Throughout practice, productive areas were few and far between, and getting these stubborn California largemouth bass to show interest in a frog presentation was a challenge. My primary focus was understanding how the grass positioned itself during both high and low tide.
One of the keys to generating strikes was burning the frog across the surface and constantly changing my retrieve cadence. As practice continued, I noticed dragonflies hovering over thick, cheese-style vegetation, and bass were aggressively blowing through the mats to feed on them. There was also a significant amount of baitfish relating to the outside edges of the grass.
By the end of practice, I had developed a solid understanding of where the fish would position themselves throughout the changing tides and where I needed to be to capitalize on that bite during the tournament.
July 25, 2026 – Day 1
12:30 p.m. Blast Off
On tournament morning, my fishing partner, Tommy Rice, and I made the 40-minute run north from Big Break Marina in Oakley, California. We battled heavy winds and rough water as we made our way to our starting area.
Once we arrived, we immediately got to work. Within the first 30 to 40 minutes, we had our first two keepers in the boat—a solid 4.0-pound largemouth that would end up being our biggest fish of the day and another weighing 2.5 pounds. It was exactly the kind of start every tournament angler hopes for.
The bite slowed after that, and we spent a good amount of time searching and making countless casts before finally dialing in a pattern. Once we figured it out, we started catching smaller fish and eventually landed another quality bass to complete our three-fish limit.
We finished Day 1 with 8.02 pounds, putting us in 9th place. We also lost a couple of quality fish throughout the day, but that’s part of tournament fishing. All we could do was stay focused and keep pushing forward. The tournament leaders were sitting at just over 10 pounds, so we knew there was still plenty of ground we could make up.
July 26, 2026 – Championship Day
6:00 a.m. Blast Off
Heading into the final day, Tommy and I knew we needed a bigger bag if we wanted a chance to win. After discussing our game plan the night before, we agreed that the quality bites were still in the same area, so we committed to running right back there.
Early that morning, everything came together when a giant 6.8-pound largemouth absolutely demolished my frog. The adrenaline kicked in immediately, and we knew we had the caliber of fish we needed. From there, we went back to work, searching for the remaining bites to fill out our limit.
Throughout the day, we caught plenty of 12- to 13-inch fish, but we knew they wouldn’t be enough. We continued upgrading and eventually culled two fish to finish with a 10.58-pound bag for our three-fish limit.
We felt confident that we had a strong chance at both Big Fish and the overall win, but in tournament fishing, you never know when someone else has caught a true giant. We remained cautiously optimistic as we headed back for weigh-in.
After enjoying the great food, music, and atmosphere provided by Anglers Press, Tommy and I waited anxiously as the final standings were announced. As the weights were read from the bottom of the leaderboard to the top, the anticipation kept building.
When second place was announced with a two-day total of 15 pounds, we knew we had done it.
Our two-day total of 18.60 pounds held up for the victory, and we also took home the Big Fish Award with my 6.8-pound largemouth.
Champions
Both days brought relentless winds, but we trusted the equipment in our hands and never backed down. With our Dobyns Rods, a solid game plan, and a lot of determination, Tommy and I accomplished the goal we set for ourselves.
We were proud to be crowned the 2026 UFC (Ultimate Frog Challenge) Amateur Champions, while also bringing home the Big Fish Trophy
