BASS CLUBS YES OR NO?

[chainsaw]

Hi all, fist time poster here. I'm new to Bass fishing but not to fishing, is a club the way to learn? It seem's we cant find people around our area willing to share info or time out on a lake. We live in N. California east bay. Any help would be great, thanks in advanced...

chainsaw

[Top]

First off welcome this an awsome site to learn...

I would check out the club first of course... but if the guys are a bunch of GOOD GUYS then I would respond with a resounding YES... this is my first year in a club.. and I have to say that 90% of the guys are really great and will bend over backwards to help and teach you...

AL

[bassdocktor]

Unless you are out to fish tournaments a club can be tricky. As you said alot of people won't share info or go out which will make it hard to learn. Especially true if they fish for money. If you can find a club with guys that will share info or even take you out go for it. Or as SFC_AL if they are a good group of guys go for it. I've only been with my club for about 6 months and it is a great group of guys and they all just want to fish especially the ones with no or little boats. Definitely look into it you may have a really good time and learn some really great stuff too. Make sure you have some fun with it too.

bassdocktor

[Gorgebassman]

Bass clubs in my opinion are a great way to learn but you need to find one that suits your needs. There are some that are orintated to the serious bass fisherman who is into the tounament fishing. Then there are clubs that are very family orientated there a little more relaxed and willing to share you need to find one that suits your needs most of all.

[bocabasser]

if you join a club and most of the guys will not share info with you, find a new club. there are a lot of guys that just don't share info. i am a firm beleiver of karma. if you help someone out, it will come back to you. there are a lot of bass clubs here in florida, but the club i am in, everyone shares info. they might not tell you 100% of there knowledge, but most will give you a heads up on what areas and baits are working.

[5bass]

Yes,there are many different types of clubs.You have to consider travel schedules,# of tournaments,affiliations,fees etc.You really have to talk to a few different clubs to find out what they offer and then figure out what you want.You might have a good partner already and want to fish with just him.In that case you would look for a club with a team format.You may want to learn a little more so you could look for a club that has a draw format where you'd be able to fish with different people each tournament.You may like fishing by yourself,there are clubs around that have the single man format.That's what type club I'm in.....I like fishing alone,thats why I joined that particular club.We do have members that are boatless but they rotate from boat to boat each tournament so they fish with every boater at least once each season.

It all boils down to WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR.Contact as many clubs as you can,learn about the clubs,attend meetings if they ask and just observe how they do things.You can find what you're looking for if you just take the time to investigate a little bit.

Good luck.

[cart7t]

Here's a few things I've found concerning clubs. Yes, there are "types" of clubs.

Avoid any club that affiliates itself with any major Bass tournament organization.  These clubs tend to focus their own tournaments around the schedule of said organizations schedule and give guys reasons to pre-fish major tournament lakes in a club atmosphere.  These guys aren't likely to help a newbie or even encourage their participation.

Avoid clubs that schedule themselves around independant, local Buddy tournaments for the same reason as the clubs above.  You'll get a few more guys in these clubs that will help you though but again, the reason for these clubs is to have little mini tournaments that also allow the members the opportunity to pre-fish Buddy tourney's that are coming up the next weekend.

Here's an example of a club geared towards learning anglers.

http://www.hawghawlers.com/

Granted, the club is nowhere near you but looking over their website you can see that these guys are family oriented, make tournaments more of a fellowship and fun type of deal and most importantly, aren't tied to any tournament trail or Buddy tournament events.

Good luck, I attribute more knowledge gained from belonging to a club in my first 10 years of bass fishing than anything else.