The YakOff Awards were created to provide an opportunity for the kayak fishing community to engage socially, learn from one another, ask questions, give answers and share ideas so we can MacGyver our boats to best suit our needs and enhance that precious time on the water.

Spring 2025 marked the first-ever YakOff Awards and even our expectations were blown out of the water! Thousands of fishing fans voted on the best rigging setup, crowning Jake Suvak as the inaugural YakOff Champion. The field of anglers forged great friendships along the way, reaching new fans and even gaining some sponsorships from participating brands. Building on this success, Kayak Angler is launching Season II of the YakOff Awards.

An NCAA bracket-style tournament—the YakOffs pits kayak anglers against one another en route to becoming the YakOff Champion! Plus, the winner earns:

• A spotlight in Kayak Angler’s 2026 Spring Print Issue
• A branded spotlight page on kayakanglermag.com
• The YakOff Championship Belt and bragging rights
• $2,500.00 USD cash prize!

Through stories, pictures, videos, interviews and engagement, our audience will vote weekly on who moves forward in the competition and is crowned the YakOff Champion! The winner of each weekly matchup will be announced here on the following Monday at noon ET.

Follow along on our socials, vote daily and watch for ways to earn extra entries for a chance to win one of three grand prize packages—and, new this season, Battle Prizes to be given away during weekly matchups!

For more information, please see About the YakOff Awards.