Jan. 25, 2025

 

EVANS, Ga. — It didn’t result in many bites, but Chase Clarke perfectly executed a big-bass pattern to win the weather-shortened St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Clarks Hill Reservoir presented by SEVIIN with a two-day total of 47 pounds, 7 ounces.

The 2022 Auburn University graduate caught three 6-pound or better largemouth during the tournament, two on the first day that lifted him to a daily total of 25-14 and one on the second day that anchored his 21-9 Day 2 total. Those two bags propelled him over second-place Blaine Bunney by 6 pounds.

“I caught the right ones, but they were frustrating. They were so hard to catch,” the Virginia Beach pro said. “I figured I would only catch 10 or 11 bass a day, and I figured if I did that, I would have a good bag. Both days I happened to catch 6-pounders. I couldn’t have drawn it up any better.”

With the win, Clarke is the first angler to clinch their spot in the 2026 Bassmaster Classic, given he competes in the final three tournaments in Division I. Clarke was in contention to win an Open at Leech Lake last year, but fell short with a third-place finish.

As he drove to the boat ramp this morning, those same feelings he felt the final morning at Leech came flooding back to him.

“That was only four tournaments ago, and to have another opportunity this soon … this is a win of a lifetime and one I will never forget. I will always cherish this.”

Several curveballs were thrown at the Opens competitors this week, starting with frigid temperatures and a winter storm that pushed through the area Tuesday. The snowfall from that storm forced the postponement of Day 1 scheduled for Thursday and shortened the event to two days.

Each morning, Clarke started by fishing ditches on the Georgia side of the lake before moving to the South Carolina side in the afternoons. While other anglers fished in the “abyss”, Clarke caught all of his bass in 35 feet of water or less.

In the mornings, he saw the bass suspended 10 feet under the surface over 35 feet of water, while one of his 6-pounders came in the back of a ditch where the bottom was in 10 feet of water. As the day wore on, brushpiles became his main target.

“They would push up way shallow in the backs of the ditches in the mornings and then in the afternoons I was catching them in brushpiles. It didn’t matter how deep the brushpile was, it just mattered where it was. And the brush had to have blueback herring around it.”

Clarke figured out early on that largemouth would be the key to cashing a check on Clarks Hill, so when he did catch a largemouth, he would pick apart that area searching for more. A Greenfish Tackle Bad Little Shad jighead paired with a Fluke-style bait was his best presentation.

He used several different sizes of that jighead throughout the tournament, but he always used one with a 3/0 hook to make sure he kept the bass pegged.

After practice, Clarke did not think he would have a chance to win, but he did locate a small group of big largemouth that ended up being a crucial part of his tournament.

“I had what I would call a magic brushpile,” he explained. “I caught a 6-pounder out of it the first day of practice and I could see there were four more in there. I went back (Day 1), and it took me about 30 minutes, but I caught another one. So, there were three left. I started there this morning, and they were gone.”

That brushpile happened to be in the mouth of a ditch, so Clarke went all the way to the back of the ditch but couldn’t find those bass until he heard a splash behind him.

“About the time I u-turned to go back out, I heard something bust the water,” Clarke said. “And it was right in the reflection of the sun, so I couldn’t see anything. I panned over with my trolling motor and saw two of those bass. I made a really long cast and got the bait to them at 110 feet out.”

Those bass followed his bait back to within 20 feet of the boat before another largemouth Clarke did not see swam up from the bottom to eat his lure. That 6-2 largemouth anchored his bag for the day.

With just two bass in the livewell around 10:30, Clarke hooked up with another big largemouth. After working it to the boat, he was able to lip it and bring it in the boat, where the hook immediately fell out of the bass’s mouth. That 5-10 bass turned out to be the winning catch, as he filled out his limit soon after that.

“If it is your time to win, things happen that don’t happen every day,” he said. “I pulled up there and my second cast, she ate it. Stuff like that doesn’t happen.”

Bunney claimed second in his first Open with a two-day total of 41-4. The 18-year-old Okie landed 22-7 on Day 1 before adding 18-13 to his total on the final day.

Using a Spro RkCrawler crankbait and a ⅜-ounce Queen Tackle Tungsten jighead paired with a Yum Houdini Shad, he picked apart a long, rocky point where the bass were chasing herring in 17 feet of water. A creek channel ran up against that point before running into shallow water. To get some of his better bites, Bunney said he had to crawl his crankbait across some of the bigger chunk rock.

“It was the deepest ledge point before going all the way out,” Bunney explained. “The bass were using it like a ladder to go up or down.”

On Day 1, Bunney caught the majority of his limit early in the morning before letting his primary area rest. On Day 2, things did not heat up until the afternoon hours. With 12 pounds in the livewell around noon, he moved back to his primary area and landed two 5-pounders to bolster his bag.

“We had no wind this morning. I mean, it was absolute glass, and that had everything screwed up,” he said.

Lucas Lindsay, another Auburn graduate, finished third with a two-day total of 39-14. Lindsay landed in the middle of the pack on Day 1 with a daily total of 16-0, but rebounded on Day 2 with a 23-14 limit that was anchored by a 7-5 largemouth, the Big Bass of the Tournament.

On the final day, Lindsay spent most of his time in the Little River, fishing brushpiles, rockpiles or trashpiles holding bass. A Z-Man Scented Jerk ShadZ or a CrushCity Mooch Minnow rigged on an Echo Bait Company jighead caught the majority of his bass.

All anglers earned points towards the Division I standings. At the conclusion of the four-event schedule, the Top 50 anglers in the division will advance to the Elite Qualifier round starting at Lake Champlain in September.

Visit Columbia County hosted the event.

 

2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Title Sponsor: St. Croix

2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Presenting Sponsor: SEVIIN

2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2025 Bassmaster Opens Series Supporting Sponsors: AFTCO, Daiwa, Garmin, Lew’s, Lowrance, Marathon, Triton Boats, VMC

 

About B.A.S.S.

B.A.S.S., which encompasses the Bassmaster tournament leagues, events and media platforms, is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting-edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), TV show, radio show, social media programs and events. For more than 50 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, St. Croix Bassmaster Opens Series presented by SEVIIN, Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier Series presented by Lowrance, Strike King Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Strike King Bassmaster High School Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Team Championship, Newport Bassmaster Kayak Series presented by Native Watercraft, Yamaha Bassmaster Redfish Cup Championship presented by Skeeter and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.