Grenada Lake continues to be the big-fish leader. Fishing pressure is intense but regulations help the lake survive. If you want a high percentage shot at a 3-plus pound crappie, this is the lake. Washington is an easy lake to fish making it a popular destination with plenty of heavyweight opportunities. Number three Sardis may surprise fishermen but the numbers, along with an up-cycle of super-size fish, earns it a spot near the top. Kentucky Lake is another body of water on an up-cycle with better size and number catch reports in early 2017. D’Arbonne, would have been higher had it not been for a winter drawdown allowing local anglers to pound the big crappie. However, it is still producing good numbers of quality fish and offers a wide variety of fishing tactics.
1. Grenada Lake, MS
2. Lake Washington, MS
3. Sardis Lake, MS
4. Kentucky Lake, TN/KY
5. Lake Darbonne, LA
6. AL River, AL
7. Lake Fork Reservoir, TX
8. Arklabutla Lake, MS
9. St. Johns River, FL
10. Reelfoot Lake, TN
11. Truman Lake, MO
12. Santee Cooper Lakes, SC
13. Monroe Lake, FL
14. Lake Conway, AR
15. Lake Dardanelle, AR
16. Lake Talquin, FL
17. Enid Lake, MS
18. Crescent Lake, FL
19, Pickwick Lake, TN/AL
20. Ross Barnett Reservoir, MS
21. Weiss Lake, AL
22. Lake Eufaula, OK
23. Rend Lake, IL
24. TN-Tombigbee, MS
25. Harris Chain of Lakes, FL
26. MS River Oxbows, MS
27. Kinkaid Lake, IL
28. Logan Martin Lake, AL
29. Lake Shelbyville, IL
30. Clarks Hill, GA
31. Millwood Lake, AR
32. Neely Henry Lake, AL
33. Green River, KY
34. Lake Barkley, KY/TN
35. Lake of the Ozarks, MO
36. Lake Murray, SC
37. Chickamauga Lake, TN
38. Pymatuning Lake, PA
39. Patoka Lake, IN
40. Lake of the Woods, CAN
41. Oconee Lake, GA
42. Toledo Bend, TX
43. Lake Jordan, AL
44. Lake Erie, OH
45. West Point, GA
46. Percy Priest, TN
47. Lake Cumberland, KY
48. Ft. Gibson, OK
49. Lake Greeson, AR
50. Cherokee, OK

Note: The top 50 lakes were organized based upon input from crappie experts, guides and tournament fishermen. Final ranking included big fish opportunities, number of fish per day, current trend of the lake and other factors.