2026 Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin Day 2: Brock Mosley Retains Lead!

Canadians Cory Johnston 13th, Gallant 21st, Gustafson 44th Chris Johnston 57th & Evan Kung 59th

BASS Press Release

ALEXANDER CITY, Ala. — It was a slow start to Day 2, but Mississippi pro Brock Mosley stayed the course and caught just enough to retain the lead at the 2026 Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin. 

Mosley landed five largemouth weighing 10 pounds, 15 ounces on Day 2 in east central Alabama, increasing his two-day total to 26-6 after landing a tournament-high 15-7 on the first day of competition. His lead is just 7-ounces over second-place Joey Cifuentes and 11 ounces ahead of Emil Wagner.

“There’s still two days of fishing left, and I’m surprised to even be in this position,” he said. “I’m just going to go fishing; I really don’t have any pressure.”

Anglers enjoyed another day of warm sunshine on Lake Martin, and while plenty of 10- to 12-pound bags reached the scales, four 14-pound bags crossed the scales as well as the tournament’s biggest bass.  

Mosley was the first man out of the cut the last time the Elite Series visited Lake Martin in 2018, one of the coldest Elite Series events ever. This time around, Mosley has taken a different approach and so far, it is paying off.  

“I learned that year that you can burn your fish in practice,” he said. “I didn’t even fish shallow in practice all that much (this week). I ’Scoped all of practice and caught some doing that. That is an option still, I just don’t think I can catch a 3-pounder doing it.” 

2026 Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin Day 1: Brock Mosley Snags Lead with 15-07lbs!

Canadians Gustafson 12th, Gallant 41st,  Evan Kung 45th, Chris Johnston 70th & Cory Johnston 80th

By Christopher Decker

BASS Press Release

ALEXANDER CITY, Ala. — Brock Mosley never caught a 2-pounder in practice for

the Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin, but all the ingredients came together

for a magical Day 1. 

The Collinsville, Miss., pro landed 15 pounds, 7 ounces to take the lead at the Tallapoosa River impoundment, anchoring his bag with a 4-pound largemouth. In total, Mosley brought three largemouth and two spotted bass to weigh-in, which were 12 ounces heavier than Drew Cook’s second-place limit.

“I didn’t have a great practice, but I didn’t have a terrible practice,” the 2023 Sabine River champion said. “At Lake Martin, you are liable to catch 6 or 7 pounds. I didn’t catch but one or two good ones in practice, but I kept an open mind and went fishing today.” 

As anticipated, the weights throughout the field are super tight. Fifteen of the 101 anglers caught between 11 and 13 pounds while 30 more caught bags weighing between 10 and 11 pounds. 

After last week’s cold spell, water temperatures have climbed several degrees from the start of practice to tournament day, which has the bass moving towards their prespawn and spawning patterns. On Day 1, air temperatures were close to 70 degrees, and Mosley found the prespawners ready to bite on Day 1. 

“Several of the bass I caught today were full of eggs and right where they should be before they go up to start the spawning process,” he said. He rotated between four different baits and several locations, mixing in forward-facing sonar techniques as well as traditional tactics.

“I started looking for a certain type of deal, and I caught some offshore and some up shallow,” Mosley said. “I kind of junk fished and put a bag together. I’m putting my head down and fishing for what is in front of me. I may fish a point, I may ’Scope out some brushpile, or I might catch suspended bass.”

Paul Marks Wins 2025 Whataburger Bassmaster Elite at Lake Hartwell

Rookie Marks tops Bassmaster Elite at Lake Hartwell

BASS Press Release

ANDERSON, S.C. — Despite a Day 1 kicker that clearly helped his cause, rookie Paul Marks played the long game, and his patience paid off with his first blue trophy in the Whataburger Bassmaster Elite at Lake Hartwell.

Hailing from Cumming, Ga., Marks started strong with a third-place Day 1 limit of 19 pounds, 7 ounces, then held the second-place spot for the next two days with weights of 17-4 and 16-5. Adding a Championship Sunday limit of 15-8, he tallied a tournament total of 68-8.

Edging fellow rookie Tucker Smith by 14 ounces, Marks collected the top prize of $100,000.

“I don’t know what to think; it’ll probably take a week to set in — maybe a month,” the 23-year-old said. “I think I’ve been dreaming about this since I was a little kid.

“I love spotted bass; I love fishing the way I do. It’s the best thing ever in my eyes.”

Marks jump-started his event with a Day 1 bed-fishing effort that produced a 5-pound largemouth. That fish ate a white Zoom Z Craw Jr in about 2 feet of water.

After that, it was nearly all offshore fishing, as Marks committed himself to grinding through numbers of spotted bass and daily culling his way to competitive limits.

“There are fish everywhere on the bank and I knew it was going to be really hard to win with spots,” Marks said. “I got lucky on Day 1 and caught a big one on the bed. That fish made my tournament.”

Marks, who lives about 2 hours west of Hartwell, brought with him a lifetime of knowledge and experience. Whittling down his mental library to an actionable plan was the key, and Marks said he did so on the fly.

Skeet Reese claims first Bass Pro Tour trophy with James River!

By Michell Forde

BASS PRO TOUR

RICHMOND, Va. — On his 55th birthday, Skeet Reese received the best present of his life. The Bass Fishing Hall of Famer added his first Bass Pro Tour trophy to his long list of accolades at General Tire Stage Six Presented by O’Reilly Auto Parts on the James River, plus the $100,000 top prize that came with it.

Reese totaled 54 pounds, 3 ounces on 23 scorable bass during Sunday’s Championship Round. He would need just about all of it, as Jeff Sprague put together a furious late-day rally but ultimately fell 3-11 shy of Reese’s total. 

The California pro said the 12th victory of his legendary career will go down as one of his most memorable, as each passing season has made him increasingly hungry to join the list of BPT champions.

“This I what I’ve been fishing for the last five years out here, trying to be able to be in a position to hoist one of these Bass Pro Tour trophies,” Reese said. “To beat the group of guys that we compete against – I mean, literally, this is the best group of anglers assembled ever in the history of the sport. So, to beat these guys, that means a lot to me.”

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

1. Skeet Reese — 54-3 (23)
2. Jeff Sprague — 50-8 (25)
3. Nick LeBrun — 37-3 (16)
4. Bryan Thrift — 35-9 (16)
5. Michael Neal — 34-10 (16)
6. Gerald Spohrer — 32-11 (14)
7. Dylan Hays — 30-4 (14)
8. Spencer Shuffield — 24-9 (12)
9. Andy Montgomery — 18-2 (10)
10. Jonathon VanDam — 14-6 (7)

Complete results

2024 Minn Kota Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray Day 1: Patrick Walters Smashes 25lbs and Lead!

Canadians Gustafson 26th, Chris Johnston 39th, Gallant 43rd & Cory Johnston 60th. 

By David A. Brown

BASS Press Release

PROSPERITY, S.C. — With more than 48,000 acres, Lake Murray has plenty of places to find a bite. Dialing in the better ones is a process of elimination that favored home-state pro Patrick Walters.
Sacking up a limit of 25 pounds, 8 ounces, the pro from Eutawville, S.C., leads Day 1 of the Minn Kota Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray.

Exemplifying the importance of multiple options, the two-time Elite Series champion leveraged the morning blueback herring spawn, but also found consistent action throughout the day.

“It’s important to have (a diverse game plan) because you can start on the wrong spot,” Walters said. “You need options because you can run around little bit and make a couple of decisions.”

2023 AFTCO Bassmaster Elite at Santee Cooper Lakes: Robertson Extends Lead!

Canadians: Chris Johnston 15th, Gallant 23rd, Gustafson 36th &  Cory Johnston 65th

BASS PRESS RELEASE

CLARENDON COUNTY, S.C. — Matt Robertson was crystal clear about his goals. He’s fishing for big bites and he’s in it to win it.

 

Sticking to his guns, the third-year Elite from Kuttawa, Ky., powered through a dry spell Friday and retained his lead at the AFTCO Bassmaster Elite at Santee Cooper Lakes with a five-bass limit that weighed 21 pounds, 13 ounces. His leading two-day total is 49-14.

 

Robertson set the opening mark Thursday with the current VMC Monster Bag of the Week — a 28-1 limit.

 

“I feel pretty good about it,” said Robertson, who holds nearly a 4-pound lead over South Carolina pro Brandon Cobb (45-15). “I’m just going out there and fishing how I like to fish.

 

“I had a bad four hours on the boat today, but I don’t think I said a cuss word all day.”

 

Prior to his midday dry spell, Robertson kicked off his day by mirroring the game plan that anchored his opening-round effort — hitting the shad spawn in Lake Marion with a giant swimbait.

 

“You have options for a shad spawn, but we’re on a lake with big fish so we’re fishing for big fish this week. We’re going to try and win this thing,” Robertson said. “Yesterday, I spent about an hour and a half on the shad spawn. Today, I only spent about an hour on it.

 

2023 Marathon Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray Day 1: Matt Robertson is On' EM!

Canadians: Gallant 26th, Cory Johnston 48th, Chris Johnston 65th & Gustafson 75th

Matt Robertson of Kuttawa, Ky., is leading after Day 1 of the Marathon Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray with 25 pounds, 8 ounces.  ( Photo: Seigo Saito/ BASS)

BASS PRESS RELEASE

COLUMBIA, S.C. — At mid-morning, things were far from perfect for Matt Robertson.

 

With three little bass in his livewell, the Kuttawa, Ky., pro was back at the ramp at Dreher Island State Park trying to work out some motor issues and calm more than a few frustrations.

 

Fortunately, he was able to get them fixed and had one of his best days on the water this season, catching 25 pounds, 8 ounces. That has him leading the Marathon Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray with a 2-8 advantage over second-place angler Drew Benton.

 

Robertson's five-bass limit was anchored by the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the Day, a 6-14 largemouth.

 

“You know what? I’m happy my boat broke down,” he said. “Because if it hadn’t, I probably wouldn’t have caught those fish. Some things just happen for a reason.

 

‘I’m telling you, I can take a lot of credit for a lot (of stuff), but today wasn’t me. It was something else. We’ll just roll with it.”

 

As many anticipated, Lake Murray is showing out so far. The weather was almost as good as the fishing, with 16 bags over 20 pounds hitting the scales on the warm, calm April day. Of the 103 anglers competing, 97 limits were recorded and every angler caught at least two bass.

 

Gussy Wins the 2023 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Toyota with 42-07lbs!

Gussy becomes first Canadian to win the Classic!

(Photo: James Overstreet/BASS)

By Brain Brasher 
BASSMASTER PRESS RELEASE

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Canadian pro Jeff “Gussy” Gustafson’s bass refused to play fair on the final day of the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Toyota on the Tennessee River.

But fortunately for him, the bulk of his work was already done.

Despite catching only two smallmouth bass that weighed 6 pounds, 12 ounces on Championship Sunday and falling three fish short of the 15 he’d been counting down toward all week, Gustafson held on to win the most treasured title in professional fishing with a three-day total of 42-7.

2023 Bass Pro Shops REDCREST Presented by Shore Lunch on Lake Norman Day 1: Cornell Secures Lead!

Dustin Connell is off to a solid start at Bass Pro Shops REDCREST
 Presented by Shore Lunch. Photo by Garrick Dixon. 

By Tyler Brinks

BASS PRO TOUR

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Coming into Bass Pro Shops REDCREST Presented by Shore Lunch, many predicted that spotted bass specialists would be hard to beat. Early in this event, that prediction seems to be “spot on” as spot guru and 2021 REDCREST champion Dustin Connell finished Day 1 with the lead and a total of 16 pounds, 7 ounces.

A Connell last-second catch

of a 3-7 spotted bass broke a tie with fellow spotted bass expert Brent Ehrler. The two were deadlocked for much of the afternoon, but that final catch propelled Connell to a half-pound lead over Ehrler. Connell will lead the field going into the second day of competition at Lake Norman.

Connell feels good about prespawn pattern

Spring is in the air and bass are spawning, but Connell is doing his best to avoid sight fishing and is instead utilizing his electronics. That was part of his plan in the morning and he plans to stick with it for the rest of the event.

“All of the fish I’m catching are prespawn fish and that’s what I was targeting,” Connell said. “I don’t feel like I’m a good sight fisherman, so I didn’t even want to try it. I 100% don’t think this event will be won with spawning fish. The weather isn’t set up for it, so I chose to target those prespawn fish.”

The areas and places Connell is fishing remind him of his home waters on the Coosa River Chain, and he immediately felt comfortable when he arrived in North Carolina for practice.

2023 Gamakatsu Bassmaster Elite at Lake Seminole Day 3: Cifuentes Continues to Lead!

Canadians: Cory Johnston 5th, Chris Johnston 17th & Gallant 46th

Joey Cifuentes III of Clinton, Ark., is leading after Day 3 of the 2023 Gamakatsu Bassmaster Elite at Lake Seminole with a three-day total of 66 pounds, 11 ounces. (Photo: BASS)

BASS PRESS RELEASE

BAINBRIDGE, Ga. — On Semifinal Saturday, Joey Cifuentes III stuck with his game plan, tallied a three-day total of 66 pounds, 11 ounces, and retained his lead in the Gamakatsu Bassmaster Elite at Lake Seminole.

 

The rookie from Clinton, Ark., placed sixth on Day 1 with 19-13 before taking the top spot with a Day 2 limit of 26-1 — the tournament’s heaviest bag. Cifuentes added 20-13 on Saturday and heads into Championship Sunday with a lead of 4-1 over Tyler Rivet of Raceland, La.

 

“I’m not going to say I can do 20 again tomorrow, but I feel like it’s there,” Cifuentes said. “I saw some really good fish today.”

 

Cifuentes committed his time Saturday to Spring Creek, where he fished standing timber in about 20 to 22 feet. Targeting groups of trees and large cypress stumps proved the most productive.

 

When his Day 2 bite slowed around noon, Cifuentes moved shallow to flip vegetation before finishing his day in the offshore timber. Today, it was all about the wood.

 

“I stayed in my area and my goal was to get 20 pounds; I got it and I left,” Cifuentes said. “I kinda weaseled back close and ended up catching a couple good bass, then I left around 10:30.

 

“I found another spot where I saw some good fish swimming around the bottom. I may hit it up tomorrow, but I’m going to start on my primary area and I’m going to try and get another 20 pounds.”

 

Describing his main spot and the new area, Cifuentes said he’s targeting deep timber on the edge of a spawning flat. Using his forward-facing sonar to watch for specific fish, he’s making short pitches with a drop shot.

 

Cifuentes is using a 1/4-ounce weight and a 6-inch hand-poured finesse worm. For snag avoidance amid the timber, he’s Texas rigging his worm on a 1/0 hook.

 

“I like that little hook because it’s less visible,” Cifuentes said. “I think that’s helping me get bites. I didn’t lose any fish today, I fished clean.”

 

Cifuentes said he feels confident his spots hold the potential winning fish. He specifically chose Spring Creek because it had the right mix of clear water, timber and spawning habitat.

 

He’s hopeful that his chosen spots will allow him to continue intercepting bass on their way to and from the spawning grounds.

 

“Today, all my fish were postspawn; yesterday, they were all prespawn,” Cifuentes said. “I think I have fish coming to me also. I learned that today, so that’s exciting.”

 

Rivet is in second place with 62-10. His daily weights were 17-4, 19-11 and 25-11.

 

Coming off his first Elite win at last week’s event at Lake Okeechobee, Rivet spent his day in the Flint River where he caught bass on a popping frog and an Xcite Baits Xtreme Stix (stickbait), which he fished Texas rigged and wacky style.

 

“I caught one fish on the frog — on my third cast,” Rivet said. “I threw the frog for a while, but it has to be the right scenario. It has to be a little dirty and shallow. The one I caught was on a bed, so she came out and ate it.”

 

Rivet said all of his bass were on beds. Turbid water prevented him from actually sight fishing, but reading the clues guided his presentations.

 

“I know they’re there by the way they’re acting; I can see them swirling around and chasing stuff,” he said. “It’s all about throwing in there at the right time. If you see one swell, you've got to put your bait in that swell.

 

“When they’re trying to eat something and (the bait) is in their face, they eat it.”

 

Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La., is in third with 61-9. After an opening limit of 14-5 put him in 44th place, Hackney caught the second-heaviest bag of Day 2 — 24-7 — and rose to third place. Adding 22-13 on Saturday, he’ll start Championship Sunday in the third-place position.

 

“I fished totally different today from yesterday — I had to fish a lot slower,” Hackney said. “I power fished yesterday and today I finesse fished. Yesterday, I caught them winding, today I was grinding.

 

“Same area, but totally different. They wouldn’t chase. I don’t know why; it was perfect weather. They never got aggressive like they did yesterday.”

 

Hackney caught his fish on a Texas-rigged Strike King Rage Bug in green pumpkin. He said he’s eager to take one more shot at Seminole.

 

“I look forward to going out there again,” he said. “It’s been fun the last couple of days. I really struggled the first day of the tournament; one got off. Other than that, I fished really clean the last couple of days.”

 

Kyoya Fujita of Minamitsuru, Yamanashi, Japan, earned the $1,000 daily bonus for catching the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the Day with an 8-6 largemouth. That fish also leads the race for Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the tournament, which is good for a $2,000 bonus.