Arlington 2022

Columbia River

May 13-15, 2022

Presented by RomanMade + A1 Tactical

Old Blue Eyes would’ve been proud of Ken Mah. No question, Sinatra was the better singer, but the angler from Elk Grove, Calif. tackled a new fishery with an “I’ll do it my way” attitude and won the APEX Pro Tour event on the Columbia River presented by RomanMade Japan and A1 Tactical Outdoors with 21.79 pounds.

With smallmouth bass numerically dominating this impressive Pacific Northwest fishery, Mah took a page out of the playbook he’s used for years on West Coast powerhouses like the California Delta. He got out of the current, focused on prespawn habitat and targeted big largemouth bass like the 6.81-pounder anchoring his Day-3 bag.

“I shy away from smallmouth bass, but if there are green ones (largemouth), the water’s dirty and there’s grass, that’s where I’m going,” Mah said.

Often, the story’s in the stats and this event was no exception.