Oklahoma pro adjusts on Championship Saturday to secure MillerTech NPFL Stop Five victory.

Despite the lock schedule, despite the long runs, despite barge traffic, and despite watching the fish leave his primary areas, Zack Birge prevailed at the MillerTech NPFL Stop Five on the St. Lawrence River, hosted by the Town of Massena, New York. Going wire-to-wire against one of the strongest fields in professional bass fishing, the Oklahoma pro weighed a three-day total of 70-4 to claim his second NPFL victory of the 2026 season, and third national win.

Birge set the tone on Day One with 24-12 before backing it up with 22-1 on Friday to carry a 3-7 lead into Championship Saturday. But the shallow bladed jig pattern that had carried him through the opening rounds was beginning to fade as fish continued to move, forcing Birge to trust his instincts one final time.

Finishing the event in second place, Florida pro John Cox steadily worked his way up the leaderboard all week, improving from ninth after Day One to fourth after Day Two before finishing runner-up with a three-day total of 65-12. A shallow-water expert, Cox spent the week targeting smallmouth he could see, rotating between roadbeds, flats, and other hard-bottom areas while picking off individual fish with finesse presentations. He weighed limits of 21-5, 21-1, and a final-day 23-6, earning his best finish of the 2026 season and providing a much-needed boost after a slow start to the year.

Wesley Gore rounded out the top three with a three-day total of 64-15, backing up a strong opening two days with a final-round limit of 21-9 to secure his best finish of the 2026 season. Kristopher Queen finished fourth with 64-7, while defending St. Lawrence River champion Drew Cook rounded out the top five with 61-14, putting together another consistent three-day performance.

Mike Quinlin claimed Phoenix Boats Big Bass honors with a 6-pound smallmouth on Day One, the largest bass weighed during the three-day event. Darrel Robertson earned the final check of the tournament, climbing to 38th place with a Championship Saturday limit of 19-15 to finish with 51-10.

A special happy 80th birthday to legendary angler Rick Clunn. The Hall of Famer marked the occasion with another solid finish in New York, finishing 22nd with 56-10.

Birge’s Final Day Adjustment

Rather than force a bite that was disappearing, Birge leaned on a crankbait pattern on Showdown Saturday that had produced during practice, though not with the same quality as his bladed jig. The shallow pattern carried him to a tournament-best 25-5 on Day One and another solid 21-8 on Day Two, but by Saturday morning he knew those fish were beginning to move. Rather than chase a fading bite, Birge trusted the crankbait program he had kept in his back pocket all week, and it proved to be the right decision.

It paid immediate dividends, producing a 21-pound limit early in the day, anchored by a 5½-pound smallmouth, and allowing him to fish free throughout the afternoon. The decision did not come easy, giving up what had been his most successful pattern, but he saw enough during practice to give it a shot.

“I learned in practice it’s hard to catch five of the right fish cranking, but you get good numbers,” he said. “You can wear them out. Especially knowing the shallow fish were on the move, I went out looking for 20 pounds or so, and to catch that 5-pounder early in the morning, I knew I had a chance at catching 21 or 22 pounds with the Yo-Zuri crankbait.”

Birge located a handful of shoals holding smallmouth and positioned his boat upstream before making long casts across the high spots. Once the bait hit the water, the work began. He reeled as fast as he could, getting the 14- to 16-foot diver to the bottom and making constant contact with the bottom never giving the bass much time to look at the bait before reacting.

“Man, it was a blast; when you hook one of them, it’s like hooking an anchor,” he said. “It was a workout for sure, but it is a whole lot of fun. I got into a bit of a lull there for a while but kept an open mind and eventually landed on another shoal, just wanting to fill a limit. I caught back-to-back 4-pounders and a 3.5.”

By that point, Birge was close to his goal weight and calculating what he might need to hold off the rest of the field. Before heading to the lock, he felt the shallow bite that had carried him through the first two days was worth one last try.

“I talked to the tournament director and things with the lock seemed good, so I ran back to my two best shallow stretches,” he said. “That was a good decision. I caught two, one a 4-4 and one a 5-2. The big one had two other giants with it, but they would not bite. It was a good decision to fish the crankbait, and I felt like it was the best choice to win. I would have won fishing only the crankbait, but the run back was even better with the 23 pounds.”

His primary pattern during the first two days, along with the late flurry on Championship Saturday, centered around a Hags Baits prototype bladed jig. During practice, Birge learned the areas had to have the right combination of ingredients to consistently hold quality fish: depth, grass, and rock.

“I focused on places that had 10 to 20 yards off the bank with 3 to 5 feet of water,” he added. “If you found that, and it had rock and it had grass, there were going to be some big ones on the inside edge of the grass. It worked perfectly, and I felt I could catch a bigger average fish than cranking. It was a great week.”

Birge’s victory on the St. Lawrence River continued one of the most impressive seasons in NPFL history. He became just the fifth angler to win multiple events in a single season and the 11th to lead an event from start to finish. The win also moved him to third on the NPFL’s all-time money list with more than $366,000 in career earnings while setting a new single-season earnings record with more than $265,000. Birge has now recorded seven consecutive Top 20 finishes in 2026 and, after trimming the Progressive Angler of the Year deficit to just eight points, will head to the season finale at Lake Dardanelle with both the AOY title and another victory well within reach.

“Above all, I think it’s a combination of things, but trusting my gut instinct and making good decisions,” he said. “I am fishing what I am confident with and not listening to any talk about what baits are catching fish I just fish how I feel and I don’t second guess my decisions. It’s been a great season, and I am super happy to continue the success.”

Cox Finds Them Shallow

Knowing the off-limits boundaries for the event meant anglers making the long run couldn’t reach Lake Ontario—or even some of the best water near the mouth of the St. Lawrence River—John Cox knew the tournament would play to his strengths. With the locking windows further limiting travel, the Florida pro was confident he could contend by staying shallow close to takeoff.

In practice, the windy conditions weren’t ideal, so Cox spent his time throwing the new Berkley MaxScent Moeba and looking for places that might play during the tournament. With his extensive knowledge of the river, especially closer to takeoff, his plan revolved around fishing shallow, adjusting his presentations each day as conditions changed. The one constant throughout the week was Berkley MaxScent.

“Coming into Day One, the weather got better; the sun came out and the wind slowly died,” he said. “I was catching them on the Berkley MaxScent Moeba in practice, but on Day One things started to change. By Day Two, I was throwing a Fusion19 jig with a Berkley MaxScent Super Trooper. And today, I had to fish a General and even a drop shot with a MaxScent Flat Worm.”

Cox knows the productive stretches of the St. Lawrence well, and as the event progressed, he dialed in when fish would move onto the shallow areas. He’d slip into a spot, see smallmouth cruising, make a precise cast, and repeat the process throughout the week.

“I fished new water every day,” he said. “I have fished this place so much, I know where to go. Today, I was driving around and remembered a spot. I pulled in and caught a 5-pounder. Soon after, I remembered another spot, pulled in, and caught almost another 5-pounder. It was just a great week. Coming up North is a lot of fun, and it was a much-needed week to get back in the swing of things.”

Queen Survives Birge Surge, Work Sharp AOY Race Tightens,

With his wire-to-wire victory on the St. Lawrence River, Zack Birge did exactly what he needed to do to close the gap in the Work Sharp NPFL Angler of the Year race. But Kristopher Queen didn’t make it easy.

Queen entered the week leading the AOY standings and battled to the very end, weighing enough bass to finish second before a self-reported culling infraction resulted in a two-pound penalty. The penalty dropped him to fourth place, but the North Carolina pro still left Massena with the unofficial AOY lead. Heading into the season finale, Queen holds an unofficial eight-point advantage over Birge, setting up a showdown for the Angler of the Year title.

Final Leaderboard

Zack Birge 70-4
John Cox (FL) 65-12
Wesley Gore 64-15
Kristopher Queen 64-7
Drew Cook 61-14
Shane Lineberger 60-13
Jacob Powroznik 60-6
Greg Vinson 59-14
Greg Hackney 59-12
Josh Hooks 59-8
Jon Canada 59-5
Logan Latuso 58-13
Jordan Osborne 58-11
Bill Lowen 58-10
Chad Grigsby 57-14
Hank Cherry 57-14
James Niggemeyer 57-12
Gary Adkins 57-9
Scott Wiley 57-8
Jared Lintner 57-0
Patrick Walters 56-13
Rick Clunn 56-10
Scott Suggs 56-8
Derek Lehtonen 56-3
Scott Hamrick 55-15
Andrew Upshaw 55-15
Ron Johnson 55-2
Wes Logan 55-0
Joey Bloom 54-15
Paul Browning 54-10
Jason Wilson 53-13
Gerald Swindle 53-9
Hunter Baughman 53-7
Christopher Whisenant 53-0
Brad Whatley 53-0
Nick Brown 52-7
Russ Lane 52-5
Darrel Robertson 51-10
Randall Tharp 51-10
Todd Goade 51-10
Pete Ponds 51-2
Quentin Cappo 50-10
Corey Casey 50-7
Dustin Reneau 50-7
Mike Quinlin 50-4
Darrell Davis 49-11
Jason Meninger 49-8
Cliff Crochet 49-5
Keith Bardolf 49-4
Kevin Rogers 49-1
James Watson 48-14
Andy Morgan 48-9
Tim Frederick 48-7
Lendell Martin 48-6
Adam Savage 48-6
Joseph Lineberry 48-4
Troy Roder 48-1
David Williams 47-15
Matt Herren 47-12
Bo Collins 47-8
Matthew McBee 47-4
JT Russell 47-2
Josh Butler 47-1
Gerald Spohrer 46-14
Alex Davis 46-12
Luke Clausen 46-7
J Todd Tucker 46-1
Todd Auten 46-0
Barron Adams 45-9
Dustin Williamson 45-5
Garrett Smith 44-5
Fred Roumbanis 43-1
Timothy Wilson 42-11
David Wootton 42-1
Josh Watkins 42-0
Buddy Gross 41-9
Lavoyd Lemmond 41-3
Dylan Freeze 40-11
Sean Alvarez 39-14
Troy Broussard 39-6
Hunter Sales 39-5
Kyle Glasgow 38-9
Rickey Morris 37-14
Ryan Satterfield 37-10
Richard Cooper 37-3
Chris Baker 36-2
Chad Marler 36-1
Timothy Reams 35-10
Charlie Apperson 35-0
Ray Hanselman 34-14
Mitchell Webb 30-0
John Cox (GA) 30-0
Jason Burroughs 29-5
Chip Harrington 29-4
Jamie Pierce 27-2
Bob Behrle 26-1
Jason Reyes 24-11
Austin Garland 24-5
Alton Wilhoit 20-10
Harmon Davis 19-10
Tim Cales 19-4
Johnnie Adams 19-3
Scott Canterbury 17-0
Jason Williamson 16-6
Stacey James 16-2
Brandon Cobb 12-15
Harry Moore 9-6
Brock Mosley 8-5
William Fletcher 6-13