“Fishing at Clarks Hill is excellent,” said Diamond who fishes tournaments and for fun almost every weekend, plus some weekdays. “The water is nice and high, and it’s warming up fast.”

And that has the bass moving towards the banks, Diamond said.

“They are starting to show up close to the bank and the water is clear so you can see them. If you like fishing for bedding fish, you will be on the money this weekend, said” Diamond who noted that an angler weighed in a bass over 9 pounds in a tournament on the lake last weekend.

“That fish might have won the boat for this Oakley tournament,” he said. “Those big females are coming in and they are full of eggs. There’s a real chance to catch a trophy bass in Clarks Hill right now.”

But, bedding fish are not the only game on the lake, he added.

“In different parts of the lake you have different temperatures. Areas with stained water warm a little quicker. But everything is going towards the banks. You have fish coming out of deep water, either staging up on points or moving into the creek channels. Where the water is already in the 60s, the fish have begun to move on the beds. Everything is just real good right now,” Diamond said.

The Oakley Big Bass Tournament has a guaranteed purse of $36,750 with hourly paybacks. The heaviest bass each hour wins $1,000, 2^nd $500, 3^rd $300, 4^th $250, 5^th $200, 6^th $150, 7^th $125 and 8^th $100. Weigh-in times at Wildwood Park are 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., and 2-3 p.m.

Whoever catches the biggest bass of the tournament will trailer home a 2015 Nitro Z7 with a Mercury 150Hp ProXS motor, valued at $30,000.

 

Oakley Big Bass Tournament Trail

Mar 28 & 29, 2015

Clarks Hill Lake

Wildwood Park

Call Mark Jones 214-605-4600

www.oakleybigbass.com