Most anglers work the area around the brush first, throwing increasingly close to the main pile. A few anglers throw right into the brush on their first cast. This group’s theory is clear: Why waste time and effort on less productive water? Give it some thought, experiment and make your own decision. Both groups catch fish, so  …

As the season wears on and late spring turns into summer, many anglers direct their efforts below the 50 Mile Marker, in the lower section of the lake. The same tactics apply, however: Fish the brushpiles, and wherever you can find a channel break near one, fish it hard. There’s probably a keeper waiting for your bait.

How big are the largemouths in this lake? Well, that depends on whom you ask. A few anglers claim that specimens weighing between 8 and 10 pounds are common. There’s no doubt that several are caught in that class each year — but “common”? That seems a little hard to believe.

Nevertheless, 5- to 7-pound fish are common, and show up at the scales of most major tournaments. (A 5-pound largemouth won’t even turn a head.) Fish in the 3- and 4-pound class are ordinary. It’s an unusual day that doesn’t produce a couple in that weight range for any angler at any skill level.

Keep this in mind: Any day you can catch a couple of 3- or 4-pounders along with a few other keepers, you’ve had a good day. Don’t let the boys at the dock — or outdoor writers — tell you otherwise!

SMALLMOUTHS AT TABLE ROCK LAKE

Table Rock Lake is in the southwestern part of the state, just north of the Arkansas state line and south of Springfield. I-44 runs north of this impoundment. Like its cousin to the north, it’s easily accessible from any direction.

Table Rock is smaller than Lake of the Ozarks, and its basic characteristics are different. It’s best described as a classic highland reservoir: Its waters are deep and clear with a high number of inflowing tributaries. It’s also characterized by bluffs, points, cuts and bays. Table Rock is full of chunk rock and sand. All this is important to the fishery. Its topography is one reason that Table Rock is the unchallenged king of smallmouth bass fishing in Missouri.

And, according to Bill Anderson, MDC fisheries biologist for the lake, another is an excellent spawning environment. Table Rock is blessed with relatively stable conditions for spawning, which helps both the forage and the game fish. As a consequence, the lake has a high population of threadfin shad, gizzard shad and crawfish, giving the smallmouths, and the spotted bass, plenty to eat on a year-round basis.

It also helps the smallies more directly. Good spawning conditions make for a steady population; the babies are always coming along. That’s very important, as it’s essential to good fishing.

Anderson reports that smallmouths grow quite fast in Table Rock. “They’ll usually reach 15 inches in 5 to 6 years,” he said. That may be slow compared to largemouths, but it’s much faster than what’s seen in most smallmouth venues.

This fast growth allows them to reach larger sizes well before their natural mortality. Smallmouths of 4 and 5 pounds are regularly caught by anglers targeting them. Smallies of 6 pounds, while certainly not common or ordinary, are not unheard-of, either. (A 6-pound smallmouth will get folks’ attention.)

Numbers are good as well. It’s not uncommon, especially in the spring and fall, for anglers to catch several smallmouths over 3 pounds in one day, along with a few other keepers.

Anderson points anglers towards the gravel banks, chunk rock and wide-open gravel flats if they want big smallies from Table Rock. He cautions anglers to exercise stealth while doing this, however, as the shallow, clear water will make the fish very skittish. “They spook easy,” he said.