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Top lures at Grand Lake Open 2026

See the lineup of old-school baits used by the top anglers.

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Photography by
Andy Crawford
Captions by
Craig Lamb
Take an unsuccessful practice and toss in a lure modification never tried before by Wyatt Burkhalter and you have the winning formula for the Turtlebox Bassmaster Open at Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees presented by Battery Tender. 
Burkhalter landed in fourth place on Day 1, moved into a narrow 7-ounce lead on Day 2 and then sealed the deal with a third consecutive limit over 20 pounds for a winning weight of 68-11. 
The non-forward-facing sonar event wasn’t a handicap to Burkhalter, who relied on old-school tactics for exploiting a shad spawn bite early. When it waned, he simply moved to shady areas to score on a pattern within a pattern.
Click here to buy these lures at Bass Pro Shops.
Harmon Marien (10th; 48-15)
Marien used a duo of swimbaits ideal for the spawning cycle bite in play. 
The choices were this Z-Man Swag LT …
… and a 6-inch Megabass Magdraft. 
Justin Layton (9th; 50-0)
Layton chose a simple all-in approach using one key bait. 
That choice was a homemade 7/16-ounce rubber-skirted jig. 
Ethan Fields (8th; 51-0)
Fields alternated between a bladed jig and shaky head. 
He rigged it with a 1/4-ounce Buckeye Lures Spot Remover with Big Bite Baits Fighting Frog.
Fields also used a 3/8-ounce Z-Man ChatterBait JackHammer with Big Bite Baits Fighting Frog. 
Austin Cranford (7th; 52-7)
Cranford chose lures that are ideal for shad spawn conditions.
A top choice was this SPRO Fat John 60. 
So was a 1/2-ounce War Eagle Spinnerbait.
Jonathon Pimentel (6th; 53-0)
A stick worm, jig and spinnerbait were the old-school choices for Pimentel. 
A 3/4-ounce E-Factor Lures Spinnerbait with Yamamoto Zako was a top choice. 
So was an 1/2-ounce E Factor Lures Jig with Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw. 
And a Bait Cave Customs Thick Stick rigged on 1/4-ounce E-Factor Jig Head
Click here to buy these lures at Bass Pro Shops.
Michael Harlin (5th; 53-5)
A hard-body swimbait and duo of jigs were primary baits for Harlin. 
A 7/16-ounce Crock-O-Gator Skipper Pro Jig was a top choice. 
So was a 5/8-ounce Crock-O-Gator Shaker Pro Head Jig. 
Harlin also used a Clutch Swimbait Co. The Boss. 
Casey Scanlon (4th; 53-10)
A bladed jig and spinnerbait were key baits for Scanlon. 
A 3/8-ounce Bass Pro Shops XPS Chatterbomb Bladed Jig by Z-Man was a top choice. 
So was a 1/2-ounce Trophy Bass Co. Ozark Flash Spinnerbait with Bass Pro Shops XPS Speed Shad. 
Brock Bila (3rd; 54-12)
Bila found success in an ideal combination of current, wind and water color. 
A Clutch Swimbait Co. The Baby Boss was a top choice. 
So was a Bill Lewis Lures SB57 Squarebill. 
And a 5-inch Yamamoto Senko rigged on 1/0 Gamakatsu G-Finesse Hook. 
Wesley Baxley (2nd; 57-1)
Baxley focused on prespawn staging areas where fish were transitioning from major creeks. 
A 1-ounce Bass Mafia Zaldaingerous Swimbait was a top choice. 
So was a 1/2-ounce Z-Man ChatterBait Jackhammer. 
And a BassMooch Z Boss Squarebill.
Wyatt Burkhalter (1st; 68-11) 
“I figured that everyone throws a red kicker blade here in Oklahoma,” said the winner from Alabama. “I’d show them something just a little bit different. But that Oklahoma blade is something new. I’ve never caught a bass on one until here.”
The winning package consisted of a 1/2-ounce Honey Creek Outdoors Spinnerbait with a gold single Colorado blade and soft plastic trailer. (Oklahoma blade also noted as used not pictured.)

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