Strike King pro Mark Rose considers December to be one his favorite times to fish in Zone 4.
If the water is clear, Rose prefers the Sexy Ghost Minnow. In stained water, he switches to the Smokey Chrome Blue. For muddy water, Rose will favor a Pro Gold.
Diving up to 11- feet, the KVD J300 Deep has increased castability, 3D eyes, and premium black nickel hooks for lethal action. This bait excels in Zone 4, but anglers from coast to coast keep the J300 on the boat deck this time of year.
Rose’s choice for clear water is the Chrome, while he opts for White Chrome if the water is stained. In muddy water, Rose prefers the Sexy Shad.
Landing better hook up ratios, the Mark Rose Lil Ledge Spoon is a new type of jigging/flutter spoon with a random erratic side-to-side, shimmering, spinning motion that drives fish wild.
As for the Strike King Tour Grade Finesse Football Jig with Baby Rage Craw trailer, he opts for the Watermelon Red in clear water, and switches to a Green Pumpkin Craw if the water is stained. Rose opts for the Black Blue in low-vis or muddy conditions.
The Strike King Finesse Football Jig features a sculpted, football-shaped head and the 60- degree flat hook eye that stays flush with the head to keep your knot in the proper position; a Perfect Skirt in beautiful colors; and a specially designed tapered barb keeper to securely hold soft plastic trailers.
If the water is clear, he will throw a Candy Craw, while more stained water calls for a Gator Craw. Black Brown Amber is Rose’s go-to when fishing in muddy water conditions. He pairs the Hack Attack Fluorocarbon Flipping Jig with a Scounbug trailer.
Specifically adapted for use with fluoro line, the Hack Attack Fluorocarbon Flipping Jig features a more compact head molded onto a super-strong custom siwash hook and provides direct inline energy transfer for superb hooksetting with less line stress.
He opts for Sexy Blue Back Herring in clear water. If the water is stained, he will throw the Gizzard Shad, while he will switch to a Sexy Shad if the water is muddy.
Rose does not stray far from his cranking rod. This time of year, he will often tie on a 3XD when fish are holding in the 10- foot range. Deep diving crankbaits are common, but the unique curved bills of the XD series allow the bait to dive deeper and faster, changing the deep diving crankbait game forever.
Strike King pro Scott Suggs expects to see fish in winter patterns and uses his favorite finesse baits to attract a bite in the cold temperatures.
“I like to throw finesse-y type stuff,” says Suggs. During December, he loves to Carolina rig many of his finesse baits. “I look for little channel turns because that’s where bass congregate and group up – you can make repeated casts and catch them over and over,” he shares.
With water temperatures being so low, Suggs expects that bass will be fairly stationary and close to the bottom. “It is one of those times where they are staged up, not moving a lot. It is slower fishing with smaller profile baits,” he says. Suggs says that he never hits the water in December without each of his bait selections tied on.
For all water conditions, he utilizes a Blue Gizzard Shad Umbrella Rig with a 3.25" Pearl Flash Rage Swimmer.
“Rage Swimmer is really good, especially when they are schooled up. When they are sitting in brush piles, you can watch it on active target and sweep it above the brush pile,” Suggs advises.
His choice for clear water is Ned Ocho Green Pumpkin, while he opts for Summer Craw if the water is stained. Black Blue Swirl is his go-to in muddy conditions.
“I like to put it on a 1/4 oz., even a little heavier head, so I can stay in contact with the bottom. I reel in real slow on a spinning rod. Almost a guarantee that you’ll catch ‘em,” Suggs says.
He opts for Craw Daddy in clear water, and switches to Blue Craw if the water is stained. He opts for Black Blue Swirl in muddy water.
“I like to find isolated rock piles and throw the Ned Rage Bug on a weedless Ned head. The Ned Rage Bug perfectly imitates crawfish around rock piles,” he shares.
If the water is clear, he will throw the Filler Worm in Morning Dawn, while more stained water calls for Magic. Tequila Sunrise is his preference when fishing in low-vis conditions.
“On a cloudy day, fish will pull up off of the bottom. So on the low pressure/cloudy days, I will throw this with a 15” leader,” Suggs shares.
Suggs throws the Strike King 3/8 oz. Crackin’ Tube Jig Head with a Pro-Model Tube. He opts for Green Pumpkin in clear or stained water while he will switch to Black Blue Flake/Blue Tail if the water is muddy.
“I will drag the Pro-Model Tube through structure and above rock piles to find schooled up bass,” he says.
