Fishing for Flathead with lures

Flathead is one of the best fish to target on lures as they inhabit the vast majority of our estuaries and harbors from shallow bays to deep holes, break walls, flats and gutters on beaches. The great thing about catching flatheads on lures is they love eating lures. When it comes to what lure is used for Flathead there are many different styles but at Otto's, we find the three that are the most effective are Soft Vibes, Hardbodies, and of course Soft Plastics.

What are the best Soft plastics for Flathead: When it comes to picking a soft plastic for flathead then we have always found Paddle Tail Soft Plastics to be the best. When choosing the right size of soft plastic for a flathead then you should definitely think about what size Flathead you would like to catch, but in saying so a big Flathead will still eat a small lure. But if you want a big girl then Big Paddle tails (6 inches and above) are the way to go as you will weed out the smaller fish that will not commit to a big lure and tempt the big ones into eating as it is a big easy feed for them.

What jigheads should I choose for my soft plastics: The size of jigheads you should choose when targeting flatheads on soft plastics depends on the depth you are fishing, light Jig heads 1/8 – 1/4 oz are best when targeting Flatheads in Shallow bays and estuaries as you don’t need a lot of weight to get down to the fish, but when targeting them in deep water then use larger sizes 3/8 right up to 1.5 1oz, but this can also vary depending on wind and current so it is good to have an arsenal of sizes as the conditions are very rarely so predictable.

What are the best Soft Vibes for Flathead: Samaki and Zerek soft vibes are by far the best soft vibes for flathead. Soft vibes are a great option as you don’t have to worry about getting the rigging right and the presentation will always be good. The Same applies for flathead on vibes as soft plastics with size though and the bigger the Soft Vibe the bigger the Flathead you will catch. But the advantage of fishing smaller vibes (70-80mm) is you get a lot more By Catch like trevally, bream, whiting etc. This keeps you entertained and always catching fish, making for a great day on the water.

What Hardbodies should I use for Flathead: Again Hardbody lure size for flathead will depend on the size of fish you want to target. Daiwa Double Clutch Lures are by far our favorite hardbodies for Flathead and the lighter 48, 60, and 75mm will catch all your other estuary species too and the big sizes 95- 115mm will catch you your big girls.  Another thing to take into account when targeting flathead on hardbodies is you want your lure to be able to get close to the bottom so bays and river banks are the best places to use them where the depth is generally 2m or less.

Keep in mind when picking the right size lures for flathead you have to take into consideration your rod and reel combo as you cannot throw a big lure on a 2-4kg rod and Visa Versa for heavy rod and reel combos with light lures.