Reigning AOY and 10-time BPT winner Jacob Wheeler, three-time REDCREST Champion Dustin Connell and standout Jake Lawrence highlight 51-angler field competing for total season purse of more than $6 million
MLF Press Release
BENTON, Ky. – Major League Fishing announced today the roster of 51 pros who will compete on the 2026 Bass Pro Tour, the eighth season of professional bass fishing’s premier tournament circuit. Featuring the most exclusive and talented field of anglers in the world – from the veterans who built the Tour’s legacy to the rookies reshaping its future – the 2026 Bass Pro Tour is set to deliver the toughest competition and most rewarding payouts in professional bass fishing history.
Featuring a stacked lineup of champions, innovators and fan favorites – including Dustin Connell, Ott DeFoe, Alton Jones Jr., Wesley Strader and Jacob Wheeler – the 2026 Bass Pro Tour roster highlights anglers who have consistently raised the bar for performance and professionalism on the water. Wheeler, a four-time Angler of the Year, 10-time BPT winner and one of the most dominant competitors in modern bass fishing, returns to defend his legacy against the sport’s deepest talent pool to date.
A remarkable collection of REDCREST champions highlight the 2026 field, led by three-time winner Connell (2021, 2024, 2025), Edwin Evers (2019), Bobby Lane (2022) and Bryan Thrift (2023). Each has proven capable of thriving under pressure and performing when it matters most, adding another layer of excitement to the Tour’s eighth season.
The 2026 roster also underscores MLF’s unmatched pathway for discovering and developing new talent. Returning after a breakout rookie season that saw five Top-10 finishes in his first eight events and a buzzer-beater win that narrowly edged out Wheeler, Jake Lawrence – the 2025 AOY runner-up to Wheeler – looks to build on an incredible debut that solidified him as one of the sport’s fastest-rising stars.
ANGLER LIST BELOW
Lawrence’s stellar season continued a trend of rookie success on the Bass Pro Tour in recent years, marking the third year in a row that a BPT newcomer has both won an event and finished in the top two in points in his debut season. Matt Becker pulled off a Saginaw Bay win and AOY double to close the 2023 season and Drew Gill won on the Chowan River and finished second to Wheeler for AOY in 2024.
Joining Lawrence in 2026 are several BPT rookies ready to make their mark on the biggest stage in bass fishing, including Banks Shaw, Mitchell Robinson, Jacob Walker and Dustin Smith, who earned their invitations through outstanding performances in the Tackle Warehouse Invitationals. The next generation of pros is arriving and proving they can compete with the best from day one.
“Every year, the release of our Bass Pro Tour roster marks the start of a new wave of excitement,” said Kathy Fennel, MLF Executive Vice President & General Manager. “This field represents the very best anglers in the world – a group defined by skill, integrity and the relentless pursuit of excellence – along with an impressive class of new competitors who’ve earned their place among the best in the world. The 2026 Bass Pro Tour lineup truly exemplifies what it means to compete at the sport’s highest level, and fans are going to see some incredible storylines unfold throughout the season.”
Driven by angler feedback, each four-day event will award $125,000 to the winner, with $15,000 paid out through 25th place – the highest minimum payouts ever awarded in pro bass fishing – plus $100,000 to the Fishing Clash Angler of the Year in 2026. The season will kick off Jan. 15–18 at Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Alabama, where the sport’s top pros will launch into another year of high-stakes competition on one of the nation’s most iconic bass fisheries.
Each four-day Bass Pro Tour event will feature two days of Qualifying Rounds, where the 51 pros will compete to finish in the top 25 and advance to the Knockout Round. The winner of the two-day Qualifying Round will advance directly to the Championship Round, where they’ll be joined by the top nine anglers from the Knockout Round for a final-day shootout for the top prize of $125,000.
Every cast, catch and comeback will be broadcast live on MLFNOW! and streamed to MajorLeagueFishing.com, the MLF app, MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) and Rumble.
The 51 professional anglers that will compete on the 2026 Bass Pro Tour are:
The 51 professional anglers that will compete on the 2026 Bass Pro Tour are:
- Casey Ashley
- Adrian Avena
- Matt Becker
- Zack Birge
- Keith Carson
- Brent Chapman
- Dustin Connell
- Justin Cooper
- Mark Daniels Jr.
- Mark Davis
- Ott DeFoe
- David Dudley
- Brent Ehrler
- James Elam
- Edwin Evers
- Todd Faircloth
- Cole Floyd
- Anthony Gagliardi
- Drew Gill
- Nick Hatfield
- Dylan Hays
- Marshall Hughes
- John Hunter
- Alton Jones
- Alton Jones Jr.
- Bobby Lane
- Chris Lane
- Jake Lawrence
- Nick LeBrun
- Justin Lucas
- Colby Miller
- Andy Montgomery
- Michael Neal
- Ron Nelson
- Takahiro Omori
- *Mitchell Robinson
- Dean Rojas
- Mark Rose
- Bradley Roy
- *Banks Shaw
- Fletcher Shryock
- Spencer Shuffield
- *Dustin Smith
- Jeff Sprague
- Wesley Strader
- Bryan Thrift
- Greg Vinson
- *Jacob Walker
- Jacob Wall
- Jacob Wheeler
- Jesse Wiggins
* Denotes 2026 Bass Pro Tour Rookie
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