I Finally Figured Out Why Pros Love the Coike

I headed out to Ballston Lake for an afternoon of kayak bass fishing and quickly realized the lake had transitioned into a true post-spawn, early summer pattern. Water temperatures had climbed, vegetation was beginning to emerge, and the bass were no longer set up where I initially expected to find them.

After catching a few fish on a Neko Rig, I picked up a Coike bait—a lure I’ve struggled to gain confidence in despite all the success tournament anglers have had with it. This time, something finally clicked. By slowly popping the rod and working the bait through key areas, I started getting consistent bites and quickly realized I had landed on a productive pattern.

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GEAR (Amazon Affiliate Links which help the channel):
🐟Hideup Coike: https://tinyurl.com/3e294xpc
🐟Tungsten Nail Weight: https://amzn.to/4esliCV
🐟2/0 Triple Grip Treble Hook: https://amzn.to/4aQjvFr
🐟Shimano Expired 6’8″ Med Ex Fast: https://amzn.to/4gARSDY
🐟Shimano Stradic: https://amzn.to/44t6qhI

00:00 Intro
01:21 First Fish Flipping Pads with a Neko Rig!
04:27 Fish are Chasing the Coike but not committing
06:09 First Ever Coike Fish!
06:40 Big Neko Rig Fish!
07:56 Coike Unlocked! The BIG Bass are Biting!
11:13 GIANT Smallmouth on the Coike! (19.25″)
11:56 Outro

Music Credit: Epidemic Sound