OSAGE BEACH, Mo. – Last year, the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Plains Division started the season at Lake of the Ozarks at the very end of February – back then, the lake was partially frozen. Cole Breeden had to literally bust out a float ‘n’ fly to win, and he was the only person in the tournament to catch a limit all three days.
This time, Lake of the Ozarks and its surroundings feel a lot different – the high is in the 80s today. Though the weather gets more seasonable as the event goes on, the super-warm spring has things a bit mixed up.
The bass are not fully aware of their good fortune
Often, the first Plains Division event of the year puts the anglers on Lake of the Ozarks for a slow, but concentrated bite. Figuring out how to trigger a few bass from key brush piles or wintering holes goes a long way. Now, the water is a little warmer than normal, but not nearly as warm as the air.
“My truck says it’s 80 degrees right now – it’s really warm,” said Justin Luetkemeyer, who guides on the lake. “Typical Lake of the Ozarks this time of year, we might be in the 40s and 50s. It’s definitely making the fishing kind of tough – we’re thinking about throwing at the bank and power fishing like it is hard prespawn. It feels like it should be. But in reality, that water is still pretty cold.”
The other spring issue is an influx of water, which isn’t a balmy, spinnerbait-bitin’ kind of mud.
“We’ve had a ton of rain too, it blew out some pretty key areas of the lake – some river arms that normally play this time of year,” he said. “Some of them are chocolate milk now – if the tournament was in another week, I’d say they might play, but the water is still in the low to mid 40s depending on where you’re at.”
For his part, Luetkemeyer thinks that an umbrella rig, a jerkbait and a crankbait will all play – standard fare for Lake of the Ozarks. But it’s not going to come easy, and he thinks that a winning weight in the upper 50s is the mark to shoot for.
“I think this lake fishes the best when it has been stable, and it’s been everything but that lately,” he said. “It’s typical baits for this time of year for March – they’re a little shallower than usual – some of that has to do with the water dirtying up and it getting warm. But the fishing is tougher than it should be. I think there’s a chance the fishing will get better during the tournament, but I also wouldn’t be surprised if it was a pretty tough one.”
Follow along
Takeoff and weigh-in are free and open to the public daily at the Public Beach #2 at 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. CT. This event is hosted by the City of Osage Beach. You can follow along with all the coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.