2021 Master Angler Awards Recap

2021 marked the 45th year of In‑Fisherman's Master Angler Awards Program, begun in the early years of the magazine's existence to reward anglers on their angling achievements, and as a way to let readers know about productive fisheries throughout North America. Master Angler Awards are available for 27 fish species categories or hybrids, and anglers can apply for fish caught within six geographic regions.

Awards are available for both released and kept fish, based on length and weight criteria, respectively. Anglers who enter a qualifying fish receive a Master Angler patch and species chevron patch. In each region, anglers who enter the largest fish of a species also receive a Master Angler certificate. Rules and the Master Angler Awards application can be found online at in-fisherman.com and in most issues of In-Fisherman magazine and annual guides.

At the conclusion of each year, 10 Master Angler Award recipients are randomly selected to receive a fishing prize package, courtesy of Plano and Frabill. Winners receive a Plano Guide Series Tackle Bag and Frabill Trophy Haul Net.

In 2021, there were 427 Master Angler Awards representing 27 species and hybrids. Entries were up about 10 percent over 2020's total of 390 entries. 2021 was a banner year for smallmouth bass awards, with 75 smallmouths qualifying, surpassing largemouth bass, which logged 45 awards. Crappies also had a strong showing with 47 awards, followed by channel cats (32), pike (27), muskies (20), and walleyes (24). Some notable big fish of 2021 included Peter Trumpower's 82-pound 4-ounce grass carp, caught on a Road Runner on 6-pound test line. Daniel Wielobob's 4.02-pound white crappie was just a hair shy of Pennsylvania's state record crappie. Father-son duo Joseph Willard Jr. and Joseph Willard III submitted a pair of catch-and-release 9-pound-plus largemouths.

Several impressive esocids were caught, including Luke Olejniczak's 54-inch muskie and Jim Golla's 50-inch Alaskan pike. Mark Alexander Foster's 34-inch walleye is impressive. Several channel cats stretched the tape to 37 inches, with several smallmouths over 22 in the pool of recipients.

Many anglers qualified for multiple awards. Leading the way, each with 7 awards, were Mark Alexander Foster, Bill Hegyi, and Danny Kurttila, with qualifying entries for 6, 7, and 6 species, respectively!

Click here for the full results.

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