Welcome to Christiefishing.com

PHOTO: BASS / Gary Tramontina

Excerpt Courtesy

Todd Ceisner | Bassfan Editor

The proliferation of new grass up and down the Potomac River made for a challenging venue for last week’s Elite Series event near the nation’s capital. With all the fresh vegetation, the bass had so many more options and areas to ride out the summer.

It made practice a bit more of a task for the 107 Elite Series anglers, who tried to find areas with concentrations of fish that would bite consistently regardless of the tide cycle. That proved daunting and required most pros to move around and adjust with the rising and falling water. It also meant finding the right mix of grass in the right areas,

While winner Justin Lucas will be remembered for plucking 95 percent of his fish off a single piece of cover, i.e. the pilings and horizontal cross braces under a large parking deck, others had to rely on at least two locations to achieve the best outcomes.

Different areas required different techniques as well. Methodical flipping around hard cover was just as effective as working a vibrating jig around patchy grass or twitching a hollow-body frog across the surface.

As harsh and as hot as the weather was last week, the fishing at the Potomac was better than most expected based on reports that it’s been a fishery in decline, but it appears with the return of the green stuff, the green fish should thrive.

Here’s a rundown of how the rest

Oklahoma pro Jason Christie ended up one spot short of winning the 2016 Bassmaster Classic at Grand Lake, Okla., finishing second to fellow Oklahoman and Bassmaster Elite Series roommate Edwin Evers. Though he didn't win, Christie's old-school spinnerbait approach was the talk of the tournament, even among fellow competitors.

With the cold and muddy water, Christie wanted a bulky bait that he could fish slowly. He fished a 1-ounce BOOYAH Blade spinnerbait that he altered by replacing the single No. 5 Colorado blade with a huge No. 6 gold Colorado blade, and used the new YUM Pulse swimbait as a trailer.

"I used that combination because I wanted to increase the strike zone in that dirtier water," he said. "The fish couldn't see so well, so I wanted them to feel the bait."