Lure of the week: The jig that won the Classic

Andy Vollombroso was getting ready to retire after a successful career in the lure-design business.

But he can’t do it now. After Edwin Evers used the E-Series Finesse Jig — a bass lure that he and Vollombroso designed to win the Bassmaster Classic, bass fishing’s biggest tournament —Vollombroso is busier than ever.

“The orders have been just crazy,” said Vollombroso, who owns Andy’s Custom Bass Lures in Madison, Ct. “The lure that wins the Bassmaster Classic is always a hot item, but we had no idea it would generate this much business.

“We’re going to have to hire extra people just to keep up with orders.”

The finesse bass jig was co-designed by Evers and Vollombroso just a week before the Classic, which took place March 4-6 at Grand Lake in Oklahoma. Evers used that small bass jig and a plastic trailer to cast and pitch to logs and fallen trees in the Elk River and caught a huge limit of bass — five fish weighing 29 pounds, 3 ounces — on the final day of the three-day event to key his victory.

So what makes the E-Series Finesse Jig special? It is small (1  1/2 inches long), features flat living rubber, and has the realistic look of a crawdad.

For Vollombroso, a chance meeting with Evers led to the success. He has been tying jigs for 35 years and is well-known on the East Coast. In fact, many pro fisherman have used his jigs as a “secret weapon” to win tournaments. Evers was among them.

One day, he placed an order with Vollombroso’s company and requested that they be shipped overnight. Vollombroso got on the phone and struck up a conversation with Evers and the two hit it off.

“I told Edwin that I can’t retire now,” Vollombroso said. “I have to see this thing through.”

This story was originally published April 6, 2016 at 2:15 PM with the headline "Lure of the week: The jig that won the Classic."