John Stewart
Apex 2022
In His own words:
When you’re tournament fishing, you’re going against a lot of good anglers in a losing sport and that’s why the relationships are the biggest accomplishment. We all start at the bottom and have to learn. I am an open book
to anyone that wants to get started. I think that is what APEX is all about – getting the non-traditional tournament fisherman into tournament fishing to grow the West. It is a great honor to be considered as one of the best western anglers, to be invited to APEX as a pioneer for a platform to be something great and to show
the rest of the country that the West does have competitive anglers and a good bass following. It will be an opportunity to grow the sport here like you find in the
South Eastern portion of the country, like in Texas, Alabama, and Florida.
Hometown:
Peoria, AZ
Highlights:
The friendships and camaraderie of the bass fishermen he’s met throughout the last decade are more important than wins.
Behind the angler:
Fishing with his father for trout and catfish was the way
John was introduced to the sport. His father-in-law’s bass boat and participation in tournament fishing ignited John’s interest into competitive events. A friend of his father-in-law took him on as a partner at a bass club. That exploded into more friends, team partners and events.
In the boat:
John’s current style is anything that covers water. His go-to lure is a crankbait. On board, John carries what he calls a “small tackle shop”. He is loaded with dropshot worms, swimbaits, and jig and ChatterBait trailers made by Arizona Custom Baits as well as additional plastics including the Yamamoto Senko and weights from Eco Pro Tungsten, His gear includes Phenix Rods paired with Daiwa reels.
