Story by Todd Goade | Photos by Tanner & Travis Lyons
The NPFL regular season kicks off at the Harris Chain of Lakes on March 17–19, and we will no doubt catch them. I’ve been to Florida many times now and it’s a place that can be overwhelming to say the least.
I grew up watching Roland Martin and Larry Nixon fishing there and thinking, Florida looks like the best place in the entire world! I was so excited. Then I arrived—never in my entire life was I so confused! Every piece of Florida water looks phenomenal.
I’ve fished several tournaments there now and have had a chance to do great in two of them but ended up finishing mid pack. I’ve cashed a few checks in others. Florida fits my strategy of how I like to fish: pick an area, learn the sweet spots, and hunker down. The “running all over the lake” style of fishing in Florida usually doesn’t produce good results. I’ve noticed that when you find a bass in an area, there are several more there. Replicating that in an area can produce big results in a hurry.
You really love Florida when the fishing is good. And you dislike Florida—I won’t say “hate”—when there’s a cold front. Sometimes a 5-degree temperature drop will kill the bite. That makes for a humongous challenge. At times you’ll swear there are no fish in an entire system.
More than likely, when we’re there in late March the weather will be stable and the threat of a cold front will be reduced. Florida strain bass like stability and we’ll probably see that for our event.
Saying all that—the fish are pretty basic. They like black and blue. They like bladed jigs, swim jigs and the stuff you flip. Day after day and year after year, those techniques will work. The guys that do well there have at least one big fish every day. An 8 pounder goes a long way when the other guys are catching 2 and 4 pounders. That happens a lot in Florida, but it will also more than likely earn you a check and good points towards the 2027 Championship.
One other thing I do when I go back to a Florida fishery is that I ignore my waypoints to a great degree. You can fish the same area every day, but the fish change every day. My biggest takeaway with Florida fishing is that you have to take every day like it’s a new day. That’s one of the hardest things to adjust to and it’s hurt me in a couple of events there.
So, when practice starts, I’ll probably have 15-20 rods on the deck trying to make them bite all the stuff I want them to bite but by tournament day I’ll probably have five or six rods that make the cut to go into battle.
I enjoy going to Florida. I learn something new every time I go. I’ve gotten better there, and I know the event will make a great show.
Tune in to see how it goes down!
Tight Lines!
Todd Goade – Angler Profile
