Jacob Wheeler Wins 2025 Toyota Stage 7 Presented by Ranger Boats on Saginaw Bay!

By Mitchell Forde 

BASS PRO TOUR 

BAY CITY, Mich. — Jacob Wheeler couldn’t help himself. 

Time had already run out in Toyota Stage 7 Presented by Ranger Boats on Saginaw Bay with Wheeler atop SCORETRACKER®, his 10th career Bass Pro Tour win secured. Yet after Wheeler addressed the MLFNOW! viewers and offered some thank yous to those who had helped him get his tournament fishing start growing up in Indiana, he picked his rod back up and pitched a topwater frog back to the clump of reeds and lily pads in front of his boat, trying to elicit one more blowup.

That summed up Wheeler’s week on Saginaw Bay. Needing only to finish 27th or better to secure his fourth Fishing Clash Angler of the Year title in the past five seasons, he could have played it safe, then celebrated and gone through the motions after he secured the hardware on Friday. Instead, he not only made Sunday’s Championship Round but overcame an early 22-pound deficit to Todd Faircloth and willed his way to a win in a three-way battle with Faircloth and Edwin Evers. His total of 110 pounds even on 42 scorable bass ultimately topped Faircloth by 7-6.

For the win, Wheeler earned $150,000 – he’ll leave Saginaw Bay with $250,000 and two trophies thanks to his AOY victory. The dream end to yet another dominant season left even Wheeler, who is no stranger to recapping victories, short for words.

“I still don’t know what to say, to be honest with you,” he said with a chuckle. “I don’t even believe it half the time. I just go fishing and things happen. I’m just speechless. It’s crazy, it really is.” 

Here’s how the Top 10 pros finished the Championship Round:

1. Jacob Wheeler – 110-0 (42)

2. Todd Faircloth – 102-10 (40)

3. Edwin Evers – 86-10 (36)

4. Cole Floyd – 66-2 (26)

5. Brent Ehrler – 61-2 (25)

6. Bryan Thrift – 58-0 (23)

7. Nick Hatfield – 54-12 (23)

8. Spencer Shuffield – 49-15 (21)

9. Keith Carson – 45-7 (18)

10. James Elam – 43-6 (18)

Complete results

Wheeler separates himself with strategy yet again

Wheeler took his first lead of the Championship Round with about 10 minutes left in Period 2. From there, he and Faircloth traded blows, the top spot on

2024 TNT Firework Bassmaster Elite at Smith Lake Day 2: Cody Huff Grabs Lead!

Canadians Cory Johnston 5th, Gallant 15th, Chris Johnston 25th & Gustafson 40th

By Andrew Calulette 

BASS Press Release

CULLMAN, Ala. — The heat was on,

literally and figuratively, on Day 2 of the

TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite at

Smith Lake. And at the halfway point of this Elite

Series derby, Cody Huff is the one

holding fellow Elite feet to the fire.

Huff, a 27-year-old pro from Ava, Mo., leads the tournament with a two-day total of 10 bass for 29 pounds, 1 ounce. And while that might not be the eye-popping weight the sport’s best sticks regularly post, it’s certainly an impressive total given the slack bite on Day 1 followed by blistering temperatures that pushed the heat index into triple digits Friday.

The heat was extreme enough that Huff came to the scales more than an hour early on Friday, weighing in at approximately 1 p.m.

“I had a fish die on me, and I didn’t want to take the chance of losing any more,” Huff said.

His 15-4 total Friday was the heaviest of the day, even with the expired fish factored into his total. He bagged 13-13 on Thursday.

2023 Folds of Honor Bassmaster Elite at Sabine River Day 1: Pipkens Rips Lead!

Canadians: Chris Johnston 45th, Cory Johnston 60th, Gallant 83rd & Gustafson 96th

Chad Pipkens of DeWitt, Mich., is leading after Day 1 of the Folds of Honor Bassmaster Elite at Sabine River with 14 pounds, 7 ounces. (Photo: Seigo Saito/BASS)

BASS PRESS RELEASE

ORANGE, Texas — Chad Pipkens of DeWitt, Mich., broke with two of his historical patterns and sacked up a 14-pound, 7-ounce limit to lead Thursday’s opening round of the Folds of Honor Bassmaster Elite at Sabine River.

 

On a fishery where limits are never assumed and only 11 anglers eclipsed 10 pounds, Pipkens heads into Day 2 with a lead of 1-5 over Hunter Shryock of Ooltewah, Tenn. Suffice it to say, Pipkens has positioned himself well to end a streak he’d rather forget.

 

“It’s about time Sabine River!” Pipkens happily exclaimed. “I have fun at this place, but I have gotten my teeth kicked in every time I come here. This is the fifth time I’ve fished here and the good news is I think I can fish Saturday without catching a fish.

 

“I’m going to go out tomorrow and have some fun and try to put a few in the boat. We’ll see what happens.”

 

As Pipkens explained, breaking his streak of Sabine disappointment was the result of abandoning his previous preference.

 

Kenta Kimura Wins 2022 Bassmaster Northern Open!

Japanese Elite Pro Kenta Kimura uses buzzbait and cranks to 
claim James River victory.(Photo: BASS) 

BASS PRESS RELEASE 

RICHMOND, Va. — Bassmaster Elite Series angler Kenta Kimura said earlier in the week that he did not know what he was doing on the James River. But now that he’s won the St. Croix Bassmaster Northern Open at James River presented by Mossy Oak Fishing with a three-day total of 65 pounds, his story seems less than convincing.

After a Day 1 limit of 17 pounds put him in 19th place, the pro from Osaka, Japan, added 23-5 a day later and surged into second. Finishing Championship Saturday with 24-11 — the event’s second-heaviest bag — Kimura edged Keith Poche of Pike Road, Ala., by a margin of 3-9.

2021 Bassmaster Elite Whataburger Neely Henry Lake Day 2: Paul Mueller Leads with 30-06lbs!

Canadians Cory Johnston 24th, Gustafson 41st & Chris Johnston 46th

BASS PRESS RELEASE

Paul Mueller said consistency will decide who wins the Whataburger Bassmaster Elite at Neely Henry Lake.

If that’s the case, the 37-year-old pro from Naugatuck, Conn., is in the perfect position at the halfway point of the tournament.

Mueller caught a five-bass limit on Saturday that weighed 15 pounds, 3 ounces, the same total he boated Friday on this 11,200-acre reservoir of the Coosa River in northeast Alabama. His 30-6 total leads the event, which began a day late due to heavy rains earlier in the week that swelled Neely Henry’s water level in places and stained the water throughout.

Those conditions have made fishing tricky for most anglers through Day 2, but Mueller has stayed steady. Fifty other anglers weren’t so lucky as the 98-angler field was trimmed to 48 following the Day 2 weigh-in at the Gadsden City Boat Docks.

“To win one of these, you can’t have one bad day,” Mueller said. “If you slip, it’ll keep you from winning. I’ve been in that position more times than winning. You have that bad day, you finish fifth or whatever.”

Mueller weighed three largemouth and a pair of spotted bass on Saturday. He said he didn’t cover nearly as much water as he did a day earlier, but he’s pounding the areas he is fishing.

“I’m doing what I like to do, chunking and winding a crankbait,” he said. “I’d rather do that than eat. I like to do my own thing and not fish next to anyone. It’s important for me to fish my own stuff. And if you can do what you like to do, you’re better off. You don’t play someone else’s ball game.”

Mueller’s heavy on Saturday was a 4-pound largemouth. He added a spotted bass that weighed about 3 1/4 pounds, another quality bite here this week, but he lamented missing two spots he said were heavier than the couple of 2 1/2-pounders that rounded out his Day 2 bag.

2020 NOCO Bassmaster Elite on Lakes Guntersville Day 3: Wes Logan Commands Leads with 49Lbs!

Cory Johnston 13th, Gustafson 28th & Chris Johnston 34th 

By Bryan Brasher 

BASS PRESS RELEASE 

Logan scratched his way to the top
hitting grass mats.
(Photo: BASS) 

The good news for Wes Logan is that he’s leading the NOCO Bassmaster Elite at Lake Guntersville heading into Championship Saturday.

The bad news is he says he’s fresh out of ideas.

The rookie from Springville, Ala., caught five bass that weighed 16 pounds, 2 ounces during Friday’s semifinal round, pushing his three-day total to 49-0 and giving him little more than a 1-pound lead.

As for what Saturday holds? He couldn’t say. 

“I think my area is shot,” Logan said after making his first career Elite Series Top 10. “I think the pressure finally got to it. There were a bunch of local boats on it today, and I think they beat it up pretty good.

“If I’m gonna win, I’m gonna have to find something else.”

As tough as Friday may have been for Logan, his catch of 16-2 was the second-largest of the day behind Texas pro Randy Sullivan, who caught 17-15 to move into second place. 

Logan has spent most of the tournament flipping grass mats with a 1 1/2-ounce Ark Tungsten weight, a 4/0 straight-shank hook and a rotation of soft plastics that includes a Zoom Z Craw, a Zoom Z Craw Jr. and a beaver-style bait — all in black and blue.

After exhausting the stretch of water that has been so good to him this week, he ran a new 300-yard stretch Thursday, landing a 4-pounder and losing a bass he estimated to be more than 5 pounds.

That will likely be his starting point Saturday.

2020 NOCO Bassmaster Elite on Lakes Guntersville Day 2: Brandon Cobb Scores Lead with cher Leads with 34-11Lbs!

Chris Johnston 18th, Cory Johnston 23rd & Gustafson 24th 

By Bryan Brasher

BASS PRESS RELEASE

Cobb using range of techniques to
counter difficult bite.
(Photo: BASS)

Professional bass anglers are some of the most notorious poor-mouthers on the planet. Even on their best days, they’re likely to tell you the fishing was tough.

But at this week’s NOCO Bassmaster Elite at Lake Guntersville, they may actually be telling the truth — even the ones who seem to be doing well.

During Thursday’s second round, when 31 of the 85-angler field failed to bring in a five-bass limit, South Carolina pro Brandon Cobb managed to catch five that weighed 17 pounds, 11 ounces to take the lead with a two-day total of 34-11.

He said don’t let his success at the scales fool you.

“The weights really don’t reflect how hard the fishing has been,” said Cobb, who earned his first two Elite Series victories last season. “It is very tough. Today, I had four big bites and I lost one.

“The Guntersville way is to catch schools of fish, whether it’s ledge fish or grass fish or whatever. But since I haven’t really found that, I’ve just been fishing shallow and trying to catch one at a time.”

Despite those limited bites, Cobb has been the most consistent angler in the field. Before landing his 17-11 Thursday, he opened the event Wednesday with 17-0.

He’s been fishing a little bit of everything — docks, riprap, bank grass and offshore grass — to make it happen, and he’s been relying heavily on a tactic he admits isn’t his specialty.

“I’ve been flipping a lot this week, and I don’t do that in South Carolina,” he said. “That’s probably why I lost that one big fish today. When you go so long between bites, you start sort of halfway not paying attention.

“I’m too gun-shy flipping. I felt that fish bite, but I waited too long to pull the trigger.”

2018 Forest Wood Cup Lake Ouachita Day 2: Wes Logan Leads with 23-13lbs!

3 Canadians Out of Top 10
by Sean Ostruszka
FLW PRESS RELEASE

After two days of fishing, pros are usually pretty dialed in on their patterns. Not this week. You’d be hard pressed to find a pro who feels confident in any sort of pattern on Saturday at the Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Ouachita.

Mixing shallow and deep working for Logan.
(Photo: FLW)

Case in point, day-one leader Alex Davis brought a lone fish to the scale today. Nick LeBrun, who was in second on day one, only caught three keepers. He was fortunate one of them weighed more than 6 pounds, which helped him stay in second.

At this point, even new leader Wes Logan is unsure if he’ll catch another fish with how random and tough the bites have been on Lake Ouachita. His catch thus far is 23 pounds, 13 ounces, including a 12-pound, 4-ounce bag that was the largest of day two. He has a 1-pound, 2-ounce lead over LeBrun going into the final day

“I’m just going with my gut, and so far it’s been right,” Logan says.

The Springville, Ala., pro has been running a two-pronged attack up shallow and out deep.

Two key offshore spots in 17 to 25 feet of water have been more consistent. He’s been able to catch multiple keepers there each day.

The shallow pattern is a lot more random. He doesn’t know where he’s going to go at any given moment.

“I must’ve hit 50 spots today,” Logan says. “I burnt a good amount of gas. I’m just running anywhere I see. No real reason to it. Just covering water.”

The end result has been him catching 10 keepers each day.

As for Sunday’s final day of competition, Logan doesn’t even know where he’ll start. While the deep bite has been more consistent, he’s not getting any big bites out there, and it seems to be better in the afternoon. That leaves him probably going shallow, but where is anybody’s guess.

The “anybody’s guess” part could be said about who’s going to win this event too. With such unpredictability in the bites and weights, most every pro in the top 10 has a shot to win if he has a good day.

Still, considering he’s a rookie who’s never been to Ouachita, Logan is just quite pleased to be where he’s sitting.

“I’m obviously excited [about leading the Cup],” Logan adds. “But you want to be leading after the third day, not the second.”

TOP 10 PROS

1. Wes Logan – Springville, Ala. – 23-13 (10)           

2. Nick LeBrun – Bossier City, La. – 22-11 (8)        

3. James Niggemeyer – Van, Texas – 20-14 (9)         

4. Zack Birge – Blanchard, Okla. – 20-6 (10)

5. Jason Lambert – Michie, Tenn. – 20-3 (10)          

6. John Cox – DeBary, Fla. – 19-14 (9)        

7. Bradford Beavers – Summerville, S.C. – 19-5 (8)  

8. Brandon Cobb – Greenwood, S.C. – 19-2 (10)     

9. Justin Atkins – Florence, Ala. – 19-0 (10)

10. Clent Davis – Montevallo, Ala. – 19-0 (10)        

2018 Bassmaster Classic on Lake Hartwell Day 2: Mid-Morning Report.

Change is good for leaders

By Luigi De Rose

Evers working a typical Grand Lake Pre-spawn pattern.
(Photo: BASS)

Sometimes you get what you wished for. That is the case for many of the top anglers in the 2018 Bassmaster Classic on Day 2 who prayed for an overcast morning but it doesn’t seem to have helped.  They wanted a darker, misty morning to prolong the bite unfortunately, it has hindered the fish catches instead of accelerated it.  The deep-water spotted bass have been smaller than yesterday and many of the anglers do not have a 5-bass limit as of 10:45am. 

One key pattern has emerged over the last day and a half; capitalizing on largemouth moving shallow. Even though Lake Hartwell is spotted bass heaven, big largemouth are critical to winning any spring tournament.

Largemouth are making a move toward the back of pockets, coves and flat banks to start the spawning ritual. Christie, Evers, Elam, DeFoe and a few others are fishing grass, rocks, wood but the docks seem to be the best at holding the larger females. Largemouth will migrate to the truly shallow water if the conditions change, and they’re changing. The corners and especially the back corners, closest to the bank are the best. Much of the Top 10 caught their larger bass yesterday after 11am as it became warmer. If it continues to warm up, anglers on this pattern will be waiting for them.

The vibrating jig, jigs and even spinnerbaits are key baits today and yesterday to the largest bass being caught. If it gets super sunny, rising the water temperature, it might produce a strong bite that could launch an angler back in the Top 15 into the lead just like what happened to Jordan Lee when he won the 2016 Classic on Lake Conroe.

Top 10

1. Edwin Evers  32-3
2. Jason Christie 29-12
3. Jordan Lee 29-6
4. James Elam 29-05
5. Jacob Wheeler 27-13
6. Brent Ehrler 27-12
7. Casey Ashley 24-0
8. Jacob Powroznik 23-14
9. Aaron Martens 23-8
10. Dustin Connell 23-9

Johnny McCombs Wins 2017 Walmart FLW Tour Beaver Lake with 47-01lbs!

McCombs outlast flood and anglers to take title. 

by Curtis Niedermier

FLW PRESS RELEASE

Life tests us in many ways – some tests being more significant than others.

Bass fishing, for instance, is a test of concentration, strategy and an understanding of Mother Nature’s ways.

Professional tournament fishing in the kind of extreme conditions we saw this week at the FLW Tour presented by General Tire at Beaver Lake, which included a lake-level rise of more than 12 feet, more than 9 inches of rain on Saturday alone, flash floods and thunderstorms, might be the toughest kind of bass fishing test.

Johnny ran topwater over flooded shorelines to win.
(Photo: FLW)

For Johnny McCombs, the result at Beaver Lake was a passing score and a $100,000 paycheck. McCombs won the tournament with a four-day catch of 47 pounds, 1 ounce.

Still, the challenges of this week were minor compared to the ways that life has tested McCombs off the water. His success is significant not because of how he caught his fish, but because of what he’s managed to overcome to have this opportunity.

2017 Walmart FLW Tour Beaver Lake Day 3: Johnny McCombs Leads with 41-13lbs!

Lakes levels at record high as it keeps raining.

by Curtis Niedermier

FLW PRESS RELEASE

In the Rogers area in northwest Arkansas, the story of the day was the series of severe thunderstorms that washed through the region overnight Friday and again on Saturday morning and afternoon. The result was flash flooding that swept debris across roads and caused many low-lying areas to become impassible. Downed trees and power lines also caused headaches. Currently, the entire area is a saturated, mucky mess.

One big bass vaults Johnny to first.
(Photo: FLW)

But not all was gloomy in Rogers on Saturday. Out on the water, Alabama pro Johnny McCombs was writing his own story at the FLW Tour event presented by General Tire at Beaver Lake. McCombs, who’s fishing the Tour in 2017 for the first time since 2003, pounded out an 18-pound, 15-ounce limit – the best of the tournament so far – to race from 11th place into first going into the final day of competition. McCombs’ 41-13 total has him in front of Texas pro Jason Reyes by 2 pounds, 4 ounces.
TOP TEN BELOW

2017 BASS Elite Toledo Bend Day 3: Hartman's Lead Larger with 56-15!

New Yorker loves Toledo Bend

By Bryan Brasher

BASS PRESS RELEASE

For three days, Jamie Hartman has made southern fishing look easy.

Now, he needs one more good day to make his dreams come true.

Spawn key to Hartman's pattern.
(Photo: BASS)

The New York resident, who has readily admitted that he isn't familiar with the patterns and practices observed by bass that live in the lakes of the South, caught five Saturday that weighed 17 pounds, 14 ounces to push his three-day total to 56-15 in the Bassmaster Elite at Toledo Bend presented by Econo Lodge.

He will lead the remaining 12 anglers into Championship Sunday with a chance to earn $100,000 and his first B.A.S.S. victory.

"I'm absolutely, 100 percent pleased with the way things went today," said Hartman, who caught 23-5 and 15-12 the first two days of the tournament. "I'm just winging it, piecing things together, but it's all working out so far."

Hartman said he came to Toledo Bend this week expecting the spawn to be over. But when he realized it was still in full swing, he adjusted and turned his attention to spawn and prespawn fish.

They were his target again Saturday.

"I caught three fish on beds today," said Hartman, an Elite Series rookie fishing only his 13th B.A.S.S. event. "Then after that, the shallow stuff was over. I caught my next 12 fish in 32 feet of water. Those fish in deep water were all prespawn fish — big and fat."

2016 FLW CUP Wheeler Lake Day 3: John Cox Leads as Todd Auten Catches Up Within 9 oz.

Chris Johnston moves to 9^th!

by Rob Newell

FLW PRESS RELEASE

Forrest Wood Cup leader John Cox of DeBary, Fla., watched his 6-pound, 7-ounce lead get slashed to 9 ounces instantly on day three of competition at Wheeler Lake.

The man responsible for erasing Cox’s leading margin?

Todd Auten of Lake Wylie, S.C.

Today, Auten checked in his biggest limit of the week, 17 pounds, 10 ounces, to leap from fifth into second and create a major threat to Cox’s Cup dreams going into the final day.

Cox’s 11-pound catch today was his lightest of the week, bringing his three-day total to 43 pounds, 5 ounces.

Cox's creek losing its magic as Auten makes dramatic comeback.
(Photo: FLW)

Despite having the gap closed up, Cox still seems very much at ease about his situation.

“I know it was my lightest bag of the week, but I pretty much expected that,” Cox says. “I went back into the same creek I’ve been fishing the last two days, and it’s playing out. I’ve caught quite a few fish out of it, and I think I’ve removed a lot of the quality fish from the area. That’s to be expected when fishing small, residential places like that. Plus, there were a few other local folks fishing back there, which is going to happen. So all in all I’m not shocked or surprised.”

For the first time all week, Cox did venture out of his primary area today to visit another extreme backwater he had been saving. That move turned out to be fruitless and is a bit more disconcerting to Cox.

“I had some high hopes for that place, but it wasn’t any good,” he says. “The good news is that I got that place out of my head, though. I won’t waste time with it tomorrow. I still have one other place I have not been to yet that I will start in tomorrow. If it goes well in there, I will stay. If not, I’m going to have to return to my original creek and hope for the best.”

Cox says the water has come up about 8 inches in the last few days, and that has made access to his remote areas easier for others. That fact, above all, concerns him most.

“When I went in these places during practice, I could barely get in them with my aluminum boat,” he says. “But now, with the water up, they’re not as hard to access, so I have no way of knowing if other anglers have been in them. When it was lower, I knew I was the only one that could get in them.”

With others in the top 10 some 5 pounds behind Cox and Auten, the final day of the Forrest Wood Cup has the appearance of being a two-man race. But enough 15- to 19-pound limits have been weighed in this week to make anything possible.

One thing is for certain: The 2016 Forrest Wood Cup is far from over.

Top 10 Pros

1. John Cox – DeBary, Fla. – 43-5

2. Todd Auten – Lake Wylie, S.C. – 42-12

3. Michael Neal – Dayton, Tenn. – 37-14

4. Bryan Thrift – Shelby, N.C. – 37-13

5. Jacob Wheeler – Indianapolis, Ind. – 37-3

6. Mark Rose – West Memphis, Ark. – 36-9

7. Brandon Cobb – Greenwood, S.C. – 35-9

8. Joseph Webster – Fulton, Miss. – 34.13

9. Chris Johnston – Peterborough, Ontario – 34-3

10. Jeremy Lawyer – Sarcoxie, Mo. – 32-15