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 Minn Kota Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray Day 2: Patrick Walters Remains in the Lead!

Canadians Cory Johnston 11th, Chris Johnston 17th, Gustafson 41st & Gallant 55th. 

By David A. Brown

BASS Press Release

PROSPERITY, S.C. — Patrick Walters admitted he missed his goal by a few ounces, but you wouldn’t know it from the Day 2 standings.
After turning in an opening-round limit of 25 pounds, 8 ounces — the tournament’s heaviest bag — the pro from Eutawville, S.C., added 19-13. Tallying 45-5, Walters leads rookie J.T. Thompkins by 4-15, as the Top 50 anglers head into Semifinal Sunday of the Minn Kota Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray. (severe weather postponed the event’s scheduled start by one day).

“I knew it was going to be a slower day,” Walters said of the day’s calm, sunny conditions, which contrasted Friday’s cloudy, windy makeup. “The goal was to just survive and get 20 pounds, but I was just a few ounces shy of that.
“The sunny skies don’t bother me, but it means the bite is probably going to end quicker. At 9:30, it shut off for me and I felt like it did for the whole lake.”
At the day’s beginning, Walters knew he was facing a do-or-die scenario. With no time to dally, he went to work on the blueback herring spawn.

2023 MLF Tackle Warehouse Invitationals on Lake Okeechobee Day 2: Colby Schrumpf Leads with 47-05lbs

By EriK Gaffron

MLF PRESS RELEASE

CLEWISTON, Fla. – Lake Okeechobee impressed again on Day 2 of the Tackle Warehouse Invitationals, with three pros catching more than 25 pounds on the day. Sacking up 25-6 to go with 21-15 from Day 1, Colby Schrumpf totaled 47-1 for the lead in Power-Pole Stop 1 Presented by Phoenix Boats. In second, Joshua Weaver tallied 31-9 on Day 2 for a 46-5 total, and “Real Deal” Michael Neal slipped into third place with 44-4. Tomorrow, the Top 50 pros will fish for the win on a truly spectacular Lake Okeechobee.

Schrumpf’s day started off strong with a pair of 5-pounders early and continued with a steady output of quality catches throughout the day.

“Probably in the first hour and a half I had two over 5 pounds in the boat and just slowly culled my way up,” he said. “Late this afternoon, I was able to catch a 5 1/2-pounder about midday. Then I caught a 4-pounder and made a nice cull with that. I left those fish so that way they’re ready to go tomorrow.”

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Jason Christie Wins 2022 Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite on Chickamauga Lake!

 

Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., has won the 2022 Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite at Chickamauga Lake with a four-day total of 73 pounds, 7 ounces. (Photo: Seigo Saito/ BASS)

BASS PRESS RELEASE

DAYTON, Tenn. — Jason Christie left Dayton Municipal Park on Championship Sunday just 6 ounces out of the lead with a crystal-clear plan for where he wanted to start.

 

But thick fog created by temperatures that had plunged into the 30s overnight changed that plan — and ultimately played a huge role in his eighth career victory with B.A.S.S.

 

To let the fog clear, Christie stopped on a bank he hadn’t fished all week and quickly put a solid limit in his livewell. He culled up a few ounces throughout the day until he reached a five-bass limit of 15 pounds, 12 ounces that helped him win the Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite at Chickamauga Lake with a four-day total of 73-7.

 

“The fog is why I won,” said Christie, who is a little more than a month removed from winning the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk on Lake Hartwell. “I went through one fogbank at about 25 mph going to where I was going to start. But then I hit another fogbank and I saw a boat wave that I knew didn’t come from one of our guys, so I just immediately peeled off to an area that I fished three or four years ago in another event.”

 

After a warm start on Thursday, Days 2 and 3 were the polar opposite with cloudy skies, temperatures in the 40s and a spattering of rain, sleet and snow. But the low-light conditions played into the hands of Christie, who fished all week with a 1/2-ounce Booyah Covert Spinnerbait (chartreuse, white and blue with a white Yum Swim’n Dinger as a trailer), a bladed jig and the same War Eagle Jiu-Jigsu Jig (green pumpkin) he used at the Classic.

 

2022 AFTCO Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River Day 1: John Crews Captures Lead with 28 Pounds!

Canadians: Chris Johnston 14th, Gustafson 60th &  Cory Johnston 69th

BASS Press Release 

John Crews of Salem, Va., is leading after Day 1 of the 2022

 AFTCO Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River with 28 pounds.

PALATKA, Fla. — Looking past current conditions and considering the forthcoming weather patterns, John Crews of Salem, Va., employed a two-stage strategy and sacked up a Day 1 limit of 28 pounds to lead the season-opening AFTCO Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River.

 

Leading Bob Downey of Hudson, Wis., by 12 ounces, Crews also sits atop the VMC Monster Bag standings for the event’s heaviest limit.

 

Following the miserably rainy, cold conditions that plagued practice, Day 1 dawned clear and bright. It was definitely a postfrontal, high-pressure scenario, but air temperatures quickly rose and spurred the fish.

 

“At the beginning of practice, I was practicing for these conditions, so it made me look really smart, like I made a good decision,” Crews said. “Hopefully, it will hold up. I think we’ll have the same weather tomorrow.”

 

Running upriver from Palatka, Crews started his day in Rodman Reservoir. While 22 other boats passed through the Buckman Lock with him, Crews said he never felt cramped or crowded. Covering a 2-mile area, he had to hit several spots to secure a limit.

REDCREST 2021 Bryan Thrift Dominance as First Five Anglers Set for Championship Round!

Thrift in total control of REDCREST

By Mason Prince

MLF PRESS RELEASE

Bryan Thrift at another level during elimination rounds. 
(Photo: MLF) 

The bite improved during Knockout Round 2 of REDCREST Presented by Old Wisconsin Sausage, but there were still some anglers left scratching their head at the end of the day. Warming temperatures paired with bright and sunny skies spelled a move to the bank, but the anglers with the most success—those that are moving on to the Championship Round—found their fish offshore with a variety of tactics.

The 10 anglers who competed on Wednesday during Knockout Round 1 only managed to register 32 scorable bass. Fast forward to Thursday, and Group B nearly doubled that total with 59 total, 14 of which came from round-winner Bryan Thrift.

Bryan Thrift, Ott DeFoe, Michael Neal, Takahiro Omori and Anthony Gagliardi are advancing to the Championship Round where they will join Zack Birge, Dustin Connell, Jacob Wheeler, Mark Davis and David Dudley. The five anglers who fell below the Toro Cut Line and won’t be advancing out of Group B are Edwin Evers, Jordan Lee, Alton Jones Jr., Brent Chapman and Randall Tharp.

Thrift Continues His REDCREST Dominance

For the third time in four days of competition, North Carolina pro Bryan Thrift ended the day on top of SCORETRACKER®. Thrift finished the day with 14 bass for 40 pounds, 8 ounces, with more than 16 pounds of separation between himself and second-place finisher Ott DeFoe.

“I just got off to a great start in that first period that really set me up for the whole day,” Thrift recalled. “I had 11 fish in the first period and I really spent the rest of the time trying to figure stuff out for the Championship Round.”

2021 Bassmaster Elite at Tennessee River Day 1: Gustafson Take Lead with 17-14lbs!

Canadians Cory Johnston 11th & Chris Johnston 66th

By Christopher Decker

BASS PRESS RELEASE

Gussy sacks limit of smallies to grab lead.
(Photo: BASS)

In his tournament experience thus far, Canadian Jeff Gustafson said he had never fished a Southern fishery where smallmouth bass act the same as they do up North.

That changed Thursday when the Canadian pro most people know simply as “Gussy” smashed a limit of mostly smallmouth weighing 17 pounds, 14 ounces, securing a Day 1 lead in the Guaranteed Rate Bassmaster Elite at Tennessee River.

The Keewatin, Ontario, native holds a nearly 4-pound advantage over three-time Elite Series champion Steve Kennedy of Auburn, Ala., who put 14-0 on the scales.

“I’m catching them a way that I love to fish at home,” Gustafson said. “I’m pretty excited to get back out there, and I’m 100% committed to smallmouth. I spent five hours largemouth fishing this afternoon and caught one 2-pounder and a couple shorts.

Gustafson said he found the spot during the final day of practice. But with the 18-inch minimum size limit for smallmouth on the Tennessee River, he wasn’t sure if the area held the right quality of fish.

He learned quickly on Thursday that it did, landing a limit of smallmouth by 9:30 a.m. in an area with several other competitors close by.

“It was one of the toughest practices I’ve ever had, and I found a little something yesterday and I didn’t catch big fish like that,” he said. “I didn’t know if I could get a keeper; the 18-inch thing is tough.

“My first fish I hooked this morning was 17 7/8 inches. Then I caught another short and another short, and then the next three I got were keepers. It worked out.”

The bass Gustafson located are in about 20 feet of water, and he said what he is doing is something a little different than most of his competitors.

“What I’m doing is kind of a unique way of catching them,” he said. “It’s not easy for everyone if you’ve never done it.”

2021 Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Lake Okeechobee: Neece Jr. Smashes 27 on Day 1

Canadians: Luzak 22nd & Sim 148th

By Tyler Brinks

Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Press Release

Great start to the 2021 season for Jim Neece Jr. (Photo: MLF)

Tournament mornings are always exciting, but today was the dawn of a new season. Fresh boat wraps and jerseys were unveiled and each of the 162 anglers in the field had the same optimism for the new season and what will unfold for 2021 on the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit.

It didn’t hurt that 13 Fishing Stop 1 was held on sunny Lake Okeechobee in Florida while most of the country is in the midst of a “polar vortex.”  

Air temperatures in the 80s greeted the anglers as they took to the legendary lake and even though the Big O changes year-to-year with varying water levels and changing vegetation, it’s still the same old Okeechobee. Some anglers will catch them flipping and pitching and some do it by winding baits.

That was the case today as each of those methods accounted for some solid bags of Florida bass, but leading the charge was Tennessee’s Jim Neece Jr. with a limit weighing 27 pounds.

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2019 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Day 3: Brandon Cobb Scores 37lb Limit and Lead!

Canadians Gustafson 9th & Cory Johnston 10^th.

By Bryan Brasher

BASS PRESS RELEASE

This 11 pounder plus 2 8-ponders equal mega limit for Cobb!
(Photo: BASS)

After catching two bass in the 8-pound range by 10 a.m., Brandon Cobb was already having one of the best days of fishing he’s ever had.

Then the bite of a lifetime at 2 p.m. moved the day to the very top of his list.

The giant afternoon bass, which weighed 11 pounds, 1 ounce and ranked as his biggest ever, lifted Cobb’s five-bass limit for the day to 37-15.

Now, with a three-day total of 84-1, he will enter the final day of Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department on Lake Fork with margin of 7-5 over his closest competition.

“I’ve never had a day like this before — not even close,” said Cobb, who recorded his first Bassmaster Elite Series victory in April on Lake Hartwell. “A 29-pound limit was my best ever until the other day (Thursday), when I caught 31-11. Now this is without a doubt the most amazing day I’ve ever had on the lake.”

Cobb went into the day with two-part game plan.

He expected to spend much of his time fishing shallow shellbeds away from the shoreline where bass have been feasting all week on spawning shad. Then he planned to fish shoreline cover where he’s been catching good numbers of solid bass, but nothing huge.

The shad-spawn bite paid off big time, as he caught an 8-8, an 8-13 and a 4-4 — all before noon. Then when he moved to the shoreline, he found something he wasn’t expecting.

“When I went to fish the bank, honestly, I expected to catch 3-pounders,” Cobb said. “That was my goal for the day — to catch big ones off the shad spawn and then fill a limit fishing the bank.

“But then, when I went to the bank, I caught an 11 and a 5.”

The 11-1 monster not only helped Cobb jump into the overall lead, it put him in first place for Toyota Tundra Big Bass of the Week. The prize for that award is a new Toyota Tundra truck.

Cobb was fishing a frog down a shoreline when he noticed the big bass sitting on a bed. He dropped his Power-Poles, believing the bass weighed 7 or 8 pounds.

Then he proceeded to pester the fish until it bit.

“It was one of those fish that looked like it was gonna bite every cast,” Cobb said. “Every cast I would make, it would kind of nose down and look at it. It took about 20 minutes to finally get it to eat. But with the way she was acting, I knew I could catch her.”

Cobb’s meteoric rise was aided in part by the struggles of Michigan pro Chad Pipkens. After catching 30-plus pounds the first two days and entering Day 3 with more than an 11-pound lead, Pipkens caught just four fish Sunday that weighed 5-8.

2018 FLW Tour Lewis Smith Day 2: David Williams Leads with 34lbs!

Gustafson 15th, Chris Johnston 37th, Cory Johnston 71st & Richardson 171st

by Sean Ostruszka

FLW PRESS RELEASE

Docks and wood key to Williams' pattern.
(Photo: FLW)

Almost every pro who crossed the weigh-in stage today said things changed today. David Williams was not one of them.

Just as he did on day one, the Maiden, N.C., pro ran a simple pattern he loves from back home and milked it for another big sack. This one went 15 pounds, 5 ounces and it extended his lead to more than 4 pounds at the FLW Tour presented by T-H Marine on Lewis Smith.

“This is fun,” says Williams with a toothy smile.

For him, yes, it’s been a lot of fun so far.

The bright sunshine and dropping water levels made life tougher for just about everyone, with weights dropping like stones for many. Yet, while Williams’ weight dropped, he still caught 50 keepers and had 15 pounds by 10 a.m. Plus, had he not lost the biggest fish he’s hooked all week – a for-sure 5-pounder, he says – he actually could’ve brought in another 18 pounds.

A big reason for his success is his pattern.

“I fish all over North and South Carolina,” says Williams. “We fish a lot of docks in the Carolinas, and there are a lot of lakes with flooded cover. That’s what I’m fishing here. So this is right up my alley. It’s just nice to not be fishing grass.”

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2018 FLW TOUR Lake Lanier Day 2: Bradley Hallman Leads by 7 Pounds with with 42-02lbs!

Gustafson 15th, Cory Johnston 67th, Chris Johnston 92th & Richardson 172th

by Sean Ostruszka

FLW PRESS RELEASE

Hallman on a big roll.
(Photo: FLW)

Everyone needs a backup plan. Bradley Hallman sure was glad he had one on Friday.

At around 1 p.m. Hallman only had one small fish swimming in his livewell. Fortunately, he’d been sitting on an ace in the hole – a secondary pattern that just so happens to get better later in the day. That pattern got him right in a hurry, as he quickly sacked up another 18 pounds, 11 ounces of spotted bass to extend his lead at the FLW Tour presented by Ranger on Lake Lanier. His 42-2 total is a little over 7 pounds more than second-place angler David Williams.

“I’ve got two deals; well, maybe three, but two main deals,” says the Norman, Okla., pro. “They’re totally different deals.”

Hallman started out on his first pattern Friday – running dozens of deeper structures – because he knows despite being high risk, it’s also high reward. The high rewards showcased themselves on day one when he crushed 23-11, but the risk reared its head on day two, as Hallman only connected with one fish all morning.

He wasn’t the only pro to struggle, however. Weights were down across the field, as many pros said the bluebird skies and post-frontal conditions had completely moved their fish or at the very least changed how they were biting.

Hallman managed to catch two small keepers shortly after 1 p.m., but then he decided to try his second deal. He’d sampled it on day one, quickly catching a 4-pounder and leaving. Today he leaned on it a bit more to help extend his lead.

Scott Martin Wins 2017 Walmart FLW Tour Lake Cumberland with 60-01lbs!

Smallmouth key to victory.

by Rob Newell

FLW PRESS RELEASE

Adjusting to calm, clear water key to win.
(Photo: FLW)

After leading day one of the FLW Tour event on Lake Cumberland presented by T-H Marine, then falling back to fifth place on day two, Scott Martin of Clewiston, Fla., battled back to regain his lead on the final day of the event Sunday, winning in Kentucky with a four-day total of 60 pounds, 1 ounce.

This marks Martin’s 8th FLW Tour win – a new FLW record. During his 18-year career he has won Tour events in Florida, Mississippi, New York, Arkansas, Maryland and now Kentucky, proving that he’s matured from a being just a kid under his famous father’s wing to one of the top anglers in the professional fishing world.

His win on Lake Cumberland demonstrated just how much he has learned to trust his instincts to fish new water instead of being chained only to places where he has caught fish in the past.

“When I first started fishing professionally, I would only fish places where I had caught a fish in practice or in the tournament,” Martin says. “I didn’t have the confidence to go down the lake during a tournament and just pull into a place I had never fished before. Basically, I was a very spot- or area-oriented angler. So this win feels good because it shows progress in becoming more of a pattern-oriented angler that is willing to take risks on new water during the events.”

TOP 10 BELOW

John Cox Wins the 2016 FLW CUP with 54-13 lbs.!

Chris Johnston grabs  8^th!

by Rob Newell

FLW PRESS RELEASE

This is John's second FLW victory this year. (Photo FLW)

John Cox started his fishing career in an aluminum boat, participating in small pond tournaments in a johnboat powered with just a trolling motor.
In 2011, in his rookie season on the Walmart FLW Tour, Cox earned his first Tour win out of an aluminum boat on the Red River.
In 2015, he finished runner-up in the Tour Angler of the Year standings with an aluminum boat. And in March of this year, Cox got his second Tour win out of an aluminum boat.
Today, Cox reached the pinnacle of the bass tournament world, winning professional bass fishing’s Forrest Wood Cup, and he did it out of an aluminum boat. With his $300,000 victory, Cox has made a bit of unique fishing history, being the only pro to ever win a modern world championship bass fishing event from an aluminum boat.

In doing so, he proved to the fishing world that owning a big brand new glass boat maxed out with a 250-hp outboard is not necessarily a prerequisite to winning a world title in bass fishing. Indeed, his memorable week at Wheeler Lake, which culminated today with the Forrest Wood Cup held high over his head, should serve as an inspiration for tournament anglers at all levels.
“I started in aluminums because I could not afford bigger glass boats,” Cox says. “Aluminum rigs are a more realistic boat purchase for the average working person. I used to paint apartments and just could not afford a $60,000 glass boat.

Froggin' and buzzbait key to CUP win. (Photo: FLW)

“After fishing out of aluminums, I discovered they have distinct advantages of being lighter and they can get up on plane in very shallow water,” he adds. “They don’t get stuck as bad when you plant one on a sandbar, and they tend to hop over logs and stuff better. They are simply more efficient for the way I like to fish.
“I did run a glass boat for about a year on Tour,” he adds. “But I returned to aluminums because they suit my fishing style better.”