Recap Story

AOY Race Goes Down to the Wire Davidson/Fikes Win by 3 Points

By Jason Duran

On a gray, drizzling morning at McFarland Park, the season’s final chapter was already heavy
with tension before the first cast. 225 teams launched into a lake famous for its ledge fishing and
infamous for exposing weaknesses. Teams were anxiously waiting for the first light to blast off.
A blanket of gray clouds hovered above the water, thick with the weight of rain that came and
went in waves through the morning. As teams gathered for the Alabama Bass Trail North
Division season finale, it felt less like a tournament morning and more like a test of patience, of
preparation, and of grit. By afternoon, the clouds had finally parted, revealing a welcomed sun
that warmed the lake just enough to push the bite once more. But by then, the story of the day
had already started to unfold.

Pickwick is known for its ledges and unpredictability; there was no single pattern that
dominated. Some teams lived offshore with crankbaits and Carolina rigs. Others chased early
bites in shallow grass before retreating to deeper brush. Most, though, found that patience was
the pattern.

At the center of it all stood William Nichols and Jake Young, a team who refused to blink.
Anchored by a thumping 7.87-pound largemouth, their final bag of 27.69 pounds barely edged
out the equally impressive 27.64-pound sack from Blake Hawkins and Josh Clark. In one of the
tightest finishes in recent ABT memory, William and Jake held the 1st place trophies high. The
difference between first and second was quite literally less than the weight of a Rapala DT10.

The team shared, “We caught four of the five fish we weighed in on a minnow-style bait.” They
swapped between a Sakamata Shad and the Crush City Freeloader on a 3/16 oz jighead. The fifth
fish came on a Scrounger Jighead paired with a Rapala Freeloader. They spent lots of time
graphing in practice looking for big schools of fish because “that’s where the fish were supposed
to be this time of year.” When they couldn’t locate the schools, “the next step was to move to the
edge of river channels and target stumps right off the ledge.” There, they found the winning
weight that secured them the $15,000 payday plus bonuses.

Hawkins and Clark, who had taken the lead earlier, had to wait out the whole afternoon as team
after team weighed in 20-pound bags. After William and Jake set their bag on the scale, the
second-place team could only think about the big shad that one of their fish spit out and left in
the livewell. That might have been the difference. “This one for sure has to sting a little.”
They had found a really big school of fish near the dam during practice but couldn’t get on it
during tournament day. Instead, they located another spot and caught most of their weight there.
In the afternoon, they headed back toward takeoff and found the areas were crowded. They
patiently waited their turn on a spot they wanted to fish, got lucky when the boat left, and moved
in to catch a 6.11 and 5.90, two anchors that gave them hope. At one point, they hooked what
they thought was a giant, only to realize it was a 15-pound hybrid. They said they “threw everything under the sun,” mixing minnows, jigs, crankbaits. Their biggest fish came on a hair
jig. It was a heartbreaking second-place finish but one that still paid $7,500.

The third-place father-son team of Lance and Cole Walker had one of the most impressive
adjustments of the day. Lance said, “What a great Father’s Day! I’m fishing with one of the best
LiveScopers out there.” They began the morning up shallow, fishing bars, but only managed
about 12 pounds. Around 11 a.m., Cole said they needed to head downriver toward home. They
ran all the way back to Tennessee, where Cole had found stump rows holding fish.
“When we pulled up, he could see them on LiveScope,” Lance said, “and he said, ‘I’m fixing to
catch them.’” Cole pulled out a big crankbait, the Jenko CD20 and CD25, depending on depth.
He also threw a big glide bait and quickly culled up to 24 pounds.

Cole noted that they had put in “hundreds of hours” on Garmin Side Imaging to find these areas.
“We decided to fish more isolated fish. I scanned all week long and probably made only ten
casts. When I found the structure that was holding the fish, I just marked them and moved on.”
Cole also explained that these big post-spawn fish were guarding fry and they were not just
males. “I didn’t throw at anything four pounds or under. I only cast when it mattered.” Their
26.92-pound bag earned them $6,000 plus a $2,500 Phoenix Boats bonus.

The Angler of the Year Battle

Coming into Pickwick, the AOY race was wide open. Leading were Mark McCaig and Tim
Hurst with 853 points, just ahead of Damien Willis and Tyler Kiker (840), and Adam Bain and
Kris Colley (833). With only 84 points separating first from 10th place, every ounce at Pickwick
had the potential to rewrite the leaderboard.

In their first season fishing the North Division, Hunter Davidson and Bryant Fikes captured the
2025 Angler of the Year title. Their 5th-place finish at Pickwick with 26.24 pounds capped off a
remarkably consistent season. This finished moved them from 4th to 1st place in AOY.

“It feels awesome,” the team said. “You always hear the ABT is the toughest trail there is and to
beat these guys all year feels really good.” During practice, they “just scanned a lot” and found
“a little sneak spot.” They were boat #202 and didn’t even attempt any community holes. At their
sneaky spot, they had most of their weight by 7:15 a.m. and caught about 25 fish total, mostly
soaking a worm, with one caught on a minnow.

Looking back on the season, they pinpointed a pivotal moment at Neely Henry. In the last 20
minutes, they threw a pink straight-tail worm down a riprap bank and caught a fish that culled
them up by 0.25 pounds, jumping them 7 places in that event. Without that fish, they would have
lost AOY to Willis and Kiker by 4 points. Instead, they won by 3. It was especially tough for
Willis/Kiker, who also finished second in AOY last year.

What’s Next

The Pickwick finale highlighted the intensity and skill required to compete at the highest level of
Alabama bass fishing. With AOY finalized, teams now turn their focus to the ABT Team
Championship at Wheeler Lake, coming up October 17–18, 2025. The no-entry-fee
championship will feature a $100,250 payout, including a $50,000 first-place prize. The top 75
teams in each division will compete.

For complete results please visit
Results - Alabama Bass Trail Tournament Series

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