Tournament News Powered By Lake Drive Marine
Wednesday, November 26, 2025
Monday, November 24, 2025
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Kedik Open Report
The St. Joseph River at Benton Harbor produced disappointing results for anglers fishing the Rick Kedik Open on Saturday.
Evan De LaRosa and Luke  (no last name provided) - 1st Place
Evan De LaRosa and Luke  (no last name provided) had four keeper bass totaling 8.32 pounds to take home the top prize of $170. They used tubes in shallow water.
Rustie Robinson - 2nd Place
Rustie Robinson fished alone and only had two keepers, but that included big bass of the tournament. His 5.60-pound smallmouth lifted his total catch to 7.88 pounds. He caught both fish on a topwater and earned $130 for big bass and second place.
Ryan and Chip (no last names provided) - 3rd Place
Ryan and Chip (no last names provided) had two bass for 7.82 pounds, good for third place. They used jigs in shallow water.
Kedik will host another open on the same river stretch Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Call or text him at 269-240-4917 for details.
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Polar Bear report
Zack and Mike Burdette - 1st Place
Lake Maxinkuckee rarely disappoints, but it sure made it tough on the 23 teams competing in the second stop of the Polar Bear Opens presented by Tackle Shack LLC and Str8-Up Mounts Nation.
Only eight limits were brought to the scales, with Zack and Mike Burdette claiming the top spot with 11.85 pounds that earned them $650.
Zack, who won last week’s Polar Bear at Wawasee, fished with a different partner but produced the same results. The winners said they used drop-shot rigs.
Bob Hyatt and Carl Bowser fished swimbaits in 5 feet or less to catch 10.14 pounds, good for second place ($300).
Kyle Kaser and John Gipson were third ($220) with 9.08 pounds and Hunter Paton and Dave Morrow fourth ($150) with 8.92 pounds.
Big bass ($220) went to Phil Reel and Greg Zellers with a 2.92 pounder.
Eric Fier with winning walleye
The walleye were more cooperative. Two monster walleyes were caught; Eric Fier won the miscellaneous fish pot ($220) with a 6.25 pounder, edging out Zellars (pictured with walleye) and Reel who had a 6.23 pounder.
Steve Trina and Petre Kline won the A-rig storage by Str8-up mounts for being the first team out of the money that stayed for the weigh-in, They had 8.92 pounds.
The next Polar Bear event is Nov. 23 on the St. Joseph at 6 Span Bridge access.
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Polar Bear Report
The Polar Bear bass circuit drew 26 boats for its regular season event at Lake Wawasee last weekend and the lake didn’t disappoint.
With little wind and water temperatures in the mid-50s the fish were biting and several were smallmouth.
Troy Hendricks and Zach Burdette - 1st Place
Troy Hendricks and Zach Burdette used a combination of A-rigs and drop-shot rigs to win with 12.85 pounds. They also had the biggest bass of the tourney, a 4.5-pound smallmouth, to take home $970 and a Str8-Up Mounts Nation cable sock.
Hunter and Gerald Duracz finished second ($360) with 11.89 pounds. They fished the inside edge of weeds with spinnerbaits, Thunder Crickets and jigs.
Justin Barry and Bailey Harris - 3rd Place
Justin Barry and Bailey Harris - Junk Fish Winners
Third place went to Justin Barry and Bailey Harris with 11.72 pounds.They caught their fish on Chatterbaits and jerkbaits on the shallow edge of weedlines. They also won the junk fish pot with a 13.19-pound pike to pocket $450.
Hunter Paton and Ryan Gray - 4th Place
Hunter Paton and Ryan Gray finished fourth ($120 )with 11.20 pounds while Chip Harrison and Lowell Stallhut were fifth ($100) with 10.83 pounds.
The Tackle Shack door prize of a KVD Signature Series Casting Rod was won by Christopher Stamm Sr.
The next event Polar Bear event will be Saturday (Nov. 9) on Lake Maxinkuckee from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
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Kedik Report
Neil Vande Biezen and Andy Bachean - 1st Place
Neil Vande Biezen and Andy Bachean didn’t let a chilly Saturday morning get in the way of compiling a good limit of smallmouth on the St. Joseph River in an open bass tournament.
The winners had 16.40 pounds, caught by fishing tubes on the main river channel. They took home $330.
John Dixon and Loren Crosbie - 2nd Place
John Dixon and Loren Crosbie fish jigs in shallow water to pocket the second place pot ($220) with 12.66 pounds.
Rick Kedik and Jake Lisenko - 3rd Place
Rick Kedik and Jake Lisenko only had three keepers totaling 10.90 pounds, but it got them third place ($130) AND they won the big bass pot with a 5.04-pound smallmouth. They also fished jigs in shallow water.
The next Open tournament is Nov. 9th at the same location. Hours are 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Entry fee is $60. Call Rick at 269-240-4917 for more details.
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Professional bass fishing will never be the same. Ever. That’s a huge statement. In this case, it’s true. B.A.S.S. just announced that the Bassmaster Elite Series, heading into its 20th season, will no longer require entry fees. Yes, you heard that correctly. In 2025, competitors of the most prestigious tournament trail on the planet, for the first time ever in the history of B.A.S.S. competition, will no longer fish for their own money. No longer are Elite Series pros required to pay to play.Â
This historic decision was not made lightly. B.A.S.S. has long believed that the ultimate goal of the organization’s highest level of competition should be on par with other individual professional sports, like golf and tennis, which do not require pros to pay entry fees to compete. However, on the heels of record-breaking viewership of Bassmaster LIVE on FOX networks and Bassmaster.com, paired with strong long-term partnerships, this ultimate goal has been realized.
“We have been looking at this model for quite some time,” said B.A.S.S. CEO Chase Anderson. “But, we wanted to make sure that when we flip this switch, which we believe will change the face of professional bass fishing, that the concept is sustainable for the future. For the past several months, we’ve done our due diligence and came to the realization that, with the money we planned to allocate to payouts in 2025, we could offer attractive payouts without putting angler money at risk. This change greatly reduces the risk and financial strain required to compete at bass fishing’s highest level. Now, the Elite Series is in a league of its own, and the only league equivalent to other major individual sports.”