"I would bet if you added up all the photos of big bass over the past quarter century," he said, "85 percent of them would show the fish were caught on plastic baits, and 60 percent of them would be Zoom lures.
"What this tells me," he continued, "is that if I want to catch a big bass, I'd better be throwing a Zoom plastic bait, such as a fluke, old monster worm, a big brush hog, Magnum 11 worm, a lizard, or, of course, my favorite, the centipede.
"I have always said big bass like a slow moving bait, so they don't have to exert a lot of energy. This gives the huge edge to plastic lures because they can be fished extremely slow and still give a lifelike look to a bass."
Daves went on to note that while fishing his Nitro Z8 in southern waters like Florida and Texas, he loves to dead-stick a plastic lure.
"I simply cast out and let it go to the bottom and just lie there," he explained. "With just a little wind or current, the bait's tail and little legs will move just enough to make a big fish suck it in. Big fish really don't like to chase baits.
"Whether you are Texas-rigging, dropshotting, or Carolina rigging, you can fish ever so slowly through and around cover where big fish like to hide. Most any other lure you use has to be moving fairly fast to generate action. This means the bass has to exert energy to get the lure, and the fish only has a couple seconds to decide if it wants the lure or not. Believe me, if it's a big bass, it's going to pass up the bait 99 percent of the time."
Daves also knows from experience that big bass like heavy cover, and with the exception of a jig, there is no other bait that you can fish down in heavy cover like a plastic bait.
"When fishing a lifelike bait, like a Zoom worm, lizard, brush hog, etc., you can cover every limb of a tree or brush pile really slow," he noted. "You also can jig a lure up and down countless times in one place and make a big bass bite. You just can't do this effectively with any other lure.
"If you are fishing a grassy lake or river, the plastic baits, such as a worm or creature-type bait, again can be fished efficiently so much better than any other lure," Daves continued. "When I catch a big bass in grass, it's almost always under a mat.
"I'm not saying you can't catch a big bass on any lure, because if you throw one enough, the law of averages is going to catch up with you. There are times when a jerkbait, crankbait or topwater bait are good, but these are normally short periods of time during the seasons. Day in and day out, your odds are 100 percent better throwing a plastic bait."
Daves prefers creature baits like a lizard or brush hog in spring. In summer, his choice is a centipede or old monster worm. In the fall, he goes with the Magnum 11 and the Magnum finesse worm.
And he says, "If you only can afford to buy two colors, I think you should get green pumpkin and watermelon/red. In darker water and darker times of the day, go with green pumpkin. In clear water and on brighter days, use watermelon red. You just can't go wrong when you stick with Zoom baits."
If you need proof of the fact Daves' suggestions work, you shouldn't need look any further than the fact he's in the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame. I know for a fact, too, he is one of the best friends Dewey Mullins ever had. I just happened to walk in the West Neck Marina Store one day when Woo had come to visit his ol' buddy, and for two solid hours, I was regaled with some of the best fishin' stories I've ever heard.
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