Pickwick Lake Hosts Toyota Series Finale Nov. 5-7 for $235,000
The Toyota Series Championship hits Pickwick Lake Nov. 5-7 with up to $235,000 on the line. See how smallmouth and sonar rules may decide it.
Pickwick Lake in Counce, Tennessee, hosts the 2026 Toyota Series Championship Presented by Phoenix Boats from Nov. 5 to 7. The top prize is up to $235,000, which includes a $35,000 Phoenix MLF Bonus, plus an invitation to REDCREST 2027, Major League Fishing’s biggest event. Entry is free for fans to watch, and the event also closes a chapter in the series’ history.
Format and Prizes
All anglers fish Days 1 and 2. The top 25 pros and top 25 co-anglers by combined weight advance to the final day, and the heaviest three-day total wins. Each division’s best-finishing pro earns a $10,000 bonus, and the winning co-angler gets a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower outboard. The International Division winner and the top finisher from the College National Championship winning team of Matthew Knopp and Logan Russell also earn REDCREST 2027 berths.
An End of an Era
This is the last championship to feature co-anglers and the last to use the three-hour forward-facing sonar format. Forward-facing sonar is technology that shows fish and bait in real time in front of the boat. In 2027, pros will be able to qualify through events with the technology, events without it, or a mix of both.
What the Fish May Do
Local guide Jimmy Washam, the 2021 Central Division Angler of the Year, expects a mix of largemouth and smallmouth and thinks smallmouth will be a big factor. He expects some shallow fish, current-oriented fish at mid-depth down the lake, and fish chasing bait in creeks depending on how fast the water cools.
He doubts that the sonar bite will hold up for three straight days, so he thinks the winner will need another pattern and may add weight outside the three-hour window. He predicts a mid-60-pound three-day total could win. In April, Hayden O’Barr won a Toyota Series event with 76-10, and Donny Beck was second with 67-10. Beck also won a Phoenix Bass Fishing League Super Tournament on Pickwick this fall with 39-12 over two days.
Anglers can also fish Bay Springs Lake, farther south along the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, though most are expected to stay on Pickwick.
What It Means for Fans
If you fish the Tennessee River in the fall, the event is a free look at how pros handle a mixed largemouth and smallmouth fishery. Takeoff is at 6:30 a.m. CT daily from Pickwick Landing State Park, and weigh-ins begin at 2:30 p.m. Fans are welcome at both. Daily MLF Live broadcasts and coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com are available, and the final round streams live from 7 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. CT.
What Happens Next
The championship will air on VICE Sports on Dec. 13, 2026, at 9 p.m. ET. What remains unknown is who wins and whether fish will cooperate once the water cools.
Source: The Fishing Wire
