Major League Fishing pro Mark Daniels Jr. took home $3,000 of Toyota Bonus Bucks thanks to his second-place finish in the final Bass Pro Tour event of the 2020 season. “MDJ” had an extremely close, back-and-forth battle with eventual winner Justin Lucas on Sturgeon Bay before finishing the Championship Round as the runner-up.

“It always hurts to be close and fall short, but this one stung more than usual,“ Daniels Jr. admits. “I’m just mad at a few lost fish from the final day, but all in all it’s been a great 2020 season. I’m thankful for the life I live and closing the year out with some extra cash from Bonus Bucks definitely softens the sting a bit.”

MDJ relied on a Ned Rig dressed with a Z-Man Finesse TRD in both green pumpkin goby and green pumpkin to trick dozens of Sturgeon Bay smallmouth throughout Stage 5 of the Bass Pro Tour. These two colors are standbys for him when targeting smallmouth. In fact, this combo is the exact same setup he used to win his first pro-level event on Lake Oahe in 2018, which was also dominated by smallies.

Daniels Jr. closed out the 2020 BPT season with an impressive Knockout Round win, which saw him catch over 100-lbs of smallmouth in a single day, and a ninth-place finish in the overall Bass Pro Tour standings. He also cashed two Bonus Bucks checks to the tune of $6K throughout the season… 2020 was good to the Bill Lewis pro indeed!

“I bought a Tundra in 2015 because I thought they were the best looking gas trucks available,” Daniels Jr. says. “On top of that, they support the fishing industry and make a great product. I bought a 2020 Tundra before this season started and I’ve loved the 38-gallon gas tank. That big tank is clutch on long road trips, especially when towing.”

Whether you fish Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine events and team trails on the weekends or you are a full-time touring pro like MDJ, you can earn money through Toyota Bonus Bucks. Payouts are available for hundreds of bass and walleye tournaments, and to be eligible to win you just need to be the highest placing registered participant in a supported tournament.

To get registered, for more information on the program, or for a full list of events follow this link: https://www.toyotatrucksbonusbucks.com/. If you’d rather talk to someone on the phone, just give (918) 742-6424 a ring and ask for Chip or Kendell, they’ll get you taken care of.