Francis Case Smallmouth Bass Fishing Report May 21

I fished an NBAA Bass Club tournament on Francis Case near Pickstown, South Dakota this past weekend with my partner, Jason Cyboron of Lincoln, Nebraska. Francis Case appeared to be 5 to 10 feet below normal pool levels so some of the structure we have fished in the past was now out of the water, making for an interesting challenge.

Water temps were in the low 50s and warmed up slightly in the bays and as the sun soaked the surface of this 100-mile-long Missouri River Reservoir. We did not have a chance to pre-fish and our plan was to search for bays with rock that was deep enough to still be in the water. It didn’t take long for that strategy to pay off as the first bay we hit Jason hooked up with a chunky 2.5 pound smallie on his first cast of a jerk bait.

The bite was on! We quickly had a limit of five healthy smallies and began searching for larger fish. We continued to fish rock but also found some brush piles that produced willing smallmouth. Productive techniques included tubes, senkos, chatter baits, cranks, and jig-n-trailers.

In the end, Jason and I finished in 3rd place with our largest smallie being a little over 4 pounds. Every team had a good day on the water making this one of the more enjoyable tournaments I have had the pleasure to fish. If you enjoy fishing for smallies be sure to give Francis Case or any of the South Dakota Missouri River reservoirs a try. You won’t be disappointed. And to keep it that way for all of us, please remember to catch and release this incredible resource. Thank you!