Just when you thought Jeff Gustafson was going to completely blow away the competition with one of the most dominating Bassmaster Classic performances of all time, things all changed on the last day, making it an extremely compelling Championship Sunday. Although the fishing was tough for the majority of the field on the final day, the Canadian pro still found a way to get it done at the 2023 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Toyota.
As far as Fantasy Fishing was concerned, a number of the high percentage anglers proved to be solid choices, but picking lower percentage anglers like Drew Benton (1.3%), Bryan Schmitt (1.6%), Caleb Kuphall (2.6%) and Jonathan Dietz (0.7%) paid off big time as well.
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Let’s get into the best and worst Fantasy Fishing picks from the 2023 Bassmaster Classic.
The overall winner of the 2023 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Toyota was (“SLOCOAST1”), who selected two of the five picks that would have made up the perfect roster. Overall Rank: No. 1, Total Points 1,400.
BUCKET A: Jeff Gustafson
BUCKET B: John Cox
BUCKET C: Scott Canterbury
BUCKET D: Jay Przekurat
BUCKET E: Cody Huff
The perfect Fantasy Fishing roster for the 2023 Bassmaster Classic would have been:
BUCKET A: Jeff Gustafson
BUCKET B: Drew Benton
BUCKET C: Bryan Schmitt
BUCKET D: Jay Przekurat
BUCKET E: Jonathan Dietz
Total: 1,458
BUCKET A: GUSTAFSON
Despite winning the last Elite Series tournament held on this pool of the Tennessee River, eventual champion Jeff Gustafson was only the sixth highest selected angler in Bucket A. The Canadian pro fished his strengths all the way to a Classic title. He scored a whopping 355 points and was selected by 7.3% of players.
Second best selection: With a sixth-place finish, Brandon Lester was the second-best choice in Bucket A. The Tennessee native was the highest selected angler in the Bucket at 25.4%, and scored 276 points.
Lowest scoring angler: Despite being one of the home-state favorites, David Mullins never got it going at the Classic. Mullins scored 165 points while being selected by 3.0% of players.
BUCKET B: BENTON
A fourth-place finish isn’t too bad considering Drew Benton was only selected by 1.3% of players in Bucket B, making him the lowest selected angler in the Bucket. The Georgia pro fell just a few pounds short on the final day, but still scored 285 Fantasy Fishing points.
Second best selection: It came as no surprise that John Cox was able to fish his strengths to a Top 5 finish in Knoxville. The Florida pro scored 280 points and was selected by 13.9% of players in the Bucket.
Lowest scoring angler: Tennessee pro Buddy Gross also wasn’t able to get anything going in his home state. Gross scored 183 points while being selected by 13.6% of players.
BUCKET C: SCHMITT
Bryan Schmitt was the highest scoring angler in Bucket C, despite being the lowest selected angler at 1.6% of players. The Maryland pro fell just over a pound short of hoisting the trophy, but still scored 295 points.
Second best selection: Bucket C occupied four of the Top 10 anglers after the final day of competition, but Scott Canterbury was the second highest scoring angler. The Alabama pro made a final day charge, but fell just short. He scored 290 points.
Lowest scoring angler: Elite Series Veteran Keith Combs never got it dialed in on the Tennessee River, scoring just 193 points for the 4.1% of players who selected him.
BUCKET D: PRZEKURAT
Jay Przekurat out performed all of the Classic rookies along with all the anglers in Bucket D with a seventh-place finish. The Elite Series champion scored 272 points and was selected by 7.0% of players.
Second best selection: Despite being the second-lowest selected angler in Bucket D, Caleb Kuphall was the second-best selection in the Bucket. The Wisconsin pro scored 254 points while being selected by just 2.6% of players.
Lowest scoring angler: The only other Wisconsin angler in the Bucket, Pat Schlapper, wasn’t so fortunate at the Tennessee River. Schlapper scored just 169 points for the 8.8% of players who selected him.
BUCKET E: DIETZ
In his first Classic, Jonathan Dietz showed flashes of brightness with a 13th-place finish. The Pennsylvania pro scored 251 points while being selected by just 0.7% of players.
Second best selection: Strike King Bassmaster College Series representative Louis Monetti was the second-best choice in Bucket E. The UNC Charlotte angler was selected by 0.9% of players and scored 229 points.
Lowest scoring angler: Collin Smith never got it going on the Tennessee River. Smith scored 167 points while being selected by 0.5% of players.
