A QUICK first visit to a difficult gravel pit brought this impressive 10 lb 2 oz tench to former Angler’s Mail Specimen Cup champion Phil Morton.
Phil initially planned a three-hour exploratory session but it turned out far better than expected when the huge tench arrived.
The 37-year-old firefighter from Chessington, Surrey, explained, “I planned to watch the water for a few hours after work but my mate had told me about spotting tench fizzing throughout the day in a shallow corner so when I saw them I thought I would give it a go.”
Fizzing gave the tench away
Phil continued: “Because of the very short nature of my session I chose to fish light maggot feeders on top of the areas where the tench could be seen fizzing.
“I suspected this was a very weedy area due to the depth and a quick cast and soft landing confirmed this to be the case,’ he explained.
Phil set up the the rigs helicopter-style and slid the hooklength up the line so it didn’t become buried in the weed. It’s a rig he showed readers of the No.1 weekly magazine, Angler’s Mail.
He added a piece of dissolving foam to the size 12 hook to aid presentation, hair-rigging two worms and two maggots boosted with Bait-Tech liquid bloodworm.
Phil said: “Near the end of the session I was delighted when I struck into the fish and knew it was big. The fight was excellent with this tench diving from one weedbed to another.”
CAUGHT A BIG FISH? Email pictures and details to: anglersmail@timeinc.com – you could appear in the top weekly magazine, Angler’s Mail. Get the mag every week for all the very best coverage and advice – in full and exclusive.