SCOTTSBORO, Ala. (May 7, 2025) – The third and final regular-season event of the Major League Fishing (MLF) Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Central Division is set to take place next week, May 14-16, in Scottsboro, Alabama – the Toyota Series at Lake Guntersville Presented by Suzuki Marine.

The three-day bass tournament, hosted by the Mountain Lakes Chamber of Commerce, will showcase the region’s top bass-fishing boaters and co-anglers competing for a grand prize of up to $100,000 in the pro division and a new Phoenix 518 Pro boat with a 115-horsepower outboard motor plus $5,000 in the co-angler division.

“This one’s shaping up to be a full-on ledge tournament,” said 21-year-old pro Hayden Marbut of Birmingham, who won the Toyota Series event held at Lake Guntersville last year. “We’re at the very end of the postspawn. There might be a few guys still looking for and fishing beds, but most of the fish – and most of the anglers – are going to be offshore, targeting schools.”

While some isolated structure may factor in, Marbut believes the winning pattern will revolve around timing and location on offshore ledges.

“Out there right now, I don’t think anybody’s going to have much to themselves,” Marbut explained. “So, to be successful, you’ll probably need to find something a little off the wall and mix in a couple key schools and hope you can manage them. The offshore spots on Guntersville just aren’t that big, and with all the locals in this event it’s going to get crowded fast.”

Still, despite the anticipated pressure, Marbut expects Lake Guntersville to show out.

“There’s going to be a ton of 20-pound bags, for sure,” he said. “Last week in a local tournament there were a couple of 25s and the Nutt brothers, who are fishing in this event, weighed in 30. I’m not sure we’ll see multiple 30-pound days with the boat traffic, but someone’s definitely going to hit a big one.

“If you can average 25 a day, you’ll be in the mix,” Marbut continued. “But it could take even more. It just depends on what you can get on and how well you can manage it over three days.”

When it comes to baits, Marbut said his plan is to keep it classic.

“Big cranks, hair jigs, flutter spoons – your usual ledge stuff,” he said. “There’ll also be big worms, football jigs, and of course, some minnow baits with how forward-facing sonar plays now. I’ll definitely be slinging some of the new Nomad Design minnows in this one.”

Anglers will begin each day at 6 a.m. CT, launching from the Goose Pond Colony Resort, located at 417 Ed Hembree Drive in Scottsboro. Weigh-ins will take place at the resort starting at 2 p.m. daily. Fans are invited to attend in person and can also stay connected by following the “MLF Live” weigh-in broadcasts and daily updates on MajorLeagueFishing.com.

In Toyota Series regular-season competition, payouts are based on the number of participants competing in the event, scaling up for every 20 boats over 160 and scaling down for every boat below 160. With a 160-boat field, pros fish for a top prize of up to $75,000, if Phoenix MLF Bonus qualified. Co-anglers cast for the top prize of a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard (valued at $33,500). With a 260-boat field, pros fish for a top award of up to $100,000, if Phoenix MLF Bonus qualified. Co-anglers compete for the top prize of a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard plus $5,000 cash.

The 2025 Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats consists of five divisions – Central, Northern, Plains, Southern and the Southwestern – each holding three regular-season events, along with the International and Wild Card divisions. Anglers who fish in any of the five divisions or the Wild Card division and finish in the top 25 will qualify for the no-entry-fee Toyota Series Championship for a shot at winning up to $235,000 and a qualification to REDCREST 2026. The winning co-angler at the championship earns a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower outboard. The 2025 Toyota Series Championship will be held Nov. 6-8 on Grand Lake in Grove, Oklahoma, and is hosted by the City of Grove Convention & Tourism Bureau.

Proud sponsors of the 2025 MLF Toyota Series include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, Athletic Brewing, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, Deep Dive App, E3 Sport Apparel, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, Grizzly, Humminbird, Lew’s, Mercury, Minn Kota, Mossy Oak, Onyx, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, Polaris, Power-Pole, Precision Sonar, Strike King, Suzuki Marine, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.

For complete details and updated information visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Toyota Series updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the MLF5 social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 20 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.