Cory Johnston of Peterborough competes on day three of the 2019 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship on Lake St. Clair in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Thomas Allen/Bassmaster Elite Series)

Bassmaster Elite Series anglers Jeff “Gussy” Gustafson of Keewatin, Cory Johnston of Cavan, and brother Chris Johnston of Peterborough have joined rare company in qualifying for the 2020 Bassmaster Classic.

The trio are the first Canadians to qualify for the event since Charles Sim in 2016 and Hank Gibson in 1990. The anglers will compete next March on Lake Guntersville, Alabama, thanks to their successful first seasons in 2019.

Second place finish

The season-ending 2019 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship was held on Lake St. Clair in Detroit, Michigan from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1.

Cory Johnston finished eighth in the tournament, earning him second place for the 2019 BASS Elite Angler of the Year title.

He finished eight points behind the 848 point-total of winner Scott Canterbury of Odenville, Alabama. This season’s series included 75 anglers.

Younger brother Chris — who finished 13th overall this season — claimed two second-place finishes earlier in the year, on St. John’s River, Florida, and the St. Lawrence River, in New York state.  

Ontario OUT of DOORS contributor Gustafson, who finished 28th overall, had a win slip through his fingers previously at Cayuga Lake, New York, where he took second spot.

To find out more about the Bassmaster Elite Series, click here.

For more outdoors news, click here

To read more about bass fishing, click here

Jeff Gustafson. (Photo by James Overstreet/Bassmaster)
Cory Johnston. (Photo by James Overstreet/Bassmaster)
Chris Johnston. (Photo by James Overstreet/Bassmaster)