I am frequently asked what is really my very favorite bait for bass. My answer is always about the same: whatever lure that would seem to work best at any given time and condition. Not at all trying to be coy, I always try to take the time to provide examples of just what I'm talking about. Sometimes the answer is as simple as whatever choice will most efficiently probe a particular type of cover I'm faced with. I'm luckier than many anglers I know-I really don't have a favorite bait. I learned long ago to keep my options open, study the situation I'm currently faced with, and opt for what experience and an open mind has revealed to me lo these many years. The fact is, if you are indeed one of those that indeed has an absolute favorite "go-to" lure, and at the same time is ultimately interested in becoming a truly accomplished fisherman, do yourself a favor and put that favorite lure away in a sock drawer somewhere for a season or two while you concentrate on other options in your arsenal. The point to be noted is that it is beyond doubt that there are times when that clean-up hitter of yours is an absolutely worthless option, and should simply not be considered at the expense of clearly better choices for certain conditions. Here is my modest and admittedly very general guide to how I process the variables and arrive at what choice when.These are my favorite ten lure types, in alphabetical order, and just when they are most likely to produce best.
WHAT: BLADE BAIT (VIB-E, SONAR, GAY BLADE)
WHEN: colder water conditions, and other times when schooling fish may be gathered tightly together and most vulnerable to a vertical presentation.
WHERE: deeper part of water column.
HOW: up and down snapping motion;allow it to fall back before repeating.
WHY: blade baits are at their best worked up-and-down , most effective approach when fish are "stacked up."
WHAT: BUZZBAIT (OBIE'S, UNCLE BUCK'S, TRIPLE-BLADE)
WHEN: lowlight conditions on hot, muggy days.
WHERE: precisely around and through obvious shoreline cover (trees,stumps), over then through surface-busting baitfish, down the side of weedlines and other transition points.
HOW: throw past a given target and have it running just fast enough to stay atop water when over choice spots.
WHY: great tool to initially gauge fish activity levels. Far superior in this sense to other more stationary surface lures. Primo for an area's bigger fish.
WHAT: CRANKBAIT (RAPALA, NORMAN, BAGLEY)
WHEN: when trying to determine where bass are at, and most active at what level.
WHERE: throughout the water column-down to about 25 ft., depending on the lip-size of the plug, line size, and length of line out.Utilize anywhere you can hit something, whether it be weed edges, rocks, wood, or the bottom. Always be intermittently hitting something.
HOW: experiment;colder the water, slower the retrieve. Use a snap, not a swivel.
WHY: an ideal searchbait. Works just as well deep as shallow.
WHAT:IN-LINE SPINNER (PANTHER MARTIN, MEPPS, ROOSTERTAIL)
WHEN: most anytime bass-particularly smallies- don't seem interested in anything else.
WHERE: just about anywhere the water isn't terribly deep. Really shine in moving water like rivers, creeks, and streams.
HOW: steady, deliberate retrieve.
WHY: cover water well. Ten times as effective attached to a ball-bearing swivel as they are without.
WHAT:BASS JIG ( HULA JIG, STANLEY, BULLDOG)
WHEN: spring, cold fronts, discolored water.
WHERE: usually in and around shoreline cover.
HOW: slow and deliberate-and quietly.
WHY: fishes isolated cover better than anything yet invented.
WHAT:LIPLESS CRANKBAIT (SPOT, RAT-L-TRAP, DIAMOND SHAD)
WHEN: spring, when bass are schooling or herding baitfish to the surface.
WHERE: under aforementioned schools, weedlines, for suspended fish.
HOW: often on a three or four count; sometimes effective ripped amazingly fast.
WHY: lure that best employs sound and sight- both at the same time.
WHAT: PLASTIC LIZARD (ZOOM, BERKELEY, BASS PRO SHOPS)
WHEN: pre-spawn, spawn, just after spawn.
WHERE: spawning areas, flats.
HOW: often on the business end of a Carolina rig, pulled slowly until it drops into spawning sites, imitating notorious egg-stealers like salamanders.
WHY: alarms and angers nest-guarding bass.
WHAT: PLASTIC WORM (CREME, CULPRIT, MANNS)
WHEN: most any time of the open water season. Best when worked deliberately along the bottom slower than many might think possible.
WHERE: too often too near shorelines. Most anglers would be well advised to move deeper almost always.
HOW: fish as slow as you can, then slow down a little more. Texas rig predominant, but Carolina, split-shot, wacky, and dead sticking all viable options.
WHY: has caught more largemouth than any other methods put together.
WHAT: SPINNERBAIT (TERMINATOR, TORNADO, BOOYAH)
WHEN: windier conditions.Dingier waters throughout the day.
WHERE: generally at its best fishing shoreline cover from shore to end of cover in deeper water.
HOW: warmer the water, faster the retrieve.
WHY: utilizes both sound and flash, and covers water well to boot.
WHAT: TUBE BAIT (TENDER TUBES, ZOOMS, POWER TUBES)
WHEN: throughout the day, and the year.
WHERE: precipitous dropoffs, riprap, sunken islands.
HOW: when working it on the bottom-think crawdad, when working it higher in the water column-think minnow.
WHY: number one smallie bait by acclamation, but also a great largemouth choice for flipping docks.
