Story by Ken Duke | Photos by Tanner & Travis Lyons
One of the best things about being onsite for the 2026 NPFL Championship on Smith Lake in Alabama — apart from hanging out with all the fine folks of the League and the terrific anglers in the field — is the opportunity to get completely immersed in the tournament.
For me, that’s like being in “The Zone.” I feel like I can zero-in on interesting — often goofy and occasionally stupid — aspects of the event and our sport at large. With that introduction, here are 10 random observations from Cullman, Alabama, as we close out the League’s biggest event.
- The fishing is getting better as the event goes on. Catch rates are up 5% between Day 1 and Day 2. And bass weights are up 7.5%. Bag weights are up 12%.
- And between Day 1 and Day 2, Patrick Walters is up 233%!!! He jumped from 29th after Day 1 to first after Day 2. That’s outrageous!
- If Walters wins, he’ll be the first angler to win all three NPFL shields: individual tournament (he has four), Angler of the Year (2025), and the NPFL Championship. He also has more regular season wins, more prize money, more, more, more. He is easily the GOAT of the NPFL.
- The Alabama pros have struggled more than I expected. Only Kyle Welcher has a shot to win going into today and he’s the Alabaman who lives farthest away from Smith Lake!
- I think you must be within five pounds at the start of the day to have a shot to win. There are seven anglers in that group: Walters, Casey, Cherry, Welcher, Williamson, Lehtonen, and Cox. For anyone else to win, I think too much has to happen — they’d need a remarkable day, and all the anglers ahead of them would have to stumble … hard.
- It has been 596 days since Walters last win in the NPFL. That’s the longest drought of his NPFL career.
- Of the top 13 anglers going in the final round, only Walters has ever won an NPFL tournament.
- Three of the top 10 going into the final round (Cherry, Lehtonen and Williams) are fishing their first NPFL Championship.
- Walters leads Day 2 with 32-04. That’s exactly the same weight that Jason Burroughs had when he led Day 2 of the 2025 Championship on Lake Hartwell.
- 63% of Day 2 leaders go on to win. That’s a lot, but it’s no guarantee. What’s more impressive for Walters is his 2-10 lead. That’s pretty strong on a spotted bass fishery like Smith, and it’ll be tough to overcome with a 5-bass limit.
- Bonus Random Thought: Because Patrick Walters is notorious about not entering accurate weights for his catches, you just can’t know what he’ll weigh-in at the end of the day. It might be 12 pounds; it might be 22 pounds. Only one thing is certain: Whoever’s in the hot seat when Walters steps onto the stage will be sweating!
