Berkley Fishing

Wherever you fish, the stories are almost the same. Bass fishing is a warm-weather activity. Fall makes its way into winter and the boats get winterized and packed away with the rods and reels until spring. Fish are cold-blooded creatures so there's no way they have any interest in feeding on anything an angler has to offer while the mercury is dipping.

Fishing unfamiliar water during an unfamiliar time of the year is nothing new to BASS pro and Berkley ® Pro Staff member Scott Rook. With limited time during competition to locate and catch fish, this Arkansas pro turns to one of his strong suits crankbaits to help put him on a winning pattern.

I look at pitching a bait to shallow cover as an art form. It's not only placing a lure where you want, it is much, much more. And when anglers understand the need to get beyond the technical aspects they will be, by far, better fishermen. On a competitive level, pitching is critical.

Most fishermen have it in their heads that it's some kind of hoodoo, voodoo way to catch a fish. They think it is hard to learn, hard to do and only works in those clear lakes out West. But they are wrong and, most of the time, they won't have any fish in their livewells because they are too stubborn to learn.