Oakley, Calif. – The thousand miles of waterways that make up the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta will be the site of the 3rd stop for the BAM Tournament Trail Pro/Am circuit’s inaugural season. Following the Shasta and Oroville lakes kick-off within the cooler months, the expected warmer late spring days of the Delta blast-off is set to be wide open with the bigs biting.
“We will be smack-dab in the middle of the spawn,” said pro angler Ken Mah the reigning champion of the Delta Toyota Series. “I would predict that about 30 percent will have spawned, a large percentage still spawning and 40 percent that haven’t gone yet.”
After many days on the water this year, Mah sees the Delta shaping up to deliver a big bass blowout, with multiple 20-plus stringers and kickers in the eight-pound class range.
California Delta Water Conditions Are Closer To Summertime
“The water temperature and clarity are already much further along than it was this same time in 2023,” he explained. “Last year, we had all that cold, muddy water in April; this year the conditions are much better for fishing, and I would anticipate that would make the weights and number of fish that are going to be caught much better.”
With current water visibility as deep as six-feet in some areas, Mah speculates that bed fishing will be a factor, but not the only pattern for the winner.
“No one ever wins with just beds in a three-day event; but with the water as clear as it is, there is definitely going to be an opportunity for the people that want to do that, barring any algae or high winds.”
Mah feels this year’s warmer winter is what allowed the Delta vegetation to thrive.
Delta Vegetation Is Healthy Fishing For 2024 – So Far
“The grass is clean and green, and in some places, it is really, really healthy,” he added. “That being said, when you get into late April and those post-spawn bass are getting into the grass, guys are going to be able to catch ‘em any way they want to – frogs, topwater, and buzzbaits will come into play. Flippin’, pitchin’, and punchin’ will work. A chatter and a squarebill will still catch ‘em. I think there will be a lot of ways for the field to catch ‘em in that event.”
Having already trekked the fishery from north, to south, to east, to central this year, Mah looks at the vast waterway and feels there is the potential for the winning fish to come from any of the typical largemouth haunts. To sweeten success, he would prefer a mid-morning, incoming tide.
“But depending on what I am doing, I will chase the tide through the day,” he added.
Ken Mah’s Personal Best Bass Was A Double-Digit
Tipping the scale as a teener, Mah’s personal Delta best went 13.5, and his heaviest personal stringer from the tidal water fishery was 39-pounds. Fishing with team partner Jason Austin, the pair put 36.19 on the board to win an event in April of 2015. So, based on history, Mah predicts it will take 22-pounds a day for the win.
“But I don’t think there will be any double-digits,” he added. “We just haven’t seen those on the Delta in a while.”
Mah Favors A Squarebill And A Flippin’ Rig For The Delta Bass
Mah’s Delta magic commonly comes from a Bill Lewis Squarebill Crankbait the SB57 in Ozark Craw or by flippin’ a Big Bite Baits Yo Mama. “I like a Green Pumpkin June Bug and will downsize to their College Craw in Spicy Purple if it needed. In dirtier water, I will add a darker skirt.”
His SB57 setup is a G. Loomis NRX JW893 mated to a 6.2:1 Shimano Curado 200 spooled with 16-pound Sunline Crank FC Fluorocarbon. He flips with a G-Loomis 954 GLX paired to a Chronarch 150 MGL XG and tied to Sunline 80-pound braid weighted by a 1- to 1 ½-ounce Tungsten. “I use a 4/0 Owner Jungle HD Hook for the Yo Mama and for the smaller profiled College Craw, I use a 3/0,” described Mah.
Fishing From The Back Deck On The Delta
Mah’s advice for the non-boaters was to be prepared with presentation for a limit-getter and a kicker. “This time of year, you can get a limit on the purple worm, power-shotting; so obviously, they’re going to have to throw that around,” he said. “Hopefully they can catch a kicker fan casting a chatter or a squarebill or frog. It’s April, more than likely it is going to get won a vibrating jig or a flippin’ stick or a squarebill.”
The three-day BAM Pro/Am on the California Delta will blast off from Big Break Marina on Friday, April 26 through April 28. Registration is underway.
BAM Tournament Trail Bass Fishing Pro/Am
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