Expect fast and shallow to be the focus at Norman Super Tournament
Anyone who fishes Lake Norman enough tends to get really good at two techniques – skipping docks and fishing fast. The docks may depend on the weather, but expect many anglers to fish at NASCAR pace during the upcoming Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine North Carolina Division Super Tournament on the venerable venue.
Tournament details
Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine North Carolina Division Super Tournament
Mooresville, N.C.
Sept. 28-29
About the fishery
Charlotte’s playground, Lake Norman is the largest lake in the state of North Carolina at more than 32,000 acres and 520 miles of shoreline. The overwhelming majority of that shoreline is lined with boat docks. Hence, fishing Norman is a crash course in learning to skip and probe docks.
The state’s Wildlife Resources Commission has been stocking F1 hybrid largemouth into the fishery since 2020, with 130,000 fingerlings being stocked in 2022 alone. Thus, there are some bigger largemouth starting to pop up in Norman, with a bright future ahead for them. Right now, though, spotted bass still dominate the fishery, and they’ve gotten pretty fat gorging on blueback herring.
In terms of cover, we already touched on the docks. Beyond that … there’s not much. While the lake has had some small hydrilla outbreaks through the years, the main lake is pretty barren in terms of vegetation. There is plenty of sneaky man-made stuff, though, and there’s also some dirty water far up the river.
What to expect
Forward-facing sonar is a player in just about every event, but this one may be an exception.
“Norman, especially at this time of year, tends to be about fishing shallow,” says local Scott Hamrick. “In a multi-day event, you might be able to do well out deep, but in a one- or two-day event, you need those bigger bites. Those are going to come shallow.”
With that in mind, don’t be surprised to see anglers blazing down the banks with buzzbaits, crankbaits and spinnerbaits looking to cover as much skinny water as possible. What they’re targeting while doing it, though, could all depend on the weather.
On sunny days, the bass love getting far up under the docks, which is where the run-and-gun style Bass Pro Tour pro Bryan Thrift made famous can be so key. If the wind blows, though, Hamrick says the spotted bass will get out and roam, especially anywhere the waves are crashing.
Covering water is almost always a good strategy, with the typical gameplan being filling a limit with quality spotted bass and hoping to luck into a largemouth kicker.
“Those big largemouth bites are so important, but they’re still hard to come by,” Hamrick said. “You might get one out on the main channel or as far back in a creek as you can go. You just never know — but you better land it when you get one.”
In terms of weights, the hybrid largemouth haven’t grown up to the point where 20-pound bags are common, especially this time of year. Thus, Hamrick figures 15 to 16 pounds a day will put a pro in contention, with 18 pounds not out of the question if the conditions get right.