Best Bet For A Winning Fish In Oakley Big Bass Bash On Lake Murray Likely Will Be Shallow Topwater Bite
The majority of the fish caught in the Oakley South Carolina Big Bass Bash on Lake Murray this weekend likely will be schooling fish, but the top hourly winners and the overall Grand Prize winner will probably come on a shallow topwater bite or by flipping wood cover in the upper end of the lake, said veteran local angler Andy Wicker of Pomaria.
Wicker and his dad, Steve, finished second in the Carolina Anglers Team Trail tournament on Lake Murray Sept. 12 with a limit that weighed 15.66 pounds.
“Most of the fish we caught were schooling fish, but we caught one pretty good one on a topwater bait shallow around a dock on the bank early in the day,” Wicker said. “All the others we caught on Spooks and flukes, schooling over deep water.”
This weekend weather-wise looks to be similar to two weekends ago, he said, with overcast skies and the possibility of rain cooling things down.
“That will probably hurt the deep water schooling bite, but it will make the shallow topwater bite even better and that is where the bigger fish will be caught,” said Wicker who plans to fish the Big Bass tournament with his brother, Gary. “Probably all the hourly winners will come shallow. You will probably see a lot of 3 ½- to 4-pounders weighed in.”
More than $66,000 is on the line in prize money for the tournament, with the overall grand prize for the largest bass weighed over the two days a 2015 Nitro Z7 with a Mercury 150HP ProXS motor, valued at $30,000. Hourly paybacks will total $36,750, paid as follows: 1st $1,000, 2nd $500, 3rd $300, 4th $250, 5th $200, 6th $150, 7th $125, 8th $100. Weigh in Times both days: 8-9 a.m., 9-10 a.m., 10-11 a.m., 11 a.m.-12 p.m., 12-1 p.m., 1-2 p.m., 2-3 p.m.
Entry fee for the South Carolina Big Bass Bash on Lake Murray is $110 per day or $160 for two days per angler. Registration will be held at Dreher Island State Park from 3 to 6 p.m. Friday for any anglers who have not already registered and paid their entry fees.
The Oakley Big Bass Tour is open only to amateur anglers. Anglers who have guided for a fee of any kind on Lake Murray within the past 12 months and anglers who have competed in tournaments with entry fees of $1,000 or more in the past 12 months are not eligible.
There are also contingency programs available to anglers in the Big Bass Tour: Nitro BPS, www.tournament-rewards.com; Optima, https://www.optimabatteries.com/en-us/experience/optima-true-blue; Talon Rewards, http://www.minnkotamotors.com/talonrewards/; and Toyota Bonus Bucks, www.toyotafishing.com.
Oakley Big Bass Trail
Sep 26-27, 2015
Lake Murray
Dreher Island State Park
Call Mark Jones 214-605-4600
