Just as there’s no one bait for every imaginable scenario, there’s no one color that works on every cast. Nevertheless, experienced anglers have their favorites for a reason.
Greg Hackney and Kevin Hawk shared their thoughts:
Hackney: “My No. 1 color all-around is candy craw. It resembles a crawfish, it resembles a bluegill. I can put a little chartreuse on the legs if I want to make it look more like a bluegill; I can put a little orange on the legs if I want to make it look like a crawfish.
“It’s a dark color, so I catch them punching mats with it or flipping grass with it. I can put it on the back of a bream-colored Hack Attack swim jig. All-around, that would be a hard color to beat.”
Hawk: “I’d pick green pumpkin watermelon laminate. It’s basically half green pumpkin and half watermelon, and that’s going to work in every water clarity situation except extremely stained or muddy.
“The watermelon (section) is going to work in clearer water, and if you get into stained water that green pumpkin is going to show up well. With any baitfish swimming around, the underside is always lighter than the topside. That’s another reason I like that color — it looks more natural in the water.”
