In just five years as a full-time B.A.S.S. pro, the man they call J-Pow has established himself as one of the most consistent of competitors with 14 top-10 finishes, a quartet of wins and four Bassmaster Classic appearances. Central to his success is Powroznik’s insistence upon precision lure selection — like the Livingston Flatmasters that he helped design.
“The Flatmaster this is one of those baits you always should have with you for cooler water temperatures,” Powroznik said. “Designed for water temps around 47-52 degrees, this bait performs well around rocks, shallow points and laydowns.
“On a long cast, this bait will hit 10 feet on 10-pound test. This flat-sided crankbait produces an amazing side-to-side action and in the shad color, with Livingston’s Electronic Baitfish Sound (EBS) technology, the bass eat it up.”
As Powroznik explained, the Livingston Flatmaster’s appeal is based on its strategic action. The bait moves with a tight wiggle that perfectly fits the natural activity level of the cold season.
“The shad are moving around very slowly in the cold water and the fish are not aggressive, so you don’t want a bait that has a lot of action,” Powroznik said.
Other baits ranking highly in J-Pow’s arsenal are:
Vapor 50
Built to reach 8-10 feet, this 2-inch bait with a circuit-board coffin bill is designed for quick-hit presentations where it plows through grass and deflects off hard cover. Powroznik said he appreciates the Vapor 50’s blend of efficiency and rugged performance.
“The Vapor 50 is a great little bait that gets deep very quickly,” he said. “You can run it so it bumps off the bottom, giving off the Crawfish sound that big bass aggressively chase down in the spring.”
Noting that he most often throws the Okie Craw color during spring outings, Powroznik said the bait performs best on rocky lakes with lots of chunk rock and flat banks Sending the Vapor 50 into such scenarios creates a fleeing crawdad ruse that bass simply cannot resist.
Primetyme 2.0 SQ
“This squarebill is a great bait for all-around fishing this time of year, especially in off-colored water,” Powroznik said. “The Chartreuse Sunrise color is perfect for these conditions and paired with the EBS shad sound, it does the job on those big bass. I fish this lure for the shallow water bites around rocks, shallow points and laydowns.
Recalling the 2017 Bassmaster Elite event on Lake Dardanelle when the Primetyme 2.0 SQ helped him fill out his limits, Powroznik said he has such confidence in this bait that he’ll often stay after a scenario in which he’s confident he can bag a keeper.
“That squarebill does a good job on shallow fish in muddy water,” he said. “Dardanelle’s muddy and shallow and I caught a 3 1/2-pounder off a log. I threw by it three times and finally he got it.
“I especially like this bait around shallow wood and I’ll throw it just about anywhere in 3 feet or less, because it seldom hangs up. It’s also very good during a shad spawn. That wide wobble gets a lot of attention when the bass are feeding on baitfish.”
Livingston Lures is offering a special deal for Jacob’s three essential baits and also two other great packages featuring favorite baits of Livingston pros Hank Cherry and Randy Howell.
