The 2024 Bassmaster Elite Series season wrote its final chapter Sunday when Cory Johnston hoisted the big blue trophy over his head at the St. Lawrence River in New York. Just 24-hours prior, his brother, Chris Johnston, hoisted the coveted Angler of the Year trophy. It was undoubtedly a great weekend for the Canadian duo, but their victories were overshadowed by controversy surrounding other competitors among the Elite Series rookie class.
Elite Series rookie Trey McKinney became the youngest Rookie of the Year winner in history Saturday. It’s hard to argue that McKinney didn’t earn his ROY title, and if not for a slip up at Smith Lake, he may have even made a run at the more prestigious AOY title. But coming into the St. Lawrence River event, he was down in the ROY running behind another young up-and-coming angler, JT Thompkins.
Both McKinney and Thompkins had incredible first seasons on tour, but have faced quite a bit of backlash from some fans for their vast usage of forward facing sonar. Whether you think they’re dynamic anglers or not, the two young stars set one heck of a stage for the final ROY battle. That is, until Thompkins was disqualified from the final event that Friday, Aug. 16. The details around the DQ are sparse, and the rumor mill is humming with wild accusations. Here’s what we know, and what we don’t.
JT Thompkins Disqualification
On Aug. 16 Bassmaster published a press release on its website informing fans that JT Thompkins was disqualified from the final event “for failure to pass a truth verification examination.” The polygraph was administered during the event on Friday, reportedly due to a protest from another competitor pertaining to Rule C3 ii a and Rule C3 (xiv):
- Rule C3 ii a states anglers “cannot gather waypoints or specific fishing locations i.e. creek, river, area of the lake, etc. from any source that is not publicly available.”
- Rule C3 (xiv) states “during competition days, anglers may not log onto websites or participate in social media with the intent of gaining a competitive advantage.”
Bassmaster did not provide any details surrounding any specific rules Thompkins may have violated or whether there is any proof to support his DQ beyond the results of the truth verification examination, which may have included more criteria than just a polygraph. But the result of the disqualification was that Thompkins would receive zero points toward AOY or ROY standings. This left Trey McKinney back on top of the race, where he remained until being crowned ROY on Saturday. ROY race aside, however, Thompkins disqualification has raised quite a few flags in the pro bass fishing community. The first reflects a growing distrust with polygraph tests and their validity. That’s the hill that Thompkins is dying on in his statement after his disqualification:
“As we know, these polygraphs aren’t 100 percent accurate, and I’m fully confident that I didn’t do anything wrong,” Thompkins says in his video. However, in the same video he also admits to watching videos online, which is prohibited by Rule C3 (XIV). “With the social media thing, I’ve done the same thing that everybody else does. You go on there and watch your fellow competitors, you know their fish catches, and I was also on FOX on day one, and I watched some of my fish catches.”
Major League Fishing has opened an investigation into the validity of allegations that a Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour cameraman sold Thompkins waypoints, according to Thompkins’ dad. The elder Thompkins published this statement in a Facebook video that has since been taken down, but a recording is still available on YouTube.
At press time, officials at Bassmaster have not responded to multiple requests for comment from Outdoor Life. Thompkins has also not responded to a request for comment. It’s also unclear how long it will take for Major League Fishing and Bassmaster to conduct their investigations or whether the results will be released to the public. No matter what the outcome, however, it’s a tough way to see an incredible rookie season come to an end.
The Rookie Class Rumor Mill Is Buzzing
If you’ve been following the Bassmaster Elite Series this season, you know as well as I do just how much controversy this rookie class has faced. From wild accusations about buying waypoints and blatant cheating, to more subtle things like running through no wake zones, the rookie class has been in hot water all year.
Even if all of these rumors turn out to be false, their existence is problematic and it’s concerning to see so much of the rookie class under such scrutiny. These young anglers are the future of the sport, and taking a hard-line love-’em-or-hate-’em stance (particularly based on rumors) isn’t good for bass fishing in the long run. As a fan of the sport, I hope the truth finds its way forward.