| By: Jody White When Drew Gill put a bow on his primary tournament season at the Toyota Series Championship, where he finished second by tiebreaker, the $50,000 check pushed his career earnings over the $1 million mark. In itself, winning a million dollars casting for bass is an impressive achievement, and this fall, Gill became the youngest to ever do it with MLF. Edging ahead of Michael Bennett, who won the Forrest Wood Cup at 24 years old back when it paid $1 million, Gill accomplished the feat at just 23 years old. Over the last few years, Gill has pushed himself into the stratosphere of bass fishing by staying extremely busy, fishing just about every event he could fit on the schedule and almost never missing a payday at any level. Bennett fished 54 total events with FLW before crossing the $1 million mark, with an FLW Tour win for $100,000 and then a Forrest Wood Cup win for $1 million on the list. Gill fished a total of 66 events with MLF, but only 52 if you remove college events. College and other team winnings aren’t included in this calculation, so, by some measures, Gill also made it in fewer events than Bennett. Youngest anglers to reach $1 million in career earnings with MLF Drew Gill, 23 years old Michael Bennett, 24 Jacob Wheeler, 25 David Dudley, 26 Michael Neal, 29 Luke Clausen, 30 Dakota Ebare, 30 Anthony Gagliardi, 31 Brent Ehrler, 32 Alton Jones Jr., 32 |
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| Gill didn’t see it coming Very cerebral, Gill is usually well aware of any stat, be it bite percentage, the number of scorable bass needed or the check weight. This one, he didn’t really see coming. “I wasn’t tracking it, and to be honest, because of the All-American and the Forrest Wood Cup, I thought it was a (Jacob) Wheeler accolade that I’d never get,” Gill said. “So, when you texted me that, I was kind of shocked. But I’m tickled.” Though Gill didn’t have his eye on the record, and Bennett’s success came before his time, he’s been after the $1 million mark hot and heavy. “When I got into bass fishing and started doing it competitively, having the idea of being the youngest to get to $1 million wasn’t something I considered,” he said. “Once things got rolling, it was a goal of mine. I wanted to reach $1 million by the end of this year, once we got about halfway through the season and I thought it was feasible. To do that was a goal of mine, and to achieve that is super cool. It’s a milestone for most people in bass fishing who get to have long careers.” Gill made about a third of his money in three events, his two Bass Pro Tour wins (on the Chowan River and Lake Murray) and his Tackle Warehouse Invitationals win on Sam Rayburn. But, only the BPT wins were for six figures, and a lot of his earnings have come with solid Top 10 checks cashed at all levels. |
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| The Neko master While the internet has been abuzz about minnows, Gill has made big money with a worm. “I had a high school seminar this weekend, and it came up in conversation, and the Neko rig has been responsible for over $600,000 of my winnings,” Gill said. “Whether solely responsible or in part, it has played a role in over 60% of my tournament winnings.” Gill is so into the Neko worm that he has a signature bait, the Big Bite Baits Nekorama, which came to market when he was just 22 years old. “The Nekorama played a role in me winning at the Chowan and Murray, and since its inception last year, it’s been responsible for I think nine Top 10s and two wins,” he said. “It’s been a big part – it alone, or in part – has been a factor in probably $400,000 the last two years.” |
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| Still more to accomplish In the last few years, Gill has been inescapable – when he’s not in the Top 10, he’s part of the culture of bass fishing. Leading a crop of exciting young anglers on the edge of college, few have fished as well on the top level as Gill. “There’s a lot of things I’m very grateful for; when it goes so well, you feel like you’re disenfranchising some achievements by highlighting others,” he said. “Having a Bass Pro Tour trophy matters a lot to me, but the Sam Rayburn trophy mattered a lot because it showed me that winning was possible. But, the Bass Pro Tour trophies matter a lot. It’s the best field in fishing – it’s indisputable – so having won twice, proving that it wasn’t a fluke, matters a lot to me.” Gill’s consistency stands out as well, and he’s actively pursued it. “One of the things I’m proudest of is that since starting on the Invitationals, out of essentially five seasons of fishing, I’ve missed a total of three checks,” he said. “I’m averaging less than one missed check a season. I always pride myself on my ability to always go for the layup. I’m a safe bet guy, and that safe bet mentality has led to making a lot of checks and a lot of Top 10s.” Being the youngest to $2 million is well within reach for Gill (with MLF and FLW, it’s David Dudley at 30 years old), but before that, Gill has other goals. “You’ve got to have this goal, I’m not saying it is realistic or even possible, but gosh dang I’d love to win a Bass Pro Tour Angler of the Year,” he said. “I think that’s the most meaningful trophy in bass fishing right now, because if you get that trophy, you had to beat Jacob Wheeler to do it. That’s Wheeler’s trophy, and if you take it from him, that’s something. “Most AOY trophies, it’s about being consistent, and if you make Top 10s and Top 20s, you’re good,” he said. “With Wheeler, your Top 10s need to be top fives, and your worst tournament can’t be worse than the 20s. That’s the recipe you need to be on; I don’t know what to do to bridge that gap. This year I had a first, a seventh, an eighth and an 11th, and my four best tournaments are significantly behind him, and I’m not sure how to turn a great tournament into an incredible tournament. A Top 10 is great. To go from great to incredible intentionally is one of the hardest things to do – it’s a lot easier to never be bad.” Certainly, Gill has made it look easy at times, but considering the statistical company he’s in, it’s anything but. Payouts have changed a little over the years, so getting to $1 million in earnings can happen faster now than Kevin VanDam or Rick Clunn could have imagined. But, when you’re at the head of a list that includes Brent Ehrler, David Dudley, Luke Clausen, Michael Neal and Dakota Ebare, you’re in rare company, and that doesn’t happen easily, or by accident. For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the Bass Pro Tour, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube. |