Jesse Wiggins and Waddell Discuss Fishing Instincts and Forward-Facing Sonar
Join Host Michael Waddell as he sits down with popular Major League Fishing (MLF) pro bass angler Jesse Wiggins, who currently ranks in the Top 20 on MLF's Bass Pro Tour (BPT). Wiggins has fished 90+ MLF tournaments, stood on top of the podium 5 times, finished in the Top 10 nearly a third of the time and has more than $1.2 million in career winnings. Wiggins first qualified for the Elite Series of the Bass Pro Shops B.A.S.S. Circuit in 2016 and fished the complete series the next season. In an 18-month period (2016-2017), he won three Opens, and his first national tour-level win was at the MLF's BPT Stage 4 on the Lake of the Ozarks in 2022, and he's our special guest on The Michael Waddell Podcast, presented by Spandau Arms and in partnership with Folds of Honor, Cigars International and Poncho Outdoors. Born and raised in northcentral Alabama on the edge of the Bankhead National Forest and the massive Smith Lake fishery, formed when the Alabama Power Company dammed the Sipsey Fork of the Black Warrior River, Wiggins and his two brothers were taught to fish by their father on those local waters, and Wiggins claims to love deer and turkey hunting almost as much as he loves bass fishing.
In this podcast, Jesse Wiggins and Waddell cover a wide variety of topics but focus, naturally, on Wiggins' competitive bass-fishing career, which started for his brother Jordan and him when they were very young because their father loved to bass fish, even fished competitively in some local tournaments, and he got the boys involved when they were small children. Wiggins can't remember when he caught his first fish, but he fished in his first tournament when he was just five years old.
"Hunting and fishing was our life," began Wiggins. "Me and my brother started fishing tournaments when we got into 9th, 10th, 11th Grade, and it was like, we could either go hang out all night or we could go back and tie jigs or build lures, or get a boat working somehow so we could go fishing Saturday morning. …I remember when we were younger we'd fish Friday night, go home and sleep a couple of hours, and then get up and fish the Saturday morning tournament, and then fish the Tuesday night tournament. It just kept us out of so much trouble because we had some freedom and could have done whatever, but we always chose to just go fishing – or hunting – either one. I look back and think, we're so lucky to make it out just loving fishing. …A lot of people listening grew up the same way. That's what I try to promote – hunting and fishing. It keeps people out of trouble, no doubt in my mind. It just grew to be a passion, and we [Wiggins and his brother] took it to a way bigger level than I ever thought was possible!"
Now that Wiggins has found consistent success at the highest level of professional bass fishing, people often question whether he ever gets tired of fishing. "The fishing part is fun," said Wiggins, "that ain't work! Being gone [from home] is the worst part – the truck-driving part of it. That's my least favorite part of it. People don't realize that we might be gone six or seven days fishing, but we're also gone three more days traveling a lot of times. It's that kind of thing that people don't realize. But, it's just worth it. I always say, like, speaking of New York and smallmouth…you drive to New York, and it's 18 hours from home to get there, and all you can think about is that first four- or five-pound smallmouth you hook into, and as soon as you get there and hook it, you're like, 'Okay, it was worth it! It was worth it!' It would be just like going hunting somewhere and, as soon as you get to sling that first arrow, you think, 'Okay, it was worth it! It was worth all that waiting.' It's the same feeling. But I'm lucky to get to do it, for sure. I'm extremely blessed, lucky and all that good stuff."
The Michael Waddell Podcast is produced by Outdoor Sportsman Group and is available widely on Outdoor Channel YouTube, MyOutdoorTV, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and OutdoorChannel.com, to name a few.
"It was a lot of sacrifice," said Wiggins, when asked about what it took to get started. "Don't get me wrong, I'd sacrifice [to do it again] tomorrow, for sure. But like I said before, all the the high school night life, all that was off the table. You sacrificed that to be fishing. People would always get mad at us for fishing and winning [maybe mad isn't the right word], and they'd ask how we were winning – We fished! That's what we did. I make the joke that our summer job the year we got out of high school – well, my brother was one year younger – but the year he got out of high school, I'd already been out, but our summer job was fishing all those night tournaments. 'As long as we win, we can make way more money winning these than we can working.'" Wiggins thought. "This is way more fun…"
"My Grandpa built houses," continued Wiggins, "and that's what we did in the summer. We helped him build, and I hated every second of it. I'm not scared to admit it. I'll tell him; I hated it. It was decent money, and he needed help. Shout out to my Grandpa – he built every house that my family lives in! …But that's what I grew up doing, and I knew I hated that, so I was like, if we could fish… and then we won some money those early years, and I'm like, 'This is the best thing I've ever seen – getting paid money to go fishing.' …I knew pro angling was a thing, I was a fan, but I didn't think it was possible [to make a living at it]. I didn't know anybody who did it, and I didn't have a clue how to get there. We just went fishing in tournaments and wanted to win."
"When I first realized that if we can catch fish, we can make a living doing this, I just kept on," continued Wiggins. "I kept making my way up through the smaller ranks. I just fished around the house. I figured, as long as I can make money fishing, that's the money I'm going to spend fishing. So, I never went into any kind of debt doing it…I just nickel and dimed my way up to where I could get new stuff – I didn't even have a boat that had a fishfinder on it until 2012, and I started fishing professionally in 2016, so I felt like I was so behind…but it just seemed like I'd keep catching fish in those tournaments and just keep doing good."
"Half the time the motor wouldn't even crank on our boat [an old Johnson 200]," confided Wiggins, "and at night before the tournament, we'd have to figure out a way to get the boat working, floating, batteries charging, getting them off other vehicles, charging them. We didn't have any money. We were just doing what we could. We knew that if we could get the boat in the water and it would float, we'd have a chance. …That's what me and my brother grew up doing, and he fishes the circuit lower than mine right now, and he's trying to qualify for our circuit. He's better than I am, in my opinion. He can catch 'em!" Wiggins added with a smile.
When asked what advice he has for young people who dream about fishing professionally, Wiggins had the following to say: "For sure, now, the way it's set up with high school fishing and college fishing, it would be hard not to do some of that…especially if colleges will cover travel and stuff to the tournaments. That's a sure-fire way to get started. Start in high school, and then go to college, and you can fish and get your degree. And once you get out there, you may decide that this isn't for you, being out on the road and doing it; so, you don't want to just forget college. …If you grew up like I did – not a bunch of money – I'd strongly suggest doing the college fishing route. Because you're going to get so much experience, and it's going to be on the college. A lot of the colleges will pay for housing and give you gas money. A lot of it is paid for, so that's certainly a good route to take because you're going to network, you'll get with people… But, if you're fortunate enough to have a dad or parents or grandparents who will pay for you to be out there, Man, then you just have to be on the water. You have to get in those tournament settings, and get your mindset in the tournament mindset, where it's competition... Go to lakes you haven't been to, learn them, get in tournaments on those lakes, and just learn them. That's if you have the means, the funds. If Daddy can support you to get out there, like I said, I'm totally jealous, I wish I could have done that because I feel like I had the work ethic but just didn't have the funds. But do that. Get out there. Fish tournaments. Get out there and learn!"
"If you start catching them regionally around your house," Wiggins continued, "then work your way up. Even if you're having your bill footed for you. Work your way up. You'll have the base of knowledge that you can always fall back on. Even now, fishing professionally, I [have got to try] different stuff, whatever bait is supposed to be hot for that lake, but if it doesn't work out, I'm still going back to my Shaky Head and my Chatterbait, the stuff that I'm going to use no matter; it's always tied on. So, you get your confidence – you build your confidence when you're younger and learning how to do it, and then you just work your way up. There are avenues now, both leagues – Bassmasters and Major League Fishing – have avenues to start from when you're young and you can work your way up like I did."
"I'm so grateful that Jesse Wiggins found the time to visit with me," said Waddell, "and go fishing with me, too! I'm so proud of what he has accomplished. He comes from a blue-collar background, and he's a real scrapper who is living his American dream catching fish. I'm excited to see where his career goes from here, and knowing him and his work ethic, I won't be surprised to see him reach all his goals, whether it's tournament wins, 'Angler of the Year' recognition, or 'Father of the Year.'"
The Michael Waddell Podcast releases new episodes every other week.
Waddell's story began in the backwoods of Booger Bottom, Georgia, where he grew up surrounded by nature, family, and a love for the outdoors. A self-proclaimed "rowdy redneck," his passion for hunting and storytelling led him to win a Realtree turkey-calling contest, which launched his career in the outdoor industry. From guiding and filming hunts to creating hit shows like Realtree Road Trips and Bone Collector, Waddell has become a beloved figure in the outdoor world.
About Outdoor Sportsman Group: Outdoor Sportsman Group is comprised of the world's foremost media and entertainment brands for outdoor adventure enthusiasts. It includes four leading multichannel networks: Outdoor Channel, Sportsman Channel, World Fishing Network, and GAME & FISH TV, a dynamic new Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) channel dedicated to sports enthusiasts and outdoor lovers. Additionally, Outdoor Sportsman Group operates Sportsman Channel (Canada) and MOTV, the world's leading subscription streaming platform created for outdoor lifestyle enthusiasts. The Group also consists of numerous established publishing assets, including 14 outdoor magazines such as Guns & Ammo, Game & Fish, Petersen's HUNTING, and In-Fisherman, along with 20 top websites. Outdoor Sportsman Group also includes television production operations through Winnercomm. For more information, visit www.outdoorsg.com.