Whether it’s Kentucky Lake or your home lake, there are always one or two spots where fish are consistently caught…and everyone knows it. Community holes may get fished harder than remote spots on a lake, but there is a good reason behind that: fish live there. Getting them to bite may be challenging, but the anglers that do can go on to win a tournament.
On the Elite Series, one spot or creek seems to be the key to victory. Whether it was Beeswax Creek at the 2010 Classic or the Pine Bluff Harbor at the 2011 Diamond Drive, the angler that figures out these hot areas the best, ultimately prevails. Gerald Swindle parlayed community holes into high finishes at least twice over the past season, both in Pine Bluff and at the Evan Williams Bourbon All-Star Championship. There, he milked a discharge pipe not far from downtown Montgomery and made a run at the final round, falling short in his match against eventual champion Ott Defoe.
If you have ever avoided community holes because you hate fishing in a crowd, follow some of Swindle’s advice and see if it changes your mindset on what has the potential to be a tournament-winning pattern.
Click to view Gerald Swindle’s guide to sucess in a crowd photo gallery.
