By Todd Ceisner
BassFan Editor
Jacob Wheeler has a sobering message for the Bass Pro Tour field: There are still things he wants to get better at.
Oh, is that so, Mister 10-time champion? Mister four-time Angler of the Year? You want to get better at some things, eh? What could you possibly have identified as a weakness after another spring and summer of dominance on the water? Shaving a second off the time it takes to deploy your trolling motor after pulling up to a new spot perhaps?
“I have a list in my phone of things that I have to work on this fall that I’m weak at or need to clean up,” Wheeler told BassFan in a phone interview a few days after closing out the 2025 BPT season with a victory at Saginaw Bay where he clinched his fourth AOY title in the trail’s seven-year existence.
Hey everyone, did you hear that? He’s got a (gulp) list.
How did we get here? How is it that the man who’s been atop the World Rankings for six years and counting, who’s designed and helped launch a new brand of fiberglass bass boats and a new line of soft plastic baits, who has accumulated 18 six-figure paydays before his 35th birthday still sees deficiencies in his arsenal that require his attention?
“You always have to be challenging yourself to be better,” Wheeler said. “That’s what is so much fun about bass fishing. It’s always changing. The fish are being pressured in different ways. Just because you thought you were the best squarebill fisherman or worm fisherman, the fish will learn to adjust and you have to adjust your techniques and strategy. It’s going to be different every year. That’s what makes it so much fun.”
And, oh what fun he had during the 2025 BPT season, stacking two wins, two runner-up finishes and two other top-10s en route to a second straight and fourth career BPT Angler of the Year crown. His only finish outside the top 10 was a 34th at the Potomac River in late June. Hardly a blemish, but maybe tidal rivers will be on his need-to-improve list.
But he welcomes the grind, relishes it even. Wheeler finds pleasure in the process, in the work it takes to learn a different fishery, to refine a technique or to maximize a bait’s action.
“It just shows when you decide not to put the time in that’s when you see anglers fall off,” he added. “If you’re not willing to put time in, it’s an unforgiving game. You have to always be working.
“I don’t ever stop thinking about how and what’s the next best technique. Maybe it’s the way I pitch or flip or a set up on my boat. One thing I always try to do is challenge myself. I’m never going to be the best at everything, but hopefully I can be really good at a lot of things. There’s never a point where I’m content or satisfied.”
Emotional Journey
The 2025 BPT season brought the highest of highs and the lowest of lows for Wheeler, who lost his father, Curtis, in April after a long battle with cancer. A couple weeks later, Wheeler logged a runner-up finish in his backyard at Lake Chickamauga/Nickajack then tallied a win at Kentucky Lake the first week of June.
“My dad was my biggest fan,” he said. “He was always the one that gave me the confidence. I was just a guy from Indiana so the odds of me coming out of there and being a top bass pro were slim to none. He instilled in me a lot of that never-give-up attitude and to stay focused on what you’re trying to do and don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do anything.”
In early August, Wheeler solidified his latest AOY crown two days after what would have been his dad’s 77th birthday.
Wheeler had his family by his side for his win at Kentucky Lake this spring.
“It’s been a crazy year with the ups and downs and a lot of emotion,” he said. “To end it in the way it happened – to win AOY and win the event – it just capped it off in a way I couldn’t imagine.”
Amidst the emotional teeter totter on and off the water this year, Wheeler never wavered from his focus to learn something new every day and deploy the work ethic his father instilled in him.
“In life, you a mature a little bit and gain different perspectives,” he said. “Whether you’re out on tour or into a profession, you have to be very goal driven. To me, I’ve learned the important of the work-life balance, probably this year more than ever.”
And part of that balance has been starting to impress upon his two young kids (3-year-old Hudson and 6-year-old Olivia) the importance of a strong work ethic.
“When we’re at home I want to show them that with hard work you can do anything,” he said. “Nothing is given in life. It’s all earned and everybody has it tough in different ways. There’s no reason to make excuses for why you can’t do something.
“(Having kids) has changed my focus for sure. There’s a lot on my plate, but I’ve got a different perspective from even three years ago.”
Little Things Still Matter
Wheeler’s rise has transcended eras in the sport. He announced his arrival by winning the 2011 BFL All-American and followed that up by winning the 2012 Forrest Wood Cup at age 21, and then finished second behind Randall Tharp in the 2013 Cup. A couple more seasons on the FLW Tour were followed by a two-year stint on the Bassmaster Elite Series (where he won twice) before moving to the Bass Pro Tour in 2019. The rest is literally history.
He's always been a meticulous student of the sport in his preparation for tournaments and during the competitions, but he’s recognized how small the margins for error are now compared to earlier in this career.
“The competition now is way stiffer because of how much information is out there,” he said. “The difference between the top anglers and the guys getting relegated is minimal. It comes down to the minute details. Before, the separation between the top and bottom was like night and day. Now, it’s not that big. It’s maybe the difference between using 8- or 10-pound braid on a spinning rod. Or a knot or a hook you’re using. It’s the details now that make all the difference.”
And that’s why he’s still firmly committed to the process. His offseason (ha!) won’t begin until maybe November, but even then he’ll be putting in time each day either on boat prep for next year or recon trips to venues on the 2026 schedule.
“A friend of mine who’s been around awhile told me that back in the day, everybody agreed not to work hard,” Wheeler said. “Now, everyone works hard. You have to pre-practice and scan and understand everything. You better be ready to come to play and battle because day in and day they want to take your money and they will if you don’t put your time in.”
So what lights Wheeler’s lamp at this stage, a few weeks shy of his 35th birthday, amid a run of dominance rarely seen in this sport?
“It’s the little things that drive me,” he said. “Sometimes when you get poked by a competitor or you hear something. I get very motivated by little things that I can channel out on the water.”
He declined to elaborate on specifics.
Historical Significance
Wheeler has been asked repeatedly about the comparisons his career arc has drawn to that of Kevin VanDam and if challenging any of VanDam’s records factors into his mindset.
“If it’s meant to happen in time, we’ll see what happens,” he said. “Kevin was the best of his era just like (Rick) Clunn was the best of his era. I think you can only be the best of the era you’re in. The game changes. The competition changes. If I were to somehow challenge him in wins or AOY titles, I’d never look at myself as better than Kevin. The only thing I can do is be best I can be during my time.”
“There will come a time when I walk off the mountain and reminisce about the wins and success, but with Skeet (Reese) retiring and Kevin being retired now, watching those guys leave is hard. It makes you think about your place and how you want to leave the sport better than you found it.”
Notable
> While the BPT season is complete, Wheeler’s schedule is packed over the next two months. He's been in Limpopo, South Africa the last week for the World Black Bass Championships as a member of Team USA, coached by VanDam. He teamed up with 2023 Elite Series AOY Kyle Welcher. Other team members are Scott Martin, Logan Parks, Ott DeFoe and Drew Gill. Beyond that, he’ll compete in the MLF Team Series with partner Mark Daniels, Jr. and the Ultimate Angler Championship, slated for Lake Guntersville in early October.
