"that Doesn't Count"

[5 Dollar Fishing Game]

So I told someone my biggest bass was 6.6 pounds. Naturally, they asked me where I got it. I told them in a pond. This person (who doesn't fish) told me that it doesn't count because ponds are stocked and very small. Anyone have a similar conversation? I have caught them on the water at the lakes too, but this one happened to be in a pond. :-/

Joe

[1234567]

A 6.6 pound bass is a 6.6 pound bass regardless of where you caught it and a nice one as well.  Some people get so arrogant when it comes to fishing, I highly doubt that guy is making a living fishing for bass. 

[BrianinMD]

Just an idiot with no idea what he is talking about. Just ignore him and be proud of a great fish.

[TC235 <*))))><]

Foolish a bass is a bass. Sure the challenge of going out some huge lake and finding a big one is good, but you still need to hook up with that bass and land it. So IMO a 1 acre pond too a 500,000acre lake etc is no different... Although hooking up with a beast on BOWs that can pounded is a great feeling.

[AK-Jax86]

Yea man that was a dumb comment by that person. A fish is a fish not matter where you caught it.

[5 Dollar Fishing Game]

I know it! And it makes me mad because they (a handful of people have said the same and some fish occasionally) think they are on the Classic or something.

[don53]

congrats on the 6.6,fwiw,it counts

[CayMar]

Some fish have said it? I think a comment like that is like telling a golfer "Your hole in one didn't count because it was on a par 3 course". A fish is a fish, just because he was in a pond doesn't mean he jumped out into your hands. You still had to present the right lure in the right place at the right time. The guy is what we younger folks call a "hater". Haters gone hate and fisherman gone pull hawgs out of ponds. If you told me you pulled it out of your buddies swimming pool I may feel differently, but the fish is legit IMO.

[whitwolf]

JN-3.... Here's what counts, at least to me.

 

Ask these questions and answer yourself honestly.

 

1. Did you have fun catching the 6.6?

 

2. If the answer to #1 Is yes; then who really cares what negative opinions might be expressed?

 

 Lastly, and this Is just my opinion so take It for what it Is worth to you. There are a finite number of people who care If I'm on this Earth and those are the people who's opinion I cherish most....The rest Is just noise! No matter the body of water a 6.6 Is a fine fish and the "noise" you might have encountered from some Is just that, noise.

 

For all of us that get to fish we are far more blessed than we realize. If, and I'm sure It has, that 6.6 made your day then rejoice and let others worry about small details!

[aceman387]

Only a non-fishermen would make a comment like that to you. Be proud of your achievement because i have found that some of those small ponds like that are highly pressured and have lure conditioned fish which makes your big bass catch an even bigger accomplishment.

[Fishing Rhino]

It wouldn't count if you caught it from the fish tank at a BPS.  Other than that, pond, lake, creek, it's all good.

[5 Dollar Fishing Game]

Very well said guys! Thanks for the support. :-)

I have since caught a 6.2 and am elated that the 10.0 is coming soon. The 6.2 was in a pond too but I felt great. :-)

[1234567]

Forget the 10.0, look for the teener!

[5 Dollar Fishing Game]

:-)

[Dwight Hottle]

I guess I' m going to go against the grain here. I have had PBs in ponds & public lakes. My take on the difference between the two is that the pond by it's smaller size makes it more likely to fish it successfully. In many cases it can be fished totally from the bank. A well managed pond will have more trophy bass per acre than any public lake because of its size and manageability without interference from the general public.

Now to answer your question regarding the worth of a trophy from a pond versus a public lake. Any trophy from a pond is a viable accomplishment and you should be proud of it. The same holds true for a trophy from a public lake. In my heart I consider my trophy from a public lake to be more satisfying than my trophy from a pond to me and my personal reasoning. Down in Florida the chance to catch a DD bass is greater from a private pond (golf course) than lake O or one of the other big fish lakes. Just my personal experience from having done both.

As a side note you should be proud of your 6.6 no matter where you caught it.

[Bluebasser86]

Ponds may be easier to fish and the fish may be easier to catch but unless you snagged it or someone put it on the hook for you then it counts!   I've fished some ponds with big fish that were every bit as hard if not harder to catch than out of public lakes. Pond fish are very in tune with their environment and will sometimes shut down from the smallest vibration or sounds and not start biting again for hours. My PB for several years was from a pond like that. My current PB came from Mexico, does that count since there's a lot more DD fish in those lakes than most?? Most of the biggest fish I catch in Kansas come from a power plant lake stocked with Florida strain largemouth that have a longer growing season because of the warm water, do those fish not count? 

 

Fact is, if you caught the fish fair and square it counts. 

[Bankbeater]

IMO, if you caught it legally it counts. 

[K_Mac]

Of course it counts! A truth that I was told early in life, and have confirmed over and over through the years is this: When you argue with a fool you are liable to act like one. 

 

I do completely agree with Dwight. A well managed private body of water will increase your chances of a trophy fish. That is a good thing. Enjoy!

[J Francho]

It counts, but small ponds are a special circumstance.  And it isn't always to the angler's advantage.  Many ponds get a tremendous amount of pressure.  It's just two different types of fishing.  Locating trophy bass on a bigger lake, from a boat is a totally different type of fishing - and that regard I agree with Dwight.  But I also can't see diminishing anyone's achievement in successfully catching a big fish.  For me, pond fishing is more about the hunt for the "right" pond at the "right" time.  That can be more challenging than the actual fishing.  In the end, it's just fishing.

 

And congrats on your catch - that's a slob!

[Nice_Bass]

For your purposes it would absolutely count.

For my own no it would not.  I judge myself based on catching the biggest fish out of large bodies of public water.

[aquaholic]

I also feel a little differently than most people on here. Ill start off with as long as you're happy with it thats all that matters, and i am in no way saying you didnt catch a great fish.I find it much more rewarding to catch a big fish in a river or lake, simply because they are harder to find IMO.

[1234567]

If the size water depends on If your fish is legit than I guess one could exclude "dottie" as a legit catch. She came from dixon, a sixty acre lake which many could consider a pond especially if Compared to lake O.

[J Francho]

If the size water depends on If your fish is legit than I guess one could exclude "dottie" as a legit catch. She came from dixon, a sixty acre lake which many could consider a pond especially if Compared to lake O.

 

At least three people have caught her, so.....

 

Perry's bass came from a little oxbow lake that doesn't even exist anymore.

 

Makes Kirota's catch on Biwa even more impressive, huh. 

[1234567]

And all legit catches as well. Nobody could catch dottie except off a bed. She was to elusive. I beleive kurita said in an interview he has seen schools of twenty pound bass swimming in biwa as to why his world record catch came to him as no surprise. He was hoping it was one of the much larger bass he has seen in biwa.

[J Francho]

I thought Mike Long caught her post spawn, on a swimbait?