

Ish Monroe starts our countdown with a 10-pound, 15-ounce largemouth from Toledo Bend in 2011 that ranks as the 10th biggest bass ever caught in Elite competition. It fell to a Berkley Power Lizard.

Mark Davis’ 11-0 from Falcon Lake in 2008 was a daily big bass winner (it came on Day Two), but it wasn’t even the biggest bass of that tournament! Six of the 10 biggest bass ever taken in Elite competition came from Texas. The other four were caught in California.

Bobby Lane used a big swimbait to catch this 11-1 from California’s Clear Lake in 2010. It ranks eighth in Elite history and shows that the Florida pro can catch lunkers anywhere.

“The Natural” is known for finesse fishing and catching numbers of bass, but Aaron Martens catches big ones, too, like this 11-2 from the California Delta in 2007 that ranks seventh among all lunkers in Elite history.

This 11-11 from Lake Amistad in 2008 gave Greg Hackney big bass honors for that tournament, and it’s the sixth biggest in Elite history, but it’s only the third largest bass an Elite angler has ever taken from that reservoir. This one struck a Strike King Shadalicious.

Tim Horton caught this 12-1 from California’s Clear Lake in 2007. It’s the fifth best in the history of the Elites, but not the biggest from that tournament (check out #3 which was caught the day before). The affable Alabama pro tells the story of a much larger bass he lost on Amistad in 2006.

For a guy who didn’t fish the Elites very long (just three years), Scott Campbell certainly made his mark when it came to big bass. Not only does he hold the fourth spot with this 12-7 from Lake Amistad in 2007, but he has the top position, too. Six of the top 10 lunkers were caught in March, like this one. The others were taken in April.

Another angler who dropped out of the Elites after making his mark on this lunker list is Jeff Reynolds, who caught this 12-11 in 2007 from Clear Lake in California. It’s the biggest California lunker on our list.

He may have a big reputation as a finesse fisherman, but Mike Iaconelli likes lunkers as this 12-13 from Lake Amistad, Texas, in 2009 shows. It hit a 3/4-ounce Berkley Ike’s Finesse Jig and ranks as the second biggest bass ever taken during the Elite era.

Drum roll please…. Here it is — the biggest bass ever caught during a Bassmaster Elite Series tournament. This 13-pound, 2-ounce leviathan was bested by Scott Campbell (the only angler with two entries on this list) at the 2008 Falcon Lake event that saw Paul Elias break the all-time catch record with 132-8. Campbell’s lunker struck a Berkley Power Worm and anchored a catch of better than 30 pounds.