Gear

Open: Top lures at Leech Lake 2025

See the old-school winning lure and those used by the top anglers at Leech Lake.

Posted on
Photography by
Andy Crawford
Photography by
Solomon Glenn
Minnesota
Captions by
Craig Lamb
Can an old-school topwater frog win a derby at the national level? Of course it can, and Laker Howell proved it by winning the St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Leech Lake presented by SEVIIN. Faced with fishing for smallmouth, largemouth or both, Howell chose to focus on largemouth, and it paid off with multiple rewards. 
Howell posted a two-day weight of 39 pounds, 13 ounces, also earning a berth in the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour, and he already qualified for the upcoming Nitro Boats Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers presented by Bass Pro Shops. The next goal will be to join his father, Randy, on the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series. 
Click here to buy these lures at Bass Pro Shops.
Danny McGarry (14th; 34-15)
McGarry alternated between a jighead minnow and a drop shot. 
He made the drop shot with a homemade dice bait, rigged on No. 1 BKK Hooks Armor-Point Dropshot Hook and 1/4-ounce weight. 
He also used a 6-inch Deps Sakamata Shad Soft Jerkbait rigged on 1/4-ounce round jighead with 3/0 hook. 
Tommy Wood (12th; 35-5)
Wood targeted both smallmouth and largemouth to find success.
For smallmouh, Wood used a finesse jig given to him by fellow pro Yui Aoki. That choice was a 1/4-ounce Evergreen IR Finesse Jig with a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent The General for a trailer.
Wood also worked a Teckel Sprinker Frog through shallow cover for Leech Lake’s agressive largemouth.
Jack York (9th; 35-8)
York fished with a jighead minnow and Ned rig.
He made the Ned rig with a 6th Sense Bodega on a 3/16-ounce Owner Range Roller Jig Head. 
York assembled the minnow rig with a 6th Sense Shindo Shad 6.0, also on a 3/16-ounce Owner Range Roller Jig Head. 
Chase Clarke (8th; 36-4)
Clark used a creature bait rig to catch his bass. 
That choice was a Big Bite Baits Fighting Frog.
Trey Schroeder (7th; 36-12)
Shroeder used a jighead minnow and drop shot. 
He made it with a 6th Sense Glitch rigged on No. 1 6th Sense Drop Shot Hook. Schroeder alternated between 3/8- and 1/2-ounce weights depending on wind speed. 
Schroeder also used a 6th Sense Shindo Shad 6.0 rigged on 1/4-ounce jighead with 3/0 hook. 
Emil Wagner (6th; 38-1)
Wagner focused on using a drop shot for smallmouth. 
He made the rig with a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Flat Worm on No. 1 hook with 3/8-ounce weight. 
Tommy Parker (5th; 38-1)
Parker’s primary bait was a Neko rig. 
He made it with a Yamamoto Uni on 2/0 hook with 1/8-ounce weight. 
Click here to buy these lures at Bass Pro Shops.
Pake South (4th; 38-2)
South switched between a frog and a swim jig. He began each morning fishing both baits around mixtures of wild rice and reeds. After catching a limit, he shifted his focus to quality smallmouth. 
A primary bait was a 5/16-ounce Santone Lures Swim Jig with craw-style trailer. 
For topwater action he chose a 6th Sense Vega Hush. 
Sam Hanggi (3rd; 38-3)
Hanggi focused on smallmouth holding in 10 feet of water around isolated boulders to feed on crawfish. 
His top bait was a 1/4-ounce Evergreen Tungsten Finesse Jig with a Z-Man Finesse TRD for a trailer. 
He also made a drop shot with a Megabass Hazedong Shad. 
Jace Lindsay (2nd; 38-13)
Lindsay used a jighead application around isolated boulders on subtle depth breaks. He avoided boulders on offshore flats due to fishing pressure.  
His choice as a 7-inch Z-Man Scented Jerk ShadZ rigged on 1/8-ounce Queen Tackle LS Tungsten Jighead. He also used a Deps Sackamata Shad. 
Laker Howell (1st; 39-13)
Howell committed to a wild rice field where he discovered prized largemouth in 5 foot or less of water. Clean bottoms and deeper pockets set up obvious ambush points around mixed growths of rice, milfoil and lily pads. 
Howell’s primary bait was a discontinued old-school Snagproof Frog in the Mossback pattern. 

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