One bait to do it all? Nah, there’s too many variables to task a single lure with comprehensive application. However, Bassmaster Elite pro Lee Livesay’s pretty big on a particular bait.
Ask this Texan for his winter favorite and he won’t hesitate to say it’s the modest 6th Sense Provoke 97DD. A 1/2-ounce, 3 3/4-inch jerkbait with a 4- to 8-foot range, it charms numerous fish in many chilly scenarios. And it’s one with a ton of diverse appeal offering a pile of cold-season opportunity.
Why It Works
Whether it’s his Lake Fork home waters or another southern reservoir, Livesay knows he won’t face many winter days where his go-to bait can’t deliver.
“It’s a smaller profile jerkbait that just gets bit, so you can catch fish on it anywhere in the wintertime,” Livesay said. “I can throw it up in grass, I can throw it with forward-facing sonar for suspended fish.
“I can throw it in (flooded) trees, over brush piles, I can catch smallmouth bass on it, I can catch spotted bass and I can catch 10-pound largemouth on it.”
Cadence preference can change daily, but Livesay keeps it simple with a jerk-jerk-pause, jerk-jerk-pause, jerk-pause kind of deal. Situational adjustment, he noted, is key to continuity.
“If it’s colder, you might pause the bait 15 seconds; if it’s warmer, you might pause it half a second,” Livesay said. “I’ll use my Humminbird MEGA Live 2 forward-facing sonar to see how those fish react. We used to rely on the weather to determine our cadence, but now we can see what they want at that day and time.”
Presentation Tips
For his smaller jerkbait duties, Livesay arms himself with his signature series 6-8 medium 6th Sense rod.
“You want that medium-power rod because it allows those fish to get the bait,” he explained. “You just pull into them, and at the same time, you want enough tip to accurately throw the bait long distances and jerk it on slack line.”
That line choice depends on target depth.
“I like 12-pound Sunline Sniper about 90% of the time,” said Livesay. “Now, if I’m on Lake Okeechobee and I’m fishing it a little shallower over some thicker grass, I might bump that up to 16-pound Sniper.
“If I’m on Table Rock and catching big smallmouth or spots suspended over deeper trees or brush, I might go down to 8 or 10. You can use your line to get the bait deeper or shallower.”
Other Favorites
We quizzed a few pros on their winter workhorses, and here’s what else we found.
Randy Howell
In February 2014, the Alabama pro won the Bassmaster Classic on his Lake Guntersville home waters. And he did so partly by cranking riprap with a medium diving Livingston Lures bait that came to be known as the Howeller DREAM MASTER CLASSIC. However, on Guntersville or any other southern grass lake, Howell’s all-time winter favorite is the Livingston Pro Ripper lipless bait.
“That may be a little weird-sounding, but even when the water gets into the low 40s on grass lakes like Guntersville, the lipless bait just gets a lot of bites,” Howell said. “They really react to the lift and fall when you yoyo that bait over the grass.
“I’ve caught them literally throwing at the edge of ice in the back of a creek on Guntersville. The bait would almost hit the edge of ice and when I’d let it fall and they would knock slack in the line. Those baits are really effective on big fish in the winter.”
Favoring the 1/2- and 3/4-ounce sizes, depending on depth, Howell likes the Guntersville Craw and Okie Craw colors in slightly stained winter. In clear water, chrome’s hard to beat.
Scott Canterbury
Winter bass still gotta eat, but when the water’s cold, their finfish forage is pretty lethargic. That’s why Canterbury puts a lot of faith in flat-sided crankbaits.
From his old-school balsa baits to the more modern Livingston FlatMaster, Canterbury knows this technique will help him connect with winter fish well before bass start their prespawn journey.
“When that water gets cold, I’ll get on those steeper transition banks at the mouths of creeks,” Canterbury said. “Sitting off those spots, I’ll parallel those banks with a flat-sided crankbait.
“I think the appeal is the subtlety of it. When that water gets in the low 50s, the shad are sort of lethargic, and that flat side doesn’t emit a lot of motion.”
Bryant Smith
The California pro has put his finesse skills to good use on the Bassmaster Elite Series. His top winter choice: a Neko-rigged Strike King Shim-E-Stick. Typically using a 3/32-ounce weight, Smith fishes his Neko rig on 10-pound line.
“With all the spotted bass we have on the west coast, I never leave him without a couple of Neko rigs tied on,” Smith said. “This bait really excels on tough days when it’s flat calm and sunny.”
Smith said he typically targets flatter main lake points. With a lot of West Coast fish chasing trout, a flat point offers a strategic hunting zone.
“The key is shaking it in place,” Smith said. “I’m moving the bait without moving it toward me. It makes me slow down and work a spot thoroughly.”
