The first two events as a Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series angler certainly did not go how Easton Fothergill would have liked. But if there is one thing he has learned about tournament bass fishing in his young career, it’s to stay as even keeled as possible no matter the result.
With that said, his 101st place finish at the St. Johns River followed by a 93rd place finish at Lake Okeechobee have given Fothergill a little extra motivation to perform well at the 2025 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic at Lake Ray Roberts presented by Under Armour.
“I’m a super competitive person, probably one of the most competitive you will ever meet. So, it makes me really upset to do poorly,” Fothergill said. “Those first two finishes definitely fuel the fire for me going into the Classic. We are in Texas, and there is no better place to create some big fireworks.”
The Grand Rapids, Minn. rookie got a taste of what fishing with his childhood idols would be like last year during the 2024 Classic at Grand Lake, where he handled the atmosphere well and notched a 16th place finish.
But when he arrived at the St. Johns River after winning the 2024 Tackle Warehouse Elite Qualifier points race, he found himself star struck by the veterans launching around him, particularly Idaho’s Brandon Palaniuk.
“I kind of forgot it’s you against the fish, it’s not you against your competitors. The fact that I actually made the Elite Series kind of caught up with me,” the former University of Montevallo angler said. “I need to not get caught up in the moment and remember it is me against the fish and do my job.”
Nerves and a stingy St. Johns River got the better of the 22-year-old at the first event. Fothergill compared his tournament there to the final event of the 2016 season when Gerald Swindle was attempting to close out the Angler of the Year title.
“I watched him win AOY and the first day of that tournament, he said he fished scared. Meaning he was scared to make the right adjustment,” Fothergill explained. “That is what I ran into. I knew what I was doing was wrong, and I didn’t make the right adjustments. I’m kicking myself for that.”
Despite the bad finish, Fothergill is already wanting to head back to Palatka.
“It was unlike anything I had ever seen,” Fothergill said. “I really hope we go back there. I need some revenge on that place.”
The following event at Okeechobee, the two-time Opens champion covered as much water as he possibly could, hoping to replicate the success he found in the first Open of the 2024 season, a tournament he finished ninth in.
While he fished canals like several of the top finishers did, he never ran into the quality bass needed to compete that week. After that tournament wrapped up, Fothergill received an unexpected message from Palaniuk, who had just notched his eighth Bassmaster victory.
“He asked me to call him, and we talked for 45 minutes,” Fothergill recalled. “He really walked me through some things and (reminded me) that I belong here. That meant the world to me. He’s a stand-up guy to do something like that.”
With a vote of confidence and a couple weeks to reset, Fothergill executed a strategic practice plan at Ray Roberts that he feels could produce special things if all goes well.
“When I do get bit, it is a big one,” he said. “I think if I can get in there and there aren’t too many people around, I really think I’m around the right bass to make something pretty cool happen.”
The wind blew hard almost every day of practice, but the heavy gusts and waves didn’t bother him much.
“I always use the wind to my advantage while fishing,” he said. “I want the wind blowing into my areas because I think that really fires the fish. But you can’t have too much at the same time. So I tried to be strategic to the best of my ability.”
The biggest key to fishing in the wind? Fothergill believes it is about keeping your brain in the game.
“It is super hard to keep a level mind with this much wind. I think you can cross out a lot of guys before they make a cast tomorrow because the wind is so strong and it is so hard to keep a good mental state. That is where I strive. I gotta tell myself to stay focused and to keep doing my thing.
“The wind does not scare me one bit.”
