KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — With one day in the books at the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour, the storyline for much of the field is change. Anglers enjoyed warm flip-flop weather during pre-tournament practice days in Knoxville, Tenn. Since then, the weather and water conditions have done the flip-flopping, bringing frost at takeoff, wind and muddy water to the Tennessee River.
The one thing that hasn’t changed is the name atop the Classic standings. Easton Fothergill, the reigning Classic champ from Grand Rapids, Minn., best navigated the shifting conditions to jump into the Day 1 lead with a limit of five smallmouth bass weighing 21 pounds, 8 ounces.
Like the weather recently, Fothergill’s day was up and down. He had to adjust, and he had to cover water. In fact, he ran 124 miles throughout Friday’s first day of competition.
Fothergill started the day running far into Tellico Reservoir, which connects to the Tennessee River’s Fort Loudoun Reservoir via a canal near both lakes’ lower ends.
“It’s just where I personally found the most consistent bigger fish,” he said. “I did have some fish in Loudoun, but by the time I made the right adjustment I didn’t have time to check those fish.”
Fans watching Bassmaster LIVE saw Fothergill make that adjustment in real time. He opened the morning by breaking off a good fish and only had about 9 pounds at noon. Then he made a shift to a different type of structure, landed on a good spot and caught a pair of 4-pounders.
“That’s when the lightbulb went off,” Fothergill said. “Then I duplicated it on another spot and filled my limit with the rest of the big ones.”
Those big ones were a trio of 4-pound-class fish that he landed in a rapid nine-minute flurry that started at about 1:30 p.m. Prior to his “lightbulb moment,” Fothergill was running spots he’d found in practice, but he had to abandon those areas because changes in current and water clarity caused his fish to reposition. He actually ran all new water to catch the five fish he brought to weigh-in at the Food City Center on the University of Tennessee campus.
“I just told myself if you run enough stuff, you’ll eventually land on them,” he said. “And that’s exactly what happened. I got a clue on one place, and then I started running new water, and sure enough there they were.”
Though it’s still early in the tournament, there’s no ignoring the potential history of Fothergill’s attempt at back-to-back Classic wins. Only Rick Clunn (1976, 1977), Kevin VanDam (2010, 2011), Jordan Lee (2017, 2018) and Hank Cherry (2020, 2021) have won two in a row. Fothergill, just 23 years old, is known for his outwardly calm, focused demeaner, but even he can’t escape the pressure completely.
“I’m definitely a little nervous, but I know if I can just put a couple more puzzle pieces together as we go on in the tournament, I’ll get more and more dangerous,” Fothergill said. “So that’s just what I’m telling myself is keep an open mind. Even though I had a good day today, I know that tomorrow is a new day and [I need to] continue adjusting. I think if I do that, I’ll be right where I need to be.”
Just 9 ounces behind Fothergill is 20-year-old phenom Fisher Anaya. The Eva, Ala., pro is fresh off a victory at the Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin. He opened the Classic with 20 pounds, 15 ounces.
Anaya ran an hour and 15 minutes from takeoff into an area of Tellico that he believed coming in could produce a 20- to 25-pound limit.
“It lays out more like back home,” he said of that stretch of Tellico. “There’s contour lines. There’s less current. It lays out more like a TVA lake should. I feel more comfortable down there. The water was cleaner. The fish set up on more isolated cover and bars and stuff like that. It’s offshore fishing; just more my game.”
While Anaya’s morning started quickly with him putting 16 pounds in the boat, he found his better fish had moved away from a couple of key areas. He hopped around through a half dozen spots with no luck before finally landing on a key stretch that produced two of his best fish.
“On my way back up, I stopped on one little deep school that hasn’t moved all week, and they were still there, and I caught one out of it and then I ran back in,” he said. “I just didn’t see that many today. But there are enough there to do it I think three days in a row. I’ve just gotta get lucky and catch those 4 1/2- to 5-pounders instead of 3-pounders.”
Anaya had four smallmouth bass in his limit today and believes he’s found enough quality fish to make a run at the win with two limits of smallies over the weekend. As for what it feels like to be in contention in the Classic at just 20 years old, Anaya says he’s trying not to think about it.
“After practice, I knew I had a shot at it. I just had to make them bite, and I was fortunate enough to catch five of them, so nerves are high,” he said. “I’m going to have to find some way to sleep tonight. I don’t know if I can do it or not, but I’ve gotta try to find a way to get some rest.”
In third place is Eutawville, S.C., pro Patrick Walters with 19 pounds, 10 ounces. Prior to the Classic, Bassmaster LIVE host Mark Zona commented about how a Ray Scott Bassmaster Classic Trophy is the one piece of hardware that Walters still needs to lay hands on to punctuate an already great career. The 31-year-old put himself in prime position to make a run at the title this weekend.
Walters said he spent his entire day in Fort Loudoun and has no plans to change that this weekend.
“It was a good day,” Walters said. “I made a decent run down lake to my farthest stop. I caught four fish off my first stretch, then went to my next spot and caught my limit. I was fishing how I like fishing.”
The changing conditions definitely impacted Walters today. He thinks the dirty water filtering into his areas will improve his chances once the fish adjust and start biting in the mud. But more importantly, he’s hoping for calmer conditions tomorrow.
“I did not fish some of my better stuff I feel like, mainly because it’s about accurate casting — pinpoint stuff — and by the time I got to it, the wind was gassing,” Walters said. “Then I could hardly even cast. So I saved a good bit of stuff. I’m ready to go tomorrow.”
Rounding out the Top 5 on Day 1 are Drew Cook, of Cairo, Ga., in fourth place with a limit weighing 19-9, and Dylan Nutt, of Nashville, Tenn., in fifth place with 19-5.
Chris Johnston, of Otonabee, Ontario, Canada, won the Day 1 Big Bass award of $1,000 for a largemouth bass that weighed 5 pounds, 9 ounces.
The Day 2 melin Bassmaster Classic Takeoff is scheduled for 7:45 a.m. ET from Volunteer Landing in downtown Knoxville. The Bassmaster Classic Weigh-in driven by Yokohama begins at 4:15 p.m. at Food City Arena.
You can watch all the action during Bassmaster LIVE from 8 a.m. to Noon on Bassmaster.com and the Bassmaster FAST channel, available on Roku and Plex. The action picks up from Noon to 3 p.m. on FS1. Day 2 weigh-in will also be streamed on Bassmaster.com
Fans are also invited to attend the Progressive Bassmaster Classic Tailgate presented by Maxam Tire from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. outside the Knoxville Convention Center. The Bassmaster Classic Outdoors Expo presented by TNT Fireworks will be in the convention center and the adjacent World’s Fair Exhibition Hall from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. All Classic events are free to the public.
Visit Knox Sports is hosting the event.