By Chad Gay

Professional angler Tim Horton already is gearing up for another season of tournament angling. And his first stop will be in his home state with a brand new bait in his arsenal.
"I'm looking forward to getting down to Lay Lake with the new BOOYAH Swim'n Jig," the Russellville, Ala., angler said. "I've seen the action of it and Lay Lake is one of the best lakes for that bait. It has a lot of the water willows and is full of weed beds from one end to the other which is where the Swim'n Jig really becomes a factor - particularly that time of year."

Horton said he looks for weeds anywhere from two to five feet deep. Once he locates the spot, he'll fish the Swim'n Jig over the top of the weeds, mostly on or near the surface.

"I like to cast it beyond the grass and keep my rod tip high and actually pop my rod tip from 11 to 12 o'clock," Horton said. "I'll only actually move the rod tip four or five inches and hop the jig real quick. What that does is makes the jig jump across the surface. Not out of the water, but just enough to kind of boil the surface and keep the jig moving at a pretty steady pace.

"What this does is create an action the fish aren't accustomed to," Horton continued. "They see spinnerbaits coming through a lot and they see topwaters coming through a lot. In my opinion, this gives you the look of a brim coming through the water."

Although the BOOYAH Swim'n Jig can be fished alone, Horton said he prefers to dress his with a trailer.
"I'll fish the BOOYAH Swim'n Jig with a YUM Chunk and I usually try to match it to the jig," Horton said. "If I'm fishing a brown jig, I'll fish a dark-colored chunk like Chameleon. If I'm fishing a black and blue jig, I'll fish the Black and Blue Chunk."

Sometimes Horton likes to stray from his color matching system and dress the jig with a Pepper Pumpkin Green Flake or Watermelon Gold Chunk to give the impression of the different colors of a bluegill.

"My two favorites - and when I fish them depends on water color - are the white Swim'n Jig with a White Silver Flake Chunk and the Black and Blue jig with the Pepper Pumpkin Green Flake Chunk when I want to emulate a bluegill," Horton said.

Lay Lake is one of six Alabama Power Company reservoirs on the Coosa River. Lay Lake begins at Logan Martin Dam and stretches 47 nautical miles to Lay Lake Dam. The lake has 12,000 acres and 289 miles of shoreline.

"The Coosa River usually has a stained color, so the darker colors really work well there," Horton said. "But the white will work there, too, because it's just a stain. It's not muddy. It's just a color that Lay Lake keeps and any other of those Coosa River Lakes, too.
"Since it's clean and not dirty, it allows you to fish a variety of colors—from the whites to the dark colors," Horton added.

The BOOYAH Swim'n Jig certainly will come into play when Horton fishes in the Lay Lake Open, presented by Mark's Outdoors April 9. The tournament features more than $85,000 in cash, boats and prizes, and guarantees $25,000 to the first even 7-pound largemouth weighed in. The tournament is so successful that it had to be limited to 500 boats.
While Horton is sure the BOOYAH Swim' Jig will play a large factor in the Lay Lake Open, he has other options to turn to if conditions dictate.

"If we get a lot of rain and the lake is really muddied up, I'm going to look for the BOOYAH spinnerbaits to be a factor," Horton said. "If we've had a lot of warm weather and the fish are up and have already spawned or are spawning, the YUM Floatin' Jitterworm is a dynamite bait on Lay Lake. Also, you can't forget the topwater baits like the Excalibur Spit'n Image or Pop'n Image or the Zara Spook Jr.

"If the spotted bass are really a factor, some of the medium- to shallow-diving crankbaits, like the Bomber BD6F Fat Free Shad or the Bomber 6A are really good," Horton added.
"I'm just really looking forward to getting back on Lay Lake and fishing in a Pro-Am format," Horton said. "This will be my first tournament since the Bassmaster Classic and it certainly is one of my favorite lakes to fish."

Chad Gay
Public Relations/Pro Staff Manager
PRADCO Fishing.