Professional angler Mike Boyles with a pair of Missouri bigmouths. Photo by Bryan Hendricks

Fishermen are by nature prone to hyperbole. As when they talk about the secret lure that bass can't resist. Or when they tell their buddies about a can't-miss technique or application. But when it comes to bass fishing in the Show Me State -- especially as it regards bass fishing this month -- one lure and its applications stick out: the spider grub.

While spider grubs come in various forms, colors and sizes, their basic design is essentially the same. They have a thin, cylindrical, tapered body with one or two flippers on one end, and a fountain of thin, spaghetti-like tendrils at the head. It's actually supposed to mimic a crawdad, but its name comes from those spider-like tendrils. Some say the tendrils look like a hula skirt. Hence, many people also call them "hula grubs."

These tendrils are also the key component that gives the spider-grub its amazing versatility. When the lure is moved horizontally or jigged vertically, the tendrils flare out in a most tantalizing fashion. If a bass is around, this will certainly get its attention.

The flippers are also essential to the lure's versatility. When stationary, they're supposed to mimic crawdad pincers. When the lure is moving quickly, the flippers undulate like a flag flapping in the breeze. This creates pulse turbulence that attracts fish, but it also provides a powerful visual trigger. Thus, the spider grub is an excellent lure that can be used effectively in as many ways as your imagination can conceive.

Because it's so visually stimulating, the spider grub shines in the clear lakes and rivers of Missouri. Crawdads are a staple for bass throughout the state, so a bass instantly recognizes a spider grub as food. Spider grubs are usually the top baits for catching smallmouth bass in streams, but if used with the right equipment, they are very productive in lakes, as well.

I discovered the spider grub about 10 years ago, when my love for fishing for smallmouths in streams was in full bloom. At that time I used a No. 5 Rapala minnow, silver/black back, almost exclusively. Occasionally I used gold/black back. I was very successful with those lures, but I was also very limited in where and how I could fish. If smallmouths were in a mood to chase a moving lure or pop one sitting on the surface, I was fine. If they were feeding on the bottom in deep water, as the big ones prefer to do, I couldn't get them.

I mentioned my dilemma to a friend who owned a tackle store, so he led me to the aisle containing the soft-plastic lures. He produced two small bags of Gary Yamamoto spider grubs. One was watermelon/green metal flake, the other pumpkinseed/red metal flake. Then, he handed me two small bags of black, standup jigheads. One contained 1/8-ounce jigs, the other 1/4-ounce jigs, for deeper, swifter water.

My life was never the same. Those two bags of spider grubs provided me the flexibility that allowed me to catch smallmouths in any conditions, and catch them in greater numbers than I'd ever dreamed possible. Immediately I began catching more and larger smallmouths, and success grew as I refined my techniques. Some I learned by experimenting; some I learned by luck. Others I learned from other anglers. (Other popular brands of spider grubs are those from Yum, Table Rock Bait & Tackle and Bass Pro Shops.)

TABLE ROCK SPIDERS
One angler who uses spider grubs with great effect on smallmouths is Bill Chester of Reeds Spring. Bill and I got together recently on a glorious morning at Table Rock Lake. After determining that smallmouths weren't rising to take big stickbaits, we mined the bottom with Carolina rigs and spider grubs on standup jigheads. We got some good bites with Carolina-rigged worms, but the tempo increased when we started putting spider grubs on the Carolina rig. Unfortunately, we couldn't get any of those fish in the boat.