Alabama’s Forrester Wins Co-Angler Division

SCOTTSBORO, Ala. (May 4, 2026) – Boater Jason Atkins of Section, Alabama, caught a total of five bass weighing 26 pounds, 13 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Guntersville . The tournament was the fourth of five events of the season for the BFL Choo Choo Division. Atkins earned $7,730, including a $2,500 Phoenix bonus, for his victory.

“At takeoff I made a quick decision I hadn’t planned on and went to an area where I knew there were bluegill beds,” Atkins said. “I got there and it paid off. So, after that I targeted spots on the lake where I knew there had been bluegill beds in the past. And that’s what I did all day.”

Atkins said he fished mid-lake, from North Sauty to Goose Pond to South Sauty, and his bait arsenal included a swim jig, a football-head jig and a bladed swim jig. He said he targeted bass that were lurking near the bluegill waiting for an easy meal.

Atkins said he caught 20 keeper bass during the tournament but thought he needed one more big fish to give him a chance at a title.

“I kept at it all day bouncing from spot to spot because I thought I needed one more,” Atkins said. “I weighed my fish and went into the store and ordered a hamburger and sat in the store until weigh-in was almost over. And when I saw the last few bags coming to weigh-in I thought, ‘This is really happening.’ This feels amazing.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:

1st:        Jason Atkins, Section, Ala., five bass, 26-13, $7,730 (includes $2,500 Phoenix bonus)
2nd:      Westin Moss, Jasper, Tenn., five bass, 25-0, $2,770
3rd:       Sadler Harrison, Huntsville, Ala., five bass, 24-14, $1,240
4th:        Taylor Parker, Lake View, Ala., five bass, 22-8, $970
5th:        Zeke Gossett, Pell City, Ala., five bass, 22-4, $840
6th:        Clint Knight, Russellville, Ky., five bass, 20-13, $710
7th:        Michael McKenzie, Nashville, Tenn., five bass, 20-8, $670
8th:        Shane McCosh, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 20-4, $640
9th:        Timothy Trockenbrot, Meridianville, Ala., five bass, 20-3, $610
10th:     Benjamin Travis, Guntersville, Ala., five bass, 19-15, $670

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Westin Moss of Jasper, Tennessee, earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award after landing a 7-pound, 2-ounce bass worth $200.

Eric Forrester of Geraldine, Alabama, won the co-angler division and the top prize of $2,715 Saturday after bringing three bass to the scale that totaled 14 pounds, 10 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers finished:

1st:        Eric Forrester, Geraldine, Ala., three bass, 14-10, $2,715
2nd:      Landon Dorman, White Bluff, Tenn., three bass, 13-3, $1,285
3rd:       Leland Smith, Warrior, Ala., three bass, 13-0, $620
4th:        Gerald Bennett, Dallas, Ga., three bass, 12-6, $502
4th:        Alex Singleton, Rome, Ga., three bass, 12-6, $452
6th:        John Gale, Arab, Ala., three bass, 12-2, $355
7th:        Jonathan Barnette, Jasper, Ala., three bass, 11-13, $340
8th:        Gary Meredith II, Decatur, Ala., three bass, 11-12, $320
9th:        Benton Peoples, Bardstown, Ky, three bass, 11-11, $310
10th:     Scott Marshall, Lebanon, Tenn., three bass, 11-10, $217
10th:     Stephen Mickle, Pell City, Ala., three bass, 11-10, $217

Eric Forrester of Geraldine, Alabama, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award after landing a 6-pound, 13-ounce bass worth $100.

After four events, boater Cal Lane of Grant, Alabama, now leads the 7 Brew Choo Choo Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 947 points, while Shane Browder of Cedar Bluff, Alabama, leads the Choo Choo Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 902 points.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the division based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 8-10 BFL Regional tournament on Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Alabama. Boaters will fish for a top award of a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard worth $50,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top prize of a new Phoenix 518 pro with a 115-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard, worth $33,500.

The 2026 Phoenix BFL Presented by T-H Marine is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 events throughout the season, five qualifying tournaments in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying tournament winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top seven, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2026 BFL All-American will take place May 28-30, at Lake Murray in Columbia, South Carolina, and is hosted by Capital City Lake Murray Country Regional Tourism.

Proud sponsors of the 2026 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7 Brew, Abu Garcia, Athletic Brewing, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, Black Buffalo, BUBBA, Cigars International, Epic Baits, Grizzly, Mercury, MillerTech, Mystik Lubricants, OFF! Deep Woods, Onyx, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, PirahnO2, Power-Pole, Precision Sonar, Suzuki Marine, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, VOSKER, YETI and Yuengling.

For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular BFL updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s 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, Outdoor Channel, VICE, World Fishing Network, RFD-TV, Game & Fish TV and Rumble, 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.