The Starting Spot: Grigsby Says Goodbye, Topwater Lures Rule, and Best New Baits at ICAST

The Starting Spot Daily Bass Fishing Headlines are the perfect way to start your day with some of the top bass fishing articles on the internet. It’s the quick, informative, how, where, and who you need to know. So, rub the sleep from your eyes, pour that first cup of the day, and head to your Starting Spot.

The Starting Spot: -One of the all time great bass pros and nicest guy you’ll ever meet, Shaw Grigsby has announced his retirement. -Shaye Baker makes the case that topwater baits are the best baits a bass angler can fish. It’s difficult to argue. -Here are some of the coolest new bass baits from ICAST 2025. | Photo by Kurt Mazurek

In today’s 7-24–25 edition of The Starting Spot:

-One of the all time great bass pros and nicest guy you’ll ever meet, Shaw Grigsby has announced his retirement.

-Shaye Baker makes the case that topwater baits are the best baits a bass angler can fish. It’s difficult to argue.

-Here are some of the coolest new bass baits from ICAST 2025.

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Grigsby Says St. Lawrence Event Will Be His Last

by BassFan Staff

Per an article on BassFan.com: Bass Fishing Hall of Famer Shaw Grigsby has announced he will retire from professional bass fishing at the conclusion of the St. Lawrence River Tackle Warehouse Invitational, which takes place this week in Massena, N.Y. The announcement was made via press release.

Grigsby, who lives in Gainesville, Fla., has been a fixture in the sport for more than 40 years as a competitor, ambassador and relatable personality. His infectious laugh and signature mustache endeared him to fishing fans everywhere. He began fishing full time in 1984 on the Bassmaster Tour and has competed in more than 420 pro events across the Bassmaster, FLW and Major League Fishing trails. He racked up nine wins, 64 top-10 finishes and qualified for 16 Bassmaster Classics along with two Forrest Wood Cups. He collected nearly $2.4 million in tournament winnings…MORE.

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Topwaters are the Best Bass Baits, Period

by Shaye Baker

According to a story on Wired2Fish.com: There is nothing in fishing better than a topwater bite. If you believe something different, you are either misinformed or you have not yet had a topwater bite. I love punching, I love throwing  a spinnerbait, I love fishing a glidebait — none of these do for my soul what a topwater does. 

“Best” is a hard term to pin down and thus extremely subjective. Is a topwater the best bait for wintertime fishing, obviously not. Is a topwater the best bait for targeting suspended bass over 50 feet of water—not a bad option but certainly not the best. But across all genres, across all time, the topwater creates the most memorable strikes and catches. It works on basically any fishery and there’s a topwater lure that will work in and around any type of cover. Let’s look at how these attributes and more make the topwater the best bass fishing bait, in my opinion…MORE.

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See the Best New Baits From ICAST 2025

by Morgan Nowels

Per an article on GearJunkie.com: New baits are one of my favorite categories of products. They fill anglers with dreams of finding the lure that will result in a fish on every cast. Is that realistic? No, but it’s fun to dream. And while you may not have the coin to spring for a brand-new rod or reel, baits are relatively cheap, allowing virtually every angler to experience new gear hype.

While many of the new baits at ICAST had already been released at the Bassmaster Classic, there were still plenty of brand-new offerings to keep things interesting. As a hopeless tinkerer, I spent a solid portion of the show messing with the best new baits from ICAST 2025…MORE.