RICHMOND, Va. — According to Virginia pro Ryan Lachniet, college anglers will need to hit the tides right to unlock the magic of the James River during the 2026 Strike King Bassmaster College Series event presented by Bass Pro Shops.
“It should be really good,” the former Campbellsville University angler said. “Last October, I won a tournament out there with a two-day total of 49 pounds. The James has been really good the last couple of years.”
Tournament days are scheduled for May 29-30. Daily takeoffs and weigh-ins will take place at Osborne Park and Boat Landing in Richmond, Va. This is the final regular-season event for the College Series and the last chance for teams to qualify for the 2026 Strike King Bassmaster College Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops and earn points toward Team of the Year standings.
The James River has been a popular stop for the Bassmaster Tournament Trail over the past several years. Lachniet, who qualified for the 2025 Nitro Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers presented by Bass Pro Shops, won the Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier at James River presented by Lowrance last April with a three-day total of 53 pounds, 6 ounces, but he anticipates the fishing will be better for this College Series event.
“You can catch them anywhere in the system this time of year, but it will probably be dominated within three miles of the ramp or as far away as you can run,” Lachniet said. “The top half of the Chickahominy and then close to Osborne are going to be the two areas that dominate.”
Lachniet anticipates the bass will be in either a postspawn phase or in their early summer patterns. The bass in the early summer pattern will be set up around tide-related current breaks, and the college teams are in luck, because the tide forecasts call for an outgoing tide for much of the tournament.
“High tide is good for catching a lot of fish, but a lot of the really big bags come from low tide,” Lachniet said. “Someone is going to catch a mega-bag.”
The Chickahominy River is historically the place to win on the James River. Lily pads, hydrilla and cypress trees are key cover elements, as well as the Walkers Dam tailrace. A cold winter caused some of the hydrilla to die off, which Lachniet thinks could make for much better fishing.
The closer anglers stay to takeoff, the less the tide comes into play, but finding the right current breaks will be critical. Kenta Kimura won an April Bassmaster Open within sight of Osborne Landing in 2022.
“There could be 20 4-pounders on one of those current breaks, and you can catch 20 pounds in five casts,” Lachniet said. “I think one-cast spots will be really important.”
With shad and bream being the key forage, Lachniet anticipates that anglers who are willing to commit to a big glidebait or swimbait can have a lot of success. ChatterBaits and frogs around the vegetation and lily pads can produce key bites, as well as wacky rigs and Texas-rigged stickbaits or creature baits.
Richmond Region Tourism and Henrico Sports & Entertainment Authority are hosting the tournament.