PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. (Aug. 18, 2026) – The third and final regular-season event of the 2026 Major League Fishing (MLF) Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Northern Division is set to take place, next week, Aug. 27-29, in Plattsburgh, New York – the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats at Lake Champlain.

The three-day tournament, hosted by the City of Plattsburgh and the Adirondack Coast Visitors Bureau, will feature a roster of the region’s best bass-fishing pros and co-anglers competing for a top prize of up to $100,000 in the pro division and a new Phoenix 518 Pro boat with a 115-horsepower outboard plus $5,000 in the co-angler division.

The end of August should be good fishing, but local pro Ryan Latinville of Plattsburgh, New York, suspects that it won’t be the same as it was earlier in the year, in part due to tournament pressure.

“I think the largemouth will be petering out after the [Elite Series] event; they’re going to target all the shallow grass and any obvious structure. So, I’m a little concerned about that affecting the largemouth,” said Latinville.

One thing that Latinville is sure will be playing well come the end of the month is the smallmouth, both with and without forward-facing sonar.

“Smallmouth will always play; I fished rock recently and saw big ones on rock,” said the New York angler. “The funky part is if you’re ‘Scoping in between the rock, there’s fish out there floating. In the Toyota, if I fish rock, it’s a decision: should I turn my ‘Scope on, or should I just fish the rock? Or, do you want to save ‘Scope for when you’re catching true roamers?”

Regardless of the actual plan for smallmouth, dealing with the three-hour window of forward-facing sonar use should make things interesting. The Pro Circuit event proved that a good combo pattern goes a long way, but there were also plenty of anglers who did well with very little LiveScope involvement or who stayed fishing for smallmouth successfully after their forward-facing sonar period was over.

The tackle choices for Champlain aren’t over the top, as a lot of baits work well there. The main key will be bringing a good mix of largemouth and smallmouth options.

“I’ll have a drop-shot for sure, I’ll have a Beast Coast Seduce. The hair jig stuff will be done; I don’t think I’ll have that rigged up,” said Latinville. “For largemouth, I’ll have a jig for sure. Two different jigs – a heavy one and a small one, for if I’m in deeper grass or shallower.”

Pro Cal Lane won the Pro Circuit event this year with 65-7, and Matt Becker finished right behind him with 63-6. Both pros fished nearly perfect events, and Latinville suspects it won’t take quite that much to win this one.

“With three hours of ‘Scope in the end of August, it could take upwards of 21 a day,” he mused. “That would be 63. I think 61-12 will win – that’s my guess.”

Anglers will take off each day at 6 a.m. ET, launching from the Plattsburgh City Marina, located at 5 Dock St. in Plattsburgh. Weigh-ins will also take place at the marina, starting at 2 p.m. daily. Fans are invited to attend in person and can also stay connected by following the “MLF Live” weigh-in broadcasts and daily updates on MajorLeagueFishing.com.

In Toyota Series regular-season competition, payouts are based on the number of participants competing in the event, scaling up for every 20 boats over 160 and down for every boat below 160. With a 160-boat field, pros fish for a top prize of up to $75,000, if Phoenix MLF Bonus qualified. Co-anglers cast for the top prize of a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard (valued at $33,500). With a 260-boat field, pros fish for a top award of up to $100,000, if Phoenix MLF Bonus qualified. Co-anglers cast for the top prize of a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard, plus $5,000 cash.

The 2026 Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats consists of five divisions – Central, Northern, Plains, Southern and Southwestern – each holding three regular-season events, along with the International and Wild Card divisions. Anglers who fish in any of the five divisions or the Wild Card division and finish in the top 25 in their division’s Angler of the Year standings will qualify for the no-entry-fee Toyota Series Championship for a shot at winning up to $235,000 and qualification to REDCREST 2027. The winning co-angler at the championship earns a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower outboard. The 2026 Toyota Series Championship will be held Nov. 5-7 on Pickwick Lake in Counce, Tennessee, and is hosted by Explore Pickwick Lake & Hardin County Tourism.

Proud sponsors of the 2026 MLF Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats include: 7 Brew, Abu Garcia, Athletic Brewing, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, Black Buffalo, BUBBA, Cigars International, Epic Baits, Grizzly, Mercury, MillerTech, OFF! Deep Woods, Onyx, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, PirahnO2, Power-Pole, Precision Sonar, Suzuki Marine, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, VOSKER, YETI and Yuengling.

For complete details and updated information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Toyota Series updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the MLF5 social media outlets on Facebook,  Instagram and  YouTube.

About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery, Outdoor Channel, VICE, World Fishing Network, RFD-TV, Game & Fish TV and Rumble, and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 20 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.