In Today’s Newsletter: From wild tournaments and topwater redfish tactics to fishing slang every angler should know, this week’s lineup is packed with stories from the water.

The world-class New River fishery brought over 100 anglers to Pulaski, Virginia, for the third stop of the 2026 Kayak Adventure Series (KAS) presented by GoPro. Anglers from 15 states showed up to compete in the event dubbed the New River Revival and held May 15 to 16.

Lessons from the Mississippi Delta for surface action reds.

A: A “marshmallow slam” is slang for a fish striking a topwater lure softly but explosively, creating a big splash or gulp without the hard, violent hit anglers expect. The term is especially common in bass fishing and inshore saltwater fishing circles. Imagine dropping a marshmallow into hot chocolate—that soft ploof sound and displacement. A marshmallow slam looks like that on the water

A slam requires catching three different species in one outing. Most slams have a theme, such as offshore slam, inshore slam, flats slam and so on. The International Game Fish Association, the official trophy fish clearinghouse, recognizes a variety of one-day slams such as permit, tarpon and bonefish as a flats slam. And, they also award citations for a lifetime Royal Slam for anglers who catch every species of billfish, salmon, bass or other genus.

Some slams are based on anatomical feature of the fish such as a billfish slam. Others slams are location-based. For saltwater kayak anglers in the tropics, an inshore slam consists of a tarpon, bonefish and permit. In the Northeast, an inshore slam includes bluefish, striped bass and false albacore.

There are also freshwater slams. Of course, three species of black bass in one day or all 10 black bass species in a lifetime is admired from coast to coast. In the mountains, a trout slam of rainbow, brook and brown trout gets respect.

Sometimes a lucky angler scores a slam without trying. More often, maniacal anglers looking for a real challenge set out to catch three species in one day. This often requires using a wide variety of tackle and tactics, changing locations, and persistence and dedication to stick to the plan. As soon as you catch one species to satisfy the slam, you have to switch to the next species. This goes against the old adage, “never leave fish to find fish.”

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