“Catching Big Cats in Kansas with Danny Payne and Mister Twister”

Part 1: Catching Flathead Catfish on Curly Tail Grubs

Question: Danny, what Mister Twister products are you using to catch catfish?

Payne: I’m fishing the 3-inch Mister Twister Curly Tail Grubs in the orange and white colors. I troll two of the grubs about 10-inches apart. Those flathead catfish hit those Curly Tail Grubs as hard, if not harder, than a bass will hit them. To do this, I put the grubs on 1/8-ounce jig heads.

Question: Where are you fishing?

Payne: I’m fishing a little river known as the Neosho River, and it has a small spillway about 50-feet across. But there’s a very-deep bottom under the spillway with lots of rocks and shells. The water’s fairly clean.

Question: How did you find out about catching catfish there?

Payne: I’d lived in Emporia for about a year and a half, and somebody told me there were some big flathead catfish under the spillway. I started coming to the spillway and fishing for walleye and white bass in April and May. Later in May, the flathead catfish moved in, and I’ve been catching them like crazy.

Question: How did you start catching the big flathead catfish?

Payne: I was fishing for walleye with the Curly Tail Grubs. We had a big rain, and the water muddied up and rose. Instead of catching a walleye or a white bass, I caught a flathead catfish. I caught it on a white, 3-inch grub with a black jighead. Next I tried a white body with a chartreuse lime-green jig head, and that’s when I really started catching the big flatheads.

Question: How big are the flathead catfish you’re catching?

Payne: I’ve caught five of them that have weighed between 36 and 42 pounds.

Question: What do you do with these big flatheads after you catch them?

Payne: I take a picture of them, and then I release them.

Question: Is there anyone else fishing below the spillway for flatheads besides you?

Payne: Yes, there are several other guys fishing for catfish under the spillway, but they’re using goldfish and worms, not grubs. But I catch far more cats on my Curly Tail Grubs than those other guys catch on live baits. I’m only fishing for 2 hours each afternoon.