In Wheeler, KVD Sees Shades of His Past

By Pete Robbins
Special to BassFan

Jacob Wheeler has undeniably become the face of this era of professional bass fishing not by resisting changes, or merely accepting them, but rather by seemingly bending them to his will.

Whether it’s moving to a new tour, integrating forward-facing sonar into his game plan, or adjusting to changes in the BPT rules, nothing seems to faze him. He’s winning both titles and individual events at rocket speed.

In the circuit’s seven years of existence, he’s won 10 BPT events and collected four of the past five Angler of the Year titles, having yet to finish lower than fourth place. He's been atop the BassFan World Rankings for six years and counting. Both his winnings and his accolades dwarf those of any of his contemporaries.

Sound familiar?

It’s almost the mirror image of the shadow cast by another native Midwesterner at the dawn of the Elite Series 20 seasons ago. Over the first seven years of that tour, a slightly older Kevin VanDam likewise won four AOYs (2008-2011) and finished worse than 3rd only once, a 7th-place effort in 2012.

Wheeler may only be turning 35 this month, but he’s already built the foundation of a Hall of Fame fishing career. At times he seems to be toying with the field and the record book. The question is not whether he’ll win more titles to separate himself further, but rather how many – and how many in any given year.

It’s not as if Wheeler was an also-ran or a shrinking violet before the Bass Pro Tour started. He was the youngest angler to win the Forrest Wood Cup, then won the first two Bassmaster Elite events in which he competed. And as the BPT matures he just seems to expand his level of dominance. Rather than dwelling on what worked last year, or the year before that, he fully incorporates new pressures, techniques and changes to his advantage – just as KVD did in his prime.

Of course, the two dominant anglers’ paths have crossed before. It first occurred during Wheeler’s intermittent and truncated time at B.A.S.S. (more on that later), and then during KVD’s five seasons on the BPT. That has given the Hall of Famer plenty of time to assess Wheeler’s ascent, his abilities, and his attitude. Below are VanDam’s thoughts on what he’s seen in Wheeler’s performance to date, as well as what is to come.

The VanDam (Fan) Experience

VanDam characterizes himself, first and foremost, as “a fan of the sport.” It’s why he’s so actively involved in the efforts of the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame and for someone who had to be laser-focused on tournaments during competition, he has always maintained an extensive knowledge of what’s going on in the industry and amongst his fellow competitors. He’s watched Wheeler for more than a decade now and recognizes unique commitment to the process – if you follow the plan, the results will come.

“He’s obviously got the blueprint figured out,” VanDam said. “You can see that he puts in the work in terms of preparation and that he’s a student of the sport. He’s not scared to put the trolling motor on high and be super-efficient – making more casts and finding more productive water.”

Their respective periods of dominance were certainly not entirely reliant on technology, but early adoption of the best tools gave them competitive advantages.

“I see how proficient he is with forward facing sonar,” VanDam said. “He was at the forefront of that world, but I exploited side-imaging in the same way, and Lakemaster mapping in the same way. You have to be open to new technologies and new techniques and aware of what’s going on. That’s changed a bit in the YouTube and social media era, but it’s critical. I know him well enough to know that he puts the work in. He just won Angler of the Year, and he’s already started his research for next year.”

Critical Support Systems Equals Momentum

While certain aspects of a professional angler’s efforts have changed drastically since the dawn of the Elite Series, the importance of hard work has not, and that’s only made possible by having an exceptional support system in place.

“Obviously, Alicia (Wheeler) has got to be very supportive,” VanDam said of Wheeler’s wife. “It’s an advantage to have an engaged and patient spouse. Sherry could manage all of the business off the water so at tournaments I could focus on the task at hand. She still manages all of the day-to-day sponsor commitments. She took care of everything – with our boys, for sure – but beyond that it included travel management and bookkeeping. She’s been my agent for 33 years.”

VanDam sees the parallels between the two anglers’ incredible runs, although he pointedly said it wasn’t prudent or logical to compare their distinct eras. Part of the success both have enjoyed, like others including Skeet Reese and Mike Iaconelli, comes not just through talent and hard work, but also timing.

“When you see an angler get on a roll, it’s usually a combination of things,” he explained. “The schedule lines up, it fits your strengths, and then you get your personal life lined out. When things are clicking, they’re clicking, but if one of those components isn’t there, it gets harder. I went from 2012 to 2016 without winning and people said I was washed up, but then I won three in short order. It goes in streaks like that. Even when there was a lull or a down stretch, I knew that the system wasn’t broken.”

Weathering the Bumps in the Road

For Wheeler to maintain his exceptionally high level of dominance, VanDam believes he’ll have to channel his mental energies more than just his fishing skills. It’s clear that Wheeler, who has won at every level, with a range of skills, across varied waters and formats, doesn’t seem to have a tactical weakness and the mind game seems to be part of that strength.

“Lots of good anglers still aren’t capable of managing the day-to-day demons, but I think he’s pretty mentally strong,” VanDam said. “And that’s important because you can improve on techniques, you can maintain your preparation process, but you can’t always change your mind or your attitude. I believe you’re either born with it or you’re not.”

He expects that at some point Wheeler will be tested. Part of his rationale is because right now, with his strong support system, he can focus almost entirely on the fishing part of the equation. He’s shown himself to be strongly committed to the business portion of the career, too, but eventually a day will come when Wheeler will have to make choices, and split up his time. His kids will be older, sponsors will demand more, or some other factors will reduce his ability to focus. The test will lie in how he deals with it.

“I guarantee you it’s coming,” VanDam said. “Look at Tom Brady, Tiger Woods, Peyton Manning, LeBron James. They’ve all had their struggles, and they have so many coaches and professionals surrounding them. We typically don’t have them in our sport.”

He wonders what will happen if and when that first stumble occurs. Will Wheeler question the system that has brought him this far, or will he stick to it and come out the other side stronger?

Coincidentally, one of VanDam’s few notable career stumbles intersected closely with Wheeler’s rise. After making 24 straight Bassmaster Classics to begin his career, the Michigan pro missed it for the first time in 2015. During the 2014 Elite Series season, Wheeler won the inaugural BASSFest event at Lake Chickamauga, a win-and-you’re-in Elite tournament that allowed non-Elite Series anglers to pay an entry fee and compete.

Many BassFans might remember that tournament more for KVD's on-the-water encounter with Iaconelli during which Ike was informed he was “not part of the community,” but VanDam remembers it more because he finished second, and then failed to qualify to the Classic through the AOY points race. He ended up 53rd and spent the time at Lake Hartwell working the Expo and providing analysis for the tournament broadcast.

“But the only guy who remembers who finished second was the guy who finished second,” he said. “I still didn’t question the system.”

Different Eras, Different Challenges

VanDam expressly rejected the opportunity to compare anglers across eras, but he did say that he’s glad that his best stretches coincided with the start of the Elite Series and the sport’s ESPN era and the exposure that came with it.

“They brought it to the mainstream sports fan,” he said. “Whether it was SportsCenter or Mike and Mike or Pardon the Interruption, everybody who follows sports – which is just about everybody – came to know what bass fishing was. They brought mainstream America into our world. That benefitted a lot of people, like Ike and Skeet and Gerald, but no one understands it more than me.”

Today’s world is, of course, more fractured. There are three major tours, multiple must-have social media channels, including YouTube. Tournament fishing may still be the primary driver in terms of technological changes, but it’s been diluted in terms of its influence. That may preclude Wheeler’s greatness from having the effect upon tournament fishing that he would have enjoyed with similar performances a generation or two ago.

While VanDam now has time to look back at his impact upon the sport, and his still-evolving profile in bass fishing’s history, he insists that he didn’t consider his eventual legacy during his prime.

“I never competed to have more AOYs than Roland, or more Classics than Rick Clunn,” he said. “When I left B.A.S.S., people asked me why I didn’t want to stay around to try to win my fifth Classic. I never really looked at my career that way. What I loved about it was just the sheer competition, going out in any given tournament and outcompeting the best anglers out there, figuring out the puzzle. It’s tough because you lose far more than you win.

“There’s a really interesting and talented class of young anglers at the top right now,” he continued. “I was that guy for a while. Jacob is that guy now. There will be more after him.”