Who won the Bassmaster Classic Championship?

Easton Fothergill isn’t old enough to have too many angling superstitions, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have one that has served him well in a relatively short time.

After two Bassmaster Open wins in 2024, the Grand Rapids, Minn., angler started Championship Day at the Bassmaster Classic the same way he starts every tournament day as he donned his lucky Simms fishing cap and let the outboard horses run.

It must have worked, because in the final hour of the final day of the 55th Bassmaster Classic, the 22-year old angler boated a championship-clinching 8–pound, 1-ounce bass at Lake Ray Roberts to secure his first Classic victory.

After weighing 24-15 on Day 1, Fothergill followed up on Day 2 with the tournament’s biggest bag weighing 29-15 and grabbed the lead heading into Day 3. On Sunday’s Championship Day, Fothergill weighed five bass at 22-10 to set the all-time heaviest winning Classic weight at 76-15.

In winning the $300,000 top prize, Fothergill bested Kevin VanDam’s previous heaviest winning weight mark of 69-11, set on the Louisiana Delta in 2011.

“To the kids out there, I’m living proof it is possible,” said Fothergill. “Anything is possible.”

Bassmaster Classic Final Results

• 15 fish, unless noted

1. Easton Fothergill, Minnesota (76-15)
2. Trey McKinney, Illinois (68-7)
3. Lee Livesay, Texas (66-10)
4. Hunter Shryock, Tennessee (64-14)
5. Cory Johnston, Canada (58-7; 14 fish)
6. John Cox, Florida (56-13)
7. Brandon Lester, Tennessee (56-5)
8. Chris Johnston, Canada (55-15; 14 fish)
9. Patrick Walters, South Carolina (55-12)
10. Justin Hamner, Alabama (53-3; 14 fish)
11. Carl Jocumsen, Australia (52-5; 12 fish)
12. Jordan Lee, Alabama (51-8; 13 fish)
13. Jay Przekurat, Wisconsin (50-2; 12 fish)
14. Tyler Williams, Maine (50-1)
15. Ben Milliken, Texas (47-0; 10 fish)
16. Tyler Rivet, Louisiana (46-12; 12 fish)
17. Kyoya Fujita, Japan (46-0; 14 fish)
18. Drew Cook, Georgia (45-7)
19. Connor Jacob, Alabama (43-1)
20. Scott Martin, Florida (42-15; 12 fish)
21. Drew Benton, Florida (41-9; 12 fish)
22. Bryan Schmitt, Maryland (40-15; 11 fish)
23. Jeremiah Kindy, Arkansas (40-11; 14 fish)
24. Stetson Blaylock, Arkansas (38-12; 12 fish)
25. Greg Hackney, Louisiana (34-10; 11 fish)

See more results

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Day 2

Minnesota angler Easton Fothergill moved into the lead in the 55th Bassmaster Classic bass-fishing tournament Saturday with the event’s largest bag of bass so far.

Fothergill caught a five-bass limit of 29 pounds, 6 ounces on Lake Ray Roberts near Fort Worth, Texas, bringing his two-day total to 54-5 (10 fish), moere than eight pounds in front of second-place Cory Johnston (45-13) of Canada.

Saturday’s second round cut the 56-angler field to the top 25 for Sunday’s final round. The Bassmaster Classic winner will receive $300,000.

Competitors continued to catch big bass on Saturday at Ray Roberts, with 11 anglers catching more than 20 pounds; a 4-pound average for a five-bass limit. Brandon Lester of Tennessee caught the day's big bass, an 8-6 bass.

Bassmaster Classic Top 25 Standings, Day 2

• 10 fish, unless noted

1. Easton Fothergill, Minnesota (54-5)
2. Cory Johnston, Canada (45-13)
3. Hunter Shryock, Tennessee (44-13)
4. Lee Livesay, Texas (44-9)
5. John Cox, Florida (44-8)
6. Trey McKinney, Illinois (42-6)
7. Brandon Lester, Tennessee (39-14)
8. Tyler Rivet, Louisiana (37-4; 9 fish)
9. Chris Johnston, Canada (37-4; 9 fish)
10. Tyler Williams, Maine (36-6)
11. Patrick Walters, South Carolina (35-14)
12. Scott Martin, Florida (35-1)
13. Ben Milliken, Texas (34-13, 7 fish)
14. Drew Cook, Georgia (34-4)
15. Jay Przekurat, Wisconsin (34-0, 9 fish)
16. Drew Benton, Florida (33-9)
17. Jordan Lee, Alabama (33-3, 8 fish)
18. Greg Hackney, Louisiana (33-3)
19. Stetson Blaylock, Arkansas (33-1)
20. Kyoya Fujita, Japan (32-10; 9 fish)
21. Jeremiah Kindy, Arkansas (32-8)
22. Carl Jocumsen, Australia (32-5; 8 fish)
23. Bryan Schmitt, Maryland (31-13; 9 fish)
24. Justin Hamner, Alabama (30-0)
25. Connor Jacob, Alabama (28-15)

See more results

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First Round

Illinois angler Trey McKinney grabbed the first-round lead at the 55th Bassmaster Classic bass-fishing tournament Friday at Lake Ray Roberts near Fort Worth, Texas.

McKinney, 20, of Carbondale, Ill., the youngest Elite champion in Bassmaster history, caught a five-fish limit of bass weighing 26 pounds, 9 ounces, as anglers endured windy conditions all day. Canadian Cory Johnston (25-9) was second and Minnesota angler Easton Fothergill (24-15).

Defending champion Justin Hamner of Alabama was 44th after catching four fish weighing 14-14. The top 25 anglers after Saturday will qualify for Sunday’s final round.

Competition continues through Sunday with daily takeoffs from Ray Roberts Lake State Park at 7:30 a.m. CT and weigh-ins each day at Dickies Arena in downtown Fort Worth at 4:30 p.m., with doors opening to the general public at 3:15 p.m. Along with the competition, the Bassmaster Classic Outdoors Expo presented by GSM Outdoors welcomes visitors to the Fort Worth Convention Center March from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The field is cut to the top 25 after Saturday’s round.

Bassmaster Classic Top 15 Standings, Day 1

1. Trey McKinney, Illinois (26-9)
2. Cory Johnston, Canada (25-9)
3. Easton Fothergill. Minnesota (24-15)
4. Lee Livesay, Texas (23-0)
5. Jay Przekurat, Wisconsin (23-7)
6. John Cox, Florida (22-0)
7. Kyoya Fujita, Japan (21-14)
8. Hunter Shryock, Tennessee (21-13)
9. Drew Benton, Florida (21-8)
10. Bryan Schmitt, Maryland (21-5)
11. Wes Logan, Alabama (20-9, 4 fish)
12. Carl Jocumsen, Australia (18-14)
13. Chris Zaldain, Texas (18-11)
14. Stetson Blaylock, Arkansas (18-8)
15. Drew Cook, Georgia (18-6)
• 5-fish limits, unless noted

See more results

Competition continues through Sunday with daily takeoffs from Ray Roberts Lake State Park at 7:30 a.m. CT and weigh-ins each day at Dickies Arena in downtown Fort Worth at 4:30 p.m., with doors opening to the general public at 3:15 p.m. Along with the competition, the Bassmaster Classic Outdoors Expo presented by GSM Outdoors welcomes visitors to the Fort Worth Convention Center March from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Bassmaster Pro-Am

Comedian Lavell Crawford and Bassmatser Elite Series rookie Emil Wagner teamed up to win the Bassmaster Classic Pro-Am tournament Wednesday at Ray Roberts. The pair won with a total weight of 12 pounds, 9 ounces.

“I called (the win) … I called it,” Crawford said. “You got to think things into existence if you want it. I had a great time. It was so fun. Emil’s a great kid and we had a good time out there on the water. … “They said I didn’t catch anything, but hey, man, I put in work. I would have caught them if they had bit my line, that’s all I can say,.”

The team won a set of Yokohama tires and a $2,500 Bass Pro Shops gift card.

Celebrity anglers included:

• NFL Players: Tennessee Titans defensive linebacker Jeffery Simmons; Baltimore Ravens guard Ben Cleveland; Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen; Los Angeles Rams offensive lineman Kevin Dotson; NFL veteran Barkevious Mingo; Dallas Cowboys linebacker Damone Clark; 12-year NFL veteran Trent Cole.
• WWE: Bron Breakker; Tony D’Angelo
• Entertainment: Bluegrass music artist Billy Strings; Comedian and actor Lavell Crawford; TV personalities Heavy D and Diesel Dave (Diesel Brothers); Canadian TV personality Pat Roach (Trailer Park Boys)
• NASCAR Cup Series driver Ross Chastain
• Olympic gold medalist for shot put and discus Ryan Crouser
• U.S. Marine Veteran & Medal of Honor recipient Dakota Meyer
• College Sports: Southern Methodist University Head Football Coach Rhett Lashlee

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