Road to the 2020 MLF Challenge Cup Went Through Bass Pro Tour Stages One & Two
As viewers will see on Jan. 4, when a new season of Major League Fishing premieres on Outdoor Channel, 30 anglers made their way to Mountain Home, Arkansas for the start of the 2020 Lucas Oil Challenge Cup Presented by B&W Trailer Hitches.
Out of 80 anglers fishing the MLF Bass Pro Tour, the Top 30 point earners from the first two stages of the 2019 season qualified for a spot to fish in this first MLF Cup event of the 2020 season.
How They Qualified
The first two Stages of the 2019 Bass Pro Tour (Kissimmee, Florida and Conroe, Texas) were the two events where the anglers accumulated their points for qualification for the 2020 Challenge Cup in Mountain Home.
Edwin Evers and Jordan Lee finished 1-2 in qualification points, thanks in large part to their respective wins in Stage One and Stage Two. The point totals are calculated by an anglers’ finish in each of the first two Stages: First place in an event earns an angler 80 points, second place 79, so on and so forth all the way down to one point for finishing in 80th.
Mark Rose and Fletcher Shryock were the last two pros to qualify for the 2020 Challenge Cup, totaling 97 points apiece.
“I think qualifying for the MLF Cups is one of the hardest things to do,” said MLF NOW! analyst Marty Stone. “These guys are competing against the best group of 80 anglers that has ever been assembled, and that’s undeniable. They have to put together two solid events just to even qualify, and that’s not as easy as it sounds because there are guys who didn’t make a Cup event this season.”
How Many Cup Events are There?
The 30 anglers fishing each of the four 2020 MLF Cups event are determined by the results of two stages from the 2019 Bass Pro Tour. The Challenge Cup roster came from Stages One and Two; the Heritage Cup from Stages Three and Four; the Patriot Cup from Stages Five and Six, and the Summit Cup from Stages Seven and Eight.
While the anglers competing on the Bass Pro Tour were able to keep their point totals for the entirety of the Bass Pro Tour season, their number “reset” after every two events to start the qualification process for the next Cup event.
The best 16 anglers through the four-event MLF Cup season will qualify for the 2020 General Tire World Championship. Those 16 qualifiers include: the top three pros from each Cup event; the top two anglers in cumulative Cup event points; the reigning REDCREST Champion (Edwin Evers); and the reigning World Champion (Jacob Wheeler).
Difference Between Bass Pro Tour and MLF Cup Format
During the Bass Pro Tour season, the 80 competitors are allowed two days of practice before competition begins. For the MLF Cups events, that’s not the case. The 30 anglers competing in each Cup event are never told where they’re fishing prior to showing up at the boat ramp the morning of each competition round.
According to Stone, this “anywhere is possible” format is how we find out who can really fish against the best.
“No practice, no information and everyone has the same equipment in terms of electronics and boats,” Stone explained. “We’re going to find out who can fish and who can do it against some of the best in the world.”
“I was so excited to get to experience this no-information type of format for the first time,” first-time MLF Cup angler Jeff Sprague admitted. “When you just show up to a lake and no one has a competitive advantage, it’s a lot of fun to just see who can go out there and figure them out. It’s the purest form of bass fishing.”
The MLF Cup Pressure Cooker
One thing that remains a constant with both the Bass Pro Tour and MLF Cup events: SCORETRACKER®. The intensity that live scoring provides these anglers can sometimes get the best of them when they’re competing on an unknown body of water.
“Once they hit an unknown body of water with no practice, no information, and that SCORETRACKER® starts ringing, it can get into the head of a lot of guys,” Stone analyzed. “Their progression speeds up and they may change techniques sooner than they want to just because they need to keep up and they’re not entirely sure where to go to do it.”
Sprague tries to remain calm while out there on a new lake. The Texas pro recalls an old piece of advice one of his fellow anglers gave him before he made his MLF Cup debut.
“It’s only hard if you make it hard,” Sprague said. “I really took that to heart when I started out in the first Cup event in Mountain Home. Bass fishing is really fun and if you just go out there and do what you know you’re capable of and not worry about SCORETRACKER®, you’re going to have a good time. You can’t force-feed the bass in this format, you really have to learn what they want to bite and eat. That’s difficult sometimes, but it’s always fun.”
How, When & Where To View
The first episode of the 2020 Challenge Cup (the first of three Elimination Rounds) premieres Saturday, Jan. 4 at 2 p.m. ET on Outdoor Channel. Check local listings for channels.
Each new episode of Major League Fishing is also available on MyOutdoorTV two days after premiering on Outdoor Channel.