Please select your home edition
Edition
Maritimo 2023 S600 LEADERBOARD

Fishing: The Walleye Whisperer

by Northland Fishing Tackle 14 Sep 16:09 UTC

The Walleye Whisperer

Northland® Fishing Tackle pro and technical-fishing phenom Tom Huynh wins the Stanley Cup of competitive walleye fishing on his signature jig.

We all know those competitive types the fish counters. You land a fish and your boatmate is quick to point out its your third, and that youre still four fish behind. Seems to happen most often when everyone is jigging on a drift or slow troll.

Thing is, that the guy with the highest tally is usually the best jigger. Maybe even a legend in your fishing circles. Or in the case of Northland pro and jig maestro, Tom Huynh, maybe the best jig fisherman on the circuit, perhaps the planet...

For those keeping score, walleye savant Huynh won last weekends Bass Pro Shops & Cabelas National Walleye Tour (NWT) presented by Progressive Championship after three days of fishing on Lake Huron in Oscoda, Michigan. The victory netted him $132,069 in cash and prizes, which included a 2024 Ranger 620FS with a Mercury 250 Pro XS and the $500 Garmin Contingency Bonus for having exclusive Garmin electronics and trolling motor.

And it was a $4 Northland Tungsten Jig that netted Huynh the six digit prize package.

Huynhs winning BLACK Northland Tungsten Jig

Huynhs specialty OLIVE Tungsten Jig he cocreated with Northtland

THE SITUATION

The field was pretty spread out over Hurons 14 million-plus acres of water, some trolling, some rigging, and some jigging. Huynh was part of this third group the jiggers who accounted for most of the check cashers.  

One would largely consider Huron a clear to slightly colored lake, but during the tournament, the wind howled. And where Huynh hung out on the south basin, the water was turbid an advantage for his style of fishing.

Walleye whisperer Huynh banked his time over expansive flats in 25- to 32-feet of water. (Notice the exactness of his range thats how its done in Huynhville.) The often bloated, smelt-fed walleyes were either pasted to the bottom or lurking just a few feet off.

It would take doctorate level surveying and fishing artistry to get these bulimic fish to bite. (Bulimic in the fact many upchucked smelt in the livewell.) Guided by his Garmin LiveScope forward-facing sonar (FFS) unit, Huynh visually sorted through volumes of fish, only casting to whoppers. I would go through a couple hundred fish before seeing one worth casting to, said Huynh.

And it when it was time to cast, out came that $4 tungsten jig.

THE JIG AND BAIT

Said in simplest terms, Huynh got em on a jig and crawler. Said with precision in Huynh speak, he caught them on a black 3/8th-ounce Northland Tungsten Jig and large whole nightcrawler. That specific combo bagged most of his walleyes.

Crawlers are historic walleye killers on the Great Lakes. And given that the fish were filled to the gills with smelt, Hunyh knew he had to show them something special. I wanted the biggest presentation possible on a jig that could still be fished with finesse, said Huynh. That turned out to be a giant nightcrawler on a Northland Tungsten Jig.

Progressive walleye anglers already realize the unique potency of Northlands Tungsten Jig. But if you havent fished them before, trust Huynhs reliance on them. Because after all, he had a hand in designing them.

Made from eco-friendly heavyweight tungsten, the head is 30% more dense when compared to lead, and consequently smaller and more sensitive. It fishes like reading braille with your rod, reel, and line comboevery subtlety of the bottom and the slightest fish bump or bite telegraphed immediately. 

Seriously, once you fish tungsten jigs youll never go back to leadtheyre just that sensitive, especially combined with braid, fluorocarbon leader, and quality fishing rod. And you can get away fishing a lighter jig than you would with a lead counterpart, leading to a more finesse-centered presentation that simply catches more fish.

The Tungsten Jig features a premium, sticky-sharp Mustad Ultra-Point Hook and dual hook keepers that lock soft plastics and live bait in place. Given the cost of quality live bait and the hassle of continually adjusting soft plastics, this dual hook keeper design is a godsend.

Jeweled, red T eyes serve to attract visual feeders like walleyes and easily identify the new Northland jig as tungsten. The Tungsten Jig is available in three sizes and ten colors1/8-, ¼-, and 3/8-ounce with size 1/0, 2/0, and 3/0 hooks respectively. Proven, fish-catching patterns include Black, Olive, Gold Shiner, Firetiger, Parrot, Bubblegum, Sunrise, Glo Moonlight, Parakeet, and Glo Watermelon.

SUPPORTING GEAR

The tournament-class walleye spied on FFS sonar, Huynh would pitch to individual fish. His absolute control aided by DAIWA J-BRAID x8 Grand in chartreuse for its visibility and sensitivity. The chartreuse color let me see the line in relation to the mark on my Garmin. It was especially important in the windy conditions we had to get things lined up right.

He also credited his 7-foot DAIWA TD Eye spinning rod paired with a 1000-size DAIWA KAGE MQ LT reel. Huynh said the rods extended guide-train and inherent sensitivity let him feel fish pick-up the jig, even on a slack line. The smaller reel fishes comfortably for long days on the water, and its intrinsically slower retrieve caters to his finesse approach.

LAST WORD

This is the tip of the iceberg the iceberg being Huynhs gray matter. Soon, beginner to expert anglers will have access to a Huynhs brain dump specific to FFS. On September 19th hes launching Tom Huynh University (THU). You can visit the site now to learn more www.fishthu.com

 

#NORTHLANDTACKLE

FacebookInstagramYouTubeTwitter

Related Articles

Fishing: The Tungsten Truth
Northland Fishing Tackle boasts 95-97% tungsten purity Northland Fishing Tackle boasts 95-97% tungsten purity – the most possible – in ALL its tungsten jigs. So, what are the other guys using? You might want to ask… Posted on 15 Aug
Fishing: Mullet made for bass
Instant demand expands range Northland® Fishing Tackle adds colors and sizes to summer's hottest hit, the Minnesota Mullet. Posted on 1 Aug
Fishing: More Hair. More Tinsel
Jigging experts share applications for Deep-Vee Bucktail and Flashtail Jigs Jigging experts Jason Mitchell and Tyler and Sara Trampe share applications for Northland® Fishing Tackle's Deep-Vee Bucktail and Flashtail Jigs. Posted on 3 May
Fishing: River bite is on now!
These Northland® experts are on the bite right now… Don't Miss Out! Like deer camp in fall, scores of outdoorsmen and women look forward to the annual spring river walleye runs. Posted on 7 Apr
New Elite Series Hardbaits with Pro Sunny B Deep
All handpicked by Jeff "Gussy" Gustafson himself Northland® Fishing Tackle is proud to release their Elite Series Hardbaits this week, the mix including seven shapes and six colors, all handpicked by Jeff "Gussy" Gustafson himself. Posted on 21 Mar
2024's hottest new color?
Northland® collaborates with Jeff “Gussy” Gustafson Northland® collaborates with Jeff “Gussy” Gustafson to create brilliant new Smeltinator® and Smeltinator® Underspin pattern. Posted on 13 Mar
Buggy for Panfish
Northland® Fishing Tackle's new Tungsten Flat-Fry Fly catches all panfish species, all season If your goal is to catch lots of panfish, the new Tungsten Flat-Fry Fly fits the bill. Sunfish, crappies, and perch all go crazy for this buggy-looking creation. Posted on 9 Mar
A Jig for the Naturalist
Nature's finest Elite Series Marabou Jig Famed basser Jeff “Gussy” Gustafson collaborates with Northland Fishing Tackle to design nature's finest Elite Series Marabou Jig. Posted on 4 Jan
Smeltinator® Underspin Jigs in-stock
A couple weeks back, the bass fishing community celebrated the arrival A couple weeks back, the bass fishing community celebrated the arrival of Northland's new Smeltinator® Jig. Posted on 27 Dec 2023
100 years of wisdom: legendary guides talk jigging
Distinguished fishing guides share winning walleye ways for more late-fall fish While the walleye world is constantly reinventing itself with new technologies, baits, and techniques, sometimes we make things too complicated. Posted on 20 Oct 2022
Savvy Navvy 2024Maritimo 2023 S600 FOOTER