Bassmaster Elite Series Rookie Disqualified for Failing Lie Detector Test

The 2024 Bassmaster Elite Series season wrote its final chapter on Sunday when Cory Johnston hoisted the big blue trophy above his head on the St. Lawrence River in New York. Just 24 hours earlier, his brother, Chris Johnston, hoisted the coveted Angler of the Year trophy. It was undoubtedly a great weekend for the Canadian duo, but their victories were overshadowed by controversy surrounding other competitors in the Elite Series rookie class.

Elite Series rookie Trey McKinney became the youngest Rookie of the Year winner in history on Saturday. It’s hard to deny that McKinney didn’t earn his ROY title, and if it weren’t for a misstep at Smith Lakehe may have even made a bid for the more prestigious AOY title. But for the St. Lawrence River event, he was running in the ROY behind another young, promising angler, JT Thompkins.

Both McKinney and Thompkins had incredible first seasons on tour, but received a fair amount of criticism from fans for their extensive use of forward-facing sonar. Whether you consider them dynamic anglers or not, the two young stars set a great stage for the final ROY battle. That is, until Thompkins was disqualified from the final event on Friday, August 16. Details surrounding the DQ are scarce and the rumor mill is abuzz with wild accusations. Here’s what we know and what we don’t.

Disqualification JT Thompkins

On August 16th Bassmaster published a press release on its website informing fans that JT Thompkins had been disqualified from the final event “for failing a truth verification exam.” The polygraph was administered during Friday’s event, reportedly due to a protest by another competitor regarding Rule C3 ii a and Rule C3 (xiv):

  • Rule C3 ii a states that anglers “may not collect waypoints or specific fishing locations, such as a creek, river, part of the lake, etc., from a source that is not publicly accessible.”
  • Rule C3 (xiv) states that “anglers shall not log onto websites or participate in social media during competition days with the intention of gaining a competitive advantage.”

Bassmaster did not provide details on specific rules Thompkins may have violated or whether there was evidence to support his disqualification beyond the results of the truth verification investigationwhich may have included more criteria than just a lie detector test. But the result of the disqualification was that Thompkins would receive zero points toward either the AOY or ROY standings. This put Trey McKinney back at the top of the race, where he remained until he was crowned ROY on Saturday. ROY race aside, Thompkins’ disqualification has raised a few flags in the pro bass fishing community. The first reflects a growing distrust with lie detector tests and their validity. That’s the hill where Thompkins dies in his statement after his disqualification:

“As we know, these lie detectors are not 100 percent accurate and I fully believe I did nothing wrong,” Thompkins says in his video. However, in the same video, he also admits to watching videos online, which is prohibited under Rule C3(XIV). “With the social media thing, I did the same thing everybody else does. You go out there and you watch your competitors, you know their catches and I was on FOX on day one and I watched some of my catches.”

Major League Fishing has launched an investigation into the validity of allegations that a Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour cameraman sold Thompkins waypoints, according to Thompkins’ father. The elder Thompkins posted the statement in a Facebook video that has since been removed, but a recording is still available at YouTube.

At the time this article went to press, Bassmaster officials had not responded to numerous requests for comment from Outdoor living. Thompkins also did not respond to a request for comment. It is also unclear how long it will take for Major League Fishing and Bassmaster to conduct their investigation or whether the results will be made public. Whatever the outcome, it is a tough way to see an incredible rookie season come to an end.

The rumor mill is buzzing about the Rookie class

If you’ve been following the Bassmaster Elite Series this season, you know as well as I do how much controversy this rookie class has seen. From wild accusations of waypoint buying to outright fraudto more subtle things like running through off-guard zones, the rookie class has been in trouble all year.

Even if all of these rumors turn out to be untrue, their existence is problematic and it is concerning to see so many of the rookie class under such scrutiny. These young anglers are the future of the sport, and taking a hardline love-’em-or-hate-’em attitude (especially based on rumors) is not good for bass fishing in the long run. As a fan of the sport, I hope the truth comes out.

Derek Horner