PROFILE :
DREW
GILL
MOUNT CARMEL , ILLINOIS “ You can fail , but still gain some experience out of it so it feels like a win even when you fail .”
The only way to truly lose is to not gain something from an experience , according to Bass Pro Tour rookie Drew Gill . Whether it ’ s reaching a personal goal of making the Top 10 or learning something new that can lead to future success , every improvement is a win in Gill ’ s book – and despite his young age , the 21-year-old Illinois pro ’ s book contains volumes .
Gill started making tournament waves at the Abu Garcia College Fishing level , where he used his time to learn the ins , outs and nuances of different kinds of fisheries than he ’ d fished in his home state . While Gill is on the cusp of finishing his business marketing degree , he ’ s put that on pause so he can focus on competitive bass fishing – and it ’ s paying off in spades .
QA &
Your 2024 season is off to a roaring start : You finished third in your Bass Pro Tour debut at Toledo Bend , and then earned your first tour-level win just a few days later in the Tackle Warehouse Invitationals Stop 1 at Sam Rayburn . You then finished fifth at West Point and are leading Fishing Clash AOY in the Invitationals . Can you try to describe the “ zone ” you seem to be in ?
Like anything in life , but especially with sports , momentum is a big factor . We view it as some sort of spiritual or magical property , but in my opinion , it ’ s more of a mental aspect . You get in a rhythm with your ways of thinking and
By Matt Naber
PHOTO BY ROB MATSUURA
processing information and strategizing to complete a task . So , in bass fishing , ( the fish ’ s ) behavior is on a spectrum , and it ’ s a process . If you fish enough in similar conditions , you can get your rhythm right and predict what will happen at any tournament . Lately , I ’ ve been running my process of breaking anywhere down in the prespawn , then showing up and applying that process and figuring them out . Once you get there , it ’ s pretty much unstoppable .
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MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | APRIL-MAY 2024