For me,

Jr Spook if I just want to catch whatever is surfacing at the time. Full size spook when I want to target Hybrids and Striper, bigger fish only. It's also fun as hell watching the smaller fish knock a full size spook a foot or two in the air repeatedly, then have a big fish flush the toilet and take away their toy.

Ultimately though, when fish are surfacing and I want to put numbers in the boat, I will default to swim bait with a single hook. It's just easier to boat fish, unhook them, and be back to fishing than it is when dealing with a bait that has 2-3 treble hooks on it. Topwater is fun, no doubt, but the swim bait will give you much less aggravation and more time fishing. Lord forbid you use a net with a multi-hook bait, you'll spend far more time untangling hooks than fishing.

I hear you on the others in the boat. I'm gonna have 4 or 5 in the boat this weekend and probably don't want anything with too many hooks on it being slung around

For schooling fish for sure a single hook lure, Lft swimbait 4"-5" or a sassy shad! Just like psych said, much quicker unhook time and you're able to get back into the action quick

Spook , chugger , pop R , devils horse. All these work.

Rebel used to make a " windcheater" popper, Looked like a pop R on steroids.

Great for big stripers. You could throw it a mile. The fish in Costa Rica like
them , also. I lost about a dozen down there, If anyone has any , I am your buyer.

good luck

Mo

Another trick for less aggravation is to just cut one barb off of the treble hook. Still a bit more complicated than single hook, but pretty easy to unhook two barbs in the mouth vs. all three.

chartreuse,or fire tiger chug bugs

This is good.

I don't understand changing hooks. Why not just mash barbs with pliers? I do like the mirror lures. Topdog and papadog. I like pretty much as few hooks as possible. Really not meat hunting , using topwater, just enjoy the splosion.

Surprised no-one mentioned a popping cork with rattles with a white jig or fly tied underneath, so I'll mention it. :-)

Sandies - Tiny Torpedo in clear or chrome.
Hybrids - Yellow Magic in bone.

Growing up fishing Texoma it was a 900 series Redfin which dived, so dad cut most of the bill off them making them a topwater, remove the center hook. To this day that bait caught the most and largest for me. Also used this at home in pond with great results.

When fishing dad had a striper break the bill of the lure and it was the last one he had so he used it and found it really worked well. No 2 casts are alike with it. he even used small split shot weights above it to vary depth and casted better.

awesomeness for sandbass!