Jesse Wiggins held a Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open champion’s trophy for a second time this season. This time he won on Lewis Smith Lake, his home water. Check out his winning lures and the choices of other top finishers.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Greg Pugh
Greg Pugh used a skirted jig, vibrating jig and crankbait to finish 12th.Photo: Craig Lamb
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Pugh used a 3/8-ounce homemade jig with a 3.5-inch Zoom Super Chunk. He also used a 1/2-ounce Luck-E-Strike Scrounger Jig Head with a 5-inch Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper for a trailer. He also used a Rapala DT 10 Series Crankbait.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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John Hunter Jr.
John Hunter Jr. relied on a jig and buzzbait to finish 11th.Photo: Craig Lamb
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A top choice was a 3/8-ounce Stanley Ball Buster Buzzbait. He replaced the skirt with a 3.5-inch Stanley Ribbit for added strike appeal. He also chose a 1/2-ounce Stanley Jig with a 4-inch Biwaa Fishing Performance Warax crawfish trailer.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Kyle Monti used three lures to finish fifth and earn a 2018 Bassmaster Elite Series bid. He fished a fluke on points, a buzzbait on transition banks along channel swings, and a structure spoon.
Photo: Thomas Allen
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Monti used a 1/4-ounce homemade buzzbait rigged with a Zoom Horny Toad for a trailer. He also chose a white Zoom Super Fluke, rigged to a 5/0 and 1/16th-ounce Gamakatsu EWG Weighted Hook. Monti also used a 2-inch structure spoon.
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David Kilgore
David Kilgore used a skirted jig and bladed jig to finish tenth.Photo: Craig Lamb
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A 1/2-ounce Strike King Denny Brauer Structure Jig, with a 4-inch Strike King Rage Tail Craw was a key choice. So was a 1/2-ounce Strike King Pure Poison Swim Jig with a Strike King Rage Twin Tail Menace Grub.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Will Davis Jr.
Will Davis burned a spinnerbait across points and then later in the morning switched to a drop shot rig to finish ninth.Photo: Craig Lamb
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Davis made the drop shot with a No. 1 VMC hook, 1/2-ounce weight and 6-inch Davis Bait Co. Shaky Worm. He also used a 1/2-ounce Davis Spinnerbait with tandem Colorado and willowleaf blades. He added a 3.5-inch Zoom Split Tail Trailer.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Jordan Lee
Jordan Lee alternated between a finesse jig and underspin lure to finish eighth.Photo: Craig Lamb
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A 1/2-ounce finesse jig with a 4-inch Strike King Rage Twin Menace Grub was a key choice. So was a 1/2-ounce underspin with a 3.75-inch Strike King Rage Swimmer for a trailer.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Shin Fukae
Shin Fukae used a jig of his design and shaky head rig to finish seventh.Photo: Craig Lamb
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A 7/16-ounce Green Fish Tackle Chibi Jig with 3-inch Yamamoto Swim Senko was a key choice. So was a 1/8-ounce Gamakatsu Skip Gap Shakey Head with 6.75-inch Yamamoto Long Pro Senko.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Todd Auten
Todd Auten used a skirted jig and vibrating jig to finish sixth.Photo: Craig Lamb
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A 1/2-ounce Zorro Jig with a 3.5-inch Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw was a top choice. He also used the soft plastic trailer on a 1/2-ounce vibrating jig.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Justin Lucas
Justin Lucas used a shaky head rig to finish fourth.Photo: Craig Lamb
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The choice was this 1/4-ounce shaky head with a 5-inch PowerBait MaxScent The General Worm.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Brandon Lester
Brandon Lester worked both ends of the water column with a buzzbait and shaky head rig to finish third.Photo: Craig Lamb
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Lester fished a 3/8-ounce buzzbait, removing the skirt and replacing it with a soft plastic frog. Lester also used a 3/16-ounce shaky head jig with a 6-inch X Zone Pro Series MB Fat Finesse Worm.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Rick Morris
“Most of my fish came on a jerkbait,” said Rick Morris. He rotated through a selection of four lure rigs to take second place.Photo: Craig Lamb
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A 3.5-inch Lucky Craft Staysees 90 ver.2 jerkbait was a top choice. Morris also chose a Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw for Carolina and Texas rigs. He also relied on his mainstay 3/4-ounce War Eagle Football Jig with a Strike King Rage Craw. For suspended fish he used a 4.75-inch Flutter Spoon.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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Jesse Wiggins
Jesse Wiggins used a square bill crankbait, buzzbait and shaky head for the win. “I burned the buzzbait and crankbait down shorelines, and stopped on docks and fished the shaky head.”Photo: Craig Lamb
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The choices included a Jenko CD Squarebill Crankbait, and a 3/16-ounce homemade shaky head with a 6.5-inch Zoom Trick Worm. Wiggins also used 1/8- and 1/4-ounce buzzbaits, replacing the skirt with a 4.25-inch Zoom Horny Toad.
Photo: Craig Lamb
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