Back to back river derbs in the Bassmaster Elite Series, and while this one allowed forward facing sonar, the Arkansas River proved to be a heavy cover special. As with any large river system, anglers had to consider how far they wanted to run from the tournament’s host city, Muskogee, Oklahoma (shoutout Merle Haggard), at the chance for better bass conditions.
Of course, running up or down the river, and locking, dealing with barge traffic… it can really take away from your time to fish… and you also run the risk of not getting back in time.
And while river tournaments tend to be a grind, the bags did not disappoint. Here is the ultimate countdown of the top 10 setups that absolutely wrecked them out there in Oklahoma:
10. Trey McKinney (55 lbs, 13 oz)
McKinney went to war with the one-two punch of a flipping bait and a swim jig. For the flipping setup, it was a 6th Sense Bongo rigged on a 4/0 Gamakatsu G-Finesse Hybrid Worm Hook. To cover a bit more water, he tied on a 3/8-ounce 6th Sense Mineral Swim Jig, trailing it with another Bongo.
Shop the 6th Sense Bongo at Tackle Warehouse – $5.99
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9. Cole Sands (58 lbs, 13 oz)
Sands proved that versatility pays off, constantly switching gears between power fishing and finesse presentations depending on what the water gave him. He covered water with a 3/8-ounce spinnerbait, and then flipped heavy cover with various creature baits. The finesse play was a 4-inch FishCo FC Finesse Worm on a drop shot.
8. Caleb Hudson (59 lbs, 3 oz)
Hudson kept his game plan simple: crank the shallows and test out some prototype plastic that the rest of us can’t even get our hands on yet. To find active fish quickly, he burned a SPRO Hunter 65 Crankbait. And then for the minnow bite, he tested out an unreleased Zoom Rock and Roll Minnow, on a 1/16-ounce Gamakatsu Horizon Head.
Shop the Gamakatsu Horizon Head at Tackle Warehouse – $7.99
7. Cory Johnston (61 lbs, 15 oz)
Johnston found a pattern that worked and rode it straight into the top 10, sticking firmly to the swim jig bite. He slung 3/8-ounce 6th Sense Braid Swim Jigs all week long, matching them up with 6th Sense Bongo trailers.
Shop the 6th Sense Braid Swim Jig at Tackle Warehouse – $5.99
6. Luke Palmer (62 lbs, 4 oz)
Like many others, Palmer was buy tackling the heavy cover with a flipping bait and a swim jig. He swam a 1/2-ounce BOOYAH Mobster Swim Jig beefed up with a Craw Chunk trailer to locate aggressive bass. Once he found them, he picked the cover apart with a YUM Wooly Bug on a 3/0 straight shank flipping hook.
Shop the Booyah Mobster Swim Jig at Tackle Warehouse – $4.99
5. Fisher Anaya (63 lbs, 0 oz)
Anaya had a bit of a different approach than most, leaning heavily on aggressive reaction strikes to build his massive bag. He utilized a Rapala PXR Mavrik 110 to trigger bites, as well as a 3/8-ounce Z-Man JackHammer ChatterBait, and a swim jig.
Shop the Rapala PXR Mavrik Jerkbait at Tackle Warehouse – $17.99
4. Jason Christie (63 lbs, 8 oz)
Veteran angler Jason Christie used a mix of topwater and jigs to trigger bites. He used a classic Heddon One Knocker Spook to call fish up to the surface, and for heavy cover, he switched between a 1/2-ounce War Eagle Jiu-Jigsu and a 1/2-ounce BOOYAH Mobster Swim Jig, both with a YUM Craw Chunk trailer.
Shop the War Eagle Jiu Jigsu at Tackle Warehouse – $5.99
3. Pat Schlapper (64 lbs, 10 oz)
Schlapper focused on shallow backwaters with a homemade jig, a Brazalo Custom Lures Schlapper Pro Bushwacker Buzzbait, and then for the flipping setup, it was a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver on a heavy cover flipping hook.
Shop the Brazalo Custom Lures Schlapper Pro Bushwhacker Buzzbait at Tackle Warehouse – $10.99
2. Austin Felix (65 lbs, 7 oz)
Felix made the choice to run far down the river, but made the most of his limited fishing time with a Tree Shaker Tackle double-willowleaf spinnerbait and their 3/8-ounce swim jig (trailed with a Zoom Speed Craw). He also flipped a Strike King Rage Bug on a big 5/0 offset hook.
Shop the Strike King Rage Bug at Tackle Warehouse – $7.99
1. Jacob Foutz (72 lbs, 4 oz)
Foutz found the absolute motherlode in a shallow backwater area, tackling gravel banks with a one-two punch. He threw a Burtek Tackle Cranking Bug, rigged on a 5/0 hook, for spawners, and then targeted the cruisers with a 6-inch Megabass Magdraft
Shop the Megabass Magdraft Swimbait at Tackle Warehouse – $17.99
And for a more detailed bait recommendation, specific to your exact location and waterbody, check out the Bass Forecast Bait Advisor. Just input your ZIP code or share your location, and Bass Forecast will give you 5 bait recommendations, a bite rating, and suggestions for peak feeding times.
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