Frog-style baits have the perfect design for working over weed mats. Unlike lures with exposed hooks that bog down in the slop, the lightweight, weedless frogs smoothly glide over the vegetation.

While it ranks as one of the best topwater lures for fishing in weeds, the frog is another option the pros use for fishing open water and around other cover. Here are six tips on how to go frog fishin’ like the pros.

Skimming Across Weeds

This is the most popular way to fish a frog and probably the most frustrating way as well. Bass blow up on the frog when you skim it across matted vegetation with steady twitches of your rod, but the fish frequently miss the bait. You have a better chance for a solid hook set if you skim the bait over the mat and then let it sit still in the openings of the mat.

Key On Weed Edges

When fishing short patches of mats or lily pads, skim a frog across the weeds and continue to work it in the same fashion once it slides into open water. Constantly twitching your rod when the lure hits open water will cause the frog’s legs to kick and thrust to imitate the real thing.

Try Wood Targets

Lay-downs, overhanging willows and cypress trees are also ideal spots to throw a frog bait.
Rapidly twitching the frog close to wood is similar to the commotion created by a buzz bait. But the buoyant frog has a distinct advantage over the buzzer since you have to keep a buzz bait moving or it will sink, whereas a frog you can stop and let it sit to trigger a strike

Select The Right Head

Use a hollow-body frog with a pointed nose for skimming across thick mats, but switch to a frog with a popper-style head for twitching through sparse weeds or in open water.

Frog Fishin’ Color Options

Select frogs in black or dark hues for fishing in muddy water or sunny days in clear water. The best frog colors in clear or stained water with overcast skies are chartreuse and white.

Choosing The Right Gear

When fishing in thick vegetation, throw a frog on a 7 1/2-foot heavy action rod and baitcast reel filled with 50- to 80-pound braided line. Work a frog in open water with a 7-foot medium-heavy rod and baitcast reel filled with 17-pound monofilament.