It’s already been a fantastic 2024 for Justin Hamner, and he hopes to keep his dream season going.
The 33-year-old from Northport, Ala., is in position to accomplish a feat that’s only been done by two others in B.A.S.S. – winning the Classic and Angler of the Year in the same year.
“I’m not really nervous about it,” said Hamner, sounding much like he did in March in winning the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic on Oklahoma’s Grand Lake. “I’m more excited than anything. I know how rare these chances are for AOY.”
Hamner leads the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings with 595 points. His closest competitor, Trey McKinney, is 24 points back.
“There’s no doubt he’s a major threat,” Hamner said. “Dude can catch them.”
Hamner knows he should probably be the one chasing McKinney. The 19-year-old phenom suffered a regrettable nightmare in the last event. Misremembering his check-in time on Day 2 at Smith Lake, McKinney was late and subsequently disqualified for taking a phone call alerting him to that fact.
His 93rd-place finish, combined with Hamner’s 10th, created an 83-point swing, knocking McKinney off the top spot he’s held since the second event of the year. Adding insult to injury, McKinney’s limit was the best of the day and would have put him in second place.
“Not to ignore the elephant in the room, but if he’d have been in second place at Smith Lake,” Hamner said, “he would be blowing this thing out the water.”
Instead of a 60-plus-point lead, McKinney now needs high finishes in season-ending events on Lake Champlain and the St. Lawrence River, fisheries he only became more familiar with last month.
Conversely, Hamner is stoked to close out his quest on the northern fisheries. Last year in Elite tournaments, he was 21st on Champlain before an eighth at the St. Lawrence.
“If I could pick any two fisheries for it to come down to, these probably would be the two,” Hamner said. “I think if I can do what I did last year, it will be impossible for him. Trey might have to win both of them.”
Another pursuer that worries Hamner is Cody Huff. He is 26 points back in third place, the same spot he finished behind Hamner in the Classic. Huff has made every cut this season, and last year he finished third at Champlain and 14th at St. Lawrence.
“He had a Top 10 last year at Champlain and is on fire this year,” Hamner said. “No doubt this is right up his alley.
“Cody Huff to me actually seems like more of a threat than Trey, just because these places are so hard to figure out, and I think he has enough experience to know where to go.”
Another major threat comes from Chris Johnston, in fourth place 39 points back. Johnston was the first Canadian to win an Elite, which came on his home waters of the St. Lawrence in 2020. In 2022, he made up 106 points in the final three northern events to take third in AOY.
“Now that one scares the hell out of me,” Hamner said. “He’s guaranteed Top 10 at St. Lawrence. He’s in there every single time and a threat to win it every time.
“St. Lawrence is going to be the big difference maker. That’s why Chris scares me the most, because at the most volatile place, where everything gets shook up, he’s pretty much locked in to the Top 10. You could literally have two days of 20 pounds, like last year, and not even make the cut.”
Jacob Foutz’s 556 points ties Johnston, and he’s been on a roll. Last year, Foutz finished strong with Top 10s at Lake St. Clair and Champlain before a 42nd at the St. Lawrence. Those finishes started his streak of 10 consecutive cuts.
“Good for Foutz,” Hamner said. “I don’t remember what he did last year (eighth at Champlain), but I know the whole Damiki, forward-facing sonar is right up his alley.”
In sixth is John Garrett, a rookie Elite winner at the Harris Chain. He hasn’t competed at Champlain in B.A.S.S., and in St. Lawrence Opens has finished 60th (2023) and a 24th (2021). He has 553 points, 42 behind Hamner.
“I ain’t worried about him, he’s a ledge fishing guy. He doesn’t know how to catch a smallmouth unless it’s Tennessee,” Hamner joked. “I like John. Him and Cody Huff, if it wasn’t going to be me, I would like to see one of them two win.”
Another St. Lawrence winner, Jay Przekurat, is in the mix. He’s seventh with 549 points and is coming in hot with four consecutive Top 10s, including last month’s Open win on St. Clair.
Przekurat has finished in the Top 10 in points in each of his three Elite seasons, helped by his 2022 win at St. Lawrence. In that victory, he became the first angler to total more than 100 pounds of smallmouth.
“Yeah, he’s good,” Hamner said. “Jay doesn’t stop catching them, and these two are obviously right up his alley.”
Another rookie, JT Thompkins, is 48 points back of Hamner in eighth, and Cory Johnston in ninth and Wesley Gore in 10th have 531 points, 64 back. While Hamner said each of those three is capable of moving up to earn more of the $578,000 in Progressive AOY payout, they’re probably too far out to pass everyone and earn the $100,000 going to the winner.
“Once it starts getting back that far, it’s going to be me losing it myself,” Hamner said. “That’s why I’m really not that worried about them. It’s up to me, as long as I do my part.”
His part would be two more strong finishes. With three Top 10s, two finishes in the teens, a 26th and a worst of 55th, Hamner holds hope to wrap up the 2024 AOY. If he does, he’ll become only the third angler to win the Classic and AOY in the same season, joining Kevin VanDam (2010, 2011) and Mark Davis (1995).
“As long as I do my job,” he said. “I’m the only one who can control my own destiny here. I’d much rather be that than having to hope somebody has to stumble.”
Lee, Palaniuk other leading men
While Hamner tops the seven Classic winners in the Elites in AOY, Jordan Lee is next at 11th. Lee won the 2017 Lake Conroe Classic then won at Lake Hartwell the next year to become the third repeat champion. He returned from MLF to the Elites this year.
Hank Cherry and Jeff Gustafson are on the bubble at 44th and 45th, respectively, with some work left to return to the Classic. At 67th, 2022 Classic champ Jason Christie has a lot of work.
The projected cut to qualify is 489 points. Christie has 316 and needs to gain 173 more, basically two top 15 finishes, to make his 11th championship.
Four-time Classic champ Rick Clunn (89th, 253 points) can only extend his record Classic appearances to 33 with the St. Lawrence winner’s golden ticket. That’s the route left for 2003 winner Mike Iaconelli, who stands two spots back of Clunn in 91st.
As for previous AOY winners in the Elites, Brandon Palaniuk tops that nine-man contingent. He’s 24th in the standings with 439 points. Last year’s AOY, Kyle Welcher (35th, 402) is the only other AOY inside the cut.
Greg Hackney is close. He’s one spot and four points from the projected total. Seth Feider stands 65th, so like Christie he will require two top finishes.
Clark Wendlandt is 77th and would need two Top 10s to gain the estimated 191 points to make the Classic. Scott Canterbury (84th), Clunn (89th), Mike Iaconelli (91st) and Gerald Swindle (93rd) need the St. Lawrence win-and-in.
Longest of long shots
With the return of Ed Loughran and Jamie Hartman, the field is up to 101 anglers. The year began with 103 pros. Event winners receive 103 points and each place drops by a point all the way to one point for last place.
With an estimated 489 points to make the Classic, Joseph Webster, in 82nd place with 284 points, has not been mathematically eliminated. With two wins and 206 points, Webster could get to 490.
On the high side, with little to no chance of dropping out of the Classic, is Patrick Walters, who is in 15th place with 491 points. So there are about the same number in and out, and two-thirds of the field still alive mathematically.
A remarkable storyline comes from Bob Downey, who still has a shot to make the Classic despite missing the Harris Chain event for the birth of his child. He’s 48th with 365 points, but he’ll have to do better than his 50th at Champlain and 43rd at St. Lawrence.
As the 2024 Elite Series draws to a close, the plethora of storylines should provide loads of drama. Stay tuned to Bassmaster.com for all the developments.
