07/29/2026
Over 115 anglers crossed the NPFL stage this year with dreams of holding the Work Sharp Angler of the Year trophy.
Realistically? Most of those dreams died at Stop 1. That’s not being harsh…that’s just the reality of professional tournament fishing.
Fast forward to the season finale at Lake Dardanelle, and we are officially witnessing a clash of titans:
🔹 K.J. Queen: The definition of consistency.
🔹 Zack Birge: The freight train behind the “Birge Surge”.
🔗 Head to the website to read the full analysis on how the field narrowed down to two or at the link below!
https://thenationalprofessionalfishingleague.com/articles/2026/07/27/aoy-race-heating-up-and-paring-down
07/26/2026
When your primary bite dies on Championship Saturday, what do you do? If you’re Zack Birge , you trust your gut, pick up a crankbait, and go win a trophy.
Birge went wire-to-wire on the St. Lawrence River with 70-4, but his second victory of 2026 was anything but easy. From locking logistics to fish moving off his main shallow grass, Saturday forced a championship-level decision.
Meanwhile, John Cox did what John Cox does—hunting shallow smallmouth all week to climb into 2nd, while Kristopher Queen fought to hold onto a razor-thin 8-point lead in the Work Sharp Angler of the Year race.
Click the link to read how the final day unfolded: https://thenationalprofessionalfishingleague.com/articles/2026/07/25/birge-goes-wire-to-wire-in-new-york
07/25/2026
BIRGE DOES IT AGAIN! 🏆🏆
Zack Birge locks in his SECOND NPFL victory of the 2026 season at the Miller Tech NPFL Stop 5 on the St. Lawrence River! Laying down a massive 3-day total of 70 lbs 4 oz, Birge held off a stacked field of hammers all week long to take home another trophy.
FINAL TOP 5:
🥇 Zack Birge — 70 lbs 4 oz
🥈 John Cox — 65 lbs 12 oz
🥉 Wesley Gore — 64 lbs 15 oz
4️⃣ KJ Queen — 64 lbs 7 oz
5️⃣ Drew Cook — 61 lbs 14 oz
A huge thank you to our title sponsor Miller Tech, the City of Massena, our dedicated NPFL staff, our anglers, and everyone behind the scenes who worked tirelessly to put on an incredible event on the river. We couldn’t do this without this community! 👏
07/25/2026
Showdown Saturday is delivering the heat on the St. Lawrence River!
Zack Birge switched up to a crankbait and dropped another 20+ lb bag to stretch his lead to over 5 pounds! But John Cox is keeping the pressure hot with 20+ lbs of his own, while Shane Lineberger and Wesley Gore are making massive moves up the leaderboard.
Meanwhile, the Work Sharp Angler of the Year points battle between KJ Queen and Birge is coming down to the wire as the afternoon lock window approaches.
🏆 Who takes home the trophy at MillerTech Stop Five? FULL REPORT: https://thenationalprofessionalfishingleague.com/articles/2026/07/25/final-mid-day-update-at-the-st-lawrence-river
📺 Tune in LIVE for the Final Weigh-In at 3:00 PM EST!
