Which Bass Fishing Lure Is the King of Kissimmee? Secrets from Local Guides

Kurt Mazurek | 1 Hour Ago

Which bass fishing lure is the King of Kissimmee? / Berkley | CPF Lures

If you saw the late-May 2024 MLF Heavy Hitters event on the Kissimmee Chain, you might think a frog is the only way to catch them in Florida. Local professional guides disagree.

Yes, the tournament pros caught them well, but how did their choices compare to the top local big bass guides who fish the Kissimmee Chain that time of year?

What Lures Did the MLF Tournament Pros Use?

Like I mentioned earlier, this tournament was all about the frog. In fact, 2024 event was pretty specifically about the Berkley Swamp Lord Frog. Three of the top five finishers, called out that exact frog, including winner, Jordan Lee. Apart from the frog that got all of the headlines, 30% of the Top 10 said their approach included punching a creature bait and another 30% leaned on a chatter bait for much of their catch.

The overwhelming pick among tournament bass pros was the Berkley Swamp Lord Frog. / Berkley

Local Guides Lures and Tips

Now, I’m very excited to offer you some incredible insight from two, very highly regarded, long-time, local bass fishing guides. Both of them are about to spell out their actual game plans for a day on the Kissimmee Chain in late-May with. It’s super interesting to note the differences between their plans and lures and the tournament pros who have just competed here.

First, let’s hear from Captain Erik Tilson of Tilson Guide Service. Captain Erik has spent over 25 years fishing Central Florida's best lakes for trophy largemouth bass. In those years he has guided more than 2,000 satisfied customers to nearly 200 bass over the 8-pound mark.

Fishing Guide Captain Erik Tilson

Captain Erik Tilson is your go-to for a top-notch bass fishing experience in the Orlando, Florida area, offering over 25 years of experience and versatile bait knowledge. / Erik Tilson

Central Florida Fishing & Electronics Guide

“The Kissimmee Chain offers diverse bass fishing opportunities, especially in late May.” According to Captain Tilson, “Focusing on bluegill and shellcracker beds during their midday spawn—particularly before 11 a.m.—can be the key to success. While tournament pros have limited time to practice, local anglers get to leverage years of knowledge to uncover these productive spots, which have the potential to yield impressive 5-fish bags weighing 30-35 pounds.”

“Forward-facing sonar helps me pinpoint the most active beds, where bass are cruising in and out for an easy meal. I capitalize on this feeding frenzy with three key bass fishing lures."

ABT Lures Suicide Gill

The ABT Lures Suicide Gill / tacklewarehouse.com

First, Tilson starts with an ABT Lures Suicide Gill.

“This glide bait perfectly mimics a fleeing bluegill and works great to target roaming bass”

Bakewell Custom Swim Jig

The Bakewell Custom Swim Jig is a perfect match for the Gambler Lures EZ Swimmer / tacklewarehouse.com

Next, if he can’t get the strikes necessary from the glide bait, he’ll move to a Bakewell Custom Swim Jig in Toxic color with an EZ Swimmer by Gambler Lures in Killer G color. It offers a little more subtle approach but still has great drawing power.

CPF Lures Pippin8’r Magnum Finesse Worm

The CPF Lures 8" Pippin8'r Magnum Finesse Worm / CPF Lures

Finally, if bass are just too lethargic, Tilson will move to a magnum finesse worm.

“The Pippin8’r is a very popular bait locals use year round here with a lot of success.”

Captain Chuck Pippin

Captain Chuck Pippin is Product Marketing Manager at iKon Boats, owner of Chuck's Guide Service, and Co-Founder of CPF Lures & GuideFishing.com and over the course of his career has guided over 6,000 trips. / Chuck Pippin

Now, let’s check in with Captain Chuck Pippin, Product Marketing Manager at iKon Boats, owner of Chuck's Guide Service, and Co-Founder of CPF Lures & GuideFishing.com.


In 1998, Captain Chuck began his career as a bass fishing guide and tournament fisherman on Lake Okeechobee at Roland Martin's Marina. After 5 years on the Big O, he relocated back to the Orlando area and grew Chuck's Guide Service. Over the course of his career he has personally guided over 6,000 trips. After that many reps, Captain Chuck always seems to know exactly what these Florida bass are doing.

“The Kissimmee Chain of Lakes, especially in its current condition, overgrown with hydrilla and pepper grass, can be overwhelming to even the most experienced angler, especially if they’re only allotted a few days of pre-fishing. An angler may be looking at a 500-acre grass flat, in which one area the size of a basketball court will hold winning quality fish.

And because of the abundance of vegetation, you're limited to a small variety of bass fishing lures that can be worked effectively. In the giant, matted, flats of hydrilla as shown on Major League Fishing's LIVE stream, many anglers turned to the ever-popular hollow-bodied frog lures. Of course, this made for great content because everyone likes to see a good frog bite.” 

“However, as a local angler with decades of experience fishing Lake Toho and the rest of the Chain, I would've approached the tournament a little differently. In defense of the MLF anglers, I've had plenty of time to dissect the enormous grass beds and find those basketball court-sized honey holes.”

CPF Lures Floating Thumper Pro Worm

The CPF Lures 7" Thumper Floating Worm / CPF Lures

At first light, Pippin would plan to spend about 45-minutes throwing topwater lures, concentrating on hydrilla edges and holes in flats of pepper grass patches. His bait of choice is a watermelon red or junebug Floating Thumper Pro from CPF Lures.

Pippin warns, “But the topwater bite can be sketchy. Some mornings they'll only smash that topwater speed worm for the first 20-minutes, and sometimes it can last up to three hours.”

CPF Lures Pippin8'r Worm

The CPF Lures 8" Pippin8'r Magnum Finesse Worm | CPF Lures / CPF Lures

Once the topwater action dies, Pippin would switch to dragging a junebug or dirty albright CPF Lures Pippin8'r Worm, Texas-rigged with a 1/4 - 3/16 oz., pegged Burnt Tungsten bullet weight in those same areas.

“By mid-morning, I would stick with that same worm, but look for open water areas with bluegill spawning beds in hopes of finding a big fish. I locate these bluegill beds using my Humminbird Side Imaging and dial them in with MEGA 360 and MEGA Live.” 

More CPF Lures Pippin8'r Worm

As the day progressed, Pippin would alternate between the same grass beds where he started and a series of brush piles around the lake.

“For me, it's all the Pippin8'r Worm for the rest of the day.”

What Are the Best Lures for Kissimmee?

Now that we know what the best tournament pros are using and what the best local guides are using, it’s interesting to see the differences.

Florida bass fishing guides, like Chuck Pippin, know the best bass lures for the Kissimmee Chain. Use the info he's shared in this article to catch your own trophy Florida bass. / Chuck Pippin

I noticed that the most proven locals on this specific body of water, really had very little overlap with the world’s best tournament pros. But both of these local guides also made a point to concede that, with the limited time the pro’s have to practice, it would be difficult to zero in on some of these proven local patterns and lures.

On the bright side for you, the reader, they have been pretty forthcoming about sharing the information they’ve worked really hard to gather. If you’re heading out on the Kissimmee Chain, it’s still a big, diverse place, and the best fishing can be in pretty condensed ares. But you’ll be heading out with a huge head start about the right types of cover and the best bass fishing lures to use, especially in the late spring to early summer period.