Victory places St. Croix pro third in MLF Toyota Series AOY points race
St. Croix pro Jordan Wiggins caught 44-14 in his home waters of Lewis Smith Lake to win the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Central Division event in northern Alabama by over four pounds a week pass. He caught almost all of his bass on a homemade jig head toss.
Wiggins fished to stage spotted bass in deeper water during the first day of competition, catching a third-place bag that weighed 15-14. He followed the shallows the morning of day 2, going to work on the rocky platform with access to deep water where the bass were actually spawning. “The fish were creeping up as the tournament went on, so I just adapted to them,” says Wiggins, who selected darker-colored shoals that had a combination of rocks and piers, a pattern that would hold for the last few years. two days. Wiggins added 14-8 on Day 2 and another 14-8 on Day 3 to clinch the win, earning more than $90,000 in cash and contingencies while qualifying for the 2023 MLF Toyota Series Championship, scheduled for 2 to November 4 at Table Rock Lake in Branson. , Missouri.
“My brother (MLF Bass Pro Tour angler Jesse Wiggins) and I make our own shaking head jigs,” Wiggins says. “We just tweaked a few things so they can better fish around deck and rocks.” Wiggins was bowing his homemade heads with a pumpkin-green 6.5-inch Reaction Innovations Flirt Worm.
“I always throw my shaking heads at my medium-heavy power, extra fast action 7’1” St. Croix Legend Elite (EC71MHXF) rod,” says Wiggins. “It’s so light, well balanced and easy to fish all day, with the extreme sensitivity that is necessary to blind fish for spawning bass.”
Wiggins says his medium-heavy, fast St. Croix Bass X 7’1” (BAC71MHF) and Legend Tournament Bass 7’2” heavy, moderate (LBTC72HM) have also contributed to his success so far this season. “I like fishing wake baits on that Bass X MHF,” he says. “It’s light and responsive, and the SCII carbon makes it a little softer than the same rods in the other St. Croix series, so it’s a little more forgiving.” Regarding the Legend Tournament Bass LBTC72HM, “It’s definitely my new favorite chatter bait rod,” says Wiggins. “What St. Croix has been able to achieve with their iACT technology, basically a hybrid of carbon and glass, is incredible. It has that smooth, parabolic key action you need with plenty of hook setting power, but it’s the sensitivity and thin, light balance in the hand that makes this rod unlike any reaction bait rod you’ve ever fished. I put up 20lbs in Guntersville with this rod and I love casting it.”
After two events in the MLF Toyota Series Central Division, Wiggins sits in 3rd place in the AOY race with 470 points. The final event of the 2023 Central Division is scheduled for Tennessee’s Lake Chickamauga, April 25-27.
“I like the Chickamauga setup,” says Wiggins. “My co-angler fishes there a lot, and he tells me that big fish are big baits, so I guess I’ll have to go out and buy some big swim baits and slide baits… but you never really know. I expect them to play pretty well by then, so I’ll probably throw a crazy worm on my medium 7’” Legend Xtreme.
Wiggins says he owes everything to his family and major sponsors when it comes to supporting him on tour. “My wife, Whitney, puts up with me fishing week after week. My children and my brother, Jesse, are always very supportive as well. I also have St. Croix rods to thank. They have repeatedly helped me and have always treated me like family.”
About Santa Cruz rod
Based in Park Falls, Wisconsin, St. Croix has proudly produced the “World’s Best Rods” for 75 years. Combining state-of-the-art manufacturing processes with skilled labor, St. Croix is the only major producer that still builds rods completely from design to fabrication. The company remains family-owned and operates duplicate manufacturing facilities in Park Falls and Fresnillo, Mexico. With popular trademarked series like Legend®, Legend Xtreme®, Avid®, Premier®, Imperial®, Triumph® and Mojo, St. Croix is revered by all types of anglers around the world.