Trophy Smallmouth Or Largemouth?

[Dave Hull]

Most of us that fish for smb also fish for lmb and to a lesser degree vice versa. Everyone knows that the holy grail for trophy a lmb is 10 lbs.

I'm going to say equivalent for the smb holy grail (based on replies to July 2009's topic in the General Bass Fishing Forum "A hypothetical question") is 6-7 lbs.

Assume you could fish the location and time of your choice. Which of the two trophies would be easier to produce?

[Dwight Hottle]

My take on comparable trophy status between the two is a 10lb plus largemouth is the equivalent of 7lb smallmouth not a 6lber. I think the 10 lb largemouth would be the easier to produce based on your stated criteria.

[flippin and pitchin]

Honestly, a largemouth. If you can fish in Mexico or some of the other trophy largemouth lakes or waters, say like the Cal. Delta or Lake Fork, a 10 is very possible. To break 7 on a smallmouth in any water in the world, you would have to be very skilled and very lucky. A guy bagged an 8-2 on the Columbia in 2010 so they are there.

[Pete-K]

Thats whats great about Tn and the Tn river. You have a chance at both and even at the same cast.

[roadwarrior]

I put a lot of guys on 6lbs+ last year, but 7 is VERY special.

My partner caught a 10 in 2004 which I netted and weighed.

A couple of years ago, i had a bigger fish up to the boat twice.

The World Record lives in the Tennessee River.

http://www.bassresou...uth_record.html

http://forums.basspro.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=026926

[Steve K]

In my neck of the woods a 7lb smallie would be a hole lot easier to obtain than a 10lb largie. I know personaly of 4 smallies over seven caught on the Door County peninsula. It's amazing to even think of a 4.5-5lb smallie is an average fish during the pre-spawn peroid up there. A big largemouth up here is one that is over 7lbs. a 10... they would give you the key to the city!

[Gavin]

Anything over 20" is a quality smallmouth...Catch a 20" from a Lake up north...it might go 6lbs...catch it in a river around here...4.5lbs maybe.

[RiverFisher13]

Where im at ive never herd of a smally over 5lbs. The rivers are just to small and i never get to go up to erie so i would have to say a 10lb large mouth would be easier. Which makes me laugh to type the word easy with 10lb large mouth, haha.

[Lucky Craft Man]

I agree with Dwight, a 7 lb. Smallmouth would be an equivalent to a 10 lb. Largemouth. With that being said, if you were able to choose any place and any time, I would have to say that a 10 lb. Largemouth would be easier to catch. I have fished Erie at the absolute prime time (many many times) and still have yet to break the 7 lb. Smallmouth mark. I would have to think that if I spent that same amount of time on El Salto during the prime trophy season, I would have caught a 10 lb. Largemouth by now.

[Hooligan]

I'm in complete agreement that a 7lb fish brownie is where you start to talk about "holy Grail" sorts of things. I've caught many over 6, but very, very few over the 7lb mark and I fish some of the best smallie water in the world very consistently, waters that are known for pushing out sevens with semi-regularity. If I catch one fish over seven each year I feel I've done incredibly well; whereas with greenfish I have the expectation that I'm going to catch several over the 10 marker.

[00 mod]

I'm in complete agreement that a 7lb fish brownie is where you start to talk about "holy Grail" sorts of things. I've caught many over 6, but very, very few over the 7lb mark and I fish some of the best smallie water in the world very consistently, waters that are known for pushing out sevens with semi-regularity. If I catch one fish over seven each year I feel I've done incredibly well; whereas with greenfish I have the expectation that I'm going to catch several over the 10 marker.

Man I wish these were my expectations for the year!!!!

Jeff

[Hooligan]

Man I wish these were my expectations for the year!!!!

Jeff

I'm fortunate enough to fish outside my home area an awful lot. I spend extensive amounts of time in TX, CA working in pursuit of green fish.

My job takes me a lot of places that have some of the best black bass fishing in North America; amazing how they generally line up, too. I couldn't have planned it better if I wanted to.

[osbornj2]

Well, to sum it all up, I think that there is one thing that we can certainly agree upon...like the Realtor likes to say, it comes down to just 3 simple factors: location, location, and then lastly, location!

Like most things in the fishing world, it really does vary by region...here, in SW Virginia - a 10 lb "Greenie" is certainly uncommon (in fact, rare enough for even the "above average" fisherman that graces this forum), but not totally unattainable, as it might be for our Northern brethren. Therefore, I would call that a "holy grail".

However, regarding the more fair of the species: a 7lb "brownie" here would be gargantuan! I know that our state record is something over 8, but those are indeed rare jewels. A "Citation" smb in VA is only 5 lbs (or 20in), with many each year recorded between 5-6 lbs, and a few over 6...but not many! Therefore, I would be inclined to say that, atleast here anyways - 6lbs is closer to being a "holy grail" : enough out of reach so that it becomes a challenge to catch one, but not nearly an "impossible" task (i.e. the goal has to be realistically attainable to be worthy of pursuit).

Well, that's just my $.02

[smalljaw67]

I fish in a river that 20 years ago was a numbers fishery, you could catch 100 smallies a day and 30 was a bad day but there were a ton of 10" and 12" fish and the occasional 17" or even 18" fish that would go about 2.5lbs maybe close to 3 depending what time of the year it was and a 4lb fish was one that you caught maybe 1 or 2 a season but that is it. Now the river has a declining population due to bad recruitment because of man made and natural things that hurt the spawn but with a large amount of forage and a lot less competition for food it has turned into a true trophy river. I was fishing a spot a few years ago that was a perfect summer holding area, it was a 3' deep depression surrounded by water that was just a little over a foot deep, current was flowing into the depression which itself had water willow and a laydowns that had ended up there when high water in spring uprooted the trees and were they fell created sort of a pool. Anyway, in the small stretch that was less than a hundred yards we caught 14 smallies, 3 were small 16" fish, we had 7 that were all between 17" and 19" and 4 giants that were over 20" with the smallest weighing 4lbs 11oz. and the biggest one weighing 5lbs 4oz and my personal best. Last season a tournament was held and a 6lb. 2oz smallie wasn't the lunker but was taken by a 6lb 10oz giant, this, in a river that you could catch a lot of fish but were lucky to get a 4lb smallie 20 years ago. Even the length to weight ratio is different, as someone said, a 20" lake smallies might be around 5-6lbs but in the river it maybe was a little over 4lbs but now,it is the opposite, my grandson caught his first ever river smallie on a spinnerbait he helped me make just for him and it was a beautiful 17.5" fish that weighed an enormus 3lb. 2oz., it don't sound like much but a 17" fish over 3lbs in a river is unheard of. Anyway I think 7lbs is the mark I'd like to hit but the average of most smallies outside the great lakes and certain California fisheries, 6lbs would be a bonafide trophy, even TN were they produce huge smallies 6lb is nothing to sneeze at.