These four Minnesotans will outfish you almost any day

At just 23 years old, Easton Fothergill of Grand Rapids has earned more than $500,000 in a career that most Minnesotans can only dream of: bass fishing.

After a record-breaking performance this year to win the most prestigious fishing tournament in the world, the Bassmaster Classic, Fothergill is one of four state anglers now making a splash in the country’s highest professional fishing ranks.

Along with several standout bass anglers from Wisconsin and Ontario, they are putting a distinct northern stamp on the sport traditionally associated with the South.

“Winning the Classic was a dream come true and I had a really good run after the Classic,” Fothergill said. “My goal is to keep fishing. I want to make a career out of this.”

Minnesota’s amateur bass circuits have occasionally produced fishing legends who have tasted national success. This year’s results in the Bassmaster Elite Series show that chasing bass in the Land of 10,000 Lakes isn’t just a local pastime anymore.

The Alabama-based tour — now enjoying expanded national television coverage — stages nine regular-season events a year, culminating next month on the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wis.

The Bassmaster Classic, known as professional fishing’s Super Bowl, paid Fothergill $308,000 and made him an instant target of autograph-seekers. In less than two years, Fothergill’s tour winnings stand at $535,000 and he’ll be negotiating major sponsorship deals this fall.

At Bassmaster, he competes with Minnesotans Seth Feider, 40, of Bloomington; Bob Downey, 37, of Detroit Lakes and Austin Felix, 41, of Eden Prairie. Together they’ve won $2.78 million and each of them is in good position this season to qualify for the 2026 Bassmaster Classic.

Reaching the Classic is the goal of every Elite Series pro, but there are only 40 openings. Another 60 anglers don’t make the cut.

“It’s definitely changing,’’ said Felix, who won rookie-of-the-year Elite Series honors in 2020. “As a teen I never really thought this was possible. Now there’s a lot more northern guys who realize they can compete on the biggest stage.’’

Felix, Fothergill, Feider and Downey all credit Minnesota’s abundance and diversity of bass habitat for sharpening their skills. More anglers from the South and East are now coming to the state to train, they said. The opportunities, especially for mastering smallmouth bass, are endless and northern anglers are now considered favorites in waters that hold smallmouth.

“Our lakes are full of bass,’’ Downey said. “I can go to a lake down a dirt road in the middle of the week and catch 50 bass and never see another person.’’

Hengel said he’s confident Minnesota will keep producing full-time pros. By some estimates, as many as 25 Minnesotans are now fishing in Bassmaster open tournaments in a quest to qualify for a roster spot in the Elite Series. “I can guarantee you that more are coming,’’ he said.

The modern pro anglers are following in the wake of a select few older fishing champions from Minnesota. Jim Moynagh, for one, is the dean of pro bass anglers in the state. The 60-year-old Shakopee resident has racked up more than $2 million in lifetime earnings as the state’s longest-touring pro. He’s been aligned with a circuit now known as Major League Fishing.

At most competitions, officials keep score by tracking the weight of each angler’s daily five-fish “bag.’’ Bassmaster Elite Series tournaments generally run for four days. The heaviest cumulative weight wins the tournament, but other top finishers also get paid. Rules allow anglers to use live sonar equipment to spot fish, but each boat is limited to a total of 55 inches of screen and a single transducer.

Feider, bass fishing’s equivalent of a hockey rink rat, said he spent much of his youth on Lake Minnetonka, where he’s still revered for his dominance of the “Denny’s” tournament. He moved on to Bassmasters, proving to other aspiring pros in Minnesota that it was possible to cover the daunting expenses of forgoing weeks of income from regular jobs, paying for lodging and hauling their boats an average of 15-plus hours to tournament hot spots in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and upstate New York.

Feider clawed his way into the Elite Series by outfishing competitors in Bassmaster’s qualifying tournaments. Then, in 2021, he gained national fame by winning Bassmaster Angler of the Year. As a pro, he’s cashed checks in 96 of 128 Elite Series tournaments.

This year, with two tournaments to go, Feider ranks 22nd in the Bassmaster Elite Series field of 104 anglers;. Downey 19th; Fothergill 31st; and Felix 35th. Jay Przekurat of Plover, Wis., is No. 1 in the standings with a shot to win Bassmaster Angler of the Year. Close behind him is Chris Johnston of Otonabee, Ontario, who won the individual title in 2024.

“Throw in the Canadians and we make up a pretty strong team for the northern guys,” Feider said.