I won my first club tournament with a Blakemore CC spinnerbait. It was a heavy spinner. The reason I used it was because I was new to baitcasting gear. My only caster was an Abu 5000 mounted on a  fiberglass Lews speed stick .I needed something heavy to cast . 

 

I had three bass in the boat that weighed 13 lbs in the first two hours and didnt catch another , but they held up .Second place was a ten fish limit of 12 inchers .Ten fish limit 12 inch, that was a long time ago . Tournament was at Daniel Boone lake in NE Missouri .

 

 

1978 and I was 20 .

 

^^ mistake. It would have been 1976 and I was 18 .

Green pumpkin Zoom Trick worm on a Pro Slider head caught 4 of my keepers. I caught my first keeper of the day on my first cast of the day with a Terminator Ball Buster buzzbait. I was 16 at the time and the tournament was at Pomme De Terre lake in Missouri. 

White/Gold spinnerbait, fished fast over the top of grass.  Like BlueBasser, I was also 16 at the time .  

 

It was April 2002 on the Potomac River, fished Arkindale Flats all day.  I had a 5-fish limit for 13 lbs 15 oz. 

 

White strike king Spinnerbait.  Red Eye special.

Chartreuse black back crankbait, don't remember what brand.  Team tournament on a little 99 acre lake in Central Iowa when I was 19.  It was the first tournament I ever fished and I had never met my partner before we showed up at the ramp.  Awesome experience and probably the reason that half of my paychecks still go towards bass tackle.

Henderson Swamp Lafayette, Louisiana

Hildebrant Snagless Sally, gold blade, white rubber skirt

15 bass daily limit; 39.6 pounds

Its been a long time since I heard the  Snagless Sally mentioned .

Its been a long time since I heard the Snagless Sally mentioned .

Still throw em in the marshes, I change the skirts & add a trailer.

Lake Orange, Fl. 1987

Gilraker 6" Black Spinal core ribbon tail 3/8 slip

3/0 Tru-Turn Hook, File sharpened..

3 fish for 17.9 including a 8llb fatso..

All fish were caught 45 min after sunrise

Mid July & it was hotter than hell...

Flipping & Pitching open pockets in heavy hydrilla

Brown/orange jig with matching trailer; springtime. I felt bad because it was a CMR tourney and I only caught 5 fish all day but they were all 3 1/2 lbers. They guy who came in 2nd caught the bejeesus outta them but his biggest 5 were smaller than mine by maybe 1/2 lb. Oh well, thats tourney fishing for ya. Man was I stoked tho! The next year I won 3 out of 5 and took AOY for my club. Was pretty happy about that too.

6xd and RI beavers

the 6xd acounted for two five pounders in that tourny

the beaver got a 4 and he majority of my keepers

during the threr days

Yum zellamander in watermelon red. Culled with a kicker on a horny toad thrown over hydrilla holes in 1-3 FOW. 

i hep invent da first dog-x

 

http://megabassusa.com/products/dog-x-quick-walker

Zoom green pumpkin trick worm on a shaky head presentation.

I got my first win by location.

I have yet to win. Can't break the 2nd place mark. What kills me is all my 2nd places have been with 4 fish. All my 2nd places I've had big bass and had I caught the 5th keeper I would have won. What kills me even more is I fish in a 50+ boat field. So, all my 2nd places have been beating 48 other boats with only 4 fish. Answering the OP's question......jigs is what cashes checks