By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor
Matt Becker didn't expect to struggle in his initial season on the MLF Bass Pro Tour. However, he didn't foresee the campaign going quite as well as it has.
"I can't say that I'm not surprised," said the 31-year-old who moved over from the Pro Circuit this year after finishing 5th on that trail's 2022 points list. "This is how I wanted it to go, but I can't say I expected it. It's definitely been better than I anticipated."
His goal – which he considered pretty lofty – was to finish among the Top 10 in the BPT points and be the leading newcomer on the list. Now, with only the Saginaw Bay event early next month remaining on the regular-season schedule, he's got a legitimate shot at winning the Angler of the Year title.
He's 4th in the points standings, but only 10 points behind leader Alton Jones Jr. Between him and Jones are a couple of big-time hammers – Ott DeFoe and two-time defending AOY Jacob Wheeler, who's sat atop the BassFan World Rankings for the past 4 calendar years.
"I'm super-excited about it," he said. "It's a really diverse fishery and it's going to be a fun tournament to follow. It's a huge body of water with (both largemouth and smallmouth) and it's going to be interesting to see how it plays out.
"I'm going to gamble a little bit and fish for smallmouth and stick with my strengths. Even if I finish in last place, I've already made (next year's) REDCREST and Heavy Hitters and it's not often you get into this kind of position."
His worst event this season was the opener at the Kissimmee Chain in Florida, where he was 47th. He's fared no worse that 23rd in any of the five outings since and has posted three single-digit showings (5th at Guntersville, 6th at Cherokee/Douglas and 7th at Cayuga).
He was 17th in the most recent derby at Lake St. Clair.
"Honestly, it's been almost a perfect storm with the schedule," he said. "I've had good experiences on almost all of the fisheries we've been to. We went to Murray and I'd won there before (a 2021 Pro Circuit tournament). Douglas I'd never been to, but at Cherokee I had an FLW Top-10 at the same time of year we went. Guntersville, we had a Pro Circut event there the year before almost the same week and I've been to St. Clair many times.
"It's just fit me, my experiences and my style very well."
Ledge-fishing was perhaps his biggest weakness during the early portion of his 6-year pro career, and that's the main reason he relocated from his native Pennsylvania to Tennessee last fall. His improvement in that area showed out with his Top-5 placement at Guntersville in mid-May.
"I think that's the one I'm most proud of this year – I caught 30 pounds on one of the days," he said. "I feel like I figured out the ledge thing a little bit and conquered that beast.
"Living where I do now, close to Watts Bar and Chickamauga, I can hitch up the boat any day and go practice and mess with techniques. With the experience I've gotten, I feel more comfortable with what I'm looking at (offshore)."
He took a pre-practice trip to Saginaw Bay before it went off-limits and is confident that he can turn in another strong showing on a venue that's unfamiliar to the vast majority of the field.
"The mystery of it all is what makes it such an exciting place for the last tournament of the year," he said. "But no matter what happens, this season has definitely been a success and I have no complaints.
"I'm excited about next year already."
