ROGERS, Ark. (April 30, 2026) – The clear waters of Beaver Lake make Jeff Sprague nervous.The Texas pro admitted that the first time he traveled to the Arkansas fishery – as a co-angler at an FLW Tour event in 2011 – being able to see the bottom in 20-plus feet of water freaked him out. He caught one bass in that event and finished 83rd. No surprise, then, that when the longtime FLW mainstay reappeared on the 2026 Major League Fishing (MLF) Bass Pro Tour (BPT) schedule, it was one of the events that worried Sprague.
Yet Sprague didn’t try to run from the clear water during Thursday’s first day of Qualifying Rounds on Beaver Lake. He spent the entire day in the lower end of the lake with a spinning rod in hand and was rewarded with a total weight of 51 pounds, 15 ounces on 27 scorable bass. That has him 9-6 ahead of Adrian Avena in second place and more than 25 pounds clear of the Lucas Oil Cut Line.
Behind Sprague, the weights are tight. Just 3-10 separates the anglers in second through sixth place.
Sprague is one of the best on the Bass Pro Tour at successfully fishing his strengths. It’s rare to see him do anything other than winding down the bank with a baitcasting setup in hand. But thanks in large part to the seven FLW Tour events he fished on Beaver, he quickly realized he’d need to get outside his comfort zone at this event.
“Obviously, I started (practice) in the river and checked that stuff, and I got a good read on the river pretty quick,” he said. “It was not happening as fast as I know it can happen here. I also know that there’s a significant number of bass that live in this place, from the river to the dam. So, I chose in practice to embrace that a little bit and get around some of those areas that I felt like maybe more bass lived and gave me more opportunity to capitalize.”
Wielding a spinning rod all day and catching mostly smallmouth, Sprague boated 12 scorable bass for 23-7 in the first period, which had him in second place. He opted to utilize his Lowrance ActiveTarget in the second period and actually had his slowest frame of the day with 11-13, but stuck in second. With 16-7 in the third period, he not only took the lead but put some distance between himself and the rest of the field.
Whereas a lot of anglers posted strong numbers during their allotted period with forward-facing sonar, no one was able to match Sprague’s consistent pace without the technology. He said avoiding lulls will be especially key on Beaver, where it’s difficult to make up ground with big bites.
“That’s the biggest thing is avoiding those periods with only a few fish catches,” Sprague said. “Trying to catch as many as you can catch and just putting yourself in those high-percentage areas.”
While area was important for Sprague – and he noted that he thinks he can expand his pattern now that he has a better understanding of what his fish are relating to – he shared his water with a few other competitors. He thinks he was able to outproduce them due to his efficiency. Even though he’s using spinning tackle, Sprague hasn’t abandoned his usual power-fishing mindset.
“I’m trying to power-fish my way through clear water, if that makes sense,” he said. “I feel like I’m getting to make a few more casts than some other guys.”
Sprague, who notched his first tour-level Top 10 as a boater on Beaver in 2016, said his primary goal for Day 2 will be locking up another Top 10 by winning the Qualifying Round and earning the automatic Championship Round berth. Ideally, he’ll also be able to explore some new water in the process as he stalks his long-awaited first Bass Pro Tour victory.
“I’m confident that there’s enough fish in these areas,” he said. “We’ll see tomorrow what happens. If tomorrow materializes, then I’ll be able to expand a little bit more.”
Shortly after he woke up Thursday morning, Drew Gill didn’t think he’d be able to take to the water – so much so that he didn’t even bother donning his competition jersey. By the end of the second period, he found himself atop SCORETRACKER®.
Gill said on MLFNOW! that he went to the emergency room with what he thought might be appendicitis.
Fortunately, doctors gave him the all-clear, and he was able to race to Beaver Lake and make it onto the water about 45 minutes after lines in. Gill still managed to catch three scorable bass for 8-0 during what was left of Period 1, then the forward-facing sonar whiz used the technology to stack up 29-7 on 12 bass in Period 2. He finished the day with 39 pounds, which has him in fifth place.
Aside from the race to win the Stage 5 trophy and $125,000 top prize that comes with it, the other big storyline to watch is the battle at the top of the Fishing Clash Angler of the Year (AOY) standings. Each of the top three anglers in the standings entering this event – Jacob Wheeler, Zack Birge and Gill – are all inside the cut after Day 1. But whereas Birge and Gill are both in the Top 5, Wheeler needs a solid second day to make the cut and protect his lead. He currently sits 18th, a little more than 5 pounds clear of the elimination line.
The top 25 pros after Day 1 on Beaver Lake are:
1st: Jeff Sprague, Wills Point, Texas, 27 bass, 51-15
2nd: Adrian Avena, Marmora, N.J., 20 bass, 42-9
3rd: Mitchell Robinson, Landrum, S.C., 21 bass, 40-11
4th: Zack Birge, Blanchard, Okla., 21 bass, 39-13
5th: Drew Gill, Mount Carmel, Ill., 16 bass, 39-0
6th: Banks Shaw, Harrison, Tenn., 18 bass, 38-15
7th: Dustin Connell, Deatsville, Ala., 21 bass, 38-1
8th: Spencer Shuffield, Hot Springs, Ark., 17 bass, 37-5
9th: Mark Rose, Wynne, Ark., 18 bass, 37-1
10th: Jesse Wiggins, Logan, Ala., 19 bass, 36-15
11th: Matt Becker, Ten Mile, Tenn., 18 bass, 35-9
12th: Jake Lawrence, Paris, Tenn., 18 bass, 35-1
13th: Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 18 bass, 34-3
14th: Nick Hatfield, Afton, Tenn., 17 bass, 33-15
15th: Brent Chapman, Lenexa, Kan., 13 bass, 32-4
16th: Ott DeFoe, Blaine, Tenn., 15 bass, 32-2
17th: Marshall Hughes, Hemphill, Texas, 17 bass, 32-1
18th: Jacob Wheeler, Birchwood, Tenn., 14 bass, 32-0
19th: Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., 13 bass, 30-10
20th: Ron Nelson, Berrien Springs, Mich., 14 bass, 29-6
21st: Mark Daniels Jr., Shorter, Ala., 14 bass, 29-4
22nd: Jacob Wall, New Hope, Ala., 14 bass, 28-13
23rd: Dustin Smith, Trussville, Ala., 14 bass, 28-9
24th: Nick LeBrun, Benton, La., 15 bass, 28-3
25th: Chris Lane, Guntersville, Ala., 12 bass, 28-1
A complete list of results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Overall, there were 663 bass caught weighing 1,348 pounds, 3 ounces, caught by the 51 Bass Pro Tour anglers on Thursday.
Thursday’s $1,000 Berkley Big Bass Award was earned by Brent Chapman of Lenexa, Kansas, who caught a 5-pound, 4-ounce largemouth in the third period throwing a crankbait. Berkley awards $1,000 to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass each day.
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Major League Fishing (MLF)