Season-opening event marks third Bass Pro Tour visit to Lake Guntersville, features field of 51 pros competing for $600,000 purse
GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. (Jan. 7, 2026) – The Major League Fishing (MLF) Bass Pro Tour (BPT) is set to kick off its 2026 season in iconic fashion next week at Lake Guntersville. The B&W Trailer Hitches Stage 1 Presented by Mercury will take place Jan. 15-18, launching the seven-event BPT campaign and opening the year on one of the most celebrated fisheries in professional bass fishing.
Hosted by Marshall County Tourism & Sports, the four-day event will feature a roster of 51 of the top professional anglers in the world competing for a $125,000 top prize and their share of the $600,000 purse, along with valuable Angler of the Year (AOY) points in hopes of qualifying for the MLF Heavy Hitters all-star event and REDCREST 2027, the Bass Pro Tour championship.
“Lake Guntersville provides some of the best bass fishing in the country, and we are excited to be the first tournament on the Bass Pro Tour this year,” said Katy Norton, President of Marshall County Tourism and Sports. “We expect the MLF pros to catch a lot of large fish and look forward to once again partnering with Major League Fishing to kick off the 2026 season.”
The field is loaded with star power and storylines, led by reigning Bass Pro Tour Angler of the Year and 10-time BPT champion Jacob Wheeler, along with back-to-back REDCREST champion Dustin Connell. The roster also features proven winners and fan favorites such as Edwin Evers, Ott DeFoe and Matt Becker, alongside a talented rookie class ready to make its mark at the sport’s highest level. Four newcomers will make their BPT debuts – Banks Shaw, Dustin Smith, Mitchell Robinson and Jacob Walker – adding fresh energy to one of the deepest fields in professional bass fishing history. Competition will unfold under MLF’s catch, weigh, immediate-release format, where every bass counts and momentum can shift quickly as anglers chase weight in real time, feeling the pressure of the SCORETRACKER® leaderboard. The event will be filmed for television broadcast later this year on Discovery.
This event will mark the third BPT visit to Lake Guntersville, tying it for the second-most visits to any fishery in BPT history. The most recent trip came last spring during REDCREST 2025, when the legendary Tennessee River impoundment once again rose to the occasion on the sport’s biggest stage and produced a championship performance to remember by Connell. With a proven history of delivering high-stakes drama and showcasing the full spectrum of Guntersville’s bass population, the lake remains a favorite among anglers and fans alike. Now, with the BPT returning at an entirely different time of year, anticipation is high for what a January chapter at “Big G” might reveal.
Local pro Jacob Wall of New Hope, Alabama, who will be among the 51 pros competing in this event, believes “Big G” will present a much different look than the last time the circuit visited the fishery, with the winter timing creating conditions few anglers have experienced in national competition.
“It’s definitely going to be a little different than the last time we were here,” Wall said. “We just don’t have many big events on Guntersville this time of year, so I think it’s going to fish different than what we’ve seen in the past. But there are still a lot of big fish in there, and I think the catch rate will be pretty good.”
While Wall expects the pace of bites to be slightly slower than spring tournaments, the quality of the fish should be impressive.
“This is when the fish are at their healthiest and their fattest,” he said. “A fish that might weigh three pounds most of the year is probably going to weigh closer to four pounds right now. We’ll see a lot of 4-, 5- and 6-pound fish, and some even bigger than that. You don’t have to catch an insane number of fish to stay in the cut – just a steady pace and good fish should keep you competitive.”
Wall also shared his take on strategies that could separate anglers, highlighting a mix of traditional patterns and modern technology.
“When we’re allowed to use forward-facing sonar, guys will throw jerkbaits, minnow baits and small swimbaits,” he said. “Then when that’s off-limits, traditional winter baits like red lipless crankbaits and shallow-running crankbaits will come into play. Guntersville always has a lot of quality fish, no matter the time of year.”
For Wall, starting the season on his home lake adds another layer of excitement this year.
“Being able to start the season at home gives me a lot of peace of mind,” he said. “My wife’s about to have our first baby any day now – the due date is the week following this event – and it’s just a great place to start the year. It’s Lake Guntersville – the fish are always biting. I’m excited to see how this January chapter plays out.”
Anglers will arrive each morning at 6:15 a.m. CT to the Civitan Park Boat Launch, located at 1130 Sunset Drive in Guntersville, Alabama. Anglers will return to the Civitan Park Boat Launch each evening following the end of competition at 3:45 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and takeout events and also encouraged to watch the event live online throughout the day on the MLFNOW!® livestream and follow along with SCORETRACKER® coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
On Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 17–18, from 3–6 p.m., MLF invites fans of all ages to Nash’s at City Harbor, located at 299 Scott St., in Guntersville, for the MLF Fan Experience & Watch Party. Fans can watch the Bass Pro Tour pros live on the MLFNOW!® big screen, enjoy free food for the first 100 fans each day, enter hourly giveaways, browse MLF merchandise and the bargain bait bin, and cheer on their favorite anglers. Youth of all ages can take part in a fishing derby (gear and bait provided, weather permitting) and a casting contest. Live music from Jackson Cannon begins at 4 p.m., followed by Top 10 angler interviews and the trophy presentation at 5 p.m., including autographs and photos with Bass Pro Tour finalists. The first 50 kids ages 14 and under will receive a free rod and reel each day.
The B&W Trailer Hitches Stage 1 at Lake Guntersville Presented by Mercury will feature anglers competing with a 2-pound minimum weight requirement for a bass to be deemed scorable. The MLF Fisheries Management Division determines minimum weights for each body of water that the Bass Pro Tour visits, based on the productivity, bass population and anticipated average size of fish in each fishery.
The 2026 Bass Pro Tour features a field of 51 of the best professional anglers in the world, competing across seven regular-season tournaments around the country for millions of dollars and valuable points to qualify for the annual Heavy Hitters all-star event and the REDCREST 2027 championship.
The full field of anglers will compete in the two-day Qualifying Round on Thursday and Friday. After the two-day Qualifying Round is complete, the pro with the heaviest two-day total will advance directly to Sunday’s Championship Round. Anglers who finish 2nd through 25th will advance to Saturday’s Knockout Round. In the Knockout Round, weights are zeroed, and the remaining anglers compete to finish in the top nine to advance to Sunday’s Championship Round. In the final-day Championship Round, weights are zeroed, and the highest one-day total wins the top prize of $125,000.
The MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live on all four days of competition from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. CT. MLFNOW!® will be livestreamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com, the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app and Rumble.
Television coverage of the B&W Trailer Hitches Stage 1 at Lake Guntersville Presented by Mercury will premiere as a two-hour episode starting at 7 a.m. ET, on Saturday, July 4, on Discovery. New MLF episodes premiere each Saturday morning on Discovery, with re-airings on Outdoor Channel.
Proud sponsors of the MLF Bass Pro Tour include: Abu Garcia, Athletic Brewing Co., Bass Force, B&W Trailer Hitches, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, BUBBA, Cigars International, Grizzly, Lowrance, Mercury, MillerTech, NITRO Boats, OFF! Deep Woods, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Power-Pole, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Star brite, Suzuki Marine, Toyota, Yuengling and Zenni.