Top 3 Lures That Won the 2025 Bassmaster Elite Tournament on Lake Tenkiller

A Texas-rigged soft plastic craw or creature bait is about as universally beloved as any bass bait. But when the bass are holding in flooded brush and wood cover, everyone is going to be pitching one around. Well, technically in this case it was six out of the ten Championship Sunday anglers who credited this bait. And, to be perfectly clear, two of them did describe theirs as a punch bait, but technically, that’s still a Texas-rigged soft plastic.

The highest finisher trowing a T-rig was second place finisher Andrew Loberg who credited a Strike King Rage Bug, rigged on a 4/0 hook with a 1/2-ounce tungsten weight.

2. Jig and Craw Fished Around Flooded Brush

If you’re not pitching a Texas-rig in shallow wood cover, it’s probably because you’re pitching a jig and craw. Generally speaking, it can be equally effective but gives the fish a different fall rate and bait profile.

The winner, Wes Logan says he was flipping an Ark Fishing Randal Tharp Signature Flipping Jig, with a Zoom Super Chunk trailer.

3. Vibrating Jig Triggers Aggressive Bass

I did say this was an old-fashioned power fishing event, right? So if you’re not precision pitching at them in shallow wood, you’re dragging them out of that cover with a vibrating jig.

Three of the top ten, including eighth place KJ Queen, second place Andrew Loberg and first place Wes Logan said they caught key fish this week on a vibrating jig. In the case of the winner, Logan used a 1/2-ounce Z-Man ChatterBait JackHammer with a Zoom Shimmer Shad.

The Other Productive Lures Used by Top 10 Anglers

And like I said, after those top three lures, it was a bunch of miscellaneous, but still mostly power baits. Combs caught them on a squarebill. Welcher caught some on a 4-inch swimbait. Downey and Loberg caught fish on a swimjig. And Card had a topwater bite working.

Of the top ten, Trey McKinney was the only angler who mentioned the ball-head jig and minnow. Then again, he also talked about his jig and craw, so I think describing the 2025 Bassmaster Elite on Tenkiller as a power fishing showdown is still accurate.