It has been an up-and-down season for me this year – my 35th competing in Bassmaster professional level events. I’m writing this on the eve of my last practice day for the St. Lawrence River, the final event of the 2026 Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series schedule, and I’m feeling a little nostalgic at this point.
I started my career by driving to the B.A.S.S. offices in Montgomery, Ala., in April of 1991 and paying my entry fees. In those days, if you were waiting in line to pay, you were guaranteed in the Invitationals; there were about 12 of us that day, and I got in.
My first event was the Illinois Invitational on the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers in Alton, Ill., in September of 1991. I remember hearing it was going to take 15 pounds to get in the money and it took 6 pounds, 6 ounces to get paid. Woo Daves won the event with just over 18 pounds, and I missed the paycheck line by 1 pound even at 5 pounds, 6 ounces. I finished 64th place and fell in love with the Bassmaster Tournament Trail.
I started in the Invitationals, qualified for the Bassmaster BP Top 100s, the Bassmaster Top 150s, the E50s and finally the Bassmaster Elite Series. This is a business, but I’ve loved being a part of this tournament trail and the organization since I started, spanning parts of four different decades.
I’ve had a successful career in fishing, won three events including an Elite Series at Lake Dardanelle in 2009, I’ve fished in six Bassmaster Classics and led Day 1 of the New Orleans Classic in 2003 with my trusty pal Barkley riding along that day. I’ve cashed just under $1.5 million in earnings in my career and had highlights such as holding the record for largest bass caught in a Bassmaster event for nearly three years. I caught her on a spinnerbait on Richland Chambers Reservoir in Texas during a Megabucks event.
Being a part of the promotional side of the sport is what I’ve enjoyed and excelled at the most. I’ve spent countless hours and days making public appearances and giving educational seminars to the public. I’ve worked sport shows from East Coast to West Coast and north to south in this great land and made some lifelong friends while doing so.
I’ve driven millions of miles on highways and roads that don’t really have names in pursuit of this career. In fact, not too many people know that’s why I chose the song “Where the Streets Have No Name” by U2 as my walkup music – a little Mark Menendez trivia for you there.
It’s definitely a different time for me now. My body is not quite what it used to be, and I’ve been dealing with elbow and hand injuries that have limited my effectiveness some for several years. I do hand and elbow therapies daily to try and improve, but they have made throwing a jerkbait or ripping a lipless bait out if the grass more difficult for me. I’ve had to focus on techniques like flipping, throwing a spinnerbait and a Thunder Cricket — and that’s okay.
I’ve had some great partnerships along the way; I am grateful for every single one of them. I want to say thank you to everyone who took a chance on me. I’ve been with some of them for most of my career. I’ve been with Yamaha since 2002, I joined the Strike King team in 2004, and I’ve had long relationships with Lew’s, Seaguar and Power-Pole amongst others.
There’s a lot riding on this last event of the season. I‘ve got to go out there and get a strong finish to get the automatic invitation to play again in 2027. While I’m reflective, I’m going to go out there and give it everything I’ve got to be in the position I want to be in.
