Coenen
Senior Member
Good advice here.Man I am with You! I had a number of years of frustration with jigs. Funny story how I learned them.
I had some bad back issues for a couple months, and I really couldn't move or work a moving bait. So I started flipping jigs, and did really well once I slowed down about 1000%.
The only reason I slowed down was because I couldn't access much water. It blew my mind a bass would stare at a motionless jig for 30 seconds THEN eat it.
I pump my jigs and count to 10 to 15 before I even shake em. After I started doing that I started catching on jigs.
For a fish that is often thought of as being an aggressive biter, they can be surprisingly deliberate. Especially big fish. I missed a chance at a monster this spring because I couldn't just let my jig soak. We spotted her up shallow from a long way off, made a good shot from distance, and had her staring at it. Then(like a dope), I hopped the jig. Fish spooked, out of there like a shot, game over.
Then again, if you can get a BIG largemouth to line up and really take a whack at something near the surface, it is a site to behold. That slowness is still the key though, at that size, I guess they're too lazy to chase anything.