Hey, Gerald ....
My first thought is that they were presenting 4 lures to Sam's ONE. Also, depending on the water clarity, their "bright" (contrasting colors) lures may have been a better trigger than Sam's white one.
I experienced that same thing down at Barkley Lake, back a few decades ago. Slabs were nailing my pink Roadrunner, at almost a 3:1 rate over my two partner's white Roadrunners !!
My best guess would be that the two young fellers were using tube jigs or jighead/plastic minnow bodies ... broadcast casting the area, looking for a reaction bite. Sam may have been giving the fish too long a time, or too much a chance to look over HIS jig ... whereas the young guys were covering water faster, presenting more bait options, and using the speed of their retrieve to force the fish to instinctively grab at the fleeting bait without taking the time to look it over.
... cp