Before Sunday’s Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour Stage One Championship, before the two straight Bassmaster Classic titles, and before the more than $1.6 million in winnings, MLF pro Jordan Lee was a rookie on Lake Toho fishing his first-ever B.A.S.S. tournament. Making his debut at 23-years-old, Lee struggled in his first tournament, finishing in 105th place out of 194 anglers in the B.A.S.S. Southern Open.
Ask Lee what he remembers most about that tournament and it’s not the fish he landed, but instead, his future wife.
At least something positive came from it, right? A middle-of-the-pack finish sent Lee home with no money and a lot of unanswered questions about Kissimmee.
Fast forward to a little over five years later and Jordan Lee is on top of the professional fishing world after claiming the first-ever MLF Bass Pro Tour Stage One title on the same body of water where he began his career. Lee has come a long way in a short time, but it doesn’t come as much of a surprise to anyone who knows him.
Wiggins finished 15th in that B.A.S.S. Southern Open back in 2014. Lee’s ability to learn from his past is what Wiggins believes makes him so great today.
Another angler who was in that B.A.S.S. field in 2014, MLF pro Justin Lucas. He says Lee’s improvement on Lake Toho and Lake Kissimmee comes from two distinct factors.
His fellow anglers are not shocked by Lee’s climb to the top of the bass-fishing world. But Lee continues to stay humble. He says that if you would’ve told him after that 105th-place finish in 2014 that he’d be where he is today, he wouldn’t have believed you.
With an entire career still in front of him, Lee still enjoys looking back and seeing how much he’s improved in a short amount of time.
Decision making has absolutely helped mold Lee into the angler he is today. However, Lucas believes that the biggest difference between the wide-eyed 23-year-old rookie and the pro that topped Toho last week is time.
Lee will look to continue to stay hot as the MLF Bass Pro Tour heads to Lake Conroe, Texas for the MLF Bass Pro Tour Huk Stage Two Presented by Favorite Fishing. The event begins Tuesday, Feb. 12 and runs through Sunday, Feb. 17.