Lucas Lindsay is among the Nitro Boats Bassmaster Elite Qualifier competitors bouncing bunches of numbers in their brains.
The 27-year-old from Auburn, Ala., stands in good shape to be among the Top 10 who advance to the 2027 Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series, but he does need some figures to go his way.
“I’m sitting just outside cut right now,” he said. “We are very, very, very close to making the dream a reality.”
Things weren’t looking great after starting 43rd in the EQ at Norfork Lake, but Lindsay posted a fourth-place finish at Toledo Bend Reservoir to climb the standings. Lindsay is tied for 12th with 211 points, just two clicks behind anglers tied for the final spot.
“I’m over the moon. I made up a ton of ground — 30 places,” Lindsay said. “I did my job and I’m feeling really good about it.”
In last year’s inaugural EQ three-event format, there were four anglers who jumped from outside the cut to make the Elites. Lindsay points to friend Pake South, who posted the lowest finish among those who advanced.
“He had a 51st, but he had two Top 10s,” Lindsay said. “You get six guaranteed days, but you really need nine to make it a no-worry thing.”
There was plenty of worry in 2025, as Matt Messer and Aaron Jagdfeld can vouch. There were ranked 1 and 2 heading into Okeechobee but faltered on Day 1 and were sweating it before each completed stressful rallies to Elite status.
Caleb Hudson was the highest climber at Okeechobee. Starting 20th, he earned 106 points to finish seventh in the standings, hitting the trifecta of a tournament victory while securing Elite status and a Classic berth.
Fisher Anaya won the 2025 EQ Angler of the Year crown and its $45,000 bonus with 264 points. He averaged ninth-place finishes among the 95 EQ competitors, while Brock Reinkemeyer was last man in with 223 points, averaging 23rd-place finishes. Others who climbed in with big Big O showings were Austin Cranford (fourth) and Tristan McCormick (seventh).
This year, Kaden Buchmann, behind his Norfork victory, tops the 127-man EQ field with 244 points. With a 12th and fifth, Brody Robison stands five points back as those two have broken from the pack.
Brennan Flick, who rallied 30 spots on Day 2 at Toledo Bend, is third with 223. Peyton Harris is fourth with 221 and Cody Abbott is next with 220. Kollin Crawford and Trey Schroeder each have 219 points, and Colby Bryant and Noah Winslow are at 216.
Bailey Gay occupies 10th with 213 points, the same total as Dalton Head in 11th. Lindsay is tied with Bryson O’Steen at 211.
The estimated point total to finish 10th is 220. With 127 points going to event winners, that’s within reach of competitors down to Garrett Smith in 18th, although the mark to gain can move up or down a few points.
Lindsay, like probably most with a shot, has estimated what he needs in the Lake Guntersville finale, Nov. 11-13, all three days of which will air on Bassmaster LIVE.
“I believe a top 25 will do it, maybe even a top 30 if I’m lucky, if the right people don’t catch them,” Lindsay said. “The addition of not having scope gives me a bit of wiggle room.”
After a coin flip, Toledo Bend was the only fishery that allowed the technology. Lindsay, who grew up fishing Alabama with current Elite Logan Parks, said they only started to learn it in 2021, and he added the younger anglers aren’t solely scopers.
“It is hard,” he said. “It’s not something you just pick up and go catch them. The scope does make a big difference of who is in the Top 10, but I think some people discount the young anglers and say they’re not going to be a problem, and that’s just not true.”
Abbot is the youngest of the 20-somethings vying for the Elites, with Flick the oldest at 37. Lindsay said he’s now “kinda one of the older guys.” He is also among the four Alabama anglers in the mix, but he lives in Auburn more than three hours from Guntersville.
“I don’t have a whole ton of history there,” he said. “Trips to Guntersville are definitely under 20. Tournament track record has not been great, but this is an ever-changing sport and anything can happen.”
After a recent event, Lindsay stayed at Big G for a few days of exploring before the practice cutoff. With his home lake Martin, grass isn’t his forte, but he believes he might have found a few areas that might play, “other things that could make things interesting.”
To get to 320, Lindsay needs 109 points, a finish in the low 20s.
“I think 17 pounds a day will get me there,” he said, “or I can just catch 20 a day and be in the Top 10. It may take about 20 pounds to Top 10.
“I’ve definitely been fishing, not out of my mind, but much better and much more confidently than in years past. I’m looking forward to getting up there and fishing the way I want to.”
Lindsay’s 28th birthday is Nov. 10, a day before the first competition day. How might he make it a happy one?
“Best case, we wake up at 4 a.m., go fish the first day and bust 20,” he said. “Fish the second, and I’d be fine with a follow-up of 18, 19, and then let’s make the Day 3 cut and get some money and move up in the AOY standings to make the Elites.
“A Top 10 would absolutely guarantee it.”
Nothing in bass fishing is ever guaranteed, but with the right numbers, Lindsay could get to cloud nine.
