Combs and Tipton Hammer $5,000 Payday in Rat-L-Trap Open at Lake Guntersville

The Bill Lewis Lures Rat-L-Trap Open was back again at Lake Guntersville for the 2026 event on March 1st. The event, hosted by Visit Jackson County and GTO @ Goose Pond, saw a field of 173 teams in the annual event. The All Traps, No Scopes open event was just that – anglers were only allowed to fish with Bill Lewis lipless Rat-L-Traps without the use of live forward facing sonar technology.

The unique tournament format allows anglers to launch from any ramp on Lake Guntersville, but are given a specific start time when they can make their first casts based on their boat number and flight.

Shane Combs and Wayne Tipton topped the field of anglers from all around the country, weighing a 23.38 pound, 5 bass limit to take home the win and guaranteed $5,000 1st place prize.

Combs and Tipton focused on 3/16 oz Hammer Traps in Baton Rouge and Purple Nurple colors to catch their winning bag. The duo had a later start time, with their first cast not being allowed until 7:20, over an hour after the first flight was able to make their first casts. The duo capitalized on the morning bite as soon as they were able to begin fishing, stating the bite only lasted about an hour for them. Combs and Tipton fished their Hammer Traps through eel grass, yo-yoing it through the grass to catch their winning bag, that was also anchored by a 7.57-pound kicker to take home 3rd Big Bass honors and an additional $500 for a total of $5,500 on the day.

Chad Jones and Danny Crocket finished close behind in 2nd place, weighing a 22.81 pound, 5 bass limit. Jones and Crockett also utilized the Hammer Trap to put their winning bag in the boat, focusing on a 3/8 oz model in both Rayburn Red and Baton Rouge colors. The duo took home $1,800 for their bag.

James Pritchett and Donavon Williams used a 1/2 oz Knock’n Trap to put a 22.12 pound, 5 bass limit together for a third place finish and $1,300. The duo anchored their Top 3 bag with an 8.34 pound lunker that took 2nd Big Bass of the event, earning an additional $1,000 for a total of $2,300.

Rounding out the Top 5 were Scott Sisson and Tanner Sisson who finished the day in 4th place with 22.01 pounds, followed by Hayden Bevel and John Brannon in 5th place with 21.06 pounds.

Overall Big Bass honors went to the team of Cody Hudson and Eric Stafford. Hudson and Stafford boated an 8.45 pound lunker to anchor their bag, thanks to an Original 1/2 oz Rat-L-Trap in Red Crawfish. That fish earned the duo $2,200 and helped secure an overall 15th place finish on the day.

All images courtesy of Kenneth Grover, Fishing North Alabama

About Bill Lewis Lures

Bill Lewis was a decorated World War II bomber pilot that grew up in the small town of Laurel, MS. He was an interesting blend of an artist, a salesman, and a fierce competitor. His brother Jack spoke of Bill selling minnows on the street as a kid. Bill went on to be a highly sought after football recruit, but went to war for his country before ever seeing any time on the field in college.

After flying over 30 missions in WWII, Bill returned home and went to art school in Chicago. Thereafter he worked as a commercial artist in Dallas, TX and Jackson, MS. During that time Bill’s passion for fishing and his entrepreneurial spirit started to lead him into designing and selling fishing lures.

Bill made many attempts and took great risks in starting a fishing lure business before making it big. When most people would have called it quits and gone for a safer career path, Bill pressed on always finding a way to continue pursuing his dream. Then in the 60’s he developed a true champion of the fishing tackle industry, the legendary Rat-L-Trap®.

Then he heard the Rat-L-Trap coming through the water and saw his buddies catching fish like never before he knew he had something special. Bill also knew he needed a good name for this bait. Driving home from Toledo Bend one day in his old Ford station wagon, it hit him, he’d just name the lure after his car, the RattleTrap. It was noisy, but dependable like no other!

Today the Rat-L-Trap brand is the number 1 selling brand of hard-baits. With over 350 size and color combinations, The Trap™ is the undisputed king of lipless crankbaits.

In recent years the Bill Lewis company has begun working closely with it’s pro-staff and customer base to bring them even more offerings. Some of these new products are inspired by innovative, original design and others have been developed out of the desire to improve on existing designs, but one thing is sure, all Bill Lewis products are held to a high standard of performance and made with quality.

Visit www.Rat-L-Trap.com to view the entire lineup of baits from Bill Lewis Lures.