Rookies Tucker Smith and Paul Marks are on fire. After Marks finished first and Smith was second at Lake Hartwell in the fourth Bassmaster Elite Series tournament of the season, Smith finished first and Marks was second at Lake Fork in the fifth tourney of the season.
As you might guess, those two are in a tight race for the Dakota Lithium Bassmaster Rookie of the Year race. Smith, 23, of Birmingham, Ala., leads Marks, 23, of Cumming, Ga., by 11 points going into tourney No. 6 of 9 at the Sabine River this week.
These past two events have rocketed Smith and Marks into the top 10 in the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year race as well. Smith is fifth and Marks is ninth.
Those aren’t the only two rookies on a hot streak. Easton Fothergill has now put together a streak that includes winning the Bassmaster Classic and finishing inside the Top 10 at three straight Elite Series events – Pasquotank River (fourth), Lake Hartwell (seventh) and Lake Fork (eighth). Fothergill, 22, from Grand Rapids, Minn., is now third in ROY points, 86 points behind Smith.
Although his victory at the Classic gave Fothergill an automatic berth in the 2026 Bassmaster Classic, he’s now moved inside the top 40 AOY points race, which would make him double-qualified if he finishes the season there. He’s currently 35th, a remarkable comeback after starting the season with a 101st-place finish at the St. Johns River and 93rd at Lake Okeechobee.
Emil Wagner is fourth in the ROY standings, 96 points behind Smith. He’s also within the top 40 Classic cutoff in AOY points – 37th. Wagner, 27, of Marietta, Ga., just missed the cut at Lake Fork, finishing 52nd.
Andrew Loberg, 31, of Guntersville, Ala., is another rookie on the rise after a brutal start to the season. He finished 102nd, 88th and 87th in the first three tournaments. He’s turned that around with a 15th-place finish at Hartwell and an 18th-place showing at Fork.
