The continued evacuation from the Golden State by its leading bass anglers puts growing stress on the Bass Angler Assessment Team (BAAT) as together we try and discern the best bass fishermen still holding residence. But I think the lads were up to the task with this year’s California Top 40 Bass Anglers List.
Still, as one goes through the names, the hint of Ray Davies’ obscure lyric about Hollywood’s Walk of Fame comes to mind: “Some that you recognize, some that you’ve hardly even heard of….” But then, we’re always looking for emerging fishermen, while admitting, not everyone held their place from a year ago.
Tournament fishing, in particular, was cruel to some of the familiar names; the biggest victim, Skeet Reese of Auburn. Leading the way through the B.A.S.S. regular season and a sure thing for Angler of the Year, a change in the scoring system for the post-season ultimately dropped him to second place.
It did the same thing here.
Anyway, we call it like we see it, so here goes:
1. BRENT EHRLER, Redlands. We’ll hear the arguments, but it won’t change our mind. SoCal’s Ehrler travels well and is tough under pressure–enough that he finished third on the FLW Tour and second in the National Guard Series. That’s top shelf.
2. SKEET REESE, Auburn. Did he get a raw deal from BASS? Sure. And was he the big money winner among the Elites? Sure. But history will forever record he was second there in 2009. It’s not our fault.
3. ROBERT LEE, Angels Camp. Hey, this guy is a proven commodity. But this year as 5th in the National Guard and second in the Stren Series, he’s way up there.
4. CODY MEYER, Grass Valley. Likely will take over the top spot here one day. As Angler of the Year in the Stren Series, 13th in the National Guard and a Forrest Wood Cup finalist, he’s among the very best of the tour guys.
5. JUSTIN KERR, Simi Valley. One of the “shoestring” guys on tour, he was third in the National Guard, won a Stren and was 11th in the U.S. Open. You beat him.
6. ZACK THOMPSON, Orinda. A very good tournament pro who maybe could be higher, but there was not a large body of work to assess. Angler of the Year in National Guard is impressive–but 2 points was not dominant.
7. JASON CORDIALE, Orinda. A first-time appearance, but there must be something in that Orinda drinking water–besides bass.
8. JOHN STRELIC, Alpine. Not that far off the pace in the National Guard series and maybe not that well known, even in San Diego County. But he always seems to be up there.
9. CAMERON SMITH, Oceanside. Could be confused for a T-shirt salesman at the marina, but one serious, focused tournament angler who surprises no one when he finishes high in the money.
10 RUSTY SALEWSKE, Alpine. First of a series of tough calls. Won a National Guard, yet only finished 26th in the points, but was also a Forrest Wood Cup finalist, even leading one day.
11. RANDY McABEE, Bakersfield. A clear powerhouse in western fishing and was probably only one or two fish from the front page in a lot of places. Still, he’s among the very best.
12. MIKE FOLKESTAD, Yorba Linda. Was going to throw this guy under the bus, but in a year when so many are all over the board with their consistency, the 3-time U.S. Open winner was 12th in the Stren Series and 14th in the National Guard.
13. MIKE HART, Newhall. You will never see him on the cover of any style magazine, but as reservoir fishermen go, he’s like Hoover Dam. You can’t get by him.
14. BILL SIEMANTEL, Castaic. He wrote the book on new age big bass angling, and has reluctantly gained respect from his peers for his abilities to catch big fish on demand. There is no reluctance here.
15. JOHN KERR, Ramona. Only insiders could know the kind of fish Kerr has hefted this year, though he did pop up in fifth place in the U.S. Open. What are we missing? Why is he wearing waders in so many of his big bass photos?
16. MATT ALLEN, Vacaville. It took some research, but the big bass fraternity now includes one of the preeminent younger anglers from upstate. His debut is overdue.
17. MIKE LONG, Poway. Unless they ban fishing rods, Long will be in the mix for one of the best bass anglers in the Golden State–if not the nation.
18. GREGG SILKS, Menifee. Guides and trophy catchers are in the mix again this year and Gregg is both. I’ve said it before, if they allowed trolling in tournaments, he would take all your money.
19. JUSTIN LUCAS, Folsom. A fine professional on the rise, but he got way too much TV time for his record on tour.
20. GARY DOBYNS, Yuba City. We didn’t want to penalize him too much for his sponsor tiff with FLW and he was an impressive U.S. Open winner. So here he is…again.
21. DARRIN BISHOP, Paso Robles. We never know how much credit to give to family members, but Darrin is an unusually good competitor. Ask his Dad.
22. MICHAEL TUCK, Antelope. Was up there strong in the Strens, but nowhere else that we could find. This is probably about right.
23. CHRIS ZALDAIN, San Jose. This was not his banner year, but he won some cash in National Guard and we know he’s high caliber.
24. ROY HAWK, Knightsen–Here’s a two-time Stren winner, fifth in those points, but only 45th in the National Guard. Consistency missing this year after showing 3rd in the Top 40 a year ago.
25. ROD THIGPEN, Santa Paula. Lure-makers are definitely getting some love this year. And this guy’s busted enough double-digit fish this year to warrant a return to the Big List.
26. MIKE REYNOLDS, Modesto. Can’t tell if he’s a few casts short of fame or a few from falling off the list.
27. JOHN BILLHEIMER, Jr., Discovery Bay. Down from his debut season last year, but obviously one of the young guns who should star in the future.
28. STEVE ERICKSEN, San Jose. A high finish in the Strens was (3rd) was hard to overlook, but winning more than 11 grand without a title told us, “Get him in there.”
29. BUTCH BROWN, Castaic. Here’s a guy who sees more big fish in a season than most of us do in a lifetime. He also catches a lot of them.
30. KEVIN HAWK, Ramona. Debuting on the Top 40, you could argue he’s a little too high on the list. So go ahead and argue.
31. MIKE ANDREWS, Oakley. Probably has been overlooked as one of those stout Delta sticks. Maybe needs a little softer PR approach, but he’s hard on those largemouths.
32. ROB BELLONI, Dublin. When the points don’t add up, you look to the expertise of the big bass guys. Welcome back….
33. MIKE BRAKEBILL, Reseda. You just have to know who’s really, really good, and not worry about justification. Trust me on this guy.
34. DEE THOMAS, Brentwood. I’m not sure how many more times we’ll get to honor an old friend. I’m not missing my chance this year.
35. BOBBY BARRACK, Oakley. “Stop fishing tournaments. It hurts your reputation, Bobby.” Still, I don’t think you can argue he’s not one of the 40 best.
36. MATT SERVANT, San Diego. Lure making is not just the realm of sculptures and painters. You have to know what you want to create and how to maximize it’s use. That’s why we’re debuting the Mattlures founder.
37. LARRY HEMPHILL, Yuba City. If you’re not willing to put your money into entry fees, you can trust you’ll get value when you put it into guide fees. Larry’s top notch.
38. ISH MONROE, Hughson. No presidential edict. We just thought when he was focused and fishing in his home state, he was among the best. (And winning is hard and he almost won twice.)
39. DAVID VALDIVIA, Norwalk. Another first-timer on the list; one whose personal story would hearten anyone who cares about rising up. Sixth in the Strens was no accident.
40. JIMMY REESE, Witter Springs. Will probably tweak the noses of some of his upstate compatriots, but a “down year” was not enough to take him off the list.
41-100. A LOT OF GUYS who are very good.
(Brent Ehrler photo courtesy Brandon Oursler)
17 Responses to “Drama? Top 40 List features a few surprises”
What about Buck?
Dublin, it is. So, would you like me to remove your name from the list? ;>)
I’m happy to see Mike Andrews and Mike Hart….both are studs
I think Ish and Roy hawk were way too low. Both fished against the best with great results. Roy hawk should be top 10.
Matt Allen really good choice, but I dunno a few of the castaic guys. I thought those were called “zip code fishermen”
I’ll defend one of the “castaic” guys…Mike Hart….he is just plain ol good…he will just beat you up…on your lake
why he stays local, I’m guessing family…but good is good…period
Yeah Erick, I’ve heard only good things about Mike Hart, I guess I was too general. If I could win on a lake every week I’d stay home too, didn’t he win like 5 in a row at one point?
Hey, everyone. Lots of great comments and private messages and I’m pretty sure there will be more. Just don’t get too worked up over the list–it is completely subjective and designed to generate conversation.
But you can guess, in a state with 1.8 million fishing license holders, I can miss some guys. But if we just reprinted all the points standings, what would there be to discuss?
I wanted to try and factor in the non-tourney guys, but also guys who also fish teams. As for Mike Hart, it should be noted, he went to Lake Mead, solo, for the Tri States, and finished 3rd.
But please understand, there are lots of fine anglers. The order is mine, the list just stops at 40….
Yeah!! I agree. Oh well. I’m sure he’s cool with taking our cheese down here.
George, I thought you said I was going to make your top 40 list this year? Oh wait, that was your top 40,000.
Fun to read as usual George. Great job.
I can GUARANTEE that JASON CORDIALE is the most valuable fisherman on that list. This guy is someone with “course” knowledge, grew up in Cali and has that sixth sense when catching fish.
I have fished with great fisherman, this guy is beyond great!
WAIT AND SEE, PEOPLE!!
I was surprised and happy to make the list this year and will try to stay on it for a long time! Some Great names there. It is very humbling to see my name above my mentors Bobby B and Dee.
Oh, and George. I live in Discovery Bay now. Oakley was not close enough to the Delta for me! 
List looks good to me. The one person I see missing is Jared Lintner…. He may have had an off year on the Elites, but didnt seem to have a problem with any FLW tourney fished in California this year. Look for him to be strong on the California swing of the Elites in the spring.
George- Great tidbit on Cameron as well, he may not dress like some, but I’d be willing to put my money on him anyday. Guy is a stick, and has dominated in San Diego for years, glad to see him doing well in the bigger T’s. If I remember correctly…. Didn’t he qualify for the BASS Tour the last time the West had Opens??
Take nothing away from anyone–on or off the list. With Lintner and so many others on tour, the criteria is, if you fish tournaments, then that’s what we use as your standard. If you do well, you get pumped up on the list. If you don’t, it’s hard to justify a position on the Top 40. And then the hardest to judge, when one does well in one circuit and falters in another, I get to decide their fate.
Nice list!
Garrett, yeah Cameron Smith qualified to fish the BASS Tour; what is now called the Elites! You know as well as I do; what a stick Cameron is. And a heck of a nice guy! As laid back as they come, but can catch fish with the best of them.
Also noticed that some of the “trophy guys” finished above Mike Long. If people would only know the numbers of big BIG bass Mike catches; they only think they know. I probably only think I know:)~! LOL He catches bigger fish every year than some of the “trophy guys” above him.
And Gary Dobyns won the US Open this year. Biggest tournament in the West! 20th place on the list?
Where’s Jerry Rago????? One of the best trophy hunters alive. Guy just doesn’t put up enough pictures, but believe me; he catches them. BIG TIME!
Nice list George; good read!
Arden
Thank you George for putting me on the list. While I dont think I am worthy, I am definatley honored. I was totaly shocked.
As for the others on the list I think Mike Long should always be #1 but I am a little biased towards trophy guys and Skeet #2, but thats why you have the list so we can all debate about it.
Thanks again
Matt
Mike Hart is the man and is as dominant as you get. He’d do just as good if he concentrated on the larger circuits. The only guy who rivaled Mike was this guy names Aaron Martens. I’m sure you’ve all heard of him before. However, Mike won 17 tournaments this year. Don’t know if anyone’s ever done that! Keep it up Mike and as always, great job keeping them talking George!
Always enjoy the top 40 list, Kramer. Surprised to see my name there…
My only gripe is that I live in Dublin, not Castro Valley. I do move a lot so it’s easy to get confused (San Luis Obispo, Fremont, Atascadero, Dublin in the last 10 years). I’m really hoping to stay put this time in Dublin. I even bought a big shiny bass boat last month so maybe that will help me catch some fish.
Have a good one.
-Rob