The Starting Spot: Call Me Florida Bass, Top July Bass Baits, and Trying to Make Sense of Our Lure Choices

Originally posted on Fishing on SI | By Kurt Mazurek | Last updated Jul 3, 2025 6:00 AM ET

In today’s 7-3–25 edition of The Starting Spot:

-It’s the same fish we’ve loved all this time, but now it has an official new name—Florida Bass.

-When the Tactical Bassin’ guys are willing to share exactly which bass lures they’re fishing with in July, it’s worth listening.

-Using science to validate, negate, or at least help explain why our lure choices are good, bad or inconsiquential. Not strictly a bass article, but includes some interesting thoughts that definitely apply to bass.

‘Florida’ bass — Micropterus salmoides

By David A. Brown

According an article on Bassmaster.com: Don’t be confused. They may have a bold new name, but they still have the same great game.

A decade after Walt Disney opened Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif. (July 17, 1955), he started work on a Florida theme park complex he called Disney World. When Disney passed four years before the Florida project’s grand opening on Oct. 1, 1971, his brother Roy oversaw the completion and changed the name to Walt Disney World.

Why? Because the man behind the magic was something special.