Brandon Lester 2nd, Chris Johnston 3rd!
But by winning the 2022 Progressive Insurance Bassmaster Angler of the Year race, adding yet another trophy to his mantle, “The Prodigy” is surely living up to his nickname.
With a 25th-place finish at the Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite at Mississippi River with 39 pounds, 11 ounces, Palaniuk clinched the Angler of the Year title Sunday, becoming just the 12th angler to win multiple AOY trophies, with his first title coming back in 2017.
“It is amazing. It hasn’t sunk in all the way yet,” Palaniuk said. “The feeling of winning and that accomplishment, that moment and feeling when (Dave) Mercer announces it on stage, that is what makes all the hard work, the early mornings, the late nights and the hard times OK. It makes it worth it. For me, it is another piece of the puzzle of this crazy life we live, and I’m glad the pieces fell the way I wanted them to.
“I feel like every year I know myself better and I feel like I fish better,” he added. “I feel like (I’m) hitting my stride.”
Palaniuk was able to begin his celebration on stage with his daughter, Kora, in his arms and his wife, Tiffanie, by his side.
“It doesn’t get any better than that. Because of them, I can do what I do. It is just as much theirs as it is mine,” he said.
After battling David Mullins and John Cox for the lead most of the year, Palaniuk entered the Mississippi River event with a 37-point lead over Brandon Lester after a disappointing showing at Lake Oahe. Lester and Chris Johnston put the pressure on Palaniuk this week, as both anglers qualified for Championship Monday.
