Derek Daniels and Michael Johnson Tame Okeechobee, Win 2026 Falcon Boats Divisional Series Championship presented by Mercury Marine

Okeechobee, FL- Derek Daniels of Macclenny and Michael Johnson of Raiford topped a field of 125 teams at the 2026 Falcon Boats Divisional Series Championship presented by Mercury Marine on Lake Okeechobee. The Harris Chain and North River qualifiers sat second after day one with 23.30 pounds. On the final day they weighed the heaviest bag of the tournament, a 27.85 pound limit, and won by more than 6 pounds with a 51.15 pound two-day total.

For the win, Daniels and Johnson took home a certificate for a new Falcon F205 powered by a Mercury 250 Pro XS. It comes rigged with a Lowrance Ghost-X trolling motor, two Lowrance Elite FS-12 units and two 8′ Power-Pole Blades, a package valued at $115,000 MSRP. A 7.45 pound kicker anchored their final day bag and earned 2nd Big Bass on day two, worth another $400. The duo also fished 12 or more events this season in the Frequent Fishing Program. As the highest finishing FFP team at the Championship, they earned the Michael J. Blocher Memorial Award and an additional $500.

In all, the Championship paid out $149,470 in cash and prizes, with checks going 25 deep through the field.

Talk around the ramp, from anglers in the field and those watching from afar, was that Okeechobee would fish tough and that forward facing sonar would decide it. Daniels and Johnson proved otherwise, and so did every team in the top 20. The critics got their answer at the scales. On the Big O, the grass (what little is left of it) still plays, still pays, and still proves you don’t need forward facing sonar to compete.

The winners leaned on one small stretch for both days of competition, and finding it didn’t come easy.

“As of Tuesday morning, I had three bites all practice, and I found them on Tuesday,” Johnson said.

“Swim jigs in the grass. We just found a good stretch,” Daniels said. “He found all the fish. We just had to catch them, and it’s all him.”

They weren’t alone on it.

“The guys that finished second, we were on the same fish, same stretch. We shared it for two days,” Johnson said. “They were awesome. Obviously the stretch was good. First and second place.”

Johnson already runs a 21 foot Falcon of his own, and the big lake gave it a workout all week. “Arguably the best riding boat I’ve ever been in,” he said. “We cut straight across the lake. We didn’t let off the gas.”

Walls and Crews Take Second

Shane Walls of Lakeland and David Crews of Lake Wales, the team sharing that stretch, weighed a 22.26 pound limit on day two to finish second with 44.95 pounds.

“We caught all our fish casting spinnerbaits and swim jigs in the grass,” Walls said.

“It was all history. We found one little stretch, and that was all we found,” Crews added. “We hit them hard two days and leaned on them real hard [on day one]. We didn’t have quite what we wanted today. We lost some key fish, and that hurt us, but we had a great time.”

Walls and Crews took home $4,000 and two 8′ Power-Pole Blades, a total value of $9,000.

2024 Champions Finish Third

Chad Schroeder of Zephyrhills and Anthony Cilladi of Oviedo were chasing their second championship. The 2024 champions sat third after day one, well within reach of a second boat in three years. A 21.49 pound limit on day two brought them to 44.60 pounds, just 0.35 pound out of second.

“We had a really good practice. We caught 18 to 20 pounds a day and never even went to where we practiced,” Schroeder said. “We found a little spot Thursday and spent two days there. Never even went to our other spots. In hindsight, maybe we should have made that run.”

“It was super fun. We caught a pile of fish both days,” Cilladi added. “We were just lacking that big bite, which is what you need to win one of these things. But we’re happy with how it all worked out, and we both gave it all.”

“Wish we could win another boat,” Schroeder said, “but we’ll take it.”

The third place finish paid $2,500 and a new Lowrance HDS Pro 12, a total value of $5,870.

Wieteha and Hoinig Climb Eight Spots

Matt Wieteha and Nick Hoinig of Port St. Lucie started the final day in 12th with 18.55 pounds. They had ground to make up but were far from out of it. A 23.54 pound bag on day two moved them up eight spots to fourth with 42.09 pounds.

“[Day one] was kind of a hodgepodge. I think we weighed five fish on four different baits,” Wieteha said. “Today we started to run the same plan, and about 11:00 we had two fish that [barely] weighed two pounds. We said we’ve got to make something happen and ran to some fish we only got to fish for a little bit [on day one]. Let’s just say we left them biting.”

Sitting in the hot seat with the top five still to weigh, Hoinig knew the lead wasn’t safe.

“It’s been tough, but 20 a day is usually pretty solid when it’s tough like this,” he said. “But it’s Lake Okeechobee. Anybody can catch a 25, 26, 27 pound bag and take it home.”

Wieteha and Hoinig took home $2,000 for fourth.

Day One Leaders Round Out the Top Five

Clayton Walls of Lithia and Brantley Hall of Plant City started the final day with the target on their backs after a tournament leading 24.23 pounds. That bag included a 7.90 pound kicker that earned 2nd Big Bass on day one and $400.

“Caught them flipping reeds the first day and throwing frogs to the reeds the second day, in 2 1/2 foot of water,” Walls said.

Walls and Hall added a 16.17 pound limit on day two to finish fifth with 40.40 pounds, worth $1,500.

Fitzgerald Fishing Team of the Year

Junior Solis and George Short finished seventh with a 39.93 pound two-day total. That finish earned the Garcia Division CopperState Tackle Points Champions Fitzgerald Fishing Team of the Year honors. The award includes no-cost entry into one division of their choosing for the 2027 season and a prize pack from Fitzgerald Fishing.

Big Bass

Calan Hawkins and Austin Baskette caught the biggest bass of the tournament, an 8.66 pound Trophy Catch on day two worth $850. Danny Glisson and Clay Mock took Big Bass on day one with an 8.63 pound Trophy Catch, also worth $850.

Thank You to Our Partners

The continued success of the Xtreme Bass Series rests on the partners who back it season after season, from the first division event of the year to the final weigh-in on Okeechobee. Thank you to title sponsor Falcon Boats and presenting sponsor Mercury Marine, along with Power-Pole, Lowrance, CopperState Tackle, Blackjack Media Group, Visit Central Florida Sports, Fitzgerald Fishing, Aqua Tech Marine, Catch Commander, Secure Outdoors, MarineTec Systems and BassBoat4Sale.com for their support all year long. Thank you to the Okeechobee County Tourist Development Council for hosting this year’s Championship, and to Yamamoto and Big Bite Baits for donating product to fill the angler bags.

Looking Ahead to 2027

The 2027 Falcon Boats Divisional Series kicks off in January with new divisions and some big changes. Membership opens December 1, and full schedules and updated rules will be posted at XtremeBassSeries.com in the coming weeks. The season wraps up Oct. 21 to 23, 2027, when the Divisional Series Championship heads to Lake Seminole out of Bainbridge, Georgia.

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