Cobb’s 1-2 Punch for Early Winter Bass

IT’S EARLY WINTER on Lake Hartwell, Brandon Cobb’s home lake, but despite the fact it’s getting colder and the sky is filled with threatening clouds, it would be hard to find a happier bass fisherman than Cobb. This time of year, the Bassmaster Elite Series pro gets to use two of his favorite techniques: crankbaiting shallow shorelines for largemouth or drop shotting for feisty spotted bass. Both are fun and easy, and either presentation can produce some excellent catches this time of year.

“Fish are not in groups or staging to come shallow like they’ll be doing several months from now in the early spring,” says Cobb in describing his crankbaiting, “but this is not a hunt-and-scratch technique, either. What makes crankbaiting work are two key ingredients: dingy, off-colored water and rocks.