PHOTO BY GARICK DIXON |
PHOTO BY PHOENIX MOORE |
PHOTO BY JODY WHITE |
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5 . ABU GARCIA HIGH SCHOOL FISHING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Lake Hartwell
June 19 – 21
Trent Carey and Josh Kauffman bested 249 of the top high school teams in the country on Lake Hartwell to earn the national title . The Pennsylvania duo had competed on Hartwell in the 2021 National Championship , and they used that knowledge to mark a trove of offshore waypoints , which they cycled through each day .
Carey and Kauffman got off to a strong start with a three-fish limit of 12-1 , which had them in second place . They took the lead with 8-10 on Day 2 , then sealed the deal with 9-3 , topping the runner-up tandem by 1-4 . They each earned $ 5,000 in college scholarship funds plus entry into the Toyota Series Championship as co-anglers .
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6 . GENERAL TIRE TEAM SERIES BASS PRO SHOPS CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY B & W TRAILER HITCHES
Orange Lake , Lake Santa Fe , Rodman Reservoir , Lochloosa Lake May 11 – June 22
Matt Becker , Wesley Strader and Scott Suggs of team Knighten became the second ever winners of the General Tire Team Series . Across four matches in Florida , they first won their Elimination Round match , then finished second in their semifinal . That meant they had to stave off elimination in the Wild Card Round , where they edged team Sqwincher by 11-6 .
They rode that momentum into the final on Lochloosa Lake . Becker led the way , boating 18 scorable bass for 34-5 , mostly on a jerkbait . Strader added 19-2 , while Suggs chipped in 18-14 . The trio each earned $ 100,000 for the win .
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7 . BASS PRO TOUR GENERAL TIRE STAGE SIX PRESENTED BY O ’ REILLY AUTO PARTS James River
June 25 – 30
On his 55th birthday , Skeet Reese got the best present of his life : his long-awaited first Bass Pro Tour trophy and the $ 100,000 paycheck that comes with it .
Like most of the field , the Bass Fishing Hall of Famer started the event in the Chickahominy River but decided to avoid the crowd during the Knockout and Championship Rounds . Starting Championship Sunday near the mouth of the Appomattox River , Reese amassed nearly 30 pounds during Period 1 . From there , he ran the tide and slowly but steadily added to his total , bringing it to 54-3 , which proved enough to hold off a hard-charging Jeff Sprague by 3-11 .
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8 . TOYOTA SERIES PRESENTED BY PHOENIX BOATS NORTHERN DIVISION
Lake Champlain
July 11 – 13
After several near misses through the years , Kyle Cortiana finally broke through for his first professional win . The Oklahoma native has spent a lot of time chasing northern smallmouth in recent years , and it finally paid off on Lake Champlain , where his 64-1 three-day total topped a loaded field .
Fishing shallow on Day 1 , Cortiana sacked up 20-0 , which ( incredibly ) had him tied for 27th . He jumped to fourth with the biggest bag of Day 2 , 22-3 . Returning to the same offshore area near Mallets Bay on Day 3 , he used a Yum FF Sonar Minnow to catch smallmouth ambushing baitfish around a mudline . His 21-14 limit sealed the victory and earned him $ 40,000 .
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