There’s no debating the fact that live sonar, or forward-facing sonar as it’s often referred to, has had an impact on the Bassmaster Elite Series and how events are playing out. In addition to the changes made by B.A.S.S. to standardize equipment, another huge step being taken is to create a diverse schedule that doesn’t lend itself exclusively to live sonar.
A potential response to that would be that live sonar is going to play a role in every single tournament. While that may be true to a certain extent, the data collected from the 2024 Bassmaster Elite Series season would suggest that usage of live sonar was certainly more prominent in certain tournaments compared to others.
At the end of every Elite Series tournament this season, each angler in the Top 10 was asked a number of questions that pertained to their usage of live sonar. As you would probably expect, usage was significant throughout tournaments like Toledo Bend, Lake Fork, Smith Lake and the St. Lawrence River. However, it was almost nonexistent during the Florida Swing (St. Johns River and the Harris Chain) and even Wheeler Lake.
One concern the committee has heard in regards to the Top 10 surveys is that the answers given by the Elites may be skewed by their personal stance on live sonar. For instance, if an angler that excels when using this technology is asked to what extent they used it, they may answer much lower to make it appear that it wasn’t as crucial. This would obviously skew the results.
However, as the person who conducted all but one of the surveys, I can say confidently the answers at large matched what I saw on the water covering the event, as well as what I watched on Bassmaster LIVE. Sure, there were a few answers that made me scratch my head a little, but that happened far less than I expected throughout the season.
The question now is what do we do with this data?
When B.A.S.S. created the 2025 Elite Series schedule, the goal was to piece together venues that would demand diverse techniques and fishing styles for success. That’s not to say there won’t be events where live sonar is a major factor, but certain types of fisheries won’t lend themselves to the technology. For example, the Sabine River, Lay Lake, St. Johns River, Wheeler Lake and other venues featured very little live sonar usage over the last two Elite Seasons.
Live sonar has been around for several years now, and while it has certainly been a topic of conversation for most all of that time, the biggest push of negativity seemed to come from the end of the 2023 season. That season ended with Lake St. Clair, Lake Champlain and St. Lawrence River – all three tournaments where live sonar dominated. This is a perfect example of how the schedule has a drastic effect on live sonar usage.
As a fan of the sport, all you can ask for is a diverse schedule that tests each angler’s skillsets. B.A.S.S. believes the Elite Series schedule for 2025 is just that, and the organization will continue to schedule for diversity moving forward.
