TIMMY HORTON: The Wind Will Decide On Lake Okeechobee

Oh man, do I love Lake Okeechobee! It’s not just the wins and the Top 10s I’ve had there, it’s Florida fishing in general. I don’t know what it is, but I’m really comfortable fishing in Florida, specifically Okeechobee. It’s so wild, and early in the morning listening to the birds and other sounds, it sounds tropical, just like you’re in Jurassic Park. 

Plus, I love fishing for schooling bass, and even though this isn’t deep-water schooling, the bass really school up on Okeechobee. The only way to explain the bass here is that they school up like crappie. It’s like they need to smell and see other bass. They’ll move up in massive schools and spawn together.

The Wind Will Decide

So much of the cover is the same, and the bass group up like nowhere else, so finding them becomes all about the wind at Okeechobee. How the wind moves mud and sand around is how you fish it.

There are about 10 places that traditionally produce the winning fish here. You need to know where they are and learn to play the wind. What kills you as a tournament angler here is that you’ll have a great practice run. You catch the heck out of them, but you don’t have areas that are protected from wind, or other options depending on wind direction. You have one good tournament day, and then the wind kills you.

When the fishing is good and you’re fishing the wind correctly, Okeechobee is the best you’ll find, but that day of fishing usually doesn’t hold up over a week for you to win.

The 2-Pound Minimum is a Factor Here

I think the viewers and fans may be surprised at how difficult that 2-pound minimum is going to be on this lake. In a traditional event, a lot of those 15-pound stringers have at least two bass under 2 pounds and one decent kicker. Now, since it’s a little warmer, I think we’ll see some big fish, maybe the big fish will be in the low 8-pound range.

But, those 3- to 5-pound bass will not be easy to catch. Of course, somebody will figure it out and be willing to completely change things up to catch big numbers.

There are certainly some big bass in Okeechobee but for some reason, they don’t grow huge like they do further north in Florida. I think it’s metabolism. Since it’s so warm year-round in this part of Florida, the bass’ metabolism is always burning up calories. I’ve caught 8-pounders here, but never a 9. Still, the fishing can be amazing.

I don’t think my general approach is going to change much: Fishing lipless crankbaits, ChatterBaits, flipping with something like a Flapp’n Shad on top. I may fish moving baits a little more like in Moonshine Bay where you can go and blow and catch a lot, but they have to be over 2 pounds. My guess is 12 to 14 pounds per day will get you to the Knockout Round. 

Still, sometimes, when you find a spot where the lipless bite is on, you can catch 100 fish and really do some damage. With the MLF format and 2-pound minimum for a scorable bass, Okeechobee is really going to test your skills. I’m really looking forward to it.