Tennessee’s Burghoff Takes Lead at Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit on Lake Okeechobee

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CLEWISTON, Fla. (Feb. 12, 2021) – Pro Miles Burghoff of Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee, caught five bass weighing 16 pounds, 13 ounces Friday to take control of the leaderboard after Day Two of the Major League Fishing Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by Bad Boy Mowers, 13 Fishing Stop 1 – Lake Okeechobee  in Clewiston, Florida. Burghoff’s two-day total of 10 bass weighing 42 pounds, 15 ounces moved him up into the top spot heading into Day Three after starting the day in second place. The four-day competition, hosted by the Hendry County Tourism Development Council and Roland & Mary Ann Martin’s Marina & Resort, features a field of 162 bass fishing professionals from around the world competing for a top cash award of up to $135,000.

MLF Bass Pro Tour pro, Skeet Reese of Auburn, California, jumped from 16^th place into 2^nd, with a five-bass-limit weighing 21 pounds, 9 ounces, for a two-day total of 39 pounds, 5 ounces – just 3-pounds, 10-ounces behind Burghoff.

“It all changed today, and the pressure in my area was incredibly strong,” said Burghoff. “There were 25 boats in that spot and I was within a pitch or two from at least one other boat for the entire day.”

Burghoff said with the amount of pressure being a factor, he tried to find something fresh and target things other anglers may have overlooked.

“I had to switch it up to get bites,” he said. “I was still flipping and pitching, but looked for places others weren’t hitting and tried to find little stretches with less traffic.”

He said his plan for tomorrow is to join the crowd again because he believes there are enough fish in that area to get another solid limit.

“There are still some big females in there so I am going out with the same plan in the morning,” said Burghoff. “I’m sticking with that area until I’m told otherwise by the fish.”

The top 20 pros after Day Two on Lake Okeechobee are:

1^st:       Miles Burghoff, Soddy-Daisy, Tenn., five bass, 42-15
2^nd:      Skeet Reese, Auburn, Calif., five bass, 39-5
3^rd:       Jim Neece, Jr., Bristol, Tenn., five bass, 38-9
4^th:       Dicky Newberry, Houston, Texas, five bass, 38-0
5^th:       Bill McDonald, Greenwood, Ind., five bass, 37-8
6^th:       Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., five bass, 37-6
7^th:       Pete Ponds, Madison, Miss., five bass, 36-12
8^th:       Justin Lucas, Guntersville, Ala., five bass, 36-7
9^th:       Chris Lane, Guntersville, Ala., five bass, 35-8
10^th:     Kurt Mitchell, Milford, Del., five bass, 35-3
11^th:     Mike Surman, Boca Raton, Fla., five bass, 34-11
12^th:     Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., five bass, 34-9
13^th:     Jamie Horton, Centerville, Ala., five bass, 33-13
14^th:     Jason Vance, Battle Ground, Ind. five bass, 32-12
15^th:     Cole Floyd, Leesburg, Ohio, five bass, 32-6
16^th:     Dylan Hays, Hot Springs, Ark., five bass, 32-1
17^th:     Rusty Salewske, Alpine, Calif., five bass, 31-9
18^th:     Matt Reed, Madisonville, Texas, five bass, 31-6
19^th:     Jim Tutt, Longview, Texas, five bass, 31-4
20^th:     Michael Neal, Dayton, Tenn., five bass, 31-4

For a full list of results and to see the top 50 anglers that will continue to Day Three, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Reese won the day’s $500 Berkley Big Bass award, bringing a largemouth weighing 8 pounds, 8 ounces to the scale.

Overall, there were 741 bass weighing 1,773 pounds, 2 ounces caught by 162 pros on Thursday, which included 131 five-bass limits.

In Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit competition, the full field of 162 anglers competed in the two-day opening round on Thursday and Friday. Now, the top 50 pros based on their two-day cumulative weight advance to Saturday. Only the top 10 pros continue competition on Sunday, with the winner determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from the four days of competition.

Throughout the season, anglers are also vying for valuable points in hopes of qualifying for the 2021 Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit TITLE presented by Mercury, the Pro Circuit Championship, where they will compete for up to $235,000. The 2021 TITLE will be on the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin on Aug. 17-22, and is hosted by Explore La Crosse.

Anglers will take off at 7:30 a.m. ET Saturday and Sunday from Roland and Mary Ann Martin’s Marina and Resort, located at 920 E. Del Monte Ave. in Clewiston. Weigh-ins will also be held at the marina daily at 3 p.m. Attendance is limited to competing anglers, family, essential staff and media covering the event. Fans are encouraged to follow the action online through the MLF NOW! live stream and coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

The Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Presented by Bad Boy Mowers, 13 Fishing Stop 1 – Lake Okeechobee will feature live on-the-water coverage and a two-hour action-packed television show that will premiere on the Outdoor Channel on Sunday, July 11 from 7 to 9 a.m. ET and re-air on the Sportsman Channel this fall. Weigh-ins will be streamed daily and fans can catch live on-the-water action all day Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 13-14 on MLF NOW! beginning at 8 a.m. ET at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

For complete details and updated information visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit presented by Bad Boy Mowers on the MLF BIG5’s social media outlets at Facebook,  Twitter,  Instagram and YouTube.