James Hawkinson Claims Second Place and Jaramy Riddle wins AAA Division
SHASTA LAKE, Calif. – February 21, 2026 –– Consistency often rules in a bass fishing tournament. Typically, the angler who manages to keep their head about them and produce consistent limits when the rest of the field is losing their minds will prove to succeed. When the weather during an event proves to be bipolar and the fish in that body of water act like they need mood stabilizers, being consistent is no easy task.
The first day of the 2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open presented by Ranger Boats and Mercury proved to be nearly record breaking. First day leader Joe Orozco, from Oroville, Calif. tipped the scales at 28.58 pounds of spotted bass and there were several creels eclipsing 20 pounds. However, on day two, there was not one limit that reached the 20-pound mark, and the change from snowy, cold temperatures to warm air and bluebird skies was the reason.
Cloud cover and cooler temperatures returned for day three and the Lake Shasta bass population responded, yet the results for the field were largely all over the map. One angler proved to be the most consistent at this tournament, and that was Beaverton, Ore pro Brennan Osborn. He stood fifth after day one after producing 20.77 pounds, moved to third after day two with 18.36 pounds and produced his largest stringer of the event on the final day, 23.15 pounds to claim victory with 62.28 pounds.
His victory earned him the top prize of a 2026 Ranger Boats Z518 powered by a Mercury ProXS 150 prize boat provided by Bass Pro Shops and $3500 cash.
Chico, Calif. pro James (Quinn) Hawkinson held on to second place for the event, finishing with 58.12 pounds for the three-day competition. The leader on days one and two, Orozco fell to third place on the final day with a three-day total of 53.14 pounds. Nick Supalo from Oroville, Calif. finished fourth with 52 pounds and reigning WON Bass Angler of the Year Kyle Grover from Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. rounded out the top five with a total weight of 46.69 pounds.
Osborn, fishing his first event with WON Bass, said that he spent the vast majority of his tournament fishing 5 to 25-feet deep on flat points on the main lake in areas east of the I5 Bridge. He reported having one spot at the mouth of the Sacramento River that also produced a few fish. “I really had to move around a lot this week to find the fish biting,” he said. “I burned a lot of gas in my boat, but I couldn’t sit there and wait for them to fire, I had to leave them if they weren’t eating and go find active fish; timing them like that was key.”
He used his Forward Facing Sonar to target the right areas and he chose an 1/8-ounce Cipher Tungsten head matched with a Gizzard Shad colored Rapala Crush City Mooch Minnow. His setup for throwing the lure was an Edge Fishing 673 Pro Stroll rod and 2500 size Shimano spinning reel spooled with 8-pound-test braided line with an 8-pound-test Fluorocarbon leader.
Osborn has spent weeks dialing in the pattern on Shasta, and his hard work came to fruition; his event was not without anxiety however. “I felt nervous this morning, but I caught a couple of four pounders early and a 6-pounder soon after and that’s when I felt like I might have a chance,” he said. “This is unbelievable, I couldn’t have drawn it up any better.”
Hawkinson reported using the same pattern that had produced for him the first two days. Throwing a prototype soft plastic minnow on a jighead he pours himself, on a 7’ medium-light Daiwa Tatula Elite Cody Meyer Dropshot rod and Tatula MQ spinning reel spooled with 6-pound-test Fluorocarbon line. “I caught at least 45 fish today, but I made some decisions the first two days that didn’t allow me to win,” he said. “But it’s hard to feel bad about it because it’s my good friend and team partner that won the event; so I’m very happy for him.”
Hawkinson said he was targeting areas in the Squaw River and on the main lake near the Squaw. The key for him was finding baitfish that were active or causing them to become active. “I was catching them around Smelt and the bigger fish came when I located baby bluegill,” he reported. “If they weren’t active, I would throw at the bluegill and cause them to scatter and activate the bass, and that’s how I would get the bass to bite.”
Jaramy Riddle of Millville, Calif. was the winner of the AAA Division. Riddle teamed with his pro partners to bring a three-day total of 50.90 pounds, he earned $4,000 for his efforts. Second place in the AAA Division went to Carl Crutchfield from Stockton, Calif. with 49.49 pounds. Damon Motley of Orange, Calif. claimed third place with 48.05 pounds, he was followed in fourth place by Jake Etcheverry of Hughson, Calif. with 47.91 pounds and Tim Domingues of San Jose, Calif. placed fifth with 43.97 pounds.
The daily livestream of the weigh-ins aired at Facebook.com/WONBassTournaments. Daily weigh-ins occurred at Bridge Bay Resort in Lake Shasta City, Calif.
The Top 10 in each division are below, for complete standings go to: https://wonbassevents.com/pages/won-bass-shasta-open-pairings-results.
2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open Final Pro Standings
| Place | Angler | Hometown | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Total |
| 1 | Brennan Osborn | Beaverton OR | 20.77 | 18.36 | 23.15 | 62.28 |
| 2 | James Hawkinson | Chico CA | 25.19 | 15.05 | 17.88 | 58.12 |
| 3 | Joe Orozco | Orville CA | 28.58 | 11.72 | 12.84 | 53.14 |
| 4 | Nick Supalo | Oroville CA | 16.21 | 16.53 | 19.26 | 52.00 |
| 5 | Kyle Grover | Rancho Santa Margarita CA | 25.25 | 11.88 | 9.56 | 46.69 |
| 6 | Troy Fernandes | Santa Maria CA | 14.37 | 13.67 | 18.05 | 46.09 |
| 7 | Nick Wood | Yreka CA | 22.42 | 12.47 | 10.61 | 45.50 |
| 8 | Tai Au | Glendale AZ | 11.00 | 12.47 | 21.66 | 45.13 |
| 9 | J D Blackamore | Yorba Linda CA | 13.53 | 13.12 | 17.13 | 43.78 |
| 10 | Alex Niapas | Altaville CA | 18.20 | 15.37 | 10.15 | 43.72 |
2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open Final AAA Standings
| Place | Angler | Hometown | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Total |
| 1 | Jaramy Riddle | Millville CA | 18.20 | 11.04 | 21.66 | 50.90 |
| 2 | Carl Crutchfield | Stockton CA | 28.58 | 9.82 | 11.09 | 49.49 |
| 3 | Damon Motley | Orange CA | 25.19 | 9.79 | 13.07 | 48.05 |
| 4 | Jake Etcheverry | Hughson CA | 8.23 | 16.53 | 23.15 | 47.91 |
| 5 | Tim Domingues | San Jose CA | 12.83 | 11.88 | 19.26 | 43.97 |
| 6 | Eli Guryanov | West Sacramento CA | 25.25 | 8.28 | 9.77 | 43.30 |
| 7 | Cheng Xiong | Oroville CA | 22.42 | 9.11 | 10.42 | 41.95 |
| 8 | Troy Mays | Ione CA | 20.77 | 12.47 | 7.48 | 40.72 |
| 9 | Phil Purser | Yreka CA | 16.44 | 15.09 | 7.99 | 39.52 |
| 10 | Todd Tobiasson | Las Vegas NV | 13.53 | 9.65 | 15.67 | 38.85 |
The 2026 WON Bass Western Opens Series of events Consisting of five events in California, Arizona and Nevada, will culminate with the 2024 WON Bass U.S. Open at Lake Mohave 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
May 7 to 9, 2026 – Lake Havasu
Oct. 5 to 7, 2026 – U.S. Open at Lake Mohave
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 Lake Shasta Open was 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 sponsors were Visit Redding, Phil’s Propellers, Bridge Bay Marina and the US Forestry Service
(DAY 2) Hawkinson Moves to Second Place
BY DAN O’SULLIVAN
SHASTA LAKE – What any angler wants to have happen after a massive first day of a bass tournament is to back it up with a good day two. When Oroville, Calif. pro Joe Orozco took the day one lead of the 2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open presented by Ranger Boats and Mercury with 28.59 pounds of spotted bass, the appearance was that there would be records shattered.
While snowstorms and cold temperatures had been the norm throughout practice and the first morning of the event, the afternoon of the first day brought warm temperatures and clear skies. The result of the change with the dreaded post-front conditions brought less than ideal fishing on the second day of the event.
Predictably, the weights fell off dramatically with the bluebird conditions. Orozco, who produced a massive 28.59-pound limit on the first day, only managed to bring 11.72 pounds to the scales today. Despite that slip, he was able to maintain the day two lead of the event with a total weight of 40.30 pounds.
One angler who managed to maintain some Despite seeing a 10-pound reduction from his day one weight, James Hawkinson from Chico, Calif. brought 15.05 pounds to the scales and moved up to third place with a total weight of 40.24 pounds.
Brennan Osborn from Beaverton, Ore. was one of the few who was able to maintain some consistency in his performance and added 18.36 pounds to his day one total to move from fifth place to third on day two with a total of 39.13 pounds. Rancho Santa Margarita pro Kyle Grover also fell off, adding 11.88 pounds to land in fourth place with 37.13 pounds. Fifth place in the pro-division went to Nick Wood of Yreka, Calif. who ended the day with a total weight of 34.89 pounds.
Orozco reported that the less than ideal conditions and traffic affected his area. “I was able to get on what I wanted to early, but the bite was slower than yesterday because of the conditions,” he said. “I also had a significant increase in traffic in my area and I think that had an effect too.”
The Oroville, Calif. pro reported using the same Bass Union jighead and soft plastic minnow as he did to produce his day one Mega Bag but struggled all day. “I got a lot fewer bites overall, and of those, many of them were just nipping at the tail of the bait,” he said. “I know that they weren’t feeling as comfortable today and it showed.
“We’re supposed to get some clouds and pre-frontal conditions tomorrow, and I hope that will improve the bite,” he said. “I’ve got a long day, I’ll be the first boat out and will go there and give it everything I’ve got and whatever happens is what happens, I’m ready to go.”
For his part, Hawkinson also found the conditions to affect his results. “I went to the spot I caught all 25 pounds on yesterday and they had no response to my minnow,” he said. “So, I did what I try to do here when things get tough, I run around and fish for ‘dumb ones,’ those that are just ready to bite.”
Throwing a soft plastic minnow on a jighead he pours himself, Hawkinson relied on covering water looking for a fish that would bite. “I had to scale down today and turn to 6-pound-test line on a 7’ medium-light Daiwa Tatula Elite Cody Meyer Dropshot rod and Tatula MQ spinning reel to get any bites today,” he said. “I’m just trying to cover as much water as I can and put it in front of as many fish as possible and execute.”
AAA angler Carl Chrutchfield, from Stockton, Calif. maintained his leadership position from day one with a total weight of 38.40 pounds. Second place in the AAA division went to Damon Motley of Orange, Calif. with a two-day total of 34.98 pounds. Eli Guryanov of West Sacramento, Calif. placed third in the AAA division with 33.53 pounds. He was followed by a tie for 4th place with Cheng Xiong of Oroville, Calif. and Phil Purser of Yreka, Calif. with 31.53 pounds.
The winner of the 2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open presented by Ranger Boats and Mercury will receive the 2026 Ranger Boats Z518 powered by a Mercury ProXS 150 prize boat provided by Bass Pro Shops.
The daily livestream of the weigh-ins airs on at Facebook.com/WONBassTournaments. Daily weigh-ins from Bridge Bay Resort in Lake Shasta City, Calif. 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/won-bass-shasta-open-pairings-results.
2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open Day Two Pro Standings
| Place | Angler | Hometown | Fish | B/B | Day 1 | Day 2 | Total |
| 1 | Joe Orozco | Orville CA | 10-10 | 6.55 | 28.58 | 11.72 | 40.30 |
| 2 | James Hawkinson | Chico CA | 10-10 | 6.15 | 25.19 | 15.05 | 40.24 |
| 3 | Brennan Osborn | Beaverton OR | 10-10 | 5.64 | 20.77 | 18.36 | 39.13 |
| 4 | Kyle Grover | Rancho Santa Margarita CA | 10-10 | 6.36 | 25.25 | 11.88 | 37.13 |
| 5 | Nick Wood | Yreka CA | 10-10 | 5.62 | 22.42 | 12.47 | 34.89 |
| 6 | Alex Niapas | Altaville CA | 10-10 | 18.20 | 15.37 | 33.57 | |
| 7 | Nick Supalo | Oroville CA | 10-10 | 6.06 | 16.21 | 16.53 | 32.74 |
| 8 | Joe Uribe, Jr. | Surprise AZ | 10-10 | 6.20 | 12.08 | 16.34 | 28.42 |
| 9 | Ryan Friend | Oroville CA | 10-10 | 16.44 | 11.88 | 28.32 | |
| 10 | Joey Walton | Lewiston ID | 10-10 | 4.43 | 11.53 | 16.53 | 28.06 |
2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open Day Two AAA Standings
| Place | Angler | Hometown | Fish | B/B | Day 1 | Day 2 | Total |
| 1 | Carl Crutchfield | Stockton CA | 10-10 | 28.58 | 9.82 | 38.40 | |
| 2 | Damon Motley | Orange CA | 10-10 | 4.40 | 25.19 | 9.79 | 34.98 |
| 3 | Eli Guryanov | West Sacramento CA | 10-10 | 4.08 | 25.25 | 8.28 | 33.53 |
| 4 | Troy Mays | Ione CA | 10-10 | 20.77 | 12.47 | 33.24 | |
| 5 | Phil Purser | Yreka CA | 10-10 | 16.44 | 15.09 | 31.53 | |
| 5 | Cheng Xiong | Oroville CA | 10-10 | 5.90 | 22.42 | 9.11 | 31.53 |
| 7 | Chris Crawford | Sacramento CA | 10-10 | 3.42 | 11.00 | 18.36 | 29.36 |
| 8 | Jaramy Riddle | Millville CA | 10-10 | 4.65 | 18.20 | 11.04 | 29.24 |
| 9 | Frank Harris | Sacramento CA | 10-10 | 6.40 | 13.22 | 14.23 | 27.45 |
| 10 | Dink Mendez | Campbell CA | 10-10 | 7.30 | 11.55 | 15.37 | 26.92 |
(DAY 1) WON BASS LAKE SHASTA OPEN: Orozco Smashes 28.58 Pounds to Lead Day 1, Grover in Second Place with 25.25 pounds
SHASTA LAKE – One thing that is a common understanding of the bass population of Lake Shasta is that they will typically bite. Sometimes what seems as what might be to worst conditions to target bass can produce excellent results on Lake Shasta. The Lake Shasta spotted bass population seem to be hungry and aggressive at times many wouldn’t think possible.
One of those times that seem to generate positive responses is during a snowstorm, and throughout the practice period and the first morning of the event, cold temperatures and snow were the featured conditions of the day. The first day takeoff brought cold temperatures and as much as six inches of snow that broke to sunny skies, light winds and temperatures in the mid 60’s.
However, the cold temperatures and snow flurries at takeoff did little to temper the fishing. All one has to do is look at the leaderboard and realize that the weights atop are dominated by spotted bass for proof of the torrid fishing. Oroville, Calif. pro Joe Orozco and his day one AAA partner Carl Crutchfield of Stockton, Calif. brought a monster, 28.58 pounds of spotted bass to the scales at Bridge Bay to take the day one lead. Their limit also included a 6.55-pound spotted bass that was the big bass of the first day of the event.
Reigning WON Bass Angler of the Year Kyle Grover of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. and his AAA partner Eli Guryanov of West Sacramento, Calif. landed in second place after day one with a 25.25-pound limit of spotted bass.
Orozco said that he made a long run through the snow flurries to get to his area and targeted big fish he could see on his Garmin Livescope Plus. “I had to rely on my Garmin units to get where I was going in the snow, and they helped me see the fish I wanted to target,” he said. “I only caught nine keepers today but was able to go after the ones I needed, and I caught the last good one at around two o’clock.”
Orozco said that he caught fish throughout the water column and on the bottom with a minnow style bait rigged on his 1/8-ounce Bass Union Ball Head jighead with a 1/0 hook. “Every fish I caught came on that head I designed and make, so that was rewarding.” He said. “I’m drawing a lot of motivation from my wife Lizette who is pregnant at home with our first baby, so I’m pretty pumped up to get out there. Hopefully I’ll be able to get on my stuff tomorrow and keep it going.”
Grover said that he was very surprised to be in second place at day’s end. “I had 22 pounds at eleven o’clock, so I left my area to check on another spot and caught a six pounder there,” he said. “I thought for sure I’d be leading, but I’m still in a really good position.”
Grover reported fishing on the bottom for his bites in only two small areas that have schools of big spotted bass. “They’re on opposite ends of the lake, and I’m going to fish them both tomorrow a couple of times to gee what I can do,” he said. “I feel pretty good about it, hopefully they will be close to where they were today, and I’ll be able to get on them.”
The rest of the top five included Chico, Calif. pro James Hawkinson and his AAA Damon Motley of Orange, Calif. with 25.19 pounds to land in third place. Previous Lake Shasta Open winner Nick Wood of Yreka, Calif. and his AAA partner Cheng Xiong of Oroville, Calif. stood in fourth place with 22.49 pounds and pro Brennan Osborn of Beaverton, Ore. and AAA Troy Mays of Ione, Calif. rounded out the top five with 20.77 pounds.
The winner of the 2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open presented by Ranger Boats and Mercury will receive the 2026 Ranger Boats Z518 powered by a Mercury ProXS 150 prize boat provided by Bass Pro Shops.
The daily livestream of the weigh-ins airs on at Facebook.com/WONBassTournaments. Daily weigh-ins from Bridge Bay Resort in Lake Shasta City, Calif. 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/won-bass-shasta-open-pairings-results.
2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open Day One Pro Standings
| Place | Angler | Hometown | Fish | Wght | B/B | Day 1 |
| 1 | Joe Orozco | Oroville CA | 5-5 | 28.58 | 6.55 | 28.58 |
| 2 | Kyle Grover | Rancho Santa Margarita CA | 5-5 | 25.25 | 6.36 | 25.25 |
| 3 | James Hawkinson | Chico CA | 5-5 | 25.19 | 6.15 | 25.19 |
| 4 | Nick Wood | Yreka CA | 5-5 | 22.42 | 5.62 | 22.42 |
| 5 | Brennan Osborn | Beaverton OR | 5-5 | 20.77 | 5.33 | 20.77 |
| 6 | Alex Niapas | Altaville CA | 5-5 | 18.20 | 18.20 | |
| 7 | Ryan Friend | Oroville CA | 5-5 | 16.44 | 16.44 | |
| 8 | Nick Supalo | Oroville CA | 5-5 | 16.21 | 6.06 | 16.21 |
| 9 | Ty Manterola | Pacso WA | 5-5 | 14.87 | 14.87 | |
| 10 | Troy Fernandes | Santa Maria CA | 5-5 | 14.37 | 14.37 |
2026 WON Bass Lake Shasta Open Day One AAA Standings
| AAA | Angler | Hometown | Fish | Wght | B/B | Day 1 |
| 1 | Carl Crutchfield | Stockton CA | 5-5 | 28.58 | 28.58 | |
| 2 | Eli Guryanov | West Sacramento CA | 5-5 | 25.25 | 4.08 | 25.25 |
| 3 | Damon Motley | Orange CA | 5-5 | 25.19 | 25.19 | |
| 4 | Cheng Xiong | Oroville CA | 5-5 | 22.42 | 5.90 | 22.42 |
| 5 | Troy Mays | Ione CA | 5-5 | 20.77 | 20.77 | |
| 6 | Jaramy Riddle | Millville CA | 5-5 | 18.20 | 4.65 | 18.20 |
| 7 | Phil Purser | Yreka CA | 5-5 | 16.44 | 16.44 | |
| 8 | Ryan Gutierrez | Weiser ID | 5-5 | 16.21 | 16.21 | |
| 9 | Brian Mork | Pleasanton CA | 5-5 | 14.87 | 14.87 | |
| 10 | Stefan Grobecker | Daily City CA | 5-5 | 14.37 | 14.37 |
The 2026 WON Bass Western Opens Series of events Consisting of five events in California, Arizona and Nevada, will culminate with the 2024 WON Bass U.S. Open at Lake Mohave 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
April 16 to 18, 2026 – Clear Lake
May 7 to 9, 2026 – Lake Havasu
Oct. 5 to 7, 2026 – U.S. Open at Lake Mohave
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 Lake Shasta 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 sponsors are Visit Redding, Phil’s Propellers, Bridge Bay Marina and the US Forestry Service
