Rising Water Woes with MDJ
By Luke Stoner - Dynamic Sponsorships
Mother Nature and Lake Eufaula in central Oklahoma have been throwing Bass Pro Tour competitors plenty of curveballs for Millertech Stage Four presented by REDCON1. Round after round of severe weather has passed through the area during practice and the start of the tournament, bringing plenty of rain along with the storm systems.
Lake Eufaula is known for its off-colored water in stable conditions but this week the massive body of water, which is the largest in Oklahoma, has risen over four feet. And while higher water means lots of flooded cover to cast at, the influx of muddy water has come extremely quickly, which Mark Daniels Jr. believes is largely to blame for the tough fishing experienced so far this week.
“It’s been crazy out here man,” MDJ said shaking his head. “High water is not a bad thing, but water raising multiple feet in just a day or two makes fishing challenging in my experience. Especially when you factor in that a lot of these Eufaula bass are setting up to spawn right now.
“Bass want a stable place to make their bed and lay their eggs, so they aren’t as likely to move up with the rising water. That means if a fish was setup in two feet of water, she’s now down there in six plus feet of dirty water and they are just extremely tough to fish for in that scenario. And we’re seeing that on the SCORETRACKER right now.”
MDJ and most of the BPT field believe catch rates on Eufaula will improve as the water stabilizes, but they are having to grind through the Qualifying Rounds in hopes to survive and move on to the weekend.
During his first day on the water, the Team Toyota pro tried multiple different patterns and exhausted every area he found in practice, but ultimately it proved to be an extremely tough day of fishing. MDJ caught three scoreable bass, anchored by a 5-pound 12-ounce largemouth that kept him in contention of the money and elimination lines.
The California native who now resides in Alabama believes staying positive and cycling through multiple patterns, techniques, and lures in areas he has confidence in is his best chance in the current conditions on Eufaula.
“On Tuesday I spent the first period chasing the shad spawn with crankbaits and spinnerbaits. Then I flipped bushes for a couple of hours. Both proved futile. I mean I didn’t catch a twelve-incher,” MDJ admitted. “About halfway through the second period I started running boat docks and caught a few, including the big girl, and thank God for that fish. She saved my day.
“While my day sounds like a trainwreck, and it mostly was, I am convinced keeping multiple patterns honest is the best way to deal with these conditions. Spring rains and big weather events make things difficult for lots of weekend anglers around the country.
When that happens just keep your head down and don’t get tunnel vision. The bass are still there, you just gotta adapt with them.”
Anytime you are fishing, especially when the bite is fickle, you are only one decision away from turning a tough day around and like MDJ proved on Lake Eufaula, only one cast away from a big fish that can change your mood in a hurry.
Spring conditions await B.A.S.S. Nation anglers on the Upper Mississippi River
May 2, 2024
Spring conditions await B.A.S.S. Nation anglers on the Upper Mississippi River
LA CROSSE, Wis. — Spring will be in full swing when anglers arrive for the Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Northern Qualifier at Mississippi River presented by Lowrance, which means the bass fishing will be phenomenal, according to Galesville, Wis., angler Nick Trim.
“It will be a really good tournament. Everyone will be pretty spread out,” said Trim, who fishes the St. Croix Bassmaster Opens presented by SEVIIN. “We are hitting this thing perfectly. It is going to be a slugfest.”
Tournament days are scheduled for May 8-10, with daily takeoffs scheduled for 7 a.m. CT at Copeland Park. Competitors will return to the park for weigh-ins each day at 3 p.m. The Top 40 competitors after Day 2 will advance to the final day, and the top 10% will qualify for the Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Championship presented by Lowrance, scheduled for Nov. 6-8 on Oklahoma’s Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees.
Pools 7, 8 and 9 of the Upper Mississippi River have been a staple on the Bassmaster Tournament Trail for many years now, but those events have usually happened in the mid- to late summer months. This time, anglers will enjoy spring fever, and the bass will likely be in a prespawn or spawning mode.
“Those first weeks of May can be a really good spawning time if you can hit the moon phase right, which we are going to hit perfectly,” said Trim, who holds multiple BFL titles on the river. “The last day of practice is a new moon. The smallmouth for sure will be pushing up, and there will be certain backwaters where the largemouth will push up.”
Grass is usually a large part of the equation, but Trim said most of the new grass for the year will not be growing up yet.
“Some of the backwaters where there isn’t a lot of current and places like Lake Onalaska will have a lot of grass,” he said. “A lot of the coontail and milfoil will still be around from last year in the bays and backwater areas unless we get extremely high water. But as far as new growth, the eelgrass and things like that, I don’t expect any of that to come into play.”
Trim believes any section of the river could produce the winning bag of bass. In his mind, the smallmouth will be close to their spawning grounds, if not spawning already, when anglers get there.
“I think it will be won fishing beds for spawning smallmouth, but I wouldn’t rule out the prespawn and staging bite either,” Trim said. “There have only been one or two years where I have been able to visually see the fish without some sort of electronics. I’m using Humminbird 360 to find the beds and then Garmin LiveScope to watch the reaction to my bait.”
Anglers will be able to target main-river wing dams, points, points of islands, current breaks and eddies for smallmouth still in the prespawn.
“When you find them, it is a lot of fun. You can catch them every single cast for hours,” Trim said. “They get into these huge schools and gorge themselves before the spawn.”
The largemouth, meanwhile, tend to spawn later than the smallmouth and will be in a prespawn mode and will be found in backwater areas.
“They will be one or two stops away from their spawning areas,” Trim said. “The Black River will probably be a big player for largemouth. There’s not a lot of flow there. No matter how high the water gets, that will have the same flow. They will sit in the current breaks on the backside of the points and island heads close to where they will spawn.
“If it gets warm, as shallow as you can get your boat is where you can catch them.”
Expect Senkos, jerkbaits, swim jigs and Carolina rigs all to play in this event, as well as drop shots and Ned rigs.
Explore La Crosse is hosting the event.
2024 Bassmaster Nation Series Title Sponsor: Mercury
2024 Bassmaster Nation Series Presenting Sponsor: Lowrance
2024 Bassmaster Nation Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2024 Bassmaster Nation Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2024 Bassmaster Nation Series Supporting Sponsors: AFTCO, Daiwa, Garmin, Lew's, Lowrance, Marathon, Triton Boats, VMC
2024 Bassmaster Nation Series Youth Sponsors: Seaguar, Shimano
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 500,000-member 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.
Early bites will be key for Bassmaster Elite Series event on Lake Murray
May 2, 2024
Early bites will be key for Bassmaster Elite Series event on Lake Murray
COLUMBIA, S.C. — We often hear that the early bird gets the worm, but morphing this timeless idiom into “the early bass gets the baitfish,” aptly describes Brandon Cobb’s general expectation for the Minn Kota Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray.
Competition days will be May 9-12 with daily takeoffs from Dreher Island State Park at 7 a.m. ET and weigh-ins each day back at the park at 3 p.m.
Like all of his Elite competitors, Cobb understands the basic premise that bass typically feed best during daybreak’s lowlight conditions. However, he stresses the seasonal specifics of a Lake Murray favorite.
“I think you’ll see a lot of shad spawn and blueback herring spawn fishing,” Cobb said of this 48,000-acre Saluda River reservoir. “That’s where the majority of the weight will come from. There are very few other ways to compete when that happens, so 100%, the predominant pattern will be the shad and herring spawn.”
Complementing naturally occurring threadfin shad, bluebacks are a diadromous species which migrates between fresh and saltwater in its native range. Following accidental introductions, the species has thrived in Murray.
Typically a nomadic species that favors deep offshore waters, the herring become more easily targeted during their spring spawns. For herring and threadfin shad, the early morning hours see the tail end of what was largely an overnight spawn.
For this reason, many of the Elite anglers will rush to their best shorelines with docks, seawalls and other hard cover to capitalize on a rapidly closing window of daybreak opportunity. Intense sunlight pushes the baitfish low, but cloudy mornings may extend the shad/blueback spawns a little longer.
“Murray is one of the most prevalent blueback lakes in our area,” Cobb noted. “A lot of times, the shad and the herring will spawn in the same areas, so you may not know if you’re fishing for bass that are eating shad or herring.”
While spinnerbaits, bladed jigs and swim jigs see a lot of pure shad spawn action, herring lakes tend to find topwaters delivering the best results. Herring are fast movers, so bass respond best to a peppy cadence.
Cobb, who hails from Greenwood, S.C., about an hour west of Murray, calls Lake Greenwood (the next lake upstream) his home waters. While he hasn’t fished Murray since last year’s Elite, seasonal weather patterns provide relevant insight.
“We’ve had the muddiest winter and spring on Lake Greenwood that I can ever remember,” Cobb said. “We had a winter where we got so much rain that it pushed the mud all the way to the (Buzzard’s Roost Dam) and from there, it goes to Murray.
“As soon as Greenwood would try to clear, we’d have another rain, so it basically stayed muddy all winter.”
The Elite tournament will be significantly removed from the muddiest period, but Cobb said there could be some level of remnant turbidity lingering in the main-river section. Elsewhere, he’s looking for typical spring clarity.
A week prior to the tournament, Murray’s water level stood about 2 feet below full pool. The 2023 Elite event at Lake Murray saw the lake rising from a scheduled drawdown, but this year will offer stability.
“Unless they’re working on the dam or something, Murray stays pretty stable,” Cobb said. “When they drew it down (in the fall of 2022 through the winter of 2023), that was because they were trying to eliminate the pondweed that was growing in Murray.”
In terms of bass life cycle, this year’s event will likely see a different complexion. Taking place in the fourth week of April, the 2023 Elite saw a significant amount of bed fishing — including that of Florida’s Drew Benton, who won with a four-day total of 87 pounds.
This time around Cobb’s not completely counting out the bed fishing game, but his local experience tells him it’s unlikely to be the main deal. This, he said, will probably pull the overall weights down a little from the 2023 levels.
“I’m not going to say it’s going to be tough, but last time, it was pretty crazy,” he said. “I think this year, you’ll need about 18 pounds a day to make the Top 10, and I would say 21 to 22 a day to win.”
Noting that he expects all of Murray to be in play, Cobb said he believes the field will spread out to search for those early shad/herring spawns. After the early-morning activity subsides, many will transition to dock fishing as the bass that had been capitalizing on shad spawns move to the nearest cover.
Stressing what he considers a key mindset, Cobb concludes: “The way the fish are this time of year, you might get some big groups of fish, but it’s hard to get them to bite all day. You’re going to have to keep moving.”
Bassmaster LIVE will be streaming on Bassmaster.com all four days, and coverage will also be available on FS1 on Saturday at 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. ET and Sunday at 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET.
The event is being hosted by Capital City Lake Murray Country.
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2024 Bassmaster Elite 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 500,000-member 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.
Leo Osborne’s Eufaula, OK Flashback
By Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships
Major League Fishing pros who find themselves mentally rattled by fast rising muddy water at this week’s Millertech Stage Four Bass Pro Tour event on Lake Eufaula, Oklahoma might want to ask, “What would Leo do?”
This very same week in 1999, Lake Eufaula, Oklahoma water levels were right at normal elevation when pros began practice. Then, storms and torrential rainfall saw the massive reservoir rise more than four feet by Day 1 of competition, a mirror image of what’s happened in the shadow of rough storms and tornado sightings the past five days.
Local fishing legend and lifetime Crowder, OK resident, Leo Osborne pitched a uniquely colored plastic worm to flooded bushes back in ’99 and notched the biggest win of a fishing career decorated with wins and high finishes on the sprawling 108,000-acre lake.
The event was the Bassmaster Central Invitational. The former machine shop owner and previous Dr. Pepper delivery route driver recalls getting several bites in practice with longtime best buddy, Orlean Smith before storms forced them off the water, and sent them running to their trucks.
Rained-out for hours, their practice session was strong enough that Osborne actually believed he and Smith had located the winning area, whether it would be himself or another angler, he truly believed the area would ultimately produce the winning weight.
And it did. Osborne caught 50-pounds of largemouth in three days from his favorite bushes, and while other competitors crowded him on the water amid the final two days of competition, he kept his head down, stayed in the general area, and kept pitching his Gene Larew electric blue worm with a white tail -- at one point catching twin 5-pounders off the same exact flooded persimmon tree.
“A lot of guys commented after I won that they’d never seen a worm that color. I told them neither had the bass. That’s why it worked so well,” laughs the good-humored Osborne who still lives in Crowder and will soon celebrate his 81 st birthday.
His first-place prize was $16,000 cash and a brand-new boat valued at $32,000. So, what would the former little league baseball coach tell anglers to do this week? “They’ll be a bunch of them too busy staring at that sonar screen to consider flippin’ bushes, but I’d tell them to get in those flooded bushes, and don’t come out until your boat carpet is covered in stray limbs
and willow leaves, that’s when you know you were fishing as thorough as you need to,” he grins.
Yup, no question about it, he’d be pitchin’ soft plastics to flooded bushes this week.
That’s exactly what Leo would do.
Rookie Martin Villa Cruises to Group B Lead at MLF Bass Pro Tour Stage Four at Lake Eufaula
Virginia pro leads Group B by 3 pounds, 9 ounces after Day 1, Group A to wrap up two-day Qualifying Round Thursday
EUFAULA, Okla. (May 1, 2024) – A Lake Eufaula that had been stingy on Day 1 of the Major League Fishing (MLF) Bass Pro Tour MillerTech Stage Four Presented by REDCON1 proved a bit more fruitful when Group B took to the water Wednesday for its opening day Qualifying Round. Rookie pro Martin Villa of Charlottesville, Virginia, led the charge, stacking 13 scorable bass for 34 pounds, 15 ounces on SCORETRACKER®.
After spring thunderstorms caused the lake level to spike nearly 4 feet between the start of practice and the start of the event, it stabilized overnight, and the fish became more cooperative. Villa was one of three pros to top 30 pounds after no one hit that mark in Group A. He leads Takahiro Omori of Tokyo, Japan, by 3-9, with Randy Howell of Guntersville, Alabama, just 5 ounces back of Omori.
The six-day tournament, hosted by Vision Eufaula , showcases 79 of the top professional anglers in the world, competing for a purse of $659,000, including a top payout of $100,000 and valuable Fishing Clash Angler of the Year (AOY) points in hopes of qualifying for the General Tire Heavy Hitters all-star event and REDCREST 2025, the Bass Pro Tour championship.
Villa’s near-35-pound outing didn’t unfold nearly as smoothly as it might seem. The Bass Pro Tour rookie arrived at his starting spot to find current roaring through the area, which made it difficult to fish.
He then made an adjustment and caught the bulk of his weight — nine scorable bass for 25-0 — in about a two-hour span before an equipment issue prevented him from running any new water. He spent the entirety of the third period only using his trolling motor.
“When I got to my first stop, there was a pile of current ripping through there,” Villa said. “Combine that with a little bit of wind, it kind of made it difficult for me. But it ended up being a blessing in disguise, because I knew that something had changed. I completely opened my mind up, because going into that, I thought I had one thing I was looking for, and it was completely not what I was looking for. And so, I was grateful that I was able to make the adjustment.”
Villa didn’t want to divulge too many details about his tactics, but said he used finesse techniques to catch most of his bass. He fished both shallow and offshore, with a few of his fish coming from a shad spawn bite.
The biggest key, he said, was simply finding areas “where there’s some life.” He compared the current state of Eufaula, with swaths of muddy water making portions of the 100,000-plus-acre reservoir unfishable, to Lake Okeechobee in that regard — except this week, those lifeless zones are constantly moving.
“They’re letting water loose now, and so that red mud is moving miles each day,” Villa said. “And when the wind blows with the current, it seems like it just flies out of there. I felt like I was on a tidal river when you got to certain areas.”
Once he made his adjustment, Villa generated bites in bunches. He supplemented his quantity with quality, boating a pair of 4-pounders. With catch numbers still fairly low across the field Wednesday — only 15 of 40 competitors caught at least five scorable bass — it looks like fooling fish of that caliber will be key. Eight of the Top 10 anglers in Group B landed at least one 4-pounder, and Villa caught two.
“It’s huge, because one quality female right now is worth three males,” he said. “And it’s not like we’re catching 30 scorables a day.”
While Villa felt good about making a successful adjustment, he’s concerned he’ll need to do so again when Group B returns to the water on Friday. In his words, “the one constant is change” on Eufaula this week.
Given his cushion of more than 18 pounds over the cut line, his hope is to catch five scorable bass early Friday, then use the rest of the day to explore new areas of the reservoir in preparation for the Knockout Round.
“I hope that I can do my job as a professional angler and put five fish in the boat,” Villa said. “I do feel like if I’m able to put some weight in the boat early, I owe it to myself to try some different stuff.”
The 40 anglers in Group B will now have an off day from competition Thursday, while the 39 anglers competing in Group A will wrap up their two-day Qualifying Round. Group B will finish their Qualifying Round on Friday.
The top 20 pros in Group B after Day 1 on Lake Eufaula are:
1st: Martin Villa, Charlottesville, Va., 13 bass, 34-15
2nd: Takahiro Omori, Tokyo, Japan, 12 bass, 31-6
3rd: Randy Howell, Guntersville, Ala., 13 bass, 31-1
4th: Cole Floyd, Leesburg, Ohio, 10 bass, 26-9
5th: Drew Gill, Mount Carmel, Ill., 10 bass, 23-3
6th: Skeet Reese, Auburn, Calif., eight bass, 19-13
7th: Jeff Sprague, Wills Point, Texas, seven bass, 19-2
8th: Britt Myers, Lake Wylie, S.C., seven bass, 18-11
9th: Ott DeFoe, Blaine, Tenn., five bass, 16-14
10th: Gary Klein, Mingus, Texas, six bass, 16-4
11th: Terry Scroggins, San Mateo, Fla., eight bass, 15-0
12th: John Murray, Spring City, Tenn., six bass, 13-11
13th: Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., five bass, 13-9
14th: Jacob Wall, New Hope, Ala., five bass, 12-7
15th: Zack Birge, Blanchard, Okla., five bass, 11-3
16th: Gerald Spohrer, Gonzales, La., four bass, 10-0
17th: Greg Vinson, Wetumpka, Ala., two bass, 9-3
18th: Ron Nelson, Berrien Springs, Mich., four bass, 9-2
19th: Ryan Salzman, Huntsville, Ala., three bass, 8-12
20th: Jesse Wiggins, Addison, Ala., four bass, 8-7
A complete list of results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Bass Pro Shops pro Ott DeFoe of Blaine, Tennessee earned the $1,000 Berkley Big Bass award after a 5-pound,9-ounce largemouth bit his wacky rig in Period 3. Berkley awards $1,000 to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass each day, and another $3,000 bonus to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass of the tournament.
The 39 Anglers in Group A compete in their two-day Qualifying Round on Tuesday and Thursday – the 40 anglers in Group B on Wednesday and Friday. After each two-day Qualifying Round is complete, the anglers that finish first through 10th from both groups advance to Saturday’s Knockout Round. In the Knockout Round, weights are zeroed, and the remaining 20 anglers compete to finish in the top 10 to advance to Sunday’s Championship Round. In the final-day Championship Round, weights are zeroed, and the highest one-day total wins the top prize of $100,000.
Anglers will launch at 7:30 a.m. CT each day from the Peter’s Point-Nichols Point Boat Ramp, located on Dabbs Road in Eufaula. Each day’s General Tire Takeout will be held at the boat ramp, beginning at 4 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and takeout events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLFNOW!® live stream and SCORETRACKER® coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live on the final four days of competition from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CT. MLFNOW!® will be live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.
On Saturday and Sunday, May 4-5, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. MLF welcomes fans of all ages to visit Peter’s Point-Nichols Point for the MLF Watch Party and Kids Fishing Derby. Fans can watch the pros live on the MLFNOW! big screen, enjoy free food, enter to win hourly giveaways and cheer on their favorite pros. The first 50 kids 14 and under will receive a free rod and reel from Pure Fishing each day. Additional fishing gear will be provided onsite for the fishing derby or kids can bring their own. The final 10 Championship Round Bass Pro Tour anglers will be on hand at the trophy celebration on Championship Sunday to meet and greet fans, sign autographs and take selfies.
The MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1 features the MLF catch, weigh, immediate-release format, in which anglers catch as much weight as they can each day, while also feeling the pressure and intensity of the SCORETRACKER® leaderboard. The tournament features anglers competing with a 1-pound, 8-ounce minimum weight requirement for a bass to be deemed scorable. The MLF Fisheries Management Division determines minimum weights for each body of water that the Bass Pro Tour visits, based on the productivity, bass population and anticipated average size of fish in each fishery.
The Bass Pro Tour features a field of 79 of the top professional anglers in the world, competing across seven regular-season tournaments around the country, for millions of dollars and valuable points to qualify for the annual General Tire Heavy Hitters all-star event and the REDCREST 2025 championship.
It’s early, but Stage Four continues to look like it might shake up the Fishing Clash Angler of the Year race in a major way. A day after points leader Jacob Wheeler got off to a slow start in Group A, both Jesse Wiggins and Michael Neal — who entered the event in the top five in the season-long standings — find themselves well outside the Top 10 in Group B. The battle to claim the $100,000 prize might look very different once competition concludes on Eufaula.
Fishing Clash, an interactive 3D fishing simulation game that’s played by more than 80 million people worldwide, is the official AOY sponsor of the Bass Pro Tour, Tackle Warehouse Invitationals, Toyota Series and Phoenix Bass Fishing League. You can download Fishing Clash for free in the App Store and on Google Play or log on to www.fishingclash.game for more information.
Television coverage of the MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1 Knockout Round will air as a two-hour episode starting at 7 a.m. ET, on Saturday, Oct. 12 on Discovery, with the Championship Round premiering on Oct. 19. New MLF episodes premiere each Saturday morning on Discovery, with re-airings on Outdoor Channel.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Bass Pro Tour include: Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, BUBBA, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, Garmin, General Tire, Humminbird, Lowrance, Mercury, MillerTech, Minn Kota, Mossy Oak Fishing, NITRO, Onyx, Plano, Power-Pole, Rapala, REDCON1, Star brite, Suzuki, Toyota, WIX Filters and U.S. Air Force.
For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the Bass Pro Tour, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Scroggins and Myers detail a stormy weekend at Eufaula
Team Toyota’s Terry “Big Show” Scroggins and his longtime roommate Britt Myers have 38-years of combined pro angling experience, but neither of them recall a weekend on the road full of life-threatening weather like they faced this past weekend during practice for Major League Fishing’s Millertech Stage Four of the Bass Pro Tour event at Lake Eufaula, OK.
“Neither of us had ever been to Eufaula, Oklahoma in our lives, and the first day of practice on this 108,000-acre lake was full of 20-mph winds, waves that were 3-feet tall, and a trip to the tornado shelter that night,” says Scroggins.
Not exactly the kind of weather the local chamber of commerce hoped would greet their pro angling guests, but it’s late April, it’s Oklahoma, and tornadoes are unfortunately a challenging part of life around here each spring.
“Around midnight after the first day of practice, our cell phones started going crazy with tornado alerts, so we jumped in my Tundra and joined about 15 local residents in the tornado shelter,” says Myers.
That was a rough night. Nobody was hurt. No Toyota Tundras or high-performance bass boats were damaged, but the weather was far from playing nice. Roughly 17 hours later, several anglers captured cell phone video footage of a tornado hanging over the lake as they wrapped up Sunday’s practice.
“Guys were calling each other, saying to run for shelter. It was nuts. And sure enough, before long, we were all running back to this tornado shelter again,” says Myers.
Scroggins says he’s seen terrible storms on Table Rock, MO, and a tornado that once crossed the opposite end of where he was fishing on Guntersville, AL, but never has he been summoned to a tornado shelter twice in one weekend.
“We’re dealing with a lot right now on Eufaula. First off, most of us have never fished here, but on top of that, we’ve been in a tornado shelter twice while the water got crazy muddy and rose 4-feet. But as much as anything, you’ve had to get a grip on when it’s time to run for cover,” smiles Scroggins, shaking his head.
Now that’s a variable nobody, including some of America’s top pro anglers, want to make a habit of trying to figure out.
Surely the weather and the fishing will stabilize far better by the event’s conclusion on Sunday, and more than anything, that Scroggins and Myers won’t find themselves back in the tornado shelter for the third time.
Rookie Jason Vance Grabs Early Lead at Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour Stage Four at Lake Eufaula
Indiana pro weighs in 28 pounds, 1 ounce to lead after Day 1 for Group A – Group B begins competition Wednesday
EUFAULA, Okla. (April 30, 2024) – If anglers thought they knew what to expect when Lake Eufaula made its Major League Fishing (MLF) Bass Pro Tour debut at MillerTech Stage Four Presented by REDCON1 , Mother Nature made sure to rewrite the script.
In the days prior to Group A’s first day of the qualifying round, a series of spring thunderstorms – which included three separate tornado warnings – dumped rain on the Oklahoma impoundment. As a result, the lake level rose nearly 4 feet from the start of practice to the start of competition; the influx flooding a new swath of shallow cover and muddying large stretches of water.
The seismic shift produced a challenging bite for many of the 39 anglers who took to the water Tuesday. But pro Jason Vance of Battle Ground, Indiana , managed to boat 13 scorable bass totaling 28 pounds, 1 ounce. One of three anglers to top 20 pounds amid the changing conditions, the Indiana pro sits atop SCORETRACKER® in Group A, leading second-place angler Dave Lefebre of Erie, Pennsylvania, by 5-10.
The six-day tournament, hosted by Vision Eufaula , showcases 79 of the top professional anglers in the world, competing for a purse of $659,000, including a top payout of $100,000 and valuable Fishing Clash Angler of the Year (AOY) points in hopes of qualifying for the General Tire Heavy Hitters all-star event and REDCREST 2025, the Bass Pro Tour championship.
The 39 anglers in Group A will now have an off day from competition Wednesday, while the 40 anglers competing in Group B will begin their first day of competition. Group A will resume competition on Thursday.
Aside from losing his cell phone to the waters of Eufaula shortly after lines out, Tuesday unfolded better than Vance expected. The Bass Pro Tour rookie had sought out clean water during the third and final practice day and found a stretch where he got several bites in a row but struggled to hook up with the fish. When competition began, he figured out how to get those bass to commit.
“I got into some cleaner water, and that’s where I started getting bit, and that was on the last day of practice,” Vance said. “Was I expecting to catch (that total)? No, I wasn’t. But I just got bit really good there.”
One of a handful of anglers in the field with tournament experience on Eufaula, Vance first found his area during last year’s Tackle Warehouse Invitationals event on the fishery. He had to fish around some floating debris, but the water clarity generally held up well amid the lake’s rapid rise – not something that could be said for many areas.
“The water color varied where I was at,” the Bob’s Machine Shop pro said. “There were areas that were dirty and some that were cleaner. But it had a lot of sticks and twigs and stuff that had been blown into the area that I was in.”
Vance centered his strategy on finding the largest population of bass, targeting numbers rather than size. The 13 scorable bass he stacked on SCORETRACKER® were three more than the next-highest total. With bites not easy to come by – only 13 of 39 anglers caught at least five scorable fish – that strategy paid off.
“I’ve been trying to adapt from the five-fish limit to as many as you can catch, so I was just going for as many scorable as I could get,” he said. “That was my whole thought process – I just have to catch keepers.”
With more storms in the forecast, the conditions are sure to continue to change. But Vance is optimistic that his program can continue to produce. Not only did his water stay fairly stable, but he was also able to catch fish behind other anglers Tuesday.
Plus, Vance should have the luxury of getting some in-tournament practice time when Group A returns to the water on Thursday. Seeking his first Knockout Round appearance since joining the Bass Pro Tour, Vance hopes to catch about 15 pounds in the morning then use the rest of the day to explore new water.
“I’m going to power fish in the morning, and then once I feel like I’ve got probably at least 15 pounds, I’m going to lay off of them and go looking for some new areas,” he said. “That’s the strategy. Hopefully it works.”
The top 20 pros in Group A after Day 1 on Lake Eufaula are:
1st: Jason Vance, Battle Ground, Ind., 13 bass, 28-1
2nd: Dave Lefebre, Erie, Penn., 10 bass, 22-7
3rd: Dean Rojas, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., seven bass, 20-8
4th: Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., nine bass, 18-14
5th: Alton Jones Jr., Waco, Texas, six bass, 17-10
6th: Bradley Roy, Lancaster, Ky., five bass, 14-15
7th: Marshall Robinson, Landrum, S.C., five bass, 13-10
8th: Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., six bass, 13-10
9th: Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., four bass, 13-5
10th: Dustin Connell, Clanton, Ala., five bass, 12-5
11th: Matthew Stefan, Junction City, Wis., five bass, 11-5
12th: Justin Lucas, Guntersville, Ala., five bass, 10-12
13th: Jonathon VanDam, Kalamazoo, Mich., three bass, 10-7
14th: Boyd Duckett, Guntersville, Ala., five bass, 9-15
15th: Mark Daniels Jr., Tuskegee, Ala., three bass, 9-7
16th: Justin Cooper, Zwolle, La., five bass, 9-3
17th: Chris Lane, Guntersville, Ala., three bass, 9-1
18th: Jeremy Lawyer, Sarcoxie, Mo., four bass, 8-14
19th: Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., three bass, 8-11
20th: Brent Ehrler, Redlands, Calif., three bass, 8-9
A complete list of results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Overall, there were 140 scorable bass weighing 348 pounds, 15 ounces caught by 36 pros Thursday, which included one 6-pounder, five 5-pounders, nine 4-pounders and 16 3-pounders.
Jonathon VanDam of Kalamazoo, Michigan, earned Tuesday’s $1,000 Berkley Big Bass Award after a 6-pound, 8-ounce largemouth bit his drop-shot rig in Period 2. Berkley awards $1,000 to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass each day, and another $3,000 bonus to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass of the tournament.
The 30 Anglers in Group A compete in their two-day Qualifying Round on Tuesday and Thursday – the 40 anglers in Group B on Wednesday and Friday. After each two-day Qualifying Round is complete, the anglers that finish first through 10th from both groups advance to Saturday’s Knockout Round. In the Knockout Round, weights are zeroed, and the remaining 20 anglers compete to finish in the top 10 to advance to Sunday’s Championship Round. In the final-day Championship Round, weights are zeroed, and the highest one-day total wins the top prize of $100,000.
Anglers will launch at 7:30 a.m. CT each day from the Peter’s Point-Nichols Point Boat Ramp, located on Dabbs Road in Eufaula. Each day’s General Tire Takeout will be held at the boat ramp, beginning at 4 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and takeout events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLFNOW!® live stream and SCORETRACKER® coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live on the final four days of competition from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CT. MLFNOW!® will be live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.
On Saturday and Sunday, May 4-5, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. MLF welcomes fans of all ages to visit Peter’s Point-Nichols Point for the MLF Watch Party and Kids Fishing Derby. Fans can watch the pros live on the MLFNOW! big screen, enjoy free food, enter to win hourly giveaways and cheer on their favorite pros. The first 50 kids 14 and under will receive a free rod and reel from Pure Fishing each day. Additional fishing gear will be provided onsite for the fishing derby or kids can bring their own. The final 10 Championship Round Bass Pro Tour anglers will be on hand at the trophy celebration on Championship Sunday to meet and greet fans, sign autographs and take selfies.
The MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1 features the MLF catch, weigh, immediate-release format, in which anglers catch as much weight as they can each day, while also feeling the pressure and intensity of the SCORETRACKER® leaderboard. The tournament features anglers competing with a 1-pound, 8-ounce minimum weight requirement for a bass to be deemed scorable. The MLF Fisheries Management Division determines minimum weights for each body of water that the Bass Pro Tour visits, based on the productivity, bass population and anticipated average size of fish in each fishery.
The Bass Pro Tour features a field of 79 of the top professional anglers in the world, competing across seven regular-season tournaments around the country, for millions of dollars and valuable points to qualify for the annual General Tire Heavy Hitters all-star event and the REDCREST 2025 championship.
The 79 anglers taking on Lake Eufaula this week aren’t just battling for a first-place trophy and $100,000 payday. Valuable points in the Fishing Clash Angler of the Year race are also up for grabs. The winner of the season-long competition will take home an additional $100,000 check.
Fishing Clash, an interactive 3D fishing simulation game that’s played by more than 80 million people worldwide, is the official AOY sponsor of the Bass Pro Tour, Tackle Warehouse Invitationals, Toyota Series and Phoenix Bass Fishing League. You can download Fishing Clash for free in the App Store and on Google Play or log on to www.fishingclash.game for more information.
Television coverage of the MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1 Knockout Round will air as a two-hour episode starting at 7 a.m. ET, on Saturday, Oct. 12 on Discovery, with the Championship Round premiering on Oct. 19. New MLF episodes premiere each Saturday morning on Discovery, with re-airings on Outdoor Channel.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Bass Pro Tour include: Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, BUBBA, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, Garmin, General Tire, Humminbird, Lowrance, Mercury, MillerTech, Minn Kota, Mossy Oak Fishing, NITRO, Onyx, Plano, Power-Pole, Rapala, REDCON1, Star brite, Suzuki, Toyota, WIX Filters and U.S. Air Force.
For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the Bass Pro Tour, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
2024 Strike King Big Bass Online Challenge Starts Wednesday!
Columbia, SC – With a long history of placing grassroots tournament engagement as a core value of the brand, Strike King® Lure Company has announced a new, month-long, digital tournament during May aimed at providing opportunities for anglers to win cash and prizes while doing something they’re already doing naturally – catching bass.
Whether anglers are competing, practicing for a tournament, or simply enjoying a day out on the water, the Big Bass Challenge USA offers participants the opportunity to submit their catches online. By doing so, they stand a chance to claim a share of the impressive prize pool comprised of cash and various other prizes, valued at more than $60,000.00 in total.
Scheduled from May 1st to 31st, ending at 11:59pm, the tournament invites participants to submit their catches via Fishing Chaos. This online tournament platform allows anglers to document their catches utilizing the Catch, Photo, Submit method.
Tournament format and payout structure:
Strike King Big Bass Challenge-USA offers 4 different categories for anglers to compete for chance to win cash, prizes from Strike King and Lew’s®, a Minn Kota® Ultrex Quest trolling motor, a Humminbird® Helix 12 fish finder, Humminbird LakeMaster Fishing Maps, Dakota Lithium batteries + charger, and more.
Category #1: Five Longest Bass Challenge
Category #2: Five Bass Limit Challenge
Category #3: Big Bass Bonus Challenge
Category #4: Social Media Content Challenge
Many anglers will already be familiar with the Strike King Big Bass Challenge name, as 2024 marks the fourth consecutive year of in-person Strike King Big Bass events that have been fished by thousands of anglers since its inception. However, the Big Bass Challenge USA creates an opportunity for all anglers to compete in a Big Bass Challenge without needing to haul a boat to a specific competition body of water.
“Our objective is creating a means for all anglers to compete in a Big Bass Challenge from anywhere in the United States. Regardless of if someone is a fishing from a boat, kayak, or the bank, we wanted to create an event that allows all anglers to compete for cash and prizes from any publicly accessible body of water in the country,” says Tom Brewbaker, Brand Marketing Director for Strike King. “You may catch the fish of a lifetime outside of a tournament, and now you’ll have an opportunity to score that fish in a competitive format and potentially win thousands of dollars for it!”
For rules, information, or to sign up for the Strike King Big Bass Challenge USA, visit https://app.fishingchaos.com/tournament/9XwOQMCRAUeTyPfBp6z7.
About Rather Outdoors
Rather Outdoors is a global outdoors corporation uniting some of the most recognizable brands in the fishing space. With historic and iconic brands such as Lew’s, Strike King, Quantum, Zebco, Fox, Matrix, Salmo, and Fox Rage, Rather Outdoors provides a wide assortment of fishing products worldwide in an effort to enhance angler’s success and the enjoyment of outdoor pursuits. To learn more about the Rather Outdoors brands, visit www.ratheroutdoors.com.
Travel Tuesday - Lake El Salto at the End of June
By Hanna Robbins - Half Past First Cast
You’re probably tired of me telling you this, but rooms at Lake El Salto and Lake Picachos are in short demand. That’s why I’m thrilled that Anglers Inn is allowing me to hold two or possibly three more rooms for our upcoming trip — for now. We’ll be down there from June 22-29, but there are also partial trips available. Just don’t delay any further, because eventually they’ll make me give them up.
For more reasons to go in June - click here
Two Questions
If you’ve never been there this time of year, you’re probably asking, “Isn’t it HOT?” Yes, it’s warm, but depending on where you live it may actually be cooler than home. That’s because every day the winds reliably start to blow in the late morning, which actually makes the mountain air quite comfortable (especially because of the low humidity).
Now, let me ask YOU a question: “Why aren’t you going???” The fishing for numbers of giants has been exceptional this year, it’s easy to get there, and it’s still a relative bargain compared to most other fishing destinations. Join our group of a dozen or so already heading that way and you’ll make some friends for life, and leave with more than a few fish stories. Email me today and let’s get the ball rolling.
My goal on every trip is to help you have the perfect experience — from preparation to fishing to accommodations to food and drink. It never costs you a penny more to book through me than through the lodges themselves and I promise to be on call as close to 24/7/365 as possible. Remember, I’m not in the fishing business, I’m in the DREAM FULFILLMENT BUSINESS. ~ Hanna Robbins
Phil Tilbury Triumphs at BAM TournamentTrail on California Delta
By Jody Only
After three days of fishing, boater Phil Tilbury of Oakdale, Calif., finished out the 3rd stop of the BAMTournament Trail Pro/Ams on the California Delta adding 16.88 to his three-day total for 61.41 and taking home the first-place pro payout for the 41-boat field at $7,709.54.
The tidal water fishery gave up fish in all stages of the spawn and was as stingy to some as it was as generous to others. Tilbury was one of only three anglers to weigh a 20-pound sack on Day One, securing a 2nd place position for his 21.67 and trailing by more than six-pounds. Increasing his weight to 22.86 on Day Two, he not only made up his six-pound deficit, he also put nearly a six-pound gap of his own, between him and his nearest competitor.
It turned out to be a lead large enough to negate the decline he had in his five-fish sack on Championship Sunday. A hard-fought fishing fight to the finish Tilbury feels incredibly rewarded to become the first Delta BAM Pro/Am champion.
“Anybody that fishes competitively, knows there’s a whole lot more down days than good,” he said. “To finally win one and beat some of these guys that are here this weekend is pretty amazing. And I say this weekend because you can’t catch ‘em tomorrow like you did today.”
Tilbury’s pattern included slow rolling a ChatterBait in sparse grass in lower tide. “A little bit of my problem today was too much water,” he shared. “I needed a lower tide to squeeze those fish into the grass line I was fishing. I knew I was losing it (the low tide) more and more every day as the tide (change) got later and later.”
Targeting post-spawners was his focus. “It’s been an eye-opener really finding out where these bigger fish go after post-spawn, because while you’re on top of the bank, your boats on top of the fish, he shared.”
Tilbury credited the majority of his weigh fish to a Z-Man JackHammer with a Yamamoto Zako trailer in an undisclosed size and color. His ChatterBait rig was tied to 20-pound Gamma Fluoro Edge spooled on a Shimano Chronarch paired to a 7’4”, medium-heavy St. Croix rod.
He also threw a BassPatrol Jig with a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver as the trailer and mentioned both Green Pumpkin and Black and Blue for preferred color options.
Top-10 2024 BAM Delta Pro/Am Boaters
PLACE PRO TOTAL WEIGHT TOTAL PAYOUT
1 Phil Tilbury 61.41 $7,709.54
2 Ish Monroe 57.16 $2,673.00
3 Ryan Hall 54.19 $2,202.73
4 Clint Groenewold 48.93 $2,392.45
5 Chris Parks 48.19 $2,172.18
6 Mark Mello 47.45 $1,541.91
7 Ken Mah 45.89 $1,321.64
8 Beau Joudrey 44.34 $1,401.36
9 JasonBradshaw 42.28 $1,101.36
10 Jason Austin 41.92 $881.09
Rodney Brown Bests Co-Angler Field
With a wire-to-wire win Rodney Brown of Sacramento, Calif., was crowned the co-angler champion in the draw-partner event for a tournament total of 49.70, earning $3,774.71for his effort.
Brown rode a rocket to the co-angler top spot, weighing 17.51 on Day One for a lead of more than four pounds. He added 15.27 to Day Two and widened his cushion to roughly seven-pounds, although he didn’t need it. By event’s end, Brown sat nearly14-pounds over the co-angler runner-up.
“It feels awesome; I can’t believe it,” said Brown of his victory. “I’ve been fishing many, many, many years, and these wins don’t come often. These fishermen are so good and I'm so excited to have won the BAM tournament.”
For the first two days on the water Brown fished Yamamoto Senkos and Kut Tail Worms in Green Pumpkin Blake Flake. “I was fishing those very slowly,” Brown added.
For the final day, Brown had his limit by 7:30 a.m. and then his bite died. He threw a Chatter Bait in Black and Blue and Blade Runner Spinnerbaits. “I fished them with Abu Garcia rods and reels,” he said. “My line was from my sponsors Berkley and P-Line / 1st Gen Fishing and thanks to Gone Fishin’ Marine.”
Top-10 2024 BAM Delta Pro/Am Non-Boaters
PLACE CO TOTAL TOTAL PAYOUT
1 Rodney Brown 49.7 $3,774.71
2 Chris Trumbull 35.85 $1,125.05
3 Scott Wightman 31.93 $1,217.78
4 Sean Omalley 31.13 $920.50
5 Anthony Stanko 30.81 $818.22
6 Dante Ray 29.83 $715.94
7 Michael Rincon Jr 29.42 $613.67
8 Joe Cote 28.51 $511.39
9 Brad Mccarthy 23.14 $511.39
10 Jason Bubier 20.86 $409.11
Full pro and co-angler results can be seen here.
The next BAM Tournament Trail Pro/Am will blast off Friday, June 28 at the Columbia River. Registration is underway.
Cashion Adds New Bait Finesse Rod, Expands its Most Affordable American-Made Rod Series
Key Features
- Proudly made in the USA
- Specifically engineered to work with finesse fishing techniques
- CR4r raw finish blank to encapsulate fibers for increased durability
- EVA foam butt
- Engineered ceramic size 5 guides for balance, sensitivity, and knot clearance
- Ergonomic hook keeper for easy and fast lure removal
- Exposed reel seat with cut-down threads for direct blank contact
- Cork grip for all day comfort
- 1 year warranty
Specifications for Cashion’s ELEMENT Bait Finesse System Rods
- Length: 6'10"
- Action: Fast
- Power: Med-Light
- Technique(s): Single Hook Finesse Baits, Ned Rigs, Drop Shots, Micro Jigs, Shaky Heads
- Line Weight: 4-10 lbs
- Lure Weight: 1/8 - 7/16 oz
- Handle Length: 9.5"
- Rear Grip: Cork
- Butt Grip: EVA Foam
- # of Guides: 8 + Tip
- SKU: EBFS610MLF
- MSRP: $129.95
About Cashion Rods
For More Information About Cashion’s Bait Finesse Rods, ELEMENT Series, and Full Line of Products
Motor City Walleyes
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Tips and tricks learned on the Detroit River can play into your walleye fishing hand. |
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MUSKEGON, Mich. (April 26, 2024) – Among bucket-list spring walleye fishing destinations, the Detroit River is legendary. With both trophy potential and numbers, the river draws scores of anglers each year, many partaking in the run as an annual rite. One of those anglers is Judson Rodriguez, who escorted Whitewater Fishing staff on the metro moving waters, all in search of big, photo-worthy fish. Below, Judson offers his advice for anglers thinking about fishing the Detroit—including the when, where, and how of it. |
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“In early April, the water temp was between 43.3- and 43.8 degrees. As we got into a little more stained water, the water temp came up a bit. We fished a lot of those water areas where clear water met dirty and found fish there, which is typical,” says Rodriguez. “There was a good mix of spawning females with lots of smaller males in the mix. We started fishing at 6:30 a.m. each day so we could see what we were doing. The best bite is typically around daybreak, so we had about an hour to pluck big females. Then, the rest of the day, it’s sorting males until about 6 p.m., and then you’ve got a shot at another big one.” Rodriguez says time of day and water clarity are consistently two big factors on the Detroit River and other major river systems—as well as water temperatures between 40 and 50 degrees. “For us, it was a mix of big fish still hanging around and others filtering back out.” |
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Technique How do you catch early-season Detroit River walleyes? Rodriguez calls the way he and locals fish “drop-drag jigging.” “The key is keeping your jig on bottom. And the current can be strong, so we’re using anything from ¾- to 1-ounce jigs. On this recent trip, we started with minnows but only caught a few fish. So, we switched to either a minnow-shaped plastic or worm. Some years the worm profile works best, other years a minnow shape. This year it was the minnow profile. I’d say 90% of our fish came on a blue with chartreuse tail finesse soft plastic minnow and a 1-ounce, locally-made jig.” Besides the baits, how you present them is super important. “Put the head of your trolling motor into the wind, regardless of the current direction. It’s imperative to stay vertical while jigging, and if your motor isn’t headed into the wind, you’ll get blown around,” offers Rodriguez. |
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Where To Fish “We fished out of Wyandotte up to the new Gordie Howe Bridge; that whole stretch is good. But the bigger fish came from near the steel mill, just north of the Wyandotte Public Ramps and then between Fighting Island and what's called Mud Island. We caught most of our fish on the inside, western, U.S. side of Fighting Island. And then just along the steel mill; the steel mill was the big fish producer for sure.” |
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The Right River Stuff: Rods, Reels, Line, & Jigs “I use a 6’ 3” St. Croix Eyecon medium-power, extra-fast action rod with 10- to 15-pound chartreuse Fireline braid so I can tell when I’m on bottom or even get a bite sometimes. Especially in lowlight conditions, black and green lines get lost. In terms of spooking fish, the bright line is really inconsequential since you’re using a 10-pound fluorocarbon leader to a barrel swivel and a big, heavy jig.” “Most of the jigs we use are made locally and have a pronounced red eye. The head is kind of pill-shaped, as opposed to a round ball-head so it cuts through the current. A lot of the specialized, locally-made jigs are built around sickle-style hooks, too, so big fish don’t come off when you’re playing them in the current. Definitely get some jigs at the local shops when you come out. Regular walleye jigs don’t work very well. Dip Net Bait & Tackle has a good selection and can help get you outfitted right to catch fish,” says Rodriguez. |
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Of their recent trip, Rodriguez says the Whitewater Fishing crew caught three fish over 27 inches and multiples between 24- and 27 inches. “The big females had kind of stopped biting, so we moved off of the break walls into the main river channels and started filling out our limit with quality 17- to 20-inch fish. Along the way, I was able to point out the new bridge construction, and areas with amazing clear water for an urban area. It’s a really cool place to fish,” notes Rodriguez. |
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A Continuing Bite? So, while the big fish run is pretty much done, Rodriguez says that the drop-drag technique will work on the river through early June. “You’ll still catch fish jigging after mid-April, but they’ll be smaller, legal ‘keeper’ fish, mostly in the 15- to 20-inch range. What can also be effective is to run a three-way rig or a bottom bouncer and drag ‘crawler harnesses slowly up river or run a controlled drift downriver just to get the blade spinning somehow.” Rodriguez adds: “I would say the majority of anglers start switching from jigging to trolling and drifting after the second week of May. You get a little more reaction getting that blade in front of their face flicking and provoking that bite.” |
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Gear Up: Windy & Wet Spring weather can be unpredictable on the Detroit River with windy and wet days. “The wind can really get whipping. Between those islands on the river, it creates a chute, so it’ll be a lot windier than you’d think from other area weather. One thing that I really appreciated about Whitewater’s Great Lakes Pro jacket and bib was although it’s designed to keep water off of you in the elements, it’s also helps in the wind when it’s not raining—and keeps you warm.” Of the suit’s numerous features, Rodriguez likes the Velcro-sealing wrists on the jacket, which allow him to dunk his hand in the water to help land a fish or grab bait from a bucket without getting the skin on his wrists and arms wet. “To stay comfortable on the river you really need flexible gear like the Whitewater stuff that allows great freedom of movement and wind and rain protection, which is kind of the norm,” says Rodriguez. |
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Where To Stay/Launch Your Boat Given so many municipalities along the river in the Detroit area, it can be difficult to figure out where to both get a room and launch with easy access to the best river stretches. Rodriguez recommends staying in Southgate, which is under 10 minutes from the Wynadotte public boat ramp. As well, he says the Wyandotte Marina is a great place to launch because they have numerous boat ramp lanes, you don’t have to wait to put in your boat—and it only costs $15 to launch and park. At the end of the day, the Detroit River is a bucket-list walleye destination. If you’re a fan of spring walleye fishing, Rodriguez says informed anglers are pretty much guaranteed an “eater” limit and good shot at a 10-pound-plus trophy, if you put in enough time. Sounds good. |
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The Tiniest of TATULA's
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DAIWA adds a second Bait Finesse baitcaster – new TATULA BF70 – to its expanding collection. |
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FOOTHILL RANCH, CA (April 29, 2024) – Rather suddenly, “Downsizing” and “fishing small” have new meaning, particularly in the global world of bass fishing. “Bait Finesse” is the latest rage in the pursuit of largemouth and smallmouth bass. And, to no surprise, DAIWA is on the forefront tendering two new reels specific to these micro-fishing techniques: the recently unveiled PX BF70 and now its sister baitcaster, the TATULA BF70. The baseline for Bait Finesse (BF) is presenting smaller, more natural baits with the same authority achieved via their larger counterparts. To do so requires the downsizing of gear without sacrificing performance. And that necessitates specialized baitcasting gear. |
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DAIWA Marketing Manager calls BF “ninja fishing,” the technique employed by bright-minded “bank beaters” who ply small lakes, ponds, streams, and canals. It’s about traveling light with technical and tactical gear to target often pressured fish in tight confines. Casts are short, fired with GPS-guided missile accuracy. Adding to the challenge is the lightness of the lures. We’re talking one- and two-inch crankbaits, hair jigs, inline spinners, lightly weighted plastics and the like. To achieve this level of control, DAIWA injected exceptional technologies into a fantastically lightweight, palmable baitcasting reel. Mills said DAIWA eliminated as much weight as possible while maintaining outstanding performance. The TATULA BF 70’s spool, for example, is constructed of A7075 aircraft grade aluminum. Meaning, it’s strong but requires minimal inertia to initiate. Moreover, DAIWA’s exclusive T-Wing System (TWS) accelerates that inertia – the spool and TWS combination superior to other BF reels on the market. |
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Mills went on to discuss the merits of both the PX PF70 and TATULA BF70: “These reels aren’t intended to hold a ton of line, maybe 50-yards of straight fluorocarbon or a 100-yards of light braid. Rather, it’s built to manage a small amount of line with exactness.” Mills says BF calls for 4- to 10-lb. test in a superline – like J-Braid Grand x8 – with a 2- to 8-lb. J-Fluoro fluorocarbon leader. Besides pitch-and-retrieve baits like micro crankbaits and inline spinners, Mills says BF applies to dropshotting, as well as Neko, Ned, and Wacky Rigging. Essentially, all your favorite finesse bassing techniques can be further refined. But BF isn’t limited to bass fishing. The system has been embraced by trout anglers walking the banks of ponds and wading streams. An alternative to spinning gear, select trout anglers like the feel, control, and distance BF baitcasters provide. |
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The new TATULA BF70 sports other signature DAIWA technologies. HYPER DRIVE DESIGN New design concepts are the pinnacle of durability and innovation. The Hyper Drive Design consists of four new elements: Hyper Armed Housing, Hyper Drive Digigear, Hyper Double Support, Hyper Tough Clutch. T-Wing System (TWS) The revolutionary system addresses the issue of traditional line guide/level-wind structures that constrict line flow by utilizing a T-shaped line guide that is larger, wider, and less restricted. TWS allows line to exit freely from the spool with minimal line angle and friction to reduce line noise and backlash and deliver more accurate and longer casts. Ultimate Tournament Drag (UTD) A drag system that combines low inertia with maximum fish stopping power. UTD utilizes advanced carbon washers, alloy, and stainless steel drag plates with specially designed grease for supreme smoothness. Zero Adjuster Fine tuning the factory setting is breeze with the Zero Adjuster, which provides precise control over spool tension, accommodating various lure weights and fishing conditions with a simple dial on the non-handle side. DAIWA PX BF70 FEATURES:
MSRP $239.99 |
Hair Today, Tinsel Tomorrow
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Northland® Fishing Tackle’s refined & retuned blasts from the past that boat tons of fish |
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BEMIDJI, Minn. (April 29, 2024) – Although new walleye fishing techniques are being developed all the time, savvy anglers are keen on digging through the past, rediscovering effective baits and methods that may have fallen out of the limelight. Like hair and tinsel jigs. Going back to World War II, a hair jig was included in most military survival kits. Why? They catch fish when you’d need it most, stranded and starving, waiting for rescue. That says a lot. Hair – either bucktail, marabou, or other fluff – has been used for decades upon decades of walleye runs, too. Same thing for tinsel. And guess what? They still catch fish today, something Northland wants to share with the walleye fishing public. Yes, everything old is new again – in the case of the Northland Deep-Vee Bucktail Jig and Deep-Vee Flashtail Jig – refined and retuned to catch even more fish than antique versions. We talked with some serious walleye sticks, and here are their thoughts on hair and flash for spring walleyes. Veteran Minnesota fishing guide, Brian “Bro” Brosdahl, offers: “Going way back, I've always been a fan of both hair and tinsel and have been catching a lot of fish in both clear and dirty water on the new Northland jigs. They have a slow fall and pull walleyes away from cover. Talking tinsel, I typically pitch the Deep-Vee Flashtail and work it on a slow retrieve with subtle twitches to create little flashes in different directions that look like minnows reflecting light.” |
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Bro: How To Work A Hair Jig “The whole thing is the fall with hair and tinsel jigs,” says Bro. “There’s bulk to the bait so fish know it’s there, and the hairs and tinsel spread out in the water, and draw the fish in.” On rivers, Bro says, you want to carry some 3/8, ½, and even heavier jigs to deal with the current. “Cast out and hit the edge of a current seam and pull it in slowly. Upstream at 45 degrees gives you a great drop and drift down, and then the swing around downstream is a lot of times where you get bit.” Bro also likes to pitch shallower river riprap with lighter jigs, catching walleyes anywhere from right next to the bank to six feet of water. “I like fishing the Northland Deep-Vee Bucktail Jig and Deep-Vee Flashtail around wingdams, too,” says Bro. “A ¼- to 3/8-oz. is typical, and I’m focusing on odd structure where barges may have hit, or ice moved rock around. They’re walleye magnets. It’s not just the wingdam tip. You can catch them on top, the corners near shore, the tip, really all over. My Side Imaging and 360 help dial them in.” In terms of cadence around wingdams, Bro lets the jig fall, then makes short reel handle cranks, moving the rod only slightly. |
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New Deep-Vee Flashtail (shown in FIRETIGER) |
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“After it hits bottom, I give it a little pop, then reel and pause. Wingdam walleyes will hit it super hard. Works anytime walleyes are relating to wingdams.” Bro also likes to work both river and lake shorelines with the new jigs, orienting his boat parallel to the shore, and pitching up and down with the shoreline edge, distancing the jig at different depths – from right up close to deeper water nearby. “Again, I make an initial pop after the jig hits bottom, then work it upstream in the river. You can also slip the current instead of spot-locking or using Talons/Raptors. The deal is to get the hairs swimming and pulsing. Walleyes love willow cats (tadpole madtom) which are clumsy swimmers; they kind of move and flip side to side.” Looking forward to fishing lakes this MN Fishing Opener on May 11, Bro doesn’t always fish a plain Tungsten Jig and minnow. “A Deep-Vee Bucktail Jig or Flashtail tipped with a fathead or rainbow can be great for working flats and covering water around opener. You can pitch it right up to shore and around those walleye spawn and shiner run areas with current and catch a ton of fish. Gravel and weed transitions, too, as fish disperse toward the first breakline.” |
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Deep-Vee Flashtail (BLACK) |
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Deep-Vee Bucktail (PURPLEDESCENT) |
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Deep-Vee Flashtail (MOONLIGHT) |
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Deep-Vee Bucktail (PARROT) |
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Hair Jig Color Does hair jig color matter? Some say yes, others say no. But know this: walleye vision is superb with their eyes containing retinal cells called tapedum lucidum that are optimized for telling them ‘is this something I want to eat?’ – even in lowlight situations. So, depending on how quickly you’re fishing a bait, color may indeed come into play. Obviously, matching predominant forage is always a good idea, but sometimes the silhouette created by a black, purple, or dark-colored hair jig is the ticket, too – not to mention darker colors can replicate willow cats, bullheads, and other bottom-dwellers walleyes eat. And combinations of colors, too, are always good to provide contrast, just like real minnows and young-of-the-year walleyes (yes, they’re cannibals), perch, etc. “I try different colors to see what works,” says Brosdahl. “I've always been kind of a blue & white, green & white, and Parrot kind of guy, but I'm loving purple, too. With zebra mussels, we have a lot of clear lakes now – and for whatever reason, purple has been hot.” BRO’S SET-UP
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Team from Ohio’s Prime Time Anglers Wins MLF Abu Garcia High School Fishing Presented by Tackle Warehouse Open on Lake Guntersville
GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. (April 29, 2024) – The MLF High School Fishing team of Connor Bower of Aurora, Ohio, and Hoyt Nicely of North Canton, Ohio, brought five bass to the scale Saturday weighing 20 pounds, 7 ounces to win the MLF Abu Garcia High School Fishing Presented by Tackle Warehouse Open at Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Alabama.
A field of 70 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which was hosted by Marshall County Tourism and Sports. In MLF High School Fishing competition, the top 10 percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.
The top seven teams that advanced to the 2024 High School Fishing National Championship are:
1st: Prime Time Anglers, Cleveland, Ohio, Connor Bower and Hoyt Nicely, five bass, 20-7
2nd: New Athens Anglers, Athens, Ala. – Sadler Harrison and Carter Reed, five bass, 19-4
3rd: Guntersville High School Bass Club, Guntersville, Ala. – Oliver Skidmore and Hudson Skidmore. five bass, 19-2
4th: Cartersville High School, Cartersville, Ga. – Cooper Moon and Haden West, four bass, 18-6
5th: Gloria Deo Academy, Springfield, Mo. – Caden Ball and William Kuzemka, five bass, 18-0
6th: Spain Park High School, Hoover, Ala. – Luke Abston and Sam Dunn, five bass, 17-15
7th: Jackson Bass Fishing, Jackson, Mich. – Rylan Hamlin and Jack Swihart, five bass, 17-2
Rounding out the top 10 teams were:
8th: Smoky Mountain Anglers, Tenn. – Caleb Click and Carson Holbert, five bass, 16-13
9th: Albert P. Brewer High School, Somerville, Ala. – Murphy Childers and Ryder Colee, five bass, 16-11
10th: Marion High School, Marion, Ill. – Carson Bruner and Camden Bruner, five bass, 16-8
Complete results from the event can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
MLF Abu Garcia High School Fishing presented by Tackle Warehouse tournaments are free, two-person (team) events for students in grades 7-12 and are open to any MLF and TBF Student Angler Federation-affiliated high school club. The top 10 percent of teams at each Open event, along with the TBF High School Fishing state championships, advance to the High School Fishing National Championship. Tournaments held on or before May 6, 2024, advance teams to the 2024 National Championship. Tournaments held after May 6, 2024, advance teams to the 2025 National Championship.
The 2024 Abu Garcia High School Fishing National Championship & World Finals events will take place June 19-22, at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, South Carolina. The High School Fishing National Champions each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice and advance to the 2024 MLF Toyota Series Championship to compete as co-anglers.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Abu Garcia High School Fishing Presented by Tackle Warehouse include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular High School Fishing updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 13 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Grove’s Malone Overcomes Tough Conditions to Win Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Fort Gibson Lake
Bristow’s Burke Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
WAGONER, Okla. (April 29, 2024) – Boater Levi Malone of Grove, Oklahoma, caught four bass weighing 14 pounds, 9 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Fort Gibson Lake. The tournament was the third event of the season for the BFL Okie Division. Malone earned $3,889 for his victory.
Fort Gibson was nothing but stingy for the BFL anglers. Only two anglers in the entire field weighed in a limit.
Malone caught his four keepers by doing exactly what you need to do when the fishing is so tough: He slowed down and finessed his fish with a shaky-head rig. His key bait was an 8-inch Big Bite Baits Straight Mag Worm on a 3/16- or 1/4-ounce Buckeye Lures Spot Remover shaky head.
He used the worm to target shallow areas where some bass were starting to pull up in anticipation of spawning.
“I did find kind of a little pattern on some kind of chunky rock and was able to catch most of my fish off that,” he said. “But I did pick off another one just kind of fishing whatever was in front of me.
“I stayed shallow. I kept the boat in about 8 feet of water or less the whole day.”
Malone had a chance at a limit but lost it when a 3-pounder came off the hook about 10 feet from the boat.
“Those five bites were the only keeper bites I had all day,” added Malone, a sophomore studying fish and wildlife at Northeastern State University.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Levi Malone, Grove, Okla., four bass, 14-9, $3,889
2nd: John Campbell, Park Hill, Okla., four bass, 13-13, $1,944
3rd: Brett Brumnett, Wagoner, Okla., five bass, 13-12, $1,797 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
4th: Hunter Alsip, Chouteau, Okla., five bass, 13-9, $907
5th: Chris M. Jones, Bokoshe, Okla., four bass, 12-6, $778
6th: Dakotah Edwards, Talala, Okla., four bass, 12-4, $713
7th: Joel Baker, Talala, Okla., four bass, 11-11, $648
8th: Paul Waner, Choctaw, Okla., four bass, 11-10, $583
9th: Keith Hays, Broken Arrow, Okla., four bass, 11-6, $486
9th: Chase Washburn, Harrah, Okla., three bass, 11-6, $486
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Wes Nofire of Park Hill, Oklahoma, and Cameron Dahlem of Gans, Oklahoma, each caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds, 10 ounces, which tied them for the Berkley Big Bass Boater award and earned each of them $262.
Johnny Burke of Bristow, Oklahoma, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,944 Saturday, after bringing two bass to the scale that totaled 8 pounds, 8 ounces.
The top 11 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Johnny Burke, Bristow, Okla., two bass, 8-8, $1,944
2nd: Brady Short, Oxford, Kan., three bass, 8-5, $810
2nd: Tom Fink, Tulsa, Okla., two bass, 8-5, $1,072
4th: Rick Blosser, Tulsa, Okla., two bass, 7-12, $454
5th: Justin Nobles, Owasso, Okla., three bass, 7-10, $389
6th: Mark Sloan, Harrison, Ark., three bass, 6-0, $456
7th: Scott Stallings, Glencoe, Okla., two bass, 5-14, $324
8th: Jake Hess, Guthrie, Okla., one bass, 5-1, $292
9th: Al Longoria, Pottsboro, Texas, one bass, 4-8, $259
10th: Michael Sexton, Broken Arrow, Okla., two bass, 4-6, $215
10th: Kaleb O'Brien, Wagoner, Okla., two bass, 4-6, $215
Tom Fink of Tulsa, Oklahoma, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $262, catching a bass that weighed in at 5 pounds, 15 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After three events, Chris M. Jones of Bokoshe, Oklahoma, leads the Fishing Clash Okie Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 729 points, while Kaleb O'Brien of Wagoner, Oklahoma, leads the Fishing Clash Okie Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 714 points.
The next event for BFL Okie Division anglers will be held June 22, at the Arkansas River in Muskogee, Oklahoma. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 17-19 BFL Regional tournament on Wright Patman Lake in Texarkana, Texas. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Illinois Angler Mike Feldermann Earns Impressive 12th Career Victory at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event on Mississippi River in La Crosse
Beloit’s Goodyear Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
LA CROSSE, Wis. (April 29, 2024) – Boater Mike Feldermann of Galena, Illinois, caught a five-bass limit weighing 23 pounds even Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin . Hosted by Explore La Crosse, the tournament was the first event of the season for the BFL Great Lakes Division. Feldermann earned $4,116 for his victory.
While Feldermann lives almost three hours away from La Crosse in Illinois, he’s no newcomer to that stretch of the Mississippi River. He’s fished there plenty of times over his longstanding BFL career. Feldermann started competing on the circuit in 1991 and has fished the All-American four times. This is his 12th career BFL win.
Feldermann relied on past experience to form his Mississippi River game plan. First, he knew he’d target largemouth bass only.
“I think the top 10 guys except for me were all (targeting) smallmouth,” he said. “I never fish for smallmouth because it’s one of those deals where they’re kind of fool’s gold. They’re there one day and gone the next. I feel more comfortable fishing largemouth.”
Knowing he was going to target largemouths, Feldermann just had to find the right patches of grass, which he found in three areas of Pool No. 8 where the tournament launched. One particular area really produced for him in the morning.
“I was throwing a spinnerbait and ChatterBait in about 3 foot of water,” he said. “I was fishing basically about a quarter-of-a-mile weed flat. I had a limit by 7:30, and I just kind of caught them throughout the day.”
The key spot had a mixture of aquatic grasses and a depth change – from about 3 feet deep on top, dropping off to about 7 feet.
“You were pretty limited on what you could fish just for the simple fact it was 20 or 30 mph winds,” he added. “I stayed out on the flat. It was a little easier to fish the flat than to fish the bank.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Mike Feldermann, Galena, Ill., five, bass, 23-0, $4,116
2nd: John Engler, Vinton, Iowa, five bass, 21-14, $2,320 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
3rd: Zach Williamson, Stoddard, Wis., five bass, 21-7, $1,214
4th: Rick Ragner, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 21-6, $850
5th: Kevin Ruh, Onalaska, Wis., five bass, 20-7, $728
6th: Hunter Litchfield, Macomb, Ill., five bass, 20-4, $668
7th: Randy Wieczorek, Buffalo City, Wis., five bass, 19-9, $607
8th: Ryan Lewis, Glasford, Ill., five bass, 19-2, $971
9th: Jacob Ambrose, La Crosse, Wis., five bass ,19-1, $485
10th: Bill Sepke, Indian Head Park, Ill., five bass, 18-14, $425
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Feldermann caught a bass that weighed 6 pounds, 1 ounce, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $475.
David Goodyear of Beloit, Wisconsin, won the Strike King co-angler division and $2,057 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 21 pounds, 3 ounces.
The top 11 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: David Goodyear, Beloit, Wis., five bass, 21-3, $2,057
2nd: Parker Kratochvill, Onalaska, Wis., five bass, 20-14, $910
3rd: Jason Olson, Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., five bass, 19-7, $607
4th: Hector Garcia, Elgin, Ill., five bass, 16-14, $425
5th: Chris Stelter, Chisago City, Minn., five bass, 16-12, $364
6th: Lee Lewis, Peoria, Ill., five bass, 16-2, $334
7th: Matthew Vang, Milwaukee, Wis., five bass, 15-0, $303
8th: Robert Beaman, Sauk Rapids, Minn., five bass, 14-15, $258
8th: Hertz Skaer, Holmen, Wis., five bass, 14-15, $258
10th: Mai Xiong, Milwaukee, Wis., five bass, 14-10, $201
10th: Austin Frye, Ontario, Wis., five bass, 14-10, $201
Goodyear also earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $237 by catching a bass that weighed in at 5 pounds, 3 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
The next event for BFL Great Lakes Division anglers will be held May 18, at the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional tournament on the Mississippi River Pools 13-17 in Quad Cities, Illinois. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Fayetteville’s Armstrong Posts Second Career Win at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Lake Sinclair
Marietta’s Foster Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. (April 29, 2024) – Boater Noah Armstrong of Fayetteville, Georgia, caught a five-bass limit weighing 13 pounds, 14 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Sinclair. The tournament was the fourth event of the season for the BFL Bulldog Division. Armstrong earned $3,917 for his victory.
Armstrong said his expectations were pretty low coming into the tournament. The spawn was over. So was the shad spawn. Add in some weather swings, and the fish were clearly in a funk, as reflected in the weights. Even in practice, Armstrong spent two days scouting the lake and never caught a fish over 2 pounds. He shook off a few he felt were decent, but that was it.
“It was definitely tough, to say the least,” Armstrong said. “It was a grind.”
With his confidence low, Armstrong hit the lake with an open mind. He ran to a couple grass spots first thing in the morning and there were already boats on them. So he ran down the lake, keeping his eyes open for anything that looked good.
“I found one little place that had some rocks, and then there was some grass,” said Armstrong. “I said, ‘This looks good. Let’s stop over there and maybe take five minutes to fish.’ On the third cast I caught a 5-pounder on a ChatterBait.”
From there, Armstrong went junk-fishing around shallow grass. He was able to catch a limit, but even with that 5-plus-pound bass in the livewell, his best five might have weighed just 8 or 9 pounds.
“Then I ran to another place where I’ve caught them before. It’s a shallow hard spot off the bank. I caught two almost 3-pounders there that were really spawned out.”
He finished the day bouncing around fishing docks and made two small culls that gave him just enough weight to lock down the win by 1 ounce.
Armstrong’s biggest bass came on a Z-Man Evergreen ChatterBait Jack Hammer. He caught one fish from the offshore rocks using a Carolina rig and the other using Garmin LiveScope and a Neko rig. His primary dock-skipping bait was a Texas rig.
The weigh-in brought an exciting finish for Armstrong, who works full time rigging fishing boats at Stateline Marine, a Phoenix Boats dealer in Lanett, Alabama.
“It caught me by surprise for sure,” he said of the win. “I knew 13-something was leading it, but I knew there was a handful left to weigh in. I thought surely one of those guys caught 15 pounds because usually it takes good weight there every time. It was definitely a pleasant surprise. I was not expecting that for sure.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Noah Armstrong, Fayetteville, Ga., five bass, 13-14, $3,917
2nd: John Kitchens, Cumming, Ga., five bass, 13-13, $1,958
3rd: Mason White, Moultrie, Ga., five bass, 13-11, $1,307
4th: Zach Clark, Newnan, Ga., five bass, 13-5, $914
5th: Chuck Howard, Elloree, S.C., five bass, 13-1, $1,303
6th: Weston Parker, Mansfield, Ga., five bass, 12-14, $718
7th: Frank Kitchens III, Oxford, Ga., five bass, 12-7, $653
8th: Brad Stalnaker, Eatonton, Ga., five bass, 12-4, $588
9th: Jae Evans, Boca Raton, Fla., five bass, 12-3, $522
10th: Mark Knight, McDonough, Ga., five bass, 12-1, $457
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Chuck Howard of Elloree, South Carolina, caught a bass that weighed 6 pounds, 10 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $520.
Matthew Foster of Marietta, Georgia, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,958 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 12 pounds, 12 ounces.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Matthew Foster, Marietta, Ga., five bass, 12-12, $1,958
2nd: Anthony Gaskins, Hinesville, Ga., five bass, 12-11, $979
3rd: Chris Lumpkin, Gray, Ga., five bass, 10-15, $653
4th: Harrison Dunahoo, Clermont, Ga., five bass, 10-7, $717
5th: Joshua Green, Cartersville, Ga., five bass, 10-6, $392
6th: James A. Bryant, Empire, Ga., five bass, 9-12, $359
7th: Don Griffin, Roswell, Ga., four bass, 9-5, $326
8th: Bruce Jeffrey, Lithonia, Ga., five bass, 9-2, $294
9th: Cameron Sampson, Jackson, Ga., five bass, 9-1, $261
10th: Brian Jenkins, Kennesaw, Ga., five bass, 9-0, $228
Harrison Dunahoo of Clermont, Georgia, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $260, catching a bass that weighed in at 5 pounds, 6 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After four events, Brooks Anderson of Marietta, Georgia, leads the Fishing Clash Bulldog Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 928 points, while Jaquas Dobbs of Conyers, Georgia, leads the Fishing Clash Bulldog Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 916 points.
The next event for BFL Bulldog Division anglers will be held Sept. 21-22, at Lake Oconee in Buckhead, Georgia. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional tournament on Santee Cooper Lakes in Clarendon County, South Carolina. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
North Carolina’s Souther Targets Herring Spawn with Topwater to Win Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Lake Hartwell
Bostic, North Carolina’s Killian Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
ANDERSON, S.C. (April 29, 2024) – Boater T.J. Souther of Brevard, North Carolina, caught a five-bass limit weighing 16 pounds, 13 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Hartwell . Hosted by Visit Anderson, the tournament was the third event of the season for the BFL South Carolina Division. Souther earned $10,247, including the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory.
Not surprisingly, Souther caught his fish targeting the herring spawn. This pattern is prevalent throughout Carolina lakes where blueback herring are present.
“I fished from Andersonville Island to the dam just covering a ton of water,” he said. “It was really, really tough. I only caught seven all day but just got the right bites.”
Souther rotated through 50 to 60 places. They’re mostly shallow, flat rocky points where the herring spawn, and his rotation included a few “sneakier” areas that he felt were getting less pressure.
“Really the key thing this morning was the wind was blowing for the first two or three hours,” Souther added. “Most of the good fish that I had, I had early. I did catch one late that helped me. Winning by an ounce, it definitely helped.”
That late fish weighed about 2¼ pounds and culled out a 1¾-pound fish.
“It was really just about hitting as many places as I could early. I would pull up and make 10 casts, and if I didn’t get bit I was on to the next one just trying to run into some when they were feeding.”
Souther’s key lure was a chrome Ima Little Stik topwater bait. He also caught a couple on a 5-inch swimbait.
“It’s been a cool experience,” added Souther, who works as a boat mechanic. “It’s the first one I’ve ever won, so I’m super excited about it.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: T.J. Souther, Brevard, N.C., five bass, 16-13, $10,247 (includes $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
2nd: Jayme Rampey, Liberty, S.C., five bass, 16-12, $1,623
3rd: Bradley Day, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 16-0, $1,082
4th: Darren Ashley, Calhoun Falls, S.C., five bass, 14-9, $1,148
5th: Scott Browning, Franklin, N.C., five bass, 14-8, $649
6th: Justin Raines, Easley, S.C., five bass, 14-7, $895
7th: John Parker, Gaffney, S.C., five bass, 14-4, $541
8th: Joe Anders, Easley, S.C., five bass, 14-0, $487
9th: Brad Benfield, Demorest, Ga., five bass, 13-13, $433
10th: Lane Clark, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 13-6, $379
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Darren Ashley of Calhoun Falls, South Carolina, caught a bass that weighed 4 pounds, 15 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $390.
Trent Killian of Bostic, North Carolina, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,818 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 16 pounds, 3 ounces.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Trent Killian, Bostic, N.C., five bass, 16-3, $1,818
2nd: Gibson Huntley, Inman, S.C., five bass, 11-12, $812
3rd: Darren Jeter, Candler, N.C., five bass, 11-11, $541
4th: Brennan Gunther, Johns Island, S.C., five bass, 11-7, $379
5th: Wayne Smelser, Wytheville, Va., five bass, 10-12, $325
6th: Mark Lee, Gastonia, N.C., four bass, 10-9, $298
7th: Austin Leroy, Inman, S.C., five bass, 10-3, $271
8th: Dustan Hudson, Grover, N.C., five bass, 10-1, $244
9th: Thomas Pennell III, Boiling Springs, S.C., five bass, 10-0, $216
10th: Gregory Haverlock, Indian Trail, N.C., four bass, 9-15, $189
Killian also earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $195 by catching a bass that weighed in at 4 pounds, 15 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After three events, Kevin Chandler of New London, North Carolina, leads the Fishing Clash South Carolina Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 718 points, while Todd Huntley of Inman, South Carolina, leads the Fishing Clash South Carolina Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 723 points.
The next event for BFL South Carolina Division anglers will be held June 22, at Clarks Hill in Appling, Georgia. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 3-5 BFL Regional tournament on Kerr Lake in Henderson, North Carolina. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
King University Wins MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Tournament on Lake Guntersville
GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. (April 29, 2024) – The King University duo of Tyler Altizer of Abingdon, Virginia, and Landon Lawson of Jonesborough, Tennessee, won the MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI event on Lake Guntersville Friday with a five-bass limit weighing 25 pounds, 6 ounces. The victory earned the Tornado bass club $2,000 and a qualification into the 2025 MLF College Fishing National Championship.
In practice, the King University team was able to put together two solid patterns: fishing shallow, grassy humps on the main lake and fishing brush piles.
“It was mainly any shallow water close to the main river; any hump or bar in less than 12 foot of water,” Lawson said about the grassy humps. “I was calling it ‘mini-ledges,’ like they’re not all the way out there yet, but they’re on their way.”
Unfortunately, the brush pile pattern totally evaporated during the tournament. Lawson said the brush was automatic in practice, with every pile good for a 3- or 4-pound fish. But in the tournament, they ran every piece of brush twice and never got a bite.
Instead, the Tornado anglers further dialed in the grass bite, staying on the lower part of the lake the entire day.
“We didn’t figure it out until the morning of the tournament that a lot of those bigger fish first thing in the mornings wouldn’t be on top up in the grass,” Lawson said. “They’d be out off the edges eating bait. We started fishing just off the grass line, and then when the sun got up about 12 o’clock we moved up into the grass.”
They used a combination of tactics to catch their fish. One angler would use Garmin LiveScope to pick off fish in the grass with a Neko-rigged Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Hit Worm Magnum, with the Neko weight glued in place using Avid Angler Solutions Fishing Glue. The other angler would sling a Strike King 6XD crankbait along the edge of the grass. That combo worked to perfection to earn the first MLF College Fishing win for Altizer and the third for Lawson.
“It was a great tournament,” Lawson added. “I’ve spent a lot of time on Guntersville. It’s one of my favorite places to fish, and it felt really good for it to pay off down there.”
The top 10 teams finished:
1st: King University – Tyler Altizer, Abingdon, Va., and Landon Lawson, Jonesborough, Tenn., five bass, 25-6, $2,000
2nd: Auburn University – Hayden Marbut, Birmingham, Ala., five bass, 22-13, $1,000
3rd: Dallas Baptist University – Braxon Hightower, Amarillo, Texas, and Luke Wenger, Lakewood, Colo., five bass, 22-10, $700
4th: LSU Shreveport – Miles Smith, Houma, La., and Levi Thibodaux, Thibodaux, La., five bass, 21-15, $600
5th: University of North Alabama – Dylan Nutt and Carter Nutt, Nashville, Tenn., five bass, 21-10, $500
6th: University of Montevallo – Logan Plueger, North Augusta, S.C., and Charlie Wright, Becker, Minn., five bass, 21-3
7th: Emmanuel University – Logan Fisher, Colbert, Ga., and Will Hart, Danielsville, Ga., five bass, 20-11
8th: University of North Alabama – Nathan Reynolds, Nashville, Tenn., and Banks Shaw, Harrison, Tenn., five bass, 20-10
9th: University of Montevallo – Nicholas Dumke and Easton Fothergill, Grand Rapids, Minn., five bass, 20-10
10th: University of North Alabama – Tyler Finley, Mount Pleasant, Tenn., and Christopher Kistler, Harvest, Ala., five bass, 20-8
The top 12 percent of teams in the tournament qualified for the National Championship. A total of 243 teams competed on Friday, so the top 29 teams advanced to the National Championship. The full list of qualifiers and complete results for the entire field can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI event on Lake Guntersville was hosted by Marshall County Tourism and Sports. The next tournament for MLF College Fishing anglers will be the Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI event on Lake Havasu, May 5 in Lake Havasu City, Arizona.
The 2024 MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI season features college teams from across the country competing in nine regular-season tournaments. The top 12 percent of teams from each regular-season tournament advance to the 2025 Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI National Championship.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular College Fishing updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Anglers Channel Partners with Power-Pole For Total Boat Control on the Vexus® Dream Rig Build
Columbia, SC (April 29, 2024) – The Anglers Channel Vexus® Dream Rig is officially underway and will be rolling out of the Flippin, AR facility in the coming weeks, outfitted with the latest in bass boat technology. In keeping with the Dream Rig theme, Anglers Channel has partnered with Power-Pole® from bow to stern for Total Boat Control in 2024. The Vexus AVX 2080 will feature the Power-Pole MOVE® ZR brushless trolling motor for unrivaled power, stealth, and durability on the bow. The stern of the Vexus Dream Rig will feature the brand-new Power-Pole ONE Pump anchoring system, featuring the Dual Blade ONE Pump design that debuted at the 2024 Bassmaster Classic.
According to Danny Blandford, Business Development Manager for Anglers Channel, “Setting up the Vexus Dream Rig has to be one of the more exciting projects I’ve worked on, thanks in large part to the partnerships and industry support here at Anglers Channel. We’re fortunate to be able to choose the best products on the market for our intended use, and the Power-Pole products are exactly that. Being that the Vexus AVX is an aluminum boat, maintaining the weight advantage has been one of the key principles behind the build. Both the MOVE and the ONE Pump system are some of the lightest products in their categories, yet have both strength and durability, which is a must for a Dream Rig.”
The MOVE ZR trolling motor weighs only 53 pounds and has an ultra low-profile design, including the smallest head unit in the category. The aerospace grade titanium shaft is warrantied for life and tough enough to withstand some of the beatings it’s sure to take in shallow stump filled waters.
Blandford went on to add, “One thing that really impressed me in testing, in addition to the power itself, was the REAL-FEEL® foot pedal. It can be adjusted to steer exactly the way I want to, while being whisper quiet. It was not only as smooth as older cable steer models, but it also didn’t have the noise I’ve experienced in other digital steering trolling motors. I’m confident the MOVE is the stealthiest of our choices and that’s key in the shallow waters I spend time in.”
With the MOVE ZR providing plenty of power to pull the Vexus AVX at high speeds, the Power-Pole ONE Pump package is the perfect choice for keeping the boat at rest. Paired with dual 8 ft. Power-Pole Blades, and operated by a single lightweight pump, the system will provide rock solid anchoring and yet still satisfy the goal of keeping accessory weight to a minimum. The ONE Pump is 40% lighter than past models, takes up 50% less space, and draws 41.6% fewer amps when in use. Overall, the ONE Pump system is the most advanced Power-Pole hydraulic system to date thanks to the inclusion of a more powerful brushless motor, along with an upgraded circuit board and valves, making it the ideal choice for the Vexus Dream Rig build.
Beyond featuring Power-Pole products on the Dream Rig, Anglers Channel will be featuring the various features and benefits of Power-Pole products, highlighting the Captain’s Cash Program and winners, as well as keeping up with Team Power-Pole on the pro circuits throughout the year.
About Power-Pole:
For over 25 years, Power-Pole® has remained the pinnacle of trust and performance in the industry, cherished by both professional and recreational anglers. Power-Pole is the pioneering force behind the original hydraulic Shallow Water Anchor, the game-changing Power-Pole MOVE® brushless trolling motors, the cutting-edge CHARGE Marine Power Management Station, and other innovative products designed and engineered to deliver Total Boat Control.
A full Logan Martin will offer many options for Bassmaster Opens Field
April 26, 2024
A full Logan Martin will offer many options for Bassmaster Opens Field
LINCOLN, Ala. — The notion of ups and downs is nothing new to bass tournament anglers, but Alabama native and Bassmaster Elite Series champion Wes Logan said the St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Logan Martin Lake presented by SEVIIN will be heavily influenced by a down-and-up deal.
Competition days will be May 2-4 with daily takeoffs from Lincoln Landing at 6 a.m. CT and weigh-ins each day back at the landing at 2 p.m.
As Logan explained, winter drawdown lowers this 17,000-acre Coosa River reservoir to a winter pool level of about 462 feet (2023-24). With Alabama Power Company gradually bringing the lake back to full pool (465) by early May, the lake stood about 1.75 feet from that mark a week prior to the event.
With warm weather forecast and water temperatures in the upper 60s to low 70s, Logan Martin’s shaping up for a good dose of spring patterns. That being said, the event’s timing, shortly after a major hydrologic adjustment could just as easily see a restrained mood or a wide-open stick fest.
“I think a lot of what people found in pre-practice is going to be null and void because of how those fish (reposition) when the water starts moving,” Logan said. “It’s going to be interesting, because fish will be moving with the water.”
From a lifetime of fishing Coosa River lakes, Logan expects that some of the bass will have spawned, but the annual spring water rise certainly factors into the fish’s timing. With water temperatures warm enough, successful bedding may occur during the rise. But as the water level increases, greater depth may limit sunlight penetration.
“Those drawdown fish are smart; they learn not to do it too early,” Logan said of the water level change. “From one week to the next, the fish can be completely different. I think this will make it interesting to see who can figure out the new pattern.
“If someone comes across something the last day of practice, they might be able to run a pattern that nobody else knows yet.”
Describing the lake as what he calls “Coosa River Clear” — about 1 to 1 1/2 foot visibility — Logan said tournament week will likely present a clean-slate scenario that could include a mix of spawn and postspawn scenarios. Given the significant water level change, he believes much of what pre-practicing anglers found before the April 14 off-limits date will be largely irrelevant.
On the upside, Logan said he believes the event could be won from the Neely Henry tailrace down to the Logan Martin Dam impounding this lake. For its relatively modest size, Logan Martin offers abundant habitat diversity.
“There will be a lot of stuff in play; there’s a lot of docks on Logan Martin — floating docks, pole docks, and around those docks are a lot of seawalls,” Logan said. “If we get back on a warming trend, there could be a few times where we have a shad spawn and those seawalls will play really well. As the sun rises, the shad leave and the fish pull to the docks or the first available shade.”
Logan expects to see a large segment of the field spending their days offshore looking for fish on forward-facing sonar. Plenty of spots to check and rising water won’t have much impact on this game. The biggest challenge for the “scopers” will be crowding and fishing pressure.
Other common targets include stump flats and water willow. The latter’s a Coosa River favorite, but Logan said anglers will have to gauge how firmly the fish have committed to this habitat. Growth happens quickly with the returning water, but the degree to which water willow plays has yet to be determined.
“Upriver from Lincoln Landing (takeoff site) to the (Neely Henry) Dam, anglers will fish your basic river structure,” Logan said. “You’ll have current swings, river bends with some current hitting off some bluff banks, laydowns and offshore rockpiles.
“Down lake there’s a lot of underwater humps where those spotted bass like to get on this time of year. From the Stemley Bridge (Highway 34) down to the Logan Martin Dam, in that lower lake area the water stays relatively cleaner and there’s a few major creeks that have a really good population of big spotted bass.”
While unlocking the Logan Martin bounty will require intense search and analysis, during this spring transitional time, Logan said competitors can fish their strengths.
“You can catch ’em on a vibrating jig, a buzzbait early, a spinnerbait (especially for the shad spawn) and a 1/2-ounce flipping jig,” Logan said. “For spotted bass, jerkbaits, crankbaits and jigs are good. A shaky head is a good way to cover water and get bites, and a Carolina rig with a finesse worm is really good for spots on those offshore humps.
“Even though it’s a smaller lake, you’re gonna be able to fish the way you want to. You’re not going to have to do one particular thing. There’s a lot of ways the tournament could be won.”
While spotted bass will almost certainly play a significant role in this event, Logan said he’s not looking for a winning weight solely comprising spots. The occasional spotted chunk will likely highlight competitive limits, but the dependable weight typically comes from largemouth.
“I don’t know if you can catch a 4-pound spot, or a couple of them every day,” Logan said. “It seems like there’s been a little better population of spotted bass here lately, but somebody who can figure out how to catch 14 to 16 pounds of spots for three days will be hard to beat.
“I think it will be dominated with largemouth; that’s going to be most consistent. It could be a mixed bag, but if someone figures out that largemouth deal, they could really run away with it.”
Canadian angler Evan Kung currently leads the Tackle Warehouse Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers race with 568 points. Texas pro Dakota Ebare is second with 555 points, followed by Matt Adams in third with 529, Mike Surman in fourth with 504 and Easton Fothergill in fifth with 502 points. Andy Newcomb is sixth with 501 points, followed by Bobby Bakewell in seventh with 491, Cody Meyer in eighth with 491 and Christian Ostrander in ninth with 488.
Bassmaster LIVE will be streaming on Bassmaster.com all four days.
The event is being hosted by the City of Lincoln.
2024 Bassmaster Opens Series Title Sponsor: St. Croix
2024 Bassmaster Opens Series Presenting Sponsor: SEVIIN
2024 Bassmaster Opens Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2024 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
2024 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 500,000-member 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.
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Connect with #Bassmaster on Facebook, Instagram, Twitte
Media Contact: Chad Gay, Communications Manager, 865-201-6458, cgay@bassmaster.
Fishin' Tip Friday - Shad Spawn tips with Greg Hackney
By Vance McCullough
Depending on where you fish, the shad spawn is either about to kick off or it's already on. Vampire bass will blitz balls of baitfish around shallow hard cover but the murderous activity ends as soon the sun hits the water, so most anglers think they need to work quickly. Greg Hackney tells us to slow the pace of our retrieve for maximum action during this unique opportunity which he exploited for a Top 10 finish in the recent Bassmaster Elite Series tournament on a stingy St Johns River.
He was using a soon to be released, four blade version, but a tandem willow with small blades will do the trick too! The key is to slow down to draw the shad to your bait...THEN the bass will come!
World's Greatest Fishing Auction is Back!
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“World’s Greatest Fishing Auction” Now Open |
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MN-FISH’s On-line auction includes include trips with legendary anglers, resort stays, world-class tackle and much more. Bidding ends May 2! |
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Rogers, Minn. (April 25, 2024) — MN-FISH’s popular “World’s Greatest” online auction of fishing adventures, resort vacation stays and products is now open. More than 40 items are up for bid, and new items are being added daily. Hosted by the nonprofit MN-FISH Sportfishing Foundation and Coalition, the 14-day online auction closes at 7 pm CST on Thursday May 2nd. Auction items may be drooled over and bids placed at the MN-FISH.COM Auction page. |
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MN-FISH executive director Mark Holsten said the auction is one of the nonprofit’s most important fundraising efforts of the year. It allows MN-FISH to continue its mission working to protect and improve fishing in Minnesota. Last year, MN-FISH successfully pushed for more than $98 million dollars in state funding to upgrade Minnesota’s aging hatchery system, improve public boat access sites statewide, and enhance shore-fishing opportunities in key urban areas. |
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“This year, we are working to stop invasive carp from moving up the Mississippi River, fighting the potential loss of key public waters, and continuing our efforts to rebuild the critical St. Paul fish hatchery, which not only helps maintain fishing in key metro waters, but could also serve as a research and education center for the public. But our most important role is monitoring potential regulation changes that affect all anglers.” “Our work has the support of state anglers, which is why so many legendary personalities have donated fishing adventures to this year’s auction,” said Ron Schara, MN-FISH president. “We have more than 30 trips from anglers including Al Lindner, Babe Winkelman, Dave Genz, Tony Roach, Jason Mitchell and many others. Who doesn’t want to share a boat with these anglers.” |
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“The auction includes fishing adventures or vacation stays on waters across Minnesota, as well as the Dakotas and Canada,” said MN-FISH secretary Steve Pennaz. “There’s also some great tackle from manufacturers including Abu Garcia, Rapala, DAIWA, and Zebco, as well as equipment from Milwaukee Tool.” Fishing is big business in Minnesota, generating $4.4 billion annually in economic impact and about $300 million in state taxes. MN-FISH is working to increase reinvestment back into the state’s vital fisheries. This auction represents the outdoors industry giving back to the state’s diverse angler make-up by giving them the chance to win once-in-a-lifetime fishing experiences, besides resort stays and products. |
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MLF Announces Launch of New Multi-Year Sponsorship and Licensing Partnership with REDCON1
Premium sports nutrition brand REDCON1 secures exclusive partnership as the Official Energy Drink & Sports Nutrition partner of MLF and will also serve as the presenting sponsor of Bass Pro Tour Stage Four at Lake Eufaula
BENTON, Ky. (April 25, 2024) – Major League Fishing (MLF), the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, and REDCON1, a premier supplement and energy brand for people who demand the most out of their workout and workday, announced a multi-year sponsorship and licensing partnership that brings together category leaders in the fishing and outdoors space and the booming supplement and protein energy industry.
REDCON1 will become the Official Energy Drink, Official Protein Bar, Official Protein Powder, and Official Pre-Workout of MLF, integrating the premier supplement provider into a wide range of MLF media and tournament assets, including television and livestream broadcasts. REDCON1 will also be the presenting sponsor of MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1, held April 30-May 5 in Eufaula, Oklahoma.
The exclusive partnership comes on the heels of REDCON1’s February announcement that Hall of Fame two-sport athlete Super Bowl Champion, and Division 1 college football head coach Deion Sanders had taken an ownership stake in the company. REDCON1 and “Coach Prime” have been developing a Prime Time-inspired line of products, which will debut with an energy drink.
REDCON1 will also license the MLF logo and brand on products in retail locations around the country.
“This multi-year partnership with REDCON1 is designed to raise the bar for both of our brands,” said MLF Vice President of Sponsorship and Business Development Michael Mulone. “Aaron Singerman and Coach Prime are building REDCON1 into the best premium energy and sports nutrition brand on the planet. With their strong presence in retailers nationwide and MLF’s brand-loyal audience, this sponsorship is a massive win for both companies. Whether you’re on the boat, working out or just working hard, REDCON1 should be every fishing fan’s first choice for an energy drink or protein supplement.”
"We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Major League Fishing. As MLF's Official Energy Drink and Sports Nutrition partner, we are excited to support the high-performance lifestyle of anglers everywhere—whether they're at the lake, on the road, or in the gym. At REDCON1, readiness isn't just a core value; it's our mission," stated Aaron Singerman, Founder of REDCON1.
In addition to the extensive broadcast presence at Stage Four, REDCON1 will receive prominent exposure across all MLF circuits, including the Bass Pro Tour and as a sponsor of all MLF5 tournaments, and the General Tire Team Series (which will be livestreamed for the first time this season). REDCON1 will be featured in all MLF media platforms, including tournaments and activations, website and social media channels, MLF Bass Fishing magazine and television programming on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) and Rumble.
The MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the action at MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1 live on the final two days of the Qualifying Rounds, the Knockout Round and the Championship Round of competition. MLFNOW!® is livestreamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com, the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app and Rumble.
Television coverage of MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1 will premiere as a two-hour episode on Discovery starting at 7 a.m. ET, on Saturday, Oct. 12, with the Championship Round premiering on Saturday, Oct. 19. New MLF episodes premiere each Saturday morning on Discovery, with re-airings on Outdoor Channel.
For additional information about MLF, its tournaments and sponsors, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. To learn more about REDCON1 and its complete line of energy drinks, protein bars, protein powders and pre-workout supplements, visit REDCON1.com.
About REDCON1
REDCON1 is a mission-based company founded on a simple principle - create the highest quality supplements for people who need to get the most out of their workout and workday. REDCON1 stands at the forefront of the sports nutrition industry, committed to providing consumers with the highest quality supplements and performance drinks. Known for its gold standard in product development and dedication to innovation, REDCON1 continues to redefine excellence in nutrition and readiness, helping everyone around the world achieve their peak performance. For additional information, visit redcon1.com.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Lake Havasu Readies to Host MLF Toyota Series Western Division Presented by Tackle Warehouse
LAKE HAVASU CITY, Ariz. (April 25, 2024) – Lake Havasu City, Arizona is set to host the Major League Fishing (MLF) Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats next week, May 2-4, for the second event of the 2024 Western Division Presented by Tackle Warehouse – the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats at Lake Havasu.
The three-day bass-fishing tournament, hosted by Go Lake Havasu, will feature a roster of the region’s best bass-fishing pros and Strike King co-anglers competing for a top prize of up to $75,000 in the pro division and a new Phoenix 518 Pro boat with a 115-horsepower outboard motor in the co-angler division.
“Lake Havasu is a great fishery – the most diverse lake on the Colorado River chain – and I know they’re going to catch them in this one,” said Bass Pro Tour angler Dean Rojas who resides in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. “Right now it’s the end of the spawn – most of the fish are already into their postspawn patterns and the fishing has been pretty good.
“This time of year on Havasu is a lot of fun. You can catch them almost any way you want to, both smallmouth and largemouth,” Rojas continued. “I think the tournament will probably be won weighing in all largemouth, but it would not surprise me at all to see a couple of guys in the top five that have mixed bags or limits that include three or four big smallmouth.”
With the lake fishing so freely right now, Rojas expects to see a variety of different tactics in play by competitors.
“We’re going to see a wide variety. Some guys will be throwing swimbaits, others will be using drop-shot rigs. I think we’ll see some jigs. And the flipping bite has been known to be pretty good this time of the year. You can do a lot of different things there, but the key is going to be finding the right areas and fishing to your strengths.”
When the Toyota Series last visited Lake Havasu in February of 2023, San Clemente, California pro Todd Kline was the only angler to weigh more than 60 pounds over the three days of competition, and won the event with a total of 60-14. Rojas said that he thinks the early May event will be very similar weight-wise in this postspawn event.
“It took 19 pounds to win a team tournament here last weekend, so the lake is fishing strong,” Rojas said. “It’s not the best it has ever fished, but it is certainly doing well. A lot of factors depend on the water fluctuations, but I think the three-day winner next week catches between 58 to 64 pounds.”
Anglers will launch at 6 a.m. MT each day from Windsor Beach at Lake Havasu State Park, located at 699 London Bridge Road in Lake Havasu City. Weigh-ins will also be held at Windsor Beach and will begin at 2 p.m. each day. Fans are welcome to attend and encouraged to follow the event online through the “MLF Live” weigh-in broadcasts and daily coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
In Toyota Series regular-season competition, payouts are based on the number of participants competing in the event, scaling up for every 20 boats over 160 and scaling down for every boat below 160. With a 160-boat field, pros fish for a top prize of up to $75,000, if Phoenix MLF Bonus qualified. Strike King co-anglers cast for the top prize of a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard (valued at $33,500). With a 260-boat field, pros fish for a top award of up to $100,000, if Phoenix MLF Bonus qualified. Strike King co-anglers cast for the top prize of a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard plus $5,000 cash.
The 2024 Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats consists of six divisions – Central, Northern, Plains, Southern, Southwestern and the Western Division Presented by Tackle Warehouse – each holding three regular-season events, along with the International and Wild Card divisions. Anglers who fish in any of the six divisions or the Wild Card division and finish in the top 25 will qualify for the no-entry-fee Toyota Series Championship for a shot at winning up to $235,000 and a qualification to REDCREST 2025. The winning Strike King co-angler at the championship earns a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury outboard. The 2024 Toyota Series Championship will be held Nov. 7-9 on Wheeler Lake in Huntsville, Alabama, and is hosted by the Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Madison County Commission, and the Huntsville Sports Commission.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Toyota Series include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, FX Custom Rods, General Tire, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters, YETI.
For complete details and updated information visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Toyota Series updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the MLF5 social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
MLF Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Set to Close Out Central Division Season with event at Lake Chickamauga
DAYTON, Tenn. (April 24, 2024) – The Major League Fishing (MLF) Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats is set to return to the Dayton Boat Dock in Dayton, Tennessee, next week, May 2-4, for the third and final event of the 2024 Central division – the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats at Lake Chickamauga.
The three-day competition, hosted by Fish Dayton and the Rhea Economic & Tourism Council, will feature a roster of the region’s best bass-fishing pros and Strike King co-anglers competing for a top prize of up to $100,000 in the pro division and a new Phoenix 518 Pro boat with a 115-horsepower outboard motor plus $5,000 in the co-angler division.
“I’ve been looking forward to this one for some time,” said local pro Seth Davis of Dayton, Tennessee, who finished second in this tournament in two of the last three Toyota Series visits to Lake Chickamauga. “I’ve got a lot going on in my life – we just got done building a house, we’re having a baby next month – but I’ve told my wife for the past few weeks, I am working for this one. I am thirsty, and I want to win! Map study, graphing, looking, finding grass, just staying in tune with the lake. I may not catch a keeper on Day 1, but I’m doing everything I can to give myself a shot.”
Davis said that this tournament, like most, will be largely weather dependent. The water levels on Lake Chickamauga are down a little bit, and with the TVA in the process of raising the lake, he doesn’t expect much current to be generated.
“The majority of the fish will be in spawn and postspawn patterns,” Davis said. “We’ve already had a wave or two spawn, so there potentially could be some fish already offshore. It would not surprise me one bit if this tournament is won either completely dedicated deep or dedicated shallow.
“The sleeper this year is that there are some areas with pretty good grass,” Davis continued. “It’s pretty healthy right now, and if a guy finds the right patch or two he could definitely catch some big bass just dragging stuff around the grass. It’s Lake Chickamauga and there are giants that live here.”
Davis said that he expects the three-day winner to bring three limits of bass to the scale in the mid-50-pound range.
“It’s still one of the best lakes in the country, but it’s fishing just a little finicky right now. Local tournaments are taking in the low 20s to win right now, so I’m going to be surprised if it takes more than 60 pounds. I think if a guy hits the mid-50s, he’ll be right there at the end with a shot to win.”
Anglers will launch at 6:30 a.m. CT each day from the Dayton Boat Dock, located at 175 Lakeshore Drive in Dayton. Weigh-ins will also be held at the Dayton Boat Dock and will begin at 2:30 p.m. each day. Fans are welcome to attend and encouraged to follow the event online through the “MLF Live” weigh-in broadcasts and daily coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
In Toyota Series regular-season competition, payouts are based on the number of participants competing in the event, scaling up for every 20 boats over 160 and scaling down for every boat below 160. With a 160-boat field, pros fish for a top prize of up to $75,000, if Phoenix MLF Bonus qualified. Strike King co-anglers cast for the top prize of a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard (valued at $33,500). With a 260-boat field, pros fish for a top award of up to $100,000, if Phoenix MLF Bonus qualified. Strike King co-anglers cast for the top prize of a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard plus $5,000 cash.
The 2024 Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats consists of six divisions – Central, Northern, Plains, Southern, Southwestern and the Western Division Presented by Tackle Warehouse – each holding three regular-season events, along with the International and Wild Card divisions. Anglers who fish in any of the six divisions or the Wild Card division and finish in the top 25 will qualify for the no-entry-fee Toyota Series Championship for a shot at winning up to $235,000 and a qualification to REDCREST 2025. The winning Strike King co-angler at the championship earns a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury outboard. The 2024 Toyota Series Championship will be held Nov. 7-9 on Wheeler Lake in Huntsville, Alabama, and is hosted by the Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Madison County Commission, and the Huntsville Sports Commission.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Toyota Series include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, FX Custom Rods, General Tire, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters, YETI.
For complete details and updated information visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Toyota Series updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the MLF5 social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
COSTA FILMS™ Presents: A Legend Remastered
The Grand Catalina Field Test, featuring Angling Legends and Costa Pros Flip Pallot and Oliver White.
As Costa reintroduces its remastered classic frame, Grand Catalina, we are humbled to have had decades of support and patronage from those who are widely considered the legends of our sport. This frame is an homage to them.
Catch up with Costa’s longest tenured Pro Flip Pallot, along with good friend and fellow angling legend, Oliver White, as they reminisce on the evolution of Costa’s frame and lens technology throughout the years. Traveling the pristine waterways of Florida’s backcountry, Flip and Oliver take Grand Catalinas on the ultimate field test.
MillerTech Renews and Expands Major League Fishing Sponsorship
Leading Lithium Battery and Renewable Energy Product Brand Expands Sponsorship as Official Sponsor of the MLF Bass Pro Tour and Title Sponsor of Bass Pro Tour Stage Four
BENTON, Ky. (April 23, 2024) – Major League Fishing (MLF) and MillerTech, a premium lithium battery company known for harnessing the power of innovation, integrity and exceptional customer service, announced today a renewed and expanded partnership through the 2024 season. In addition to being an Official Sponsor of the 2024 Bass Pro Tour, MillerTech has been named the title sponsor of the 2024 MLF Bass Pro Tour MillerTech Stage Four Presented by REDCON1, held April 30 – May 5 at Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Oklahoma.
“Many of our tournament anglers rely on MillerTech Lithium Batteries to keep their boats and electronics charged so they can focus on the competition,” said Kathy Fennel, MLF Executive Vice President and General Manager. “We’re thrilled to renew and expand our partnership through the 2024 season and are proud to continue to showcase the MillerTech brand on and off the water to our loyal MLF fans.”
MillerTech began its partnership with MLF in 2023. Per terms of its renewed agreement, the brand will receive increased exposure through multiple MLF outlets, including television and livestream broadcasts, the MLF website and social media outlets and onsite activation opportunities and signage at MillerTech Stage Four and all Bass Pro Tour events.
In addition to the MLF sponsorship, MillerTech will continue to sponsor a growing list of Bass Pro Tour pros, including Adrian Avena, Brent Chapman, Dustin Connell, David Dudley, Cole Floyd, Anthony Gagliardi, John Hunter, Justin Lucas, Fred Roumbanis, Ryan Salzman, Colby Schrumpf, Greg Vinson, Joshua Weaver and Jacob Wheeler.
“The team at MillerTech Lithium Batteries is honored to be the title sponsor for Stage Four of the 2024 Bass Pro Tour,” said Lester Miller, General Manager, MillerTech Energy Solutions, LLC. “When our great team of professional anglers take on this awesome fishery, it will be extremely important for them to have reliable battery systems that can give them confidence and the peace of mind that they deserve.
“We are blessed to be able to provide that for them. This sponsorship is only one way for us to show our appreciation to the anglers and the fishing community that continues to support our brand, and our mission of creating a better tomorrow!”
For more information about MLF, its tournaments and sponsors, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. To learn more about MillerTech, its commitment to innovation, integrity and a brighter, greener future, visit MillerTechEnergy.com.
About MillerTech
MillerTech Energy Solutions LLC is a Premium Lithium Battery Company that combines superior quality products with faith-based business values to deliver a unique and beneficial experience for end users. Our commitment to integrity, customer focus, quality and community engagement sets us apart as a reliable and trustworthy partner in the lithium battery industry. Choose MillerTech for premium lithium batteries that enhance your bottom line while aligning with your values.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
DB gets a double bonus at St. Johns Elite
Bassmaster Elite Series pro Drew Benton is still not sure what random underwater object his Yamaha 250 V MAX SHO® hit amid a 40-mile run to his starting spot on Day 1 of the St. Johns River event, but he’s positive Yamaha’s durability is unmatched like that of his tow vehicle.
He’s also certain that registering for contingency programs such as Yamaha’s Power Pay program and Toyota Bonus Bucks program, provides the proverbial icing on the cake of both leading brands.
Benton finished 4th in the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at the St Johns River, which was good enough for cash bonuses from both Yamaha and Toyota that are available to anglers of all levels who fish tournaments and register for the respective programs.
“I’ve towed with various brands of trucks, and I’ll tell you straight-up that a Toyota Tundra is hands-down the strongest and most reliable gas-powered truck out there, with gas mileage that is on par with the diesel I used to drive. I love my Tundra’s Tow+ feature, and the huge 14” screen on the dash is fantastic for all the miles we travel while referencing GPS directions,” says Benton.
Benton puts his money where his mouth is. Not only did he buy a Tundra, but his wife, Morgan also bought a Toyota Sequoia recently. “Toyota supports bass fishing on so many levels. They do more for our sport than any other truck manufacture by a wide margin, so we’re going to be a Toyota family. It’s that simple,” says Benton.
His strong belief in the brands he runs is as clear as his world-class sight fishing skills, which might have been next to worthless, if not for his Yamaha’s ability to keep running after surrendering a piece its lower unit to the underwater object, and safely returning him to weigh-in for a top finish by week’s end. No to mention, the two beefy bonus checks he collected to make his success even sweeter.
AC Insider Podcast - Elite Series Champ John Garrett
The guys caught up with Elite Series Champ, John Garrett, after back to back Florida Elite Series events. The Strike King/Lews Pro breaks down the event itself and the guys dig deep into some electronics pointers, as well as the mindset of the new Young Guns on tour. John shares some enlightening details on what high school and college fishing events have done to prepare these men for the Elite Series and other professional tours. It is DEFINITELY about more than comfort with electronics...give a listen and gain some good perspective on the transformation we're seeing in our sport.
Virginia’s Winebarger Earns First Career Win at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at South Holston Lake
Saige Evans, of Abingdon, Va., Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
BRISTOL, Tenn. (April 22, 2024) – Boater Clayton Winebarger of Abingdon, Virginia, caught a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds even Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on South Holston Lake . The tournament was the second event of the season for the BFL Volunteer Division. Winebarger earned $9,235, including the lucrative $5,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory.
Not surprisingly for April, the smallmouth spawn was on for the BFL event at South Holston. The spawning bite is typically a dominant pattern this time of year, and because everyone knows it, winning during the spawn can come down to who gets to the best banks first.
“I found a few banks that had some fish on them and was lucky enough to get boat No. 2,” Winebarger said. “I was lucky enough to get on a good bank really quick. I caught three good ones within the first hour.”
After that, he ran up the lake to another stretch and was able to finish out a quality limit. His best fish, however, came later.
“In practice, I had caught a 4½-pounder on a bank not far from where I started. That was on Thursday evening,” he said, “and I knew exactly where it was at. In the tournament, there was actually three boats that got on that bank right at blastoff while I was catching the other three good ones. So I couldn’t get on it. Later in the day, I ran back down to that bank and was able get on it and catch it (the same fish from practice), and that was the biggest one I had today.”
Winebarger caught his fish Texas-rigging a small green worm with either a 1/8- or 3/16-ounce weight.
Occasionally, if the fish got finicky, he changed colors – even using a pink worm. He caught his fish from about 5 to 16 feet deep.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Clayton Winebarger, Abingdon, Va., five bass, 20-0, $9,235 (includes $5,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
2nd: Corey Neece, Bristol, Tenn., five bass, 19-9, $2,418
3rd: Jimmy Neece Jr., Bristol, Tenn., five bass, 19-0, $1,413
4th: Colton Chambers, Elizabethton, Tenn., five bass, 18-10, $988
5th: Matthew Rock, Bristol, Va., five bass, 18-3, $776
5th: Brian Barnett, Bluff City, Tenn., five bass, 18-3, $776
5th: Derrick Snavely, Piney Flats, Tenn., five bass, 18-3, $776
8th: Hunter McClaskey, Elizabethton, Tenn., five bass, 18-2, $635
9th: Cody Fuller, Bluefield, W.Va., five bass, 17-12, $529
9th: David Tolbert, Bristol, Tenn., five bass, 17-12, $529
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Randy Oliver of Johnson City, Tennessee, caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds, 1 ounce, and earned the Berkley Big Bass boater award of $590.
Saige Evans of Abingdon, Virginia, won the Strike King co-angler division and $2,064 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 16 pounds, 4 ounces.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Saige Evans, Abingdon, Va., five bass, 16-4, $2,064
2nd: Mac Fritts, Caryville, Tenn., five bass, 15-14, $1,032
3rd: Keith Gunsauls, Dandridge, Tenn., five bass, 15-9, $688
4th: Caleb Chambers, Elizabethton, Tenn., five bass, 14-15, $447
4th: Kyle Musick, Abingdon, Va., five bass, 14-15, $447
6th: Don Bible, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 14-10, $378
7th: Matthew Faulkner, Corbin, Ky., five bass, 14-9, $714
7th: Shane Winebarger, Abingdon, Va., five bass, 14-9, $327
9th: Will Castle, Cleveland, Va., five bass, 14-8, $258
9th: Brayden Ringley, Piney Flats, Tenn., five bass, 14-8, $258
Matthew Faulkner of Corbin, Kentucky, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $287, catching a bass that weighed in at 4 pounds, 11 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After two events, Jimmy Neece Jr. of Bristol, Tennessee, leads the Fishing Clash Volunteer Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 498 points, while Keith Gunsauls of Dandridge, Tennessee, leads the Fishing Clash Volunteer Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 484 points.
The next event for BFL Volunteer Division anglers will be held May 11, at Douglas Lake in Dandridge, Tennessee. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 17-19 BFL Regional tournament on Clarks Hill Lake in Appling, Georgia. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Dickson’s True Skips Docks to Win Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Tims Ford Lake
| Hixson’s Henry Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
WINCHESTER, Tenn. (April 22, 2024) – Boater Austin True of Dickson, Tennessee, caught a five-bass limit weighing 19 pounds, 8 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Tims Ford Lake. The tournament was the second event of the season for the BFL Music City Division. True earned $2,883 for his victory. Before the tournament, True found some spawning fish in the Elk River and thought this BFL tournament would be a spawn event. But in practice on Friday, he realized he’d have to change his strategy due to warming weather. “I skipped a ChatterBait up under a dock and caught like a 5-pounder,” he said. “So using my (Garmin) LiveScope, I determined there were fish suspending up under docks. All my fish that were spawning, were now suspending under docks.” True changed it up in the tournament. He caught a decent smallmouth first thing in the morning on a 4-inch 6th Sense Crush Dogma topwater bait in French bone pearl. “From there, I took a jumbo (7-inch) Strike King Ocho on a baitcaster with 20-pound fluorocarbon, and I just skipped it as far back under the dock as I could. And hold on!” True said. “I enjoyed it because I didn’t have to stare at the LiveScope all day. I could see the structure I was fishing, and I fished confident.” True, who works as an electrician at Wolfe & Travis Electric in Nashville, finished the tournament with four largemouths and the one smallmouth he caught in the morning. All his best docks were situated on channel-swing banks where he found wads of shad. The top 10 boaters finished the tournament: 1st: Austin True, Dickson, Tenn., five bass, 19-8, $2,883 Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com. Wesley D. Taylor of Estill Springs, Tennessee, caught a bass that weighed 4 pounds, 11 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass boater award of $320.
Rex Henry of Hixson, Tennessee, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,602 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 15 pounds, 1 ounce. The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished: 1st: Rex Henry, Hixson, Tenn., five bass, 15-1, $1,602 Henry also earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $160, catching a bass that weighed in at 4 pounds, 3 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day. After two events, Jacob Woods of Loudon, Tennessee, leads the Fishing Clash Music City Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 972 points, while Kevin Jones of Fort Campbell, Kentucky, leads the Fishing Clash Music City Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 495 points. The next event for BFL Music City Division anglers will be held May 11, at Center Hill Lake in Sparta, Tennessee. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 17-19 BFL Regional tournament on Clarks Hill Lake in Appling, Georgia. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard. The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI. For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. About Major League Fishing |
Oxford’s Hodge Overcomes High-Water Conditions to Win Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Grenada Lake
Como’s Ingle Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
GRENADA, Miss. (April 22, 2024) – Boater Blake Hodge of Oxford, Mississippi, caught a five-bass limit weighing 17 pounds, 6 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Grenada Lake . Hosted by the Grenada Tourism Commission, the tournament was the second event of the season for the BFL Mississippi Division. Hodge earned $9,813, including the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory.
Heavy rains ahead of the tournament had Grenada’s water well out of its banks when the BFL kicked off. Hodge followed the rising water into newly flooded fields of grass.
“I practiced a couple days last week and found a couple grass flats and was just targeting bass that were on hard or clean spots inside flat pieces of bank,” he said.
“I had three spots that I could put the nose of my boat in and make the same cast over and over.”
Hodge caught fish from as shallow as 6 inches of water by trolling his boat up as far as he could go and then bombing long casts. His key bait was a SPRO Bronzeye Frog, which produced a pair of keepers that Hodge brought to weigh-in.
“You had to work that area for probably 30 to 45 minutes until you made one of them bite,” he added.
Once he exhausted the frog pattern, Hodge made an adjustment and ran new water – mostly deeper postspawn areas where he was able to get bit throwing a BOOYAH Covert Spinnerbait with orange and gold blades.
Even though the high water had Hodge questioning whether he’d even be able to catch a keeper coming into the tournament, he wound up landing six fish and culling up to win by almost 6 pounds.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Blake Hodge, Oxford, Miss., five bass, 17-6, $9,813 (includes $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
2nd: Barrett Saunders, Hammond, La., five bass, 11-10, $1,274
3rd: Dakota Fleming, Oak Grove, La., five bass, 10-5, $848
4th: Dakota Shaw, Millport, Ala., four bass, 9-11, $594
5th: Scott Whitehead, Columbus, Miss., five bass, 8-11, $810
6th: Tim McDaniel, Grenada, Miss., four bass, 8-10, $467
7th: Jeff Johnston, Marion, Ark., four bass, 8-1, $425
8th: Clint Pegg, Caledonia, Miss., four bass, 6-12, $507
9th: Kenneth Underwood, Columbus, Miss., three bass, 6-6, $340
10th: Chris Jones, Senatobia, Miss., three bass, 5-15, $297
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Hodge’s limit included a bass that weighed 6 pounds, 3 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $265.
Jeff Ingle of Como, Mississippi, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,274 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 11 pounds, 8 ounces.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Jeff Ingle, Como, Miss., five bass, 11-8, $1,274
2nd: Troy Ladner, Bay Saint Louis, Miss., four bass, 7-8, $737
3rd: Brayden Gray, Pontotoc, Miss., three bass, 5-8, $424
4th: Christopher Daughdrill, Foxworth, Miss., two bass, 5-0, $297
5th: Thomas Smith, Brandon, Miss., three bass, 3-15, $255
6th: Joe Cornelius, Corinth, Miss., one bass, 3-9, $366
7th: Roy Steed, Madison, Miss., one bass, 3-6, $212
8th: Auston Ballard, Smithville, Miss., two bass, 2-12, $191
9th: Randy Maples, Amory, Miss., one bass, 2-7, $170
10th: Ryan LeCompte, Picayune, Miss., two bass, 2-3, $149
Joe Cornelius of Corinth, Mississippi, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $132, catching a bass that weighed in at 3 pounds, 9 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After two events, Barrett Saunders of Hammond, Louisiana, leads the Fishing Clash Mississippi Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 493 points, while Thomas Smith of Brandon, Mississippi, leads the Fishing Clash Mississippi Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 493 points.
The next event for BFL Mississippi Division anglers will be held May 11, at Lake Sardis in Sardis, Mississippi. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 17-19 BFL Regional tournament on Wright Patman Lake in Texarkana, Texas. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
West Palm Beach’s Terescenko Posts Second Career Win at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Lake Okeechobee
West Chapel’s Giran Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
CLEWISTON, Fla. (April 22, 2024) – Boater Alex Terescenko of West Palm Beach, Florida, caught a five-bass limit weighing 28 pounds, 3 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Okeechobee . Hosted by Roland & Mary Ann Martin's Marina & Resort, the tournament was the fourth event of the season for the BFL Gator Division. Terescenko earned $3,804 for his victory.
Terescenko certainly put together a solid bag of fish, but it wasn’t hot-and-heavy fishing.
“I pretty much caught all my fish on a homemade vibrating jig,” said Terescenko. “I didn’t really get much time to practice, but when I did practice I found a whole bunch of Mayan cichlid beds. They were loaded with cichlids.”
Cichlids are similar to bluegills, at least in size and their habit of spawning in clusters or colonies. And the bass prey on them during the cichlid spawn.
Terescenko was able to get bit in practice, but he knew he likely would have to adjust in the tournament because the wind kept switching directions. That kind of weather change in spring in south Florida calls for adjustments in fishing tactics, too.
“I really, really slowed down, and I was almost crawling the bait on the bottom,” he said.
Slowing down proved to be the deciding factor. Terescenko said other anglers were in his area fishing faster but weren’t having the same results. In fact, he never fired up his big motor the entire day and only burned through about 20 percent of his trolling motor batteries. He just worked a triangular area of three bedding zones, each about 50 yards apart, and made cast after cast.
“Patience was definitely a big thing for me,” he said. “That’s something that takes years to learn as a fisherman, but that’s what really came in clutch.”
Terescenko fished a green pumpkin Gambler Komodo as a trailer on his vibrating jig, and he dipped the tails in chartreuse. The jig had a green pumpkin skirt. He also caught a couple fish on a white vibrating jig.
The 31-year-old angler is a custom rod builder who owns Scenko Stix rod brand, which he runs with his girlfriend, Jenna Vlaar. He won the tournament using a 7-foot, 4-inch rod of his making that he calls the Chatter Trap.
“A lot of guys that throw a ChatterBait will use a composite blend rod,” he said. “It kind of has the benefits of the glass and composite, where if they (the fish) do eat that bait at the boat, it’ll have enough give and parabolic bend to not pull the hook. I designed the Chatter Trap where the blank is pretty thin but the walls are pretty thick, giving it a really nice whippy, crisp feel. It casts great and keeps fish pinned.
“You can really lean into them and not worry about your line breaking or pulling the hook. It’s very forgiving, but very strong at the same time. It’s definitely our best seller.”
Terescenko thanked his local community for supporting his rod business. He also thanked his Vlaar for her support, as well as his parents, who covered his entry fee to fish the BFL event.
“None of this would be possible without them,” he added.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Alex Terescenko, West Palm Beach, Fla., five bass, 28-3, $3,804
2nd: Eric Beaty, Plantation, Fla., five bass, 27-0, $2,407
3rd: Joseph Carter, Orlando, Fla., five bass, 26-0, $1,267
4th: Dylan Quilatan, Windermere, Fla., five bass, 25-15, $1,188
5th: Luis Lindstedt, Melbourne, Fla., five bass, 25-14, $1,261 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
6th: Clay Mock, Winter Haven, Fla., five bass, 25-1, $697
7th: Aaron Yavorsky, Palm Harbor, Fla., five bass, 24-4, $634
8th: Robert Chase Burlew, Inverness, Fla., five bass, 23-7, $571
9th: Timothy King, Fort Myers, Fla., five bass, 21-14, $507
10th: Adam Hall, Bryceville, Fla, five bass, 21-11, $444
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Eric Beaty of Plantation, Florida, caught a bass that weighed 9 pounds, 3 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass boater award of $505.
Adam Giran of Wesley Chapel, Florida, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,902 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 19 pounds, 8 ounces.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Adam Giran, Wesley Chapel, Fla., five bass, 19-8, $1,902
2nd: Matt Russell, Elkton, Md., five bass, 19-2, $1,303
3rd: Timothy Perdue, Casselberry, Fla., four bass, 16-15, $634
4th: David Jones, Umatilla, Fla., five bass, 16-4, $444
5th: Chase Brumfield, Middleburg, Fla., five bass, 16-1, $380
6th: Sean Ripley, Lakeland, Fla., five bass, 15-1, $349
7th: Sam Goldberg, Boynton Beach, Fla., five bass, 14-11, $317
8th: David White, Winter Garden, Fla., five bass, 14-8, $285
9th: Pat Herolt, Citrus Springs, Fla., five bass, 14-7, $254
10th: Jordan Elmore, Saint Petersburg, Fla., five bass, 14-4, $222
Matt Russell of Elkton, Maryland, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $252, catching a bass that weighed in at 6 pounds, 15 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After four events, Ryan Crowley of Yulee, Florida, leads the Fishing Clash Gator Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 949 points, while Evrett Hunter of Inverness, Florida, leads the Fishing Clash Gator Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 961 points.
The next event for BFL Gator Division anglers will be held Sept. 28-29, at Lake Okeechobee in Clewiston, Florida. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional tournament on Santee Cooper Lakes in Clarendon County, South Carolina. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Retired U.S. Air Force Vet Earns First Career Win at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at DeGray Lake
Boater Justin Howard of Austin, Arkansas, catches 18-10 limit to top third Arkie Division event of season
ARKADELPHIA, Ark. (April 22, 2024) – Boater Justin Howard of Austin, Arkansas, caught a five-bass limit weighing 18 pounds, 10 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on DeGray Lake. Hosted by the City of Caddo Valley , the tournament was the third event of the season for the BFL Arkie Division. Howard earned $4,394 for his victory.
Howard, who retired a couple years ago after a 25-year career in the U.S. Air Force, put in some prep time for this event. Though he didn’t find a lot of bass on beds, he found a key spawning fish that helped him kick off the tournament first thing in the morning. That fish weighed 8 pounds, 7 ounces and earned him the Berkley Big Bass award on the boater side.
“I thought if I could catch her, I had an area mid-lake with some cuts that had some better fish flipping bushes and throwing a (Z-Man Evergreen ChatterBait) Jack Hammer. It was nothing really crazy or out of the ordinary. I just found the right areas.”
Howard’s goal was to catch four more keepers that weighed about 10 pounds to go with his kicker, and he nailed it right on the money. The key to his best area was wind blowing in, which helped in the clear water by breaking up the surface. He also experienced a productive stretch during a bout of rain.
For his flipping fish, Howard used a Rapala Crush City Cleanup Craw. He also credits the reliability of his Skeeter Yamaha boat-and-engine combo and his Costa Del Mar sunglasses with copper lenses for his win.
After a military career that took him all over the globe, Howard is proud to be in Arkansas competing against what he believes are some of the best bass anglers in the country. He said things just went right for him during the tournament.
“When we got to Arkansas in 2016, I really got into it (tournament fishing) heavy after coming from Alaska because I’ve always loved bass fishing,” Howard said. “I had fished some as a co-angler back in the day when I was stationed down in Georgia. I thought if today ain’t the day, I don’t know when it’s going to happen.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Justin Howard, Austin, Ark., five bass, 18-10, $4,394
2nd: Shawn Gordon, Russellville, Ark., five bass, 14-9, $2,065
3rd: Rance Warden, Searcy, Ark., five bass, 14-6, $1,293
4th: Drew Dawson, Pocahontas, Ark., five bass, 13-14, $905
5th: Fisher Davis, Mount Ida, Ark., five bass, 13-13, $776
6th: Brennan Cole, White Hall, Ark., five bass, 13-7, $1,211 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
7th: Chris Hamilton, Mayflower, Ark., five bass, 13-0, $647
8th: Quincy Houchin, Mabelvale, Ark., five bass, 12-15, $582
9th: Chip Hawkins, Little Rock, Ark., five bass, 12-12, $517
10th: Bryce Boatright, Sheridan, Ark., five bass, 12-8, $453
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Howard’s limit included a bass that weighed 8 pounds, 7 ounces, which earned him the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $515.
Jonathan Dotson of Dover, Arkansas, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,902 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 15 pounds, 7 ounces.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Jonathan Dotson, Dover, Ark., five bass, 15-7, $1,902
2nd: Derek Dixon, Hot Springs, Ark., five bass, 12-1, $951
3rd: Adam O’Connell, Conway, Ark., four bass, 11-14, $886
4th: Kelly Shamlin Jr., Benton, Ark., five bass, 10-6, $444
5th: Stephen Simms, Hot Springs, Ark., five bass, 10-3, $380
6th: Koby Gooden, North Little Rock, Ark., five bass, 10-0, $349
7th: Brock Krohne, Belton, Mo., five bass, 9-3, $317
8th: Alan Bernicky, Joliet, Ill., five bass, 9-1, $535
9th: Michael Massey, Amity, Ark., five bass, 8-14, $254
10th: Sam Mitchell, Malvern, Ark., five bass, 8-13, $222
Adam O’Connell of Conway, Arkansas, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $252, catching a bass that weighed in at 5 pounds, 5 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After three events, Chris Darby of Hot Springs, Arkansas, leads the Fishing Clash Arkie Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 724 points, while Steve Meredith of Jessieville, Arkansas, leads the Fishing Clash Arkie Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 706 points.
The next event for BFL Arkie Division anglers will be held June 8, at Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, Arkansas. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 17-19 BFL Regional tournament on Wright Patman Lake in Texarkana, Texas. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Robinson and Davenport Tie for the Win at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Lake Mitchell
Montevallo’s Smith Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division
CLANTON, Ala. (April 22, 2024) – Boaters Robbie Robinson of Mobile, Alabama, and Blake Davenport of Jemison, Alabama, each caught five-bass limits weighing 14 pounds, 10 ounces, Saturday to tie for the win at the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Mitchell . The tournament was the second event of the season for the BFL Bama Division. Robinson earned $2,964 for his share of the win, which includes the Berkley Big Bass prize of $425 for catching a bass that weighed 6-7. Davenport’s share was $2,539.
Interestingly, both anglers caught their fish throwing swimbaits. But they weren’t fishing the same pattern.
“Most of mine were postspawn, and I caught them offshore,” said Davenport. “There were a few prespawn too. I caught most of them off one spot that was up the river, on a swimbait.”
Davenport said the fish were schooled up in about 10 to 12 feet of water and relating to current.
He fished his swimbait on a 1/2-ounce Crusher Lures Legendary Swimbait Head and was able to land a limit in a quick flurry midmorning.
“It was like a 30-minute span and it was all over,” Davenport said.
Robinson pulled out a secret homemade swimbait he’s been making and using for years. The tournament veteran rigged the swimbait on a discontinued 8/0 hook that he carefully weighted with lead. He made long casts and waked the swimbait along and through the edge of some fresh green grass in about 2 feet of water.
The best grass beds were in pockets off the main lake. According to Robinson, the water dropped during pre-tournament week, which likely caused bass to vacate the grass. But then it came back up a foot on Friday, drawing the fish back into his areas.
“These fish have never seen it in their life,” he said about his homemade swimbait. “And it comes swimming through the top of the grass, and they literally lose their mind. I’ve had them hit it and come out of the water like yellowfin tuna.”
He figures he caught about five limits’ worth of 2-pound bass throughout the day. When he wasn’t fishing the swimbait, Robinson also caught some off beds, but the spawners weren’t big enough to help his limit.
His best keeper produced a memorable moment.
“When that big fish rolled up and ate that swimbait, I about had a stroke,” he said. “I stuck her and looked around at my co-angler and said, ‘Dude, you’re gonna have to get the net for this one.’ That’s the only time I asked for the net all day.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Robbie Robinson, Mobile, Ala., five bass, 14-10, $2,964
1st: Blake Davenport, Jemison, Ala., five bass, 14-10, $2,539
3rd: James Willoughby, Gulfport, Miss., five bass, 13-8, $1,129
4th: Jake Childers, Hamilton, Ala., five bass, 13-3, $790
5th: Steven Ingram, Tallassee, Ala., five bass, 12-15, $677
6th: Hunter Dubose, Andalusia, Ala., five bass, 12-6, $621
7th: Morgan Brown, Spanish Fort, Ala., five bass, 12-4, $564
8th: Chad Hall, Cullman, Ala., five bass, 11-13, $451
8th: Kyle Dorsett, Springville, Ala., five bass, 11-13, $451
8th: Cole Williams, Jacksons Gap, Ala., five bass, 11-13, $451
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Brad Smith of Montevallo, Alabama, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,648 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 9 pounds, 13 ounces.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Brad Smith, Montevallo, Ala., five bass, 9-13, $1,648
2nd: Nick Glenn, Hamilton, Ala., five bass, 9-9, $824
3rd: Troy Calloway, Sylacauga, Ala., five bass, 9-8, $549
4th: Gary Marlowe, Montgomery, Ala., five bass, 9-7, $385
5th: Steve Barnett, Conroe, Texas, five bass, 9-5, $330
6th: Brian Carroll, Glencoe, Ala., five bass, 9-1, $302
7th: Kyle Kimbrell, Jasper, Ala., five bass, 8-15, $275
8th: Bill Hutchison, Bessemer, Ala., five bass, 8-13, $234
8th: Mark Black, Selma, Ala., five bass, 8-13, $234
10th: Caleb Gwaltney, Athens, Ala., five bass, 8-12, $192
Co-anglers Steve Watson of Dadeville, Alabama, and Steve Barnett of Conroe, Texas, split the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $202 after each brought a bass to the scale that weighed in 2 pounds, 11 ounces.
The next event for BFL Bama Division anglers will be held May 4, at Lake Demopolis in Demopolis, Alabama. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional tournament on Santee Cooper Lakes in Clarendon County, South Carolina. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Witek & Kessler win $25,000 at LBJ Slugfest with 26.93 lbs.
Top 50 results from the Skeeter Bass Champs at Lake LBJ, Texas. Next Event: Lake Ray Roberts, May 11
For Full results, go to http://www.basschamps.com
Place Boat Truck Angler 1 Angler 2 Fish Big Bass Wt. Prize Amt. 1 KENNETH WITEK
SAN ANTONIO , TXRUSSELL KESSLER
LA VERNIA , TX5 0 26.93
$25,000.00 2 CHASE HUX
FLORESVILLE , TXBUCK HUX
NEW BRAUNFELS , TX5 0 25.15
$10,200.00 with TH Marine Atlas Rewards 3 TREY GROCE
DRIPPING SPRINGS , TXCHARLES WHITED
SAN MARCOS , TX5 0 24.54
$6,000.00 4 ROBERT BUTLER
CEDAR PARK , TXBRIAN MATER
AUSTIN , TX5 8.37 24.34
$15,000.00 with Skeeter Bonus Cash 5 MIKE NICHELINI
FREDERICKSBURG , TXDUSTIN WATERS
KERRVILLE , TX5 0 23.25
$4,200.00 with Garmin Force Bonus 6 CHARLES GERHART
SALADO , TXDAVID SHUSTER
GEORGETOWN , TX5 9.50 23.02
$3,000.00 + $1,000.00 Big Bass 7 CARY LAUDADIO
AUSTIN , TXRAY TOMASITS
LEANDER , TX5 8.95 22.98
$2,500.00 8 RONALD SISK
RIO VISTA , TXTAYLOR HUFFERD
FT WORTH , TX5 0 22.13
$2,000.00 9 JUSTYN PARRISH
LAGO VISTA , TXHUNTER ARTHUR
BASTROP , TX5 0 21.64
$1,400.00 10 BRYAN SCOTT
HORSESHOE BAY , TXBRADY DILL
SPRING , TX5 0 21.25
$1,400.00 11 JACOB FROESE
PFLUGERVILLE , TXCALEB RAMM
BELTON , TX5 9.37 20.65
$1,400.00 12 COLLIN LANSDALE
BURNET , TXBEN MORTON
SPRING , TX5 0 20.64
$1,400.00 13 ALLEN GASS
LLANO , TXDANIEL ABERNATHY
BURNETT , TX5 6.08 20.56
$1,400.00 14 TIM RENEAU
RICHLAND SPINGS , TXBRYAN HOFFMAN
ANDREWS , TX5 0 20.43
$6,400.00 with Skeeter Bonus Cash 15 GARRETT HENNIG
TEMPLE , TXBRANDON MCQUEEN
TEMPLE , TX5 0 20.10
$1,400.00 16 TERRY HALL
LEANDER , TXLYNN PIERCE
LEANDER , TX5 0 19.70
$1,400.00 17 TONY FERDINANDO
SPICEWOOD , TXERIC VASQUEZ
AUSTIN , TX5 9.04 19.54
$1,400.00 18 JJ LARSON
JOHNSON CITY , TXJASON LARSON
LEANDER , TX5 0 19.41
$1,400.00 19 ROSS WRIGHT
PIPE CREEK , TXJOSEPH ORTEGA
SAN ANTONIO , TX5 0 19.31
$1,400.00 20 TODD CASTLEDINE
NACOGDOCHES , TXRUSSELL CECIL
WILLIS , TX5 0 18.57
$1,400.00 21 LEE BEUERSHAUSEN
MARBLE FALLS , TXLANCE DILLARD
LLANO , TX5 0 18.49
$2,800.00 Classic Arlington Buick GMC Bonus 22 JOHNNY KOONS
TILDEN , TXJAKE LONG
BRADY , TX5 0 18.40
23 GERALD POBORIL
TEMPLE , TXJACK POWE
KEMPNER , TX5 6.54 18.27
24 KEVIN POLCYN
HORSESHOE BAY , TXDONNIE MARSHALL
SAINT HEDWIG , TX5 8.71 18.08
25 EDDIE PELFREY
LEANDER , TXDAVID LANDRY
TOW , TX5 0 17.97
26 JUD HARRIS
WACO , TXDEREK TAYLOR
WEST , TX5 0 17.67
27 CURTIS PENNINGTON
ARTESIA , NMDAVID RUTHERFORD
ARTESIA , NM5 0 17.09
28 STEVE MAGNELIA
AUSTIN , TXMICHAEL TENNANT
PFLUGERVILLE , TX5 0 17.06
29 LAMARCUS MCCRAY
HOUSTON , TXJAMES ROZELL
PORTER , TX5 0 16.98
30 LEE LEONARD
MARTINDALE , TXSCOTT BRONDER
FALLS CITY , TX5 9.07 16.94
31 PATRICK ANDERSON
BUDA , TXDOUG HAMILTON
KYLE , TX5 0 16.81
32 LINO GUTIERREZ
COTTONWOOD SHORES , TXRUBEN RIBERA
MARBLE FALLS , TX5 0 16.78
33 ZACH PARKER
DENTON , TXBUSTER JOHNSON
KRUM , TX5 0 16.50
34 TERRY KIRCUS
BURNET , TXJASON BUCHANAN
BURNET , TX5 0 16.44
35 ADAM DUNN
HOUSTON , TXJOSHUA WARE
SPLENDORA , TX5 0 16.29
36 RONALD YOUNG
NEW BRAUNSFELS , TXGROVER CHAMBLISS
LEANDER , TX5 0 16.18
37 COLE WHITAKER
VAN ALSTYNE , TXCALEB HAND
ANNA , TX5 0 16.14
38 RONNY MAYNARD
GEORGETOWN , TXERIC CRUMLEY
LEANDER , TX5 0 16.09
39 COLT DIETZ
AUSTIN , TXSAM MORROW
AUSTIN , TX5 0 16.05
40 KEITH HEINRICH
LIBERTY HILL , TXBRENT TREDEMEYER
LEANDER , TX5 0 15.94
41 MATT HILL
JONESTOWN , TXBARRY MOTT
LIBERTY HILL , TX5 0 15.83
42 COREY WALDROP
FT WORTH , TXCRAIG WALDROP
BENBROOK , TX5 0 15.57
43 CHANDLER STEWART
CANYON LAKE , TXJASON MURPHREE
BLANCO , TX5 0 15.52
44 BRAD DOBBS
HUDSON OAKS , TXMIKE GROUNDS
MARBLE FALLS , TX4 0 15.27
45 SHONN BLASSINGAME
DILLEY , TXCODY BURDINE
BRIDGEPORT , TX5 0 15.15
46 BRENNAN FERTIG
BELLVILLE , TXJAMES BEAUCHAMP
SUNRISE BEACH , TX5 0 14.97
47 CHRIS STUDINGER
NEW BRAUNFELS , TXJOSHUA RHODES
SAN ANTONIO , TX5 0 14.85
47 COREY SCHNAUTZ
MARION , TXJASON SCHNAUTZ
ELMENDORF , TX5 0 14.85
49 DAVID SAWYER
YANTIS , TXWILLIAM CRUFF
BELTON , TX5 0 14.83
50 TREVOR ROBERTSON
KERRVILLE , TXJARRETT ROBERTSON
KERRVILLE , TX5 0 14.78
Alabama’s Andrew Nordbye Surges to Win Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats
Nordbye catches final day limit of 21-14, including a near 6-pounder, to earn victory and top prize of $80,000
CALVERT CITY, Ky. (April 21, 2024) – Leading with 22 pounds, 12 ounces on Day 1 of the Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 3 Presented by Phoenix Boats on Kentucky Lake, pro Andrew Nordbye of Guntersville, Alabama, took a step back to second on Day 2 and could have continued the slide. Instead, he sacked up the biggest bag of the final day — 21 pounds, 14 ounces, including a near 6-pounder — to earn the win Sunday. With a 63-5 total, Nordbye finished almost a pound ahead of Brookeland, Texas’ Dakota Ebare and earned $80,000 and a berth to REDCREST 2025 for his efforts.
The win is Nordbye’s first with MLF, and he did it with his wife, Codi, and their newborn twins, Andi Mae and Zeal, on hand.
“Incredible, just amazing,” he said of the win. “I’ve been in first multiple times, second multiple times. But I’ve never been able to put all three days together to finish out and get a victory.”
Like many in the Top 10, Nordbye targeted smallmouth spawning on the flats of Kentucky Lake. For his part, he focused on stumps in 9 to 11 feet of water.
“I marked 1,500 waypoints in practice using side-scan,” he said. “We had long, 14-hour days in practice, so I probably idled six to eight hours a day and fished six to eight. When I would find a flat with stumps, maybe 300 stumps, I would graph them all first, and then I would pull up.
“I think the key was finding a niche stump row that probably had 100 stumps a little bit spread out that nobody else found,” he added. “I had my own water on about 100 stumps, and I caught my bag Day 1 there except for one, and Day 2, three of them came there, and today, two of them came from there.”
Relying heavily on Garmin LiveScope, Nordbye used Lew’s rods and Lew’s Custom Lite SS Series reels to present a variety of finesse offerings. His primary baits were a 5-inch Strike King Z-Too in Arkansas shiner, a Mach Skooler and a Strike King Ned Ocho.
Finessing the spawning smallies off stumps was standard issue for the pros on the week, but Nordbye separated himself by moving fast, refusing to get hung up on fish that wouldn’t bite.
“The fresh ones, they would bite right off the bat,” he said. “But honestly, I didn’t work a bed fish more than 5 or 10 minutes. I heard a lot of guys say they sat on one for 20 minutes and finally got it to bite. I felt like that was a waste of my time unless I knew it was a giant. I caught a 3-pound male today that was the size of a 6-pounder, and it would look like a 6-pounder on LiveScope. I really tried to make the most of my time, and if they wouldn’t bite, I had a plethora of stumps to fish.”
He narrowed his stump selection to the north end of the lake and ended up having a rough idea of what he wanted out of his stumps as well.
“I went south of the first bridge, almost all the way to Paris, in practice, and I found some stump fields and fished them and didn’t do any good,” Nordbye said. “The stump fields up here were a lot more productive in practice. Out of the current but still on the main lake, where there is current, seemed to be the deal. And a hard bottom. I caught a few right on the break of the channel, but 2-pounders, mostly; the better quality was more on the flat.”
In the end, it wasn’t just stumps and spawners for Nordbye – he needed to make the sort gameplan adjustment that wins tournaments. Doing so produced his kicker, a 5-15 brute with just a couple hours left before weigh-in.
“The whole tournament, I fished stumps with spawning smallmouth, and today at like noon, I decided to go fish an area where I caught a 4 ½-pound largie and some 2-pound smallies by a barge tie,” he said. “I went in there, and there was a school of 6-pound smallies sitting on the barge tie. There were like 20 of them. I got one to eat, and I couldn’t get any more to eat, but that was all I needed.”
The top 30 pros at the Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 3 on Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats finished:
1st: Andrew Nordbye, Guntersville, Ala., 15 bass, 63-5, $80,000
2nd: Dakota Ebare, Brookeland, Texas, 15 bass, 62-2, $50,000
3rd: Colby Miller, Elmer, La., 15 bass, 61-1, $20,000
4th: Alec Morrison, Peru, N.Y., 15 bass, 59-2, $18,500
5th: Brody Campbell, Oxford, Ohio, 15 bass, 57-13, $17,300
6th: Jacob Walker, Springville, Ala., 15 bass, 56-9, $16,000
7th: Kyle Hall, Granbury, Texas, 15 bass, 56-6, $15,500
8th: Kevin Meunier, Lamar, Ind., 15 bass, 56-1, $14,000
9th: Jaden Parrish, Liberty, Texas, 15 bass, 55-12, $13,000
10th: Drew Gill, Mount Carmel, Ill., 15 bass, 55-9, $12,000
11th: Nick Hatfield, Greeneville, Tenn., 15 bass, 55-1, $10,000
12th: Justin Lucas, Guntersville, Ala., 15 bass, 54-11, $10,000
13th: Michael Harlin, Sunrise Beach, Mo., 15 bass, 54-6, $10,000
14th: Adam Bartusek, Clearwater, Minn., 15 bass, 54-2, $10,000
15th: Ken Thompson, Roaring Springs, Pa., 15 bass, 52-6, $10,000
16th: Marshall Hughes, Hemphill, Texas, 15 bass, 51-7, $10,000
17th: Justin Cooper, Zwolle, La., 15 bass, 50-12, $10,000
18nd: Robby Lefere, Jackson, Mich., 14 bass, 50-5, $10,000
19th: Brett Carnright, Plattsburgh, N.Y., 15 bass, 49-11, $10,000
20th: Cole Floyd, Leesburg, Ohio, 15 bass, 49-7, $10,000
21st: Ethan Greene, Eufaula, Ala., 15 bass, 49-3, $11,000
22nd: Brock Reinkemeyer, Warsaw, Mo., 15 bass, 48-13, $10,000
23rd: Brad Jelinek, Lincoln, Mo., 15 bass, 48-12, $10,000
24th: Jake Lawrence, Buchanan, Tenn., 15 bass, 47-4, $10,000
25th: Cole Breeden, Lebanon, Mo., 15 bass, 47-3, $10,000
26th: Brad Leuthner, Victoria, Minn., 15 bass, 46-2, $10,000
27th: Connor Cunningham, Springfield, Mo., 15 bass, 44-10, $10,000
28th: Mark Condron, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 15 bass, 43-1, $10,000
29th: Tom Redington, Royse City, Texas, 13 bass, 42-9, $10,000
30th: Ethan King, Wilsonville, Ala., 15 bass, 41-11, $10,000
Complete results for the entire field can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Overall, there were 148 bass weighing 503 pounds, 11 ounces caught by the final 30 pros Sunday. Of the 30 final day competitors, 29 brought a five-bass limit to the scale.
With his third Top 10 of the season, pro Drew Gill of Mount Carmel, Illinois, stayed in the lead of the Fishing Clash Angler of the Year race with 587 points. However, there was some shuffling behind him, as Peru, New York’s Alec Morrison moved into second with 578 points, while pro Brody Campbell of Oxford, Ohio edged up to third place with 572 points. Heading into Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 4 Presented by E3 Sport Apparel on Lake Eufaula, the race is super tight and promises to go down to the wire.
The three-day tournament, hosted by the Kentucky Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau, featured a roster of 150 anglers competing for a top prize of up to $115,000. The next Tackle Warehouse Invitational event will take place May 10-12 at the Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 4 Presented by E3 Sport Apparel on Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Alabama.
In Tackle Warehouse Invitational competition, the full field of 150 anglers compete in the two-day opening round on Friday and Saturday in a five-fish, weigh-in format. Only the top 30 pros, based on their two-day cumulative weight, advance to the final round on Championship Sunday, where they will compete for the grand prize of up to $115,000. The winner of the Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats will be determined by the heaviest three-day cumulative weight and will receive an invitation to compete at REDCREST 2025 on Lake Guntersville in Huntsville, Alabama.
Television coverage of the MLF Tackle Warehouse Invitationals Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats will air as a two-hour episode, premiering at 9 a.m. ET, on Saturday, Oct. 19 on CBS Sports Network.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Tackle Warehouse Invitationals include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak Fishing, Onyx, Phoenix Boats, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.
For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the Tackle Warehouse Invitationals, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Tackle Warehouse Invitational updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the MLF5 social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Johnston victorious with overwhelming performance in Bassmaster Elite Series event at St. Johns River
April 21, 2024
Johnston victorious with overwhelming performance in Bassmaster Elite Series event at St. Johns River
PALATKA, Fla. — Cory Johnston fished a full tournament.
But with all due respect to nine other talented and worthy Top 10 competitors, he could’ve slept in the final day and still won the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River.
A four-day total of 93 pounds, 6 ounces gave the pro from Otonabee, Canada, a winning margin of 21-2 over Texan Brad Whatley. But Johnston’s Day 3 total — 73-13 — would have edged Whatley’s tournament total of 72-4 by 1-9.
“Everyone who fishes these tournaments dreams of winning one of these blue trophies,” said Johnston, who took home the $101,000 top prize. “I don’t know what to say; it was just one of those weeks that was absolutely incredible.
“People say, ‘When it’s your time, it’s your time.’ This week, I couldn’t do anything wrong.”
Johnston’s winning margin was the second largest in Elite history (behind Patrick Walters’ 29-10 record at Lake Fork in 2020). This is only the 15th time an Elite Series competitor has recorded a double-digit winning margin.
Johnston placed second on Day 1 with 23-3, took the lead with a second-round catch of 27-8, and held on to the top spot with a Semifinal Saturday limit of 23-2.
With Johnston carrying a 14-pound lead into the final round, a come-from-behind victory would have required either a stumble at the top, or heroics somewhere below.
Neither occurred and with Johnston turning in a Championship Sunday limit of 19-9, he strolled across the finish line to claim his first blue trophy. With a trio of second-place Elite finishes (Lake St. Clair 2020, St. Lawrence River 2022 and 2023), Johnston said that finally closing an Elite win was hugely rewarding.
“It’s been five years (on the Elites) and I’ve been so close so many times,” Johnston said. “To finally get it done, I can’t even describe it.”
All week, Johnston targeted bed fish in Salt Springs, which runs off the northwest side of Lake George. Noting that he relied heavily on Garmin Perspective Mode and his Power-Pole Move trolling motor, Johnston said he caught those fish by flipping various worms and creature baits and drop shotting a finesse worm.
On Day 4, Johnston sensed his main pattern was dwindling, so he started his morning by flipping spatterdock (pads) on the main river. This produced a couple of his limit fish, including his biggest catch — a 7-12.
“I managed my fish well and made good decisions,” Johnston said. “Flipping pads today was probably the best decision, in my mind, that I could’ve made.”
Of all the Top 10 competitors, Whatley was the one with the highest probability of snatching victory from Johnston’s grasp. The pro from Bivins, Texas, mounted the event’s biggest comeback by boosting a disastrous 95th-place Day 1 bag of 8-9 with a second-round limit of 20 pounds and rising to 36th.
“I didn’t turn it around; the good Lord turned it around,” Whatley said. “My back was against the wall. I had a couple of bad events (Toledo Bend and Lake Fork), got a Top 10 at the Harris Chain and came out here swinging.”
When Whatley hit the “dirty 30” with a Semifinal Saturday limit of 31-4 — the event’s heaviest bag and Whatley’s best Elite Series catch — speculation over his show-stealing potential percolated. Ultimately, Whatley weighed a Day 4 bag that went 12-7.
All week, Whatley has focused on main-river spatterdock fields. Whatley said he caught his bass on an Epic Baits swim jig and another unnamed swim jig, both with craw trailers and a chrome/blue Bill Lewis Rat-L-Trap.
“I love Florida,” Whatley said of his back-to-back Sunshine State Top 10 finishes. “If I ever move anywhere, it will be right here.”
Jacob Foutz of Charleston, Tenn., finished third with 7-16. His daily weights were 17-11, 18-12, 18-4 and 16-11.
Committing his event to Rodman Reservoir, south of Palatka, Foutz focused on chasing bass that were moving with bait schools. When the fish came up schooling, he’d catch them on a Zara Spook. For the ones he spied on forward-facing sonar, a jighead minnow presentation got the bites.
“I had (Rodman) to myself, which is surprising with these guys,” Foutz said. “Anytime you have something to yourself, it means one of two things: It’s something special or you’re not on them at all.
“I was around so many fish. They were swimming around in schools of 30 and 40. They got a little hard to catch the last two days. I just had two 30-minute flurries when I caught the bulk of my weight.”
Cory Johnston won the $1,000 Phoenix Boats Big Bass award for Day 4 with his 7-12. Whatley won the $2,000 Rapala CrushCity Monster Bag Award.
Whatley also won the $2,000 Phoenix Boats Big Bass award for the tournament with his 8-7.
Wes Logan of Springville, Ala., won the $1,000 BassTrakk contingency award.
Florida pro Drew Benton also took home an additional $4,000 for being the highest-placing entrant in the Toyota Bonus Bucks program, while Louisiana’s Greg Hackney earned $2,000 for being the second-highest placing entrant.
As part of the Yamaha Power Pay program, Benton earned an additional $4,000 while Oklahoma’s Jason Christie claimed an additional $1,500 for being the second-highest placing entrant.
Rookie Trey McKinney of Carbondale, Ill., won $1,000 for once again finishing an event with the lead in the Progressive Insurance Bassmaster Angler of the Year race. McKinney has 380 points, followed by Jordan Lee of Cullman, Ala., with 375, Canadian Chris Johnston with 342, Tyler Williams of Belgrade, Maine, with 338 and Cory Johnston with 335.
McKinney also leads the Dakota Lithium Bassmaster Rookie of the Year standings.
This event was hosted by the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce.
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2024 Bassmaster Elite 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 500,000-member 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.
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Media Contact: Chad Gay, Communications Manager, 865-201-6458, cgay@bassmaster.
2024 MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River 4/18-4/21
St. Johns River, Palatka FL.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 4
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Cory Johnston Otonabee CANADA 20 93-06 103 $101,000.00
Day 1: 5 23-03 Day 2: 5 27-08 Day 3: 5 23-02 Day 4: 5 19-09
2. Brad Whatley Bivins, TX 17 72-04 102 $40,000.00
Day 1: 2 08-09 Day 2: 5 20-00 Day 3: 5 31-04 Day 4: 5 12-07
3. Jacob Foutz Charleston, TN 20 71-06 101 $30,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 5 18-12 Day 3: 5 18-04 Day 4: 5 16-11
4. Drew Benton Panama City, FL 20 70-11 100 $25,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 11-04 Day 3: 5 20-14 Day 4: 5 21-08
5. Chris Johnston Otonabee Ontario CANADA 20 70-00 99 $20,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 21-07 Day 3: 5 18-14 Day 4: 5 13-02
6. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 20 67-15 98 $19,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 16-13 Day 3: 5 15-09 Day 4: 5 16-04
7. Jason Christie Dry Creek, OK 20 66-09 97 $18,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 21-13 Day 3: 5 15-14 Day 4: 5 16-13
8. Ray Hanselman Jr Del Rio, TX 19 66-09 96 $17,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 19-10 Day 3: 4 13-00 Day 4: 5 16-09
9. Matt Arey Shelby, NC 20 64-13 95 $16,000.00
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 18-02 Day 3: 5 09-03 Day 4: 5 16-08
10. Logan Latuso Gonzales, LA 20 63-15 94 $15,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 21-02 Day 3: 5 20-03 Day 4: 5 11-09
------------------------------
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Day
1 Jake Whitaker Hendersonville, NC 07-15 $1,000.00
2 John Cox Debary, FL 08-00 $1,000.00
3 Brad Whatley Bivins, TX 08-07 $1,000.00
4 Cory Johnston Otonabee CANADA 07-12 $1,000.00
------------------------------
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Brad Whatley Bivins, TX 08-07 $2,000.00
CRUSHCITY MONSTER BAG
Brad Whatley Bivins, TX 31-04 $2,000.00
------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 99 506 1411-00
2 101 510 1336-09
3 42 235 644-07
4 10 50 161-00
------------------------------
252 1301 3553-00
Johnston widens lead on Day 3 of Bassmaster Elite Series event at St. Johns River
April 20, 2024
Johnston widens lead on Day 3 of Bassmaster Elite Series event at St. Johns River
PALATKA, Fla. — With less competition, but more company, Cory Johnston leveraged late-day heroics to extend his lead on Day 3 of the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River.
Bolstering his first two days’ weights of 23-3 and 27-8, the seasoned pro from Otonabee, Canada, added a Semifinal Saturday limit of 23-2 to tally 73-13 and hold on to the lead he set on Day 2.
“It’s been an incredible week, but it’s one of those things — if it’s gonna happen, it’s gonna happen,” Johnston said. “The past two days, I caught a big one on the last cast. We’re just going to go out tomorrow, go fishing and see what happens.”
Leading Texan Brad Whatley by 14 pounds, Johnston spent his day looking for bed fish in Salt Springs, which runs off the northwest side of Lake George. He had far fewer competitors in the area, but with weekend pleasure boaters packing into this popular area, he had to account for more noise and habitat disturbance.
“They stir the water up a little bit, but you just keep looking and looking and looking and eventually you come across them,” Johnston said.
While he was fortunate enough to find a “one-flipper” — a fish that bit on the first presentation — Johnston said others were less cooperative. This was not necessarily due to the recreational boat traffic, as the area he’s fishing has sustained three days of heavy fishing pressure.
“I had a few that were not being nice to me, to say the least,” Johnston said.
Same as the past two days, Johnston flipped a variety of Texas-rigged plastics to his bed fish. Watching the fish on live sonar allowed him to monitor locations and reactions.
Johnston owns a stellar smallmouth fishing resume, with a St. Croix Bassmaster Opens win at the St. Lawrence River and a Bassmaster Century Club belt for catching over 100 pounds of smallies in a four-day Bassmaster Elite Series event (2022) at the same fishery. Despite his brown fish bona fides, he’s very familiar with largemouth.
“Where we grew up, it was all largemouth fishing; the smallmouth weren’t as relevant,” Johnston said. “We grew up punching mats, flipping reeds, and that kinda stuff.”
Late in the day, Johnston watched his younger brother Chris Johnston catch a 6-pounder, but the elder sibling soon struck back with a double shot of St. Johns difference-makers. Catching a 5-pounder at 1:41 p.m., he added a 7-pound day-ender a few minutes later.
With three second-place Elite finishes (Lake St. Clair 2020, St. Lawrence River 2022 and 2023), Johnston said he’s focused on closing the deal at the St. Johns River. After weighing in his third-round bag, Johnston said he wasn’t sure exactly how he’ll do that.
“I do have a backup plan that I haven’t had to use this week, but I feel like tomorrow’s probably going to be the day,” he said. “I really don’t know what I’m going to do yet. I don’t know if I’m going to go into (Salt Springs) at all; I don’t know if I’m going to go in there and not leave it. We’ll see what happens in the morning.”
Hailing from Bivins, Texas, Whatley electrified the weigh-in crowd with an astounding limit of 31-4 — the event’s biggest bag and the seventh-heaviest in St. Johns River Elite events. The only competitor to reach the 30-pound mark, Whatley has a three-day total of 59-13.
Coming off a Top 10 finish at last week’s Elite event at the Harris Chain, Whatley turned in the week’s greatest comeback. Placing 95th on Day 1 with 8-9, he added a Day 2 limit of 20 pounds and rose to 36th.
Anchoring his bag with an 8-7, Whatley said he endured a painfully slow Saturday morning that nearly drove him to abandon his area. Thankfully, his bite ignited and he sacked up all of his weight in about a two-hour period.
“I went to my main area and I wasn't getting bit and I only had one little one (around 11:30 a.m.),” Whatley said. “I said, ‘I’m going to need a bite pretty quick or I’m going to have to burn out of here.’
“Probably 30 seconds later, I caught one that was close to 6 pounds and then, probably 30 minutes later, I caught that (8-7).”
Whatley spent his day flipping vegetation and fishing a swim jig. He’s optimistic that Championship Sunday holds the potential for him to repeat his Day 3 performance.
“This is Florida, they live here — we all know that,” Whatley said. “I’m seeing a lot of big fish. I’m definitely around some big fish. If they bite (tomorrow), I’ll have a chance to catch another 30-pound bag.”
Also making his home in Otonabee, Canada, Chris Johnston is in third place with 56-14. His daily weights were 16-9, 21-7 and 18-14.
Johnston started his day Saturday flipping main-river pads and then transitioned to Salt Springs bed fishing. He followed the same plan on Friday, but the third morning treated him better.
“I got a 4 1/2-pounder, a 2 1/4- and a 2-pounder, so that took some of the pressure off this morning,” Johnston said. “I knew if I went to the Springs and got two good bites, I’d have a decent day.
“I fished pads until about 10:30 and I didn’t get very many bites. That was discouraging, but I had one stretch that continued to produce bigger bites. That’s where I got a 4 1/2 on my way back in yesterday.”
Johnston caught his pad fish on stickbaits with a 5/16-ounce tungsten weight on 25-pound fluorocarbon. In Salt Springs, he caught his fish on a drop shot, a wacky rig and a Texas rig.
Whatley is in the lead for Phoenix Boats Big Bass honors with his 8-7.
Rookie Trey McKinney of Carbondale, Ill., leads the Progressive Insurance Bassmaster Angler of the Year race with 380 points. Jordan Lee of Cullman, Ala., is in second with 375, followed by Chris Johnston with 344, Tyler Williams of Belgrade, Maine, with 338, and Cory Johnston with 335.
McKinney also leads the Dakota Lithium Bassmaster Rookie of the Year standings.
The Top 10 remaining pros will take off at 7 a.m. Sunday from Palatka City Dock & Boat Ramp. The weigh-in will be held at the ramp at 3 p.m., with the winning pro earning $100,000.
Follow all of the Championship Sunday action with live coverage on FS1from 8 a.m. – 1:30- p.m. ET and on Bassmaster.com from 1:30 p.m.-3 p.m.
This event is being hosted by the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce.
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2024 Bassmaster Elite 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 500,000-member 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.
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Media Contact: Chad Gay, Communications Manager, 865-201-6458, cgay@bassmaster.
2024 MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River 4/18-4/21
St. Johns River, Palatka FL.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Cory Johnston Otonabee CANADA 15 73-13 103
Day 1: 5 23-03 Day 2: 5 27-08 Day 3: 5 23-02
2. Brad Whatley Bivins, TX 12 59-13 102 $1,000.00
Day 1: 2 08-09 Day 2: 5 20-00 Day 3: 5 31-04
3. Chris Johnston Otonabee Ontario CANADA 15 56-14 101
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 21-07 Day 3: 5 18-14
4. Jacob Foutz Charleston, TN 15 54-11 100
Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 5 18-12 Day 3: 5 18-04
5. Logan Latuso Gonzales, LA 15 52-06 99
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 21-02 Day 3: 5 20-03
6. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 15 51-11 98
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 16-13 Day 3: 5 15-09
7. Ray Hanselman Jr Del Rio, TX 14 50-00 97
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 19-10 Day 3: 4 13-00
8. Jason Christie Dry Creek, OK 15 49-12 96
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 21-13 Day 3: 5 15-14
9. Drew Benton Panama City, FL 15 49-03 95
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 11-04 Day 3: 5 20-14
10. Matt Arey Shelby, NC 15 48-05 94
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 18-02 Day 3: 5 09-03
11. Alex Redwine Blue Ash, OH 15 48-05 93 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 14-15 Day 3: 5 19-04
12. Jordan Lee Cullman, AL 15 47-14 92 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 15-04 Day 3: 5 18-08
13. Brandon Lester Fayetteville, TN 15 46-14 91 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 14-11 Day 3: 5 15-10
14. Jonathan Kelley Old Forge, PA 15 46-11 90 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-05 Day 2: 5 14-06 Day 3: 5 18-00
15. Bob Downey Detroit Lakes, MN 13 46-09 89 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-01 Day 2: 5 22-11 Day 3: 3 07-13
16. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 15 46-06 88 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 13-11 Day 3: 5 18-08
17. Trey McKinney Carbondale, IL 15 45-11 87 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-14 Day 2: 5 09-01 Day 3: 5 15-12
18. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 15 45-04 86 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-13 Day 2: 5 11-06 Day 3: 5 13-01
19. Todd Auten Clover, SC 15 44-15 85 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 16-02 Day 3: 5 12-08
20. Stetson Blaylock Benton, AR 15 44-13 84 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 16-03 Day 3: 5 15-11
21. Cody Huff Ava, MO 15 44-09 83 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-06 Day 2: 5 15-14 Day 3: 5 15-05
22. John Cox Debary, FL 15 44-01 82 $11,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 20-15 Day 3: 5 09-11
23. Caleb Kuphall Mukwonago, WI 13 44-00 81 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 12-00 Day 3: 3 11-00
24. Chris Zaldain Fort Worth, TX 15 43-07 80 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 17-12 Day 3: 5 10-09
25. Kyle Norsetter Cottage Grove, WI 15 43-06 79 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 5 14-05 Day 3: 5 12-03
26. Caleb Sumrall New Iberia, LA 11 42-11 78 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 28-08 Day 2: 1 03-11 Day 3: 5 10-08
27. Wesley Gore Clanton, AL 15 42-09 77 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-15 Day 2: 5 12-13 Day 3: 5 11-13
28. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 12 41-13 76 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-04 Day 2: 5 12-04 Day 3: 2 10-05
29. Wes Logan Springville, AL 15 41-12 75 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 22-00 Day 2: 5 10-12 Day 3: 5 09-00
30. Robert Gee Knoxville, TN 15 41-12 74 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-15 Day 2: 5 16-07 Day 3: 5 14-06
31. Cooper Gallant Bowmanville Ontario CAN 15 41-01 73 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-09 Day 2: 5 12-05 Day 3: 5 11-03
32. Bryan Schmitt Deale, MD 15 40-14 72 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-07 Day 2: 5 09-00 Day 3: 5 13-07
33. Jake Whitaker Hendersonville, NC 14 40-13 71 $11,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-06 Day 2: 5 15-01 Day 3: 4 05-06
34. Brandon Card Salisbury, NC 15 40-11 70 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-01 Day 2: 5 11-04 Day 3: 5 10-06
35. Ben Milliken New Caney, TX 15 40-09 69 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 13-04 Day 3: 5 13-10
36. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 15 40-08 68 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-04 Day 2: 5 11-10 Day 3: 5 09-10
37. Koby Kreiger Alva, FL 15 40-04 67 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-14 Day 2: 5 14-08 Day 3: 5 07-14
38. Lee Livesay Longview, TX 15 40-03 66 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 10-15 Day 3: 5 10-12
39. Justin Atkins Florence, AL 15 40-02 65 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 11-07 Day 3: 5 12-15
40. Kyle Welcher Valley, AL 15 39-15 64 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-15 Day 2: 5 14-00 Day 3: 5 12-00
41. Derek Hudnall Zachary, LA 14 39-05 63 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-08 Day 2: 5 16-14 Day 3: 4 09-15
42. Tyler Rivet Raceland, LA 15 38-15 62 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 15-04 Day 3: 5 10-13
43. Scott Canterbury Odenville, AL 13 38-12 61 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-15 Day 2: 5 14-04 Day 3: 3 04-09
44. Alex Wetherell Middletown, CT 15 38-05 60 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-04 Day 2: 5 11-03 Day 3: 5 10-14
45. Matt Herren Ashville, AL 15 37-10 59 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 15-01 Day 3: 5 09-11
46. Scott Martin Clewiston, FL 15 36-14 58 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 5 12-08 Day 3: 5 08-04
47. Brock Mosley Collinsville, MS 15 36-12 57 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 11-00 Day 3: 5 09-15
48. Gregory DiPalma Millville, NJ 15 36-07 56 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-00 Day 2: 5 11-13 Day 3: 5 09-10
49. Hunter Shryock Ooltewah, TN 15 32-09 55 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-11 Day 2: 5 11-07 Day 3: 5 05-07
50. Jamie Hartman Newport, NY 12 30-00 54 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 11-12 Day 3: 2 02-08
------------------------------
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Day
1 Jake Whitaker Hendersonville, NC 07-15 $1,000.00
2 John Cox Debary, FL 08-00 $1,000.00
3 Brad Whatley Bivins, TX 08-07 $1,000.00
------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 99 506 1411-00
2 101 510 1336-09
3 42 235 644-07
------------------------------
242 1251 3392-00
Ebare Catches 21 Pounds for Second Consecutive Day to Take Lead at Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats
Texas pro takes slim 13-ounce lead into final day of competition Sunday
CALVERT CITY, Ky. (April 20, 2024) – For a while, Dakota Ebare was a snakebit young gun, getting close so often and not quite sealing the deal, time after time. Now, he’s basically a grizzled veteran compared to some of his competition, and there’s pretty much no tournament he can’t win.
Tallying an even 21 pounds – the biggest bag of the day – the Texas pro moved into the lead of Stop 3 Presented by Phoenix Boats on Kentucky Lake. With a 42-2 total over two days, Ebare leads the Tackle Warehouse Invitationals event by just under a pound, with three pros behind him who have averaged 20 pounds or better.
Falling to second, Andrew Nordbye weighed 18-11 on Day 2 for a 41-7 total, Colby Miller sacked up 20-11 to move up and Alec Morrison added 20-2 to his total to drop one spot in the standings. The entire Top 30 is averaging well over 15 pounds a day, and it’s been a genuine catchfest so far on Kentucky.
Moving up from second, Ebare has weighed all smallies so far, as has basically everyone else in the top five.
Heading into the event, Ebare knew what he wanted to look for. He’s executed perfectly so far.
“I had in my mind kind of what I wanted to do before I ever got here,” Ebare said. “I practiced at Rayburn for a couple weeks when I was home for what I felt like was going to be down here, and it was, and it is, and it’s worked out.”
Fishing for smallmouth predominantly, he says he’s not 100 percent locked-in on bedding fish, as some of his peers are.
“Some of them are spawning, for sure,” he said. “But I think some of them are just hanging out on current and cover.”
Tightlipped about the specifics, Ebare seems to know what he’s looking for, and he’s ran new water and old water so far – which should set him up well for the final day.
“The only thing is, there’s a lot of areas that have gotten a lot of pressure, and I don’t really know all of them,” he said. “I’ve been trying to stay out of the crowds. Tomorrow will be a lot more open, but I don’t want to fish a lot of dead water that has been pounded. I feel like I know what I’m looking for; it’s just about finding those right areas with fresh fish and getting a big bite. I’m catching a lot of them, but you never know when that next big bite is going to come.”
Given another good day, he may take home his third MLF win since January of ‘23.
“I think if I make good decisions tomorrow, I have a chance,” he said. “I think I’ve prepared myself well. I feel like I know what I need to look for. We’ve been down this road a bunch, and it hasn’t always worked out. But if I make good decisions tomorrow, I have a chance.”
The top 30 pros advancing to the final day of competition on Kentucky and Barkley Lakes are:
1st: Dakota Ebare, Brookeland, Texas, 10 bass, 42-4
2nd: Andrew Nordbye, Guntersville, Ala., 10 bass, 41-7
3rd: Colby Miller, Elmer, La., 10 bass, 40-14
4th: Alec Morrison, Peru, N.Y., 10 bass, 40-9
5th: Brody Campbell, Oxford, Ohio, 10 bass, 38-9
6th: Nick Hatfield, Greeneville, Tenn., 10 bass, 38-3
7th: Ken Thompson, Roaring Springs, Pa., 10 bass, 37-11
8th: Drew Gill, Mount Carmel, Ill., 10 bass, 36-8
9th: Kyle Hall, Granbury, Texas, 10 bass, 35-15
10th: Jacob Walker, Springville, Ala., 10 bass, 35-13
11th: Kevin Meunier, Lamar, Ind., 10 bass, 35-13
12th: Cole Floyd, Leesburg, Ohio, 10 bass, 35-6
13th: Marshall Hughes, Hemphill, Texas, 10 bass, 35-4
14th: Michael Harlin, Sunrise Beach, Mo., 10 bass, 35-2
15th: Brad Leuthner, Victoria, Minn., 10 bass, 34-14
16th: Connor Cunningham, Springfield, Mo., 10 bass, 34-11
17th: Adam Bartusek, Clearwater, Minn., 10 bass, 34-9
18th: Jaden Parrish, Liberty, Texas, 10 bass, 34-8
19th: Brett Carnright, Plattsburgh, N.Y., 10 bass, 34-8
20th: Jake Lawrence, Buchanan, Tenn., 10 bass, 34-5
21st: Justin Lucas, Guntersville, Ala., 10 bass, 33-10
22nd: Robby Lefere, Jackson, Mich., nine bass, 33-0
23rd: Cole Breeden, Lebanon, Mo., 10 bass, 33-0
24th: Brad Jelinek, Lincoln, Mo., 10 bass, 32-13
25th: Justin Cooper, Zwolle, La., 10 bass, 32-11
26th: Ethan Greene, Eufaula, Ala., 10 bass, 32-8
27th: Tom Redington, Royse City, Texas, 10 bass, 31-14
28th: Mark Condron, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 10 bass, 31-14
29th: Ethan King, Wilsonville, Ala., 10 bass, 31-12
30th: Brock Reinkemeyer, Warsaw, Mo., 10 bass, 31-10
Complete results for the entire field can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Saturday’s $1,000 Berkley Big Bass award was split by pros Alec Morrison and Kyle Hall, as each brought a bass to the scale that weighed at 5 pounds, 3 ounces.
Overall, there were 559 bass weighing 1,535 pounds, 10 ounces caught by 130 pros Saturday. The catch included 86 five-bass limits.
In Tackle Warehouse Invitational competition, the full field of 150 anglers compete in the two-day opening round on Friday and Saturday in a five-fish, weigh-in format. Only the top 30 pros, based on their two-day cumulative weight, advance to the final round on Championship Sunday, where they will compete for the grand prize of up to $115,000. The winner of the Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats will be determined by the heaviest three-day cumulative weight and will receive an invitation to compete at REDCREST 2025 on Lake Guntersville in Huntsville, Alabama.
The final 30 anglers will launch at 6:30 a.m. CT Sunday from the Kentucky Dam Marina, located at 466 Marina Drive in Gilbertsville. Sunday’s Championship weigh-in will also be held at the marina and will begin at 2:30 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and weigh-in events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLFNOW!® live stream and coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The MLFNOW! broadcast team of Chad McKee and Rob Newell will break down the extended action live from 7 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. CT. MLFNOW! will be live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.
Television coverage of the MLF Tackle Warehouse Invitationals Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats will air as a two-hour episode, premiering at 9 a.m. ET, on Saturday, Oct. 19 on CBS Sports Network.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Tackle Warehouse Invitationals include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak Fishing, Onyx, Phoenix Boats, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.
For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the Tackle Warehouse Invitationals, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Tackle Warehouse Invitational updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the MLF5 social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Austin Bonjour Wins 2024 WON Bass Clear Lake Open
LAKEPORT, Calif. – April 19, 2024 –– Opportunity knocked – Austin Bonjour answered.
After taking a little more than a two-pound lead on the second day of the tournament, Bonjour, the 30-year-old pro from Templeton, Calif. knew that he had to perform on the final day. With warm and mild conditions remaining on the lake, and waves of massive Clear Lake largemouth bass moving, he knew his lead was tenuous.
He knew that all he had to do was locate quality fish and get them in the boat, often easier said than done - especially in a major tournament. He also knew that he had one major advantage in that he was going to be the first boat to takeoff and the final angler to weigh-in.
Walking on stage for the final time, Bonjour’s day two total of 59.25 was his official weight, and as each angler weighed in during the day three weigh-in, he stood in 46th place until his five fish limit hit the scales. He needed his bag to be 19.15 pounds or more to claim the crown and the keys to the 2024 Ranger Boats Z518 with Mercury 150 ProXS outboard presented by Bass Pro Shops.
His daily limit posted at 24.03 pounds, bringing his total winning weight to 83.28 pounds for the three-day affair. He was followed by Winters, Calif. pro Joe Mariani, who had been in contention each day. Mariani produced a 21.87-pound limit on day three to bring his three-day total to 78.39 pounds, good enough for second place.
Bonjour said that he spent his days in the north area of the lake. “I fished Adobe and the creeks from the State Park to Lakeport in the mornings and went to Nice and Lucerne in the afternoons,” he said. “That’s the timing that seemed to work out for me as the fish moved with the sun.”
He reported catching two thirds of the keepers he weighed on a pair of unnamed 9-inch glide baits in Trout and Bone colors. He also mixed in a 1/16-ounce 2/0 Garage Tech Baits FFS jighead and Z-Man Scented Jerk Shad in “The Deal” color for three of his keepers while using Forward Facing Sonar, and he caught two bed fish on the final afternoon using a 1/2-ounce Garage Tech Baits Bed Jig in Bluegill color.
His best day was the first day, he reported catching 15 keepers, but then had to work hard to fill his limits on days two and three. “I only caught five keepers on the final two days,” he said. “I just had to keed gridning and trust that the bites would come.”
The win helped the Templeton, Calif. pro reach a peak he’s been climbing towards for years. “I finally got it done in a big event, he said. “I’ve had a few seconds (place finishes) and I’ve come close, but this is surreal and I can’t believe I’m sitting here with this trophy; I’m actually having a hard time putting my thoughts to words about it.”
Oakdale, Calif. pro Ish Monroe, a Bassmaster Opens EQ pro with nearly $2.5 million in career earning on national tours, smashed a 32.54-pound final day limit to bring his total weight to 77.47 pounds to finish third overall, jumping from 12th place. Day one leader Nick Klein, from Oroville, Calif. pushed his final weight to 76.30 pounds to finish fourth for the event and Scott Helleson of Paso Robles, Calif. rounded out the top five with a three-day total of 74.82 pounds.
In winning, Bonjour earned the Ranger / Mercury prize boat rigged with Power-Pole Charge and Bioenno Power Batteries valued at $55,000 and the winner’s $17,000 share, bringing the total Champion’s prize package to $72,000 in value. Mariani’s runner up prize was $13,500 with Monroe earning $11,500 for third place, Klein received $10,000 and Helleson collected $9,000.
Mariani said he made the most of what he had found during practice. “I caught my first day weight off of Windflower point around the lava rock,” he said. “I caught an 8-pounder on a 6-inch Trash Fish (Lil’ Creeper’s Swimbait) and the rest on a wacky rigged 5-inch green pumpkin purple flake Senko; I sight fished the rest of the event.” He also said that he made the decision to stay in the Redbud and Rattlesnake arms of the lake to avoid the “circus up north.”
One of his main goals for the event was to earn one of the B.A.S.S. Nation Golden Tickets to compete in the B.A.S.S. Nation Championship in 2025. “I am super stoked to have accomplished that goal, and I really fished a super clean event; I did everything I could here,” he said. “Austin just flat beat me, and I’m really happy for him – he’s a great guy.”
In the AAA Division, Anthony Madrigal of Auburn, Calif. paired with Redding, Calif. pro Antonio Gold on the final day. The pair produced a final day limit of 30.03 pounds which was enough to push Madrigal’s three-day total to 79.46 pounds to claim victory and the $6800 AAA prize. Second place in the AAA division went to Oroville, California’s John McClellan with 78.33 pounds.
Chris Crawford of Sacramento, Calif. Finished third with 73.53 pounds, with Ottis Woodwar of Clearlake, Calif. finishing fourth with 71.52 pounds and David Oyler of Boulder City, Nev. round out the top five in the AAA division with 71.19 pounds.
Each of the pros and AAA anglers who finished in the top five have earned a Golden Ticket berth into the 2025 Bassmaster B.A.S.S. Nation Championship for a chance to qualify for the Bassmaster Classic
The top 10 in each division are posted below: for complete standings, visit https://wonbassevents.com/
|
WON Bass Clear Lake Open 4/17 to 4/19/2024 |
||||||||
|
Place |
Pro Day 3 | Hometown |
Fish |
Day 1 |
Day 2 |
Day 3 |
Pnlty |
Total |
|
1 |
Austin Bonjour | Templeton, CA |
15-15 |
33.84 |
25.41 |
24.03 |
83.28 |
|
|
2 |
Joe Mariani | Winters, CA |
15-15 |
34.34 |
22.18 |
21.87 |
78.39 |
|
|
3 |
Ish Monore | Oakdale, CA |
15-15 |
21.30 |
23.63 |
32.54 |
77.47 |
|
|
4 |
Nick Klein | Oroville, Ca |
15-15 |
35.59 |
21.64 |
19.07 |
76.30 |
|
|
5 |
Scott Hellesen | Paso Robles, CA |
15-15 |
26.46 |
17.85 |
30.51 |
74.82 |
|
|
6 |
Kurt Dove | Del Rio, TX |
15-15 |
19.54 |
32.44 |
19.86 |
71.84 |
|
|
7 |
Scooter Griffith | Mesa, AZ |
15-15 |
27.47 |
20.44 |
23.22 |
71.13 |
|
|
8 |
Bill Brown | Grand Junction, CO |
15-15 |
25.59 |
20.41 |
23.86 |
1.00 |
69.86 |
|
9 |
Matt Nadeau | Nevada City, CA |
15-15 |
19.61 |
22.33 |
26.29 |
68.23 |
|
|
10 |
Antonio Gold | Redding, CA |
15-15 |
20.52 |
17.44 |
30.03 |
67.99 |
|
|
Place |
AAA Angler Day 3 | Hometown |
Fish |
Day 1 |
Day 2 |
Day 3 |
Pnlty |
Total |
|
1 |
Anthony Madrigal | Auburn, CA |
14-14 |
33.84 |
15.59 |
30.03 |
79.46 |
|
|
2 |
John Mcclellan | Oroville, CA |
15-15 |
20.80 |
29.27 |
28.26 |
78.33 |
|
|
3 |
Chris Crawford | Sacramento, CA |
15-14 |
17.23 |
32.44 |
23.86 |
0.50 |
73.53 |
|
4 |
Ottis Woodford | Clearlake, CA |
15-15 |
24.24 |
21.12 |
26.16 |
71.52 |
|
|
5 |
David Oyler | Boulder City NV |
15-15 |
26.73 |
25.41 |
19.05 |
71.19 |
|
|
6 |
Damon Motley | Orange, CA |
15-15 |
30.37 |
25.86 |
14.52 |
70.75 |
|
|
7 |
Bob Nelson | Galt, CA |
15-15 |
23.86 |
21.13 |
25.32 |
70.31 |
|
|
8 |
Chase Harrell | San Jose, Ca |
13-13 |
34.34 |
20.86 |
14.43 |
69.63 |
|
|
9 |
Eric Painter | Tucson, AZ |
14-14 |
15.05 |
20.68 |
32.54 |
68.27 |
|
|
10 |
Kirk Marshall | Discovery Bay, CA |
15-15 |
21.27 |
20.71 |
26.08 |
68.06 |
|
The winner of the 2024 WON Bass Clear Lake Open earned the Ranger Boats / Mercury Motor prize boat provided by Bass Pro Shops, and the Golden Tickets to the 2025 Bassmaster BASS Nation National Championship will be awarded to the top five Pro and AAA anglers and will further develop the season long competition to see who will receive guaranteed slots into the 2025 Bassmaster Opens Elite Qualifiers.
The 2024 WON Bass Western Opens Series of events Consisting of five events in California, Arizona and Nevada moves next to the California Open at Clear Lake April 17 to 19, 2024. The series will culminate with the 2024 WON Bass U.S. Open at Lake Mohave in October. The full schedule of the five event dates are as follows:
Jan. 31–Feb. 2, Lake Shasta - Champion Nick Wood – 47.42 pounds
April 17-19, Clear Lake – Champion Austin Bonjour – 83.28 pounds
May 15-17, Lake Havasu
Sept. 18-20, Lake Mead
Oct. 14-16, U.S. Open at Lake Mohave
For complete details to register for future events, or to find results, look to wonbassevents.com and WONews.com to hear the latest news about the 2024 season and beyond and follow along at Facebook.com/
The 2024 WON Bass Clear Lake Open was brought to you by Bass Pro Shops, Ranger Boats, Mercury Marine, Nitro Boats, Triton Boats, Bridgford Foods, Phenix Rods, Yamamoto Baits, Bill Lewis Lures, Buckeye Lures, Steel Shad, Bioenno Power, SOG Knives, Cold Steel Knives, Gamma Line, Power Pole, Lowrance, Daiwa, AFTCO, Costa, Berkley, Abu Garcia, DD26 Fishing, Anderson Toyota, A&M Graphics, Anglers Marine and Signature Gates.
Local presenting sponsors were Clear Lake Outdoors and the City of Lakeport. Daily takeoffs and weigh-ins were at Library Park in the City of Lakeport, California.
Johnston springs into lead on Day 2 of Bassmaster Elite Series event at St. Johns River
April 19, 2024
Johnston springs into lead on Day 2 of Bassmaster Elite Series event at St. Johns River
PALATKA, Fla. — Cory Johnston knew he was playing a high-stakes game, but the Canadian pro believed the potential payoff justified his day’s commitment.
Cashing in on his gamble, Johnston sacked up a five-bass limit of 27 pounds, 8 ounces to lead Day 2 of the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River.
After placing second on Day 1 with 23-3, Johnston now has a two-day mark of 50-11. The only competitor to break 20 pounds the first two days, Johnston heads into Semifinal Saturday with a lead of 11-9 over North Carolina’s Matt Arey.
Repeating his Day 1 strategy of targeting bed fish in Salt Springs, which runs off the northwest side of Lake George, Johnston described the requisite plodding pace.
“It takes a lot of patience; it’s not like it’s fast and furious,” he said. “You fish all day and it’s one of those high-risk, high-reward things.
“I went probably three hours midday without catching a fish. It was a lot of looking at them and trying to see which fish are going to bite. Sometimes, you waste an hour on one and it never even bites.”
Well-schooled in the ways of bed fish, Johnston said he expected nothing less. Several fish pushed him to the limit of exasperation, but persistence proved to be his best tool.
“Every fish is different, you just have to see what they’re doing and see if you can get them to react,” he said. “Some you can get close to, some you can’t. They’re super finicky in that clear water and they’re not easy to catch.”
Fortunately, his biggest fish — a 7-10 that bit around 8:40 a.m. — was fired up and ready to bite. While neighboring fish often required multiple presentations, this bass made the day’s highlight reel.
“Nothing I love more than a one-flipper,” Johnston said. “I don’t usually get too excited, but that one got me excited.”
Noting that he caught his bass by flipping a variety of plastics, Johnston said he’s hoping Day 3 brings a complexion similar to the second day’s warm, calm conditions.
“We’ll see how it goes; weather dictates a lot of what I’m going to do,” he said. “If we get weather that isn’t conducive to what I want to do, I’m gonna have to switch it up and do something totally different. I’m just hoping I can get one more day out of it.
"I was shocked that this place held up. I thought after yesterday, it was done. Hopefully a couple more stay locked on and we can go back and do it again tomorrow.
Arey started strong with a fourth-place Day 1 limit that weighed 21-0. Adding 18-2 lifted him two spots with a total weight of 39-2.
Beginning his day by flipping main-river pads, Arey caught a small limit and then relocated to Salt Springs where he flipped soft plastics and culled four of his fish. Arey said he was thankful his second stage delivered because his first stop was leaner than he’d expected.
“I only had about 6 pounds when I went into Salt Springs,” he said. “Yesterday, I had about 10-11 when I went in there. I did lose a couple fish this morning and one was about a 2 1/2-pounder.”
Arey said he’s encouraged with the Salt Springs potential.
“I need to catch 25 to 30 pounds and I’ve seen it swimming around in there,” he said. “They’re not locked down and you can’t catch them right now, but who knows what’s in store for tomorrow.”
Bob Downey of Detroit Lakes, Minn., is in third place with 38-12. Posting a respectable limit of 16-1, Downey placed 28th on Day 1. Adding 22-1 Friday, he raced 25 spots up the standings.
Mixing up his tactics, Downey said he spent most of his time winding reaction baits. He opted to keep the details thin, but he said picking up the pace served him well.
“Yesterday, I went through this area kind of methodically and had a couple nip at my work,” Downey said. “I started winding through there and it turned out that’s what they wanted."
Bracing his limit with a pair of kickers — a 7-0 and a 7-10 — Downey said he was thankful for the numerical advantage.
“My other three were 2 1/4- to 2 3/4-pounds and just two giants today,” he said. “Yesterday, I had three good ones and two rats. Today, I had a better average.”
John Cox of DeBary, Fla., is in the lead for Phoenix Boats Big Bass honors with his 8-0.
Rookie Trey McKinney of Carbondale, Ill., leads the Progressive Insurance Bassmaster Angler of the Year points standings with 371 points. Jordan Lee of Cullman, Ala., is in second with 357, followed by Chris Johnston of Otonabee, Canada, with 343, Tyler Williams of Belgrade, Maine, with 338, and Cory Johnston with 335.
The Top 50 remaining anglers will take off at 7 a.m. ET Saturday from Palatka City Dock & Boat Ramp. The weigh-in will be held back at the ramp at 3 p.m., with only the Top 10 advancing to Championship Sunday with a chance to win the $100,000 first-place prize.
Follow all the Semifinal Saturday action on FS1 from 7:30-10:30 a.m. and on Bassmaster.com from 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. ET. On Championship Sunday, watch live coverage on FS1from 8 a.m. – 1:30- p.m. and on Bassmaster.com from 1:30 p.m.-3 p.m.
This event is being hosted by the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce.
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2024 Bassmaster Elite 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 500,000-member 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.
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Connect with #Bassmaster on Facebook, Instagram, Twitte
Media Contact: Chad Gay, Communications Manager, 865-201-6458, cgay@bassmaster.
2024 MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River 4/18-4/21
St. Johns River, Palatka FL.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Cory Johnston Otonabee CANADA 10 50-11 103
Day 1: 5 23-03 Day 2: 5 27-08
2. Matt Arey Shelby, NC 10 39-02 102
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 18-02
3. Bob Downey Detroit Lakes, MN 10 38-12 101
Day 1: 5 16-01 Day 2: 5 22-11
4. Chris Johnston Otonabee Ontario CANADA 10 38-00 100
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 21-07
5. Ray Hanselman Jr Del Rio, TX 10 37-00 99
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 19-10
6. Jacob Foutz Charleston, TN 10 36-07 98
Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 5 18-12
7. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 36-02 97
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 16-13
8. Jake Whitaker Hendersonville, NC 10 35-07 96 $1,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-06 Day 2: 5 15-01
9. John Cox Debary, FL 10 34-06 95 $1,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 20-15
10. Scott Canterbury Odenville, AL 10 34-03 94
Day 1: 5 19-15 Day 2: 5 14-04
11. Jason Christie Dry Creek, OK 10 33-14 93
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 21-13
12. Caleb Kuphall Mukwonago, WI 10 33-00 92
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 12-00
13. Chris Zaldain Fort Worth, TX 10 32-14 91
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 17-12
14. Wes Logan Springville, AL 10 32-12 90
Day 1: 5 22-00 Day 2: 5 10-12
15. Todd Auten Clover, SC 10 32-07 89
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 16-02
16. Koby Kreiger Alva, FL 10 32-06 88
Day 1: 5 17-14 Day 2: 5 14-08
17. Caleb Sumrall New Iberia, LA 6 32-03 87
Day 1: 5 28-08 Day 2: 1 03-11
18. Logan Latuso Gonzales, LA 10 32-03 86
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 21-02
19. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 10 32-03 85
Day 1: 5 20-13 Day 2: 5 11-06
20. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 10 31-08 84
Day 1: 5 19-04 Day 2: 5 12-04
21. Brandon Lester Fayetteville, TN 10 31-04 83
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 14-11
22. Kyle Norsetter Cottage Grove, WI 10 31-03 82
Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 5 14-05
23. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 10 30-14 81
Day 1: 5 19-04 Day 2: 5 11-10
24. Wesley Gore Clanton, AL 10 30-12 80
Day 1: 5 17-15 Day 2: 5 12-13
25. Brandon Card Salisbury, NC 10 30-05 79
Day 1: 5 19-01 Day 2: 5 11-04
26. Trey McKinney Carbondale, IL 10 29-15 78
Day 1: 5 20-14 Day 2: 5 09-01
27. Cooper Gallant Bowmanville Ontario CAN 10 29-14 77
Day 1: 5 17-09 Day 2: 5 12-05
28. Lee Livesay Longview, TX 10 29-07 76
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 10-15
29. Derek Hudnall Zachary, LA 10 29-06 75
Day 1: 5 12-08 Day 2: 5 16-14
30. Jordan Lee Cullman, AL 10 29-06 74
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 15-04
31. Cody Huff Ava, MO 10 29-04 73
Day 1: 5 13-06 Day 2: 5 15-14
32. Stetson Blaylock Benton, AR 10 29-02 72
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 16-03
33. Alex Redwine Blue Ash, OH 10 29-01 71
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 14-15
34. Jonathan Kelley Old Forge, PA 10 28-11 70
Day 1: 5 14-05 Day 2: 5 14-06
35. Scott Martin Clewiston, FL 10 28-10 69
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 5 12-08
36. Brad Whatley Bivins, TX 7 28-09 68
Day 1: 2 08-09 Day 2: 5 20-00
37. Drew Benton Panama City, FL 10 28-05 67
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 11-04
38. Tyler Rivet Raceland, LA 10 28-02 66
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 15-04
39. Matt Herren Ashville, AL 10 27-15 65
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 15-01
40. Kyle Welcher Valley, AL 10 27-15 64
Day 1: 5 13-15 Day 2: 5 14-00
41. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 10 27-14 63
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 13-11
42. Jamie Hartman Newport, NY 10 27-08 62
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 11-12
43. Bryan Schmitt Deale, MD 10 27-07 61
Day 1: 5 18-07 Day 2: 5 09-00
44. Alex Wetherell Middletown, CT 10 27-07 60
Day 1: 5 16-04 Day 2: 5 11-03
45. Robert Gee Knoxville, TN 10 27-06 59
Day 1: 5 10-15 Day 2: 5 16-07
46. Justin Atkins Florence, AL 10 27-03 58
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 11-07
47. Hunter Shryock Ooltewah, TN 10 27-02 57
Day 1: 5 15-11 Day 2: 5 11-07
48. Ben Milliken New Caney, TX 10 26-15 56
Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 13-04
49. Brock Mosley Collinsville, MS 10 26-13 55
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 11-00
50. Gregory DiPalma Millville, NJ 10 26-13 54
Day 1: 5 15-00 Day 2: 5 11-13
51. Tyler Williams Belgrade, ME 10 26-11 53 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-05 Day 2: 5 16-06
52. Pat Schlapper Eleva, WI 10 26-11 52 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 13-12
53. Cole Sands Calhoun , TN 10 26-08 51 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 08-12 Day 2: 5 17-12
54. Buddy Gross Chattanooga, TN 10 26-08 50 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 13-01
55. Justin Hamner Northport, AL 10 26-04 49 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 05-09 Day 2: 5 20-11
56. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 10 26-04 48 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 09-01 Day 2: 5 17-03
57. Ed Loughran III Richmond, VA 10 26-03 47 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-15 Day 2: 5 12-04
58. Timothy Dube Nashua , NH 10 26-03 46 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-06 Day 2: 5 12-13
59. Brandon Cobb Greenwood, SC 10 26-02 45 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 12-07 Day 2: 5 13-11
60. John Garrett Union City, TN 10 25-12 44 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 14-15
61. Luke Palmer Coalgate, OK 10 25-04 43 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-08 Day 2: 5 11-12
62. Frank Talley Belton, TX 10 25-01 42 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 11-07
63. Jay Przekurat Plover, WI 10 24-13 41 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 11-15 Day 2: 5 12-14
64. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 10 24-10 40 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 12-12
65. Shane LeHew Catawba, NC 10 23-11 39 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 5 12-01
66. Clark Wendlandt Leander, TX 10 23-10 38 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-02 Day 2: 5 10-08
67. Marc Frazier Newnan, GA 10 23-09 37 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-02 Day 2: 5 10-07
68. John Crews Jr Salem, VA 10 23-08 36 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 09-08 Day 2: 5 14-00
69. Kenta Kimura Osaka OK JAPAN 10 23-08 35 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 12-13 Day 2: 5 10-11
70. Kyle Patrick Cooperstown, NY 10 23-06 34 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-12 Day 2: 5 12-10
71. Drew Cook Cairo, GA 10 23-06 33 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 10-14 Day 2: 5 12-08
72. Gerald Swindle Guntersville, AL 9 23-05 32 $2,500.00
Day 1: 4 14-13 Day 2: 5 08-08
73. Jacob Powroznik North Prince George, VA 10 23-04 31 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 09-11
74. Bryant Smith Roseville, CA 10 23-04 30 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 11-03
75. Paul Mueller Naugatuck, CT 10 23-03 29 $2,500.00
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 09-00
76. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 10 23-03 28
Day 1: 5 12-12 Day 2: 5 10-07
77. Carl Jocumsen Queensland TN AUSTRALIA 10 23-02 27
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 10-12
78. Matty Wong Honolulu, HI 10 22-15 26
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 5 08-07
79. Matt Robertson Kuttawa, KY 10 22-15 25
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 09-06
80. Taku Ito Dalton GA JAPAN 10 22-14 24
Day 1: 5 09-12 Day 2: 5 13-02
81. John Soukup Sapulpa, OK 10 22-14 23
Day 1: 5 13-01 Day 2: 5 09-13
82. Patrick Walters Eutawville, SC 10 22-13 22
Day 1: 5 10-06 Day 2: 5 12-07
83. Will Davis Jr Sylacauga, AL 10 22-12 21
Day 1: 5 13-01 Day 2: 5 09-11
84. Hank Cherry Jr Lincolnton, NC 10 22-11 20
Day 1: 5 10-09 Day 2: 5 12-02
85. Seth Feider New Market, MN 10 22-08 19
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 10-10
86. Bryan New Leesville, SC 10 21-08 18
Day 1: 5 08-14 Day 2: 5 12-10
87. Joseph Webster Hamilton, AL 10 21-08 17
Day 1: 5 09-14 Day 2: 5 11-10
88. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 10 21-05 16
Day 1: 5 11-12 Day 2: 5 09-09
89. Clifford Pirch Payson, AZ 10 21-02 15
Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 07-07
90. Chad Pipkens Dewitt, MI 10 20-09 14
Day 1: 5 09-10 Day 2: 5 10-15
91. David Gaston Sylacauga, AL 10 20-07 13
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 5 10-03
92. KJ Queen Catawba, NC 10 19-00 12
Day 1: 5 07-13 Day 2: 5 11-03
93. Mike Huff London, KY 10 19-00 11
Day 1: 5 08-15 Day 2: 5 10-01
94. JT Thompkins Myrtle Beach, SC 7 18-15 10
Day 1: 2 04-06 Day 2: 5 14-09
95. Clent Davis Montevallo, AL 10 18-15 9
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 07-15
96. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 10 18-10 8
Day 1: 5 08-05 Day 2: 5 10-05
97. Joey Cifuentes III Clinton, AR 10 18-07 7
Day 1: 5 10-07 Day 2: 5 08-00
98. Cliff Prince Palatka, FL 10 17-13 6
Day 1: 5 08-14 Day 2: 5 08-15
99. David Mullins Mt Carmel, TN 10 16-14 5
Day 1: 5 07-11 Day 2: 5 09-03
100. Austin Felix Eden Prairie, MN 10 16-00 4
Day 1: 5 06-13 Day 2: 5 09-03
101. Jeff Gustafson Kenora, ON Ontario CANA 10 15-05 3
Day 1: 5 06-11 Day 2: 5 08-10
102. Logan Parks Auburn, AL 9 14-09 2
Day 1: 5 10-09 Day 2: 4 04-00
103. Kyoya Fujita Yamanashi CA JAPAN 8 12-07 1
Day 1: 3 05-11 Day 2: 5 06-12
------------------------------
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Day
1 Jake Whitaker Hendersonville, NC 07-15 $1,000.00
2 John Cox Debary, FL 08-00 $1,000.00
------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 99 506 1411-00
2 101 510 1336-09
------------------------------
200 1016 2747-09
Alabama’s Andrew Nordbye Leads on Day 1 at Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats
Former College Fishing standout from Northwest Missouri State University takes 1½-pound lead into second day of competition Saturday
CALVERT CITY, Ky. (April 19, 2024) – As expected, it’s a smallmouth smash fest on Kentucky Lake. Starting strong, Andrew Nordbye of Guntersville, Alabama, wrangled 22 pounds, 12 ounces on Day 1 of Stop 3 Presented by Phoenix Boats. Behind him, Brookeland, Texas’ Dakota Ebare put 21-4 on the scale, and Alec Morrison of Peru, New York, slipped into third with 20-7, narrowly ahead of five other pros who caught 20 pounds or better on Day 1.
Overall, Friday was a banner day of fishing to start the event despite less than ideal weather. Though some pros ran south a long way on both Kentucky and Barkley, a strong north wind kept most from traveling too far and complicated matters when it came to fishing.
The full field of 150 anglers will conclude the two-day opening round on Saturday, with only the top 30 pros based on their two-day cumulative weight advancing to Championship Sunday. The three-day tournament, hosted by the Kentucky Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau, features a roster of 150 anglers competing for a top prize of up to $115,000 and an invitation to compete at REDCREST 2025.
Weighing four smallmouth and one largemouth, it was a 5-15 smallie that really put Nordbye in the driver’s seat. Fishing offshore for smallmouth that he believes are spawning and postspawn, the day went great.
“It was excellent. I did lose a couple that would have helped me by a quarter pound here and there, but it’s as good as I hoped it might go,” Nordbye said. “God blessed me big time.”
While some pros rationed their fish pretty carefully on Day 1, Nordbye seems to have caught more keepers than many of his competitors. It remains to be seen how that plays out the rest of the way.
“I hope to get 18 to 20 (pounds) the next day or two,” he said. “If God blesses me with another 6-pounder, I might bump it back up again. But, when you’re fishing for smallmouth, especially ones on bed, they don’t replenish when you take them off. So, the weights will go down. But I did leave some stuff alone. I tried to be a little strategic. I probably caught 10 3- to 3 ½-pounders that I had to let go. So, we’ll see; there’s a lot of fish out there eating.”
Fishing offshore in pretty windy conditions, Nordbye thinks having a turret for his LiveScope was a difference maker today.
“Everybody dogs me for having the turret, and I always dog ‘em for not having it,” he said. “My Cornfield Fishing Gear Live Sweep turret was crucial today. It was blowing, my front end kept coming out of the water, and I was able to Spot-Lock and cast directly where I wanted to and watch it all go down. If you’re not twitching your bait or moving it at the exact time you need to, the smallmouth aren’t gonna bite it. Being able to do that in the extreme conditions we had was key to catching what I had.”
Saturday and Sunday are not supposed to be much calmer, so Nordbye may have the upper hand again. But he certainly doesn’t have much room to slack off – the whole field is bringing the heat this week.
The top 20 pros after Day 1 on Kentucky and Barkley Lakes are:
1st: Andrew Nordbye, Guntersville, Ala., five bass, 22-12
2nd: Dakota Ebare, Brookeland, Texas, five bass, 21-4
3rd: Alec Morrison, Peru, N.Y., five bass, 20-7
4th: Brad Leuthner, Victoria, Minn., five bass, 20-5
5th: Colby Miller, Elmer, La., five bass, 20-3
5th: Ken Thompson, Roaring Springs, Pa., five bass, 20-3
5th: Nick Hatfield, Greeneville, Tenn., five bass, 20-3
8th: Robby Lefere, Jackson, Mich., five bass, 20-1
9th: Cole Floyd, Leesburg, Ohio, five bass, 19-14
10th: Brody Campbell, Oxford, Ohio, five bass, 19-12
11th: Ethan Greene, Eufaula, Ala., five bass, 19-2
11th: Kevin Meunier, Lamar, Ind., five bass, 19-2
13th: Michael Harlin, Sunrise Beach, Mo., five bass, 18-10
14th: Connor Cunningham, Springfield, Mo., five bass, 18-2
14th: Jake Lawrence, Buchanan, Tenn., five bass, 18-2
16th: Marshall Hughes, Hemphill, Texas, five bass, 17-14
17th: Brett Carnright, Plattsburgh, N.Y., five bass, 17-10
18th: Drew Gill, Mount Carmel, Ill., five bass, 17-9
19th: Brad Jelinek, Lincoln, Mo., five bass, 17-5
20th: Ethan King, Wilsonville, Ala., five bass, 17-3
20th: Cole Breeden, Lebanon, Mo., five bass, 17-3
Complete results for the entire field can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Greene earned Friday’s $1,000 Berkley Big Bass award with a fish that weighed in at 6 pounds, 7 ounces.
Overall, there were 632 bass weighing 1,766 pounds, 3 ounces caught by 142 pros Friday. The catch included 104 five-bass limits.
In Tackle Warehouse Invitational competition, the full field of 150 anglers compete in the two-day opening round on Friday and Saturday in a five-fish, weigh-in format. Only the top 30 pros, based on their two-day cumulative weight, advance to the final round on Championship Sunday, where they will compete for the grand prize of up to $115,000. The winner of the Tackle Warehouse Invitational Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats will be determined by the heaviest three-day cumulative weight and will receive an invitation to compete at REDCREST 2025 on Lake Guntersville in Huntsville, Alabama.
Anglers will launch at 6:30 a.m. CT each day from the Kentucky Dam Marina, located at 466 Marina Drive in Gilbertsville. Weigh-ins will also be held at the Marina and will begin at 2:30 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and weigh-in events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLFNOW!® live stream and coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The MLFNOW! broadcast team of Chad McKee and Rob Newell will break down the extended action live all three days of competition from 7 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. CT. MLFNOW! will be live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.
Television coverage of the MLF Tackle Warehouse Invitationals Stop 3 at Kentucky Lake Presented by Phoenix Boats will air as a two-hour episode, premiering at 9 a.m. ET, on Saturday, Oct. 19 on CBS Sports Network.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Tackle Warehouse Invitationals include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak Fishing, Onyx, Phoenix Boats, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.
For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the Tackle Warehouse Invitationals, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Tackle Warehouse Invitational updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the MLF5 social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Anglers Channel and Vexus® Partner on The Dream Rig Build
Columbia, SC (April 19, 2024) – Anglers Channel partnered with Vexus® Boats as the Official Boat of the Anglers Channel platform for 2024 and beyond and they are celebrating the partnership with the “AC Dream Rig Build”. Anglers Channel has selected the all new Vexus AVX V2 product line as the perfect platform for this exciting project.
According to Danny Blandford, Business Development Manager for Anglers Channel, “I got some seat time in the all new AVX 2080 at the Revolution Tour Demo Rides on a rough Grand Lake during the Bassmaster Classic. I was blown away by the performance on a cold and windy day. The glass infused hybrids have a quiet, smooth, and dry ride that rivals fiberglass, with the hole shot and acceleration I’ve come to expect in performance aluminum boats. The AVX2080 is just as impressive at rest. The front deck is massive, with plenty of storage, and the platform was ultra-stable, even with two adults fishing from the bow.”
The AC Dream Rig will be powered by Anglers Channel longtime partner, Mercury® Marine. The AVX 2080 is rated for a maximum horsepower of 200 and the 4.6 L V8 Mercury Pro XS is the perfect power plant for a Dream Rig Build. It’ll be paired with the Next-Gen TorqueMaster Gear Case, making for industry-leading acceleration and top end speed. In addition to being strong and fast, the Mercury Pro XS is also very fuel efficient at cruising speeds. When coupled with the weight savings of the AVX 2080, the Dream Rig will be the perfect blend of efficiency and power when it’s called for.
As an added bonus, the Pro XS features low water pickups on the gearcase nosecone, making it the ideal choice for jack plate set ups. The AC Dream Rig will include the TH Marine ATLAS® Hydraulic Jack Plate, providing 6 inches of setback, as well as 5 to 7 inches of vertical adjustment, providing optimal engine height for performance, as well as options for shallow water adjustments as needed. TH Marine will also be the foot throttle of choice for the AC Dream Rig project, as the Hot FootTM has been the industry leader for over 20 years. With the adjustable sliding base, it’ll ensure comfortable and safe operation for users of all sizes.
Blandford went on to add, “Pairing the Mercury Pro XS with the TH Marine ATLAS was a must have for a true Dream Rig for both the performance and functional aspects of this combo. This boat will spend a lot of time in both rivers and backwaters and having the ability to quickly raise and lower the engine will be of huge benefit to its intended uses. I wanted something that was rock solid and required little maintenance, and with the actuator in the plate and no lubrication required, this was the perfect choice. I can’t wait to hear that V8 Mercury fire up in the mornings and I know it’ll be destined for the shallow backwaters I like to call home.”
The Vexus AC Dream Rig has started production and Anglers Channel will be providing updates and glimpses behind the scenes at Vexus as the Dream Rig makes it was through the Flippin, AR facility. From the custom trailer to the boat itself, fans will be able to see the distinct features and proprietary designs that go into building The Most Advanced Fishing RigsTM. Those currently in the market for a “Dream Rig” of their own can take advantage of the Vexus Dream Rig Sales Event now through May 15th. The promotion includes a free custom boat cover and various rebates depending on the year and model chosen. Visit Vexusboats.com for complete details.
Austin Bonjour Takes over Command at WON Bass Clear Lake Open, Nick Klein holds in Second Place
Damon Motley leads AAA division as Clear Lake fish are on the Move.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – April 18, 2024 –– While the mild breezes and warm temperatures at Clear Lake remained for day two of the 2024 WON Bass Ranger Boats Clear Lake Open presented by Mercury, those mild conditions may have played havoc with the leaderboard. Ideally, stable conditions are the friend of a tournament angler, but when prespawn bass are looking towards spawning beds, a little change in weather can keep them from moving.
With 177 boats entered into the 2024 WON Bass Clear Lake Open, and a waxing moon four days from its peak full, either the pressure or the conditions seemed to throw a wrench into the plans of those who caught them best in the opening rounds. While several of the anglers who were amongst the leaders on day one remained, the size of their creels were noticeably smaller.
While there were six bags over 30 pounds that came to the scales on day one, only Kurt Dove from Del Rio, Tex. managed to cross that threshold on day two. Austin Bonjour, from Templeton, Calif. who stood in third place with 33.84 after day one saw his day two weight slip to 25.41 pounds. However, his total weight of 59.25 pounds moved him into the lead ahead of day one leader Nick Klein from Oroville, Calif. Klein posted a 21.64-pound limit to bring his total to 57.23 pounds, to finish the day in second place.
Bonjour said that he was two missed opportunities from having his second consecutive 30-pound-limit today. “I had two six-plus pounders swing and miss my swimbait within sight of the boat today,” he said. “If I land those two fish, I don’t weigh the two four-pounders I weighed, and I’m at 30 pounds again today.”
He said that his bite slowed down overall, but that he felt like he would be able to reach what he needs to finish off the event tomorrow. “I’m running a pattern all over the lake and having a late boat draw affected my ability to get into spots today, and I’m boat one tomorrow with a long day to fish,” he said. “I really feel like I can get a couple of bigger bites to get me a long way towards 30 pounds, which is what I think I’ll need tomorrow to win – I feel pretty good about it.”
Klein also reported fewer bites on day two, and only being able to catch five keeper bites. “I think the pressure on the lake and the moon phase have caused things to change more quickly than I thought it would,” he said. “I’m going to try to start early and make the adjustments needed to win; I feel like everything is there, I just need to make the right decisions and execute.”
Sliding one spot into third place was Joe Mariani of Winters, Calif. who also saw his weight slip on day two. His 22.18-pound limit on day two brought his total weight to 56.52 pounds to finish in third place for the day. Sparks, Nev. pro John Hampel added a 22.94-pound limit on day two to move from sixth place to fourth place at day’s end. The aforementioned Dove, who found himself in 59th place with a 19.54-pound day one, climbed all the way to fifth place with a total weight of 51.98 pounds.
Damon Motley, took the lead in the AAA division with a total weight of 56.23 pounds. He added 25.86 pounds fishing with pro Brett Robbins from Solvang, Calif. to his day one weight of 30.37 pounds to take the lead on day two. Second place went to Chase Harrel with 55.20, third place AAA went to David Oyler of Boulder City, Nev. with 52.14 pounds. Fourth place in the AAA division was Nick Dulleck of Roseville, Calif. at 50.82 pounds and day one AAA leader Jiongbo (Bob) Zhang of Walnut Creek, Calif. rounded out the top five with 50.53 pounds.
The top 10 in each division are posted below: for complete standings, visit https://wonbassevents.com/
WON Bass Clear Lake Open 4/17 to 4/19/2024
|
Place |
Pro Day 2 | Hometown |
Fish |
B/B |
Day 1 |
Day 2 |
Pnlty |
Total |
|
1 |
Austin Bonjour | Templeton, CA |
10-10 |
7.86 |
33.84 |
25.41 |
59.25 |
|
|
2 |
Nick Klein | Oroville, Ca |
10-10 |
8.85 |
35.59 |
21.64 |
57.23 |
|
|
3 |
Joe Mariani | Winters, CA |
10-10 |
9.21 |
34.34 |
22.18 |
56.52 |
|
|
4 |
John Hampel | Sparks, NV |
10-10 |
30.37 |
22.94 |
53.31 |
||
|
5 |
Kurt Dove | Del Rio, TX |
10-10 |
7.50 |
19.54 |
32.44 |
51.98 |
|
|
6 |
Randy Pierson | Oakdale, CA |
10-10 |
7.41 |
27.46 |
22.63 |
50.09 |
|
|
7 |
Kyle Grover | RCHO STA MARG, CA |
10-10 |
8.22 |
26.99 |
22.01 |
49.00 |
|
|
8 |
Ian Boehm | Desrt Hills AZ |
10-10 |
7.23 |
24.44 |
24.02 |
48.46 |
|
|
9 |
Brett Robbins | Solvang CA |
10-10 |
22.35 |
25.86 |
48.21 |
||
|
10 |
Scooter Griffith | Mesa, AZ |
10-10 |
9.92 |
27.47 |
20.44 |
47.91 |
|
|
Place |
AAA Angler Day 2 | Hometown |
Fish |
B/B |
Day 1 |
Day 2 |
Pnlty |
Total |
|
1 |
Damon Motley | Orange, CA |
10-10 |
9.39 |
30.37 |
25.86 |
56.23 |
|
|
2 |
Chase Harrell | San Jose, Ca |
9-9 |
34.34 |
20.86 |
55.20 |
||
|
3 |
David Oyler | Boulder City NV |
10-10 |
26.73 |
25.41 |
52.14 |
||
|
4 |
Nick Dulleck | Roseville CA |
10-10 |
24.83 |
25.99 |
50.82 |
||
|
5 |
Jiongbo (Bob) Zhang | Walnut Creek, CA |
10-9 |
35.59 |
14.94 |
0.50 |
50.53 |
|
|
6 |
John Mcclellan | Oroville CA |
10-10 |
20.80 |
29.27 |
50.07 |
||
|
7 |
Chris Crawford | Sacramento CA |
10-10 |
17.23 |
32.44 |
49.67 |
||
|
8 |
Anthony Madrigal | Auburn, CA |
9-9 |
33.84 |
15.59 |
49.43 |
||
|
9 |
Dink Mendez | Campbell CA |
10-10 |
26.53 |
20.71 |
47.24 |
||
|
10 |
Tim Evans | Oroville CA |
10-10 |
22.06 |
24.17 |
46.23 |
||
The final day of the Clear Lake Open will commence at Safe Light Friday April 18, 2024, from Library Park in Lakeport, Calif. with the first flight due to return at 2:30 PM. Daily Weigh-ins are streamed on Facebook.com/
The winner of the 2024 WON Bass Clear Lake Open will earn the Ranger Boats / Mercury Motor prize boat provided by Bass Pro Shops, and the Golden Tickets to the 2025 Bassmaster BASS Nation National Championship will be awarded to the top five Pro and AAA anglers and will further develop the season long competition to see who will receive guaranteed slots into the 2025 Bassmaster Opens Elite Qualifiers.
The 2024 WON Bass Western Opens Series of events Consisting of five events in California, Arizona and Nevada moves next to the California Open at Clear Lake April 17 to 19, 2024. The series will culminate with the 2024 WON Bass U.S. Open at Lake Mohave in October. The full schedule of the five event dates are as follows:
Jan. 31–Feb. 2, Lake Shasta - Champion Nick Wood – 47.42 pounds
April 17-19, Clear Lake
May 15-17, Lake Havasu
Sept. 18-20, Lake Mead
Oct. 14-16, U.S. Open at Lake Mohave
The 2024 WON Bass Northern California Lake Shasta Open is brought to you by Bass Pro Shops, Ranger Boats, Mercury Marine, Nitro Boats, Triton Boats, Bridgford Foods, Phenix Rods, Yamamoto Baits, Bill Lewis Lures, Buckeye Lures, Steel Shad, Bioenno Power, SOG Knives, Cold Steel Knives, Gamma Line, Power Pole, Lowrance, Daiwa, AFTCO, Costa, Berkley, Abu Garcia, DD26 Fishing, Anderson Toyota, A&M Graphics, Anglers Marine and Signature Gates.
Local presenting sponsors are Clear Lake Outdoors and the City of Lakeport. Daily takeoffs and weigh-ins will happen at Library Park in the City of Lakeport, California.
Erickson, Pontius edge Montevallo teammates for Bassmaster College Series win on Kentucky Lake
April 18, 2024
Erickson, Pontius edge Montevallo teammates for Bassmaster College Series win on Kentucky Lake
PARIS, Tenn. — University of Montevallo (Ala.) anglers have had a great deal of success as a program, so it wasn’t a huge surprise that a pair of the school’s teams were the final two standing Thursday at the Strike King Bassmaster College Series at Kentucky Lake presented by Bass Pro Shops.
In the end, Blair Erickson and Jackson Pontius were on the right side of the balance, winning the tournament with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 42 pounds, 1 ounce. They edged Montevallo teammates Easton Fothergill and Nick Dumke, the defending Bassmaster College Series Team of the Year, who placed second with 10 bass totaling 41-5.
In all, 216 college tandems competed for a total of $18,400 in prize money for their respective schools. Erickson and Pontius split $5,500 for winning, while Fothergill and Dumke split $3,600 for finishing second.
Edging their high-profile teammates was a point of pride for the victorious 21-year-old juniors — Erickson a computer science major from Brainard, Minn., and Pontius, a Wilsonville, Ala., native studying business marketing. Both acknowledged that competing with the many other talented anglers at Montevallo puts them in a position to win whenever they compete.
“Iron sharpens iron,” Erickson said, his voice beginning to crack with emotion, even before he and Pontius weighed a 19-9 limit to push them past their teammates.
“(Competing with guys like Fothergill and Dumke) motivates you. I wouldn’t be where I am without them.”
Pontius wholeheartedly agreed.
“We are so competitive,” he said. “All these guys (at Montevallo) are hammers…We have a big support team.”
Erickson and Pontius caught 22-8 on Day 1, grabbing the lead catching smallies off a shellbar only a few dozen yards from takeoff at Paris Landing Marina. They burned that spot, though, and only caught two bass there Thursday morning for about 7 pounds.
That’s when they decided to make a 20-mile run to mid-lake and a hotspot Erickson located during practice. When they arrived, however, Fothergill and Dumke were already fishing that location. They didn’t slink off to another spot, however, rather they fished within shouting distance of their teammates, locking in on a trio of 4-pounders they marked during practice.
“It only took a few casts, and we had the limit we needed,” Pontius said.
Still, it was a kicker fish that provided the margin of victory.
“We had 18 pounds, but we still had a 2-8 in the box,” Pontius said. “We couldn’t get rid of him, and it was almost 12 o’clock. So, we rolled up to where we started and on the last cast of the day, with five minutes to go until weigh-in, Blair got hung up on a rock and a 3-12 decides to eat his bait off the rock.”
“That was the fish that won it for us,” Pontius said.
Erickson used a pair of Untamed Tackle Shitake Mushroom Head jigs, one a 3/16-ounce lure and another that was 1/8-ounce. Pontius primarily threw a 3/16-ounce tube for his best bites. Both anglers favored green pumpkin lures speckled with orange and purple flakes.
“The bedding bass were finicky,” Erickson said. “I learned ice fishing (back home in Minnesota) that when they’re like that, you want to give them something with less resistance so it’s easier for them to get more of the lure. You need something lighter.”
Light lures, perhaps, but they were a recipe for a heavy victory.
“This means so much,” Pontius said. “This is our third tournament fishing together. To get a win and qualify for Nationals at the same time is an incredible thing.”
“This has been a dream since I was in eighth grade,” Erickson added. “It’s been a dream for both of us.”
Rounding out the Top 5 at Kentucky Lake are Dylan Fogerty and Hunter Filmore of Bethel University (Tenn.), third, 40-4; Banks Shaw and Nathan Reynolds of the University of North Alabama, fourth, 39-13; and Jack Hay and Eli Jaime of Southwestern Michigan College, fifth, 39-10.
This week’s event was the first B.A.S.S. tournament on Kentucky Lake since the Bassmaster High School National Championship was held here in 2020. After a few lean years, mainly due to an influx of invasive Asian carp, Kentucky Lake’s bass bite (especially the smallmouth) has rebounded tremendously.
It showed, with a total of 144 limits caught on Day 1 and another 125 on Day 2.
The teams of Sam Moll and Will Burch of Murray State (Ky.) University, and Quade Lobo and Nick Owens of Adrian College (Mich.), each weighed a 6-13 smallmouth on Day 1 to tie for the heaviest bass of the tournament.
The College Series stop at Kentucky Lake was the second of three events on the new Legends Trail, the first being held on South Carolina’s Lake Murray in January and the final tournament set for Michigan’s Saginaw Bay in June. Teams finishing in the top 10% of the field at any of the college events qualify for the Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship scheduled for Aug. 22-24 at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, S.C.
The Henry County Tourism Authority hosted the derby on Kentucky Lake.
2024 Bassmaster College Series Title Sponsor: Strike King
2024 Bassmaster College Series Presenting Sponsor: Bass Pro Shops
2024 Bassmaster College Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2024 Bassmaster College Series Premier Sponsors: Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2024 Bassmaster College Series Supporting Sponsors: AFTCO, Daiwa, Garmin, Lew's, Lowrance, Marathon, Triton Boats, VMC
2024 Bassmaster College Series Youth Sponsors: Seaguar, Shimano
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 500,000-member 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.
-30-
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Media Contact: Chad Gay, Communications Manager, 865-201-6458, cgay@bassmaster.
2024 Strike King Bassmaster College Series at Kentucky Lake presented by Bass Pro Shops 4/17-4/18
Kentucky Lake, Paris TN.
(BOATER) Standings Day 2
Angler Club/School Pts
1. Blair Erickson - Jackson Pontius University of Montevallo 250
Day 1: 5 22-08 Day 2: 5 19-09 Total: 10 42-01
2. Easton Fothergill - Nick Dumke University of Montevallo 249
Day 1: 5 20-04 Day 2: 5 21-01 Total: 10 41-05
3. Dylan Fogarty - Hunter Fillmore Bethel University 248
Day 1: 5 20-05 Day 2: 5 19-15 Total: 10 40-04
4. Banks Shaw - Nathan Reynolds University of North Alabama 247
Day 1: 5 19-08 Day 2: 5 20-05 Total: 10 39-13
5. Jack Hay - Eli Jaime Southwestern Michigan College 246
Day 1: 5 20-11 Day 2: 5 18-15 Total: 10 39-10
6. Derek Rodriguez Jr. - Dalton Mollenkopf Adrian College 245
Day 1: 5 19-11 Day 2: 5 19-11 Total: 10 39-06
7. Lane Stephens - Ethan Fields McKendree University 244
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 19-07 Total: 10 38-13
8. Hayden Marbut - Auburn University 243
Day 1: 5 17-12 Day 2: 5 20-13 Total: 10 38-09
9. Adrian Urso - Corbin Templon Murray State University 242
Day 1: 5 18-10 Day 2: 5 19-03 Total: 10 37-13
10. Jerry Brumbaugh Jr. - Brady Pinwar Adrian College 241
Day 1: 5 17-00 Day 2: 5 20-10 Total: 10 37-10
11. Colby Carrier - Justin Frey Bethel University 240
Day 1: 5 19-07 Day 2: 5 17-14 Total: 10 37-05
12. Dylan Akins - Chase Carey Emmanuel College 239
Day 1: 5 19-13 Day 2: 5 17-04 Total: 10 37-01
13. Elliot Wielgopolski - Aaron Jagdfeld Adrian College 238
Day 1: 5 18-03 Day 2: 5 18-12 Total: 10 36-15
14. Tyler Leachman - Mark Bixler Murray State University 237
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 19-12 Total: 10 36-13
15. Owen Januszewski - Mitch Straffon Adrian College 236
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 20-12 Total: 10 36-08
16. Chase Milholen - Koltyn Harbin Bethel University 235
Day 1: 5 18-04 Day 2: 5 17-05 Total: 10 35-09
17. Jackson Kulijof - Aiden Clark Murray State University 234
Day 1: 5 19-01 Day 2: 5 16-01 Total: 10 35-02
18. Carter Nutt - Dylan Nutt University of North Alabama 233
Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 5 17-15 Total: 10 34-13
19. Hagan Marlin - Chris Fallon University of Montevallo 232
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 5 20-04 Total: 10 34-12
20. Hank Sturm - Matt Amosby Adrian College 231
Day 1: 5 17-09 Day 2: 5 17-01 Total: 10 34-10
21. Lake Norsworthy - Calup Williams Blue Mountain Christian Universi 230
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 17-15 Total: 10 34-04
22. Kai Barnett - Parker Welch McKendree University 229
Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 5 17-06 Total: 10 34-04
23. Benjamin Travis - Brendin Simich Auburn University 228
Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 5 16-04 Total: 10 33-15
24. Cy Lambert - Austin King University of North Alabama 227
Day 1: 5 16-08 Day 2: 5 17-05 Total: 10 33-13
25. Wyatt Pearman - Ridge Rutledge Campbellsville University 226
Day 1: 5 15-10 Day 2: 5 18-01 Total: 10 33-11
26. Dalton Phelps - Gannon Stork Wabash Valley College 225
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 20-01 Total: 10 33-10
27. Peyton Rose - Brogan Gregg Wabash Valley College 224
Day 1: 5 16-13 Day 2: 5 16-12 Total: 10 33-09
28. Henry Vincent - Tommy Parker Adrian College 223
Day 1: 5 17-12 Day 2: 5 15-10 Total: 10 33-06
29. Cameron Smith - Thomas Phillips Ohio State University 222
Day 1: 5 16-10 Day 2: 5 16-11 Total: 10 33-05
30. Tyler Finley - Christopher Kistler University of North Alabama 221
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 16-03 Total: 10 33-04
31. Collin Barnett - Sander Ludeman Minnesota State University - Man 220
Day 1: 5 19-02 Day 2: 5 14-00 Total: 10 33-02
32. Andrew Howell - Jordan Pennington University of Montevallo 219
Day 1: 5 18-13 Day 2: 5 14-05 Total: 10 33-02
33. Drake Sturgill - Beau Browning University of Montevallo 218
Day 1: 5 19-10 Day 2: 5 12-15 Total: 10 32-09
34. Levi Seagraves - Scooter Ligon Jr Emmanuel College 217
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 5 18-01 Total: 10 32-09
35. Logan Plueger - Charlie Wright University of Montevallo 216
Day 1: 5 16-13 Day 2: 5 15-08 Total: 10 32-05
36. Colton Odom - Tyler Madden Auburn University 215
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 20-09 Total: 10 32-04
37. Luke Davis - Chance Schwartz University of Montevallo 214
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 15-02 Total: 10 31-11
38. Lucas Washburn - Braylon Eggerding Adrian College 213
Day 1: 5 17-07 Day 2: 5 14-03 Total: 10 31-10
39. Jonathon Garbacz - Owen Moss University of North Georgia 212
Day 1: 5 15-08 Day 2: 5 15-14 Total: 10 31-06
40. Brady Metzger - Mason Bohland Purdue University 211
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 15-08 Total: 10 31-04
41. Jack Mcillwain - Jake Krauth University of North Alabama 210
Day 1: 5 13-08 Day 2: 5 17-11 Total: 10 31-03
42. Braden Cox - Joel Berelsman Ohio State University 209
Day 1: 4 11-01 Day 2: 5 19-14 Total: 9 30-15
43. Hunter Russell - Benny Blank Wabash Valley College 208
Day 1: 5 18-07 Day 2: 5 12-04 Total: 10 30-11
44. Ethan Tedder - Hunter Brewer University of North Alabama 207
Day 1: 5 15-05 Day 2: 5 15-03 Total: 10 30-08
45. Blayner Leeman - Cameron Dials Kentucky Christian University 206
Day 1: 5 16-06 Day 2: 5 14-01 Total: 10 30-07
46. Tucker Dottley - Jordan Hampton Bethel University 205
Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 16-10 Total: 10 30-05
47. Kyle Hopping - Colsyn Head McKendree University 204
Day 1: 5 16-04 Day 2: 5 13-12 Total: 10 30-00
48. Payton Sodervick - Adam Troyer Indiana University 203
Day 1: 5 14-13 Day 2: 5 15-02 Total: 10 29-15
49. Connor Westerman - Michael Mcnulty West Virginia University 202
Day 1: 5 14-11 Day 2: 5 15-01 Total: 10 29-12
50. Ryan Olsen - Delaney Platt Southwestern Michigan College 201
Day 1: 5 16-07 Day 2: 5 13-04 Total: 10 29-11
51. Nick Seitz - Paxton Giem Adrian College 200
Day 1: 5 16-09 Day 2: 5 13-01 Total: 10 29-10
52. Jacob Swanson - Zack Cooper University of Montevallo 199
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 15-07 Total: 10 29-10
53. Jonah Potts - Connor Lacy Murray State University 198
Day 1: 5 15-15 Day 2: 5 13-09 Total: 10 29-08
54. Brody Robison - Colton White University of Montevallo 197
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 13-01 Total: 10 29-06
55. Carson Calvert - Austin Thomas University of North Alabama 196
Day 1: 5 13-01 Day 2: 5 16-03 Total: 10 29-04
56. Andrew Jones - Tyler Malone Southern Union State Community C 195
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 15-12 Total: 10 29-03
57. Zane Roberts - Elijah McDonald University of North Alabama 194
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 13-13 Total: 10 29-03
58. Tomas Matual - Colton Hill McKendree University 193
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 14-15 Total: 10 29-01
59. Max Newkirk - Makenzie Shelton Murray State University 192
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 5 16-12 Total: 10 28-15
60. Andrew Oswalt - Evan Mabrey University of Montevallo 191
Day 1: 5 13-01 Day 2: 5 15-08 Total: 10 28-09
61. Quade Lobo - Nick Owens Adrian College 190
Day 1: 5 18-04 Day 2: 5 10-04 Total: 10 28-08
62. Peyton Harris - Dalton Head University of Montevallo 189
Day 1: 5 11-07 Day 2: 5 17-01 Total: 10 28-08
63. Will Hart - Logan Fisher Emmanuel College 188
Day 1: 5 12-08 Day 2: 5 16-00 Total: 10 28-08
64. Chandler Pruett - Wes Bailey Blue Mountain Christian Universi 187
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 13-01 Total: 10 28-08
65. Nick Pemberton - Will Holloway University of Montevallo 186
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 16-03 Total: 10 28-04
66. Harmon Marien - Maxwell Trotter McKendree University 185
Day 1: 5 14-05 Day 2: 5 13-14 Total: 10 28-03
67. Brennan Berglund - Neal Braddy University of Montevallo 184
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 12-12 Total: 10 27-14
68. Brenton Godwin - Hunter Odom University of Montevallo 183
Day 1: 5 19-03 Day 2: 3 08-10 Total: 8 27-13
69. Tyler Cory - Scott Sledge University of Montevallo 182
Day 1: 5 10-14 Day 2: 5 16-15 Total: 10 27-13
70. Reece Keeney - Brantley Anders Kentucky Christian University 181
Day 1: 5 15-04 Day 2: 5 12-09 Total: 10 27-13
71. Jack Stephens - Jason Qualich McKendree University 180
Day 1: 5 14-06 Day 2: 5 13-06 Total: 10 27-12
72. William Vickery - Hunter Starling Georgia Southern University 179
Day 1: 5 11-12 Day 2: 5 15-15 Total: 10 27-11
73. Austin Marley - Jack Richardson Georgia Southern University 178
Day 1: 5 16-10 Day 2: 5 11-00 Total: 10 27-10
74. Nick Redlin - Ben Redlin University of Wisconsin - Platte 177
Day 1: 5 13-05 Day 2: 5 14-03 Total: 10 27-08
75. Kobe Thompson - Cole Carr Adrian College 176
Day 1: 5 12-11 Day 2: 5 14-12 Total: 10 27-07
76. Tyler Altizer - Landon Lawson King University 175
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 13-04 Total: 10 27-07
77. Harrison McCall - Cameron Yates Lander University 174
Day 1: 5 11-13 Day 2: 5 15-09 Total: 10 27-06
78. Jordan Bezold - Joe Bezold Nku Bassmasters Club 173
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 12-07 Total: 10 27-01
79. Chris Baker - Elijah Kelley Kentucky Christian University 172
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 11-14 Total: 10 27-00
80. James Willoughby - Phillip Herring University of Montevallo 171
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 11-12 Total: 10 26-14
81. Carson Tucker - Kade MacDonald University of Wisconsin - Whitew 170
Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 3 09-02 Total: 8 26-13
82. Joseph Woods - Anthony Cicero IV Bethel University 169
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 12-10 Total: 10 26-13
83. Brock Blazier - Colby Joseph Campbellsville University 168
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 13-15 Total: 10 26-13
84. Logan East - Conner Giles Bryan College 167
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 13-13 Total: 10 26-11
85. Harrison Terry - Zachary Bowen Bethel University 166
Day 1: 5 15-09 Day 2: 5 11-00 Total: 10 26-09
86. Hunter Petrovic - Kaiya Ziga Southwestern Michigan College 165
Day 1: 5 15-05 Day 2: 4 11-03 Total: 9 26-08
87. Hunter Sandschafer - Blake Beckmann Wabash Valley College 164
Day 1: 5 11-13 Day 2: 5 14-04 Total: 10 26-01
88. Jake Thornbury - Lane Pohlman Campbellsville University 163
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 5 11-01 Total: 10 26-00
89. Gus Dietrich - Jack Wilson University of Alabama 162
Day 1: 5 12-00 Day 2: 5 14-00 Total: 10 26-00
90. Jake Peck - Carty Shoen Auburn University 161
Day 1: 4 12-09 Day 2: 5 13-06 Total: 9 25-15
91. Sam Moll - Will Burch Murray State University 160
Day 1: 5 17-09 Day 2: 3 07-15 Total: 8 25-08
92. TJ McKenzie - Will Wester Emmanuel College 159
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 4 11-00 Total: 9 24-12
93. Carson Winn - Grady Mcclendon University of North Alabama 158
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 13-09 Total: 10 24-09
94. Brooks Parker - Hudson Choquette University of Montevallo 157
Day 1: 5 07-15 Day 2: 5 16-09 Total: 10 24-08
95. Hunter Palmer - Eli Stevenson Bryan College 156
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 5 12-04 Total: 10 24-07
96. Max Pierlott - Mike Pierlott UNC - Charlotte 155
Day 1: 5 13-06 Day 2: 5 11-00 Total: 10 24-06
97. Branson Campbell - Hayden Short Kentucky Christian University 154
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 12-11 Total: 10 24-06
98. Zach Pocos - Tucker Siminak McKendree University 153
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 4 11-15 Total: 9 24-05
99. Karsten Raney - Ben Sadler Campbellsville University 152
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 5 11-09 Total: 10 24-03
100. Bryce Dimauro - Tripp Berlinsky Bryan College 151
Day 1: 5 11-04 Day 2: 5 12-12 Total: 10 24-00
101. Joe Lutz - Jake Monti UNC - Charlotte 150
Day 1: 5 13-06 Day 2: 4 10-05 Total: 9 23-11
102. Ben Brockwell - Will Rooker Kentucky Christian University 149
Day 1: 5 11-02 Day 2: 5 12-08 Total: 10 23-10
103. Allen Powe - Jonathan Combs Campbellsville University 148
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 5 11-15 Total: 10 23-08
104. Hayden Pirman - Luke Chaddock West Virginia University 147
Day 1: 3 07-14 Day 2: 5 15-09 Total: 8 23-07
105. Emily Freeman - Charly Hutson Murray State University 146
Day 1: 5 12-07 Day 2: 5 11-00 Total: 10 23-07
106. Nick Shoffner - Drake Page UNC - Charlotte 145
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 4 10-05 Total: 9 23-04
107. Hunter Shelton - Colten Drawdy Bethel University 144
Day 1: 5 14-06 Day 2: 4 08-12 Total: 9 23-02
108. Nate Triplett - Holden Johnson University of North Alabama 143
Day 1: 5 11-12 Day 2: 5 11-05 Total: 10 23-01
109. Max Heaton - Brooks Anderson Emmanuel College 142
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 2 07-03 Total: 7 23-00
110. Easton Lindus - Seth Jenkins Emmanuel College 141
Day 1: 3 07-06 Day 2: 4 15-10 Total: 7 23-00
111. Kaleb Brown - Cole Moulton Lander University 140
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 09-12 Total: 10 22-15
112. Hayden Fry - Vance Roberts McKendree University 139
Day 1: 5 16-11 Day 2: 3 06-03 Total: 8 22-14
113. Chris McGregor - Preston Kolisek University of North Alabama 138
Day 1: 3 06-07 Day 2: 5 15-12 Total: 8 22-03
114. Evan Sutton - Grant Olsen McKendree University 137
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 5 10-07 Total: 10 22-00
115. Spencer Grooms - Kyle Knoll Auburn University 136
Day 1: 5 09-13 Day 2: 5 12-00 Total: 10 21-13
116. Turner Hart - Summer Dees Bryan College 135
Day 1: 5 11-07 Day 2: 4 10-06 Total: 9 21-13
117. Jake Brown - Walker Brown University of North Alabama 134
Day 1: 5 10-03 Day 2: 4 11-09 Total: 9 21-12
118. Butler Cochran - Bryce Evans University of South Carolina 133
Day 1: 2 05-00 Day 2: 5 16-10 Total: 7 21-10
119. Harlan Thomas - Jack Thompson Murray State University 132
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 2 06-03 Total: 7 21-09
120. Jackson Holbert - Joshua Hayes University of North Alabama 131
Day 1: 5 12-09 Day 2: 3 08-12 Total: 8 21-05
121. Drew Bradstreet - Florida Gateway College 130
Day 1: 4 08-07 Day 2: 5 12-09 Total: 9 21-00
122. Riley Lawson - Joe Bob Burchett Kentucky Christian University 129
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 2 05-15 Total: 7 20-11
123. Kyle Smith - Aaron Mills Kentucky Christian University 128
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 4 08-02 Total: 9 20-08
124. Evan Barker - Corey Yarish Campbellsville University 127
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 4 09-06 Total: 9 20-07
125. Coleman Self - David Gummow Bethel University 126
Day 1: 3 07-02 Day 2: 5 13-00 Total: 8 20-02
126. Braden Thompson - Mason Gross Wabash Valley College 125
Day 1: 2 07-11 Day 2: 5 12-07 Total: 7 20-02
127. Jake Kimbrough - Tyler Hill Blue Mountain Christian Universi 124
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 3 07-13 Total: 8 20-01
128. Dawson Woerner - Wyatt Cash Purdue University 123
Day 1: 4 09-04 Day 2: 5 10-13 Total: 9 20-01
129. Caden Pearson - Nathan Kallstrand Wabash Valley College 122
Day 1: 5 12-09 Day 2: 3 07-04 Total: 8 19-13
130. Dawson Burton - Ethan Burnette Kentucky Christian University 121
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 2 03-14 Total: 7 19-10
131. Nathan Preston - Reece Tremaglio Auburn University 120
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 3 06-01 Total: 8 19-10
132. River Blanton - Brock Catlett Campbellsville University 119
Day 1: 4 07-08 Day 2: 5 11-14 Total: 9 19-06
133. Mitch Johnson - Jonathan Fitch Kentucky Christian University 118
Day 1: 4 09-09 Day 2: 5 09-10 Total: 9 19-03
134. Kyle Zainitzer - Brock Vogel University of North Alabama 117
Day 1: 3 06-08 Day 2: 5 12-08 Total: 8 19-00
135. Tyler Eggers - Dustin Swafford Catawba Valley Community College 116
Day 1: 5 16-11 Day 2: 1 02-02 Total: 6 18-13
136. Jonathan Yazdi - James Yuska Indiana University 115
Day 1: 5 11-15 Day 2: 3 06-14 Total: 8 18-13
137. Jake Hope - Alex Nesmith Murray State University 114
Day 1: 5 11-07 Day 2: 3 07-01 Total: 8 18-08
138. Daniel Schroeder - Jacob Autry Murray State University 113
Day 1: 5 18-06 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 18-06
139. Owen Wheeler - Caleb Neu Bethel University 112
Day 1: 2 05-00 Day 2: 5 13-05 Total: 7 18-05
140. Carter Doren - Brett Hill Campbellsville University 111
Day 1: 2 04-11 Day 2: 5 13-07 Total: 7 18-02
141. Thomas Smith - Kaleb Butts University of South Carolina - U 110
Day 1: 2 05-01 Day 2: 5 12-11 Total: 7 17-12
142. Hunter Barrow - Caleb Dugger King University 109
Day 1: 2 04-06 Day 2: 5 13-04 Total: 7 17-10
143. Jack Carroll - Joseph Senn Bethel University 108
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 2 05-06 Total: 7 17-09
144. Wes Newman Jr. - Holden Zinda Liberty University 107
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 2 05-00 Total: 7 17-04
145. Jeffrey Jones - Coleman Bingham Bethel University 106
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 17-01 Total: 5 17-01
146. Ryan Foster - Will Hornsby McKendree University 105
Day 1: 2 04-00 Day 2: 5 12-14 Total: 7 16-14
147. Blake Milligan - Carson Maddux Auburn University 104
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 16-13 Total: 5 16-13
148. William Brogan - Cole Bubenzer Indiana University 103
Day 1: 5 10-12 Day 2: 2 05-12 Total: 7 16-08
149. Jadon Spencer - Chase Martin Catawba Valley Community College 102
Day 1: 5 09-10 Day 2: 3 06-14 Total: 8 16-08
150. Josh Richardson - Logan Greeno 101
Day 1: 3 05-08 Day 2: 5 10-08 Total: 8 16-00
151. TJ Davis - Dillan Mcglothern Webber International University 100
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 2 04-05 Total: 7 15-14
152. Gavyn Rapp - Ephraim Cretsinger Adrian College 99
Day 1: 5 09-15 Day 2: 3 05-08 Total: 8 15-07
153. Garrett Ring - Peyton Sorrow University of Montevallo 98
Day 1: 3 05-03 Day 2: 3 09-13 Total: 6 15-00
154. Jarrett Prunty - Chase Fleenor Western Kentucky University 97
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 14-15
155. Jackson Smith - Sawyer Williams Bethel University 96
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 1 02-12 Total: 6 14-15
156. Will Gordon - Murray State University 95
Day 1: 5 14-13 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 14-13
157. Brendan Vinton - Jacob Vanscoik Catawba Valley Community College 94
Day 1: 1 02-01 Day 2: 5 12-10 Total: 6 14-11
158. Billy Erdakos - Davis Klimczak Southwestern Michigan College 93
Day 1: 3 07-03 Day 2: 4 07-04 Total: 7 14-07
159. Dylan Thomson - Trey Marco King University 92
Day 1: 5 09-12 Day 2: 2 04-09 Total: 7 14-05
160. Dustin Weinberg - Sawyer Brady Blue Mountain Christian Universi 91
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 1 02-02 Total: 6 14-03
161. Sam Hoesley - Malcolm Patton Auburn University 90
Day 1: 1 01-12 Day 2: 4 12-04 Total: 5 14-00
162. Jaxson Freeman - Connor Hall McKendree University 89
Day 1: 1 01-08 Day 2: 5 12-07 Total: 6 13-15
163. Carson Aarup - Matt Peine UNC - Charlotte 88
Day 1: 1 02-01 Day 2: 5 11-12 Total: 6 13-13
164. Cole Hadlock - Braiden Koerber Murray State University 87
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 13-07
165. Camden Lewis - TJ Edwards Jr Blue Mountain Christian Universi 86
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 13-05 Total: 5 13-05
166. Luke Dardeen - Connor Becker Wabash Valley College 85
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 13-03
167. Briggs Alavezos - Solomon Glenn University of Montevallo 84
Day 1: 3 07-03 Day 2: 3 05-15 Total: 6 13-02
168. Bryson Hatcher - Matthew Dopp Bryan College 83
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 12-10
169. Carter Smith - Sam Ausbrooks Wabash Valley College 82
Day 1: 4 12-08 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 12-08
170. Cole Berry - Braci Ault Purdue University 81
Day 1: 3 07-07 Day 2: 1 04-12 Total: 4 12-03
171. Dylan Bush - Tyler Hudson Western Kentucky University 80
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 11-11
171. Ethan Vue - Christian Vue UNC - Charlotte 80
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 11-11
173. Tristen Dubbs - Parker Wilburn Grace College 78
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 11-09
174. William Travis - Caleb Griffin Bryan College 77
Day 1: 1 02-08 Day 2: 3 08-15 Total: 4 11-07
175. Gage Starks - Anthony Ethridge Murray State University 76
Day 1: 2 03-10 Day 2: 4 07-13 Total: 6 11-07
176. Chase Loftus - University of Iowa 75
Day 1: 5 11-04 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 11-04
177. Robert Richbourg - Cal Austin Catawba Valley Community College 74
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 11-00 Total: 5 11-00
178. Sam Harvey - Jordan Brewer Auburn University 73
Day 1: 1 05-03 Day 2: 2 05-11 Total: 3 10-14
179. Jacob Highley - William Copley Kentucky Christian University 72
Day 1: 3 06-08 Day 2: 2 04-04 Total: 5 10-12
180. William Gully - Preston Barnett Southern Union State Community C 71
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 10-11 Total: 5 10-11
181. Tanner Herndon - Bryan College 70
Day 1: 2 05-14 Day 2: 2 04-12 Total: 4 10-10
182. Caleb Bridges - Jonathan Fann Middle Tennessee State Universit 69
Day 1: 4 10-02 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 10-02
183. Campbell Coyle - Tanner Davis University of Kentucky 68
Day 1: 4 09-12 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 09-12
184. Gavin Sheffer - Liberty University 67
Day 1: 4 07-11 Day 2: 1 02-00 Total: 5 09-11
185. William Henry - Hunter Heckman Purdue University 66
Day 1: 5 09-08 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 5 09-08
186. Dade Vincent - Murray State University 65
Day 1: 4 09-06 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 09-06
187. Tyler Dubois - Grayden Scibilia Bethel University 64
Day 1: 3 07-10 Day 2: 1 01-09 Total: 4 09-03
188. Casey Cornelius - Zion Dunaway Purdue University 63
Day 1: 4 09-02 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 09-02
189. Aidan Kolb - Tanner Brockman Murray State University 62
Day 1: 4 08-13 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 08-13
190. Nickolas Illobre - Bethel University 61
Day 1: 4 08-01 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 08-01
191. Lucas Thornton - Lucas Snyder University of North Alabama 60
Day 1: 3 07-15 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 3 07-15
192. Nick Harenda - Nick Mallmann Conto University of Wisconsin-Whitewat 59
Day 1: 4 07-11 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 07-11
193. Blake Bullock - John Mark Berry Blue Mountain Christian Universi 58
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 2 07-09 Total: 2 07-09
194. Bryson Dotson - Kobi May Bryan College 57
Day 1: 4 06-08 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 06-08
195. Luke Caylor - Joe Gollmer Indiana University 56
Day 1: 2 03-05 Day 2: 1 02-06 Total: 3 05-11
196. Jaxson Smoak - Dylan Reid Georgia Southern University 55
Day 1: 3 05-08 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 3 05-08
197. Colin Chavers - Aiden Macks Southern Union State Community C 54
Day 1: 2 05-06 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 2 05-06
198. Nick Staub - Sam Schmitz University of North Alabama 53
Day 1: 1 02-05 Day 2: 1 02-14 Total: 2 05-03
199. Jacob Butts - Mark Kershaw-Klara University of South Carolina - U 52
Day 1: 2 05-02 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 2 05-02
200. Ryan Thomas - Nathaniel Harper University of Pikeville 51
Day 1: 2 04-08 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 2 04-08
201. Kolby Clark - Rees Williams University of North Alabama 50
Day 1: 2 03-11 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 2 03-11
202. Hampton Shull - Lander University 49
Day 1: 1 02-15 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 1 02-15
203. Ty Reynolds - Murray State University 48
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 1 02-07 Total: 1 02-07
204. Clayton Cruze - Murray State University 47
Day 1: 4 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 4 00-00
205. Victor Alford - Christian Misciagna Bryan College 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Kyle Ashe - Bobby Beck JR University at Buffalo 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Lynn Chitwood - Trevor Moore Virginia Tech 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Ryan Daugherty - Brantley Barrentine Campbellsville University 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Owen Day - Morehead State University 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Allen Everett - Matthew Tomolonis Murray State University 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Alex Geroulis - Harrison Bomba Indiana University 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Gavin Grossman - Nicholas Jones Indiana University 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Dylan Levin - Dalton DeFelice Southwestern Michigan College 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Aaron Mcgill - Coastal Carolina University 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Kevin Palmer - Sydney Rice Pellissippi State Community Coll 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
205. Alan Ter Molen - Luke Rosebrook Grace College 0
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Total: 0 00-00
------------------------------
BIG BASS OF TOURN
Sam Moll Hershey, PA 06-13 $0.00
Quade Lobo Oroville, CA 06-13 $0.00
------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 144 866 2432-09
2 125 761 2212-09
------------------------------
269 1627 4645-02
Sumrall smashes big limit for Day 1 lead at Bassmaster Elite Series event on St. Johns River
April 18, 2024
Sumrall smashes big limit for Day 1 lead at Bassmaster Elite Series event on St. Johns River
PALATKA, Fla. — A little bit of water can make big things happen. Leveraging that logic, Caleb Sumrall sacked up a massive Day 1 limit of 28 pounds, 8 ounces to lead the MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River.
“That was the best day of fishing in my life,” the pro from New Iberia, La., said. “I’m trying not to get too excited because I don’t know what’s left on my spot.”
Leading Cory Johnston of Otonabee, Canada, by 5-5, Sumrall said he fished in Salt Springs and focused on sight fishing for bedding bass. Notably, Sumrall had not initially intended to fish this area, largely due to his take-off order.
“I was boat 99 today, so I didn’t even start there because I figured it would be loaded with boats,” he said. “But when I got in there around 9 o’clock, there was just one boat in there. I rolled up in there and immediately got a bite, then got another bite. I culled about every hour.”
Typically, a late arrival on a key area relegates an angler to picking through the leftovers. Today, Sumrall benefitted from recent meteorological factors.
“What I think saved me was Wednesday’s practice was really windy,” he said. “I think the guys that were in there looking for fish couldn’t see them.
“The wind came in fluctuations today. I’m looking for the ones that are out a little farther. I think that was the key to catching a big bag.”
With an outgoing tide in the morning, Sumrall fared well by working with the falling water. His best action came in the afternoon, as he drew upon his Southern Louisiana tidal bass fishing know-how.
“I think the tide was key and I think a couple other guys that fished (in Salt Springs) didn’t key in on something specific,” Sumrall said. “Anytime you’re fishing for spawning fish on a tide, 6 inches (of water) over their head is a big deal.
“That can make them go to lock (onto the bed) and bite. There can be a window where those fish go to snapping. I really think that was key. From 11 to 2 is when I got some really good bites.”
Sumrall said he caught his bed fish by pitching a mix of Texas-rigged plastics. Patience, he said, was essential, but a couple of persnickety fish tested his resolve.
“I fished the slowest I’ve fished in my entire life,” he said. “I was just calm and in my zone and I got the bites.
“I worked on one fish for about two hours. Then, I switched to a Missile Baits 48 and on the first cast, I got her to eat it.
Sumrall said he’ll return to Salt Springs for Friday’s second round. He’s not sure what to expect, but the potential is too great to resist.
“I have to go back; it would be silly not to,” he said. “I have boat No. 5 (for Day 2) so I could be the first one in there. Today, I saw an 8-pounder and a 10.
“If the weather remains stable and the wind lays down, there’s the potential for a 35-pound bag — easily.”
Johnston is in second place with 23-3. Notwithstanding his well-documented northern prowess, which included a century belt for catching 100 pounds of smallmouth during his second-place finish at the 2022 Elite at the St. Lawrence River, Johnston said the St. Johns suits his background.
“I grew up fishing just like this — flipping reeds, flipping pads, flipping matted vegetation,” Johnston said of his youth, prior to smallmouth coming into prominence. “There were no smallmouth that played when I was younger, so I grew up fishing largemouth.”
Day 1 saw Johnston employing many of his early fishing lessons. His success required mobility and a diverse bait selection.
“I ran all over (the fishery) and checked a bunch of stuff,” he said. “I had a good bag by about 10 o’clock, so I ran back and covered a bunch of new water.”
Johnston said he got bit on reaction baits early and then switched to flipping later in the day. His targets varied from docks, to pads, to mats.
Wes Logan of Springville, Ala., is in third place with 22-0. Spending his day in the Little Lake George area, he fished various targets including shellbars, wood, pads and docks.
Catching his bass on mix of winding baits and flipping, Logan said the afternoon hours proved most productive.
“I lost some big fish earlier and I don’t know why they came off,” he said. “I don’t know if the sun helped, or maybe it was the tide changing, but later in the day, when they ate it, they ate it.
“I haven’t figured out the windows yet, but you can tell when they start biting. They’re really eating.”
Jake Whitaker of Hendersonville, N.C., is in the lead for Phoenix Boats Big Bass honors with his 7-15.
Rookie Trey McKinney of Carbondale, Ill., leads the Progressive Insurance Bassmaster Angler of the Year race with 391 points. Jordan Lee of Cullman, Ala., is in second with 347, followed by Cory Johnston with 334, Chris Johnston of Otonabee, Canada, with 324, and Tyler Williams of Belgrade, Maine, with 305.
McKinney also leads the race for Dakota Lithium Bassmaster Rookie of the Year.
Friday’s takeoff is scheduled for 7 a.m. ET at Palatka City Dock & Boat Ramp. The weigh-in will be held back at the ramp at 3 p.m., with only the Top 50 anglers advancing to Semifinal Saturday.
Bassmaster LIVE will be streaming on Bassmaster.com all four days and coverage will also be available on FS1 Saturday and Sunday.
The event is being hosted by the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce.
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota
2024 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Dakota Lithium, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Progressive Insurance, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2024 Bassmaster Elite 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 500,000-member 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.
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Connect with #Bassmaster on Facebook, Instagram, Twitte
Media Contact: Chad Gay, Communications Manager, 865-201-6458, cgay@bassmaster.
2024 MAXAM Tire Bassmaster Elite at St. Johns River 4/18-4/21
St. Johns River, Palatka FL.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 1
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Caleb Sumrall New Iberia, LA 5 28-08 103
Day 1: 5 28-08
2. Cory Johnston Otonabee CANADA 5 23-03 102
Day 1: 5 23-03
3. Wes Logan Springville, AL 5 22-00 101
Day 1: 5 22-00
4. Matt Arey Shelby, NC 5 21-00 100
Day 1: 5 21-00
4. Caleb Kuphall Mukwonago, WI 5 21-00 100
Day 1: 5 21-00
6. Trey McKinney Carbondale, IL 5 20-14 98
Day 1: 5 20-14
7. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 5 20-13 97
Day 1: 5 20-13
8. Jake Whitaker Hendersonville, NC 5 20-06 96 $1,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-06
9. Scott Canterbury Odenville, AL 5 19-15 95
Day 1: 5 19-15
10. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 5 19-05 94
Day 1: 5 19-05
11. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 5 19-04 93
Day 1: 5 19-04
12. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 5 19-04 92
Day 1: 5 19-04
13. Brandon Card Salisbury, NC 5 19-01 91
Day 1: 5 19-01
14. Lee Livesay Longview, TX 5 18-08 90
Day 1: 5 18-08
15. Bryan Schmitt Deale, MD 5 18-07 89
Day 1: 5 18-07
16. Wesley Gore Clanton, AL 5 17-15 88
Day 1: 5 17-15
17. Koby Kreiger Alva, FL 5 17-14 87
Day 1: 5 17-14
18. Jacob Foutz Charleston, TN 5 17-11 86
Day 1: 5 17-11
19. Cooper Gallant Bowmanville Ontario CAN 5 17-09 85
Day 1: 5 17-09
20. Ray Hanselman Jr Del Rio, TX 5 17-06 84
Day 1: 5 17-06
21. Drew Benton Panama City, FL 5 17-01 83
Day 1: 5 17-01
22. Kyle Norsetter Cottage Grove, WI 5 16-14 82
Day 1: 5 16-14
23. Chris Johnston Otonabee Ontario CANADA 5 16-09 81
Day 1: 5 16-09
24. Brandon Lester Fayetteville, TN 5 16-09 80
Day 1: 5 16-09
25. Todd Auten Clover, SC 5 16-05 79
Day 1: 5 16-05
26. Alex Wetherell Middletown, CT 5 16-04 78
Day 1: 5 16-04
27. Scott Martin Clewiston, FL 5 16-02 77
Day 1: 5 16-02
28. Bob Downey Detroit Lakes, MN 5 16-01 76
Day 1: 5 16-01
29. Brock Mosley Collinsville, MS 5 15-13 75
Day 1: 5 15-13
30. Justin Atkins Florence, AL 5 15-12 74
Day 1: 5 15-12
30. Jamie Hartman Newport, NY 5 15-12 74
Day 1: 5 15-12
32. Hunter Shryock Ooltewah, TN 5 15-11 72
Day 1: 5 15-11
33. Chris Zaldain Fort Worth, TX 5 15-02 71
Day 1: 5 15-02
34. Gregory DiPalma Millville, NJ 5 15-00 70
Day 1: 5 15-00
35. Gerald Swindle Guntersville, AL 4 14-13 69
Day 1: 4 14-13
36. Matty Wong Honolulu, HI 5 14-08 68
Day 1: 5 14-08
37. Jonathan Kelley Old Forge, PA 5 14-05 67
Day 1: 5 14-05
38. Paul Mueller Naugatuck, CT 5 14-03 66
Day 1: 5 14-03
38. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 5 14-03 66
Day 1: 5 14-03
40. Jordan Lee Cullman, AL 5 14-02 64
Day 1: 5 14-02
40. Alex Redwine Blue Ash, OH 5 14-02 64
Day 1: 5 14-02
42. Ed Loughran III Richmond, VA 5 13-15 62
Day 1: 5 13-15
42. Kyle Welcher Valley, AL 5 13-15 62
Day 1: 5 13-15
44. Ben Milliken New Caney, TX 5 13-11 60
Day 1: 5 13-11
44. Clifford Pirch Payson, AZ 5 13-11 60
Day 1: 5 13-11
46. Frank Talley Belton, TX 5 13-10 58
Day 1: 5 13-10
47. Jacob Powroznik North Prince George, VA 5 13-09 57
Day 1: 5 13-09
47. Matt Robertson Kuttawa, KY 5 13-09 57
Day 1: 5 13-09
49. Luke Palmer Coalgate, OK 5 13-08 55
Day 1: 5 13-08
50. John Cox Debary, FL 5 13-07 54
Day 1: 5 13-07
50. Buddy Gross Chattanooga, TN 5 13-07 54
Day 1: 5 13-07
52. Timothy Dube Nashua , NH 5 13-06 52
Day 1: 5 13-06
52. Cody Huff Ava, MO 5 13-06 52
Day 1: 5 13-06
54. Marc Frazier Newnan, GA 5 13-02 50
Day 1: 5 13-02
54. Clark Wendlandt Leander, TX 5 13-02 50
Day 1: 5 13-02
56. Will Davis Jr Sylacauga, AL 5 13-01 48
Day 1: 5 13-01
56. John Soukup Sapulpa, OK 5 13-01 48
Day 1: 5 13-01
58. Stetson Blaylock Benton, AR 5 12-15 46
Day 1: 5 12-15
58. Pat Schlapper Eleva, WI 5 12-15 46
Day 1: 5 12-15
60. Matt Herren Ashville, AL 5 12-14 44
Day 1: 5 12-14
60. Tyler Rivet Raceland, LA 5 12-14 44
Day 1: 5 12-14
62. Kenta Kimura Osaka OK JAPAN 5 12-13 42
Day 1: 5 12-13
63. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 5 12-12 41
Day 1: 5 12-12
64. Derek Hudnall Zachary, LA 5 12-08 40
Day 1: 5 12-08
65. Brandon Cobb Greenwood, SC 5 12-07 39
Day 1: 5 12-07
66. Carl Jocumsen Queensland TN AUSTRALIA 5 12-06 38
Day 1: 5 12-06
67. Jason Christie Dry Creek, OK 5 12-01 37
Day 1: 5 12-01
67. Bryant Smith Roseville, CA 5 12-01 37
Day 1: 5 12-01
69. Jay Przekurat Plover, WI 5 11-15 35
Day 1: 5 11-15
70. Seth Feider New Market, MN 5 11-14 34
Day 1: 5 11-14
70. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 5 11-14 34
Day 1: 5 11-14
72. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 5 11-12 32
Day 1: 5 11-12
73. Shane LeHew Catawba, NC 5 11-10 31
Day 1: 5 11-10
74. Logan Latuso Gonzales, LA 5 11-01 30
Day 1: 5 11-01
75. Clent Davis Montevallo, AL 5 11-00 29
Day 1: 5 11-00
76. Robert Gee Knoxville, TN 5 10-15 28
Day 1: 5 10-15
77. Drew Cook Cairo, GA 5 10-14 27
Day 1: 5 10-14
78. John Garrett Union City, TN 5 10-13 26
Day 1: 5 10-13
79. Kyle Patrick Cooperstown, NY 5 10-12 25
Day 1: 5 10-12
80. Hank Cherry Jr Lincolnton, NC 5 10-09 24
Day 1: 5 10-09
80. Logan Parks Auburn, AL 5 10-09 24
Day 1: 5 10-09
82. Joey Cifuentes III Clinton, AR 5 10-07 22
Day 1: 5 10-07
83. Patrick Walters Eutawville, SC 5 10-06 21
Day 1: 5 10-06
84. Tyler Williams Belgrade, ME 5 10-05 20
Day 1: 5 10-05
85. David Gaston Sylacauga, AL 5 10-04 19
Day 1: 5 10-04
86. Joseph Webster Hamilton, AL 5 09-14 18
Day 1: 5 09-14
87. Taku Ito Dalton GA JAPAN 5 09-12 17
Day 1: 5 09-12
88. Chad Pipkens Dewitt, MI 5 09-10 16
Day 1: 5 09-10
89. John Crews Jr Salem, VA 5 09-08 15
Day 1: 5 09-08
90. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 5 09-01 14
Day 1: 5 09-01
91. Mike Huff London, KY 5 08-15 13
Day 1: 5 08-15
92. Bryan New Leesville, SC 5 08-14 12
Day 1: 5 08-14
92. Cliff Prince Palatka, FL 5 08-14 12
Day 1: 5 08-14
94. Cole Sands Calhoun , TN 5 08-12 10
Day 1: 5 08-12
95. Brad Whatley Bivins, TX 2 08-09 9
Day 1: 2 08-09
96. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 5 08-05 8
Day 1: 5 08-05
97. KJ Queen Catawba, NC 5 07-13 7
Day 1: 5 07-13
98. David Mullins Mt Carmel, TN 5 07-11 6
Day 1: 5 07-11
99. Austin Felix Eden Prairie, MN 5 06-13 5
Day 1: 5 06-13
100. Jeff Gustafson Kenora, ON Ontario CANA 5 06-11 4
Day 1: 5 06-11
101. Kyoya Fujita Yamanashi CA JAPAN 3 05-11 3
Day 1: 3 05-11
102. Justin Hamner Northport, AL 5 05-09 2
Day 1: 5 05-09
103. JT Thompkins Myrtle Beach, SC 2 04-06 1
Day 1: 2 04-06
------------------------------
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Day
1 Jake Whitaker Hendersonville, NC 07-15 $1,000.00
------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 99 506 1411-00
------------------------------
99 506 1411-00
Lake Eufaula Readies for MLF Bass Pro Tour MillerTech Stage Four Presented by REDCON1
EUFAULA, Okla. (April 18, 2024) – The Major League Fishing (MLF) Bass Pro Tour is set to visit Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Oklahoma, April 30 – May 5, for the fourth event of the 2024 season – the MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1.
The six-day tournament, hosted by Vision Eufaula, will feature a field of 79 professional anglers, including Ott DeFoe , back-to-back Angler of the Year (AOY) Jacob Wheeler, two-time REDCREST Champion Dustin Connell, reigning REDCREST Champion Bryan Thrift and Oklahoma superstars like Zack Birge of Blanchard, Oklahoma, James Elam of Tulsa, Oklahoma and 2019 REDCREST and AOY champion Edwin Evers of Talala, Oklahoma. They’ll be competing for a purse of $659,000, including a top payout of $100,000 and valuable Angler of the Year (AOY) points in hopes of qualifying for the General Tire Heavy Hitters all-star event and REDCREST 2025, the Bass Pro Tour championship.
“We are thrilled to welcome Major League Fishing to Eufaula, Oklahoma,” said Andrea Oldham, Community Development Director for the City of Eufaula. “We invite all anglers, staff and their families to experience our small town's unique charm and warm hospitality.”
The tournament will feature the MLF catch, weigh, immediate-release format, in which anglers catch as much weight as they can each day, while also feeling the pressure and intensity of the SCORETRACKER® leaderboard. The tournament is being filmed for broadcast later this year on Discovery.
“Vision Eufaula is excited that Major League Fishing and the Bass Pro Tour is coming to Eufaula,” said Karen Weldin, President of Vision Eufaula. “As an organization dedicated to making Eufaula one of the best destination places in Oklahoma, we love that organizations like MLF agree that Lake Eufaula is a great place to fish and attract thousands of people to our city by their presence here.”
MillerTech pro Greg Vinson of Wetumpka, Alabama, who will be among the 79 anglers competing, said he feels like the timing of the event is spot on and this will be a tournament where the entire field will be able to fish their strengths.
“I’m really excited about this event and think the timing will make it interesting,” said Vinson. “It’s a new lake to me, but I started doing my homework as soon as it came out on the schedule. The first thing I noticed was that Lake Eufaula sets up for both shallow and deep-water fishing, especially this time of year. I expect the fish to be in late spawn, early post-spawn, which leaves the door wide open for a variety of techniques.”
Vinson said he expects to see anglers targeting offshore structure in the cleaner portions of the lake and utilizing shallow-water power-fishing techniques in the areas with more color.
“The quality of the fish should be really good,” said Vinson. “I also expect to see a good shad spawn in the morning and maybe even some bream starting to bed, which opens up those shallow-water techniques. Obviously topwater buzzbaits and spinnerbaits could be in play, as well as flipping and pitching around boat docks.
“In the deeper portions of the lake, I’ll be looking for some offshore structure,” Vinson continued. “I know Lake Eufaula has some good rock piles, humps, points, brush piles and even some natural timber in it. So, there are a lot of options for that offshore cover fishing as well.
“In typical five-fish tournaments, 18 to 20-plus-pounds is a good limit on Lake Eufaula, which sets us up to have to catch probably 25 pounds or more per day, just to make the cut, so it should be a good shootout.”
Local Bass Pro Shops pro Edwin Evers of Talala, Oklahoma, said Lake Eufaula has been fishing really good and had a lot of great spawning seasons over the past several years.
“It’s a monster lake, so being able to spread out on this fishery is going to be a lot of fun,” said Evers. “Anglers are liable to find an area and not ever see another boat the rest of the day.
“It typically takes 20-22 pounds to win most five-fish tournaments at Lake Eufaula,” Evers continued. “I don’t see it as being a big numbers event like we just had at Dale Hollow. I think if a guy can catch 10-15 scorable bass per day, he’ll be doing pretty well.”
Evers agreed that the event is hitting the fishery at an opportune time, when a variety of techniques will be in play.
“I think this will be a straight power-fishing event,” Evers explained. “I don’t think we’re going to see a lot of the jighead minnow-type stuff that we’ve been seeing. I think it’s going to be a lot of spinnerbaits, crankbaits, a jig – just your typical power-fishing type baits. There will probably be quite a bit of sight-fishing going on as well, so I think it will be a really fun tournament with plenty of options.”
Anglers will launch at 7:30 a.m. CT each day from the Peter’s Point-Nichols Point Boat Ramp, located on Dabbs Road in Eufaula. Each day’s General Tire Takeout will be held at the boat ramp, beginning at 4 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and takeout events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLFNOW!® live stream and SCORETRACKER® coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
On Saturday and Sunday, May 4-5, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. MLF welcomes fans of all ages to visit Peter’s Point-Nichols Point for the MLF Watch Party and Kids Fishing Derby. Fans can watch the pros live on the MLFNOW! big screen, enjoy free food, enter to win hourly giveaways and cheer on their favorite pros. The first 50 kids 14 and under will receive a free rod and reel from Pure Fishing each day. Additional fishing gear will be provided onsite for the fishing derby or kids can bring their own. The final 10 Championship Round Bass Pro Tour anglers will be on hand at the trophy celebration on Championship Sunday to meet and greet fans, sign autographs and take selfies.
The MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1 will feature anglers competing with a 1-pound, 8-ounce minimum weight requirement for a bass to be deemed scorable. The MLF Fisheries Management Division determines minimum weights for each body of water that the Bass Pro Tour visits, based on the productivity, bass population and anticipated average size of fish in each fishery.
The Bass Pro Tour features a field of 79 of the top professional anglers in the world, competing across seven regular-season tournaments around the country, for millions of dollars and valuable points to qualify for the annual General Tire Heavy Hitters all-star event and the REDCREST 2025 championship.
The 39 Anglers in Group A compete in their two-day Qualifying Round on Tuesday and Thursday – the 40 anglers in Group B on Wednesday and Friday. After each two-day Qualifying Round is complete, the anglers that finish first through 10th from both groups advance to Saturday’s Knockout Round. In the Knockout Round, weights are zeroed, and the remaining 20 anglers compete to finish in the top 10 to advance to Sunday’s Championship Round. In the final-day Championship Round, weights are zeroed, and the highest one-day total wins the top prize of $100,000.
The MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live on the final four days of competition from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CT. MLFNOW!® will be live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.
Television coverage of the MillerTech Stage Four at Lake Eufaula Presented by REDCON1 Knockout Round will air as a two-hour episode starting at 7 a.m. ET, on Saturday, Oct. 12 on Discovery, with the Championship Round premiering on Oct. 19. New MLF episodes premiere each Saturday morning on Discovery, with re-airings on Outdoor Channel.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Bass Pro Tour include: Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, BUBBA, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, Garmin, General Tire, Humminbird, Lowrance, Mercury, MillerTech, Minn Kota, Mossy Oak Fishing, NITRO, Onyx, Plano, Power-Pole, Rapala, StarBrite, Suzuki, Toyota and U.S. Air Force.
For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the Bass Pro Tour, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 17 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
Arey’s rollin with tides and lunker sticks
Team Toyota’s Matt Arey says he won’t allow the challenging tide-driven water level changes of the St. Johns River to dictate his day, but he did take time to look at tidal charts briefly on his Lowrance unit prior to Day 1 blast-off in Palatka.
“I’m not a guy who gets caught-up in chasing the ‘perfect tide’ up and down the river. First off, there’s never any certainty as to which tidal conditions are truly best, and secondly, it’s different every few miles,” says Arey.
For example, low tide here in Palatka was at 7:37 a.m. Thursday, but that didn’t have a ton to do with water levels where Arey made his first cast a few miles downriver. So, he likes to have a general knowledge of the tides, without letting them run him ragged mentally.
The North Carolina State grad has a very impressive tournament performance history on the St. Johns. He finished 15th at the Bassmaster Elite here in 2019 and followed that up with an even stronger 7th place finish in 2020, and simplicity is a huge part of his success.
“I’m not going to run around looking for the shad spawn like a lot of guys will this morning. I’m going to Texas rig a black and blue Lunkerhunt Trick Stick and hope to get 8 to 10 bites pitchin’ by about 10:00 a.m., then I’ll go looking for a big one on a spawning bed,” he says.
Arey describes the St. Johns as a “soft plastic pitcher’s paradise” and says he’s made a ton of money in Florida with the 5” Lunker Stick throughout his career. In fact, he says if you come bass fishing in Florida and you want to get a bite, you’d be wise to make sure you rig one up.
“If I can weigh-in 14-pounds today, I’ll be ecstatic!” exclaims Arey. “I’ll tell you this … fans can expect to see a lot of healthy bass here on the St. Johns compared to what we brought to the scales at the Harris Chain of Lakes last week. This should be a fun one,” says Arey.
With two Top 15 finishes to his credit, it’s certainly been a fun one in recent years for him, based largely on a strong mental focus that keeps tidal charts in proper perspective, and a simple ink-pen shaped piece of soft plastic tied to the end of his line.
