Not a bad debut for Lakes Whitney and Waco, as the MLF Bass Pro Tour made its way to the Lone Star State for Stage 3. On any given year in the BPT, you can expect to find one of, or perhaps multiple, lakes that one could call a “regular.” Guntersville, Okeechobee, Saginaw Bay, Cayuga, Fork, St. Clair… the list goes on. So it’s a bit refreshing to have new water in the tournament series, as well as some more unique fisheries we haven’t seen in awhile.
Oklahoma’s Zack Birge dominated Lake Waco, winning by well over 30 pounds in the Championship Round on Sunday. He, along with second place finisher Edwin Evers, found a backwater pocket that was full of bass, and they didn’t miss them. Spawning fish was certainly a player, but there were a few others ways to catch them too. But at the end of the day, nobody was even close to Zack’s 70-pound haul on Championship Day… here’s a look at the 10 baits that mattered most across both lakes, counting down from 10 to 1.
10. Justin Lucas (12-3)
Berkley Power Hawg
Justin Lucas leaned on a bait he’s trusted for years on spawning beds — a 4-inch Berkley Power Hawg in sprayed grass. It was his primary sight-fishing tool at both lakes, and it carried the bulk of his weight across the entire event. He mixed in a 3-inch swimbait and a drop-shot when things slowed down, and also picked up a few fish on a Berkley CullShad swimbait on Waco. But the Power Hawg was the constant.
Shop the Berkley Power Hawg at Tackle Warehouse – $6.99
9. Jesse Wiggins (17-3)
Jackall Flick Shake Worm (Drop-Shot)
Jesse Wiggins kept things super simple all week — a drop-shot rig with a Jackall Flick Shake worm in green pumpkin and cola, fished down 45-degree banks where he believed bass were spawning. That single approach carried him to 17 pounds, 3 ounces and six scorable bass.
Shop the Jackall Flick Shake Worm at Tackle Warehouse – $7.99
8. Mark Davis (20-13)
Yamamoto Nuki Bug (Carolina Rig / Texas Rig)
Mark Davis slowed it down and picked apart cover methodically, and like many others, primarily relied on one bait to do the work. His weapon of choice was a 3.5-inch Yamamoto Nuki Bug in blue craw, and he threw it at both lakes with one critical adjustment: the rigging.
On Whitney, Davis fished the Nuki Bug on a Carolina rig with a 1/2-ounce weight, targeting bass in creeks that were relating to heavy concentrations of baitfish. And then over on Waco, he switched to a Texas rig with a 3/8-ounce weight and cast it to shallow cover — a more direct presentation for the dirtier, shallower conditions.
Shop the Yamamoto Nuki Bug at Tackle Warehouse – $8.99
7. Nick LeBrun (22-4)
Big Bite Baits YoMama
It was the tale of two lakes for Nick LeBrun. On Whitney, he utilized forward-facing sonar session, fishing a 3/16-ounce jighead with a 3-inch Yamamoto Scope Shad. But then on Waco, it was all about beating the bank and shallow wood. LeBrun was flipping shallow wood with a Big Bite Baits YoMama in sapphire blue, which offered enough flap and contrast to excel in the dirty water.
Shop the Big Bite YoMama at Tackle Warehouse – $5.49
6. Chris Lane (23-12)
Bass Pro Shops Ribbontail Worm
In an era dominated by forward-facing sonar, minnow shakin’ and Japanese finesse soft plastics, Chris Lane went out and won the automatic berth into the Championship Round on Lake Whitney with a 7-inch Bass Pro Shops ribbontail worm in red shad. Old school worm fishing. He also mixed in a Bass Pro Shops XPS Rattle Shad toward the end of the day on Whitney to pick up a few reaction bites when the plastics slowed down, but the ribbontail was the backbone.
5. Drew Gill (27-13)
Big Bite Baits Nekorama
Drew Gill scored his second Top 10 finish of the season by tackling two very different fisheries with the same bait — a Big Bite Baits Nekorama in green pumpkin. Like other anglers, he rigged the same bait in several different ways to produce bites. On Whitney, Gill used FFS to locate and fish for suspended bass with the Nekorama on a Neko rig (as well as a jerkbait to draw them out). But when the tournament moved to Waco, Gill put the Nekorama on a shaky head and drop-shot rig to match the shallower, dirtier conditions.
Shop the Big Bite Nekorama at Tackle Warehouse – $5.99
4. Spencer Shuffield (31-3)
Z-Man FattyZ Worm
Spencer Shuffield’s second consecutive Top 10 was built on the Z-Man FattyZ worm in green pumpkin — a bait he threw at both lakes and used to break down two different fisheries with the same approach. He rigged the FattyZ with a 1/8-ounce tungsten weight, and on Waco, he did the same thing, but also mixed in a little drop shot action as well. Just some good old fashioned worm fishing out in Texas.
Shop the Z-Man FattyZ Worm at Tackle Warehouse – $5.49
3. Dustin Connell (43-10)
Rapala Crush City Bronco Bug
Dustin Connell’s tournament was quite the comeback story… he was sitting in 33rd place after Day 1 on Lake Whitney, and then he completely flipped the script, fished brand new water, and that decision carried him all the way to third place with the four biggest bass (all over 8 pounds) weighed during the final two days. And the Crush City Bronco Bug, a personal favorite of mine, was responsible for bringing in the biggins. Connell fished the Crush City Bronco Bug in green pumpkin on a Texas rig with a 3/8-ounce tungsten weight and a 4/o flipping hook, targeting bass that were spawning on stumps and wood in about 6 feet of water on Lake Waco… a little deeper than you’d expect.
Shop the Bronco Bug at Tackle Warehouse – $7.49
2. Edwin Evers (44-12)
Berkley Swim Jig
Edwin Evers was looking to win his first Bass Pro Tour derb since 2019, and unlike most of the tournament field, he utilized multiple different techniques to get the bass in the boat. On Whitney, Evers went to work flipping a 3-inch Berkley Pit Boss, as well as a drop shot. But when he got to Waco, he caught the bulk of his fish on a 3/8-ounce Berkley swim jig and a Berkley Slobberknocker vibrating jig, both in white.
Shop the Berkley Powerbait Swim Jig at Tackle Warehouse – $5.99
1. Zack Birge (75-1)
Zack Birge won the tournament by a whopping 30 pounds, in a league of his own, and did most of his damage on a white swim jig. He kicked off Lake Whitney with a Chatterbait and a wacky worm, but when he got to Waco, it was almost all swim jig in a wind-protected, backwater pond that featured cleaner water… and apparently, a TON of fish. Unfortunately, it’s unclear what kind of swim jig Birge is using, but whatever it is, it WORKS.
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