Fantasy Fishing: Power fishing at the Pasquotank

Written by

Arkansas

The 2025 Elite Series event at the Pasquotank River/Albemarle Sound opened a lot of eyes as to how truly special of a fishery this is. I’m not sure that many had a winning weight of 118 pounds, 12 ounces on their bingo cards ahead of the event a year ago, but it goes to show the quality of bass that live in this body of water.

Even more surprising was the winning weight margin of 45 pounds, 7 ounces set my Kyle Welcher in the most dominant performance in the history of the Elite Series, by a large margin. It’s safe to assume that we won’t see either of these two things happen again here in 2026, but the assumption is still that we are in for another treat on a body of water that features nearly endless opportunities.

Being on site last year, one thing that a lot of the locals brought up was that the fishing would be even better and more entertaining if we were to bring the Elite Series back later in the season. Promises of frog fishing, jig swimming and flipping up big ones were made, so we will see what the Pasquotank has in store in a June event.

As for Fantasy Fishing, I would like to stack my roster full of shallow water power-fisherman but given that forward-facing sonar is allowed in this event, one would expect that plenty of anglers will figure out a way to catch them utilizing their electronics. Would it really surprise anyone at this point to see an urchin style bait like the Coike play at the Pasquotank much like it did at Santee Cooper a few weeks ago? I’m counting on it being a big player.

When building my roster, I mixed in a couple of forward-facing sonar wizards with a few old-school shallow water anglers. It’s a strategy that might come back to bite me, but I’ve got faith that it will work out.

Let’s get into some picks!

BUCKET A: CORY JOHNSTON

As I’ve said many times this season, it’s risky business picking against Trey McKinney in Bucket A. However, after a slip up at Santee Cooper, all the pressure will be on McKinney to bounce back, so I’m selecting the current leader in Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year points Cory Johnston. After a tough event at Lake Murray, Johnston rallied at Santee Cooper with a 4th place finish. In addition to his phenomenal season, Johnston finished 34th at the Pasquotank a year ago.

Solid secondary selection: Given the 41% player percentage, it appears that most players are counting on a Trey McKinney bounce back at the Pasquotank. Given his track record on the Elite Series, it’s hard to imagine the Illinois pro having back-to-back tough events.

BUCKET B: FUJITA

As promised, I’m going to mix in a few forward-facing sonar experts into lineup. Kyoya Fujita is currently the fifth highest selected angler in Bucket B at an 8.6% player percentage. The Japanese pro just missed the Top 10 a year ago at the Pasquotank with an 11th place finish. Look for Fujita to put his power-finesse tactics to work again this year.

Solid secondary selection: If the shallow water frogging and swimming a jig is in play, look for Wes Logan to be in the mix this year. The Alabama pro struggled at the Pasquotank in 2025, so you know the “The Little Ball of Hate” is looking for some revenge.

BUCKET C: HACKNEY

After a rough stretch to begin the 2026 season, Greg Hackney rallied back with back-to-back top 20 finishes at Murray and Santee Cooper. Momentum is a real thing on the Elite Series, and I would expect the Hack Attack to keep it rolling on a body of water that perfectly suits his style.

Solid secondary selection: If the shallow water urchin bait pattern prevails at the Pasquotank, Pake South could be an absolute steal at a 7.9% player percentage. We have seen the Texas pro dominate with that pattern multiple times this season on the Opens.

BUCKET D: COX

There’s simply no way that John Cox’s streak of missed cuts continues at the Pasquotank River. The Florida pro has just missed the cut by 7 spots or fewer in four consecutive Elite events which is absolutely shocking considering how consistent he has been over the course of his career. I’m banking on Cox breaking out of it in North Carolina.

Solid secondary selection: While he didn’t have a stellar event at the Pasquotank a year ago, I will always trust picking Bryan Schmitt on any river system.

BUCKET E: PARKS

After an uncharacteristically tough start to the 2026 season, Logan Parks has made back-to-back cuts, and the rest of the season looks good on paper. The former Auburn Tiger finished just outside the Top 10 in 12th in 2025, so there’s certainly some comfortability on this body of water.

Solid secondary selection: John Crews has certainly not had the season that he would like to this point, but the Pasquotank could be just what he needs to get back on track. The Virginia pro finished 28th here a year ago.