A bass fishing pro from Kuttawa, Kentucky, is $1.25 million richer after winning the inaugural The Champions tournament on Old Hickory Lake in Tennessee, the largest first-place prize in the sport’s history.
Matt Robertson, who competes on the Bassmaster Elite Series, brought in 20 pounds, 2 ounces of bass on Championship Saturday to secure the win. At the post-victory news conference, he made clear the money wouldn’t change his lifestyle.
“We ain’t moving out the trailer, baby. Trailer trash for life!” Robertson said.
Even with the win, Robertson admitted the moment hadn’t fully sunk in. “Dude, it’s freaking insane. I don’t think it’s really hit me yet,” he said.
Robertson led the field from the start, posting strong bags over the first two days before the weigh-in reset for Saturday’s finale. Pake South finished second with 13 pounds, 7 ounces, earning $500,000, and Wesley Strader took third for $300,000. The tournament drew top names from the Bassmaster Elite Series and Major League Fishing’s Bass Pro Tour, plus two amateur qualifiers, competing for a total purse of $3.25 million.
Plans for the Winnings
Robertson said his wife will get a new vehicle, and he’s already lined up a couple of trailer purchases near his home — one priced around $60,000 and another around $80,000. “I’m for sure buying a couple more trailers,” he said. “They’re bought, and my wife, she gets her new ride.” After the win, he added, “I hate to tell anybody, but them things are sold.”
Robertson spoke openly about a difficult upbringing that shaped his approach to competing for such a large sum. “I didn’t grow up with much,” he said. “I worked so much paycheck to paycheck … I went through real struggles in life.”
He said the trophy mattered as much to him as the prize money. “I want that damn trophy. It’s what I want,” he said. “Everybody talking about the 1.25. Like, I want the money too, but I want to get my hands on that trophy.”
A Winning Strategy — and a New Friendship
Robertson’s win came from an unconventional choice: instead of fishing the main lake, he passed through the navigation lock at Old Hickory Dam to target smallmouth bass in the tailwater below it, a spot he found during practice. “If I hadn’t found that spot, I wouldn’t have won this thing,” he said.
He caught the tournament’s only 20-pound bag on Thursday and followed with another strong day Friday to lead into the final round.
The spot wasn’t his alone. MLF pro Ron Nelson had found the same productive water, and the two fished nearby for much of the event. Nelson avoided casting where Robertson was catching fish, even with the prize money on the line.
“Never knew Ron before this week. Got to know him real well, and dude, there is not another person in the world with as much integrity as him,” Robertson said.
Tournament rules barred competitors from discussing their catches, so Robertson didn’t realize Nelson was struggling to fill his limit until afterward. “If I’d knew Ron only had two … I wouldn’t even have pulled up down there,” Robertson said. “I feel awful about it.” He said he’d hoped the two could both land big paydays: “I was wanting us to win $1.75 million from down there.”
Nelson, who finished sixth and won $75,000, said shifting currents made it hard to relocate the school of smallmouth he’d found. “Matt’s a heck of a dude,” Nelson said. “I don’t know him, but I got a new friend now, I guess.” He added that Robertson likely would have given him more room had he known how close things were: “If he knows I’d needed a couple bites, he’d have probably slid over.”
Faith and the Final Catch
Robertson also credited his faith for the win. Early in the tournament, he learned the navigation lock was undergoing maintenance, threatening his access to the spot. He said he prayed it would reopen — and found the lockmaster had already called him twice to let him know it was open and operators were waiting. “From that moment, I was stressing before that,” he said. “And after that, I just … gave it all to Him and let it go.”
Robertson caught his winning fish on a small swimbait fished on a jighead. The event also featured a team competition, won by Bassmaster’s Team Stars over MLF’s Team Stripes.
Robertson praised tournament organizers, including World Bass Enterprises CEO Brian Bird, for the event’s execution. “This is the Super Bowl of bass fishing. I don’t care what anybody says,” he said.
Despite the record payday, Robertson said his life won’t look much different. His wife gets a new vehicle, two more trailers are already spoken for — but he’s staying put in his own.
