Any Bassmaster Opens competitor who ends the season among the top 10 in either division’s point standings has demonstrated exceptional angling skills. Missouri’s Brock Bila finished 10th in Opens Division 1 and fourth in Opens Division 2, making him the undisputed overall Opens Angler of the Year for 2026.
If Bila maintains his remarkable consistency while competing in the upcoming Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers, he will clinch his dream of becoming a Bassmaster Elite Series angler. At age 25, he may well set himself up for a long career as a professional angler.
Unconventional beginnings
Many of today’s young Elite Series pros were hooked on bass fishing and tournament competition by their father or a relative who participated in this sport. Bila’s father passed from pancreatic cancer when he was 6 months old, and there were no anglers in his extended family to introduce him to fishing.
His father left behind an 18-foot VIP ski boat. When Bila was 9 years old, his mother, Rena, began taking her son boating in the craft at Hillsdale Lake 45 minutes from their Kansas home. He saw people fishing on these outings and wanted to try it.
His mother capitulated and bought him a spinning rod and a handful of lures. Over the next three years, she would idle the ski boat up and down the dam so her son could cast for bass, bluegill, white bass and whatever else would bite.
He visited the Bass Pro Shops in Olathe, Kan., so often the manager asked him if he would like to join a youth fishing club. Bila jumped at the opportunity, and his mother supported him. She specifically picked the Capital City Junior Hogs in Topeka because they brought in a local angler to teach the youngsters about fishing at their monthly meetings.
“I meet Larry Brumley in Junior Hogs, and he became my boat captain throughout high school,” Bila said. “He is a huge part of my life. He taught me everything I needed to be able to go to college and fish at a national level.”
Brumley, an accomplished tournament angler in Kansas, excels at shallow water fishing. He taught Bila how to dupe bass with finesse offerings, including the shaky head, Ned rig, Neko rig and the floating worm. These tactics have paid off for Bila in the Opens.
High school to college
While competing in high school, Bila qualified for the Bassmaster National High School Championship in 2017, 2018 and 2019. In his junior year, he and his mother initiated a bass club at Louisburg High School in Louisburg, Kan.
“The club grew to over 40 members,” Bila said. “That meant a lot to me coming out of high school.”
After high school, Bila attended Drury University in Springfield, Mo., and competed on the university’s bass team. Rick Emmitt, who was then the marketing director for Bass Pro Shops, set up a phenomenal program for the team.
“That’s the main reason I decided to go to Drury,” Bila said. “The team paid for everything, including hotels and fuel. Without that program, I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing today.”
The team competed in three collegiate leagues, including the Bassmaster College Series. Bila qualified for seven national championships. The most important thing he learned while fishing in college was how to grind in practice to learn everything he could about whatever lake he was fishing.
He fished the Opens for the first time in 2025 and did “really bad.”
“I let dock talk lead me astray,” Bila said. “This year I focused on what I was doing and ignored what other anglers were saying. I intend to keep trying until I make the Elites.”
Bila now lives in Springfield with his wife, Lauren, whom he married last December. Besides competing in tournaments, he works in marketing in the fishing industry.
His sponsors include Wholesale Batteries (his title sponsor), Clutch Swimbaits, Yamamoto Baits, HUK fishing apparel, Bill Lewis Lures, Frog Factory, Phenix Rods, Bass Cat Boats and Buckeye Lures.
