Fishing Coaches?

[Catt]

40 minutes ago, F14A-B said:

I appreciate you Catt, perhaps it’s true. Perhaps I’m just a sentimental LMB fisherman that really loved the older ways.. but progress is inevitable

 

When FFS took the industry by storm it was said to have changed the way we fished. Damiki Rigs & Jerkbaits was what you had to throw. Well come to find out we are still catching them with FFS using Carolina Rigs, Deep Diving Crankbaits, Alabama Rigs, Jig-n-Craws, Flutter Spoons. We also learned you don't have to follow schools, you can still find them holding on structure.

[KSanford33]

49 minutes ago, Swamp Girl said:

There are only so many big bass in a body of water. However, hole nine on a golf course has the potential for limitless birdies. 

I think this is ultimately what it comes down to. 

[F14A-B]

53 minutes ago, Swamp Girl said:

I understand your point, Ken, and it's a good one. I agree that competition is why. There are only so many big bass in a body of water. However, hole nine on a golf course has the potential for limitless birdies. 

 

 

Me too. I don't flip or pitch exactly, but I love the weeds!

It’s a great tactic, I’ve seen those hogs you post up! 

[Swamp Girl]

20 minutes ago, F14A-B said:

It’s a great tactic, I’ve seen those hogs you post up! 

 

I really like cabbage with my meat entree. I enjoy open water fishing, but nowhere near as much as fishing the reeds, pads, and coontail. 

 

[F14A-B]

4 minutes ago, Swamp Girl said:

 

I really like cabbage with my meat entree. I enjoy open water fishing, but nowhere near as much as fishing the reeds, pads, and coontail. 

 

Oh yea! That’s beautiful water 😂

And for the record, I’d take 5 of those hogs you catch on any lake, anywhere in this country and feel like I’d make the top 5 in any tournament. I’ve said it before but you and A-Jay post the healthiest fish pictures and the chunky  monkeys 😂 it’s always enjoyable seeing y’all success 

[Swamp Girl]

58 minutes ago, F14A-B said:

Oh yea! That’s beautiful water 😂

And for the record, I’d take 5 of those hogs you catch on any lake, anywhere in this country and feel like I’d make the top 5 in any tournament. I’ve said it before but you and A-Jay post the healthiest fish pictures and the chunky  monkeys 😂 it’s always enjoyable seeing y’all success 

 

[Gera]

 

Back when I was a teenager my buddies and I use to take a guy on our fishing trips. He did not put a dollar for anything all and would consume great quantities of our alcoholic provisions.  This drunk was VERY, VERY good fishermen and he did taught us a lot about fishing.

 

So yeah he was our couch on those early years and we did pay for his professional services with drinks and fishing trips. Not a bad deal I may say, there was always additional budget for refreshments. 

 

Then we just cut him once we learn what we needed, he found another group just like us.

[FishTax]

I agree that a mentor, coach, friend, buddy, dad, uncle, or local alcoholic who's a great fisherman 🙃 are all solid options to learn. Personally, I learned the basics at a young age such as how to tie a knot, bass eat worms, spawn in spring, etc. Now that I'm an adult, I tend to learn from friends who are better than me and nice enough to let me tag along @Pat Brown, or people like my uncle who are older hammers and absolute beast with a couple of techniques (shaky head) and love teaching while catching. 

 

I do view a guide as a coach, in the same sense as a golf coach, meaning you can learn on your own the slow way, or you can pay a bunch of money and shave time off that process (maybe). If I had to learn a new body of water fast, I'd immediately hire a guide. But for fun fishing and relaxation, much more fun to go with friends/family just having a good time and picking up tips along the way from someone who is kind enough to drop tips or demonstrate techniques. 

 

Even though I don't throw a frog much, I've spent hours watching Pat do it and have learned more than a book could ever show you. Also he taught me literally hands on how to walk a finesse jig through a bed and get bit. Incredible. So I guess what I'm saying is, public thank you to Pat for being a great friend and mentor and very generous with his time and knowledge! A great coach as well, which is why Jake is an up and coming hammer for sure!

[Rockhopper]

I learned the basics of fishing from my father and have pretty much taught myself all the rest.  I research the heck out of everything, I try multiple things, and through trial and error I just build on that.  It doesn't hurt that fishing is one of the biggest passions in my life.  So I have really dedicated a lifetime to angling.  I am not at a pro level obviously, but in doing so, I can honestly say I have reached a point now that there is no one I know in my personal life (not internet friends like here) that is a better angler than I am.  But there are still plenty of fishing experiences that I am learning about.  One in particular that stumps me time and time again is catching sea perch.  No matter how much I read and try to follow what I read...I still can't catch one of those little guys and it drives me nuts.  Sea perch is my white whale. 😄 

 

Personal experience can be taught, and I am doing my best to pass that onto my son and daughters and whoever else cares to listen.  But nothing will teach you fishing more so than trying and failing yourself over and over and over again.  You can teach someone how to tie a knot.  You can teach someone how to cast a lure.  But you can't teach the drive to learn, or the want to be the best angler you can possibly be.  Very few people I know could care less if they have 10lb mono vs 12lb fluoro spooled up, and probably wouldn't care to tell the difference or even ask why.

[TOXIC]

Not to be a buzz kill but if you have ever spent the day in the boat with an elite series professional angler, even the most experienced of us pale in their level of commitment, skill and knowledge.  There is a huge gap between a good fisherman and a professional.  

[Rockhopper]

@TOXIC Which is why I said I'm not at a pro level obviously. Not by a long shot. I'm not even middle of the road to the best anglers on this forum. I'm speaking of my knowledge and commitment compared to anglers I actually know in real life. My comment did not mean to come across as conceited. I apologize if it did. 

[WRB]

1 hour ago, TOXIC said:

Not to be a buzz kill but if you have ever spent the day in the boat with an elite series professional angler, even the most experienced of us pale in their level of commitment, skill and knowledge.  There is a huge gap between a good fisherman and a professional.  

I have if you consider the late Aaron Martens an Elite bass pro.

Aaron had the ability to sense bass being nearby, amazing ability. He asked me to teach him how I fish a bass jig fish because it was the only lure he had trouble with consistently catching bass with. Aaron was deadly with finesse dart jigs but the bigger ones he wanted help with 

Showed Aaron at the boat ramp how I retrieved the jig and he could watch it move stop and go. That’s all Aaron needed to see and caught bass on that outing, fast learner as he already knew strike detection and hook setting, it was the movement he needed to learn.

Tom

 

[Swamp Girl]

3 hours ago, Rockhopper said:

But nothing will teach you fishing more so than trying and failing yourself over and over and over again. 

 

Indeed.

 

3 hours ago, Rockhopper said:

Very few people I know could care less if they have 10lb mono vs 12lb fluoro spooled up, and probably wouldn't care to tell the difference or even ask why.

 

Oh, I'd care. I hate that stupid, stiff, knot-unwinding fluoro. 

 

49 minutes ago, Rockhopper said:

My comment did not mean to come across as conceited. I apologize if it did.

 

I didn't take it that way, so no apology needed. I quite liked your post, except when you mentioned fluoro, which gave me the hives.

 

11 minutes ago, WRB said:

Showed Aaron at the boat ramp how I retrieved the jig and he could watch it move stop and go. That’s all Aaron needed to see and caught bass on that outing, fast learner as he already knew strike detection and hook setting, it was the movement he needed to learn.

 

Tom, I would have liked you coaching me that way too. I hate fishing videos where they focus on shoving their bass in your face. I already consistently catch bass. I don't need to see yours. I need to see your hands, to learn how you're working the lure, and to see the lure in the water.

[TOXIC]

14 hours ago, Rockhopper said:

@TOXIC Which is why I said I'm not at a pro level obviously. Not by a long shot. I'm not even middle of the road to the best anglers on this forum. I'm speaking of my knowledge and commitment compared to anglers I actually know in real life. My comment did not mean to come across as conceited. I apologize if it did. 

Not directed to you at all.  I was just stating my experience working and fishing with upper level anglers.  I had an elite series pro stay with me both in Florida and here in Virginia.  When in Florida he was prefishing for a tournament on the St. John’s, I had just moved there and was just fishing a small trail.  I set him up with some of my buddies who were really good sticks and his comment to me was that they didn’t show him anything he couldn’t find on a map.  He was out the door before sunrise and didn’t come back until dark.  Best I could do was cook his meals.  I did fish with him a couple of days and that’s how I came to my conclusions. 

[Catt]

16 hours ago, TOXIC said:

Not to be a buzz kill but if you have ever spent the day in the boat with an elite series professional angler, even the most experienced of us pale in their level of commitment, skill and knowledge.  There is a huge gap between a good fisherman and a professional.  

 

I was lucky enough to have grown up around Toledo/Rayburn with that level of anglers as my teachers. 

[Pat Brown]

15 hours ago, WRB said:

I have if you consider the late Aaron Martens an Elite bass pro.

Aaron had the ability to sense bass being nearby, amazing ability. He asked me to teach him how I fish a bass jig fish because it was the only lure he had trouble with consistently catching bass with. Aaron was deadly with finesse dart jigs but the bigger ones he wanted help with 

Showed Aaron at the boat ramp how I retrieved the jig and he could watch it move stop and go. That’s all Aaron needed to see and caught bass on that outing, fast learner as he already knew strike detection and hook setting, it was the movement he needed to learn.

Tom

 

 

That might be the coolest thing I've ever read on this website!!!

 

Teaching Aaron how to fish a jig!?? Of course he caught some fish doing it like you taught him 😎👍🏼😉 

 

Truth be told I started catching fish on jigs and big ones and frequently under the long distance tutelage of guys like Tom and Catt so thanks guys!

[Big Hands]

14 hours ago, WRB said:

Showed Aaron at the boat ramp how I retrieved the jig and he could watch it move stop and go.

 

14 hours ago, Swamp Girl said:

Tom, I would have liked you coaching me that way too. I hate fishing videos where they focus on shoving their bass in your face. I already consistently catch bass. I don't need to see yours. I need to see your hands, to learn how you're working the lure, and to see the lure in the water.

 

I've had the pleasure to share my boat with Tom, and one day he showed me how he does it and what the jig looks like when it moves. When I saw the movement of the jig, and how the way he holds the rod puts you in a position to effectively set the hook the instant you sense the bite. . . . well, that was an epiphany.

=====================================

Many excellent anglers have their own peculiar and unique aspects to what they do, but if there was a common trait that I notice the most, it would be their very intentional attention to fine details.

 

And for professionals in particular, it would include efficiency and economy of motion. They have to make the most of limited time on the water, and some really short windows of activity.

 

If I had to choose one or the other for myself, it would be the attention to details because I am not counting on my weight total to put bread on my table, but I do appreciate the latter trait.

=====================================

If I were ever to hire a guide to fish, it would not really be to just go fishing, it would be to learn about something I feel they would be able to teach me, and that would be very clear up front. Basically a coach. I would consider being a co-angler for a tour event for the same reason, or even a marshal. 

 

"Monkey see, monkey do" IS my preferred learning style for most any subject.

[Swamp Girl]

1 hour ago, Big Hands said:

I've had the pleasure to share my boat with Tom, and one day he showed me how he does it and what the jig looks like when it moves.

 

[RHuff]

On 1/23/2025 at 8:24 AM, Pat Brown said:

There's a lot of good coaches in here.

 

I learned to use Google to search topics on this site and it sped my learning curve up a lot.

 

The most important coaches in bass fishing are slimy and green and live under the surface of the lakes and ponds you're fishing.

 

They try to teach us every year - we don't always want to hear what they're telling us!

 

One of the greatest coaches is father time.. time on the water to learn from experience.

[Columbia Craw]

The term coach is relative.  Coaching is a teaching style.  Sharing knowledge is teaching.  Coaching is a style to help show or demonstrate how to apply that knowledge to the level you develop skills.  When I was a police officer I coached young/new officers how to gain and apply knowledge and they developed skills along the way.  As far as bass fishing, I’ve coached high school kids in much the same manner.  I’ve also had many many anglers teach or coach me.  The greatest lessons however have been self taught.  
 

Don’t underestimate your own ability to teach yourself, learn your own lessons or develop your own skills.  Too much of today’s lessons are just given without the expectation of having to work at seeking knowledge and information. There’s no sacrifice or work involved and there is little vetting of what is being handed out.  Put in the work and the reward will follow.

That is something I try to instill in the high school team anglers.

 

[papajoe222]

I was lucky enough to play baseball well enough to get me into college. I never had a coach until I got into HS. I was pretty much self taught though I did have a cousin that I played pick up games with that played organized ball. I learned plenty watching him and others. I'm a visual learner.

The same thing happened with Bass fishing. I read as much as I could and back then there weren't many articles in  'Field & Stream' or 'Outdoor Life' geared to bassin. It was mostly trial and error, or watch and learn and not many opportunities for the latter.

That all changed when I came back from Nam. A fella I served with from Tenn. would take me with him whenever we could get off base.  That's when I learned about seasonal patterns and I started studying bass. Along came 'Fishing Facts' and BASS and local bass tournaments, my first boat and eventually Bass Resource. 

Never got anywhere playing ball, or getting past club tournaments, but I'm still active and enjoying both.

[Swamp Girl]

9 hours ago, Columbia Craw said:

 

Don’t underestimate your own ability to teach yourself, learn your own lessons or develop your own skills.

 

One of my favorite scenes in "A River Runs Through It" is when the Brad Pitt character leaves his father's fine coaching behind and forges his own style of fishing. We all have to discover what works for us. I am acutely aware that I fish wrong by the books and what's popular. I fish from a canoe rather than the far more popular kayaks. I power fish with spinning gear. I use the same rods with every lure. And so on. But it works for me...on my local water. And I know what works for other successful BR anglers wouldn't begin to work where I fish. I imagine a bass boat below and I see a weed-fouled prop.

 

 

And then I imagine someone trying to drag their bass boat through these woods.

 

 

So, it's Father Time more than YouTube videos that tell us how to catch our local bass. Plop me on the shore of one of @Pat Brown's city ponds and I couldn't begin to replicate what he does...without Father Time. Drop me on O.H. Ivie and I'd be oh-so lost, until Father Time started teaching me. 

 

When I used to outfish dozens of other boats on the Mississippi River, I wasn't fishing like they were. Same on Lake Michigan. I was fishing differently, taught by Father Time, the greatest coach, with the greatest teaching method: Try and fail and try, try, try again. Yeah, you heard me Coaches Saban, Belichick, Jackson, and Auerbach! You guys are number two and always will be. 

[Pat Brown]

10 hours ago, Columbia Craw said:

The term coach is relative.  Coaching is a teaching style.  Sharing knowledge is teaching.  Coaching is a style to help show or demonstrate how to apply that knowledge to the level you develop skills.  When I was a police officer I coached young/new officers how to gain and apply knowledge and they developed skills along the way.  As far as bass fishing, I’ve coached high school kids in much the same manner.  I’ve also had many many anglers teach or coach me.  The greatest lessons however have been self taught.  
 

Don’t underestimate your own ability to teach yourself, learn your own lessons or develop your own skills.  Too much of today’s lessons are just given without the expectation of having to work at seeking knowledge and information. There’s no sacrifice or work involved and there is little vetting of what is being handed out.  Put in the work and the reward will follow.

That is something I try to instill in the high school team anglers.

 

 

 

Part of being a good coach to a group of people of varying skill levels and talents is helping people gain confidence in their special skills and helping them exploit them so that the group can achieve victory.

 

In fishing - coaching yourself is a lot like this.

 

You have to develop your strengths as they relate to your body of water and your fish and that requires you to make a decision as to what you want to be doing first. 

 

I think fishing is a skill we develop around fish and that's why I stress on here the importance of shifting your mindset over to what is the fishes doing.  What's up with the bait and not bass and bass - what exactly are they all doing?? - all important stuff to understand before you pick a bait or an area or a time to go fishing etc.

 

It's sorta like trying to learn to drive a car from a users manual.

 

It ain't gonna work.

 

You gotta go start doing it and then develop your strengths as you learn what they are - Coach yourself!  But most importantly - where are the bass?!?  That's the only thing in bass fishing that truly matters because the rest is a puzzle you can solve and learn in time!

[TOXIC]

To me any need for a coach is to take your skill level above and beyond the normal range.  We can all be self taught……to a point….In most of our fishing worlds we want to be skilled but nothing beyond what would require a true coach.  Most coaches in other sports are retired professionals who are paid to impart skills and knowledge beyond the average level. As has been said, there are teachers who help us with the basics but a coach should be able to distance us from the normal range of skill sets.  Coaches also instill drive, determination, mental strength and a lot of other traits above and beyond technical ability. As a matter of fact, Yamamoto Pro Clark Wendlandt is retiring from the elites and I listened to him say he is going to coach younger anglers.  

[WRB]

Coach may be the wrong term needed for learning fishing skills.

Using some who is skilled at catching bass could be a mentor or instructor. Relying on self taught can easily develop into poor skill sets like improper casting technique, unable to determine where the bass are located, how effectively use specific lures or presentations and when to use them.

Pro golfers constantly have issues with their swing and use a swing coach to watch, study the golfer hit balls to determine what they are doing to cause the problem and correct it.

Pro bass anglers may have developed hitches in the casting technique but never heard of a casting coach!

Watching others often ends up in duplicating poor skills unless the angler your watching has perfect skills.

Tom