KEN COOK ON BASS FISHING

Ken Cook's Crankbait Strategy

EDITOR'S NOTE: Ken Cook of Meers, Oklahoma, a professional bass fisherman since 1983, and before that a fisheries biologist, won the BASS Masters Classic in 1991, as well as other B.A.S.S. events.

Question: Ken, what's another rod you like to use?
Answer: I designed a crankbait rod, a 7-foot one-piece medium-action rod. You won't find this graphite, parabolic-bend rod very heavy. You need to have a lot of bend in a crankbait rod to give the bass a better chance of inhaling the bait and your landing the fish. Many anglers like fiberglass, but I prefer to fish for bass with graphite.

Question: Most people say graphite is too stiff for fishing a crankbait and doesn't give the fish the bait. What makes your rod different?
Answer: Actually that's an untrue statement. Graphite will give the fish the bait. I prefer more sensitivity in my rod because then I know what the bait's doing, and I can tell what type of bottom I'm fishing. I like to feel every wiggle my crankbait makes. I think sensitivity in a rod allows you to hook more fish.

Question: How do you prevent tearing the hook out of the fish's mouth?
Answer: This medium-action rod, a soft-action rod, has a parabolic bend all the way down to the butt, which equals a lot of give. The flex of the rod is what prevents you from tearing the hook out of the fish's mouth. I'm convinced a fisherman isn't fast enough to feel a bass and jerk the bait away. I just think a graphite rod works better.

I don't have a problem losing or missing fish with a graphite rod, and I find a graphite rod lighter, more sensitive and a lot easier to fish with than a fiberglass rod. I'll take that rod and tie on a crankbait that fits the fishing situation. I may use a crankbait that runs a foot deep or one that runs 15 feet deep to fish the cover where I think the bass are living. I want that crankbait to hit the bottom and the cover and bounce around that underwater area.

Question: Most people cast a crankbait and wind it in, but you don't. What are you doing that's different?
Answer: The key to fishing a crankbait successfully is to use a crankbait that runs in the depth you're trying to fish. If you're fishing an 8-foot drop-off, you need to fish a 10-foot-deep crankbait to make sure it gets to the bottom. You want the bait to hit the bottom, bounce around and roll around in the cover. Even though the bait may hang up somewhat and deflect off the side when it hits cover, many times those erratic motions are what trigger strikes.

Question: One problem most people have with the crankbait is they tend to get crankbaits hung up. What are you doing to keep your crankbait from getting hung?
Answer: That's why I like a sensitive rod because then I can feel when my bait is bouncing along the cover. If my line comes in contact with a stump, a limb or whatever, I can feel it with a graphite rod. You can't feel these things as well with fiberglass. So I know I can stop or slow down my retrieve and feel the bait as I pull it up to the stump or other object. I can finesse it over the cover better because I can tell what the bait is doing. Fiberglass usually doesn't give an angler that option. And since fiberglass isn't as sensitive, you don't know what the bait is doing. That's one of the advantages of graphite. You get to feel the bait as it works through the cover, and the lip of the bait usually will deflect off if you don't jerk it. You have to feel it as it works through the cover.

TOMORROW: KEN COOK'S DOODLING WORM TECHNIQUE