2026 Winter Classic Results
The Winter Classic 2026 | Speckled Trout Tournament Recap from Mobile Bay
🏆 The Winter Classic 2026
January 24–25 | Mobile, Alabama
Weigh-In Hosted Jointly by Classic Tournaments LLC and Saltwater Finaddicts
The Winter Classic has never been about comfort or certainty. It’s a tournament built on preparation, discipline, and decisions that don’t fully reveal themselves until the final fish hits the scale. In 2026, that reality was amplified by changing weather, a new flight system, and margins so thin that nothing felt settled until the very end.
With 24 registered teams — the most ever — on the water, the field was stacked with past champions and perennial contenders. The format once again stretched pressure from first light to final weigh-in, and the Winter Classic played out exactly as intended.
Day One Results – Winter Classic 2026 Speckled Trout Tournament
Saturday introduced a significant change for 2026: staggered dock departures, known as flights. Teams were released one minute apart beginning at 5:00 a.m. The rule was designed to improve safety and organization, but it immediately added strategic complexity before the first cast ever hit the water.
Weather added another layer.
Saturday featured light to moderate easterly winds and generally pleasant conditions, but in winter tournaments, even “good” weather is an active variable. East winds can reposition water and bait, making some historically productive areas less consistent while opening others. In the Winter Classic, weather is the great equalizer — capable of making entire areas unfishable while quietly turning overlooked water into the right decision at the right time.
Despite early departures, no lines were allowed in the water until 6:00 a.m. With a 6:47 a.m. sunrise, many teams spent nearly an hour with trolling motors deployed, positioning and waiting in total darkness. Several anglers later reported catching fish shortly after the clock struck six, a narrow window that rewarded preparation and clean execution.
Saturday also carried a pressure unique to two-day events: every decision had to account for Sunday.
Where a team fished on Saturday mattered not only for the weight they brought in, but for whether that water would still be available — and fishable — the next day. Teams fortunate enough to fish the same area both days are rare, and even luckier if that area continues to produce. Many anglers are forced to abandon water entirely on Sunday due to changing conditions.
Flights complicated those calculations further. Anglers had to decide whether a team leaving ahead of them might reach a preferred first spot, whether a longer run was worth the risk, or whether a closer area might offer more consistency across both days. In practice, this appeared to spread anglers out, reducing boat racing to high-value areas and rewarding decision-making over speed.
In a tournament built on long-standing relationships, some of those decisions extended beyond strategy alone. Quiet gentleman’s agreements existed in certain cases — informal understandings rooted in trust, history, and respect — reinforcing that the Winter Classic isn’t just about rules on paper, but about how anglers conduct themselves on the water.
AweSkeet, made up of Jonas Alexander and Clay Dean, didn’t leave the dock until 5:16 a.m., scheduled as the 17th team out. Despite the later start and evolving conditions, they capitalized early. When Saturday’s weigh-in concluded at Ralph & Kacoo’s, AweSkeet sat atop the leaderboard with a 16.86-pound bag, earning the Day One lead and the Saturday Heavy Bag award sponsored by Z-Man Fishing Products and Release Over 20.
It was a familiar position for a team that has fished the Winter Classic every year — often flashing strong Day One performances only to see momentum fade on Sunday.
Behind them, defending champions J&J Show (Jamie Stevens and James Montalvo) checked in 14.43 pounds. GnR, also known as Another Slick in the Wall, with Will Gunnells and Noel Riley, followed closely with 13.68 pounds.
The leaderboard remained compressed. UglyWood (Patric Garmeson and Trevor Wood), Barker Brothers (Noah Barker and Kaleb Barker), and Trout Slapper’Z (Taylor Morrow and Jared Donnelly) all hovered within ounces of one another, keeping nearly the entire field in contention for Sunday.
Early Saturday morning also produced one of the fastest paydays of the weekend. At 6:32 a.m., just 32 minutes into the tournament, GnR entered a 31.50-inch redfish into the CPR Redfish category, effectively locking up the payout before most teams had settled into their first area.
By the end of Saturday, 20 of the 24 teams brought fish to the scales, reinforcing just how open the tournament still was. With forecasts calling for deteriorating conditions, no position felt safe. The Winter Classic has seen 16-pound Day One bags followed by five-pound Sundays, and light Saturdays turn into 20-pound rebounds when timing and conditions finally align.
Weather Conditions and Strategy on Day One
Sunday’s flights were inverted from Saturday — last on Day One went first, and the Saturday leader weighed last.
The day began warm and breezy, but conditions escalated quickly as a strong southerly flow built through the morning. Sustained winds pushed past 15 knots, and around 11:00 a.m., a severe thunderstorm rolled through the area. Many anglers later reported that their largest fish of the tournament were caught just before — or during — the rain, a brief window that rewarded teams already in position.
Once the storm passed, winds swung sharply out of the north and temperatures dropped, compressing bite windows and forcing real-time adjustments.
Approaches varied. Some teams focused on securing five fish as quickly as possible, then looking for upgrades. Others committed entirely to big-fish water and big-fish tactics, even if it meant grinding all day for fewer bites. Many anglers paid close attention to keeping fish alive, prioritizing clean execution over marginal gains, especially with live-fish bonuses in play.
Each live speckled trout brought to the scale earned a 0.25-pound bonus, up to 1.25 pounds per day. Hearing “Five Alive” at the weigh station wasn’t just exciting — it meant meaningful weight added to the leaderboard.
By Sunday afternoon, only 12 of the 24 teams ultimately brought fish to the scales, a reflection of just how demanding the second day became.
Day Two Results – When Weather Changed Everything
All teams were required to be checked in and parked at Ralph & Kacoo’s by 3:00 p.m. each day. A strict one-pound-per-minute late penalty ensured punctuality, and all trucks, trailers, and boats were staged before weigh-in began.
Sunday’s weigh-in followed the inverted format. The first team called was the 11th-place team from Saturday, as all teams below them either chose not to enter fish or were unable to bring any to the scales.
Jonas Alexander and Clay Dean waited it out. They would weigh last.
They sat in the truck nearby, stereo turned up loud with AC/DC and other pump-up songs echoing through the lot. Jonas appeared relaxed and confident, feeding off the moment. Clay wore it differently — pacing, watching every bag hit the scale, quietly doing the math as numbers stacked up.
AweSkeet had been here before.
Strong Saturdays.
Promising starts.
Sundays that didn’t always cooperate.
Sunday Weigh-In at Ralph & Kacoo’s – Winter Classic Tradition
Trout Slapper’Z, with Taylor Morrow and Jared Donnelly, delivered the heaviest bag of Sunday at 13.40 pounds, earning the Sunday Heavy Bag award sponsored by Pure Flats (Slick Lure) and Release Over 20. UglyWood, with Patric Garmeson and Trevor Wood, followed closely with 12.59 pounds, while GnR added 11.28 pounds.
AweSkeet didn’t drop the heaviest bag on Sunday, but it was enough. Their 12.40-pound Day Two total, including live-fish bonus, kept them in control.
Every fish weighed throughout the weekend was processed through the Fishing Chaos app. At the scales, Justin Fadalla of Saltwater Finaddicts called each team’s live-fish count and official creel weight. Heather Fadalla entered the data and called it back aloud, while Marty Garmeson assisted alongside them throughout the weigh-in process, creating transparency and redundancy every angler could hear and see.
Day Two and total standings remained hidden from public view. Only the tournament director could see the full picture as results finalized. Once the top three teams were identified, a member of the winning team and a member of the second- or third-place team were selected for polygraph examinations sponsored by Pure Flats.
Winter Classic 2026 Winners and Payouts
First came the Average Joe award, and it delivered some of the most unexpected drama of the afternoon.
With the tournament average landing at 14.57 pounds, Barker Brothers (Noah Barker and Kaleb Barker) finished at 14.32 pounds, while Bay Beast (Jonathan Clark and Joey Bollinger) came in at 14.85 pounds — a margin so small it amounted to roughly the weight of a single lure.
Barker Brothers reached their number by weighing a single two-pound fish on Sunday. Bay Beast brought five fish to the scales both days. Two completely different paths, separated by only a few hundredths of a pound, and a perfect reminder of why you always weigh your fish.
Then came the Lunker Trout and CPR Redfish awards. AweSkeet’s 5.35-pound speckled trout stood all weekend, and GnR’s redfish — entered just 32 minutes into Saturday — had never been challenged.
Then came the podium.
Third place went to Trout Slapper’Z, Taylor Morrow and Jared Donnelly.
Second place followed with GnR, Will Gunnells and Noel Riley.
First place belonged to AweSkeet, Jonas Alexander and Clay Dean.
No gasp.
No shock.
Just release — and a well-earned round of applause.
For Jonas Alexander and Clay Dean, the win was more than a check. AweSkeet has fished the Winter Classic every year. Prior to 2026, their best result was a single second-place finish, despite multiple strong Day One performances followed by difficult Sundays.
This time, discipline held. Execution stayed clean. The Sunday slump finally broke. Second through fourth place were separated by less than a pound — a familiar Winter Classic margi
Conservation Efforts – Live Speckled Trout and CCA Alabama
Live speckled trout deemed healthy enough were tagged and released by Dauphin Island Sea Lab — 90 fish total. Each live fish earned its team a raffle ticket through CCA Alabama, culminating in a grand-prize Power Tech Propeller won by James Montalvo.
Why the Winter Classic Is Different
As anglers mingled at Ralph & Kacoo’s, conversations shifted — not about what happened, but about what almost happened. The one that got away. The broken line. The missed hook-set.
Some wished they’d scouted one more day.
Some wished they’d trusted their first move.
Some wished the storm had hit earlier — or later.
And more than a few wished they could do it all again next weekend.
That feeling isn’t accidental.
It’s the Winter Classic.