Three Teams Advance from General Tire Team Series Builders First Source Qualifier
Team Fox Rent A Car (DeFoe-Poche-Jordon), Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff (Thrift-Scroggins-Gagliardi) and Team Builders First Source (Sprague-Tharp-Crochet) Advance to Team Series Championship
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (May 1, 2023) – The final episode of the Major League Fishing (MLF) General Tire Team Series Builders First Source Qualifier Presented by Berkley premiered Saturday, and three teams have now advanced to the Bass Pro Shops Championship Presented by B&W Trailer Hitches to compete for the $300,000 top prize. The first episode of the General Tire Team Series Bass Pro Shops Championship Presented by B&W Trailer Hitches will premiere this Saturday, May 6 on the Outdoor Channel at 2p-4p ET.
Team Fox Rent A Car (Ott DeFoe, Keith Poche and Kelly Jordon) advanced in Match 1 with 110 bass weighing 204 pounds, 1 ounce, as team captain Ott DeFoe led the way with 95-13 along with Keith Poche’s 64-11 and Kelly Jordon’s 43-9.
In Match 2, Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches (Bryan Thrift, Terry Scroggins and Anthony Gagliardi) dominated to earn the victory by a margin of 42 pounds. Thrift was the top performer for Team Smokey Mountain, as the reigning REDCREST Champion caught 23 bass over the two days weighing 44 pounds, 4 ounces to pace his team.
In the third and final match, which premiered on Outdoor Channel this past weekend, Team Builders First Source (Jeff Sprague, Randall Tharp and Cliff Crochet) won a nailbiter over Team Ferguson. The Team Builders First Source squad weighed in 66 bass totaling 137 pounds, 12 ounces, edging Team Ferguson by just 1 pound, 13 ounces – the narrowest margin of victory this season on the General Tire Team Series.
The final results from Match 1 at the Builders First Source Qualifier Presented by Berkley in College Station, Texas, were:
1st: Team Fox Rent A Car, 110 bass, 204-1
Ott DeFoe, 46 bass, 95-13
Keith Poche, 39 bass, 64-11
Kelly Jordon, 25 bass, 43-9
2nd: Team Knighten Industries, 90 bass, 169-11
Casey Ashley, 26 bass, 57-14
Dean Rojas, 31 bass, 56-14
Takahiro Omori, 33 bass, 54-15
3rd: Team Kubota, 61 bass, 123-13
Cody Meyer, 21 bass, 42-7
Andy Montgomery, 21 bass, 41-15
James Watson, 19 bass, 39-7
The final results from Match 2 at the Builders First Source Qualifier Presented by Berkley in College Station, Texas, were:
1st: Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches, 58 bass, 108-6
Bryan Thrift, 23 bass, 44-4
Terry Scroggins, 20 bass, 37-0
Anthony Gagliardi, 15 bass, 27-2
2nd: Team Crockett Creek, 34 bass, 65-13
Dustin Connell, 16 bass, 33-3
Cole Floyd, 10 bass, 19-5
Fred Roumbanis, eight bass, 13-5
3rd: Team B&W Trailer Hitches, 22 bass, 40-8
Russ Lane, eight bass, 13-15
Michael Neal, nine bass, 13-7
Paul Elias, five bass, 13-2
The final results from Match 3 at the Builders First Source Qualifier Presented by Berkley in College Station, Texas, were:
1st: Team Builders First Source, 66 bass, 137-12
Jeff Sprague, 35 bass, 67-1
Randall Tharp, 23 bass, 46-2
Cliff Crochet, eight bass, 24-9
2nd: Team Ferguson, 74 bass, 135-15
Mark Rose, 34 bass, 62-15
Jordan Lee, 23 bass, 44-14
Luke Clausen, 17 bass, 28-2
3rd: Team Star brite, 58 bass, 89-0
Bobby Lane, 22 bass, 34-7
Chris Lane, 22 bass, 32-9
Jimmy Washam, 14 bass, 22-0
Complete results along with photos from the events can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Overall, for the entire week, there were 573 bass weighing 1,074 pounds, 15 ounces caught by the nine teams during three matches in the Builders First Source Qualifier Presented by Berkley in College Station, Texas.
The 2023 MLF General Tire Team Series Builders First Source Qualifier Presented by Berkley aired on the Outdoor Channel as six, two-hour original episodes each Saturday afternoon, debuting on March 25, 2023, and running through April 29, 2023.
The next General Tire Team Series event will premiere on the Outdoor Channel on Saturday, May 6– the General Tire Team Series Bass Pro Shops Championship Presented by B&W Trailer Hitches. For a complete schedule of General Tire Team Series events, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The Builders First Source Qualifier Presented by Berkley was shot over six days in November and featured nine teams of three anglers visiting College Station to compete on private lakes in the area on each day of competition. The fisheries were unknown to the anglers – they did not learn where they were competing until they arrived at the launch ramp each morning of competition.
All six episodes of the General Tire Team Series Builders First Source Qualifier Presented by Berkley from College Station, Texas, are now available for viewing on the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) streaming app. The full television schedule can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Proud sponsors of the MLF General Tire Team Series include: B&W Hitches, Barbasol, Bass Cat Boats, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Builders FirstSource, C-MAP, Crockett Creek Beef Jerky, Epic Baits, Favorite Fishing, Ferguson, General Tire, Knighten Industries, Kubota, Lowrance, Lucas Oil, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Optima Batteries, Phoenix Boats, Power-Pole, Rapala Baits, Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff, Star brite, T-H Marine, Toyota, USAA, and YETI.
For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the MLF General Tire Team Series events, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
