Jacob Wheeler Wins 2025 BPT Lowrance Stage 5 Presented by Mercury on Kentucky Lake!

 

Jacob Wheeler scored his ninth Bass Pro Tour event win on Kentucky Lake with 46 scorable bass weighing 110 pounds, 13 ounces. Photo by Phoenix Moore

By Mitchell Forde 

BASS PRO TOUR, Press Release

CALVERT CITY, Ky. — At each of the past two Bass Pro Tour regular-season events, Jacob Wheeler has finished in second place, one bite short of the win. He fell 2-3 shy of Drew Gill on Lake Murray, then lost a heartbreaker to Jake Lawrence on Chickamauga and Nickajack, when Lawrence caught a 5-9 in the final seconds before lines out.

At Lowrance Stage 5 Presented by Mercury on Kentucky Lake, Wheeler made sure no one else even got a chance to steal the trophy.

Wheeler rallied after a slow morning and stacked up 110 pounds, 13 ounces on 46 scorable bass during Sunday’s Championship Round. He turned what looked like it would be another slugfest with Lawrence, the home-lake favorite, into a rout, topping Lawrence by 32-7.

The win is Wheeler’s first of 2025 and ninth overall on the Bass Pro Tour, adding to his tour-best trophy count. This one carried special significance, not just because he was able to flip the script and get revenge on Lawrence, but because he grew up traveling to Kentucky Lake to compete in tournaments alongside his father, Curtis, who passed away from cancer in April.  

“I just felt like he was with me all week,” Wheeler said through tears shortly after the victory became official. “It’s the first tournament that I’ve fished on a lake that we fished together, and this one had a lot of meaning to it. Obviously, he was a big part of my life, and I wouldn’t be here without him. I just wanted to win it for him.”

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

1. Jacob Wheeler – 110-13 (46)

2. Jake Lawrence – 78-6 (30)

3. Brent Ehrler – 69-8 (32)

4. Jacob Wall – 62-13 (27)

5. John Hunter – 62-10 (26)

6. Adrian Avena – 53-11 (22)

7. Cole Floyd – 51-11 (18)

8. Spencer Shuffield – 44-11 (16)

9. Andy Montgomery – 35-15 (16)

10. Michael Neal – 29-10 (12)

On paper, Stage 5 will go down looking like vintage Wheeler domination. He blasted more than 95 pounds during the first half of the first day of qualifying, then spent the rest of the day idling and scouting for new schools. He only fished for about a third of Day 2 but caught enough to win the Qualifying Round, earning himself a direct berth to the Championship Round. Sunday, while a north wind slowed the bite for everyone else, he cruised past the 100-pound mark.

Banks Shaw Wins 2025 Tackle Warehouse Invitations Stop 4 by E3 Sports Apparel!

Banks Shaw added another highlight to his stat sheet this week. Photo by Rob Matsuura

Jody White

MLF Press Release 

COUNCE, Tenn. – Tackle Warehouse Invitationals Stop 4 Presented by E3 Sport Apparel turned out to be gem of a Pickwick Lake tournament, with big weights and a tight finish on the final day. Taking the title – his first on the Invitationals – Banks Shaw tallied 26 pounds, 6 ounces on Day 1, 21-11 on Day 2 and finished off with an even 23 pounds on the final day for a 71-1 total and a convincing margin over Jake Lawrence. With a 67-15 total, Lawrence won the tiebreaker to beat Jacob Walker, who finished third.

Shaw took home his fourth MLF winner’s trophy between College, Toyota Series and the Invitationals, and by far his biggest payday yet – a cool $115,000, which includes the Phoenix MLF Bonus. Shaw also took over the Fishing Clash Angler of the Year lead with 783 points, while Mitchell Robinson finished 19th and moved up to second in the points.

In 2024, Shaw won the Toyota Series event on Chickamauga, his home lake, with a record-winning margin and an 82-12 total – as you’d guess, he won it offshore. Raised on Chick, Shaw has been fishing offshore on the Tennessee River his whole life, and going to school at the University of North Alabama has given him an intimate familiarity with Pickwick. This week, having to make hay without the aid of forward-facing sonar on Day 2, Shaw put together a real master class on modern Tennessee River success.

Shaw primarily targeted a few schools out deep on Day 1 and mostly relied on an offshore shad spawn on Day 2. On the final day, he mixed the two to secure the win. A key difference-maker for Shaw turned out to be Day 2, when many contenders dropped out of the hunt.

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