[Full disclosure from the author: Andrew Upshaw is my son-in-law. He met my daughter Valerie when she came to support me at a Bassmaster Open tournament I competed in several years ago at Lake St....
Maryland angler Bryan Schmitt rarely spends an entire day without being aboard some type of fishing vessel. When he wasn’t competing in a Bassmaster Eastern Open or an FLW Tour event during the...
Destin DeMarion of Grove City, Pa., has certainly paid his dues. The 30-year-old angler has competed in 44 Bassmaster Open tournaments since signing on to fish the Northern Opens as a co-angler in...
Florida’s John Cox is faced with a quandary. Should he fish the Bassmaster Elite Series in 2020 or FLW? Because he has firmly established himself as one of the country’s hottest tournament anglers,...
When Bob Downey of Hudson, Wis., signed on to fish the 2019 Bassmaster Central Opens, he knew it would be a tall step up in competition. He had never fished a Bassmaster Open before and was hoping...
Rung by rung, Wes Logan has been climbing a ladder to his lofty goal of becoming a fulltime professional bass angler. Logan stepped on the first rung of the ladder 20 years ago when his father,...
When Colby Cotterill competed in the 2019 Bassmaster Central Open at Toledo Bend last February, it was his first tournament after a five-year hiatus. It didn’t take him long to get back into his...
Wisconsin’s Caleb Kuphall is one of those competitors who strives for years before becoming an overnight success. He hasn’t quite earned overnight success status yet, but he will if he fares as...
After the first two Bassmaster Central Opens of 2019 Japan’s Taku Ito sits atop the Central Opens Angler of the Year (AOY) standings. The 32-year-old finished second at Toledo Bend and eighth at...
David “Davey” May of Odessa, Fla., probably logs more hours on the water than any other bass angler in the country, pro or otherwise. Unfortunately for May, the vast majority of those hours have...
With two tournaments left in the 2019 Bassmaster Eastern Opens, Tyler Berger is fifth in AOY points. If he holds or betters his standing after fishing the James River and Oneida Lake, Berger will...
Alabamian Kyle Welcher believes that competing in a bass tournament is a bigger gamble than playing poker. Considering that this 25-year-old bass addict supports himself solely by tournament...
Few bass fans took note of Ohioan Whitney Stephens before he ran away with the first 2019 Bassmaster Eastern Open on Florida’s Harris Chain of Lakes. Stephens boated 57 pounds, 8 ounces of...
It is rare but not unprecedented to have a father and son fishing the highest-level Bassmaster tournaments at the same time. Noteworthy examples include Guido and Dion Hibdon and Denny and Chad...
After winning the first Bassmaster Central Open of 2019 at Toledo Bend, Darold Gleason quipped that his main goal is to “stay alive for the next 12 months.”Should the healthy 36-year-old resident...
Never underestimate Drew Cook’s desire to make his living as a Bassmaster Elite Series pro. Consider what the Florida resident overcame at the first Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Eastern Open of 2018...
In 2003, Koby Kreiger underwent major life changes. He fished the Bassmaster Classic at the Louisiana Delta, which he qualified for by claiming the Bassmaster Northern Opens points championship the...
Brad Whatley of Bivins, Texas, finished third at the first Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Central Open of 2018 on Mississippi’s Ross Barnett Reservoir. He never looked back.After last year's Bassmaster...
