Trolling:banned For Bass. Why.

[MassBass]

Saw a Linder program where they were trolling for crappie. Very systematic and professional, with a special rig and complex use of electronics and motors. I know if I watched alot of walleye tornys i would probably see similar. Why is trolling banned for bass fishing tournaments? Maybe its too good. But if the whole field could do it it wouldn't be unfair. I myself know how good trolling can be for (sm) bass, line up on the drop-off from the bank and run a good crankbait behind the outboard (on turtle) or paddle speed. I think trolling would add a whole new dynamic to the sport and lead to more interesting tournaments, especially on lakes like erie and champlain.      

[basscatcher8]

I think it would make for more boring tournaments. I've watched some of the walleye trolling fests and its usually pretty lame. I love walleye fishing and do troll myself but sure doesnt make good tv. As far as seeing it at the club level or something......well monkey see monkey do the lower levels always seem to follow the pro's on most everything they do.

 

 

I think the closest they get is strolling where they cast out then use the trolling motor to back away from the lure and get more line out then start winding.

[BrianinMD]

Bass tourneys are about finding the fish and getting them to bite. Trolling around is both boring and takes away the input of the angler in the action of the bait. Might as well just allow live bait.

[scaleface]

Gary Klein Won a Bass event and it was almost trolling. He let a worm fall deep to the bottom and used his trolling motor to move it along. 

 

To answer your question , I think it would be rather difficult to be fishing a point and other contestants trying to troll it . I troll often but always where others are not fishing .I  think it would cause a lot of confrontations in a tournament.

[Penguino]

Its all about the fans. Who would want to watch a 2 hour segment of a bass tournament with the anglers just watching their trolling lines?

[tomustang]

I can see the heated arguments now:

 

Hey man you're burning my 2500ft trolling spot!

[F14A-B]

Yup, and then we would really hear about boating crashes/ blackbeard boardings, hey that might spice up tournaments a bit..

[TrippyJai]

Gary Klein Won a Bass event and it was almost trolling. He let a worm fall deep to the bottom and used his trolling motor to move it along. 

 

To answer your question , I think it would be rather difficult to be fishing a point and other contestants trying to troll it . I troll often but always where others are not fishing .I  think it would cause a lot of confrontations in a tournament.

 

I've also seen tournaments where the anglers would use their trolling motors for crankbait fishing. It was the only way to get their bait to 20+ feet and stay in the strike zone longer. It is legal because it burns a lot of time doing it.

[bassindon]

Rules also change because someone wins more than once or twice.

[plumworm]

Is it because watching paint dry is more fun?

[Team9nine]

The answer is because when Ray Scott first started and devised the rules for his national B.A.S.S. events, he envisioned a competition where guys who didn't know each other were paired together in boats and competed "mano y mano," cast for cast, one lure each. Each angler was competing against all the other guys, and everyone's weight was an individual score - let the best man win. As such, there was no good way to implement trolling into the game and keep with the spirit of competition and fairness he sought. Since Ray and B.A.S.S. set the rules, most every other bass tourney organization that followed did the same. If you take note of the professional tours for other species you'll see the difference. For example, the walleye guys (PWT, AIM, etc.) were always paired as a pro and a co-angler in the same boat, and had a shared weight system (work as a team, and the weight for the boat is the weight recorded for both the pro angler and the co-angler). Makes trolling and scoring fair for both partners. Similarly, nearly all professional crappie events are "team" events, where the team (both guys) get the same weight for the day. As such, trolling is a perfectly good tactic again, fair for all. Ray set the rules for bass competition, so that's how we play the game.

 

-T9

[Catch 22]

I see lots of conflict if one angler wants to troll and the other doesn`t. One angler may not be set up for trolling so its nap time.It can be a very effective catch method, but I always thought that the boat catches the fish, not the angler.

As for me and trolling===no thanks, I `d rather go fishing

C22

[Lund Explorer]

The answer is because when Ray Scott first started and devised the rules for his national B.A.S.S. events, he envisioned a competition where guys who didn't know each other were paired together in boats and competed "mano y mano," cast for cast, one lure each. Each angler was competing against all the other guys, and everyone's weight was an individual score - let the best man win. As such, there was no good way to implement trolling into the game and keep with the spirit of competition and fairness he sought. Since Ray and B.A.S.S. set the rules, most every other bass tourney organization that followed did the same. If you take note of the professional tours for other species you'll see the difference. For example, the walleye guys (PWT, AIM, etc.) were always paired as a pro and a co-angler in the same boat, and had a shared weight system (work as a team, and the weight for the boat is the weight recorded for both the pro angler and the co-angler). Makes trolling and scoring fair for both partners. Similarly, nearly all professional crappie events are "team" events, where the team (both guys) get the same weight for the day. As such, trolling is a perfectly good tactic again, fair for all. Ray set the rules for bass competition, so that's how we play the game.

 

-T9

 

There's the answer!

 

No whining about it being boring or any of the other myths associated with the tactic, just pure logic.

[TorqueConverter]

It's not the destination, but the journey.  If I didn't find casting baits for bass fun then I'd be fishing for an entirely diffrent species.  Catching bass ain't all that special; it's the fishing for them in a stealthy shallow water casting technique that is a good part of the fun.  I prefer to cast for my walleye and muskey than troll.   

 

Search and destroy is fun.  Trolling be in short line or long line, while highly effective. is boring. IMHO.      

[slonezp]

Bass tourneys are about finding the fish and getting them to bite. Trolling around is both boring and takes away the input of the angler in the action of the bait. Might as well just allow live bait.

Tell that to the guys who troll for salmon on the Great Lakes or guys who troll for walleye in the north. There's a lot of precision involved

[Lund Explorer]

Tell that to the guys who troll for salmon on the Great Lakes or guys who troll for walleye in the north. There's a lot of precision involved

 

Almost makes a guy think that Buck Perry was just a bum who lucked into every fish he ever caught.

[Choporoz]

Almost makes a guy think that Buck Perry was just a bum who lucked into every fish he ever caught.

Right!  Ha!  I can't help but roll my eyes when I hear arguments about trolling (and other 'methods') not being 'sporting' or too easy or no fun.   I'm sure I'm the only one here, but if I thought I could catch more and/or bigger bass by trolling, I'd be doing it....every time.  Buck Perry was brilliant

[roadwarrior]

David Hayes caught The World Record Smallmouth while trolling for walleye.

 

http://www.bassmaster.com/news/david-hayes-and-world-record-smallmouth-bass

 

 

 

[MassBass]

Just when you start to think trolling is boring is when you almost get the rod ripped out of your hands.

[fisherrw]

Trolling is a fair way to catch bass but if it's banded in a tornement that's that. You have to follow the rules. I have caught bass trolling for trout in Shasta and trinity. But I preffer other techniques for bass... That's just my take.

[roadwarrior]

Most of the guys fishing below dams on the Tennessee River spend their entire day "drifting".

There are some differences between this and trolling, but there are more similarities. I like

drifting and trolling!

 

 

 

 

[HoosierHawgs]

Sorry but Dee Thomas's Tule Dipping rod wasn't banned, his technique used no reel, the rule stated rod & reel.

So in reality, these rules are all made so the bait monkey can get me to buy more gear!

[roadwarrior]

A couple of posts have been removed. You guys got a beef from another forum, take it off-line.

 

-Kent  a.k.a. roadwarrior

Global Moderator

[Ratherbfishing]

A couple of posts have been removed. You guys got a beef from another forum, take it off-line.

 

-Kent  a.k.a. roadwarrior

Global Moderator

So, were they trolling trolls? jk

[hatrix]

For me it is not as exciting to do. It's pretty much a staple for walleye out here though. But those fish are 99.99999% of the time kept. It would be pretty boring to me to troll for a 1-2# bass. Even normal fishing and catching fish that size is somewhat beat. I guess that's why I have moved towards big swimbaits and such.