What separates the top 1% of tournament anglers from everyone else? Longevity. My entire approach to professional fishing has always revolved around longevity. Look at the best anglers — whether you’re evaluating them based on tournament success or sponsorship earnings — and you’ll find one common thread: sustained performance over time. In this sport, consistency equals longevity. Plain and simple.
However, there’s one accomplishment that can overshadow even longevity. That’s winning a championship — specifically, the Bassmaster Classic.
I’m not saying you can win a Classic once, step away or struggle in every tournament afterward and still expect a successful career. But the anglers who win a Classic and keep competing often experience a noticeable shift in their careers. Look at some of the greatest anglers in our sport: Jason Christie, Kevin VanDam, Jordan Lee, Rick Clunn, Hank Parker and Mike Iaconelli, just to name a few. Around 90% of the legendary anglers in our sport share one defining achievement: They’ve all lifted the Ray Scott trophy.
I know I can have a successful career without a Bassmaster Classic win, but I don’t even want to imagine that road. Winning the Classic, plain and simple, changes everything. It’s a defining moment, a career-altering achievement. I don’t need it, but I want it more than anything. Perhaps more than anything else on the planet.
When I fished in my first Classic in 2024, I was in shock. I had just made it to the highest level of the sport and was thrown into a media whirlwind. I was surrounded by my idols, on the biggest stage in bass fishing. I was 30% nervous, 40% excited and — given the circumstances — as focused as I could be, which was about 30%.
But this year is different.
I’ve become somewhat accustomed to the hype, the media and the nerves. That doesn’t mean I won’t shake like a leaf on Day 1 — because I will. That’s just how I’m wired, as many of you know. But this time, I have 100% focus, and that’s it.
I’m ready for Media Day, Night of Champions and all the social aspects of the Classic. But my only priority is winning this event. I don’t necessarily love that feeling because I’ve lost some of the wide-eyed excitement I had last year. I guess that’s the natural progression — from being a superfan of the sport to a professional fisherman at the highest level.
There’s a fine line between enjoying something and doing it for a living. As professional anglers, we must walk that line carefully. We can’t let the stress consume us to the point of burnout, but at the end of the day, this is our job.
And I promise you — I’ll be on the job side of that line during our week in Texas.
It’s time to lock in and get that Ray Scott Trophy.
