Helton Wins Co-angler Division

BYRDSTOWN, Tenn. (March 16, 2020) – Boater Brett Graham of Cold Spring, Kentucky, brought a five-bass limit to the scale weighing 18 pounds, 11 ounces to win the 2020 Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine Mountain division opener at Dale Hollow Reservoir in Byrdstown, Tennessee. For his victory, Graham earned a total of $6,000.

” src=”blob:https://anglerschannel.com/81ee0e25-144c-4216-baab-1ec93c94b459″ alt=”A person posing for the camera Description automatically generated” align=”right” hspace=”12″ v:shapes=”Picture_x0020_2″ class=”Apple-web-attachment Singleton” style=”width: 4in; height: 2.25in; opacity: 1;”>“I caught most of my fish mid-lake, dragging a homemade green-pumpkin jig with a craw trailer out deep,” said Graham, who earned his third career victory in BFL competition. “The key was really slowing down and working the areas. I only caught five keeper fish all day, but I had confidence in the areas and I really had to milk them for all they were worth.

“I was stuck on four fish right up until the very end of the day,” Graham continued. “I fished a spot that I hadn’t been to at all and ended up catching my last keeper with about 20 minutes left to check in.

“The last year has been pretty tough, but it feels good to get back in the groove and remember what I can do and put together a good tournament.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament as follows:

1^st:       Brett Graham of Cold Spring, Ky., five bass, 18-11, $6,000

2^nd:      Adam Militana of Saluda, N.C., five bass, 17-10, $3,000

3^rd:       Shane Sloan of Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 16-13, $2,000

4^th:       Kendall Robinson of Lexington, Ky., five bass, 16-12, $1,400

5^th:       J.R. Stalcup of Albany, Ky., five bass, 16-10, $1,150

5^th:       Jimmy Gayhart of Sadieville, Ky., five bass, 16-10, $1,150

7^th:       Ben Stacy of Cincinnati, Ohio, five bass, 16-8, $1,000

8^th:       Christian Nickles of Clintwood, Va., five bass, 16-5, $1,400

9^th:       Drew Boggs of Lebanon, Tenn., five bass, 16-1, $1,000

10^th:     Dathan Jones of Harrodsburg, Ky, five bass, 15-12, $700

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Brent Butler of Vonore, Tennessee earned the day’s $1,000 Boater Big Bass award with his largest fish, a 5-pound, 13-ounce bass.

Nickles took home an extra $500 as the highest finishing FLW PHOENIX BONUS member. Boaters are eligible to win up to an extra $7,000 per event in each Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine tournament if all requirements are met. More information on the FLW PHOENIX BONUS contingency program can be found at PhoenixBassBoats.com.

Tracy Helton of London, Kentucky, earned the win in the Co-angler Division Saturday after catching a five-bass limit weighing 17 pounds, 15 ounces. Helton earned $3,000 for his victory.

The top 10 co-anglers finished as follows:

1^st:       Tracy Helton of London, Ky., five bass, 17-15, $3,000

1^st:       Patrick Crawley of Burkesville, Ky., five bass, 15-14, $1,500

3^rd:       Randy Wilson of Murfreesboro, Tenn., five bass, 15-9, $1,150

4^th:       Scottie Cook of Hustonville, Ky., five bass, 14-14, $700

5^th:       Brandin Carey of Harrodsburg, Ky., five bass, 13-15, $600

6^th:       Doug Dewar of Burlington, Ky., four bass, 13-1, $550

7^th:       Brandon Lake of Berea, Ky., five bass, 12-11, $500

8^th:       Robert Pillow of Campbellsville, Ky., five bass, 12-4, $450

9^th:       Garry Collins of Russell Springs, Ky., four bass, 12-1, $400

10^th:     Luke Smith of Florence, Ky., four bass, 11-15, $350

Jared Rudd of Salyersville, Kentucky, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 5 pounds, 12 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $500.

The 2020 Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine on Dale Hollow Reservoir was hosted by Star Point Resort. The tournament was the first of five events in Mountain Division.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the Mountain Division based on point standings, along with the five winners of each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 8-10 Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on Lake Chickamauga in Dayton, Tennessee, hosted by the Rhea Economic and Tourism Council. Boaters will compete for a $60,000 prize package, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro bass boat with a 200-horsepower Mercury outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new 18-foot Phoenix bass boat with a 200-horsepower outboard.

The 2020 Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six 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 Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American.

The 2020 Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American will be held April 30 through May 2 at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, South Carolina and is hosted by Visit Anderson. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers plus tournament winners from each Phoenix Bass Fishing League division earn priority entry into the FLW Series, the pathway to the FLW Pro Circuit and ultimately the MLF Bass Pro Tour, where top pros compete with no entry fees.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the Phoenix Bass Fishing League presented by T-H Marine on FLW’s social media outletsat Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.