My past experiences tell me to always target smaller grass mats. The extremely big massive flats just offer too much area for a fisherman to target with their flipping rod. Today however there are very few massive grass mats, so I must adjust.
The first thing to look for now is deep water near by. Water from 8 to 15 feet can really be the ticket for catching fish flipping. So if the grass mats you are fishing just aren't holding fish, look for the mats near or on the edge of this deeper water. Grass that is along side deeper water and has some holes along the edges and has cuts, or thinning grass and points will hold bigger fish.
Once you have found the more productive deeper mats and areas then you need to start looking for some key things to find the fish.
It's just mandatory that if you don't see baitfish, move on. This year I believe we are experiencing areas that just are not holding bait so look closely on your depth finder or look for surface activity to be sure there is bait in the area. Bass like to move to the deep water for oxygen so bait combined with the deeper edges is offering up better results.
Another key is to look for the grass to have an area that is thinning out. Generally speaking, the thinning areas of the mats produce a good flipping bite. They give the bass ambush areas to feed from.
Lastly, the grass mat that comes to a point generally holds fish. Grass points are no different than island points. They hold fish, so work them thoroughly, especially as the grass thins from the thickest to thinnest areas.
I assure you're the key elements mentioned here will help you find the bigger fish flipping!
