2016 FLW Tour - Lake Okeechobee Top Baits

FLW Tour - Lake Okeechobee Baits

The opening tournament of the 2016 FLW Tour took place from 2/4 - 2/7 on Lake Okeechobee in Florida. Poor conditions kept any real big weights from reaching the scales, but nonetheless, the event was won by Bradley Hallman of Oklahoma who finished with a total weight of 71lbs and 2oz during the course of the four day event. Below, we've relayed the top-10 anglers bait choices.

1st Place - Bradley Hallman

Hallman used a Backwater Blue Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver to catch the majority of his weight combined with a matching punch skirt and a 1.5oz Tungsten Punch Weight. He also used a Gambler BB Cricket on the final day of the tournament.

2nd Place - Alex Davis

Runner up Alex "Spinnerbait Kid" Davis flipped, pitched and cast a 6-inch junebug stick bait rigged with a variety of bullet weights and paired with 80-pound-test PowerPro MaxCuatro spooled on Shimano Metanium with 8.5:1 gear ratio. When the vegetation was thick, Davis went with a heavy flippin stick, the 7'6" G. Loomis E6X 904C Flippin Stick.

3rd Place - Chris Johnston

Johnston primarily relied upon a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver on a 7-11, heavy-power G. Loomis IMX flipping stick and a Shimano Metanium Reel with 8.5:1 gear ratio and 65-pound-test PowerPro Braid.

5th Place - Shin Fukae

Shin Fukae caught fish all sorts of ways including punching a black/blue Yamamoto Flappin Hog on a 1.5oz - 2oz Tungsten Punch Weight with a protoype Shimano Zodias Rod and a Shimano Metanium Reel.

6th Place - Brandon McMillan

Florida stick Brandon McMillan caught his bass using a black/blue Zoom Speed Craw with a 3/4oz - 2oz tungsten punch weight. He utilized this presentation with a 7-11 G. Loomis IMX flipping stick and a Shimano Metanium Casting Reel in 8.5:1 gear ratio.

7th Place - Joshua Weaver

Joshua Weaver's primary bait with a secret-colored 4x4 Brandon McMillan Signature Series Swim Jig paired with a sungill-colored Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper Weaver also caught fish on a Zoom UV Speed Craw.

8th Place - Clark Reehm

Clark Reehm fished a Megabass Ito Vision 110 with a 704CB Dobyns Champion crankbait rod strung with 17-pound-test Seaguar InvizX fluorocarbon. He also used a black sapphire-colored Zoom UV Speed Craw with a ¼-ounce weight fished on a 7-4, heavy-power Dobyns Champion Extreme Rod and 25-pound test Seaguar AbrazX.

9th Place - Charlie Weyer

9th place finisher Charlie Weyer used a 6 inch Yamamoto Senko in black/blue and watermelon red.

10th Place - Billy Shelton

Billy Shelton caught his fish in a number of ways including a Zoom Magnum Fluke and a Zoom UV Magnum Speed Worm, but his primary bait was a black-and-blue Sweet Beaver with a 1 ½-ounce weight.