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| Name: | Kotaro Kiriyama |
| Hometown: | Moody, Ala. |
| Technique: | “Drop shotting” — suspending a soft plastic bait such as a plastic worm above a weight in order to give the bait action without necessarily moving it horizontally. |
| History: | Kiriyama says that drop shotting first came to the west coast of the U.S. from Japan about 15 years ago. It was created on Japan’s heavily pressure lakes where bass are over-fished. He believes drop shotting is best suited to tough conditions or when a subtle presentation is required to tempt wary bass. |
| Highlights: | Kiriyama has drop shotted his ways to several second place finishes, including the 2001 Bassmaster Western Open on the Columbia River, the Georgia Tour event at Lake Seminole in 2001 and the California Invitational on Lake Shasta in 2000. |
| When to Use: | Summer is the best time to drop shot, says Kiriyama. The fish are typically deeper and do not feed as actively as in the spring. |
| Where to Use: | Kiriyama favors drop shotting on and around offshore structure such as rockpiles, sandbars, and points. It’s a good technique for deep fishing, but he says it can be used from eight inches to 80 feet of water, wherever the fish are suspended. |
| Tackle: | All aspects of the drop shot outfit must be lightweight, says Kiriyama. He uses 6- to 10-pound-test Gamma fluorocarbon line, a Shimano Stella reel and a Shimano Final Dimension 6-foot, 8-inch medium-light rod. He says that a reel with good drag is mandatory to ensure positive hook sets and to control fish when they near the boat. |
| Lures: | A 1/0 Owner Drop Shot hook and 1/4-ounce X-Metal tungsten weights make up Kiriyama’s terminal tackle. He will use more weight when he is fishing deeper or the conditions demand it and lighter when fishing shallower. Kiriyama’s bait of choice is a 4-inch Jackall Crazy Ninja worm. |
| Basics: | Once he has located suitable structure, Kiriyama will cast his rig past the target, let it fall to the bottom and then begin working it by dragging it so slowly that it is hardly moving at all. He says that the most important part of fishing the drop shot is keeping the tungsten weight in contact with the bottom to feel the cover’s exact contours. When a fish bites, he will neither jerk the rod nor sweep it for the hook set. He describes his hook-set as “somewhere in between” a jerk and a sweep. Many anglers find hook-setting success by raising the rod tip smoothly and firmly and reeling very quickly at the same time. |
| One More Thing: | According to Kiriyama, the biggest mistake people make when drop shotting is fishing with the hook upside down. Having the hook inverted will result in many missed fish as it will be pulled out of their mouth. When properly rigged, the hook should look like a “J” on its back and ride with the hook pointing up. To rig it right, he uses a Palomar knot, holds the hook upright, and slowly tightens it making sure that the hook maintains proper position. Running the tag end of the line (where the weight will be attached) through the hook eye after tying will help stabilize the orientation of the hook. |
