Story by Ken Duke | Photos by Tanner & Travis Lyons
First, a confession. I love discussions and debates about our sport, and one of the debates I enjoy in the realm of sports is about GOATs—the Greatest of All-Time.
When it comes to bass fishing and the big leagues, I think Kevin VanDam is the clear GOAT of B.A.S.S. and that David Dudley edges out the competition at FLW. So far, you’d be hard-pressed to argue against Jacob Wheeler as claiming the top spot in the history of MLF and the Bass Pro Tour.
But what about the National Professional Fishing League? Who’s the GOAT of the NPFL?
Well, at the risk of offending every NPFL angler but one, I thought I’d take a stab at that question. Here are some nominees, some arguments for and against, and one passionate spectator’s opinion.
I’ll tackle them alphabetically.
The Bass Warrior has an impressive track record with the NPFL. He’s fished every event (25 in all), posted ten top 10s (second best in league history behind Patrick Walters) and won once. He’s fourth in all-time prize money, but I don’t like using that as a measuring stick since it skews to event winners over the anglers who consistently finish high without winning. Fernandes ranks second in career bass weighed in (behind Timmy Reams), second in total bass weight (behind Reams), and second in career AOY points (behind—you guessed it—Reams). He’s finished in the top 10 of AOY twice and in the top 25 three times. He’s also qualified for both NPFL Championships.
It’s a very impressive record. If there’s a weak spot, it’s that he doesn’t currently rank first in any of the major statistical categories … at least not yet.
The 2023 Progressive Angler of the Year is about to start his fourth year with the NPFL and has been incredibly impressive. His 2023 NPFL season is arguably the best ever. He finished in the top 10 of every tournament that season along the way to seven consecutive top 10 finishes (tied for best with Patrick Walters). He has posted nine career top 10s (third behind Walters and Fernandes) and finished in the money 11 consecutive times, which is the league record. Goade is fourth in career bassing average, has finished in the top 15 of the AOY race every year, and once put together a string of 23 consecutive limits (tied for the league record).
It’s a stunning résumé, but one thing’s missing. Goade has yet to win an NPFL event. Can you be the GOAT without winning?
Brandon Perkins knows how to win, and when he wins, he does it in dominating fashion. He has three career wins, including the inaugural NPFL Championship where he posted the heaviest total weight in league history. He has four top 5 finishes, six top 10 finishes, finished in the money in every event of 2021, and once brought 17 consecutive limits to the scales. He ranks second in all-time money, third in career weight, fourth in career AOY points, and sixth in career bass weighed in.
Perkins catches big bass, too, including the second biggest largemouth in NPFL history and the fifth best smallmouth. He’s won daily big bass honors four times (tied for the top spot). His three wins have been by margins of 15, 13 and more than 8 pounds.
Those are the pros, and they’re strong. The cons would be that two of his three wins were on his home water—Lake Pickwick. It’s also true—though perhaps not a negative—that he “swings for the fences” rather than play it safe and rack up a lot of impressive numbers. By winning the inaugural NPFL Championship in 2024, he was automatically qualified to defend that title in 2025. Instead of fishing for points and vying for AOY, he went for wins. It was a bold move that makes sense financially, and I admire it on a lot of levels, but it led to four finishes of 71st or worse and 57th in AOY. Brandon Perkins is way better than that. But those numbers don’t help his case for GOATness.
Like Fernandes, Timmy Reams has fished every NPFL event. Along the way, he’s amassed the most impressive cumulative numbers in league history. Reams leads in career bass weighed in, career weight, and career AOY points. He’s finished in the top six of AOY three times, which is also a record. He has four top 5 finishes, seven top 10 finishes, and once finished in the money eight straight times. Except for a tough day at Lake Cumberland in 2022, Reams would have posted 33 straight limit catches, which would far surpass the league record. Finally, he’s qualified for both NPFL Championships.
Now for the cons, and I bet you can see this one coming. Timmy Reams has never won an NPFL event or an AOY title. If you’re looking for the GOAT, those are big holes in the résumé, but they’re also holes that can be filled in 2025.
Of the five anglers I’m considering here, Patrick Walters has fished the fewest NPFL events—just 16—but still makes a compelling argument to be called the league’s GOAT. In his 16 appearances, he’s won four times, finished second twice, and finished third twice. That’s right. He finishes in the top three half the time. Amazing!
He’s posted 11 top 10s, including seven in a row at one point. He’s first in career earnings, first in heaviest average bass over his career, fifth in career weight, sixth in career bassing average, has posted the heaviest daily catch seven times and been in the top 19 of AOY three times … despite missing events in two of those three seasons.
The counterargument to Walters’ GOATness is not strong. You’d like to see the GOAT win an AOY or the Championship, but he’s done everything else, and the season opens on his home waters of Santee Cooper. A win there—where he won two years ago—would settle this discussion in my opinion … at least for a while.
Those may not be the only anglers who deserve consideration in the GOAT debate, but it’s indisputable that they are five of the top performers in NPFL history.
