfect time. Unfortunately on day one, we were faced with a strong north wind which made the main river pretty rough, too rough to effectively “run” as far south as I had planned. Not only that, but those strong north winds also pushed the water out of the river so we never had a high tide all day. I was forced to stay north and simply try to survive on day one, which I did with 13 pounds, 7 ounces. Regrettably, I couldn’t get the 15 pounds I needed on day two to squeeze into the top 20. I had another 13-pound day and finished 32nd. It was not exactly what I had in mind, but not too bad I guess.

I never really got on anything solid during the three-day practice period. As a matter of fact, this was the worst practice I’ve ever had on the Potomac River. Others were grumbling too. I had one fish in the 4-pound range all week – most everything I caught was between 2 1/2 and 3 1/2 pounds for some reason. I wasn’t all that discouraged, because I felt like this was a great opportunity to “junk fish” and run the tide. But because of the good, old x-factor, I ended up camping in a couple of areas up north instead.

I caught fish on a black ChatterBait, a black and blue TABU jig, and a white frog all week long. On the low outgoing tide, I was keying on inside milfoil and hydrilla edges where there was scattered coontail. That coontail grass was bright green and sporadic, and was definitely the deal. It’s harder to find because it grows on the bottom and you can’t see it, but when you found some this week, there were always fish in it, and lots of them. Most of the coontail was located between the inside grass line (that you can visually see) and the bank. In practice I found that the fish seemed to want the bait swimming rather than on the bottom, so the jig and ChatterBait were especially strong for me. I used the frog in the thicker, matted grass closest to the inside line when the sun was out in the afternoon. I caught a bunch of fish each day on the frog and I know others did as well, but the ChatterBait and swimming jig accounted for the majority of my fish.

At high tide, like early on the first morning, I was flipping a heavier jig in log jams on the bank. It was fun and I caught a pile of fish, but again, no big ones. I caught 20 fish in an hour doing this each morning with the biggest only in the 2 1/2-pound range. It’s hard to believe you can catch 40-plus keepers per day on the Potomac River and never catch one over 3 pounds, but that is exactly what happened to me this week. I’ve never seen so many smaller average fish here; you can bet that the river is going to get even better in the next couple of years when these fish grow up a little.

Grass and moving baits were the main theme this week for the top 10 and most other high finishers. Luke and Bryan Schmitt were swimming a jig. Ike, Dudley, and Glenn Browne used a Chatter-type bait a lot. Others like Vatalaro, who led after day one, Chad Morganthaler, and Bobby Lane were flipping the grass. I saw a lot of the ChatterBaits on the dock and it seemed color didn’t make much difference. Glenn used chartreuse and white, Dudley liked a brownish one, and there were several black and blue ones tied on too. I can’t speak for the others, but it seemed like a fast erratic retrieve was the deal for me. I’d make a long cast, reel it slowly and then snap it as hard as I could two or three times, and then reel slowly again. Almost every bite came just after snapping it and the bites were vicious.

The best bags were caught in the creeks between Occoquan and Broad, but fairly close to the main river. Ninety-nine percent of the fish were in the postspawn faze and were migrating out of the shallow creeks and bays, ganging up in the obvious grass flats. These areas were replenishing throughout the day as well, which is why some guys were able to sit in one area all day long and keep catching them day after day.

We now sit at halftime for the FLW Tour Opens with only two remaining. Only the top 5 in the AOY standings will qualify for the 2012 Forrest Wood Cup. I’m now sitting in 11th. Our next event is a Major on Kentucky Lake which is going to be a slugfest. I can’t wait for that one in two weeks, but for now I’m going to enjoy a week off and try to rest my poor sore arms.

To read more about Dave’s life on the road, check out On Tour With Dave and Anne, sponsored by Chevy. Throughout the 2011 FLW Tour season, Dave and his wife, Anne will be keeping a detailed blog of their experiences while traveling the country in their Chevy Trucks.