COUNCE, Tenn. (March 24, 2026) – The Major League Fishing (MLF) Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats will continue the 2026 season next week with the second event of the Central division, March 31-April 2, at Pickwick Lake in Counce, Tennessee – the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats at Pickwick Lake Presented by Suzuki Marine.
The three-day tournament, hosted by Explore Pickwick Lake/Hardin County Tourism, will feature a roster of the region’s best bass-fishing pros and co-anglers competing for a top 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.
Finishing third in last year’s Tackle Warehouse Invitationals event on Pickwick Lake, Alabama pro Jacob Walker has high hopes for this one. Last year, Walker relied on a strong tailrace bite, which he thinks may not be the play this time.
“It’s a little bit earlier than when we were there last year,” he said. “When we fished it was postspawn, and we had some good rain so the fish were heavily in the current. They had left The Horseshoe and they were feeding back up.”
The Horseshoe is a huge eddy below the Wilson Dam, and when it is on, it’s really on.
“This year it’s a month earlier, and we have a full moon. If the moon has anything to do with the spawn, you’re talking about prime conditions,” he said. “We might see an all-out smallmouth spawn bonanza. It might be a Horseshoe beatdown – that doesn’t require LiveScope. I’ve fished events where 100 of us have made the run up there. It gets crowded, but there are enough fish to go around.”
Another possible pattern is spawning largemouth, maybe visible to the naked eye, but also spawning on stumps and shallow offshore targets. For that play, the middle and lower end of the lake may be the move.
“When we were there last year, a lot of the largemouth were late in the spawn, so we may be right in the middle of the largemouth spawn too,” Walker said. “I think fishing pressure at the dam is going to depend on how guys do down the lake.
“If I were fishing, I would definitely fish up the river, because I think it’s going to be the most consistent way to catch 20 pounds a day,” he said. “But, I think someone could find some big prespawn or spawning largemouth, and they could make magic happen within three hours. It’s going to be hard to beat them, too. But that place is a long body of water, it’s very spread out, it’s going to be difficult in three hours.”
Though forward-facing sonar could be important for some patterns, Walker believes there’s also an opportunity to fish traditionally.
“They don’t all spawn at the same time – anglers who understand how the fish position in the current, there’s an option there for Alabama rigs, scroungers, swimbaits. There’s definitely opportunity in the tailrace,” he said. “Plus, we saw what Caz Anderson did last year, throwing a spinnerbait and a ChatterBait, covering a bunch of water. If I wasn’t fishing with ‘Scope and I wasn’t fishing at the dam, my trolling motor would probably be on 8, covering a bunch of water.”
For baits, Walker recommends a Neko rig with a worm like a Big Bite Baits Nekorama or a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Magnum Hit Worm, umbrella rigs, Deps Sakamata Shads and scroungers like the Davis Baits Shakey Fish.
“I think that’s very doable with ‘Scope, and I think that’s very doable at the dam,” he said.
He’s also high on the fun times to be had in the back of the boat.
“I think it’s going to be a really good tournament for co-anglers, especially if the smallmouth are spawning in The Horseshoe,” he said. “It will be a fun tournament for co-anglers.”
Anglers will take off each day at 7 a.m. CT, launching from Pickwick Landing State Park, located at 120 Playground Loop in Counce. Weigh-ins will take place at the state park, starting at 3 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 cast 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 2026 Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats consists of five divisions – Central, Northern, Plains, Southern and 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 qualification to REDCREST 2027. The winning co-angler at the championship earns a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower outboard. The 2026 Toyota Series Championship will be held Nov. 5-7 on Pickwick Lake in Counce, Tennessee, and is hosted by Explore Pickwick Lake & Hardin County Tourism.