2026 Yokohama Tire Bassmaster Elite at Santee Cooper Lakes Day 2: Brandon Palaniuk Scores Big Lead!

Canadians Chris Johnston 2nd, Cory Johnston 4th, Kung 16th, Gustafson 53rd & Gallant 96th

Rathdrum, Idaho pro Brandon Palaniuk has taken the lead on Day 2 of the 2026 Yokohama Tire Bassmaster Elite at Santee Cooper Lakes with a two-day total of 59 pounds.(Photo: Seigo Saito/ BASS)

BASS Press Release

CLARENDON COUNTY, S.C. — Brandon Palaniuk’s Santee Cooper Lakes hot streak continued on Day 2 of the 2026 Yokohama Tire Bassmaster Elite at Santee Cooper Lakes. The Idaho native landed 29 pounds, 15 ounces to take the lead with a two-day total of 59-0. 

“The Prodigy” anchored his limit with an 8-6 postspawn largemouth, a bass that helped him build a 4-5 advantage over Canadian pro Chris Johnston. The gap from Johnston to third-place Carl Jocumsen is 5-15. 

“I was nervous after practice, to be honest, that I was gonna blow the good reputation I have here,” Palaniuk said. “Today was unreal. I didn’t see it coming yesterday and I didn’t see it coming today.”

Palaniuk has yet to miss a Championship Sunday cut, let alone a Day 3 cut, at Santee Cooper Lakes in three attempts. He’s 4/4 now with Semifinal Saturday’s and in prime position again to make the final day. 

So far this week, Palaniuk has called one broad area of Lake Marion home, targeting postspawn largemouth around particular pieces of cover. One bait has generated most of his bites so far. While the one area has stayed the same, the eight-time Bassmaster champion said the same pieces of cover have produced bites two days in a row. 

2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour Day 1: Easton Fothergill Leads with 21-8lbs!

Canadians Chris Johnston 12th, Cory Johnston 33rd & Gallant 42th

Reigning Bassmaster Classic champion Easton Fothergill has taken the lead on Day 1 of the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour with a total of 21 pounds, 8 ounces. Photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.

Bassmaster Press Release

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — With one day in the books at the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour, the storyline for much of the field is change. Anglers enjoyed warm flip-flop weather during pre-tournament practice days in Knoxville, Tenn. Since then, the weather and water conditions have done the flip-flopping, bringing frost at takeoff, wind and muddy water to the Tennessee River.

The one thing that hasn’t changed is the name atop the Classic standings. Easton Fothergill, the reigning Classic champ from Grand Rapids, Minn., best navigated the shifting conditions to jump into the Day 1 lead with a limit of five smallmouth bass weighing 21 pounds, 8 ounces.

Like the weather recently, Fothergill’s day was up and down. He had to adjust, and he had to cover water. In fact, he ran 124 miles throughout Friday’s first day of competition.

Fothergill started the day running far into Tellico Reservoir, which connects to the Tennessee River’s Fort Loudoun Reservoir via a canal near both lakes’ lower ends.

“It’s just where I personally found the most consistent bigger fish,” he said. “I did have some fish in Loudoun, but by the time I made the right adjustment I didn’t have time to check those fish.”

Fans watching Bassmaster LIVE saw Fothergill make that adjustment in real time. He opened the morning by breaking off a good fish and only had about 9 pounds at noon. Then he made a shift to a different type of structure, landed on a good spot and caught a pair of 4-pounders.

“That’s when the lightbulb went off,” Fothergill said. “Then I duplicated it on another spot and filled my limit with the rest of the big ones.”

Those big ones were a trio of 4-pound-class fish that he landed in a rapid nine-minute flurry that started at about 1:30 p.m. Prior to his “lightbulb moment,” Fothergill was running spots he’d found in practice, but he had to abandon those areas because changes in current and water clarity caused his fish to reposition. He actually ran all new water to catch the five fish he brought to weigh-in at the Food City Center on the University of Tennessee campus.

2025 Yokohama Tire Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair Day 3: Trey McKinney Remains Leader!

Canadians: Evan Kung 6th, Chris Johnston 11th, Cory Johnston 29th, Gallant 34th & Gustafson 50th.

BASS Press Release

MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. — When Trey McKinney is at his best, the 20-year-old can dissect one big area of a body of water and find where the bigger bass are within that location. 

That strategy has worked to perfection through three days of the Yokohama Tire Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair as McKinney has combed through one area to catch a three-day total of 72 pounds, 4 ounces. 

“I do like this style of fishing,” he said. “I know I’m going to see fish, and if I do my thing right, they are going to be pretty nice ones. I’m an area guy. I find an area and find where they go within that area. (This lake) is fitting my style pretty well.”

The second-year pro from Carbondale, Ill., has never trailed in this tournament, opening the tournament with 24-11 before catching 23-10 on Day 2. His leads were just ounces over the second-place angler the first two days, but with a 23-15 limit of smallmouth on Semifinal Saturday, he increased his lead to 4-10 over Logan Parks.

In total, McKinney now has nine Top 10 finishes in Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series competition and is five quality smallies away from winning his second blue trophy in as many years. The 2024 Dakota Lithium Rookie of the Year also finds himself in an unofficial tie for first in the 2025 Progressive Angler of the Year race with five days left of competition. 

2025 St. Croix Bassmaster Elite at Pasquotank River/ Albemarle Sound Day 3: Kyle Welcher Sacks 34lbs and Leads with Another 30lbs!

Canadians: Chris Johnston 21st, Cory Johnston 34th

 Kyle Welcher is utterly dominating the St. Croix Bassmaster Elite at Pasquotank River/Albemarle Sound. (Photo: Seigo Saito/BASS)

BASS Press Release

ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. —  Kyle Welcher is utterly dominating the St. Croix Bassmaster Elite at Pasquotank River/Albemarle Sound.

The Opelika, Ala., pro caught the biggest bag of the tournament on Semifinal Saturday, a 34-pound limit anchored by a whopping 10-8 largemouth. With bags of 30-11 and 30-3 the first two days of the event, Welcher carries a total of 94-14 into the final day of competition. 

 

“I’ve never had one day of fishing like this,” Welcher said. “I hope there are a few more spawning because that’s the fun way to catch them.”

 

The 2023 Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year is on pace to achieve several milestones on Championship Sunday. Not only will he likely claim his first Century Belt, Welcher also could break the record for largest margin of victory in Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series history set by Patrick Walters at Lake Fork in the fall of 2020, a 29-10 difference.

 

He currently leads second-place Brandon Lester by 33-14.

 

Welcher achieved several personal bests on Saturday as well, including catching his biggest tournament bag ever in his Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series career. The 10-8 that now leads the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the Tournament honors is now his personal best, unseating the 10-1 he landed at the St. Johns River in 2020.

 

All this success comes after experiencing one of the worst practices of his career.

 

“A week like this is only possible when you have a bad (practice),” he said. “When they are in a migration pattern like they are right now, you need them to be coming to you. The area I have, I fished down it Day 3 of practice and had one bite down that stretch.

2025 St. Croix Bassmaster Elite at Pasquotank River/ Albemarle Sound Day 2: Kyle Welcher Drops Another 30lbs!

Canadians: Chris Johnston 14th, Cory Johnston 31st, Gustafson 74th, Gallant 77th, & Kung 98th

Alabama's Kyle Welcher leads Day 2 of the St. Croix Bassmaster Elite at Pasquotank River/Albemarle Sound in Elizabeth City, N.C., with a weight of 60-14. (Seigo Saito/ BASS)

BASS Press Release

ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. —  Kyle Welcher feels like the chosen one at the St. Croix Bassmaster Elite at the Pasquotank River/Albemarle Sound. Not because he was expecting to do well after practice, but since the warm-up period ended everything has been almost perfect.

Welcher took a commanding lead over the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series field on Day 2 by adding 30 pounds, 3 ounces to his 30-11 limit from Day 1. His 60-14 two-day total is 22 pounds better than second place Trey McKinney. 

 

“I don’t feel like I have any kind of a secret figured out or a special area figured out,” the Opelika, Ala., native said. “For whatever reason, I have caught big ones for the past two days. I feel like I’m getting lucky.”

 

Day 2 brought waves of rain and storms across the Albemarle Sound, but it was an overall calmer day for anglers making longer runs across the system. The bite seemingly improved as well, with 84 limits and 1,285 pounds of bass caught. 

 

Growing up on the Chattahoochee River in Alabama, Welcher is a river fisherman at heart, and he has been able to show off his roots this week in eastern North Carolina. 

2024 Humminbird Bassmaster Elite on the St. Lawrence Day 3: Robert Gee Leads!

Canadians Cory Johnston 2nd, Chris Johnston 4th & Gustafson 15th,

By David A. Brown

BASS Press Release

WADDINGTON, N.Y. —  Rookie standout Robert Gee distanced himself from seasoned veteran Cory Johnston geographically and, more importantly, statistically to tally a 3-day total of 78 pounds, 2 ounces and take over the Day 3 lead at the Humminbird Bassmaster Elite at St. Lawrence River.

Day 2 found Gee and Johnston tied for the top spot with 52-7 each. Now, the young angler from Knoxville, Tenn., heads into Championship Sunday with a 13-ounce lead over Johnston.

“It’s been a blessing; everything’s just going right, and I can’t do anything wrong,” Gee said. “I’m going to keep riding this train as far as it will take me and just give God the glory.”

Chris Johnston, Cory’s younger brother, won the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year title with 758 points. The first Canadian to win a Bassmaster Elite Series tournament — the 2020 event at the St. Lawrence River — Johnston also owns the distinction of being the first Canadian to win the Bassmaster AOY title. For this honor, he claimed a top prize of $100,000.

Cory Johnston Wins 2024 MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River; Brother Chris Finishes 5th!

With a four-day total of 93 pounds, 6 ounces, Cory Johnston takes the title in dominant fashion at the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River.

By David A. Brown

BASS PRESS Release

PALATKA, Fla. — Cory Johnston fished a full tournament.

But with all due respect to nine other talented and worthy Top 10 competitors, he could’ve slept in the final day and still won the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River.

A four-day total of 93 pounds, 6 ounces gave the pro from Otonabee, Canada, a winning margin of 21-2 over Texan Brad Whatley. But Johnston’s Day 3 total — 73-13 — would have edged Whatley’s tournament total of 72-4 by 1-9.

“Everyone who fishes these tournaments dreams of winning one of these blue trophies,” said Johnston, who took home the $101,000 top prize. “I don’t know what to say; it was just one of those weeks that was absolutely incredible.

“People say, ‘When it’s your time, it’s your time.’ This week, I couldn’t do anything wrong.”

2024 MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River Day 2: Cory Johnston Vaults into Lead!

Canadians Chris Johnston 4th, Gallant 27th & Gustafson 101st. 

By David A. Brown

BASS PRESS Release

PALATKA, Fla. — Cory Johnston knew he was playing a high-stakes game, but the Canadian pro believed the potential payoff justified his day’s commitment.

Cashing in on his gamble, Johnston sacked up a five-bass limit of 27 pounds, 8 ounces to lead Day 2 of the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River.

After placing second on Day 1 with 23-3, Johnston now has a two-day mark of 50-11. The only competitor to break 20 pounds the first two days, Johnston heads into Semifinal Saturday with a lead of 11-9 over North Carolina’s Matt Arey.

Repeating his Day 1 strategy of targeting bed fish in Salt Springs, which runs off the northwest side of Lake George, Johnston described the requisite plodding pace.

“It takes a lot of patience; it’s not like it’s fast and furious,” he said. “You fish all day and it’s one of those high-risk, high-reward things.

“I went probably three hours midday without catching a fish. It was a lot of looking at them and trying to see which fish are going to bite. Sometimes, you waste an hour on one and it never even bites.”

Well-schooled in the ways of bed fish, Johnston said he expected nothing less. Several fish pushed him to the limit of exasperation, but persistence proved to be his best tool.

Patrick Walters Wins the 2023 Minn Kota Bassmaster Elite at the St. Lawrence River!

Canadians: Chris Johnston 2nd & Cory Johnston 6th

Patrick Walters of Summerville, S.C., has won the Minn Kota Bassmaster Elite at St. Lawrence River with a four-day total of 105 pounds.  (Photo: Seigo Saito/BASS)

BASS PRESS RELEASE

CLAYTON, N.Y. — Safe to say, Patrick Walters now loves northern smallmouth bass.

 

Overcoming what he had previously considered one of his few limitations, the fifth-year pro from Summerville, S.C., caught the heaviest 20-fish total of smallmouth in Bassmaster history — 105 pounds — and won the Minn Kota Bassmaster Elite at St. Lawrence River.

 

“I used to not be able to catch 17 pounds on this river when 25 pounds a day was still good,” Walters said. “That’s what means the world to me — how bad I truly was at it and to come back and catch (over) 100 pounds of smallmouth and win.

 

“This one means more than my first Elite win (Lake Fork, 2020). I could not do it without my family — my mom and dad here and my wife back home. My wife’s grandfather passed away during last week’s tournament at Lake Champlain. I felt like he was with me throughout this week.”

 

Along with the $100,000 top prize, Walters received an automatic berth into the 2024 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Toyota scheduled for Tulsa, Okla., in March. He also received his third Bassmaster century belt, which recognizes a 20-bass total of 100 pounds or more.

 

Turning in daily weights of 24-14, 27-3, 28-5 — Day 3’s heaviest bag — and 24-10, Walters edged Canadian superstar Chris Johnston by 1-4.

 

Walters earned his first Century Club belt in his 2020 victory at Lake Fork and added another one the following year with a second-place finish at Fork. With this week’s performance, Walters became the first angler in Bassmaster history to break the 100-pound mark with largemouth and smallmouth bass.