On June 22 – 23, 2024, the Northwest Region hosted the Pro Am State Championship on Lake Seminole out of Sneads Park. The turnout for the Championship was dismal with only fifty-one anglers and twenty (20) co-anglers competing for sixteen (16) spots to the BASS Nation Championship in 2025. The weather was fairly cooperative, no rain, acceptable wind and very warm temperatures, all of which didn’t seem to bother the bass. There were several good fish brought to the scale with some seven (7), eight (8) and even a nine (9) pounders. Big bag of the tournament on the angler side went to Ryan O’Shea on day one (1) totaling 27.66 pounds and to Tyler Nekolny on day one (1) totaling 18.23 pounds. Big bass for the tournament on the angler side went to Aaron Richardson with 8.02 pounds on day one (1) and on the co-angler side to Carl Williams with 9.04 pounds. Below are the top ten (10) finishers from both anglers and co-anglers.
I want to thank everyone that helped with the setup and breakdown of all the weigh in equipment as well as those who helped with the weigh in itself, it was greatly appreciated. I also want to thank the Army Corp of Engineers, at the last minute we were made aware that we needed a permit from the Corp to use Sneads Park. They expedited the permit process and made the process easy. They also had a representative stop by on Friday and delivered safety information, whistles, soft coolers, life jackets, goodie bags, etc. that were handed out at our check in and rules meeting on Friday. They also had a representative stop by on Saturday as the weigh in began.
The following Anglers and Co-Anglers have qualified for the 2025 BASS Nation Championship
Anglers:
- Giancarlo Ottolino
- Aaron Yavorsky
- Drew Bradstreet
- Sieg Taylor
- David Boyd, State Angler of the Year
- Paul Tyre
- Michael Catt
- David Frost
Alternates
- Ryan O’Shea
- Colt Williams
Co-Anglers:
- Tyler Nekolny
- Chris Neely, State Co-Angler of the Year
- Jordan Smith
- Tom Bateman
- Bobby Watson
- Michael Kreuger
- Ryan O’Shea, (Angler Qualifier fishing as a Co-Angler)
- Colt Williams, (Angler Qualifier fishing as a Co-Angler)
Alternates:
- Tony Bigot, if one (1) of the Co-Anglers drop
- Mark Smith, if one (1) of the Co-Anglers drop
- Eric Morgan, if one of the Anglers fishing as a Co-Angler drop
- Chad Dorland, if one of the Anglers fishing as a Co-Angler drop
Top 10 Overall Finishers
Top 10 Anglers Overall Finish:
- Giancarlo Ottolino, 38.36 pounds
- Aaron Yavorsky, 38.03 pounds
- Drew Bradstreet, 33.42 pounds
- Sieg Taylor, 31.86 pounds
- David Boyd, 31.15 pounds
- Paul Tyre, 30.73 pounds
- Michael Catt, 29.59 pounds
- David Frost, 28.15 pounds
- Ryan O’Shea and Colt Williams, 27.66 pounds
Top 10 Co-Anglers Overall Finish:
- Tyler Nekolny, 33.16 pounds
- Chris Neely, 25.43 pounds
- Jordan Smith, 19.08 pounds
- Tom Bateman, 18.37 pounds
- Bobby Watson, 18.22 pounds
- Michael Kreuger, 17.84 pounds
- Tony Bigot, 17.13 pounds
- Mark Smith, 14.61 pounds
- Frankie Spicer, 14.45 pounds
- Teance Blackburn, 14.27 pounds
To see ALL results go to Fishing Chaos link, Fishing Chaos.