Sign in
  • Amplify Your Brand with The Bass Cast: Your Go-To Bass Fishing Hub
  • Bass Cast Radio
  • On The Line News Letter
  • Weather at the Home Base: Updated 24/7
Sign in
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Password recovery
Recover your password
Search
LogobasscastPRO
LogobasscastPRO
Search
Facebook
Instagram
Youtube
LogoThe Bass CastYour Tourney News Headquarters
My account
Get into your account.
LoginRegister
Subscribe
  • Amplify Your Brand with The Bass Cast: Your Go-To Bass Fishing Hub
  • Bass Cast Radio
  • On The Line News Letter
  • Weather at the Home Base: Updated 24/7
Sunday, May 18, 2025
LogoThe Bass CastPRO
  • Amplify Your Brand with The Bass Cast: Your Go-To Bass Fishing Hub
  • Bass Cast Radio
  • On The Line News Letter
  • Weather at the Home Base: Updated 24/7
Sign in
Welcome! Log into your account
Forgot your password? Get help
Password recovery
Recover your password
A password will be e-mailed to you.
Breaking NewsBassmaster Open

Williams’ versatility delivers win at Bassmaster Open on Watts Bar Reservoir

By: Brian Carter

Date:

September 16, 2023

Tyler Williams of Belgrade, Maine, has won the 2023 St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Watts Bar Reservoir with a three-day total of 41 pounds, 4 ounces. 

Photo by Andy Crawford/B.A.S.S.

September 16, 2023

Williams’ versatility delivers win at Bassmaster Open on Watts Bar Reservoir

KINGSTON, Tenn. — Tyler Williams makes no bones about his narrowly focused bait preference, but he’s no one-trick pony.

Proving his versatility, the angler from Belgrade, Maine, won the St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Watts Bar Reservoir with a three-day total of 41 pounds, 4 ounces.

Williams placed second on Day 1 with 14-15 and added a second-round limit of 14-6 to take the lead on Day 2. Then with a Championship Saturday limit of 11-15, Williams edged South Carolina pro JT Thompkins by 2-7.

For his efforts, Williams won $42,267 and earned an automatic berth in the 2024 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Toyota scheduled for March 22-24 on Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees near Tulsa.

“This is exciting,” Williams said. “It will probably hit me on the drive to (next week’s Opens Series event at) Lake of the Ozarks.”

Williams caught most of his bass by targeting isolated current-washed cover with a 3/4-ounce Greenfish Tackle living rubber jig fitted with a Yamamoto Flappin’ Hog trailer. When Day 3 brought overcast skies, wind, afternoon rains and minimal current, Williams stuck with his go-to bait but adjusted his presentations to target fish holding higher in the water column.

“I fished exactly how I like to fish this week,” Williams said of his trusty jig. “That jig is a good search bait; I can read fish really well with it (on forward-facing sonar).

“I worked it almost like a hair jig, so I think that living rubber skirt gave it some extra action and triggered some of those fish.”

As Williams explained, the final round’s dimmer conditions and lack of water movement contrasted the first two days in which partly sunny skies and dependable afternoon current positioned fish in predictable feeding positions.

“I was crawling the jig until today, and today the fish wanted to suspend more with no current and clouds,” Williams said. “I would reel the jig really quickly and get it to hop off the bottom, then hit my (reel’s thumb bar) and let it free spool and they’d eat it.”

Williams’ road to victory began with a Day 1 disaster. On his first spot, his trolling motor and shallow-water anchors malfunctioned, thereby depriving him of key boat positioning strategies.

Drifting through key areas, Williams would lean over his bow to manually adjust his forward-facing sonar transducer. Despite this severe limitation, he made the most of his casting angles and sacked up his best bag of the event. 

“Once I got my trolling motor running (for Day 2), I was able to run some schooling fish,” he said. “Today, I had a spot that I think had 1,000 fish on it. That jig was really effective.

“Sometimes, I’d speed reel it, kill it, speed reel it, kill it, speed reel it, kill it and then I’d let it sit there and they’d eat it.”

Hailing from Myrtle Beach, S.C., Thompkins placed 17th on Day 1 with 11-13 and, despite several key fish losses, he moved into third with a Day 2 limit of 13-5. Closing with the final round’s biggest bag — 13-11 — Thompkins settled at second with 38-13.

Earlier in the event, Thompkins caught his bass on a Strike King Sexy Dog topwater and an Outkast Tackle Juice jig with a Strike King Rage Bug trailer. The final round saw him stepping up the aggression.

“My buddy Tyler (Williams) outfished me Day 1 and Day 2, but I didn’t want him to outfish me again on Day 3, so I put a Garage Hyper Shad glidebait, along with an Outkast Tackle jig and a Strike King Sexy Dawg in my hand and I just had fun all day,” Thompkins said. “This was one of the most fun days of fishing I’ve ever had.”

Thompkins’ final-round limit included the day’s biggest bass — a 5-1. He caught that bass on a jig.

Trey McKinney of Carbondale, Ill., placed third with 37-10. He turned in daily weights of 12-4, 16-2 and 9-4.

McKinney spent most of his time offshore, where he worked isolated targets in 20 to 30 feet. He caught his bass on a Strike King Caffeine Shad in the glacier color and a 3/8-ounce Strike King Baby Structure jig in black and blue or peanut butter and jelly with a green pumpkin Strike King Menace trailer.

“I used the Baby Menace for deep water and the full-sized Menace for shallow water,” McKinney said. “I want my jig to sink fast, so that’s why I go with the Baby Menace offshore.”

McKinney now owns three second-place finishes in St. Croix Bassmaster Open competition this season. He also was runner-up at Toledo Bend and Lake Eufaula (Okla). He earned an additional $500 as the highest-finishing registered pro fishing St. Croix rods thanks to the St. Croix Rod Rewards program.

Ninth-place finisher Ish Monroe of Oakdale, Calif., won the $750 Phoenix Boats Big Bass award for his 5-2.

As part of the Yamaha Power Pay program, Williams took home a $2,000 bonus. 

Thompkins leads the St. Croix Bassmaster Open Elite Qualifiers standings with 1,286. Tennessee’s John Garret is in second with 1,263 points. McKinney is in third with 1,232 points. The top nine finishers in the EQ Division will earn invitations to the 2024 Elite Series. For full standings, visit Bassmaster.com

2023 St. Croix Bassmaster Open at Watts Bar 9/14-9/16
Watts Bar Reservoir, Kingston  TN.
(BOATER) Standings Day 3

   Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

1.  Tyler Williams         Belgrade, ME            15  41-04  200  $42,267.00
  Day 1: 5   14-15     Day 2: 5   14-06     Day 3: 5   11-15   
2.  JT Thompkins           Myrtle Beach, SC        15  38-13  199  $20,287.00
  Day 1: 5   11-13     Day 2: 5   13-05     Day 3: 5   13-11   
3.  Trey McKinney          Carbondale, IL          14  37-10  198  $14,320.00
  Day 1: 5   12-04     Day 2: 5   16-02     Day 3: 4   09-04   
4.  Greg Bohannan          Bentonville, AR         15  36-11  197  $11,933.00
  Day 1: 5   10-02     Day 2: 5   14-07     Day 3: 5   12-02   
5.  John Garrett           Union City, TN          15  36-04  196  $10,382.00
  Day 1: 5   13-01     Day 2: 5   11-11     Day 3: 5   11-08   
6.  Jason Lambert          Savannah, TN            15  35-00  195   $9,547.00
  Day 1: 5   12-11     Day 2: 5   11-01     Day 3: 5   11-04   
7.  Chase Henley           Kingston, TN            13  34-05  194   $8,950.00
  Day 1: 4   07-01     Day 2: 5   16-13     Day 3: 4   10-07   
8.  Wesley Gore            Clanton, AL             15  34-03  193   $8,353.00
  Day 1: 5   12-02     Day 2: 5   11-07     Day 3: 5   10-10   
9.  Ish Monroe             Oakdale, CA             12  31-02  192   $7,313.00
  Day 1: 4   08-07     Day 2: 5   15-08     Day 3: 3   07-03   
10. Bobby Lane Jr.         Lakeland, FL            13  30-05  191   $5,370.00
  Day 1: 5   15-02     Day 2: 5   09-01     Day 3: 3   06-02   
———————————————————————–
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
     Ish Monroe               Oakdale, CA         05-02        $750.00
———————————————————————–
Totals
Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight
 1        61       569      1212-08
 2        53       552      1203-02
 3         6        44       104-02
———————————-
         120      1165      2519-12



  • Tags
  • Bass Fishing
  • Bassmaster Open
  • Media
  • News
  • Tournament Bass Fishing
  • Tyler Williams
  • Watts Bar Reservoir
Previous article
Williams moves into lead at Bassmaster Open on Watts Bar Reservoir
Next article
Logan Combs & William Croteau Win 94.9 Star Country Big ‘Ol Bass On Claytor Lake
Brian Carter
Brian Carter

Share post:

Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
WhatsApp

    Popular

    Mike Toney & Eric Frazier Sit in 2nd at 2025 CATT Championship with 16.04 lbs

    Mud Hole Supports Mighty River Recovery for St. Johns River Restoration

    Tennessee’s Peavyhouse Holds on to Win Toyota Series at Lake Guntersville Presented by Suzuki Marine

    Adjustments keep Schlapper atop Bassmaster Elite at Sabine River

    Simms Launches Lightest, Most Packable Wader Ever

    More like this
    Related

    Mike Toney & Eric Frazier Sit in 2nd at 2025 CATT Championship with 16.04 lbs

    Brian Carter Brian Carter - May 17, 2025
    Day one of the 2025 CATT championship is in...

    Mud Hole Supports Mighty River Recovery for St. Johns River Restoration

    Brian Carter Brian Carter - May 17, 2025
    May 16, 2025 Partnership Aimed at Habitat Replenishment on Florida’s...

    Tennessee’s Peavyhouse Holds on to Win Toyota Series at Lake Guntersville Presented by Suzuki Marine

    Brian Carter Brian Carter - May 17, 2025
    SCOTTSBORO, Ala. (May 16, 2025) – Blasting off on...

    Adjustments keep Schlapper atop Bassmaster Elite at Sabine River

    Brian Carter Brian Carter - May 16, 2025
    Wisconsin's Pat Schlapper maintains the lead on Day 2 of the...
    LogoThe Bass CastPRO

    Follow Us

    Facebook
    Instagram
    Youtube

    The latest

    Mike Toney & Eric Frazier Sit in 2nd at 2025 CATT Championship with 16.04 lbs

    Carolina Anglers Team Trail Gaston/Kerr Lake May 17, 2025 0
    Day one of the 2025 CATT championship is in...

    Mud Hole Supports Mighty River Recovery for St. Johns River Restoration

    Bass News May 17, 2025 0
    May 16, 2025 Partnership Aimed at Habitat Replenishment on Florida’s...

    Tennessee’s Peavyhouse Holds on to Win Toyota Series at Lake Guntersville Presented by Suzuki Marine

    Breaking News May 17, 2025 0
    SCOTTSBORO, Ala. (May 16, 2025) – Blasting off on...

    © 2023 The Bass Cast. All Rights Reserved.