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Iowa’s West Okoboji’s big bass: Here’s how to catch them

Doug Burns, owner of the Iowa Guide Service, with a 21.5-inch smallmouth caught on Iowa’s West Okoboji Lake. (Contributed photo)

West Okoboji is truly a world class largemouth and smallmouth fishery. That became apparent this past spring with the results of the Okoboji Open held in early May, where 21 teams weighed in five-fish weights of over 20 pounds, with the winning team topping the scale at 30.44 pounds. That’s averaging over six pounds per fish. Big fish? How about an 8.16-pound largemouth with another three bass over seven pounds.

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