 GREG
HACKNEY ON BASSING
Smoke the Black Buzzbait
EDITOR’S NOTE: Winning $65,000 and the title
that went with it, Angler-of-the-Year on the Forest
L. Woods (FLW) tour, prove that Greg Hackney knows how
to catch bass. One of the newest members of the Strike
King Pro Staff, Hackney from Gonzalez, Louisiana, has
been fishing professional tournament circuits for 5
years. However, he’s been competing in bass-fishing
tournaments since he was only 11-years old. Hackney
is the number-two pro in the nation according to www.bassfan.com.
This week he’ll tell us how to catch bass during
March.
QUESTION: What color buzzbaits are you going to use
this month?
 HACKNEY:
Ninety percent of the time, I’m going to use a
black buzzbait, primarily the new black Strike King
Tri-Wing Buzz King Buzzbait.
QUESTION: Why are more anglers using black buzzbaits
than ever before?
HACKNEY: Black is a dominant color. In the spring season,
I’ve found that I get more strikes when I am fishing
black buzzbaits than any other color. I think the sound
of the Double Wing and Tri Wing buzzbaits and the black
color is a combination of sight and sound that the bass
do not like. I think they strike it to get rid of it
or kill it. For some reason, black buzzbaits seem to
catch more bass early in the spring and later in the
year than any other color buzzbaits I’ve tried.
In the summertime, I’ve found that white and white-and-chartreuse
buzzbaits produce more bass. Until we can find a talking
fish, we won’t know why these colors seem to be
better at different times of the year.
 QUESTION:
How are you fishing the buzzbait different from other
bass anglers?
HACKNEY: I probably fish the buzzbait much faster than
most anglers. I believe you get more bites fishing the
buzzbait faster. When you fish the buzzbait fast, the
bass that attack it are more committed to eating the
buzzbait than just killing the buzzbait. Therefore,
I believe I hook more bass that attack the buzzbait
when I fish it fast than I do when I fish it slow. The
secret to catching bass is not simply getting strikes.
It’s actually hooking the fish. If I have to pick
between hooking more fish, or getting more strikes but
not hooking as many fish, I’ll choose the speed
that produces the most hook-ups. I believe the speed
that produces the most hook-ups is fast instead of slow.
The less time that a bass has to look at a bait, and
the shorter time he has to make a decision as to whether
he’s going to bite or not, the more bass you’ll
catch. I’m fishing for an aggressive, committed
strike that causes the bass to inhale the lure and get
the hook in his mouth. I want an instinctive strike.
With that instinctive strike, you’ll get a  hard
charge and bite. I think many times if a bass has an
opportunity to study the bait he may follow it and bump
it with his nose just to see what’s going to happen.
That’s when you get many short strikes. As with
any top-water bait I’m fishing, I fish it fast
for the same reason. I believe if you speed-up your
retrieve on top-water baits, you’re more likely
to get the bass to commit to the strike and you’re
more likely to hook the fish. Therefore, the two things
I think will help more anglers catch more bass at this
time of year is to fish the black Strike King Tri-Wing
Buzz King Buzzbait and smoke that sucker across the
top of the water. This is the technique I use, and I
think it’s the most-productive this time of year.
Tomorrow: FIGURING OUT TUBE
BASS
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