Alabama pro Greg Vinson comes out on top in his home state for the NPFL victory at Stop #4 of the 2026 Season.

Story by Justin Brouillard, NPFL Press Release

A week of ups and downs, added pressure each day, weekend boat traffic and increasing winds on Showdown Saturday—those were just a few of the challenges the field faced this week at Stop Four of the NPFL on Logan Martin Lake in Oxford, Alabama.

Veteran pro Greg Vinson saved his best for last, catching the biggest bag of the tournament on Showdown Saturday to earn his first NPFL victory with a three-day total of 46-2. Vinson opened the event with 15-10 on Thursday, survived a tough Day Two with 12-10 to sit in seventh place, then rallied with a 17-14 limit on the final day to secure the victory.

“I have been doing this a long time, guys,” Vinson said. “Over 20 years. I worked my way up with the full support of my family, my son Gaige, my wife Steph, my friends. So many ups and downs in this sport. There were so many times I didn't know if I had another year left. I put it in God's hands, and He kept me in this game. I've had a rough couple of years, questioning things, but God gave me direction. This moment tells me God wants me to keep fishing.”

Also saving his best day for last, Jon Canada finished second with a three-day total of 44-9. Fishing from the dam to roughly 2 miles below it, Canada relied on years of history on Logan Martin to identify several productive stretches. Increasing his weight each day, Canada opened with 12-11, added 14-10 on Day Two, and capped off his tournament with 17-4 on Showdown Saturday.

Alabama pro Wes Gore finished third with 43-10, while South Carolina's Corey Casey placed fourth at 43-1 after leading the tournament entering the final day. Rounding out the top five, Indiana pro Bill Lowen finished with 42-0.

Jordan Osborne claimed Big Bass honors at Logan Martin with a 6-0 largemouth caught on Day Two.

Finesse Pays Off for Vinson

In his home state, Greg Vinson made it all come together, earning his first major victory. It was a long time coming, and it came on arguably the toughest day of the week on Logan Martin. With increased boat traffic, Vinson still made his pattern work.

Fisher Anaya Wins 2026 Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin with 54-06Lbs

By Christopher Decker

BASS Press Release

Thanks to a dazzling Championship Sunday performance, the 20-year-old rookie from Eva, Ala., earned his first Elite Series victory at the Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin with a four-day total of 54 pounds, 6 ounces. 

 Opening the tournament with 11-6, Anaya worked his way into the Top 10 on Day 2 with a limit weighing 12-13 before claiming the Day 3 lead with a sack weighing 14-7. Entering the day with a 2-ounce lead over Brock Mosely, Anaya landed the biggest bag of the tournament on Championship Sunday, a 15-12 limit of spotted bass to secure the title.

His Championship Sunday limit was the biggest bag he’s ever weighed on Lake Martin. 

“This feels awesome,” Anaya said. “I didn’t know if I’d ever win one of these. My buddy Gerald Swindle always tells me it’s not easy to win one of these, so if you get a shot to win, you better make it work. I knew this one would set up in my wheelhouse, I just had to get the bites and land them.”

After winning the Nitro Boats Bassmaster Elite Qualifier presented by Bass Pro Shops Angler of the Year, Anaya made his much-anticipated debut last week at Lake Guntersville. That ended with a disappointing 65^th place finish. 

Lake Martin has always suited Anaya’s fishing style, however, thanks to a lot of time on Lewis Smith Lake. He was able to get even more dialed into the Tallapoosa River impoundment by winning a tournament before the off-limits period went into effect. 

“I won a small local tournament here that paid $5,000, and won Phoenix money,” he explained. “I had right at 15 pounds with all spotted bass and thought, ‘Maybe I can make something work down here.’ I fished the same exact way, just in different areas.” 

2026 Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin Day 3: Fisher Anaya Scores Narrow Lead!

Canadians Cory Johnston 11th, Gallant 22nd & Gustafson 49th 

By Christopher Decker

BASS Press Release

ALEXANDER CITY, Ala. — Each time Fisher Anaya has fished a tournament at Lake Martin, he has left with a top finish. Now, Anaya is five bass away from claiming his first Elite Series trophy in just his second attempt.

The Eva, Ala., rookie leads the Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin with a three-day total of 38 pounds, 10 ounces after landing 14-7 of spotted bass on Semifinal Saturday, the day’s biggest bag. His lead over second-place Brock Mosley is only 2 ounces.

“I knew I needed to get my momentum back (after Guntersville), and the first day was a struggle,” he said. “I ended up scrapping up a decent bag and after that, every move I have made has been right.” 

The style of fishing at Lake Martin suits Anaya, who claimed a win and two second-place finishes during his high school career on the Tallapoosa River impoundment. 

“I like fishing shallow and these bass live shallow and on cover,” the 20-year-old explained. “They are pretty easy to pick out; you just have to troll around and find them.”

Anaya has been lurking in the shadows up until this point. He landed 11-6 to start 15th on Day 1 before catching 12-13 on Day 2 to jump into sixth. The 2025 Nitro Boats Bassmaster Elite Qualifier presented by Bass Pro Shops Angler of the Year has been targeting prespawn staging areas, mostly in 10 feet of water or less. One finesse-style presentation has produced most of his bites.

“Most of my bass are coming off of shallow rockpiles,” Anaya explained. “You can’t see them until you cast the bait over and pull them up.”

Forward-facing sonar has revealed most of his fish this week, but on Day 3 when the sun peeked out from behind the clouds, he caught three of his spotted bass sight fishing.

“They are trying to get up and spawn,” he said. “As the week has gone on, more and more are getting up there. I haven’t sight-fished at all this week, but today I saw three of my big ones. They are slowly moving shallower. I just need them to keep coming.”

Anaya clinches final Classic spot at Lake Hartwell

 

With a two-day total of 39 pounds, 15 ounces, Fisher Anaya wins the TNT Fireworks Team Championship Classic Fish-Off and clinches the final spot in the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic!

By Andrew Canulette, BASS Press Release

ANDERSON, S.C. — Fisher Anaya’s name says it all – the kid from tiny Eva, Ala., seems destined for big things as a professional bass angler.

Fresh off fishing atop the 2025 Bassmaster Elite Qualifier Points Standings last month and locking down a spot in the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series for the next two seasons, the 20-year-old Anaya won the TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Team Championship Classic Fish-Off Saturday on Lake Hartwell. His two-day total of 10 bass weighing 39 pounds, 15 ounces was just enough to hold off fellow Alabaman Barrett Choquette, who finished second with 38-5.

The win secured for Anaya the final spot in the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour when it’s held March 13-15 on the Tennessee River in Knoxville, Tenn. He slipped into the Fish-Off after he and his father, Ryan, finished fifth in the Team Championship portion of the tournament on Thursday. The Top 5 teams in the team standings (10 anglers) had their weights zeroed and then fished individually on Friday and Saturday for a Classic berth. 

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.

Mitchell Robinson Wins 2025 Tackle Warehouse Invitationals Stop 2 Presented by Suzuki Marine on Lake Hartwell

The entire Robinson family got paid this week, but Mitchell came out on top. Photo by Rob Matsuura. Angler: Mitchell Robinson.

By Jody White MLF Invitationals Press Release

ANDERSON, S.C. – The final day of Tackle Warehouse Invitationals Stop 2 Presented by Suzuki Marine on Lake Hartwell turned out to be a classic. Big spotted bass and largemouth hit the scales left and right, and the event went down the wire, as all the leaders struggled to put it away. 

Going out with the lead, Dustin Smith weighed an even 13 pounds on the final day for a 53-11 total, which was not quite enough to hold off young Mitchell Robinson. Starting the day in second, Robinson never caught more than 20 pounds any day of the week, but he managed to scrape up 17-5 on Day 3 for a 53-13 total to earn his first win above the high school level. For the win, Robinson takes home the trophy plus $115,000, which is a lot of money to win at 19 years old. 

Through two events, Drew Gill has the lead for Fishing Clash Angler of the Year, with rookies Banks Shaw and Dustin Smith in second and third. The next event of the Invitationals season is Stop 3 Presented by Phoenix Boats at Smith Lake. 

Honed LiveScope approach helps Robinson prevail 

In July 2023, Robinson and partner Cody Abbott won the Bassmaster High School National Championship at Lake Hartwell – at the time, it was the culmination of years fishing Hartwell and Keowee, the home lakes for the Robinson family. Robinson and Abbott split $5,000 in scholarship money in that one – not insignificant, but maybe not a huge factor for someone diving headlong into the family plumbing and fishing businesses. 

Top 10 Below

2024 TNT Firework Bassmaster Elite at Smith Lake Day 3: Robert Gee Snags Lead, Takumi Ito 2nd!

Canadians Cory Johnston 4th, Gallant 7th, Chris Johnston 18th & Gustafson 40th

By Andrew Calulette

BASS Press Release

CULLMAN, Ala. — With the leaderboard as tight as it’s been at the TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite at Smith Lake, the door was open for any of the 50 remaining anglers in the tournament to move up the standings.

Robert Gee is that guy.

After lurking near the lead for the first half of the tournament, the 25-year-old Knoxville, Tenn., resident grabbed the pole position on Saturday with a 14-pound, 2-ounce bag that gave him a three-day total of 41-9.

It’s the slimmest of cushions, though, with every one of the remaining 10 anglers in the field less than four pounds from Gee’s lead. And that’s perfectly fitting for what could be one of the most competitive Championship Sundays in recent memory.

Taku Ito, the 38-year-old veteran from Chiba, Japan, is just behind Gee with a three-day weight of 41-7. Jay Przekurat, a 25-year-old Elite pro from Stevens Point, Wis., is third with 41-6.

Gee’s lead might be bigger, but he had three fish expire on Day 2 of the tournament, which resulted in a 12-ounce deduction to his daily total. In a difficult derby, when every ounce is precious, he’s hoping that unfortunate situation doesn’t come back to haunt him.

“It’s going to be a game of ounces,” Gee said. “And I might be up by a pound without that penalty. It was the heat. I guess I didn’t buy enough ice. It was just stress on the fish from being so hot.”

2024 TNT Firework Bassmaster Elite at Smith Lake Day 2: Cody Huff Grabs Lead!

Canadians Cory Johnston 5th, Gallant 15th, Chris Johnston 25th & Gustafson 40th

By Andrew Calulette 

BASS Press Release

CULLMAN, Ala. — The heat was on,

literally and figuratively, on Day 2 of the

TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite at

Smith Lake. And at the halfway point of this Elite

Series derby, Cody Huff is the one

holding fellow Elite feet to the fire.

Huff, a 27-year-old pro from Ava, Mo., leads the tournament with a two-day total of 10 bass for 29 pounds, 1 ounce. And while that might not be the eye-popping weight the sport’s best sticks regularly post, it’s certainly an impressive total given the slack bite on Day 1 followed by blistering temperatures that pushed the heat index into triple digits Friday.

The heat was extreme enough that Huff came to the scales more than an hour early on Friday, weighing in at approximately 1 p.m.

“I had a fish die on me, and I didn’t want to take the chance of losing any more,” Huff said.

His 15-4 total Friday was the heaviest of the day, even with the expired fish factored into his total. He bagged 13-13 on Thursday.

Josh Butler wins the 2024 St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Logan Martin Lake presented by SEVIIN with 49 pounds.

By David A. Brown,
BASS Press Release

LINCOLN, Ala. — Josh Butler played the long game and, despite some midpoint frustrations, he executed that strategy to near perfection.
Committing to his plan, the Hayden, Ala., pro claimed a wire-to-wire victory with a three-day total of 49 pounds in the St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Logan Martin Lake.
“The Lord just blessed me,” Butler said. “When it’s your time, it’s your time.”
Butler, who recently left another trail to pursue Bassmaster Elite Series qualification and earn a berth in the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Jockey Outdoors checked the latter box and moved closer to the former with this week’s performance.
Taking the top spot with a Day 1 limit of 19-7 — the event’s heaviest bag — Butler anchored that catch with a massive largemouth that went 7-13.
“That was a game-changer,” Butler said. “That fish was probably the reason I won.”

2024 Bass Pro Shops REDCREST Powered by OPTIMA Lithium on Lay Lake Day 3: Cornell Leaps into Lead!

Dustin Connell won the Knockout Round with 18 bass weighing 52 pounds, 14 ounces. Photo by Garrick Dixon.

Mitchell Forde

BASS PRO TOUR Press Release

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Knockout Round at Bass Pro Shops REDCREST Powered by OPTIMA Lithium turned into a no-holds-barred melee. It didn’t matter whether anglers were chasing spotted bass with forward-facing sonar, beating the bank or dissecting current, the bite caught fire across Lay Lake, with the top spot on SCORETRACKER® and the weight needed to qualify for Sunday’s Championship Round fluctuating all day as a result.

Ultimately, Dustin Connell wound up atop the leaderboard with 18 scorable bass for 52 pounds, 15 ounces. Connell, who lives in nearby Clanton, Alabama, bailed on the main-lake area where he caught most of his fish during the Qualifying Round, instead opting to run up the river and fish beneath the Logan Martin dam. He started slow, spending the first two periods below the cut line, before making an adjustment and boating 10 spotted bass for 29 pounds even in the final period. He finished just 1 ounce ahead of Gerald Spohrer

Meanwhile, after 39-1 across two days proved enough to qualify for the Knockout Round, it took nearly as much Saturday alone to earn a spot in the Top 10 and a shot at the $300,000 first-place paycheck. Nick Hatfield claimed the 10th and final spot with 38-14, 1-8 ahead of BFL All-American champion Emil Wagner. University of Montevallo angler Dalton Head narrowly missed extending his dream event another day as well, finishing 12th.

With weights once again zeroing overnight, all 10 qualifiers in the stacked Championship Round field will have a chance to win the single-day sprint for the trophy. MLFNOW! will provide live coverage of all the action starting at 7:15 a.m. CT. 

Full results can be found here.

Connell committed to old-school current fishing

Connell has emerged as a vocal proponent of forward-facing sonar, and for good reason. The technology played a role in each of his five previous Bass Pro Tour wins, including Stage One on Toledo Bend.