Larry Nixon on the Best New Lures

Best New Lures

Editor's Note: Larry Nixon, of Bee Branch, Arkansas, won the 1983 Bass Masters Classic and has had 76 Top 10 finishes. He's won the Angler-Of-The-Year title twice and placed fifth in the 2002 BASS Masters Classic.

Question: Describe the three best new lures that have come out on the market this year and how you use them.

Answer: I like the Quad Shad -- a spinner bait that Strike King came out with recently. This 4-bladed spinner bait works differently than most spinner baits. The Quad Shad doesn't pull real hard. I like the one that has the four willow-leaf blades on it, because it pulls real easy through the water.

The bait looks like a little school of minnows with maybe a perch or a bream chasing them. The bait's different look makes the Quad Shad work so effectively. The Quad Shad has a totally different look than a normal spinner bait.

Most of the time, I fish it around cover because it is not a high-speed lure. You need to cast the Quad Shad into cover because bass are predator fish, and they like to ambush their prey. So, I'll fish it in short casts -- 25 to 30 feet away from me.

I'll make casts around the cover. I'll cast just past the cover and bring the Quad Shad close to the cover. Sometimes, I'll present the bait by killing it and letting the bait flutter down to the bottom of the lake.

My other favorite bait is the Strike King Premier Elite Jig. This new jig in our lineup only has been on the market for a year. The Premier Elite Jig has a different design than all of the other jigs that Strike King ever has had. This jig has a big Gamakatsu hook in it. The head is slender on the nose, which makes it pull easy and free through cover -- one of the reasons I like that jig more than any other jig that I've ever used.

To be a good jig fisherman, you have to present the jig to cover. I usually make short casts and long casts or flip to the edge of the cover or directly in the middle of the cover. I drop my rod tip to allow the bait the freedom to sink straight down through the cover, because if you don't, you won't get the proper fall out of the jig.

So, make your flip or pitch, drop your rod, and watch that slack as it sinks to the bottom. Then you'll know when the lure hits the bottom or when a fish catches the lure as it sinks. I'll usually pop it up off the bottom 1 to 1 1/2-feet so it gets another fast fall as it goes back to the bottom. I catch usually all of my fish as the jig falls.