Pat Schlapper recently won his first Elite Series title at the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite on the Sabine River in southeast Texas this, taking home an additional $4,000 bonus from Yamaha’s Power Pay contingency program. Check out more details about Schlapper’s victory and learn more about the Yamaha Power Pay contingency program here.
2025 Toyota Bonus Bucks Owners Tournament set for Lake Guntersville
Legendary Lake Guntersville will host the 14th annual Toyota Bonus Bucks Owners Tournament for the first time this fall, on October 25-26, 2025. Located in northeast Alabama, in the heart of bass fishing country, Guntersville is hallowed ground for tournament anglers and has been home to bass fishing’s biggest events, like the Bassmaster Classic and Major League Fishing REDCREST. With its spectacular views, proximity for so many Bonus Bucks members, and fertile fish-filled waters, Lake Guntersville will serve as an excellent location for this amateur-only tournament celebrating all things Toyota and bass fishing. Check out more details here.
Create Your Tournament Edge
Do-it Molds Pro Pat Schlapper recently took home $100,000 on the Sabine River – and a homemade jig was a major key to his early success. When the bite was tough and the pressure was on, the Weedless Compact Finesse jig helped him fill a critical limit and build the momentum he needed to close out the win.
Now you can pour the same jig that helped seal the deal.
● Choose the hook you trust most, whether you prefer a light-wire finesse option for clear water or a heavier hook to stand up to thick cover and big fish.
● Customize your weedguard setup to match the cover you’re fishing — from sparse brush to gnarly laydowns — with the right length, stiffness, and angle.
● Match your paint job to your water, whether you’re painting natural craw patterns for pressured lakes or bold colors to stand out in stained conditions.
● Fine-tune your skirt style and trailer combo to dial in the action, profile, and color that will trigger the bite — no matter the season or situation.
From grassroots to the big stage, this is the kind of custom edge that wins tournaments. Now it’s your turn to make every detail count.
SPRO Skip Gap Football Shakey Head
A unique shakey head that played a key role in Paul Marks 2025 Elite Series win on Lake Hartwell, the SPRO Skip Gap Football Shakey Head is designed with a special bend that securely holds thin worms and soft plastics in place without the need for a bulky bait keeper. Perfect for skipping under docks and preventing your bait from sliding down the shank from hard impacts with the water, the Skip Gap Football Shakey Head is easy to rig, just thread on your bait like a normal Texas rig, and you are ready to fish. Featuring an angled hook point that allows the bait to stand up on the bottom, the Football Shakey Head utilizes this same hook angle to eliminate the need for hard hooksets, as you simply reel into the fish and let the razor-sharp NANO Alpha Gamakatsu hook do the work. Built to increase the lifespan of your finesse soft-plastics, the SPRO Skip Gap Football Shakey Head is the perfect option for anglers who want to navigate rocky bottoms with ease and land more bites from finicky fish. Check them out here.
Need a go-to line for shallow cranking? Hear what Elite Series pro John Crews has to say about his favorite pick! Whether you’re banging a squarebill off cover or burning a flat-side in skinny water, the right line makes all the difference—find out what John trusts when it counts here.
Major League Fishing angler Nick Hatfield’s sponsors include Greene County Express, Suzuki Marine, Phoenix Boats, Garmin, Power-Pole, Simms, Megabass, Immersed Outdoors, Boat Logix, and Hayabusa just to name a few.
For many families, finding a meaningful Father’s Day gift can feel like casting into deep water, uncertain, with no bites. But for those whose dads find joy on a boat, at the dock, or knee-deep in a wading stream, the path to a thoughtful gift is clearer: give him something that speaks to his time outdoors. This guide focuses on practical, high-quality fishing apparel from AFTCO—a brand long trusted by anglers for its technical performance and commitment to sustainable manufacturing. Each item here serves a clear purpose, designed to keep anglers comfortable, protected, and ready for the next cast. Check out the guide here.
