Bass Roundup: A Quiet Week as the 2026 Season Winds Down
It was a quiet week at the top of the sport, and we'll say so plainly: no Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour or Bassmaster Elite Series events were completed in the past seven days. Both of the premier circuits have already wrapped their 2026 campaigns, so rather than a trophy lift, this week's roundup is an offseason standings-and-grassroots watch.
With the top tours parked until the 2027 schedules crank up, the fishing that's still happening is at the grassroots and collegiate levels — which is exactly where the fall calendar lives. On the MLF side, the Phoenix Bass Fishing League ran Super Tournaments (including events at Old Hickory Lake and on the Mississippi River) as regional qualifying season heats up, and college fishing stayed busy with a Columbia PFG College Fishing event on Lake Guntersville, where Carson-Newman University edged the field. We're holding specific weights and margins on those events until they can be confirmed across multiple sources — accuracy first.
What the premier tours are doing now
This is the part of the year when storylines are built in boardrooms rather than on the water. B.A.S.S. has rolled out its 2027 Turtlebox Bassmaster Opens presented by Battery Tender schedule, an eight-tournament slate that serves as the main highway to the Elite Series. The Opens-to-Elite pipeline remains the talk of the offseason, with several anglers chasing the points needed to earn a 2027 Elite invitation and, by extension, a shot at the 2027 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic.
Illustration
MLF, meanwhile, has already published its 2026 Bass Pro Tour and Tackle Warehouse Invitationals framework and confirmed its roster and payout structure — the housekeeping that sets up the next run of marquee events. For fans, the near-term dates to circle are the fall championship events on the grassroots ladder, where Toyota Series and BFL anglers fish for national-championship berths.
Angler-of-the-Year / standings note
Because the 2026 AOY races on both tours have concluded, there's no live leaderboard to track this week. The meaningful "standings watch" right now is the Opens points chase that determines the 2027 Elite Series field — that's the number that will matter most when the new season dawns. We'll resume full event-by-event coverage, with corroborated winners and weights, as soon as the next tournaments reach the scales.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Were there any Bass Pro Tour or Bassmaster Elite events this week? No. Both premier circuits have finished their 2026 seasons. This week's activity was limited to grassroots and collegiate competition.
Q: Why aren't you listing winning weights for the grassroots events? We cross-check every winner and winning weight against at least two independent sources before publishing. Where we couldn't corroborate the numbers this week, we left them out on purpose rather than risk an error.
Q: When does tournament fishing pick back up? Fall is championship season for the grassroots ranks — Toyota Series and BFL regional/championship events — followed by the 2027 premier-tour openers in late winter and spring.
Q: What's the most important storyline of the offseason? The Bassmaster Opens points chase, which decides who earns 2027 Elite Series invitations and a path to the Bassmaster Classic. B.A.S.S. has already announced an eight-event 2027 Opens schedule.
Q: Will you cover the grassroots results once they're confirmed? Yes. As soon as we can verify winners and weights across multiple sources, we'll publish full recaps with patterns and baits.
That's the week — short and honest. We'll be back with a full recap and verified numbers the moment the next events hit the scales. Tight lines.