THAT never happened before

[Koz]

My parents are getting up there in age so I try to visit them a few times a week after work and I usually find 30-45 minutes to fish in their Sun City Hilton Head community after my visit. Today was one of those days, and on the drive over a thought crossed my mind that today I would catch a new personal best.

 

The lagoon I decided to fish is about 11 acres and sees more fishing than most lagoons in the community. There have been a number of 7-9 pounders pulled out of there but I've only caught small bass there with the biggest being about 2 pounds.

 

Anyway, buzzbaits have been killing it in all of the lagoons lately so naturally I started off with a buzzbait. I started at the narrow end of this U-shaped lagoon and on that end there is a concrete stormwater outlet. You know the kind - when the water level gets too high it flows over the top of the outlet and the water releases to adjacent lagoons.

 

My first cast is along the front of the outlet and I got a small, short strike that bumped the buzzbait. I cast back and nothing. Next cast in the same place I get another short strike. A few casts later I start it off a little deeper into the corner behind the outlet and WHAM! This was it - my premonition of catching a new PB today was coming true! She came up like Jaws attacking a swimmer breached, breached the surface, then rolled over the bait with a LOUD tail slap. She was BIG. I'm guessing a minimum of six pounds but she could well have been the 7+ I've been looking for.

 

When she rolled over on the bait I set the hook but then felt a large THUD as she slammed into the side of the concrete outlet while trying to run. The buzzbait popped out and she was gone. For the next 20 minutes I tried different baits in that area but she was gone. At least I didn't see her floating to teh surface after slamming the concrete.

 

But the evening wasn't a total loss. There were schools/packs/gaggles of bass busting on shad out in the middle of the lagoon and all I had to do was get the buzzbait anywhere near the action and they crushed my bait. They were all between 1 - 1.5 pounds but I followed the action all the way down the lagoon and landed a handful of them before it was time to go. I fished that outlet one more time on the way, but no luck. I might have to try again tomorrow night before I have to head out of town for the week.

 

That was just a weird way to lose a fish.

 

 

[BassNJake]

Thanks for the report and hope you get her again!!

[J Francho]

She'll be there.  You just have to wait until she forgets about the sore lip.

[TnRiver46]

8 hours ago, J Francho said:

She'll be there.  You just have to wait until she forgets about the sore lip.

She will forget quickly thanks to the concussion