Wes Logan Wins 2025 Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at Lake Tenkiller!

Consistency vaults Logan to victory!

Alabama's Wes Logan has won the Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at Lake Tenkiller with a four-day total of 63 pounds. (Photo: Seigo Saito/ BASS) 

BASS Press Release

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — Ten months ago, Wes Logan found himself in a hospital bed with a gash across his head and a set of broken bones after hitting an unknown object on Day 2 at the Bassmaster Elite at Lake Champlain. Logan knows how fortunate he is to even still be alive, making his second Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series trophy all the more meaningful.

“I could be dead. That is the reality of it,” Logan said. “The good Lord wants me here for some reason. I’m truly blessed to be here.”

Arguably the most consistent angler all week, Logan won the Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at Lake Tenkiller with a four-day total of 63 pounds, a Father’s Day gift for his father Doug. It is the second win of Logan’s five-year career, the first coming at the 2021 Bassmaster Elite at Neely Henry Lake on Mother’s Day.  

“I don’t deserve this,” the Springville, Ala., native said. “I got to fish how I wanted to. I got to pitch a jig like how I grew up with my dad.” 

Opening the tournament in 11th place with 14-12, Logan climbed to fifth on Day 2 with 15-13 before jumping into third on Semifinal Saturday with 15-9. He then landed the biggest bag of Championship Sunday, a 16-14 limit anchored by a 5-1 largemouth, edging out fellow Elite Series pro Andrew Loberg, who had led the first three days, by 1 ounce. 

This victory couldn’t have come at a better time for the “Little Ball of Hate.” After two good tournaments to start the 2025 season, Logan has struggled outside of the state of Florida, so much so that he questioned if he still belonged on the Elite Series stage. He entered Lake Tenkiller in 40th place in Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings.

2021 Academy Sports +Outdoor Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk on Ray Roberts Day 1: Kennedy Leads with 23lbs!

Canadians Cory Johnston 9th, Chris Johnston 10th & Gustafson 42nd

BASS PRESS RELEASE 

Shad spawn and white jig key to Kennedy's big limit.
(Photo: BASS) 

FORT WORTH, Texas — Steve Kennedy caught a five-bass limit that weighed 23 pounds Friday to take the lead during the opening round of the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk.

 

And the scary thing is, he said he didn’t even get to go to the biggest bass he found in practice.

 

The Auburn, Ala., pro made the most of an early-morning shad spawn bite, putting the bulk of his limit in the livewell before 7 a.m. Then with the winds blowing hard across Lake Ray Roberts, he decided he wouldn’t be able to proceed with the second part of his game plan.

 

On Saturday, he hopes to exploit that morning bite again — and hopefully move on to Phase 2.

 

“I kind of got stuck up on one end of the lake because the wind was blowing so hard,” said Kennedy, a 10-time Classic qualifier who has finished as high as second in the event. “I didn’t go anywhere near where I was planning on fishing my second deal.

 

“Maybe I will tomorrow. Maybe I won’t have to. If I don’t have to show that until the final day, I sure don’t want to.”

 

During Kennedy’s final day of practice, he said he got 18 bites the first two hours of the morning. But those came during cloudy conditions — and since he didn’t know if there would be cloud cover Friday, he said he tried to cover water as quickly as he could.

John Cox Wins Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit at Smith Lake with 62-04lbs!

Staying shallow key to big win

SEAN OSTRUSZKA • TACKLE WAREHOUSE PRO CIRCUIT

Wire to wire win for Cox, the shallow water king. 
(Photo: MLF) 

It seemed like it was only a matter of time. Then again, with everything that had happened to John Cox at Smith Lake in the past, he never knew if it actually would.

Today, “it” finally happened. Today, he finally got the win after being so close so many times.

With some late heroics to seal the deal, the DeBary, Florida, pro brought in 16 pounds, 10 ounces to take home the win at the second Stop on the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit with 62 pounds, 4 ounces total.

“I really wanted this one so bad,” Cox admitted.

Considering his history on Smith, it makes sense.

His previous two tournaments at Smith resulted in runner-up finishes, but it was a 2015 event that he feels was his best chance at the win. While most everyone was targeting spotted bass in the main lake, Cox had keyed in on a pattern far up Ryan Creek that was producing some giant largemouth, and it was primed to explode with the conditions on the final day. Unfortunately, he never got to find out just how good it could’ve been, as he was thrown from his boat on the final morning and didn’t complete the day.

That tournament, in particular, ran through his head a lot today.

“I actually had a few breakdowns on live,” Cox said. “I was hitting some spots that I’d fished in the past and caught fish off in the past, and it made me think of everything.”

2019 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Day 2: Chap Pipkens Lengths Lead with 62-12lbs!

Canadians Gustafason 7th, Cory Johnston 13th & Chris Johnston 40^th

By Bryan Brasher

BASS PRESS RELEASE

Pipkens has a massive 12lb lead!
(Photo: BASS)

After two days of competition at the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the anglers will take a break from fishing Saturday.

Chad Pipkens said he will welcome the break — and with the cushion he has in the standings, he should rest easy.

Pipkens’ five biggest bass during today’s second round weighed 30 pounds, 15 ounces — his second straight day with more than 30 pounds — and he maintained his overall lead in the event with a massive, two-day total of 62-14.

 That means he’ll have a gigantic cushion of 11-4 over his closest competitor when fishing resumes Sunday morning.

“I had probably the best hour and a half of fishing I’ve ever had — and I got to have it on the right day,” said Pipkens, a Michigan resident who is fishing just two months after breaking his collarbone while playing ice hockey. “I’ve seen it like that before, but it happened on the wrong day when I had to let up on them.

“We have an off day tomorrow. So today, I was able to just keep hammering them.”

Unlike Thursday’s first round when Pipkens struggled early, he got off to a fast start today, exploiting an early-morning shad-spawn bite in shallow water. He caught a nice-size largemouth off his first spot and then moved to another spot where things got as good for him as they’ve ever been.

Jesse Wiggins Blisters MLF Bass Pro Tour Group B Shotgun Round at Smith Lake

Local knowledge lets Wiggins blow up Scoretracter! 

MLF PRESS RELEASE

Shallow drains key to Wiggins lead.
(Photo: MLF)

From the moment it was announced that the Major League Fishing® (MLF) Bass Pro Tour would be making a stop at Lewis Smith Lake in northern Alabama, Jesse Wiggins was tabbed as a favorite.  

After his performance in the second Shotgun Round of the Phoenix Boats Stage Five Presented by Mercury, it's hard not to tab the Alabama pro as THE favorite. 

Wiggins - who grew up in Cullman and has been fishing Smith Lake since "Before I can even remember" - obliterated the Bass Pro Tour's single-round catch record with 49 fish, tallying 72 pounds, 4 ounces and finishing the day with a 16-4 cushion over second-place angler Todd Faircloth (56-0).  

"A good day on Smith Lake this time of year is 30, maybe 35 fish, so today was a heckuva day," Wiggins admitted. "I basically fished two spots all day long, they just happened to be schooled up in both of those spots." 

Wiggins Hit High Gear in Period 2

At the rate that Wiggins caught fish in Period 2, it's hard to imagine him wanting to stray outside his two Shotgun Round spots at all. Following a 12-fish first period, the St. Croix pro put 21 fish on SCORETRACKER™ in the second period for 32-9, almost all of it on a 3/16-ounce shaky head with a green pumpkin candy Jackall 5.8 Flick Shake Worm. 

"Jesse Wiggins did this on a lake in post-spawn that was supposed to be tough," marveled MLF NOW! analyst Marty Stone. "This performance today isn't just about him being good on Smith Lake, it's about Jesse Wiggins just being flat good. You put a really good fisherman on a lake he understands really well and this is what you get."  

But despite a prolific day and a virtually fail-safe cushion above the Elimination Line, Wiggins plans to move out of his spots and spend the day (Elimination Round 2) deciphering how far out of the backs of their spawning pockets Smith Lake's post-spawn fish have gotten. 

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 Walmart FLW Tour Lake Travis Day 2: Patek Leads with 36-06lbs!

Gustafson 13th, Chris Johnston 32nd, Richardson 37th & Cory Johnston 134th. 
by Rob Newell

FLW PRESS RELEASE

Pre-spawn staging area moves Patek into lead.
(Photo: FLW)

Stephen Patek of Garland, Texas is fishing his third year on the FLW Tour and for the first time in his short career he finds himself leading an FLW Tour event after day two of the FLW Tour at Lake Travis presented by Quaker State.

After loading up 20 pounds, 5 ounces on the scale on day one, Patek backed it up with 14-1 today to nudge Bryan Thrift off the lead by 4 ounces with a two-day total of 34 pounds, 6 ounces.

Patek owes the bulk of his catch to a single-cast hot spot that he found on the third day of practice while graphing.

“When I idled over it, it looked like a loaded ledge on Kentucky Lake,” he says. “I spun around, made one cast and caught a 2-pounder and left. I didn’t return until yesterday morning and caught them pretty quick.”

Heavy Drop Shot for Shallow Bass!

At the recent 2016 BASS Elite Bull Shoal/Norfork event, several of the top anglers did very well with heavy drop shotting. Switching to bait casting and heavier line, the drop shot is amazing when the fish are pressured or just off the bite. Elite angler Chris Zaldain lead most of the event by heavy drop shotting the shallow bushes. Check out this video on how to rig and fish a heavy drop shot.

Pickwick Lake: Following the Water

Pickwick Lake is a reservoir in north west Alabama that is part of the Tennessee Valley Authority system. It stretched from Pickwick Landing Dam to Wilson Dam. It is site of this week's Bassmaster Elite Alambama Charge tournament. Pickwick lake is a popular lake that has a diversity of fishing. There is a strong population of bass, both largemouth and smallmouth along with stripers and white bass. Pickwick can be divided into two distinct areas.


The Fast Water

Tim Horton tries to break off a wedged bait in the
fast water.
(Photo: James Overstreet BASS)

The fast water is a huge draw for anglers. The tailwater below Wilson Dam is rocky and the current is quick. This draws baitfish, gamefish and anglers. This area is historically very popular. Some of the lake's largest smallmouth live there. Water levels, discharge rates and time of year greatly effect its flow. Current speed and water depth alter greatl causing bass and their food to frequently reposition. Find the correct drift will have you in haven.


The tailwater section of this impoundment eats tackle at an alarming rate. Snagging is a constant problem. Expect to clean your tackle box out quickly if you're not carefully watching your line. Other foes are the eager white bass and stripers. They love baitfish shaped lures equally and their aggressive nature can force smallmouth and largemouth to relocate. Many Elite pros will battle more stripers and white bass than they care too. But, that is all part of the game in the fast water.


The Timber

Denny Brauer is loving the flipping cover. He was the Day 1 leader.
(Photo: Rob Russow BASS)

Pickwick Lake is more of a river than a typical impoundment. It's shoreline can be very brushy and steep. Many sections of Pickwick are sheer bluff walls. But that is a different story altogether.  Finding the correct area can be flipping Nirvana. Trees, brush and stumps are ideal for flippers but also prime spinnerbait, topwater, and shallow cranking water. Largemouth in the timber can be a great pattern. Last year's Elite Pickwick Lake winner Kevin Short worked the wood to perfection.


What is Happening This Week
Water levels have been at an all time high. April showers means water in the bushes. The flippers have benefited from it but if it floods too much a lot of great areas become unreachable by boat.  High water is a double edge sword. It keep the largemouth in the cover but in the tailwater section of the lake expect,  ripping currents. Some find the strong current concentrates the bass. It also crams the anglers together which can make fishing a comedy of errors. Strong current makes boat and lure control dicey. Either way, high water can make fishing better for the anglers who work for it.


Receding water has pluses and negatives. As the water levels decrease, it sucks bass our of the flooded woods positioning them  in cuts, creeks, sloughs, dredged canals or along the outside edge of the wood. For the angler who can adjust and focus their casts to where the bass have relocated, its a sure way to vault to the top of the leader board. If the water drops too quickly it will crash the shallow water bite entirely.


Smallmouth anglers tend to like a little less current. It allows them to maintain more control over the fishing. It also allows the bass to spread across a wide geographical areas of the tailwater area. Which set of conditions are best is up to the fish and the angler who capitalize on the changes.


Tournament fishing is all about making good decisions. This tournament will be won by the angler who adjusts to the conditions on Pickwick Lake.


Stay tuned!