Entry 338-1
Mark Menendez’s Money Lures from Strike King
Editor’s Note: Mark Menendez won over $200,000 in 2009, qualified for the Bassmaster Classic and was one of the anglers selected for the end-of-the-year tournament to compete for the Angler-of-the-Year title. A seasoned veteran who has proven he knows how to win, Menendez will tell us this week about the lures he calls his money lures.
Part 1: The Smokin’ Rooster for a Clean-up Bait
Question: Mark, what five lures are you betting on to make you money on the BASS circuit in 2010?
Menendez: My first pick is the Smokin’ Rooster. Now, whoever came up with that name, I may never know. This is a creature-style bait that’s very flat. It can take a big hook. The first time I looked at it, I said to myself, “This is going to be a flipping and pitching bait.” This bait has two Rage-type appendages on the side and a Rage-type tail. I’ve already fished with it, and I know that it’s a good flipping bait, but I think that’s only the tip of the iceberg of how I’ll be using this bait this year. The Smokin’ Rooster’s going to be a bait I use on a Carolina rig, because the appendages move when you don’t move the bait very far.
But what I’m really excited about is using the Smokin’ Rooster as a swimming-type bait. I was doing a photo shoot and fishing behind Denny Brauer. He’d just fished through the area flipping, and then Greg Hackney went through that same region with his jig. I caught four bass after two of the best fishermen in the nation had already fished that same water in front of me with the Smokin’ Rooster.
Therefore, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this bait will catch bass when you swim it, even when you have to fish in used water. 
Now, finding a bait you can fish in used water is critical to the success of both a tournament fishermen and a weekend fisherman. There’s so much information about how, where and on what to catch bass that most bass have seen every lure on every lake I’ll fish. So I believe to be able to fish behind anglers in used water and catch bass on a new lure fished in a way that I’m sure most people won’t fish this lure really gives me an advantage.
Question: How will you rig this bait?
Menendez: I’m going to rig it Texas style with a No. 5/0 hook, and I’ll use from a 3/16- to a 3/8-ounce sinker, depending on how deep I plan to fish and how fast I want to move the Smokin’ Rooster. If you’ll watch this bait come through the water, it looks like a big bream. 
So, I really believe this lure will be deadly to use on crowded water and heavily-pressured bass.
Question: What kind of water was Denny and Greg fishing before you got to it?
Menendez: The place they were fishing was matted grass, and Denny and Greg both are great flippers and pitchers. One of their strongest suits is punching heavy baits through matted grass. But I cast the Smokin’ Rooster further back in the grass than either of them were fishing and swam it over the top of the grass. I had four bites right behind Denny and Greg. That sold me on the Smokin’ Rooster.
