Since they are competitive anglers, Frederick and Broussard use tackle that is most effective in getting redfish into the livewell quickly.
So light tackles isn’t their bag.
“It is important in a tournament to get an upper-slot redfish to the net as fast as you can while fishing with a light action rod,” Frederick said. “The quicker you get that fish in the livewell, the better chances you have in keeping it alive for the weigh-in.
“Whipping a big red in on a light-action rod was tough in the past; it was an ordeal for both the fish and the angler.”
So they opt for 7-foot, medium-heavy Duce rods with spiral, micro guides.
“The spiral wrap with the use of micro guides are designed to reduce torque and friction, allowing us to retrieve heavier redfish quickly and with less effort,” Frederick said. “And we get longer casts as an additional benefit.”
Both anglers use Shimano reels that are spooled with 40-pound FINS Windtamer Situational braid. They do not use leaders when fishing redfish competitively.
Frederick will dog-walk topwaters for slot redfish, and he is fond of Heddon Saltwater Spooks and One Knockers.
“When there’s activity on the surface, reds will smash topwaters,” he said. “I use them with confidence here on Sabine Lake.”
When baitfish are not moving on the surface, Frederick and Broussard use Egret Baits’ 3 1/2-inch Wedgetail Mullets in colors appropriate to the stain of the water. As a rule of thumb, they use darker colors in heavily stained waters and lighter or natural colors when waters are lightly stained to moderately clear.
“When we know the baitfish are present but not on the surface, that’s when we use Wedgetails,” Frederick said. “Redfish will be attracted to that fluttering, vortex tail. And they can pick up those vibrations from varying depths.”
Broussard often uses Wedgetails under an oval, Cajun Thunder Popping Cork when Frederick is throwing topwaters.
“In the spring of the year, I will pop it and let it sit for a bit,” Broussard said. “Then I will retrieve it slowly, and then pop it again and let it sit for another few moments.
“Using Wedgetails under popping corks allow you to better work the middle depths of the lake.”
The anglers also cast the soft plastics without corks.
“Sometimes we allow it to sink until it reaches the bottom,” Broussard said. “Using that braid, we can feel whether we’re on shell or mud.
“We prefer to find a good shell bed, and we’ll stay in 2 to 6 feet of water near it most of the time.”
When fishing the jetties leading out to the Gulf, the anglers change lures to adapt to the submerged, rock structure habitat on the east and west sides of the channel.
“Along the jetties, we’ll throw mid-diving crankbaits — round (billed) ones as opposed to square-bills so they won’t hang up so often on the rocks,” Frederick said. “We will also use 5-inch Wedgetail Mullets as opposed to the 3 1/2-inch version, and cast them on ½-ounce Egret Baits’ Beer Belly jigheads.”
