The UMF Season X Lineup features 8 of Top Rrofessional Bass Anglers in the world from both the BASS Elite Series and the FLW Tour all competing for the Crown of UMF Champion on Lake Chickamauga in Dayton, Tennessee!
1. The General- Legendary Larry Nixon.
In an era where terms such as “legend” and “icon’ are overused, especially in the world of sports, both terms still aptly apply to Larry Nixon. Nicknamed “The General” by his peers, Nixon’s career spans 39 years and at the age of 65 he’s still going strong. With a Bassmaster Classic trophy plus two BASS Angler of the Year awards to his credit, Larry has earned over 3.3 million dollars and still retains a #34 world ranking. Larry will face local favorite Wesley Strader in the first round of Pelican’s Ultimate Match Fishing.
Erie, Pennsylvania native Dave Lefebre has spent the last 14 years tearing his way through the ranks of professional bass fishing. With two FLW Tour wins, a win at the prestigious Texas Bass Classic and the 2006 FLW Angler of the Year title to his credit, Lefebre is considered a threat on any body of water he launches his boat on. Lefebre will face Brandon Palaniuk in the opening round of Pelican’s Ultimate Match Fishing.
At just 29 years of age, Brandon Palaniuk has already set the world of professional bass fishing on fire. Known as “The Prodigy” on the Elite Series Tour, Palaniuk hails from tiny Rathdrum, Idaho. In his short 7 year career Brandon has already earend two BASS Elite Series titles, one on the St. Lawrence River and one on Bull Shoals Lake, and he narrowly missed winning the 2014 Bassmaster Classic, finishing second. Palaniuk will square off against veteran pro Dave Lefebre in his opening round match.
Boyd Duckett is the rennaisance man of bass fishing. After a successful career in the music industry and the shipping and logistics, Duckett decided to turn his love of bass fishing into a professional pursuit. Let’s just say it was a good decision. Boyd Duckett shocked the field by winning the 2007 Bassmaster Classic and he has never looked back. Soon after, Duckett added the 2007 Ultimate Match Fishing belt to his list of career achievements and has gone on to win over 1.5 million dollars by doing what he loves best… bass fishing. Duckett will face Bryan Thrift in his first round match on Lake Chickamauga.
North Carlina pro Bryan Thrift may keep a low profile, but if you follow professional bass fishing you know that Thrift is one of the strongest sticks on the water. In just a decade as a pro, Thrift has dominated with multiple FLW Tour titles (Lake Eufaula in 2015 and Sam Rayburn in 2014) along with a Toyota Texas Bass Classic title in ’12. Week in and week out Thrift can be found lurking in the top 10 on the FLW Tour which has him rated as the #2 Angler in the world according the Bassfan’s rankings. Bryan will face former UMF Champion Boyd Duckett in his first round match.
With over 22 top 10 finishes, 5 Bassmaster Classics and 4 FLW Cup qualifications, Knoxville native Ott DeFoe is the definition of consistency. In just 9 professional seasons, DeFoe has already earned close to a million dollars with the rod and reel and he now sets his sites on the Pelican UMF Title Belt. His first step may be the toughest as he squares off against two time back-to-back UMF Champion Jacob Wheeler in his first round match.
There’s not much that can be said about Jacob Wheeler that hasn’t been said before. From his BFL All American title followed immediately by his FLW Cup Championship on Lake Lanier, Wheeler has done more in his short 5 year pro career than many professional anglers achieve in a lifetime. And as you know, Wheeler is the defending back-to-back Pelican’s Ultimate Match Fishing Champion, a feat never accomplished before. So what will it take to pull off a three-peat? Wheeler takes the first step in his opening round match against Ott DeFoe on Chickamauga Lake in week two.
As the local favorite, Wesley Strader has added pressure going into Pelican’s Ultimate Match Fishing. But pressure isn’t anything new to Strader. With 14 consecutive FLW Cup appearances and 13 top 10 finishes to his credit, Strader thrives off of pressure. As the current #10 ranked angler in the world, he’ll go toe-to-toe with The General, Larry Nixon, in his first round match on Lake Chickamauga.