Photo by Tom Evans

Now wait just a minute. Here I was, standing side by side with Dave Glenn and youngster Logan. Both of them were pulling in 15- to 18-inch spring largemouths like clockwork.

I was using the same lure, same color line, same type and size of rod and reel. How come I only had one fish?

"Just watch, Mr. Glenn," Logan looked at me pityingly and said. "I cast and retrieve the same way he does, and it works."

Smart Alec was my first thought! Imagine an 11-year-old kid giving advice to an old experienced angler like me.

When Logan turned away, I studied Dave Glenn out of the corner of my eye. Glenn was a demon caster, landing his lure exactly in the middle of tiny holes in the Kissimmee grass. His retrieval was to drop his worm into a hole, let it sit, pull in a bit, let it sit, then crank it in and cast again.

Of course, I was not about to exactly copy Glenn. Instead, I just kind of casually turned so I was facing him, and subconsciously began to pull when he pulled, and let my lure rest when he did.

His retrievals did have a nice rhythm to them. I was so busy watching him that I jumped when my own rod tip suddenly jerked.

The largemouth I pulled in was 16 inches long, which means it wasn't in the lunker category a bit. But it put up a heck of a fight -- give it another year or two, and it would be a whopper. With wet hands, Glenn measured it and quickly popped it back in the water.

We were in a fishing tournament on Lake Pierce near Haines City, and just offshore from the Future Farmers of America conference center on the east shore. Dave Glenn was one of the local anglers who had volunteered to take our group out for a morning of fishing.

There are some real advantages to being the guest of a tournament-winning fisherman who also owns his own bait and tackle shop. Glenn treated us like he treats his own customers. He gave us very specific advice on exactly what lures and techniques to use.

Pretty soon, I caught another, then another. I did not even have to watch my new mentor after awhile.

We were using 6-foot, 6-inch medium-heavy worm rods matched with baitcasting reels spooled with 12-pound-test, light green line. The plastic worms were 7 inches and blueberry was the color that was working. We fished them on Texas rigs, but local folks around Haines City refer to it as a Florida rig.

Glenn's boat was ideal for the task as well. A 20-foot single-center dual console with a walk-around deck, it provided plenty of room for all three of us to fish. The rig was powered by a big 225-horsepower engine for hauling us across the water fast. Once in the grass line, his 109-pound thrust trolling motor then worked quietly and efficiently.

By the end of the trip, David Glenn had pulled in six bass, and even whippersnapper Logan caught five. And I was not skunked, so I could hold my head up as well.

David Glenn owns R&D Bait & Tackle shop in Lakeland and has lived in the Lakeland-Auburndale area all his life. He is not a professional guide, but rather an avid fisherman himself.

During the day, his other identity is a 32-year employee with Polk County Parks Department. But most afternoons when the quitting bell sounds, he launches his boat and goes fishing.

Glenn has not counted how many bass he has caught in his life, but it has to be in the thousands.

"My biggest bass were 11 pounds and 10 pounds," he noted. "But wouldn't you know it, I caught both of them on the same day while I was pre-fishing for a tournament near Auburndale."

Glenn belongs to two bass-fishing clubs. The Winter Haven Lunker Lovers meet at the Nautical Club on Lake May. Also, on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month, he heads for the Red Barn restaurant in Lakeland for the Lakeland Bass Masters.

"It's the largest B.A.S.S. federation affiliated club in the world," he pointed out.