Marietta’s Wagner Earns Victory at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Regional on Clarks Hill Lake
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Boater Emil Wagner of Marietta, Georgia and co-angler Keith Gunsauls of Dandridge, Tennessee.
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Tennessee’s Gunsauls Wins Co-Angler Division
APPLING, Ga. (Oct. 19, 2026) – Boater Emil Wagner of Marietta, Georgia, caught a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 55 pounds, 10 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine Regional on Clarks Hill Lake. The tournament, hosted by Columbia County, Georgia, concluded Saturday. For his win, Wagner earned a prize package valued at $57,100, including a Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard worth $50,000 and a $7,000 Phoenix MLF Bonus. The Clarks Hill Lake event served as the Regional championship for the BFL Bulldog, North Carolina, Shenandoah and Volunteer divisions. The field included the top 45 boaters and co-anglers in each division based on point standings, plus each division’s tournament winners. The top seven boaters and co-anglers at each regional and the Wild Card qualify for the 2027 Phoenix BFL All-American. The highest-finishing boater and co-angler from each regional and the Wild Card at the 2027 Phoenix BFL All-American qualify for the 2027 Toyota Series Championship. The 2027 Phoenix BFL All-American boater champion qualifies for REDCREST 2028.  Wagner has fished Clarks Hill approximately 10 times in the past, but the Georgia native said he had to adjust everything he knew about fishing a herring-based lake due to the conditions during the event – wind, water clarity and fishing pressure. “I used (Garmin LiveScope) every day from 9 a.m. until noon,” Wagner said. “Over the three days, I weighed eight fish I caught with the ’Scope and seven without, so I definitely needed both patterns.” Wagner said he caught his fish in a variety of ways, from flipping a jig in bushes to skipping boat docks with a jig, topwater bait and a crankbait. Once he turned the LiveScope on, Wagner said he also employed a Neko rig, a shaky head with a 5-inch green pumpkin party-colored Berkley Powerbait MaxScent The General Worm and a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Moeba Creature Bait around rocks. “I really used a lot of different tactics,” Wagner said. “I just had to play the conditions and the time of day. “I think with the wind on the last day, having to turn off the ’Scope was a help, because some of my best stuff I had to set up on differently and just fish,” Wagner went on to say. “I caught my three biggest ones the last day that way, and I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have caught those if I had the LiveScope on. Almost all my big bites came without ’Scope, but at the same time I really do enjoy fishing with it on Clarks Hill.” Wagner said he felt good about his chances in the tournament after the first day of competition when he was just 2 ounces off the leader’s pace. He said he knew he just needed to stay consistent for the remaining two days to have a shot at a win. “I had a magical afternoon that last day and caught three really big ones,” said Wagner. “I told my co-angler, ‘I’ve done everything I can at this point to win, so whoever does win deserves it.’” Along with the win came an All-American berth, something Wagner really wanted. “The All-American is huge,” said Wagner, who won the event in 2023. “It did a lot for my career, my name, everything, honestly. It’s a really special tournament, and I’m excited to go back.” The top seven boaters who qualified for the 2027 Phoenix BFL All-American finished: 1st: Emil Wagner, Marietta, Ga., 15 bass, 55-10, $57,100 (includes $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus) The remaining top 10 finished: 8th: Robert Walser, Lexington, N.C., 15 bass, 39-2, $860 Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com. Emery Burnett of Appling, Georgia, won the Berkley Big Bass Boater award and $350 for landing a bass that weighed 7 pounds, 5 ounces, the biggest of the tournament. Keith Gunsauls of Dandridge, Tennessee, won the co-angler division Saturday after bringing a three-day total of nine bass weighing 24 pounds even to the scale. Gunsauls earned the top co-angler award of a Phoenix 518 pro with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard, worth $33,550.
The top seven co-anglers who qualified for the 2027 Phoenix BFL All-American finished: 1st: Keith Gunsauls, Dandridge, Tenn., nine bass, 24-0, $33,550 The remaining top 10 finished: 8th: Don Payne, Loganville, Ga., nine bass, 19-12, $430 Nathan Sullivan of Fredericksburg, Virginia, caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds, 10 ounces, to win the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award worth $175. The 2026 Phoenix BFL Presented by T-H Marine is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 events throughout the season, five qualifying tournaments in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying tournament winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top seven, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2027 BFL All-American will take place June 5-7, at the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes in Kissimmee, Florida, and is hosted by Experience Kissimmee. Proud sponsors of the 2026 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7 Brew, Abu Garcia, Athletic Brewing, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, Black Buffalo, BUBBA, Cigars International, Epic Baits, Grizzly Nicotine Pouches, Mercury, MillerTech, Mystik Lubricants, OFF! Deep Woods, Onyx, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, PiranhO2, Power-Pole, Precision Sonar, Suzuki Marine, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, VOSKER, YETI and Yuengling. For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular BFL updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. About Major League Fishing |
