As the year’s second quarter unfolds, Mustad pro Brandon Lester is feeling pretty good about the variety of bass fishing opportunities. With prespawn fish moving up, some on beds and some postspawners in southern areas, he has plenty of options and plenty of ways to catch ‘em.

Moving baits definitely have their place in the program, but Lester also keeps a selection of plastics handy. To maximize his effectiveness, he’s very specific about his hook selection.

“It’s mostly about shallow water, so you need to have some versatility, as far as what cover you’re fishing and how you break it down,” Lester said. “I choose my hooks based on three techniques I feel shine in the springtime."

Here’s a look at Lester’s top choices.

AlphaPoint Tak Offset Hook

Lester likes this hook’s unique bend, which is designed to hold plastics securely.

“I’m going to use that hook for when I Texas rig worms like the LIVETARGET Stick Worm and making a long cast,” Lester said. “I’ll match the size of the hook to the size of bait I’m throwing.”

His choice for the thick stuff, Lester typically uses 3/0, 4/0, and 5/0 sizes, depending on his bait choice.

“That’s going to be my hook for heavy cover flipping and pitching, or if I see one sitting on a bed and I want to flip something in there with 20-pound fluorocarbon or 50-pound braid,” Lester said. “That hook will handle those scenarios.”

Along with this hook’s beefy composition, Lester also lauds its grip pin keeper design.
“Mustad was one of the first companies to come out with a straight shank hook with a good keeper that holds your bait in place and won’t let it slide down the shank of your hook. Say, you’re fishing somewhere that has a bunch of bluegill or goggle eye, they tend to grab your bait and jerk it down the hook, but that doesn’t happen with the Grip Pin.”
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This versatile hook serves Lester’s key springtime finesse presentations. First up is the ultra-dependable wacky rig. Impaling this hook through the center of a LIVETARGET Stick Worm creates a fish-tempting presentation with the hook serving as a pull point that makes both ends of the bait wiggle.

“When you get around prespawn of spawning fish in the springtime, there are not many better ways to get a bite than with a wacky rig,” Lester said. “That Mustad TitanX Wacky/Neko/Dropshot Hook is the best wacky rig hook that’s ever been made.

“I use a size 2 hook when I’m wacky rigging a LIVETARGET 5-inch Stick Worm. When I’m throwing something small, I’ll go to the size 4. I use that smaller hook a lot for dropshotting.”

Lester’s springtime wacky rig targets include rock, bridges, stumps, and docks. This rig, he said, defines spring simplicity.

“The wacky rig is not the most weedless rig, so you can’t throw it right in the middle of a brush pile,” Lester notes. “But just going down the bank on that flatter stuff and just picking out targets that you can throw (next to), that’s one of the best ways to get those fish to bite.”