Don Iovino

In the infancy of B.A.S.S. tournament competition and for years afterward, the sport was dominated by heavy-handed, shallow-water techniques developed in the South. Some called it “bubba fishing.”

Surfacing in the mid-1970s, Don Iovino’s western finesse approach to bass fishing was the antithesis of bubba fishing. Iovino’s deep-water doodling and other light-line techniques transformed bass fishing in clear-water reservoirs of California, Nevada, Arizona and elsewhere, and they eventually added a new dimension to bass strategies throughout the country.

Finesse offerings that win tournaments everywhere — shaky heads, drop shots and finesse worms, among others — were heavily influenced by, if not directly derived from, Iovino’s finesse philosophy.

Iovino, who lives in the Los Angeles area, was converted to bass fishing in his 30s from trout fishing, which he practiced by pinpointing fish on sonar in deep water and then dangling live nightcrawlers at their depths. He was frustrated at how many big bass took the worms — until he learned about tournament bass fishing.

He had a California luremaker mold some limber, soft-plastic worms, which Iovino began using to win bass boats and other top tournament prizes. He won the U.S. BASS 1984 Grand National Fly-Away Tournament at Lake Mohave on the Nevada-Arizona border, along with five other national titles, and he was the U.S. BASS Angler of the Year in both the West and North divisions in 1985.

Through his trailblazing book, “Finesse Bass Fishing & the Sonar Connection” (written with George Kramer), and countless interviews, videos and seminars, Iovino has taught millions of anglers how to find and catch bass in deep, clear water. His company, Don Iovino Products, was founded in 1974 and introduced painted slip sinkers and some of the first hand-poured soft plastic reapers and finesse worms.

Across a career in sportfishing spanning nearly half a century, Iovino likely has done more to share the gospel of finesse fishing than anyone. He has earned his title, “The Godfather of Finesse.”