The 2026 season finale Classic Championship, presented by Moments by Mandie Photography, delivered exactly the kind of early fall grind we’ve come to expect in the Ozarks. My Dad has always said September is the hardest month to consistently catch fish – and I believe it!
Temperatures hovered in the low 80s with overnight lows dipping into the low 60s—a classic transition period that should have suspending, chasing bait, and generally making anglers work for every single inch. But, this is the Classic! Zone Draws! Table Rock! Beaver Lake! What could go wrong?
Day 1 on Table Rock saw a few decent limits and a lot of small limits for that fishery. Day 2 on Beaver Lake lived up to its “Dead Sea” reputation by being stingy, forcing the field to grind through a classic fall dinkfest just to survive. When the dust settled, Levi Schneider slammed the door on an already historic season, backing up a solid 83.50” Day 1 with an 86.50” Day 2 on Beaver to lock up his second consecutive Classic victory. Tyler Zengerle smashed the rest of the field to take back-to-back second-place finishes at the Classic, while Jason Kincy played the survival game on Day 2 to jump onto the podium.
By the Numbers:
- Total Anglers: 26
- Caught at Least One Fish: 96.1%
- Fish Per Angler: A moderate 5.57 FPA – but mostly dink city.
- Limits: At a premium. Only 10 anglers could piece together 5-fish limits across both days separated themselves completely.
The Leaderboard
Here is your final Top 10 for the 2026 Moments by Mandie Photography Classic:
- Levi Schneider – 170.00″
- Tyler Zengerle – 163.25″
- Jason Kincy – 150.00″
- Josh Landreth – 149.50″
- Kase Ingram – 149.25″
- Kyle Long – 148.75″
- Fanny Phomsopha – 147.25″
- John Hall – 145.25″
- Dwain Batey – 144.75″
- John Evans – 138.00″
Big Bass / Heavy Hitters
Big fish were hard to come by, but the ones that showed up were absolute tanks:
- Day 1 Big Bass: Levi Schneider took the Day 1 big bass honors with a 20.25” kicker that anchored his bag, caught on a flutter spoon offshore.
- Day 2 Big Bass: John Hall wrestled a 20.00” monster out of Beaver Lake to take the Day 2 big bass money.
- Season Biggest Bass: At the banquet, Jason Adams was awarded the Biggest Bass of the season for a 21.00” mammoth caught all the way back in the very first event of the year.
Angler Roundtable (Q&A)
Day 1: Table Rock Lake
Where did you go on Table Rock and why?
- Levi Schneider (1st): I went to the Baxter area because I’ve put in a lot of time out there for the past year and a half.
- Tyler Zengerle (2nd): I went to the Baxter area because it had a quality boat ramp, but also in between two major arms that I thought would fit my type of fishing pretty well.
- Jason Kincy (3rd): I’ve never fished that section of Table Rock, so I just looked at the map and wanted to choose a place with some creeks and a mix of pockets and points. I put in at the Indian Creek / Trace Hollow area.
What were some of your key baits or techniques used to catch your fish?
- Levi Schneider: I caught my fish on a 5” minnow, flutter spoon, and a football jig.
- Tyler Zengerle: I caught most of my fish on a Shakey head, but caught some on a jig and spinnerbait.
- Jason Kincy: After doing no good on topwater early, I slowed down and caught a couple on a jig, but it was still tough. Then I went out to fish points with a Carolina rig and Ned rig. Finished the day throwing a Texas rig worm around cover.
What’s the story about your key catch from Day 1?
- Levi Schneider: Around 10:00, I rechecked a piece of offshore cover I had, and a group of fish had pulled up on it. I made one cast with my spoon and managed to call up the big fish of the tourney, the 20.25”.
- Tyler Zengerle: I came to a boat dock that Levi was fishing and he offered me to fish on the other side of it. Obviously, I took his offer without question and caught an 18.25” as soon as he started leaving…thanks again, Levi!
- Jason Kincy: My key catch on Day 1 was late in the day. I was hunting a kicker. I was throwing a big worm around cover and saw a gnarly laydown and just knew it had to have a bass in it. Threw in, thought I was hung up, and then out popped an 18″ largemouth!
Day 2: Beaver Lake
Where did you go on Beaver and why?
- Levi Schneider: I went to Beaver Shores on Day 2 because that area has a lot of options and suits my style well.
- Tyler Zengerle: I chose the Beaver Shores area just because of history and preferred water color.
- Jason Kincy: On Beaver, I was pretty familiar with several areas in the zone, but put in at Monte Ne that I fish quite a bit. Being in 7th place, I wasn’t expecting much.
What were some of your key baits or techniques used to catch your fish?
- Levi Schneider: My Day 2 baits were one on a 4” minnow, I believe one more on a spoon, and then the football jig was magical Day 2 for me.
- Tyler Zengerle: Main baits were mainly a shakey head, and one on a spinnerbait.
- Jason Kincy: Again I started topwater with no luck, but this time I quit that sooner and started throwing a worm and a jig. Caught my kicker first, a 17.75″, and that got me focused for the rest of the day. A while later I caught a 16″ largemouth, but then didn’t catch anything for several hours. Changed up and just went shallow with a jig and caught the rest of my limit. It was tough, tough, and I was shocked that I’d moved up the standings.
What’s the story about your key catch from Day 2?
- Levi Schneider: I’d say my key fish was a 19” largie, but I also had two other key culls that mainly happened because Kase Ingram mentioned he’d caught a 16” smallie on a jig. So I picked mine back up and they crushed it the entire afternoon.
- Tyler Zengerle: Key catch was fish number 5. Although it was only a 14.50”, it was getting to the point where I hadn’t had a bite in awhile and my mind started to spin a little. That helped ease the mind and push me to cull a couple more times the rest of the day.
- Jason Kincy: My key catch really was a 14.5″ bass at 1:03 which got my head back into things and gave me four. I knew I just needed to grind out one more in two hours.
The 2-Day Strategy
What’s the key to a 2-day tournament to put together two back-to-back quality days?
- Levi Schneider: No matter what, find a limit both days. Learn to either manage your areas or burn the most high-percentage spots to the ground, and always be open-minded because fish are always changing throughout the day, and especially across multiple days.
- Tyler Zengerle: For me, it’s all about confidence techniques and trying not to over-analyze anything. I always try to do a little extra map study for places I’ve never gone. Sometimes choosing an area that doesn’t suit your style can start affecting your mental game out the gate, so doing that extra work beforehand can really pay off.
- Jason Kincy: I’ve done really well in some two-day events, and also done very poorly. To me, the key is you can’t win on Day 1 but you can lose it—Day 1 is survival and focus on a limit. Day 2 is about taking what you learned on Day 1 to do a little better and beat the day before. If you can do that, you’ll almost always move up the standings.
AOY & Heavy Hitter Race Update (Season Wrap-Up)
With the Classic in the books, the NSKA NWA season officially comes to a close. Here is how the hardware was handed out at the banquet:
- Angler of the Year: Levi Schneider. Back-to-back AOY titles. He set the all-time club points record with 4 wins and 3 third-place finishes. His instincts are top-tier and his game translates anywhere.
- Arvest Bank Heavy Hitters Champion: Levi Schneider took this season-long award with a massive 95.25″ total.
- Sportsman of the Year: James Haeberle. Better known for his legendary “steak bombs,” Haeberle is the ultimate competitor and club ambassador who has everyone’s back in wins and losses alike.
- Strike King Rookie of the Year: Jobie Vee. The only rookie to qualify for the Classic after committing to a full season in the kayak.
- Team Competition Champions: John Hall, Dwain Batey, Maurilio Gutierrez, and Mandie Adams split $1,500 after dominating the season-long team standings.
Congratulations to all the winners, the qualifiers, and the entire NSKA field on an incredible 2026 season. See you at the ramps in 2027!