Need some advice about fishing deep structure (I have read the articles)

[bwell]

I will be fishing a tournament tomorrow and heard all the fish are deep.  This doesn't really bother me too much because I am pretty good with texas rigged plastics, cranks, and okay with jigs. 

The problem I am having is I never really use a C-rig, and have never used a drop shot before.  Should I rig two of my poles with these setups or just stick to what I am good at?  Do C-rigs and drops shots really shine in deeper water?  I think the deepest we will be going is about 20'...

[Nice_Bass]

What lake are you fishing? 

I would rig a drop shot but if you have not used a c-rig all that much no need to toss somthing tourney time when you have other options.  I you have confidence in a t-rig, then throw that, if you want too peg the weight up the line you can do that and have what a c-rig is.  I say rig a drop shot it does shine when bite is tough, and great when the fish are biting. 

[K_Mac]

The C-rig would be my choice. You can cover a lot of water and there are times it will work when a jig or T-rig won't in my experience. Pegging your weight up the line on a T-rig is not the same as a slip weight, bead, and swivel IMHO. I like a heavier weight, and pegging it effects my ability to feel a subtle bite. I have had little experience with a dropshot.

Having said all that, going with your strengths is usually the the way to go. Deep cranks, T- rigs, and jigs are proven deep water tactics. I would rather get beat going with my best, than using something I was not good with. Just my $.02.

[bwell]

I am fishing Lake Shelbyville...

Thanks for everyone's advise, I have 6 poles so I am thinking about have the following:

1) Cranks, spinners

2) Weightless worn

3) topwater

4) T-rig

5) C-rig

6) Jig

Does that sound like a decent start?  This is my first tourney, so I guess thats why I am so nervous lol.

[K_Mac]

Looks good to me. 8-) I always have a spinning rod rigged with a shakyhead/Trickworm or finesse worm at hand. Just a thought...good luck.

[SoFlaBassAddict]

It's real hard for me to go out now without some kind of wacky worm tied on if the bite gets really tough.  In the summer when the fish are holding a little deeper (at least down here) on some of the ledges and drop offs in deeper water, I love to have a flick shake tied on.  Allows you to get a wacky worm down quicker into the deeper water.  For me at least, it can turn a bad day into a productive day fairly quickly.  Theres just something about that worm wiggling like that in deeper water that fish can't resist.

Going with your strengths is definitely some sound advice.  If you're good with deep cranks and t-rigs, I would start with that for certain.  When you find fish, saturate the area until you find what pattern the fish are really hitting on.  Thankfully it doesn't take that long to change out lures and or rigs if you need to.

[Hellbenderman]

What kind of bottom are we talking about at this lake? Is it...weedy...a lot of rocks...mud bottom...standing timber...fallen timber...lily pads? For instance, I can use a T-rig or a C-rig up to a certain time in my home lake, but when the weeds get up to a couple feet they become a hindrance and get caught a lot. So, with the T-rig I can pin the weight and fish slightly more vertically, but the C-rig, I just put away. Also, if the bottom on this lake is covered with rocks, stumps, and fallen lumber, do yourself a favor, and don't use a C-rig. A lot of people think they can just go out and put on C-rig and it's an idiot's rig and anyone can do it. Not true. It takes a lot of time and lost and hung up rigs before you know how to work a given bottom with a C-rig. If this is important to you, don't use a C-rig. You will waste a great deal of time tying on new ones and eventually give it up. Use what you know. Assess the situation as you find it and use the skills you have and adapt to the situation. You are going to be frazzled as it is. You don't need to deal with a bunch of hung up rigs and re-rigging. You want your lure in the water as much as possible and that means using whatever lure you have that you can put on the fish and won't be a constant pain in the ***. Use what you have confidence in. Experimentation in a tournament is a desperate last resort...hahahaha. Tell us more about the lake?

[Catt]

During a tournament is not the time to experiment with new techniques; fish to your strengths

[WRB]

Trying to learn new presentation during a tournament is difficult.

You can fish the T-rigged worm deep and slow down by shaking it for several seconds when it's on the bottom before moving it. A simple modification to the T-rig is adding a 8mm faceted glass bead, the same color as the worm, between the weight and worm hook. You can also use a Carolina Keeper to change the T-rig to a C-rig without having another outfit. You simply slide the keeper up the line to hold the weight and bead about 14" away from the worm.

Relax and enjoy you day on the water. Stay focused on your fishing and good luck with your first tournament.

WRB

PS; I see I'm a day late on this, hope you enjoyed the tournament.

[Crestliner2008]

I agree with WRB - focus on your strengths. BUT! Before your next tournament, do yourself a big favor and learn how to drop shot. You are passing up some big bucks if you don't.

[Nice_Bass]

How did the tourney go for you?

[bwell]

Tournament was fun but neither me or the boater did very well. I had several misses on a frog in the morning and after that I could only manage to catch a small 11" bass on a t-rig. The boater was able to bring in 2 13"ers lol.

7.89 lbs won the tournament so it was a tough day for everyone.