5 pro anglers (reluctantly) reveal their top-secret tactics for bass, lakers, muskies and walleye

My buddy Dave Chong has caught 44 smallmouth bass weighing more than seven pounds over the years, including his personal best, an 8.7-pound supertanker. If you ask him what he caught the fish on, he’ll simply say a hard-bodied jerkbait. By only telling you that, though, he’s actually told you almost nothing. That’s because it all comes down to how he fished the lure, not just the lure itself.

The same thing applies to muskie maestro Lisa Goodier, big-bass buster Pete Garnier, walleye wizard Derek Strub and prairie lake trout savant Mitch Lilley. While their catches are often mind-blowing, the lures they use are boringly commonplace. Again, though, the real secret lies in the way they fish their offerings.

As with most anglers, pros tend to keep their hard-won fishing tactics close to their chests, so I had to call in plenty of favours to get this elite group to divulge the details behind their extraordinary catches. Follow their tactical advice, and you just might log some personal bests of your own. Here are their secret baits and tactics…