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Top lures at Chesapeake Bay Open 2025

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Photography by
Andy Crawford
Photography by
Christopher Decker
Captions by
Pete Robbins
The St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Upper Chesapeake Bay presented by SEVIIN showed out in a big way and showcased the potential of the prestigious tidal fishery. Many of the leaders found themselves fishing in close proximity to one another on flats of submerged vegetation.
Dillon Falardeau outshone everyone by going wire to wire, posting weights of 22-7, 19-2 and 21-4 to total 62 pounds, 13 ounces. A major win has been a dream of Falardeau’s his whole life, and now he claims a spot in the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour in Knoxville, Tenn.
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Steve Dimatteo (10th; 46-7)
Dimatteo used a two-bait system. The first was a 5-inch Strike King Caffeine Shad (Ghost Shad) to draw fish up out of grass and other cover. He used 6th Sense 4/0 EWG Worm Hook.
His second bait was a drop-shot rig that consisted of a 6-inch Roboworm Straight Tail Worm (Aaron’s Magic), a #1 Gamakatsu EWG Worm Hook and a 3/16-ounce lead drop-shot weight.
Trey Richardson III (9th; 46-13)
A couple of moving baits were key for Richardson’s success. The first was a 1/2-ounce Z-Man JackHammer (Green Pumpkin Shad). The trailer was a Missile Baits Spark Shad (Green Pumpkin).
The second was a 3/8-ounce Hayabusa Lil’ Schmitty (Green Pumpkin) paired with a Gambler Little EZ. The swim jig was important for getting bites during high tide.
Tyler Campbell (8th; 48-12)
Hot off an appearance at this year’s Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour, Campbell used two baits to secure another Open Top 10. His first bait was a Texas-rigged Zoom Magnum Ultravibe Speed Worm (Red Bug) on a 4/0 round bend offset worm hook with a 3/16-ounce pegged tungsten worm weight. 
He then slowed down with a drop shot consisting of a Zoom Magnum Swamp Crawler (Green Pumpkin), a 1/0 worm hook and a 1/8-ounce tungsten cylinder weight
Matt Messer (7th; 49-2)
Messer relied on a 3/8-ounce Berkley Powerbait Slobberknocker (White) with a Berkley Power Stinger (Pearl White) trailer to carry him to a 7th-place finish on the Upper Chesapeake Bay.
Easton Lindus (6th; 51-13)
Lindus utilized a SPRO RkCrawler 55 (Sparkle Shad), one of only two anglers in the Top 10 to find success on a crankbait.
Another bait was a 3/8-ounce Z-Man JackHammer (Green Pumpkin Shad) paired with a Crush City Freeloader 4.25-inch (Albino Shad).
He then slowed down and followed up with a drop shot consisting of a 7-inch Roboworm Fat Straight Tail Worm (Margarita Mutilator), a 1/0 Trokar EWG worm hook and a 1/4-ounce lead drop-shot weight
Duke Nave (5th; 53-1)
A large-profile spinnerbait in a 3/8-ounce Terminator, gold willowleaf and silver Colorado provided success for Nave.
Another bait used was a 1/2-ounce Z-Man JackHammer (White) with a Crush City 4.25-inch Freeloader (Pearl White).
Finally, Nave used a Gambler Popping Frog in white to draw some topwater strikes.
Josh Bragg (4th; 53-3)
Bragg also implemented a combo of moving baits. The first was a 3/8-ounce Megabass SV-3 with dual silver willow blades in White Python color.
The second was a 1/2-ounce Z-Man JackHammer (Black Blue) paired with a Yamamoto Zako (Green Pumpkin).
Dave Frost (3rd; 53-6)
A common trend on the Upper Chesapeake, Frost used a 1/2-ounce Z-Man JackHammer (Green Pumpkin) with a Yamamoto Zako (Green Pumpkin White Laminate).
He also went against the grain and threw a Heddon Saltwater Super Spook (Bone Silver) for some aggressive topwater action. He swapped out the hooks to 2/0 Gamakatsu trebles.
Lucas Lindsay (2nd; 53-12)
Lindsay used a variation on vibrating jigs for his second-place finish. He used both 3/8- and 1/2-ounce Z-Man JackHammers in Green Pumpkin.
For his trailetr, Lindsay opted for a Green Pumpkin, White Laminate Yamamoto Zako marinated in Nories Bite Powder.
Dillon Falardeau (1st; 62-13)
Falardeau stuck to three key baits to complete his St. Croix Bassmaster Open victory. The first was a 3/8-ounce Jackall Super Eruption Jr. (Chartreuse White) paired with a Zoom Twin Tail trailer (white).
A Yo-Zuri 3DRX Series Flat Crank (Perch) produced some key bites. Falardeau replaced the hooks with #4 BKK trebles.
Lastly, Falardeau employed a 1/2-ounce Z-Man JackHammer in Black Blue. A Hog Farmer Spunk Shad in Black Blue Flake was his trailer of choice. A vibrating jig was definitely a huge player on the Upper Chesapeake Bay.

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