10 MLF Anglers to Watch Ahead of the 2022 Bass Pro Tour

With the 2022 Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour about to open, you should familiarize yourself with these anglers.

Listing professional anglers by their chances of winning the Major League Fishing Pro Bass Tour is no easy task. The easiest way to rank anglers for an upcoming season would be to take a look at the previous year's Angler of the Year rankings.

Only that wouldn't tell the whole story or take into account the ebbs and flows that play a crucial role in the long professional bass fishing season.

Here are the 10 best anglers on Major League Fishing's Bass Pro Tour.

1. Jacob Wheeler

After his dominating season last year, Wheeler is clearly the best angler in the Bass Pro Tour field, where he won three of the seven events. He also won the Angler of the Year title last season.

This wasn't a new trend, as he's consistently finished in the top 10 in points for several years, no matter what professional tour he was fishing at the time. He was third in 2020 and fourth in 2019 on the Bass Pro Tour.

2. Ott DeFoe

Tennessee pro Ott DeFoe is in the same class of Wheeler, and he hardly ever has a bad event. He's one of the most consistent professional anglers with second-place finishes in the year-end points race two years in a row. He's always a threat to win and usually gets at least one event victory a year. Can he turn that into season-wide success?

3. Michael Neal

Neal is in the upper echelon of professional anglers. He has a calm demeanor and can catch fish in just about any water across the country. Neal finally got his first big win in 2021 and already added another this year on the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit. He's on a roll and should stay near the top of the rankings for several more years.

4. Jeff Sprague

Sprague had some success on the FLW Tour before joining the Bass Pro Tour, but like many in the field he lacked name recognition. That's changed since 2019 and he's caught fish just about everywhere he's been. His final points standings brought him up to second in 2019, fourth in 2020, and ninth in 2021. Though he's lesser-known, some would say he's one of the best in the world.

5. Brent Ehrler

The California pro is well-known from his FLW days and has several big wins, and while he hasn't won on the Bass Pro Tour yet, he won the first-ever Major League Fishing tournament on Lake Amistad years ago.

Since switching to the Bass Pro Tour, he finished third in the 2019 Angler of the Year standings and matched that mark in 2021. He's overdue for an Angler of the Year title or another big event win.

6. Jordan Lee

Lee, the two-time Bassmaster Classic champion, makes things look easy with his laid-back style, but he's all business on the water. He won the first ever Bass Pro Tour event in 2019 and added a win at Heavy Hitters in 2020 on the way to that year's Angler of the Year title.

He had a down year (for him) last season, finishing the season in 37th, but he's still one of the best in the field.

7. Justin Lucas

The Californian-turned-Alabamian has been one of the best anglers in the world for several years and it seems like he's always in contention. Lucas has won on the Bassmaster Elite Series, the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit, and also on the Bass Pro Tour. He wrapped up 2021 in fifth place and could easily improve on that this year.

8. Edwin Evers

Since winning a big event, REDCREST, and the Angler of the Year in 2019, Evers hasn't been in contention since. But he's more than capable of winning any event on the schedule.

9. Dustin Connell

The Alabama pro scored big at REDCREST in 2021 and took home the win and $300,000. That wasn't a fluke, either, as he ended his first two years on the Bass Pro Tour in the top 10 in points, and he was 22nd overall last year.

10. Bobby Lane

For a Florida angler, Lane is extremely versatile and can do much more than just flip and punch grass. He's shown his skills across the country and scored top finishes and consistent performances everywhere he's been.

NEXT: EVERYTHING YOU MISSED FROM THE 2021 MLF SEASON