MORE ANGLERS THAN ever participated in the Yamaha Rightwaters Bassmaster Kayak Series scored by TourneyX in 2023, with over 100 anglers from across the country competing in each of the five tournaments. It was a season of big bass and big bags, and at the end, Rus Snyders claimed the 2023 Dakota Lithium Bassmaster Kayak Angler of the Year award. Here’s how the top competitors got it done.
Lake Guntersville, March 4-5
Through his Bassmaster Elite Series career, Greg DiPalma has been to Lake Guntersville several times, but he notched his first career Bassmaster win at the historic fishery in his first-ever kayak event. His 189.75-inch two-day total edged out South Carolina’s Ryan Thompson by over 2 inches.
“I just like bass fishing. I burn to fish tournaments, and this is why I do it,” DiPalma said. “I’m super-excited. We all want to win, but I wasn’t expecting to just come out here and win the very first one.
“I’m going to take my kayak back home and rub it against my bass boat for good luck.”
After landing in fourth with 93.75 inches after the first day, DiPalma caught 96 inches on Sunday to jump into the top spot. Prior to this tournament, DiPalma’s best finishes at Guntersville were 18th place during a 2019 Elite event and 23rd place during the 2020 Bassmaster Classic, an event he firmly believes he could have won had a strong storm system not muddied his primary area.
When a powerful cold front brought severe storms and wind to northern Alabama the final day of practice for the Kayak Series event, DiPalma thought the same thing might happen this time around. Fortunately for him, the water in his area wasn’t drastically affected.
DiPalma’s key bait was one he designed. That was the
