11 hours ago, A-Jay said:

For Green Bass ~ 

 

For Brown Bass ~

 

A-Jay

For smallies, I’d go with pretty much the exact same thing as you, same colour and everything, but if I had to choose one bait for both species combined, it’d be a Strike King double willow spinnerbait in white with one silver and one gold blade, 1/2 oz with maybe some extra weight attached for burning on top for smallies. In 20 years of serious bass fishing, I have caught WAY more and larger of both species on that bait than all the others combined. Something about a big bass absolutely crushing a spinnerbait that just raises the hairs on the back of my neck just thinking about it. 

19 minutes ago, Way north bass guy said:

For smallies, I’d go with pretty much the exact same thing as you, same colour and everything, but if I had to choose one bait for both species combined, it’d be a Strike King double willow spinnerbait in white with one silver and one gold blade, 1/2 oz with maybe some extra weight attached for burning on top for smallies. In 20 years of serious bass fishing, I have caught WAY more and larger of both species on that bait than all the others combined. Something about a big bass absolutely crushing a spinnerbait that just raises the hairs on the back of my neck just thinking about it. 

My PB Brown Bass Came on a Spinnerbait - 

Crushed it !

And you know I thought it was a pike.

A-Jay

For me down in South Ga, either weightless super fluke or 5" senko. Either or and I'm happy. 

5 inch black & blue Yum worm (or equivalent), Texas rigged with 1/4 or 3/8 oz black tungsten bullet. Paddle tail optional.

 

 

5” Powerbait Maxscent The General Worm in GP/Watermelon or a 5” Senko in GP w/ Black Flk. Weightless wacky and my mindset immediately clicks to “I’m catching the biggest bass in this pond”

5in Black and Blue Senko.  I have caught more fish on this than anything else.

Zman zinkerz, watermelon candy.

3/8 oz pitching jig in green/brown color

Z Man TRD in either green pumpkin or junebug on a 1/16oz head.

LM only here ..6 " manns purple jelly worm

 

If and when i do smallmouth ...it will be a   bubble gum superfluke...

I’d select a top water lure, like a popper. I don’t think that I could do without top water strikes. Just too exciting.

Largemouth: gotta be weedless = 5” green pumpkin Senko for numbers and size. Frog, any color, for most fun.

 

Smallies: green pumpkin or watermelon 4” tube for numbers and size. Again, topwater popper or prop bait for most exciting to fish. 

15 hours ago, Frog Turds said:

Jig = anywhere in the country & anytime in the season...

With hair jigs I have caught  every thing from the 3 bass to most other fresh water fish - countless species of saltwater fish -

Only one lure - jig

no brainer - they've been around for thousands of years in one form or the other.

Just couldn't do it.   Couldn't go fishing with just one bait -that would drive me nuts.   But what about if you HAD to?  I don't know - can't see the situation where I HAD to.  If I woke up one day, ready to go fishing and only had one bait I'd either, (a) call the cops and report that all my fishing gear had been stolen or (b) go to Walmart and get some more.

 

Knowing all the options I cold potentially have and having only one option would bug me ALOT.  I wouldn't do a decent job of fishing that day.

4 hours ago, Manly Studson said:

I’d select a top water lure, like a popper. I don’t think that I could do without top water strikes. Just too exciting.

If I cant decide what to throw, you know it’ll end up being a top water. 

Top water is definitely the most exciting fishing ever. During the spring time the wipers come into the shallows chasing shad on my local lake and they will devastate a top water popper on almost every cast. It's some of my favorite fishing. 

The reason I choose a Lizard over a worm is it can be buzzed like a topwater .

For Largemouth - Lucky Craft Pointer 78 in Bluegill Flake.

 

For smallmouth - 3 inch WW Senko in Lou's Special color 

I'd go with a green pumpkin colored multipurpose jig for both. 3/8 th ounce for skipping, swimming and pitching for largemouth and 1/2 ounce to go a little deeper for smallies. If I was also limited to one trailer it would be a black speed craw.

10 hours ago, Fishes in trees said:

Just couldn't do it.   Couldn't go fishing with just one bait -that would drive me nuts.   But what about if you HAD to?  I don't know - can't see the situation where I HAD to.  If I woke up one day, ready to go fishing and only had one bait I'd either, (a) call the cops and report that all my fishing gear had been stolen or (b) go to Walmart and get some more.

 

Knowing all the options I cold potentially have and having only one option would bug me ALOT.  I wouldn't do a decent job of fishing that day.

Lol there’s always somebody. You ain’t getting off that easy sir. Please allow me to paraphrase the question... if your local bass club had an open tournament in which you had to use a single lure all day for a million dollar grand prize, what would it be?

Bass Asassin 5" shad. native shiner color

You're killing me, smalls.

 

I'm going to have to pack up a YUM Swimmin' Dinger in Green Pumpkin because I can fish it as a reaction style bait or with a more finesse approach.  It works great swimming, it works great on the bottom, it works even better wacky rigged.  I can burn it for topwater.  Cut it down to size and match the hatch.  Clip off the tail and it's a YUM Dinger.

 

So, yep, YUM Swimmin' Dinger 5" on a 1/4oz bullet and a 3/0 EWG for largemouth.

 

Since I don't have smallmouth, I'm gonna go with a Berkley Drift Walker for spotted bass in Sexy Back.  That little walker is deadly.

Oh, gosh! For me, it is so simple: a 5" Keitech Shad Impact (the one without the paddle tail, just the pointy tail, so like a soft jerk bait). Color would be anything mimicking a shad, so "shad color."

 

For me? This Keitech works better than a worm where a worm would normally be fished, can be used at different speeds, all different zones in the water, weightless/weighted, like a jerk bait, skimmed across the surface, works year round.

 

My favorite application is thrown weightless, T-Rigged, retrieved like a dying or injured shad. As close to weedless as anything I use. 

 

One trick? For absolute fabulous hook setting, the Owner Twistlock Finesse Hooks are so very light and sharp, I have found the highest success ratio of getting that hook snagged in a bass. I use the 1/0 size and it works great with the 5" Keitechs. Add a split shot up 6" or so if you need a bit of weight.

 

It was so successful on my old lake, Lake Athens TX, that I used this 95% of the time.

 

Brad

 

 

 

 

19 hours ago, Bassjam2000 said:

Lol there’s always somebody. You ain’t getting off that easy sir. Please allow me to paraphrase the question... if your local bass club had an open tournament in which you had to use a single lure all day for a million dollar grand prize, what would it be?

Now that changes everything! I originally said a popper, but if money is on the line, then a jig would be tied on.