The Lure: When is it good to catch a bass on your first cast? Rarely.

Allen Christenson
Special to the Lake Travis View
When he began tournament bass fishing in 1972, Allen Christenson was told that catching a bass on the first cast was a bad omen.

Growing up on Lake Travis, I always felt super lucky if I caught a fish on my first cast of the day. It didn't happen very often, and I didn't realize that was a good thing.

I began fishing bass tournaments in 1972 and quickly learned about a widespread superstition. I was told that catching a bass on the first cast was a bad omen that doomed you to a poor tournament result.

To avoid this curse you had to make a very short cast near your boat and reel it in supper fast. Only then was it safe to begin casting in earnest. To this day, many veteran tournament anglers adhere to this ritual to avoid bombing out at the weigh-in scales.

I was recently reminded of this superstition on a recent cool morning. The crisp 65- degree air and low humidity felt wonderful as I departed Lakeway Marina on a solo scout trip.

Allen Christenson

I rigged up a green pumpkin chatterbait with a crawfish trailer to entice some pre-sunrise shallow bass. This type of lure emits a high frequency vibration that you feel on your rod tip.

A slow to medium speed retrieve can trigger really hard strikes that threaten to rip the rod out of your hands.

My first cast of the morning landed within a foot of the rocky shoreline. I began a slow retrieve that only took three seconds before a robust largemouth blasted the lure.

An aerobatic jump and a sustained power run resulted in my landing a beautiful 3-pound bass. Of course, I only caught two more bass that morning and lost three.

The "first cast bass jinx" is alive and well. Consider yourself warned.

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