BY DAN O’SULLIVAN
LAS VEGAS – Dylan Denny of Dewey, Ariz. came to the WON BASS Lake Mead Open stage on the final day and placed his bag on the scales needing a little over eight pounds to take over the lead. When WON BASS Tournament Director Billy Egan called the weight at 10.40 pounds, Denny had won the Lake Mead Open with a two-day total weight of 28.03 pounds. He also claimed the Ranger Boats Z518 / Mercury ProXS 150 prize boat provided by Bass Pro Shops, and he also received a cash purse of $10,000 and a $1,200 Stringer Prize to bring his total earnings to well over $60,000. Here’s how it played out for the top finishers over the course of the tournament.
Denny Takes Day 1 lead, Uribe Jr. lands in second in the opening round
When scheduling a bass tournament in the desert outside Las Vegas, there are times that the weather at Lake Mead might rise to wreak havoc. That scenario occurred Day 1 of the 2025 Ranger Boats WON Bass Lake Mead Open presented by Mercury when severe weather forced the cancellation of the first day of competition.
When that happens, the event becomes more of a sprint than a distance event and the pro angler who got out of the blocks the fastest was Dewey, Ariz. Pro Dylan Denny who partnered with AAA Chris Tanner from Phoenix, Ariz. to post 17.63 pounds to take the Day 1 lead.
Joe Uribe Jr. from Surprise, Ariz. brought 16.41 pounds to the scales with the help of his AAA partner Todd Tobiasson of Las Vegas, Nev. Uribe’s limit was bolstered by an 8.01-pound Las Vegas giant that was big bass of the day.
Denny reported catching his fish on several different techniques but reported spending his time upstream. “I spent my time back in the river and I junk fished all day fishing shallow and deep,” he said. “My partner Chris [Tanner] and I gelled really well today and both of us caught a big fish. I’m looking forward to tomorrow and hop to be able to duplicate it.”
Uribe had the best day he’s had on Lake Mead highlighted by the 8 pounder. The big fish came while he was fishing a Power Shot Rig shallow on a 6-inch Roboworm Worm (Fuego color) on a Performance Tackle Power Shot Rod and Daiwa Tatula reel. “That big fish is the biggest fish I’ve ever caught at Lake Mead, and it really helped us. I was concerned about it when I hooked it, but my 8-pound Sunline FC Sniper Fluorocarbon held,” he said. “I’m gonna start all over again tomorrow, but I feel like I have to have another 16 pounds to win; I’ll just get going and see how it turns out.”
Third place on Day 1 went to Canyon Lake, Calif. Pro Kevin Hugo and his AAA partner Frank Schwamborn of Pomona, Calif. with 15.22 pounds. 13.19 pounds put Desert Hills, Ariz pro Ian Boehm and AAA partner Ivan Peterson of Boulder Cit, Nev. in fourth place, and rounding out the top five was Boulder City, Nev. Pro Noah Sanford and his AAA partner Kevin Duncan of Las Vegas, Nev. With 13.03 pounds.
Denny brings it home on Pro side, Tobiasson wins AAA Division
When Day 2 took flight, Denny held a lead over western stalwart pro Joe Uribe Jr. Denny opened with a strong 17.63-pound day anchored by big fish from both he and his day one AAA partner Chris Tanner. Those two fish accounted for nearly 10 pounds of the limit.
Uribe started the event with 16.41 pounds, a great limit for Lake Mead just about any time there is a tournament there. However, half of the weight came in the form of the largest bass he had ever caught at Lake Mead, that 8.05-pound behemoth that few have ever seen anything of that stature come out of those waters.
Waiting in the wings in third place was Kevin Hugo, who was the only other pro to post a limit eclipsing 15 pounds. That put him in third place after the opening round. In bass fishing tournaments, a kicker fish can go a long way, but having consistent quality is often what makes the difference.
Uribe weighed in midway through the final weigh-in and posted 9.32 pounds to take the Ranger Hot Seat and would stay there until the last two anglers came to the scales. The Surprise, Ariz. pro’s total weight of 25.73 pounds was eclipsed when Hugo, from Canyon Lake, Calif. weighed 10.75 pounds to take the lead with 25.73 pounds with only the day one leader left to weigh.
The Arizona pro explained that he fished “up the river” for the event, and that it took being flexible with his presentations to catch his fish. “I really had to just feel what the fish were doing and throw different things to catch them,” he said. “I really feel like the way my two AAA partners and I fished together each day was the real key, we gelled and made a team each day, and that was key.”
He reported catching key fish on Lucky Craft LV 500 lipless crankbaits, a 6th Sense Lures Curve 55 crankbaits ripped through the grass. He also switched up to a 1/2-ounce Evergreen Jackhammer in B Hite Special with a matching trailer. When things got tougher on day two, he also mixed in a Carolina rig but did not mention his lure.
He said he did not expect to win but was elated. “I really did not think I could pull this off,” he said. “I really had a good first day and that was obviously the reason I won, but I am so absolutely blown away to have won this event, it’s just amazing.”
The rest of the top five pros stacked up like this; Uribe finished third, fourth place went to Wes Nunley of Washington, Utah. with 24.72 pounds, and Noah Sanford from Boulder City, Nev. placed fifth with 23.60 pounds.
Hugo reported fishing in the Vegas Wash because he had caught a couple of frog fish in there on the final day of practice after spending three days practicing Temple Bar. He reported that the dirty water seemed to make the bite a little better. Once the tournament began, the fishing pressure made him turn to finesse tactics and deeper water; the key was fishing the first sharp drops coming out of coves.
He caught his big fish each day on Wacky Rigged 5-inch Green Pumpkin Purple Copper Yamamoto Senkos on size 2 Gamakatsu G-Finesse Stinger hooks fished on 702 iRod Genesis 3 spinning Rod with Shimano Sustain spooled with 10-pound-test Seaguar Smackdown Stealth Gray braid with a leader consisting of Seaguar 10-pound-test Seaguar Invizx.
The majority of his fish came on a 3/8-ounce football head rigged with a Yamamoto Hula Grub in Green Pumpkin Red on an iRod 704 Genesis 3 Heavy action with 12-pound-test Seaguar Invizx. He caught a key keeper on day one on a DT10 Rapala Crank and another on a Yamamoto Ned Rig on Day 2.
While he wanted more, Hugo was pleased with the outcome. “I’m happy with the finish, I fished clean and did what I wanted,” he said. “I would have loved to have won, but Dylan had a great event, congratulations to him.”
The AAA Championship went to Las Vegas, Nevada’s Todd Tobiasson who moved up from second place to claim victory with a total weight of 27.90 pounds. He earned $4,000 for his efforts.
The AAA Division wrapped up like this. Second place went to day one leader Chris Tanner from Phoenix, Ariz. with 24.78 pounds. Third place went to Chris Gauthier of Henderson, Nev. with 23.61 pounds. He was followed in fourth place by Hubaldo Valerio Jr. of Fruita, Col. with 23.29 pounds and David Zamora of Blythe, Calif. finished fifth with 23.17 pounds.
Each of the pros and AAA anglers who finish in the top five will also earn a Golden Ticket berth into the 2026 Bassmaster B.A.S.S. Nation Championship for a chance to qualify for the Bassmaster Classic
The top 10 in each division are posted below: for complete standings, visit – https://wonbassevents.com/pages/lake-mead-open-pairings-and-results.
