BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The 2015 Bassmaster Elite Series field is now set with a mixture of well-known veteran pros and young up-and-comers ready to zig-zag the country, vying for thousands of dollars and the coveted Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title.
Topping the 113-angler field is Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La., who won the 2014 A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite Series event on New York’s Cayuga Lake en route to capturing the 2014 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title. The remainder of last year’s Top 5 points earners is also returning with four-time B.A.S.S. tournament winner Todd Faircloth of Jasper, Texas; three-time winner Jacob Powroznik of Port Haywood, Va.; six-time winner Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala.; and five-time winner Mark Davis of Mount Ida, Ark.
There will be 13 newcomers to the Elite Series field, including Brent Ehrler of Redlands, Calif., who qualified by finishing seventh in the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Northern Opens standings. Though he has yet to win a B.A.S.S. event, Ehrler has enjoyed success on the FLW Tour with eight victories, 33 career Top 10 finishes and more than $2.2 million in earnings during a decade-long career.
The field will feature a dozen former Classic winners, including Davis, Rick Clunn of Ava, Mo., Paul Elias of Laurel, Miss.; Davy Hite of Ninety Six, S.C.; Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich.; Michael Iaconelli of Runnemede, N.J.; Takahiro Omori of Emory, Texas; Boyd Duckett of Demopolis, Ala.; Alton Jones of Lorena, Texas; Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif.; Cliff Pace of Petal, Miss.; and 2014 winner Randy Howell of Springville, Ala.
The Elite Series will begin March 19-22 with a trip to the Sabine River in Orange, Texas. The trail will then set a demanding pace for the anglers with trips to Alabama’s Lake Guntersville on April 9-12, California’s Sacramento River on April 30-May 3, Arizona’s Lake Havasu on May 7-10, Tennessee’s Kentucky Lake for BASSfest on June 3-7, New York’s St. Lawrence River on July 30-Aug. 2, Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay on Aug. 13-16, Michigan’s Lake St. Clair on Aug. 27-30 and Wisconsin’s Sturgeon Bay for the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship on Sept. 17-20.
Standard Elite Series events will feature a total purse of $638,000, with $100,000 going to the winner and at least $10,000
The 2015 Bassmaster Elite Series field is set with a total of 113 anglers from across the world, including 13 Elite Series newcomers and a host of veteran anglers ready to take on new waters in the 2015 Bassmaster Elite Series season.
Photo by B.A.S.S.
going to anyone who finishes 50th or better. BASSfest will offer a total purse of $850,000 with a $100,000 winner’s payout,$60,000 for second place and at least $10,000 for any angler who places 60th or better.
The Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Championship will have a whopping total purse of $1 million, with the winner pocketing
$100,000, the second-place angler earning $55,000 and third place paying $45,000. The remainder of the Top 50 pros in the AOY points standings will share in the rest of the championship payout.
Last year’s Elite Series, which featured the first-ever BASSfest in Dayton, Tenn., and the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship in Escanaba, Mich., set a new attendance record by drawing 128,600 fishing fans.
The list of 2015 Bassmaster Elite Series qualifiers is below:
Randy Allen
Casey Ashley
Scott Ashmore
Josh Bertrand
Tommy Biffle
Stephen Browning
Brandon Card
Brent Chapman
Hank Cherry
Jason Christie
Rick Clunn
Keith Combs
Brandon Coulter
John Crews
Cliff Crochet
Mark Davis
Ott DeFoe
Kurt Dove
Boyd Duckett
Brent Ehrler
James Elam
Paul Elias
Edwin Evers
Todd Faircloth
Seth Feider
Micah Frazier
Shaw Grigsby
Greg Hackney
Charlie Hartley
Kevin Hawk
Matt Herren
Kenyon Hill
Brett Hite
Davy Hite
Timmy Horton
Randy Howell
Michael Iaconelli
Ken Iyobe
Kelley Jaye
Carl Jocumsen
Alton Jones
Kelly Jordon
Steve Kennedy
Mike Kernan
Kotaro Kiriyama
Gary Klein
Koby Kreiger
Jeff Kriet
Bobby Lane
Chris Lane
Russ Lane
Kevin Ledoux
Jordan Lee
Matt Lee
Brandon Lester
Jared Lintner
Stephen Longobardi
Bill Lowen
Justin Lucas
Aaron Martens
Billy McCaghren
Mike McClelland
Mark Menendez
Jared Miller
Yusuke Miyazaki
Ish Monroe
Andy Montgomery
Chad Morgenthaler
Paul Mueller
David Mullins
John Murray
Britt Myers
James Niggemeyer
Takahiro Omori
Cliff Pace
Brandon Palaniuk
Chad Pipkens
Clifford Pirch
Keith Poche
Jacob Powroznik
Cliff Prince
Matt Reed
Skeet Reese
Derek Remitz
Marty Robinson
Dean Rojas
Scott Rook
Fred Roumbanis
Zell Rowland
Bradley Roy
Joseph Sancho
Casey Scanlon
Bernie Schultz
Terry Scroggins
Morizo Shimizu
Kevin Short
Fletcher Shryock
Dave Smith
Brian Snowden
Gerald Swindle
Randall Tharp
Dennis Tietje
J Todd Tucker
Jonathon VanDam
Kevin VanDam
Byron Velvick
Greg Vinson
David Walker
Nate Wellman
David Williams
Jason Williamson
Boo Woods
Chris Zaldain
