Brennan Osborn Wins WON Bass Lake Shasta Open

James Hawkinson Claims Second Place and Jaramy Riddle wins AAA Division

SHASTA LAKE, Calif. – February 21, 2026 –– Consistency often rules in a bass fishing tournament.  Typically, the angler who manages to keep their head about them and produce consistent limits when the rest of the field is losing their minds will prove to succeed.  When the weather during an event proves to be bipolar and the fish in that body of water act like they need mood stabilizers, being consistent is no easy task.

The first day of the 2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open presented by Ranger Boats and Mercury proved to be nearly record breaking.  First day leader Joe Orozco, from Oroville, Calif. tipped the scales at 28.58 pounds of spotted bass and there were several creels eclipsing 20 pounds.  However, on day two, there was not one limit that reached the 20-pound mark, and the change from snowy, cold temperatures to warm air and bluebird skies was the reason.

Cloud cover and cooler temperatures returned for day three and the Lake Shasta bass population responded, yet the results for the field were largely all over the map.  One angler proved to be the most consistent at this tournament, and that was Beaverton, Ore pro Brennan Osborn.  He stood fifth after day one after producing 20.77 pounds, moved to third after day two with 18.36 pounds and produced his largest stringer of the event on the final day, 23.15 pounds to claim victory with 62.28 pounds.

His victory earned him the top prize of a 2026 Ranger Boats Z518 powered by a Mercury ProXS 150 prize boat provided by Bass Pro Shops and $3500 cash.

Chico, Calif. pro James (Quinn) Hawkinson held on to second place for the event, finishing with 58.12 pounds for the three-day competition.  The leader on days one and two, Orozco fell to third place on the final day with a three-day total of 53.14 pounds. Nick Supalo from Oroville, Calif. finished fourth with 52 pounds and reigning WON Bass Angler of the Year Kyle Grover from Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. rounded out the top five with a total weight of  46.69 pounds.

Osborn, fishing his first event with WON Bass, said that he spent the vast majority of his tournament fishing 5 to 25-feet deep on flat points on the main lake in areas east of the I5 Bridge.  He reported having one spot at the mouth of the Sacramento River that also produced a few fish.  “I really had to move around a lot this week to find the fish biting,” he said.  “I burned a lot of gas in my boat, but I couldn’t sit there and wait for them to fire, I had to leave them if they weren’t eating and go find active fish; timing them like that was key.”

He used his Forward Facing Sonar to target the right areas and he chose an 1/8-ounce Cipher Tungsten head matched with a Gizzard Shad colored Rapala Crush City Mooch Minnow.  His setup for throwing the lure was an Edge Fishing 673 Pro Stroll rod and 2500 size Shimano spinning reel spooled with 8-pound-test braided line with an 8-pound-test Fluorocarbon leader.

Osborn has spent weeks dialing in the pattern on Shasta, and his hard work came to fruition; his event was not without anxiety however.  “I felt nervous this morning, but I caught a couple of four pounders early and a 6-pounder soon after and that’s when I felt like I might have a chance,” he said.  “This is unbelievable, I couldn’t have drawn it up any better.”

Hawkinson reported using the same pattern that had produced for him the first two days. Throwing a prototype soft plastic minnow on a jighead he pours himself,  on a 7’ medium-light Daiwa Tatula Elite Cody Meyer Dropshot rod and Tatula MQ spinning reel spooled with 6-pound-test Fluorocarbon line.  “I caught at least 45 fish today, but I made some decisions the first two days that didn’t allow me to win,” he said.  “But it’s hard to feel bad about it because it’s my good friend and team partner that won the event; so I’m very happy for him.”

Hawkinson said he was targeting areas in the Squaw River and on the main lake near the Squaw.  The key for him was finding baitfish that were active or causing them to become active.  “I was catching them around Smelt and the bigger fish came when I located baby bluegill,” he reported.  “If they weren’t active, I would throw at the bluegill and cause them to scatter and activate the bass, and that’s how I would get the bass to bite.”

Jaramy Riddle of Millville, Calif. was the winner of the AAA Division.  Riddle teamed with his pro partners to bring a three-day total of 50.90 pounds, he earned $4,000 for his efforts.  Second place in the AAA Division went to Carl Crutchfield from Stockton, Calif. with 49.49 pounds.  Damon Motley of Orange, Calif. claimed third place with 48.05 pounds, he was followed in fourth place by Jake Etcheverry of Hughson, Calif. with 47.91 pounds and Tim Domingues of San Jose, Calif. placed fifth with 43.97 pounds.

The daily livestream of the weigh-ins aired at Facebook.com/WONBassTournaments. Daily weigh-ins occurred at Bridge Bay Resort in Lake Shasta City, Calif.

The Top 10 in each division are below, for complete standings go to: https://wonbassevents.com/pages/won-bass-shasta-open-pairings-results.

2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open Final Pro Standings

2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open Final AAA Standings

The 2026 WON Bass Western Opens Series of events Consisting of five events in California, Arizona and Nevada, will culminate with the 2024 WON Bass U.S. Open at Lake Mohave in October.  The five event dates are as follows:

Jan. 8 to 10, 2026 – Clear Lake – Champion Garrett Ellenson – 98.37 pounds
Feb. 19 to 21, 2026 – Lake Shasta – Champion Brennan Osborn – 62.28 pounds

April 16 to 18, 2026 – Clear Lake

May 7 to 9, 2026 – Lake Havasu

Oct. 5 to 7, 2026 – U.S. Open at Lake Mohave

For complete details or to register, look to wonbassevents.com and WONews.com to hear the latest news about the 2026 season and beyond and follow along at Facebook.com/WONBassTournaments.

The 2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open was brought to you by Bass Pro Shops, Ranger Boats, Mercury Marine, Bridgford Foods, AFTCO, Power Pole, Costa, Berkley, Gamakatsu, Okuma, Lowrance, Stealth Lithium Batteries, Daiwa, G-Ratt Baits, Reese Fishing, Signature Gates, Abu Garcia, DD26 and Fenwick

Local presenting sponsors were Visit Redding, Phil’s Propellers, Bridge Bay Marina and the US Forestry Service