Major League Fishing’s Bass Pro Tour stop on Oklahoma’s Grand Lake proved to be quite the mixed bag of bass techniques. As a viewer, it’s always more to see pro anglers utilize a variety of techniques or at least have the option to, and the Zenni Stage 6 Presented by Toyota event had a little bit of everything. Shallow power fishing was an option, scoping out deep was in play, offshore dragging caught ’em too, but ultimately, Banks Shaw took home the hardware with a 3rd period for the record books.
It’s hard to say for sure, but at least in recent memory, it was the best final period in the Bass Pro Tour that I’ve ever seen. Down early 30 pounds, the 22-year-old superstar in the making made the ultimate comeback to win his first career Bass Pro Tour trophy. Shaw boated nearly 83 pounds on 28 scorable bass to beat Dustin Connell by about 9 pounds. Shaw has now won four MLF events this year… on the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit he won at another Oklahoma lake, Eufaula. He also won on Wheeler in the Pro Circuit, and he won on Okeechobee in the Toyota Series.
As for Grand Lake, here’s the baits that got it done:
10. Brent Ehrler: 20-11 (8 bass)
Ehrler initially hunted for deep schools but quickly pivoted to shallow water, flipping a Yamamoto Flappin’ Hog and a Yamamoto Senko. As the tournament progressed, he transitioned to reaction lures, utilizing a frog, a Lucky Craft 1.5 squarebill, and a Lucky Craft BDS3. Ultimately, his most reliable producer was a white, 1/2-ounce Z-Man Evergreen Jack Hammer ChatterBait equipped with a Yamamoto Zako trailer.
Shop the Z-Man ChatterBait Jack Hammer at Tackle Warehouse – $19.99
9. Keith Carson: 24-7 (8 bass)
Carson hovered right around the Wolf Creek boat ramp for the entire event. He started his tournament by pitching a black and blue Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Stank Bug into flooded bushes. When the dropping water levels pushed the bass out, he adjusted by throwing a Berkley Frittside 5 crankbait in the black chartreuse color.
Shop the Berkley Powerbait Maxscent Stank Bug at Tackle Warehouse – $9.99
8. Ron Nelson: 27-8 (10 bass)
Nelson played both sides of the lake, dragging fish out of the shallow Wolf Creek bushes using a dark-colored Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver on a 3/8- or 1/2-ounce weight. He spooled up with 30-pound Sunline Shooter to wrestle them out of the thick cover. For his offshore targets on rocky points, he cycled through Carolina rigs, crankbaits, vibrating jigs, and an urchin-style lure.
Shop the Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver at Tackle Warehouse – $5.99
7. Spencer Shuffield: 28-1 (10 bass)
Shuffield pulled half of his weight offshore by dragging a Carolina rig consisting of a green pumpkin Z-Man Gremlin, a 3/4-ounce Ark Tungsten cylinder weight, and 20-pound Yo-Zuri T7 fluorocarbon. He also worked the shallow willows with a frog and flipping baits. To secure his advancement, he triggered late bites with a matte gizzard shad Yo-Zuri 3DB Series deep crankbait and a 6-inch Z-Man Jerk ShadZ in smelt, paired with his forward-facing sonar.
Shop the 6″ Z-Man Jerk ShadZ at Tackle Warehouse – $6.49
6. Jake Lawrence: 31-4 (11 bass)
Relying on his summertime ledge-fishing expertise, Lawrence parked himself offshore in Honey Creek. He found success utilizing a Carolina rig with a creature bait and a 6-inch green gizzard shad Yamamoto Hinge Minnow on a jighead. Notably, he caught most of his Hinge Minnow fish by casting blind, rather than staring at forward-facing sonar.
Shop the Yamamoto Hinge Minnow at Tackle Warehouse – $9.49
5. Bobby Lane: 46-2 (18 bass)
Lane stuck to his power-fishing roots around Wolf Creek, Carey Bay, and Bernice. While he picked up a few stray bass on a spinnerbait and a Berkley Swamp Lord frog, the vast majority of his damage was done by flipping a Berkley PowerBait Pit Boss. He kept three separate rods rigged with the bait, paired with a 1/2-ounce Epic Tungsten weight.
Shop the Berkley Pit Boss at Tackle Warehouse – $6.99
4. Alton Jones Jr.: 55-5 (20 bass)
Jones executed a two-part daily game plan. He spent his mornings up shallow, winding a white 1/2-ounce Z-Man Evergreen Jack Hammer ChatterBait with a Geecrack Bellows Vibe, while also flipping a white or green pumpkin Geecrack Bellows Shad. Later in the day, he hunted offshore flats near the dam, deploying a large crankbait, a Carolina-rigged Bellows Shad, and a minnow setup tailored for forward-facing sonar.
Shop the Geecrack Bellows Shad at Tackle Warehouse – $9.99
3. Zack Birge: 64-5 (21 bass)
Birge stayed shallow in the flooded bank grass and willows, alternating between flipping a creature bait and walking a bone-colored Hag’s Jive Talker rattling popping frog. He threw both on an Alpha Angler Zilla rod with high-speed reels and 30-pound Yo-Zuri SuperBraid. For his reaction bite, he tied a 3/8-ounce Hag’s Hurricane bladed jig in sexy shad to 20-pound Yo-Zuri T7 fluorocarbon, fished on an Alpha Angler Mag-Rebound rod.
Shop the Hag’s Hurricane Bladed Jig at Tackle Warehouse – $6.99
2. Dustin Connell: 74-2 (28 bass)
Like many others, Connell maximized both the shallow and deep bites. Offshore, he fired up schools using Rapala DT6 and D10 crankbaits, along with an unreleased CrushCity CEO urchin bait. When his deep fish scattered, he pushed shallow to flip a new CrushCity Knuckle Bug. On the final day, he capitalized on a passing storm by swimming a white 3/8-ounce VMC Heavy Duty Swim Jig with a CrushCity Cleanup Craw trailer.
Shop the Rapala DT 10 at Tackle Warehouse – $10.99
1. Banks Shaw: 82-15 (28 bass)
The rookie secured his dramatic first victory by committing completely to deep rock schools and secondary points. He triggered the freshest schools with a Rapala DT 20 crankbait in disco shad. As the tournament pressure mounted, he finessed the bass with a 3/4-ounce football jig and a Carolina rig, both trailing a CrushCity Cleanup Craw. For his forward-facing sonar fish, he relied on a 5.25-inch CrushCity Freeloader pinned to a 3/16-ounce VMC RedLine Tungsten Swimbait ballhead.
Shop the CrushCity Freeloader at Tackle Warehouse – $7.99
*This post contains links through the Tackle Warehouse Affiliate Program. While all products are independently selected by our expert Riff Outdoors team, if you use these links to make a purchase, we may earn a commission.
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