Somewhere around mid-morning on Day 1 of the 2026 Lowrance Bassmaster Elite at St. Lawrence River, Trey McKinney quipped, “There’s a fine line between dumb and stupid, and we are right there.”
At that moment, the two-time Elite Series champion was battling a 5-pound smallmouth in waves almost twice as tall as he is. Once it got close enough to the boat, McKinney swiftly moved to his driver’s seat and lifted that bass out of the water more gracefully than anyone could have expected.
The waves might have been massive on Lake Ontario, the biggest the youngster from Illinois has certainly ever seen, but flirting with disaster may have just paved the way to another Elite Series Top 10 and the trophy that’s eluded him two years in a row.
Claiming sixth on Day 1 with 26 pounds, 8 ounces, McKinney increased his lead over his competitors in the Progressive Angler of the Year, unofficially 10 points ahead of Cory Johnston and 65 points ahead of Drew Cook.
Day 1 was no doubt a testament to how much an AOY trophy, and a blue trophy for that matter, means to these anglers. While McKinney was in a wave pool, Johnston was somehow fishing in conditions that seemed far worse through the lens of a live camera and managed to catch 25-7.
Weights are extremely tight, and with the wind calming down the next few days according to the forecast, this is setting up to be an exciting conclusion to the season. McKinney may have the lead but is by no means safe.
We’ve seen Johnston complete epic comebacks on the SLR before. In 2023, he was 51st on Day 1 with 19-14 and proceeded to catch 27-4, 25-0 and 23-14 to finish sixth. The margin is far closer this time, and I bet if you ask Johnston, he probably isn’t thrilled to be outside the Top 10 heading into tomorrow.
Or maybe he is… he might just fish some really sneaky places he wouldn’t otherwise go to make up the ground.
For Cook, his hopes of winning his first AOY may be over. He is 70th with 21-15 currently. With a big bag, he can make his way into the Top 50, but catching up with Johnston and McKinney’s torrid pace is going to be hard. I wouldn’t count him out just yet though.
If this is how the season ends for Cook, it was an impressive one no matter what way you look at it. He entered the SLR on a heater, notching three Top 5’s in a row. His worst finish of the season is 59th at Lake Murray.
Rookie of the Year
The two-man race for Pro-Guide Batteries Rookie of the Year race may reach its conclusion tomorrow with a new angler on top. Fisher Anaya took the lead on Day 1 by landing 26-1 and claiming 9th place while Caleb Hudson finds himself in 71st with 21-14.
Anaya was 100 percent in his comfort zone on Day 1. He stayed in the St. Lawrence River, in about the calmest looking water of anyone with a Bassmaster LIVE camera, and targeted shallow smallmouth living in grass patches next to sandy bottom.
Hudson, a Georgia native, entered the contest with a 12-point advantage over the 20-year-old from Alabama, but finds himself in a major hole as the first cut day races closer. The weights are so tight that it is entirely possible Hudson could rebound and make Day 3, but he will need Anaya to stumble if he wants a shot at reclaiming the ROY lead.
Classic Cut
The Bassmaster Opens has been the gift that keeps on giving for Elite Series anglers around the cutline for the 2027 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour. Right now, 45th or above is where anglers need to be to fish the Super Bowl of Bass Fishing in March.
Plenty of shifting happened around that mark on Day 1 at the SLR. Notably, 2024 champion Justin Hamner jumped from 50th to 38th on the back of a 25-10 limit. Alex Redwine made a similar jump and is now unofficially in the Classic. On the other side of the coin, Carl Jocumsen plummets into 57th after opening the event inside Classic bubble.
In first after Day 1, Tucker Smith is the last man in, but has no room to grow and is only one point ahead of Will Davis Jr.
As it stands, here is how the cutline is shaping up.
- Easton Fothergill (503 points)
- Rob Gee (495)
- Shane LeHew (494)
- Chris Zaldain (492)
- Bryan Schmitt (488)
- Tucker Smith (485)
- Will Davis Jr. (484)
- Kyle Patrick (480)
- Lee Livesay (474)
- Wesley Gore (473)
- Taku Ito (472)
Elite Requalification
With backs against the wall, many of the anglers in danger of losing their Elite Series qualification rose to the occasion. Evan Kung is fourth in the tournament and rose from below the 70th-place threshold all the way to 58th place in AOY unofficially. Brad Whatley also made an impressive jump, landing in the safety zone with a Top 10 showing on Day 1 that now has him in 59th in the points.
KJ Queen made a big jump as well, landing in 19th in the tournament to jump all the way to 64th in AOY.
Remember, all of this is unofficial until the Elite Series roster is complete after the Nation Championship and the EQ finale.
Who helped their cause: Evan Kung (4th; 26-9), Brad Whatley (10th; 25-15) Wes Logan (16th; 25-6), KJ Queen (19th; 25-5)
Who hurt their cause: Jason Williamson (81st; 21-8), Caleb Kuphall (63rd; 22-5), Clifford Pirch (83rd; 21-3)
Who got hurt by others helping their cause: Brandon Card (34th; 24-5), Caleb Sumrall (54th; 23-3)
Good showings by anglers unlikely to requalify for the Elite Series: Greg DiPalma (19th, 25-5), Kenta Kimura (46th, 23-10)
In flux: Mark Menendez (53rd; 23-4), Beau Browning (50th; 23-7)
