HAPPY CANADA DAY!

Wishing all our Canadian readers and wonderful Canada Day!

 

Harold "The Legend" Allen passes at age 81!

By Craig Lamb

BASS Press Release

Harold Allen, a legendary B.A.S.S. pioneer whose career began in the mid-1970s, passed away peacefully on June 26 after a prolonged illness. He was 81 years old. 

Born and raised in East Texas, Allen honed his angling skills as a guide on Toledo Bend, which back in its early heyday of the 1970s was a haven for some of the nation’s top bass guides. Specifically at mid-lake where the top names were based in Hemphill, Texas. A cadre of guides emerged as powerhouse anglers on the B.A.S.S. tour due to their considerable time spent on the big bass fishery. Most of them fished over 200 days each year, keeping them sharp regardless of where the tour stopped. 

B.A.S.S. founder and president Ray Scott collectively called that group of anglers the “Hemphill Gang” with Allen as a founding member. Others included Tommy Martin and Larry Nixon, both of whom won Bassmaster Classic titles, and John Torian and Jon Hall. 

Alabama pro Greg Vinson comes out on top in his home state for the NPFL victory at Stop #4 of the 2026 Season.

Story by Justin Brouillard, NPFL Press Release

A week of ups and downs, added pressure each day, weekend boat traffic and increasing winds on Showdown Saturday—those were just a few of the challenges the field faced this week at Stop Four of the NPFL on Logan Martin Lake in Oxford, Alabama.

Veteran pro Greg Vinson saved his best for last, catching the biggest bag of the tournament on Showdown Saturday to earn his first NPFL victory with a three-day total of 46-2. Vinson opened the event with 15-10 on Thursday, survived a tough Day Two with 12-10 to sit in seventh place, then rallied with a 17-14 limit on the final day to secure the victory.

“I have been doing this a long time, guys,” Vinson said. “Over 20 years. I worked my way up with the full support of my family, my son Gaige, my wife Steph, my friends. So many ups and downs in this sport. There were so many times I didn't know if I had another year left. I put it in God's hands, and He kept me in this game. I've had a rough couple of years, questioning things, but God gave me direction. This moment tells me God wants me to keep fishing.”

Also saving his best day for last, Jon Canada finished second with a three-day total of 44-9. Fishing from the dam to roughly 2 miles below it, Canada relied on years of history on Logan Martin to identify several productive stretches. Increasing his weight each day, Canada opened with 12-11, added 14-10 on Day Two, and capped off his tournament with 17-4 on Showdown Saturday.

Alabama pro Wes Gore finished third with 43-10, while South Carolina's Corey Casey placed fourth at 43-1 after leading the tournament entering the final day. Rounding out the top five, Indiana pro Bill Lowen finished with 42-0.

Jordan Osborne claimed Big Bass honors at Logan Martin with a 6-0 largemouth caught on Day Two.

Finesse Pays Off for Vinson

In his home state, Greg Vinson made it all come together, earning his first major victory. It was a long time coming, and it came on arguably the toughest day of the week on Logan Martin. With increased boat traffic, Vinson still made his pattern work.

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Shaw pulls off epic comeback to claim first Bass Pro Tour win at Grand Lake

Banks Shaw surged up from behind to win his first Bass Pro Tour trophy with 82 pounds, 15 ounces on 28 scorable bass. Photo by Phoenix Moore. 

By Mitchel Forde, Bass Pro Tour

Press Release

GROVE, Okla. — Virtually the entire Championship Round at Zenni Stage 6 Presented by Toyota looked like a duel between Zack Birge and Dustin Connell, with Banks Shaw among the also-rans. Birge and Connell distanced themselves from the rest of the pack early and built an advantage of more than 20 pounds over the rest of their competition entering the third period. The two multi-time Bass Pro Tour winners swapped the top spot on SCORETRACKER® as they traded blows, with one of the two leading from the second minute after lines in until 16 minutes before lines out.

Then Shaw swooped in and stole the show, the Stage 6 trophy and the $125,000 paycheck that comes with it.

Putting together perhaps the best final period in Bass Pro Tour history, the 22-year-old phenom roared back from a nearly 30-pound deficit to claim his first BPT win going away. Shaw totaled 82 pounds, 15 ounces on 28 scorable bass to top Connell by 8-13. That earned the Tennessee pro his fourth MLF win of 2026 and the biggest triumph of his young career.

Here’s how the Top 10 pros finished the Championship Round:

1. Banks Shaw – 82-15 (28)

2. Dustin Connell – 74-2 (28)

3. Zack Birge – 64-5 (21)

4. Alton Jones Jr. – 55-5 (20)

5. Bobby Lane – 46-2 (18)

6. Jake Lawrence – 31-4 (11)

7. Spencer Shuffield – 28-1 (10)

8. Ron Nelson – 27-8 (10)

9. Keith Carson – 24-7 (8)

10. Brent Ehrler – 20-11 (8)

Full results

All-in approach pays off

Change was the theme throughout this rare summertime visit to Grand. Anglers

Michael Harlin wins the 2026 Turtlebox Bassmaster Open at Upper Mississippi River presented by Battery Tender

By David A. Brown, BASS Press Release

LA CROSSE, Wis. — Redemption came in a most unexpected manner for Michael Harlin, who overtook a local legend to win the Turtlebox Bassmaster Open at Upper Mississippi River presented by Battery Tender.

After placing 68th on Day 1 with 12-3, the pro from Osage Beach, Mo., added a second-round limit of 17-11 and rose to sixth. In the final round, Harlin added the day’s heaviest bag, 17-3, tallied a three-day total of 47-1 and edged La Crosse’s own Tom Monsoor, who had led for two days, by a pound and 3 ounces.

Rising 67 places from the opening round certainly qualified as redemption for Harlin, but winning the final Division II event had an even deeper meaning. Four months prior, a self-reported culling violation in the division opener at Sam Rayburn Reservoir disqualified his Day 1 weight and ultimately resulted in a 196th-place finish.

“After Rayburn, I couldn’t have felt much lower, it was a tough drive home,” said Harlin, who placed fifth in the second Division II event at Grand Lake. “I felt like, after that Rayburn, there was a chance something like this might happen, but I would have never guessed that it would be here.”

Happy Father's Day!

 

2026 Skeeter FXE Bass Boat

Introducing the All-New Skeeter FXE | Engineered Dominance

Three years of development. Hundreds of hours of testing and refinement. One goal — build the most dominant bass boat Skeeter has ever put in the water. This is the all-new Skeeter FXE.

Fun Event for Opener!

 

Click the photo for the link.