Belik Takes Lead At Opening Round Of B.A.S.S. Nation Championship On Lake Hartwell

Brock Belik of Orchard, Neb., is leading after Day 1 of the TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship on Lake Hartwell with 11 pounds, 5 ounces.

                                                                                                                     Photo by Dalton Tumblin/B.A.S.S.

November 6, 2019

 

 

ANDERSON, S.C. — Brock Belik is 1,300 miles from home, but he looked quite comfortable on Lake Hartwell on Wednesday during Day 1 of the TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship.

Belik, who lives in Orchard, Neb., and qualified for the Championship via the South Dakota B.A.S.S. Nation, caught a five-bass limit of 11 pounds, 15 ounces to take the lead.

A total of 115 anglers from 47 states and 11 foreign countries are competing in this three-day event. They are fishing for a total purse of $141,300. But also on the line are three berths in the 2020 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk.

Belik knows there’s plenty of work to be done if he’s to qualify for this Classic. Still, the 28-year old angler was pleased with his showing Wednesday, knowing it put him in good position to make Thursday’s cut.

“I’ve put everything I could into this tournament to try and put myself in contention on Friday,” he said. “I thought I only had 10, 10 1/2 pounds today, so I’m really happy with the weight.”

Belik said he covered lots of water looking for sizable bites. His heaviest bass, which weighed approximately 3 1/4 pounds, came soon after take-off. He added a 2 1/2-pound kicker with approximately 10 minutes of remaining, and that catch likely locked up the Day 1 lead.

Belik weighed four spotted bass and one largemouth in his charge to the top of the leaderboard.

“There are a lot of fish, it was just hard to get the big ones,” he said. “I’m fishing deep, drop shot kind of stuff. I think the key is hitting as many spots as you can. It’s a running-and-gunning kind of deal.”

Belik said Lake Hartwell is not much different than the fisheries he frequents in America’s heartland. He also said a two-week trip to Hartwell in September helped him get an idea of what to expect from the 56,000-acre lake here in the northwest corner of the Palmetto State.

“There’s clear water at home, and you have that here,” he said. “It’s setting up perfectly for me.”

Tim Johnston of Team Montana was the second boater to weigh-in Wednesday, and he’s in second place with five bass that weighed 11-13. Justy Varkevisser of South Africa is third with 11-6, Steve Lund of Team Arizona is fourth with 11-1 and Nicholas Prvonozac of Team Ohio is fifth with 10-15.

Barry Ward of Team Kentucky seized the lead in the nonboater division with a five-bass limit of 11-6. He only had six bites fishing from the back of Kenneth Reed’s boat, but the five he caught were good ones.

“The bite was really pretty slow today,” Ward said. “I was fortunate. (Reed) was a great guy to have in the front of the boat. I enjoyed every minute of it, and I hope I can catch some more nice fish on Thursday.”

Kyle Graham of Team Wyoming is second among the nonboaters with a 10-3 limit. Scott Seros of Team Oregon is third with 9-9.

Scott Perrine of Bonneau, S.C., caught the big bass of the day — a 6-1 toad that gave him the edge for the $1,000 prize that goes to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass of the Championship.

“I caught it late today,” Perrine said, adding he caught the bass on a Carolina rig. “We found a little pattern, fishing rocky points. I was just dragging.”

The 115 anglers (59 boaters, 56 nonboaters) competing at Hartwell qualified via their individual state tournaments and then one of three B.A.S.S. Nation regional events held earlier this year. The victorious boater and nonboater from each state participating in the regionals advanced to this week’s Championship, as did leading boaters and nonboaters from different countries.

The full Championship field will fish again beginning at 6:45 a.m. ET Thursday. The nonboater champion will be crowned Thursday afternoon, but his work won’t be done. That winner will compete with the Top 10 boaters on Friday, as will the top two boaters from each region who failed to make the Top 10 cut. Friday’s field also will include any nonboater who had enough weight to have finished in the Top 10 in the boater filed.

Anglers with the three heaviest total weights of the tournament will qualify for the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk, set for March 6-8 on Lake Guntersville in Alabama. The winning boater will also secure a spot in the 2020 Bassmaster Elite Series.

Takeoff and weigh-in in the TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship are being held at Green Pond Landing.

Visit Anderson is hosting.

2019 TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship Lake Hartwell 11/6-11/8
Lake Hartwell, Anderson  SC.
(BOATER) Standings Day 1

Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

1.  Brock Belik            Orchard, NE              5  11-15    0
Day 1: 5   11-15
2.  Tim Johnston           Kalispell , MT           5  11-13    0
Day 1: 5   11-13
3.  Justy Varkevisser      Johannesburg SOUTH AFRI  5  11-06    0
Day 1: 5   11-06
4.  Steve Lund             Glendale, AZ             5  11-01    0
Day 1: 5   11-01
5.  Nicholas Prvonozac     Warren, OH               5  10-15    0
Day 1: 5   10-15
6.   Greg Alexander        Hebron, MD               5  10-14    0
Day 1: 5   10-14
7.  Keith Glasgow          Guin, AL                 5  10-12    0
Day 1: 5   10-12
8.  Nobuyuki Terajima      Hermitage, TN            5  10-11    0
Day 1: 5   10-11
9.  Pedro Rodrigues        Evora Portugal PORTUGAL  5  10-10    0
Day 1: 5   10-10
10. Matthew Langford       Kingaroy Queensland AUS  5  10-09    0
Day 1: 5   10-09
11. Chris Moody            Brooks, GA               5  10-08    0
Day 1: 5   10-08
12. Matthew Robertson      Kuttawa, KY              5  10-06    0
Day 1: 5   10-06
13. Brandon Morris         Harrisonburg, VA         5  10-01    0
Day 1: 5   10-01
14. Ricardo Gonzalez       Monterrey MEXICO         5  10-00    0
Day 1: 5   10-00
14. Taylor Smith           Spokane Valley, WA       5  10-00    0
Day 1: 5   10-00
16. Ramiro Ruben Tarazona Sicilia Tarazona SPAIN           5  09-15    0
Day 1: 5   09-15
17. Ted Prisbe             Harsens  Island, MI      5  09-08    0
Day 1: 5   09-08
18. Andy Smith             Jacksonville, FL         5  09-06    0
Day 1: 5   09-06
19. Cody Hollen            Beaverton, OR            5  09-02    0
Day 1: 5   09-02
20. Thomas Nokes           Riverton, UT             5  09-00    0
Day 1: 5   09-00
21. Kenny Hansel           Los Alamos, NM           5  08-15    0
Day 1: 5   08-15
22. Nate Caldwell          Fort Collins, CO         5  08-10    0
Day 1: 5   08-10
22. Timothy Klinger        Boulder City, NV         5  08-10    0
Day 1: 5   08-10
24. Levi McNeill           West Valley City, UT     5  08-05    0
Day 1: 5   08-05
25. James Biggs            Euless, TX               5  08-04    0
Day 1: 5   08-04
25. Kelly Kellogg          Kelso, WA                5  08-04    0
Day 1: 5   08-04
25. Eduardo Trevino        South Elgin, IL          5  08-04    0
Day 1: 5   08-04
28. Al Gambardella         North Haven, CT          5  08-03    0
Day 1: 5   08-03
29. Katsutoshi Furusawa    Kanagawa JAPAN           5  08-00    0
Day 1: 5   08-00
30. Randy Pierson          Oakdale, CA              5  07-15    0
Day 1: 5   07-15
31. Laurence Hogue         Kennebunk, ME            5  07-13    0
Day 1: 5   07-13
32. Andrew Sams            Easton, MD               5  07-09    0
Day 1: 5   07-09
33. Liam MacDonald         Glen Lorne  Harare ZIMB  4  07-09    0
Day 1: 4   07-09
34. Ken Carter             Enterprise, FL           5  07-06    0
Day 1: 5   07-06
35. Cam Sterritt           Newfields, NH            5  07-03    0
Day 1: 5   07-03
35. Steve Tosh             Modesto, CA              5  07-03    0
Day 1: 5   07-03
37. Jay Phillips           Bancroft, WV             5  07-02    0
Day 1: 5   07-02
38. Kenny Mittelstaedt     Minnetonka, MN           5  06-13    0
Day 1: 5   06-13
39. Keith Cowan            Mt Ephraim, NJ           5  06-12    0
Day 1: 5   06-12
39. Jason Pittman          Covington, MS            5  06-12    0
Day 1: 5   06-12
41. Enrico Zancanaro       Rovigo ITALY             5  06-12    0
Day 1: 5   06-12
42. Chris Sperling         Cato, NY                 5  06-11    0
Day 1: 5   06-11
43. Mike Wallis            Hallsville, MO           4  06-09    0
Day 1: 4   06-09
44. Allan Reaves           Pottsville, AR           5  06-08    0
Day 1: 5   06-08
45. Greg Walker            Manning, SC              5  06-07    0
Day 1: 5   06-07
46. Josh Cotier            Clinton, MA              5  06-04    0
Day 1: 5   06-04
47. Rick Eller             Taylorsville, NC         5  06-02    0
Day 1: 5   06-02
48. Kenneth Reed           Buck, IN                 3  06-00    0
Day 1: 3   06-00
49. Kris Bosley            Amarillo, TX             4  05-11    0
Day 1: 4   05-11
50. Jeremy Montgomery      Overland Park, KS        4  05-08    0
Day 1: 4   05-08
51. Mike Wolfenden         Warwick, RI              5  05-02    0
Day 1: 5   05-02
52. Douglas Savino         Tyrone, PA               5  05-01    0
Day 1: 5   05-01
53. Mark Borchers          Akron, IA                3  04-09    0
Day 1: 3   04-09
54. Tony Puelz             Garnavillo, IA           3  03-11    0
Day 1: 3   03-11
55. Dylan Welch            Castleton, VT            2  03-11    0
Day 1: 2   03-11
56. Gary Schild            Mundelein, IL            2  02-13    0
Day 1: 2   02-13
57. Howard Hartley         Patterson, LA            2  02-04    0
Day 1: 2   02-04
57. Thinus Williams        Windhoek NAMIBIA         2  02-04    0
Day 1: 2   02-04
59. Mark Cavanaugh         Port Perry ONTARIO CANA  0  00-00    0
Day 1: 0   00-00
———————————————————————–
Totals
Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight
1        47       268       455-15
———————————-
47       268       455-15

 

2019 TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Championship Lake Hartwell 11/6-11/8
Lake Hartwell, Anderson  SC.
(NON_BOATER) Standings Day 1

Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

1.  Barry Ward             Louisville, KY           5  11-06    0
Day 1: 5   11-06
2.  Kyle Graham            North Ogden, UT          5  10-03    0
Day 1: 5   10-03
3.  Scott Seros            Bend, OR                 5  09-09    0
Day 1: 5   09-09
4.  Taylor Burgin          Palo, ID                 5  09-07    0
Day 1: 5   09-07
5.  Luis Vilar             Madrid SPAIN             5  09-01    0
Day 1: 5   09-01
6.  Mark Melega            Rice Landing, PA         5  08-12    0
Day 1: 5   08-12
7.  Kuniaki Taga           Aichi JAPAN              5  08-05    0
Day 1: 5   08-05
8.  Gary Schipporeit       Westminster, CO          5  08-04    0
Day 1: 5   08-04
9.  Aaron Russell          Hoschton, GA             5  08-00    0
Day 1: 5   08-00
10. David Stafford         Sanger, TX               4  08-00    0
Day 1: 4   08-00
11. Devin Pino             Kansas City, KS          5  07-13    0
Day 1: 5   07-13
12. Eduardo Fouto          Montariguil Portugal PO  5  07-12    0
Day 1: 5   07-12
13. Jonathan Bryson        Las Vegas, NV            5  07-05    0
Day 1: 5   07-05
13. Ryan Gutierrez         Weiser, ID               5  07-05    0
Day 1: 5   07-05
15. Brad Hauf              Elephant Butte, NM       5  07-04    0
Day 1: 5   07-04
16. Jurgen Geiger          Windhoek Namibia NAMIBI  5  07-02    0
Day 1: 5   07-02
16. Jordan Schwartzkopf    Peoria, AZ               5  07-02    0
Day 1: 5   07-02
18. Curtis Hughes          Greenwood, IN            4  07-02    0
Day 1: 4   07-02
19. Scott Perrine          Bonneau, SC              2  07-00    0
Day 1: 2   07-00
20. Jordan Trainor         Erin, TN                 5  06-14    0
Day 1: 5   06-14
21. Ruan Wahl              Witbank South Africa SO  4  06-14    0
Day 1: 4   06-14
22. Stanley Beebe          San Luis obispo, CA      4  06-13    0
Day 1: 4   06-13
23. Mike Szczechowski      Strafford, MO            2  06-13    0
Day 1: 2   06-13
24. John Jasper            Lemont, IL               5  06-12    0
Day 1: 5   06-12
25. Addam Gross            Pendleton, OR            5  06-06    0
Day 1: 5   06-06
25. Chris Morrison         St. Mary’s, WV           5  06-06    0
Day 1: 5   06-06
27. Marcus Futter          Harare ZIMBABWE          5  06-05    0
Day 1: 5   06-05
28. Justin Foster          Bude, MS                 4  05-15    0
Day 1: 4   05-15
29. Michael Duell II       Syracuse, NY             5  05-14    0
Day 1: 5   05-14
30. Austin Johnson         Noxon, MT                4  05-13    0
Day 1: 4   05-13
31. Greg Chesnut           Bedford, VA              5  05-09    0
Day 1: 5   05-09
32. Aaron Cherry           KINSEY, AL               3  05-03    0
Day 1: 3   05-03
33. JR Clark               Milton, DE               4  05-01    0
Day 1: 4   05-01
34. Todd Stiehl            Winner, SD               5  04-15    0
Day 1: 5   04-15
35. Zach Yarnes            Lakeville, MN            4  04-13    0
Day 1: 4   04-13
36. Austin Pittman         Maumelle, AR             4  04-07    0
Day 1: 4   04-07
37. Brock Gullixon         Lola, WI                 2  04-06    0
Day 1: 2   04-06
38. Eduardo Olalla         Col. Lomasn Del Tecnolo  4  04-02    0
Day 1: 4   04-02
39. Dan Posey              Niles, MI                3  04-01    0
Day 1: 3   04-01
40. Kelvin Grubbs          Pryor, OK                4  03-09    0
Day 1: 4   03-09
41. Justin Hymel           Norco, LA                3  03-08    0
Day 1: 3   03-08
41. Rj  Ricci              Cranston, RI             3  03-08    0
Day 1: 3   03-08
43. Ray Rios               Budd Lake, NJ            2  03-04    0
Day 1: 2   03-04
44. Angela Mayo            Maiden, NC               3  02-14    0
Day 1: 3   02-14
45. Gregory Decell         Bridgewater, VT          2  02-12    0
Day 1: 2   02-12
46. Casey Marshall         Frederick, MD            2  02-09    0
Day 1: 2   02-09
47. Brian Jarvis           Coventry, RI             1  02-08    0
Day 1: 1   02-08
48. Vincent Scaillerez     Bedarrides FRANCE        2  02-03    0
Day 1: 2   02-03
49. Phillip Rummel Jr      Mount Vernon, OH         1  01-13    0
Day 1: 1   01-13
50. Greg Pink              Montrose, CO             5  01-03    0
Day 1: 5   01-03
51. David Cohen            St Augustine, FL         1  00-14    0
Day 1: 1   00-14
52. Scott Blaesi           Hershey, NE              0  00-00    0
Day 1: 0   00-00
52. John Foster            Byfield, MA              0  00-00    0
Day 1: 0   00-00
52. Bryan McCleary         Watertown, CT            0  00-00    0
Day 1: 0   00-00
52. Brenda Swett           Auburn, ME               0  00-00    0
Day 1: 0   00-00
52. Ed Vienneau            Shelburne, OR            0  00-00    0
Day 1: 0   00-00