11. Strike King KVD 1.5
This silent square bill is what KVD used to win the Bassmaster Classic from Lake Cataouatche, deep in the Louisiana Delta. He banged it off of stumps to call up 69-11, nearly 11 pounds heavier than runner-up Aaron Martens.
10. Strike King Rage Craw
This little number is what Shaw Grigsby used to rack up 75-4 on Florida’s Harris Chain of Lakes. A fickle spawn bite and high pressure made the little craws shine.
9. Yum Money Craw
Edwin Evers took both a white and a bluish Money Craw to Florida’s St. Johns River to sack up 77-1 over four days. Like Grigsby, Evers concentrated on spawning fish, including an 8-pounder that bit the last day, putting him over the top.
8. Berkley Hollow Belly swimbait
Davy Hite used this nifty getup on Alabama’s Pickwick Lake to tally 84-9. The lead head is a Yamamoto design that is fitted with a Gamakatsu hook. Hite sat below the dam and bounced the rig off of boulders. The lead on the outside helped Hite feel contact with the big rocks.
7. Big Bite Baits Warmouth
As the Elite Series moved south to Toledo Bend Reservoir, spawning fish were once again in every angler’s crosshairs. Dean Rojas’ secret weapon was this little number, a bream-imitator that he Texas rigged and flopped into the bed of defensive spawning bass. He managed 70-15.
6. Steve Kennedy’s mystery swimbait
Steve Kennedy is a different sort of angler. He carries just two sponsors on his jersey because he likes to do things his own way. He won the West Point Lake Elite leg with a swimbait that he refused to disclose. He flat wouldn’t tell anyone what it was, but rumor had it that his secret bait is an old Bass Pro Shops XPS soft swimbait.
5. Lucky Craft Gunfish
Casey Ashley used this Gunfish along with a white Zoom Super Fluke on South Carolina’s lake Murray to fool 61-3 worth of blueback herring-hungry bass. He splashed the Gunfish hurriedly and jerked the Fluke quickly along main lake points, prompting spotted bass to hammer them as Ashley scurried them along.
4. Strike King football jig
This old favorite pulled out a win for another favorite, Denny Brauer. He used it to good effect in the Pine Bluff backwaters of the Arkansas River. Despite nearly having his catch disqualified by virtue of being caught in locks and late to weigh-in, Brauer managed 52-2.
3. Lake Fork Flutter spoon
This spoon along with a big worm and a deep-diving crankbait – made David Walker $100,000 richer after he won the Elite Series event on Wheeler Lake with 63-10. He concentrated on deep structure, hence his bottom-probing baits. Walker credits the Flutter Spoon as key, though.
2. The frog
There was a plague of frogs at this past year’s ICAST show(the new tackle expo). This Koppers walking bait is one of the more realistic offerings. Several years back Koppers revived the ultra-realistic trend (don’t kid yourself and think it’s brand new) which has spurred many manufacturers to follow suit. Frogs of all sorts hopped their way into tackleboxes everywhere with more than a dozen new amphibious offerings this past year.
1. The Alabama Rig
Of course, no discussion of bass fishing these days is complete without mention of the controversial Alabama Rig. It’s already won untold sums of cash from upper- to club-level tournaments, and has spurred arguments at these same venues. Regardless of where you stand on its legality and use, you have to admit, it is the No. 1 most influential lure of 2011.
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