# What would be your Redfish Tournament Strategy?



## Garbo

Without giving anything away, what would be your strategy? 

I have been in a few and learned alot. I have been culling by 7:30am, and I have been looking for the first keeper at 4:30pm. I believe Strategy matters and hope you will share what you would use as your strategy. 

Pretty much you and your partner have one day to find and catch two fish that weigh in high weights and measure in the slot. You blast off at 6:00am and return at 5:00pm.What and how do you plan to accomplish the goal? 

What would be your Redfish tournament Strategy?


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## Tuna Man

CHEAT:banghead:banghead:bangheadokeokeoke


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## Garbo

Thanks Ron. 

Come on yall. What would be your idea of a good strategy to fish a one/two day Slot Redfish Tournament?


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## fisheye48

just follow us around curtis oke


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## Garbo

> *fisheye48 (7/27/2009)*just follow us around curtis oke


*Not a good Strategy. Can't go that fast. *


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## fisheye48

ill slow down


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## JoeZ

> *Garbo (7/12/2009)*Pretty much you and your partner have one day to find and catch two fish that weigh in high weights and measure in the slot.


Not that you don't know this but ... if you're looking for fish on tournament day, you're pretty eff'd.

Perfect scenario: You find fish the first day or two of pre fishing. Not just any fish but fat, hungry upper slot fish.

Pattern them on Days 3 and 4 (2 and 3 if you're lucky). Find out when they're feeding, what they're eating and examine where they are so when/if they move you can find a similar area.

Also examine the surrounding area. These fish aren't going all that far but they will move and you need to know where they're going. Where are the deep pockets they'll run to when the tide goes out? Where will they push into on a high tide?

Once you get all that down, sit on them so nobody else can fish 'em.

Then, and only then, if you get lucky enough and catch the right two out of the school you found, studied and guarded, you might just be in the running ... assuming nobody else found bigger fish.


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## Garbo

> *JoeZ (7/27/2009)*
> 
> 
> 
> *Garbo (7/12/2009)*Pretty much you and your partner have one day to find and catch two fish that weigh in high weights and measure in the slot.
> 
> 
> 
> Not that you don't know this but ... if you're looking for fish on tournament day, you're pretty eff'd.
> 
> Perfect scenario: You find fish the first day or two of pre fishing. Not just any fish but fat, hungry upper slot fish.
> 
> Pattern them on Days 3 and 4 (2 and 3 if you're lucky). Find out when they're feeding, what they're eating and examine where they are so when/if they move you can find a similar area.
> 
> Also examine the surrounding area. These fish aren't going all that far but they will move and you need to know where they're going. Where are the deep pockets they'll run to when the tide goes out? Where will they push into on a high tide?
> 
> Once you get all that down, sit on them so nobody else can fish 'em.
> 
> Then, and only then, if you get lucky enough and catch the right two out of the school you found, studied and guarded, you might just be in the running ... assuming nobody else found bigger fish.
Click to expand...

*Good stuff right there Joe. Who you fishin with? *


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## JoeZ

> *Garbo (7/27/2009)*
> 
> 
> 
> *JoeZ (7/27/2009)*
> 
> 
> 
> *Garbo (7/12/2009)*Pretty much you and your partner have one day to find and catch two fish that weigh in high weights and measure in the slot.
> 
> 
> 
> Not that you don't know this but ... if you're looking for fish on tournament day, you're pretty eff'd.
> 
> Perfect scenario: You find fish the first day or two of pre fishing. Not just any fish but fat, hungry upper slot fish.
> 
> Pattern them on Days 3 and 4 (2 and 3 if you're lucky). Find out when they're feeding, what they're eating and examine where they are so when/if they move you can find a similar area.
> 
> Also examine the surrounding area. These fish aren't going all that far but they will move and you need to know where they're going. Where are the deep pockets they'll run to when the tide goes out? Where will they push into on a high tide?
> 
> Once you get all that down, sit on them so nobody else can fish 'em.
> 
> Then, and only then, if you get lucky enough and catch the right two out of the school you found, studied and guarded, you might just be in the running ... assuming nobody else found bigger fish.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> *Good stuff right there Joe. Who you fishin with? *
Click to expand...

Who, me? Fish?


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## Chris Phillips

My answer would vary depending on several different things including location (at home or on the road), fishing for points or for a single day prize, who I'm fishing against, and weather forecast.
<P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">First and foremost I am a firm believer in prefishing for redfish tournaments, even if fishing my own waters. Matt and I would spend a minimum of 5 days prefishing, sometimes as many as 8-10 when we fished traveling tournaments. Small local events I think two days would be a must to give myself a fighting chance. 
<P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">We also use to beg for bad weather because we thought it would benefit us. Although we learned our lesson in the 2007 FLW Championship in Orange Beach where the weather was just about <SPAN lang=en-US>unbearable. Pooring down rain all day, lighting, a fire on the boat, Coast Guard Helicopter following us around, tornado's, water spouts, and to top it off <SPAN lang=en-US>red tide! While the boats who headed west to MS and LA found much better weather. I stopped asking for bad weather after that tournament! <P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">In this case your asking what I would do if I had one day to go out and track down fish. Still hard to answer because I don't know where I'm leaving from or what time of year. I would primarily go off pattern whether it be an area I knew well or never been there before. Consider the tide, water temperature, clarity, etc. and try to build a plan taking into account what you've experienced in the past. <P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">Also find every piece of information possible before you put your boat in the water. Look online, call anyone who you think might know a single thing about redfishing that area, and ask employees in tackle stores, marinas, <SPAN lang=en-US>restaurants, etc. Be careful what info you take from other teams in the tournament, some will enjoy sending you on a wild goose chase. <P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in"><P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">If I was fishing in Pensacola during the summer I would fish deep structure (rocks and bridge pilings) and river mouths. Docks are always an option, but usually during tournaments around here they have been found by other anglers and beat up. <P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">When a big event comes to Pensacola 90% of the field travels a minimum of 80 miles to bigger fish, so that would be something that I'd take into account if that was the case. <P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">After trying hundreds of different lures over the years we usually always rely on Gulp! Shrimp, <SPAN lang=en-US>jerk shads, sinking minnows, or bait fish when it really counts. Of course if our fish aren't cooperating we'll try a spoon or top water after we've tried rigging the Gulp! Forty different ways. <P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">I'm really excited about the new Sebile Soft Plastics that will hit the market in the next couple of months. A couple weeks ago at ICAST Sebile had a lure pool and I have never seen a soft plastic perform the way it did. <P style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in">See you guys at the August Emerald Coast Redfish Club Tournament, I'll be fishing Brant Peacher.


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## jimmyjams4110

> See you guys at the August Emerald Coast Redfish Club Tournament, I'll be fishing Brant Peacher.


Hell yeah, great to have you Chris. I see what Brant's doing...


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## Brad King

Well,

My tournament strategy usually includes a bottle of Tequilla a few Bud LIghts and Jimmy's love of revealing his favorite spot's when he's drunk!!!!!!!!!LOL:banghead (still hasn't turned out to well for me yet).

I guess next month in Hogtown I'll just follow Chris and Brant around all day. I think when it comes to tournament day's I tend to over-analyze things. I can find a few fish here and there during practice. I can by no means be sitting on a winning pair. But i can usually find some fish. For some reason on tournament mornings everything I thought I knew goes to crap!!!

I think my nerves get to me or something. I get really impatient and tend to want to stray from my original plan. So I guess my answer to thequestion would be........... Make a plan and stick with it and try to have a little fun. I tend to not have any fun while fishing tourney's, I take them a lil' bit to seriously!!!!!:doh


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## JoeZ

> *Brad K (7/28/2009)*Well,
> 
> My tournament strategy usually includes a bottle of Tequilla a few Bud LIghts and Jimmy's love of revealing his favorite spot's when he's drunk!!!!!!!!!LOL:banghead (still hasn't turned out to well for me yet).
> 
> I guess next month in Hogtown I'll just follow Chris and Brant around all day. I think when it comes to tournament day's I tend to over-analyze things. I can find a few fish here and there during practice. I can by no means be sitting on a winning pair. But i can usually find some fish. For some reason on tournament mornings everything I thought I knew goes to crap!!!
> 
> I think my nerves get to me or something. I get really impatient and tend to want to stray from my original plan. So I guess my answer to thequestion would be........... Make a plan and stick with it and try to have a little fun. I tend to not have any fun while fishing tourney's, I take them a lil' bit to seriously!!!!!:doh




Let me know if you a prefish partner. I know you're spitting soon and we gotta get a line wet.


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## TURTLE

> *Tuna Man (7/12/2009)*CHEAT:banghead:banghead:bangheadokeokeoke


How do you do that exactly? I've always wondered if anyone does cheat, but I was thinking you had to pass a lie detector test before getting like , a new boat as a prize.


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## MAXWELL

TURTLE, Some people cheat in every aspect of their lives and I suspect fishing tournaments are no different. As for the lie detector test, to fail it they would have to ask you the specific question to catch you which doesn't always happen. At the end of the day you just have to go out and give it hell and hope the chips fall your way.


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## JoeZ

> *MAXWELL (7/28/2009)*TURTLE, Some people cheat in every aspect of their lives and I suspect fishing tournaments are no different. As for the lie detector test, to fail it they would have to ask you the specific question to catch you which doesn't always happen. At the end of the day you just have to go out and give it hell and hope the chips fall your way.


100% true.


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## Brant Peacher

All good information guys...

I will give you my big tournament stradegy and my local or club tournament stradegy...

Small tournamets- When fishing a smaller event whereI know there is no money involved I never spend much time pre fishing. I would rather be making money running charters. This means most of those tournaments I go into blind. 

I fish most all small tournaments on past knowledge of an area. I usually target the flats. There will be lot's more fish on the flats, but most of them will be small to medium sized fish. Very seldom will you get a couple winnerson the flatsin ourarea, especially in the summer! Thats why most summer time redfish tournaments you see alot of 5 to 9lbstringers brought in. 

I love fishing deep water in our areabecause that's where your 12 to 14lb stringers come from.The only thing with deepwater isyou have to locate them before the tournament and I don't have the time to do that.

Big money tournaments- I like to get at least 5 days of prefishing deep structure, bridge pilons, ect... 

A lot of anglers do not know this but when fishing to win a tournament in our areayou need to be fishing oversized fish. If you are weeding through28 to 30inchfish all dayyou are in the right area.

I have been lot's more successful in larger tournaments because I invest more time and money into them. Don't get me wrong I will definitely check the flats but most of the time that is not where your winners come from. A prime example is last years redfish cup in Pensacola. Over 40 teams where fishing bridge pilons!

Keep in mind nothing I said above applies to LA marsh. It's a different world over there... Most of this information applies to the panhandle


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## Splittine

Go away with all you spammer shit.


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