ATHENS, Ala. – Josh Stracner of Vandiver, AL won the Bass Pro Shops Open Series Alabama South Division tournament, held March 2nd on Lay Lake. Running out of Beeswax Creek Park in Columbiana, AL Stracner caught five bass weighing 22.34-pounds. For the Boater Division victory, Stracner took home a check for $5000 for his win, $7000 for Triton Gold, and $1000 for Mercury Contingency money.

“I started out fishing shallow with a spook and a shakey-head. I caught several 3-pounders and wound up culling them all. Most of my fish were in current and the better fish came on a spinnerbait, a jig, and one on a swimbait. I caught fish all day but the bigger fish came between 9:00am to 11:00am,” Stracner said.

In second for the boaters, Robert Minick of Valdosta, GA landed a five-bass tournament limit going 19.47-pounds.

“I caught all my fish before 8:15 am. I caught my fish on a chatter-bait in Cedar Creek in one grass bed,” Minick said.

Larry Franks of Wilsonville, AL took third for the boaters with five bass going 18.90-pounds.

“I also caught my fish on a spinnerbait today. I only had 5 bites today and weighed in all of them. It was a tough day,” Franks said.

The big bass award for the boaters went to Chandler Teems of Leeds, AL for a big bass that weighed 7.40-pounds.

“I caught that big bass on an A-rig today,” Teems said.

Finishing fourth, Marty Giddens of Cropwell, AL landed a five-bass limit for 17.90-pounds. Chris Rutland of Wetumpka, AL rounded out the top five boaters with five bass at 17.25-pounds.

In the Co-Angler Division, Donathan Jacks of Clanton, AL won with three bass going 10.16-pounds. He pocketed a check for $1050 for his win.

“I caught my fish today on a spinnerbait on the lower end of the lake. I only caught 5 fish all day but 2 of them were short. The fish came in about 2ft of water,” Jacks said.

Taking second for the co-anglers, Michael Donaldson of Thorsby, AL brought in a three-bass division limit weighing 10.00-pounds.

“I caught my fish on a medium diving crankbait today. We were fishing the flatlands all day,” Donaldson said. “

David McMurphy of Wilsonville, AL placed third among the co-anglers with three bass going 8.89-pounds.

“I caught one fish on a ratt-l-trap, one on a chatter bait, and one on a shakey-head. That was the only 3 bites I had all day. I caught my big fish first thing this morning and didn’t have another bite until 1:30 pm this afternoon,” McMurphy said.

The big bass award for the co-anglers went to Eldred Lewis of Tuscaloosa, AL for a big bass that weighed 5.05-pounds.

“I caught that big bass flipping a jig in sparse grass. I thought it was a mudfish the way it bit and took off,” Lewis said.

In fourth place among the co-anglers, Lamar Crowe of Andalusia, AL brought in three bass for 8.82-pounds. David “DJ” Pollard Jr of Bowdon, GA finished in fifth place with three bass for 8.47-pounds.

Top 25 Boaters. For full results click here.

PL	Angler	Fish	Penalty	Big Bass	Total	Points	Payout
1	Josh Stracner	5	0.00	0.00	22.34	250	5000
2	Robert Minick	5	0.00	5.92	19.47	249	1050
3	Larry G. Franks	5	0.00	5.31	18.90	248	800
4	Marty Giddens	5	0.00	0.00	17.90	247	500
5	Chris Rutland	5	0.00	0.00	17.25	246	450
6	Chandler L. Teems	5	0.00	7.40	17.19	245	1125
7	Bo F. Washam	5	0.00	0.00	16.43	244	400
8	Joe E. Bridges	5	0.00	0.00	16.40	243	375
9	David N. Davis	5	0.00	5.46	15.13	242	325
10	Andre Moore	5	0.00	0.00	14.60	241	300
11	Ethan Greene	5	0.00	0.00	14.25	240	375
12	DeAndrae L. Kimbrough	5	0.00	0.00	14.21	239	250
13	Chuck Graham	4	0.00	0.00	14.16	238	225
14	Christian Rich	5	0.00	0.00	14.14	237	200
15	Josh Teet	5	0.00	0.00	13.64	236	0
16	Brian S. Stiffler	5	0.00	0.00	13.50	235	0
17	Daniel White	5	0.00	0.00	13.31	234	0
18	Chad Bennett	5	0.00	0.00	13.22	233	0
19	Joe A. Wikoff	5	0.00	0.00	12.78	232	0
20	Clint Nail	5	0.00	0.00	12.77	231	0
21	BRYON A. MONTALBANO	5	0.00	0.00	12.57	230	0
22	Charles Joe J. Eubanks	5	0.00	0.00	12.47	229	0
23	Clayton T. Shoupe	5	0.00	0.00	11.72	228	0
24	Cole Phillips	5	0.00	0.00	11.32	227	0
25	James Glover	5	0.00	0.00	11.08	226	0

Slated for May 11th, 2019 the next tournament will be held on Lake Eufaula out of Lakepoint Resort State Park in Eufaula, AL. At the end of the season, the best anglers from across the nation advance the 2020 Ray Scott Championship to be held at Lake Hartwell in April 2020.

About American Bass Anglers – American Bass Anglers is committed to providing low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler while offering an upward path for individual angler progression.  For more information about American Bass Anglers and all their bass tournament trails visit www.americanbassanglers.com.