Cody Steckel moves to Second Place on Second Day
Lake Havasu City, Ariz. – May 8, 2026 –– Seldom do things turn out exactly as one hopes during a bass tournament. When an angler plans around a pattern, they will often have to make adjustments for the conditions or the migration of the bass. When the second day of the WON Bass Lake Havasu Open began every angler in competition for the win had a plan.
Whether they were able to make that plan work or not was another story. For Los Angeles, Calif. pro Anthony Garcia, his plan and keeping an open mind for opportunity catapulted him from 11th place after the opening round of competition to the lead with a 22.16-pound limit. When paired with his 16.71 performance on day one, gave him a total weight of 38.87 and a nearly five-and-a-half-pound lead over second place pro Cody Steckel of Las Vegas, Nev.
Garcia’s limit was bolstered by an 8.57-pound largemouth, the big bass of the tournament thus far. In taking the lead with this margin, Garcia has nearly planted himself in the driver’s seat of the 2026 Ranger Boats Z518 powered by a Mercury ProXS 150 prize boat provided by Bass Pro Shops.
While the lead is significant, it is not insurmountable, and Garcia is followed in the standings by anglers who have proven to be consistent. Steckel, who has competed across the country, began the day in third place with 18.52 pounds, added 14.90 to move into the runner-up position with 33.42 pounds. He swapped positions with Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. pro Kyle Grover, a three-time WON Bass Angler of the Year who added 14.50 pounds to his day one weight of 18.62 pounds and a total weight of 33.12 pounds, good enough to start the final day in third place.
Garrett Howard of Riverside, Calif. ended the day in fourth place with 33.08 pounds and day-one leader Jason Marquez slipped to fifth place with 32.99 pounds.
Garcia said that he is fishing from the midlake area and above, and he has a couple of patterns that he is employing. He reported having a “very specific” dropshot patter he declined to provide details about other than to say he is fishing in 25 to 30 feet of water, and that he is sightfishing later in the day. “I had 16 to 17 pounds about midday and then went looking for bedfish,” he reported. “I went into a pocket up north and found a big fish on bed and threw at her and caught my biggest one; I was able to cull up one more time later on another bedfish.”
He said that he feels confident in what tomorrow brings. “I feel like I can easily catch 15 pounds early,” he said. “If I do that, they’ll really have to catch good to beat me; I’m very excited to get out there tomorrow and see what I can do.”
Steckel revealed that is employing much the same tactics but is using the opposite end of the lake. “I have started midlake to get my early limit, then after I get my weight at about 10:00AM, I’m running south to look for bedded fish,” he said. “It worked out decently today except that I didn’t get any of the bigger bedfish to eat the whole bait. I’ve got a few really good ones that are locked on and if I can get a couple of those to go, I feel like I have a real shot; but I also feel like I’ll need 20 pounds tomorrow to overcome Anthony’s lead and I feel like it’s possible.”
Damon Motley of Orange, Calif. took over the lead of the AAA Division with a two-day total of 35.47 pounds. He is followed in second place by Waddell, Ariz. AAA James Gammelgaard with 33.84 pounds. Third place went to Mike Gabrielson of Bullhead City, Ariz. with 33.49 pounds while Brent Decker of Chandler, Ariz. placed fourth with 31.84 pounds and CJ Allen of Chandler, Ariz. rounded out the top five in the AAA Division with 31.53 pounds.
The daily livestream of the weigh-ins aired at Facebook.com/WONBassTournaments. Daily weigh-ins from Havasu Riviera Marina in Lake Havasu City, Ariz. begin after the first flight checks in at 3:00 PM Pacific Time.
The Top 10 in each division are below, for complete standings go to: https://wonbassevents.com/pages/lake-havasu-open-pairings-results
2026 WON Bass Lake Havasu Open Day Two Pro Standings
| Place | Angler | Hometown | Fish | B/B | Day 1 | Day 2 | Total |
| 1 | Anthony Garcia | Los Angeles CA | 10-10 | 8.57 | 16.71 | 22.16 | 38.87 |
| 2 | Cody Steckel | Las Vegas NV | 10-10 | 6.50 | 18.52 | 14.90 | 33.42 |
| 3 | Kyle Grover | Rancho Santa Margarita CA | 10-10 | 18.62 | 14.50 | 33.12 | |
| 4 | Garrett Howard | Riverside CA | 10-10 | 4.99 | 18.07 | 15.01 | 33.08 |
| 5 | Jason Marquez | Lake Havasu City AZ | 10-10 | 4.98 | 18.56 | 14.43 | 32.99 |
| 6 | Hunter Konecny | Tempe AZ | 10-10 | 5.35 | 12.33 | 19.53 | 31.86 |
| 7 | Garrett Ellenson | Nine Mile Falls WA | 10-10 | 16.59 | 15.10 | 31.69 | |
| 8 | Logan Maltese | Lake Havasu City AZ | 10-10 | 5.41 | 18.94 | 12.67 | 31.61 |
| 9 | Brian Tressen | Corona CA | 10-10 | 15.82 | 15.21 | 31.03 | |
| 10 | Daniel McCoy | Lake Havasu City AZ | 10-10 | 5.19 | 13.93 | 16.97 | 30.90 |
2026 WON Bass Lake Havasu Open Day Two AAA Standings
| Place | Angler | Hometown | Fish | B/B | Day 1 | Day 2 | Total |
| 1 | Damon Motley | Orange CA | 10-10 | 13.31 | 22.16 | 35.47 | |
| 2 | James Gammelgaard | Waddell AZ | 10-10 | 16.87 | 16.97 | 33.84 | |
| 3 | Mike Gabrielson | Bullhead City AZ | 10-10 | 13.96 | 19.53 | 33.49 | |
| 4 | Brent Decker | Chandler AZ | 10-10 | 4.66 | 15.20 | 16.64 | 31.84 |
| 5 | CJ Allen | Flagstaff AZ | 10-10 | 16.43 | 15.10 | 31.53 | |
| 6 | Dean Simpson III | Sun City AZ | 10-10 | 4.71 | 18.56 | 12.92 | 31.48 |
| 7 | Chad Roberts | Yuma AZ | 10-10 | 3.73 | 16.71 | 13.88 | 30.59 |
| 8 | Dennis Saiki | Torrance CA | 10-10 | 18.94 | 11.36 | 30.30 | |
| 9 | Dave Phillips | Nampa ID | 10-10 | 14.89 | 15.15 | 30.04 | |
| 10 | Bryan Kurata | Thousand Oaks CA | 10-10 | 15.22 | 14.70 | 29.92 |
The 2026 WON Bass Western Opens Series of events Consisting of five events in California, Arizona and Nevada, will culminate with the 2026 WON Bass U.S. Open at Lake Mead in October. The five event dates are as follows:
Jan. 8 to 10, 2026 – Clear Lake – Champion Garrett Ellenson – 98.37 pounds
Feb. 19 to 21, 2026 – Lake Shasta – Champion Brennan Osborn – 62.28 pounds
April 16 to 18, 2026 – Clear Lake – Champion – Garrett Ellenson – 95.87 pounds
May 7 to 9, 2026 – Lake Havasu
Oct. 9 to 11, 2026 – U.S. Open at Lake Mead
For complete details or to register, look to wonbassevents.com and WONews.com to hear the latest news about the 2026 season and beyond and follow along at Facebook.com/WONBassTournaments.
The 2026 WON Bass Clear Lake Open is brought to you by Bass Pro Shops, Ranger Boats, Mercury Marine, Bridgford Foods, AFTCO, Power Pole, Costa, Berkley, Gamakatsu, Okuma, Lowrance, Stealth Lithium Batteries, Daiwa, G-Ratt Baits, Reese Fishing, Signature Gates, Abu Garcia, DD26 and Fenwick
Local presenting sponsor is Anderson Toyota