It took three days and nearly 700 miles of running, but Drew Cook conquered the mighty St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario, going wire to wire to earn his first NPFL victory and a cool $100,000.
With three calm and sunny days — something rare this spring and summer in New York — the NPFL arrived in Massena at the perfect time, and the anglers capitalized on it. Many chose to make the long run to the mouth of the lake, with some venturing into Ontario, setting new records in the process.
Running nearly the furthest and fishing a different area each day to stay on fresh fish, Drew Cook’s three-day total of 77-6 gave him a 2-11 margin of victory. In second place, Kyle Welcher fought to maintain his Progressive Angler of the Year lead. He spent the first two days in third place before moving up to second today, extending his lead from 5 to 7 points, unofficially, over Patrick Walters, who dropped to fourth. Andrew Upshaw capped off his event with his biggest bag on the final day, finishing in third.
South Carolina angler Patrick Walters finished in fourth with 71-13 and Alabama pro Justin Adkins finished fifth with 71-3.
Both Drew Cook and Jesse Wise shared the big bass honors, each landing a massive 6-pound, 10-ounce smallmouth on day two.
Cook Goes Wire-to-Wire
Committing to Lake Ontario and the mouth of the St. Lawrence River, Georgia pro Drew Cook earned his first NPFL victory with a three-day total of 77-6. He took the Day 1 lead with 27-2, the biggest bag of the tournament, and when most struggled to catch big bags on Day 2, he added 25-8 and extended his lead.
On the final day, Cook returned to the big lake and fished another new area, but it took a bit of time to get going. Once he settled around lunchtime, he got into a “newish” area and started catching fish.
“Today was a grind,” he said. “I had a few good fish, but I had to really keep moving to find bigger ones than the high 3s, low 4-pounders I was around. I fished different areas each day, but today I fished a new area I hadn’t been to yet, and caught three of my weight fish from it.”
A key factor was the amount of water he had to work with. Being efficient in practice, he quickly got clued in on the types of areas that would produce. The spot where he caught his key fish on Finale Friday was a new one, and at a time where he was starting to second guess himself.
“I say ‘new’, but I saw it on the map in practice and knew it was going to be good,” he added. “It looked like the same type of stuff, and I opted not to fish it in practice. When I got in there today, it saved me. Fishing new areas every day really allowed me to catch everything I could every day without having to worry about saving anything.”
On Day 2, while on Live Coverage, Cook spotted a big fish over 40 yards away and made a long cast. The fish, which he had seen in practice but opted not to catch, ended up being the biggest bass of the event, and came with a special surprise.
“My Leopold Sunglasses were awesome this week, and the trolling motor batteries,” he said on stage before weighing his fish. “That big one on Day 2 was a tagged fish, and I saw it in practice. It was almost a 7-pounder – it was super cool. I could see the tag from that far away.”
Overall, he kept it low key: spreading out and focusing on fish that were either spawning or hanging out on the rocks.
“I kept it simple and focused on fish that I could see up in the rocks,” he said. “I also have to thank Dobyns Rods and Sunline. I kept the big ones hooked and got them in the boat.”
Kyle Welcher Battles to Second Place and Extends AOY Lead
With 24-13 on Day 1 and 24-3 on Day 2, Alabama angler Kyle Welcher saved the best for last, adding 24-14 to the scales on Finale Friday. His three-day total of 74-11 moved him from third to second place – increasing his AOY margin.
Coming into the event, Welcher held a tight lead over Patrick Walters and Greg Hackney but knew he could easily lose ground in New York. Playing it safe wasn’t an option, so he made the long run toward Lake Ontario, executing perfectly for three straight days.
“Coming in, I knew with how much experience those guys (Walters/Hackney) had here that there was no way I could play it safe and not make the long run,” he said. “I knew I likely needed a top five or top ten to stay where I was, and I was right. Those guys caught them extremely well, and I needed all that I caught to keep things interesting heading back to Alabama for the final event.”
Like the others, Welcher focused his efforts shallow, looking for smallmouth cruising or spawning. Staying with that “key” type of area allowed him to move around and use his eyes to locate better-than-average bass.
“You know, I really just looked for places on Humminbird LakeMaster where they may want to be either spawning or post-spawn,” he added. “I worked through casting around a bladed jig until I got bit or saw one with my eyes, and then I would slow down and pitch a dropshot at them. It was a pretty simple deal.”
Upshaw Moves to Third
Texas angler Andrew Upshaw waited until the very end of Finale Friday to catch his biggest fish, a 6-5 smallmouth with 30 minutes left. That last-minute catch gave him his biggest bag of the week, 24-14, and moved him into third place. He started strong on Day 1 with 24-8, followed by 23-5 on Day 2, kicking off a solid week of fishing.
Coming into the event, Upshaw was set against running to Lake Ontario, preferring to fish in the St. Lawrence River, where he had two solid days of practice. On the final day of practice, with the wind laying down, he ventured to the Duck Islands area, which changed his entire event.
“I had no plans of even going there, but I found 25 pounds of fish on beds out there,” he said. “I pondered the idea and decided to go. I caught a solid weight on Day 1, and then Day 2, I fished in the river, but the bite was super weird.”
Scrapping the river, he returned to the Duck area and added another 23-5 to his livewells. On Finale Friday, he made the long run again, sticking with his one-two punch of a Strike King Baby Z-Too and a Strike King Ned Ocho.
“I got down there and caught a decent bag, just looking over the last two days at new water,” he said. “I never really practiced there, but they were easy to catch, so I kept going back. On the way back, with a half hour left, I stopped at a river spot and caught that 6-5. It really was a perfect ending to the week.”
Top 10:
- Drew Cook 77-6
- Kyle Welcher 74-11
- Andrew Upshaw 72-11
- Patrick Walters 71-13
- Justin Adkins 71-3
- Scott Canterbury 69-10
- Jason Christie 69-8
- KJ Queen 69-3
- Corey Casey 69-1
- Cole Harris 69-0
