Catch a release is a wonderful practice for helping conserve our fish populations. But practicing proper catch and release is even better. And that’s something we can all be better at, myself included.

Fish are unable to support their own body weight when out of the water. So while it is always important to keep these tips in mind, they become especially crucial when handling larger ones.

Properly handling a bass comes down to four easy steps:

While I won’t claim to be the person who “discovered” this method, I have spent a lot of time perfecting it recently.

It all started when I was fishing my most recent bass tournament. I was in a river spot and found myself in a pinch. The water was very shallow, but the fish were quite active. My initial plan was to hop fathead minnows off the bottom using a sinker or a jighead. The trouble was, my weights kept getting stuck on the rocky bottom.

There’s nothing quite like the excitement of trying out a new fishing spot. And there’s nothing quite like the disappointment that comes when it doesn’t pan out.

While patience will forever be a virtue of fishing, there’s something to be said for cutting to chase.

There’s a special section in my tackle box for “scouting baits,” a small collection of go-tos that help me quickly assess what is (or isn’t) going on in a new location.