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Tuesday, December 16, 2025
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Mastering Shoreline Bass Fishing with Weedless Swim Jigs

Brian Carter
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Mastering Shoreline Bass Fishing with Weedless Swim Jigs

Mastering Shoreline Bass Fishing with Weedless Swim Jigs

If you’re just getting started in the world of bass fishing, you’ve likely come across a dizzying array of lures, each promising to be the ultimate fish magnet. While all those options might seem overwhelming, there’s one lure that stands out for its versatility, especially if you’re fishing from the shoreline: the weedless swim jig.

Why Weedless Swim Jigs Belong in Your Tackle Box

Fishing from the shoreline presents unique challenges. Unlike fishing from a boat where you have more freedom to maneuver and avoid obstacles, shoreline fishing often means dealing with thick vegetation, submerged structures, and limited casting angles. This is where the weedless swim jig shines.

A weedless swim jig is designed to glide through vegetation without getting snagged. Its streamlined head, combined with a protective weed guard, allows it to move effortlessly through grass, weeds, and other underwater obstructions. This makes it a perfect choice for anglers targeting bass in ponds and lakes with heavy cover.

Building the Perfect Weedless Swim Jig Setup

To get the most out of your weedless swim jig, it’s important to set it up correctly. Here’s a step-by-step guide to building a killer setup:

  1. Choose the Right Jigs: Start by getting yourself 5-6 quality weedless swim jigs. Opt for weights that allow the jig to swim naturally—generally, something in the 1/4 to 1/2 ounce range works well. Too heavy, and the jig will sink too fast; too light, and it may not reach the strike zone.
  2. Pick Matching Paddle Tails: The swim jig’s skirt adds action, but pairing it with a matching paddle tail soft plastic really brings it to life. Choose colors that match the local forage, like shad, bluegill, or crawfish. The paddle tail adds a natural swimming motion that bass find irresistible.
  3. Tie It All Together: When it comes to line, use a braided mainline with a mono or fluorocarbon leader. Braid gives you the strength to muscle bass out of thick cover, while the leader provides invisibility underwater. Make sure your leader is long enough to keep the braid out of the fish’s view but not so long that it affects your casting distance.
  4. Dial in the Retrieve: The beauty of the swim jig lies in its simplicity. A slow to medium retrieve is all you need to make the magic happen. Let the jig swim just above the vegetation, occasionally ticking the tops of weeds or grass. This subtle approach mimics a baitfish cruising through the cover and entices bass to strike.

The Shoreline Advantage: Why Weedless Matters

Shoreline fishing isn’t just about casting and reeling in a straight line. It’s about working the edges, targeting pockets in the weeds, and exploring areas that others might overlook. This is where the weedless swim jig gives you a major edge.

Unlike rattle traps and treble-hooked lures that are prone to getting snagged, the weedless swim jig can go where other lures can’t. This allows you to fish tighter to the cover where bass often hide, especially in ponds and lakes with dense vegetation.

While rattle traps, treble hooks, and even squarebills have their place—particularly when fishing from a boat or targeting open water—shoreline anglers need lures that can navigate the challenges of shallow, weedy environments. The weedless swim jig fits this need perfectly.

Tips for Maximizing Your Success

To get the most out of your weedless swim jig, keep these tips in mind:

  • Match the Hatch: Pay attention to the local forage and choose jig colors that match what the bass are feeding on.
  • Keep Moving: Don’t get stuck fishing one spot for too long. Move along the shoreline and cover as much water as possible.
  • Vary Your Retrieve: While a slow and steady retrieve is often effective, don’t be afraid to experiment with pauses, twitches, or speed changes to trigger more strikes.

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re a seasoned angler or just starting out, the weedless swim jig is a must-have for your tackle box, especially if you’re fishing from the shore. It’s versatile, effective, and best of all, it won’t get snagged on every cast. So, next time you head to your favorite pond or lake, make sure you have a few of these bad boys ready to go. You’ll be amazed at how many more bass you hook when you switch to a lure designed for the environment you’re fishing in.

Happy fishing, and tight lines!



Lane/Wall and Browning/Gagliardi Move on to Championship Round at General Tire Team Series B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota

Brian Carter
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Lane/Wall and Browning/Gagliardi Move on to Championship Round at General Tire Team Series B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota

Three teams compete at tough Chautauqua Lake in first match of Knockout Round, Team Star Tron (Lane/Wall) boats 15 scorable largemouth to advance in first place

ERIE, Pa. (Aug. 28, 2024) – Professional anglers competing in the Major League Fishing (MLF) General Tire Team Series Presented by Bass Pro Shops this week in Erie, Pennsylvania, were thrown a curve-ball Wednesday.

After the first three matches of the Elimination Round took place on Erie’s Presque Isle Bay, Wednesday featured a new venue for anglers competing in the first match of the Knockout Round at the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota – Chautauqua Lake in Chautauqua County, New York. Three teams – Team REDCON1 (Cole Floyd/Andy Morgan), Team Star Tron (Bobby Lane/Jacob Wall), and Team U.S. Air Force (Stephen Browning/Anthony Gagliardi) took to the waters to compete, with only the top two teams advancing to Friday’s final-day Championship Round.

Link to HD Video Clip of Knockout Round Match 1 Highlights
Link to Photo Gallery of Knockout Round Match 1 On-The-Water Morning Highlights

As time expired at the end of the third period and the final bass had been tallied, Team Star Tron showed that they will be a force to reckon with in Friday’s Championship Round. Pros Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Florida, and Jacob Wall of New Hope, Alabama, caught 15 bass weighing 26 pounds, 14 ounces to lead the way in Match 1 of the Knockout Round and advance to the final day of competition. Also advancing to the Championship Round is the Team U.S. Air Force duo of Hot Springs, Arkansas’ Stephen Browning and Prosperity, South Carolina’s Anthony Gagliardi, who finished second with 11 bass weighing 23-12. 

“It was a grinder of a day, but it was so much fun,” Wall said in his post-match interview. “It was a challenging fishery, and these are the type of days that really show who can put their head down and work the hardest. Confidence is so key on days like today, and I felt really good and confident all day. Bobby and I were vibing.”

 “We’ve done it twice now. Yesterday (Tuesday) we had the lead for awhile and then lost it, and we had to fight just to get into the Knockout Round,” said Lane. “Then we had to scramble again today. The decisions we made as a team to come back today … wow.”

Team Star Tron used a two-pronged approach in the morning. They started on a shallow rocky shoal, with Lane throwing a topwater popper and a Berkley Choppo, while Wall threw various soft plastic worms. Lane caught four scorable keepers over the first two periods, then they made a move to a marina-style area with a lot of boat docks, lots of shade, surrounded with grass. They started skipping under boat docks, and Wall boated five keepers while Lane added another scorable to earn the win by a 3-pound, 2-ounce margin.

Wall ended up weighing the most bass and catching the most total weight of the day.

“The 5-inch stickbait was the key today,” Wall said. “It was green pumpkin (colored). Nothing fancy by any means, but the weedless hook that I was throwing really helped me keep away from hanging up on those docks and those cables. I used 10-pound fluorocarbon, and we had a few mishaps – we broke some fish off. There were a lot of mussels around the docks. But I was able to pull most of them out of there with my Wheeler Select Series Duckett rod.”

“In the third, Jacob just put it on ‘em, and it was unbelievable,” Lane added. “With the pressure from SCORETRACKER® and this format, to beat those guys today and the guys we beat yesterday, this has just been an incredible week. We’re ready to go again for the Championship Round on Friday.”

Also advancing to the Championship Round via third period rally was Team U.S. Air Force. After boating only two scorable bass as a team through the first two periods of competition, Browning and Gagliardi caught fire in the third period, adding nine scorable bass weighing 21-7 to advance in the second spot.

The duo targeted the outside edge of grass lines in 8 to 10 feet on the extreme north end of the lake. They used finesse tactics and found a wad of fish in the third period – catching bass every 3 to 4 casts at one point – that they stayed on for the remainder of the day.

The top two teams now advancing to the Championship Round at the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota are:

1st:        Team Star Tron, 15 bass, 26-14
                Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., seven bass, 10-9
                Jacob Wall, New Hope, Ala., eight bass, 16-5
2nd:       Team U.S. Air Force, 11 bass, 23-12
                Stephen Browning, Hot Springs, Ark., seven bass, 13-11
                Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., four bass, 10-1

Eliminated from competition are:

3rd:       Team REDCON1, 10 bass, 19-15
                Cole Floyd, Leesburg, Ohio, two bass, 3-12
                Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., eight bass, 16-3

Complete results from throughout the week can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Overall, there were 36 bass weighing 70 pounds, 9 ounces caught by the three teams Wednesday during the first match of the Knockout Round on Chautauqua Lake. Team U.S. Air Force pro Anthony Gagliardi caught a 3-pound, 7-ounce largemouth in Period 3 that was the Berkley Big Bass of the day.  

The B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota is hosted by VisitErie and takes place over six days in Erie, Pennsylvania. The competition water for each day is top-secret and is only revealed to the anglers after they arrive at the host hotel each morning.

The second match of the Knockout Round will take place Thursday, featuring Team B&W Trailer Hitches (Matt Becker/Spencer Shuffield), Team Coign (Drew Gill/Matt Stefan), and Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches (Luke Clausen/John Hunter). Anglers depart the host hotel in Erie each morning at 4:30 a.m. ET. They are driven directly to the day’s competition area launch ramp by their officials. Competition begins on the water at 7:45 a.m.

The MLFNOW! broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live every day of competition from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET. MLFNOW! is live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com, the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app and Rumble.

The Challenge Cup features 12 two-man teams, divided into three groups as they enter the one-day Elimination Rounds. Each of the three Elimination Round matches will feature four new teams, with the top two teams from each match of the Elimination Rounds advancing to the Knockout Rounds on Days 4 & 5. In the Knockout Rounds, three teams will compete each day, with the top two teams from each Knockout Round match moving on to the Championship Round on Day 6. In Friday’s Day 6 Championship Round, the final four teams will compete in a one-day shootout to determine which team will win the 2024 B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota.

The 2024 General Tire Team Series is comprised of four events – Challenge Cup, Heritage Cup, Patriot Cup and Summit Cup – featuring two-man teams of MLF Bass Pro Tour pros competing from the same boat. Each event features a roster of 24 anglers, teamed up and working together to claim part of a season purse of more than $720,000. Teams were formed through a selection process, where 48 team captains – based on Fishing Clash Angler of the Year (AOY) standings throughout the 2024 Bass Pro Tour season – selected a teammate. Teams will compete throughout the fall of 2024.

Television coverage of the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota will premiere on Outdoor Channel as six two-hour episodes starting in January 2025. New MLF General Tire Team Series episodes will premiere each Saturday morning on Outdoor Channel and posted to MOTV.

Proud sponsors of the MLF General Tire Team Series include: 7 Brew Coffee, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Barbasol, Bass Boat Technologies, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, BUBBA, Builders FirstSource, C-MAP, Coign, Epic Baits, Ferguson, Fishing Clash, General Tire, Knighten Industries, Kubota, Lowrance, Lucas Oil, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Nitro Boats, Onyx, Plano, Power-Pole, Ranger Boats, Rapala Baits, REDCON1, Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff, Star brite, Toyota, USAA, WIX Filters and YETI.

For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the General Tire Team Series Presented by Bass Pro Shops, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, X,  Instagram and  YouTube.



Clausen/Hunter and Lane/Wall Advance after Elimination Round Match 3 at General Tire Team Series B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup

Brian Carter
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0
Clausen/Hunter and Lane/Wall Advance after Elimination Round Match 3 at General Tire Team Series B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup

Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches (Clausen/Hunter) catches 36 largemouth weighing 62 pounds, 1 ounce to pace field, winning teams head to Knockout Round on Wednesday and Thursday

ERIE, Pa. (Aug. 27, 2024) – The third group of two-man teams took to the water Tuesday on Erie’s Presque Isle Bay for the 2024 General Tire Team Series Presented by Bass Pro Shops.

Similar to the two days prior at the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota, most of the teams  started out Tuesday morning along the Erie waterfront, fishing the riprap banks and targeting seawalls with grass blown up around them. However, after two days of fierce competition, the fish in those areas had been depleted, making for a tough bite and forcing anglers to move around to try to find fish.

The match was the tightest of the event so far, with several teams battling for the top spot throughout the day and nearly every team in close contention to make the cut to the Knockout Round.

But it was Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches, made up of pros Luke Clausen of Spokane, Washington, and John Hunter of Shelbyville, Kentucky , who finished atop the leaderboard when the time ran out, catching 36 largemouth bass weighing 62 pounds, 1 ounce, to earn the win after the Elimination Round Match 3. Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches will now advance to the Knockout Round, along with the second-place finishing Team Star Tron – pros Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Florida, and Jacob Wall of New Hope, Alabama – who caught 35 bass weighing 57-6 to finish the day in second. 

Link to HD Video Clip of Elimination Round Match 3 Highlights
Link to Photo Gallery of Elimination Round Match 3 On-The-Water Highlights
 
The top six teams from the last three Elimination Round matches now advance to the Knockout Rounds on Wednesday and Thursday. Team Star Tron (Bobby Lane/Jacob Wall) will join Team REDCON1 (Cole Floyd/Andy Morgan) and Team U.S. Air Force (Stephen Browning/Anthony Gagliardi) in the Knockout Round on Wednesday, while Team Smokey Mountain (Luke Clausen/John Hunter) will join Team Coign (Drew Gill/Matthew Stefan) and Team B&W Trailer Hitches (Matt Becker/Spencer Shuffield) in the Knockout Round on Thursday.

After the Knockout Rounds are complete, the top four teams from the two days of competition will advance to Friday’s Championship Round.

The Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches team started the morning on the Erie waterfront, pitching bait around some of the seawalls, break walls and riprap shorelines. They caught a few fish early on, but really keyed in on the bite after Hunter threw a vibrating jig in the offshore grass beds. They dialed that in the rest of the day, catching most of their fish on vibrating jigs, and a few on stick worms.

“That was fun, especially there at the end,” said Clausen. “It started off rocky though. We figured some stuff out through the day that just made the whole day line out right. If we’d missed a key bite here or there, it could have gone downhill quick.

“We fished there this morning and caught a couple, but left because the other teams were catching quite a few and we thought we could find something better,” Clausen continued. “We scrambled around thinking we were going to find glory and ironically we just ran away from a really good place, we just didn’t know it this morning.”

The duo rose to the top of the leaderboard at the end of the second period and held onto the top spot for most of the afternoon.

“I’m pretty proud of how we figured them out today, just settling in on these clumps of milfoil grass with little openings in them,” said Clausen. “We were able to identify that there were multiple fish – pretty much every time we caught one we could pick up a piece of plastic and throw it and catch another one.”

Hunter said the main focus today was trying to manage the little sweet spots that they found.

“Every time we circled back to one of those spots, we’d get another bite or two, but you don’t want to go back to them too quick,” said Hunter. “So, we basically just went through the spots, then worked the outside edge of them, trying to find a new spot or two, then came back through once they’ve had some time to rest.”

Clausen said the Z-Man Tungsten ChatterBait Elite Evo accounted for a lot of their fish.

“I scored 23 bass and probably 20 of them were caught on that bait,” said Clausen. “It falls quick, coming out of this grass, and it reacts quicker, so you get a lot more movement out of your bait.”

Clausen said he threw the ChatterBait on a Phenix M1 7-foot, 4-inch medium-heavy rod with a 7.3:1 gear ratio.
 
“The ChatterBait was definitely the star of the day,” said Clausen. “We probably both could have guessed that before we got out here this morning, but we had a ton of rods on the deck and pretty much tried them all in the first period. That didn’t go very well. The ‘keep it simple strategy’ is pretty dang good for fishing.

“We’d basically stop getting bites every time we’d put the ChatterBait down,” Hunter said, laughing. “We’re excited to move on to the Knockout Round in a couple days. Not sure where we’re going, but I’m hoping for some smallmouth. The largemouth are fun, but I’m ready for some brown fish.”

Team Star Tron pros Bobby Lane and Jacob Wall finished the day in second place despite a hard-charge from Team Kubota (Connell/Wheeler) that threatened to knock them out in the last few minutes of the competition day.

“As a team, we spent the day fishing our high percentage areas,” said Lane. “We fished all over today, and just tried to stay where the fish were biting, and fish slower. When we were around the fish, we just tried to mix it up – flipping, throwing a dropshot rig, spinnerbait, crankbait, bladed jig – you name it, we were doing it today.”

Lane said the duo had found four areas as they moved through the day, and just agreed that they would keep hitting those areas.

“All day long we got bit when we made moves, changed baits, and everything just felt very fluid today,” said Wall. “I felt like we made good, fluid decisions.

Lane said the changing conditions throughout the day dictated a lot of those decisions.

“It started off a little windy and cloudy, but then it got slick calm, and hot,” Lane said. “Once that happened, we went back through and dropped a big weight on some of these mats where the shade is on the walls. We weren’t just throwing at the walls, we were throwing out to the little corner of the walls, where the shade was, and that really paid off for us.

“We had such a fun day,” Lane continued. “We’d never been in the boat together, but Jacob and I worked so well together. We can’t wait to get back out on the water for the Knockout Round.”

The results from the Elimination Round Match 3 at the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota are:

1st:           Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches, 36 bass, 62-1
                 Luke Clausen, Spokane, Wash., 23 bass, 38-8
                 John Hunter, Shelbyville, Ky., 13 bass, 23-9
2nd:         Team Star Tron, 35 bass, 57-6
                 Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., 23 bass, 37-9
                 Jacob Wall, New Hope, Ala., 12 bass, 19-13
3rd:          Team Kubota, 28 bass, 51-14
                 Dustin Connell, Clanton, Ala., 14 bass, 29-5
                 Jacob Wheeler, Harrison, Tenn., 14 bass, 22-9
4th:           Team Knighten, 32 bass, 50-2
                  Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., 16 bass, 27-10
                  Scott Suggs, Alexander, Ark., 16 bass, 22-8

Complete results from throughout the week can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Overall, there were 131 bass weighing 221 pounds, 7 ounces caught by the four teams during the Elimination Round Match 3 on Presque Isle Bay. Team Kubota pro Dustin Connell caught the Berkley Big Bass of the day – a largemouth weighing 4 pounds, 15 ounces.  

The B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota is hosted by VisitErie and takes place over six days in Erie, Pennsylvania. The competition water for each day is top-secret and is only revealed to the anglers after they arrive at the host hotel each morning.

Anglers depart the host hotel in Erie at 4:30 a.m. ET each morning and are driven directly to the day’s competition area launch ramp by their officials. Competition begins on the water at 7:45 a.m.

The MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live every day of competition from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET. MLFNOW!® is live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com, the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app and Rumble.

The Challenge Cup features 12 two-man teams divided into three groups as they enter the one-day Elimination Rounds. Each of the three Elimination Rounds will feature four new teams, with the top two teams from each of the Elimination Rounds advancing to the Knockout Rounds on Days 4 & 5. In the Knockout Rounds, three teams will compete each day, with the top two teams from each Knockout Round moving on to the Championship Round on Day 6. In Friday’s Day 6 Championship Round, the final four teams will compete in a one-day shootout to determine which team will win the 2024 B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota.

The 2024 General Tire Team Series is comprised of four events – Challenge Cup, Heritage Cup, Patriot Cup and Summit Cup – featuring two-man teams of MLF Bass Pro Tour pros competing from the same boat. Each event features a roster of 24 anglers, teamed up and working together to claim part of a season purse of more than $720,000. Teams were formed through a selection process, where 48 team captains – based on Fishing Clash Angler of the Year (AOY) standings throughout the 2024 Bass Pro Tour season – selected a teammate. Teams will compete throughout the fall of 2024.

Television coverage of the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota will premiere on Outdoor Channel as six two-hour episodes starting in January 2025. New MLF General Tire Team Series episodes will premiere each Saturday morning on Outdoor Channel and posted to MOTV.

Proud sponsors of the MLF General Tire Team Series include: 7 Brew Coffee, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Barbasol, Bass Boat Technologies, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, BUBBA, Builders FirstSource, C-MAP, Coign, Epic Baits, Ferguson, Fishing Clash, General Tire, Knighten Industries, Kubota, Lowrance, Lucas Oil, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Nitro Boats, Onyx, Plano, Power-Pole, Ranger Boats, Rapala Baits, REDCON1, Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff, Star brite, Toyota, USAA, WIX Filters and YETI.

For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the General Tire Team Series Presented by Bass Pro Shops, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook , X, Instagram and  YouTube.



University of Alabama Wins MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Tournament on St. Lawrence River Presented by Simms

Brian Carter
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University of Alabama Wins MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Tournament on St. Lawrence River Presented by Simms

MASSENA, N.Y. (Aug. 26, 2024) – The University of Alabama duo of Cooper Gilroy of Middlebury, Connecticut, and Hayden O’Barr of Scottsboro, Alabama, won the MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI event on the St. Lawrence River Presented by Simms Sunday with a five-bass limit weighing 25 pounds, 1 ounce. The victory earned the Crimson Tide bass club qualification into the 2025 MLF College Fishing National Championship.

“We made a real long run, about a 140-mile round trip, just looking for suspended bass over schools of bait,” said O’Barr.

The run took the anglers to an area not far from Lake Ontario.

“We were looking for shoals that top out around 30 and drop off into real deep water on the river channel,” O’Barr added. “Sometimes they were big bait balls, but mostly smaller bait balls and real big schools of bass. Our first school was maybe over 300 fish. A lot of them were small. We only got one big one off that spot. Then we ran down to our next shoal that was also suspended bass and caught the rest of our weight and a 6-pound smallmouth, all using a jighead minnow.”

The Crimson Tide anglers caught all their fish using forward-facing sonar and a Deps Sakamata Shad. And it all went down pretty quickly. In the first hour alone, they caught a little over 50 keepers then reversed course to ensure they had plenty of time to get back to weigh-in and they could keep their fish alive.

“It was crazy,” O’Barr said. “It was an unreal day.”

For Gilroy, a junior business major, and O’Barr, a recent graduate who’s going to be guiding on Lake Guntersville while pursuing a professional tournament fishing career, catching fish on the St. Lawrence was not the biggest challenge. The fish were “very cooperative.” This win was all about strategy and execution.

“(The key was) just keeping a positive mental attitude and knowing that, you know, if we do our job in practice, that it’ll happen tournament day,” O’Barr said. “It’s unreal. I mean, we had a really rough year this year. A lot of stuff went wrong for us – a bunch of boat troubles – but we finally pulled one off.”

The top four teams that qualified to compete at the 2025 College Fishing National Championship are:

1st:        University of Alabama – Cooper Gilroy, Middlebury, Conn., and Hayden O’Barr, Scottsboro, Ala., five bass, 25-1
2nd:      Mansfield University – Myken Barnes, Williamsport, Pa., and Beaux Rohrbaugh, Mansfield, Pa., five bass, 21-15       
3rd:       Lamar State College – Orange – Holden Hatcher and JD Sewell, both of Beaumont, Texas, five bass, 21-10
4th:        University of Vermont – Colin Griesser and Hunter Whitman, both of Shelburne, Vt., five bass, 20-3

Rounding out the top 10 are:

5th:        Clarkson University – Tyler Combes, Martville, N.Y., and James Gillis, Milford, N.H.,  five bass, 19-6
6th:        Northwestern State University – Ross Miller, Rayne, La., and Cole Pickett, Robeline, La., five bass, 19-1     
7th:        University of Georgia – Marcus Prince, Athens, Ga., and Samuel Shoemaker, Oakwood, Ga., 18-9
8th:        Paul Smith’s College – Brenden Lucia, Jefferson, Mass., and Collin Trapiss, Macedon, N.Y., 18-4
9th:        Clarkson University – Carter Jackson, Hogansburg, N.Y., and Aleksander Smietana, Chenango Forks, N.Y., five bass, 18-1
10th:     Lawrence Technological University – Teh Cornelius, Battle Creek, Mich., and William Finn, Ypsilanti, Mich., five bass, 17-14             

Complete results for the entire field can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

The Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI event on the St. Lawrence River Presented by Simms was hosted by the Town of Massena. The next tournament for MLF College Fishing anglers will be the Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI event on Sam Rayburn Reservoir, Sept. 27 in Brookeland, Texas.

The 2024 MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI season features college teams from across the country competing in nine regular-season tournaments. The top 12 percent of teams from each regular-season tournament advance to the 2025 Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI National Championship. The 2025 Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI National Championship will take place on Wheeler Lake in Decatur, Alabama, April 9-11, and is hosted by Decatur Morgan County Tourism.

Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota and YETI.

For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular College Fishing updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.



Buchanan’s Lawrence Wins at Home at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Super Tournament at Kentucky-Barkley Lakes

Brian Carter
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0
Buchanan’s Lawrence Wins at Home at Phoenix Bass Fishing League Super Tournament at Kentucky-Barkley Lakes
Boater winner Jake Lawrence of Buchanan, Tennessee, and Strike-King co-angler winner Eric Law of Primm Springs, Tennessee.
Eric Law, of Primm Springs, Tenn., Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division

BUCHANAN, Tenn. (Aug. 26, 2024) – Boater Jake Lawrence of Buchanan, Tennessee, weighed a two-day total of six fish for 27 pounds, 3 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine Super Tournament on Kentucky-Barkley Lakes , which wrapped up on Sunday. Boaters competing in the tournament were limited to three bass per day due to the summer heat. Hosted by the Henry County Tourism Authority, the tournament was the fifth and final regular-season event for the BFL LBL Division. Lawrence earned $12,517, including the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory.

It’s been one heck of a run for Lawrence. In the last two seasons, he’s won two Toyota Series tournaments on the Kentucky-Barkley system, he’s won three BFL Super Tournaments – including two in a row in the LBL Division – and he won the Tackle Warehouse Invitational on Lake Eufaula back in May. He also finished second in the AOY race in his first season fishing the Invitationals and is currently in first in the Toyota Series Plains Division AOY standings, with a first- and second-place finish on the season. Lawrence is an absolute powerhouse on the western reservoirs of the Tennessee River and is expanding his game around the country.

So, it comes as no surprise to see him atop the standings in a stacked LBL Division Super Tournament field. For Lawrence, however, the approach needed to win on Kentucky-Barkley this time was a bit non-typical. For starters, he was able to stay close to the launch in Paris, Tennessee.

“It just seems like every tournament, I always seem to find them on the total opposite end of the lake,” he said. “It was really nice (this time). I think I only burned about 25 gallons of gas in two days, which I never do that.”

The other change is that Lawrence wasn’t as dialed as he likes to be in late summer. This is a tough time of year anywhere in the Mid-South region, but he’s usually able to use practice to pattern a depth and a couple presentations to do well in end-of-season tournaments. This event had the bass roaming and at multiple depths, so it was all about adapting and figuring things out during competition hours.

“Things were changing it seemed like every day in practice,” he said. “I fished Wednesday, Thursday and half a day on Friday, and it seemed like every day the fish were in different places and they would act different as far as the baits they’d react to. It was kind of a unique deal. We just put the boat in and went fishing and made it happen.”

Lawrence began each morning throwing a topwater lure, using Garmin LiveScope to scan shallow bars for carp so he could avoid areas where they were congregating. On day one, the topwater put about 12 pounds in the livewell. On day two, it wasn’t nearly as productive, landing just one 3-pounder.

The rest of each day, he went hunting bass with LiveScope and mixed it up with a variety of lures, including a 5-inch Yamamoto Shad Shape Worm and a prototype spinnerbait from Buckeye Lures. The spinnerbait wound up being his primary bait on Sunday, and even though he dialed in on that lure, the fish didn’t come easy. He had to make constant adjustments.

“It was primarily shallow bars,” Lawrence added. “If you could find some brush, it was good. But honestly, I found a ton of fish just kind of roaming around on the bars, which is kind of unique. We don’t do a tremendous amount of that here.”

The best areas were mostly on the main lake and ranged from 3 to 10 feet deep. Avoiding carp and relocating roaming bass throughout the day were the biggest challenges. Lawrence said he looked at 75 to 100 spots during the tournament. Once he had a decent limit in the boat, he’d head for the drops in the mouth of the Big Sandy. He said this area is renowned for being home to big largemouths, so he went there to upgrade.

“I was going literally as fast as I can go,” said Lawrence, who landed a 6-pounder on Sunday to seal the win. “It’s a numbers game. Again, you don’t know where the next one’s going to come. So, it was really, really important to keep the trolling motor on 10 and roll around the lake.”

Reflecting on his recent success, Lawrence was proud of the support he’s received from Phoenix Boats. Just this season, he’s won more than $78,000 in Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus money. That’s money that he and his wife put toward a down payment on a new home.

There’s nowhere else that you can get that,” he said. “I just can’t imagine any other opportunity like that. I certainly cannot thank Phoenix enough for what they’re doing and how aggressive they are with their tournament fishermen. And why not? They make the greatest tournament boat on Earth, and the company is full of the greatest people on Earth.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:

1st:        Jake Lawrence, Buchanan, Tenn., six fish, 27-3, $12,517 (includes $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
2nd:       Edward Gettys, Dover, Tenn., six fish, 24-0, $2,759
3rd:       Harbor Lovin, New Concord, Ky., six fish, 22-12, $2,559
4th:        Eli Lubbehusen, Huntingburg, Ind., six fish, 21-8, $1,287
5th:        David Hames, Trezevant, Tenn., six fish, 20-10, $1,103
6th:        Harlan Thomas, Paducah, Ky., six fish, 19-12, $1,012
7th:        Levi Kohl, Edinburg, Ill., six fish, 19-11, $920
8th:        Ryan Kirkpatrick, Benton, Ky., six fish, 19-11, $828
9th:        Curt McGuire, Buchanan, Tenn., six fish, 19-7, $736
10th:     Keith Claridge, Oakland City, Ind., six fish, 19-6, $644

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Harbor Lovin of New Concord, Kentucky, caught a bass that weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $720.



Eric Law of Primm Springs, Tennessee, won the Strike King co-angler division and $2,759 Sunday, after bringing a two-day total of five bass to the scale for 15 pounds, 15 ounces.

The top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:

1st:        Eric Law, Primm Springs, Tenn., five bass, 15-15, $2,759
2nd:       Ed Daniell, West Frankfort, Ill., five bass, 15-10, $1,529
3rd:       Ethan Wheeler, Water Valley, Ky., five bass, 13-15, $1,019
4th:        Gabe Montgomery, Jackson, Mo., four bass, 13-8, $644
5th:        Zach Falder, Sedalia, Ky., five bass, 13-6, $552
6th:        Brant Gish, Evansville, Ind., five bass, 12-12, $506
7th:        Hunter Holguin, Knoxville, Tenn., four bass, 11-8, $460
8th:        Daniel Nolen, Lexington, Tenn., four bass, 11-0, $414
9th:        Cory York, Benton, Ky., three bass, 10-12, $368
10th:     Adam Lucas, Cape Girardeau, Mo., four bass, 10-6, $322

Danny Robinson of Fairland, Indiana, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $360, catching a bass that weighed in at 6 pounds even – the largest co-angler catch of the day.

At the conclusion of the event, Levi Kohl of Edinburg, Illinois, was crowned 2024 Fishing Clash LBL Division Angler of the Year (AOY) after finishing the season with 1,319 points and earned the $1,000 prize. John Lovin of Fayetteville, Ohio, won the Fishing Clash LBL Division Co-angler of the Year title with 1,312 points to earn the $500 award.

Up next for LBL Division anglers, the top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will compete in the Oct. 3-5 BFL Regional tournament on Pickwick Lake in Counce, Tennessee. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.

The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2025 BFL All-American will take place May 29-31, 2025, at Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and is hosted by hosted by Visit Hot Springs and the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism.

Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, PowerStop Brakes, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.

For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.



Catch Trophy Bass at Night with Local Secrets!

Brian Carter
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Catch Trophy Bass at Night with Local Secrets!
Bass fishing at night is a thrilling experience that differs significantly from daytime fishing. The heightened sense of hearing plays a crucial role, as anglers must rely on the sounds of their lures moving through the water and the explosive strikes from bass. This sensory shift makes the experience more intense and rewarding, as every subtle sound and sudden splash becomes a significant moment. The darkness adds an element of surprise and excitement, making every strike feel more dramatic and the anticipation more profound. Anglers who haven’t tried night fishing are missing out on one of the most exhilarating ways to connect with nature and target bass, experiencing the thrill of the catch in a completely new light. With the right preparation and mindset, night fishing offers a unique and unforgettable adventure that contrasts sharply with the daytime routine. The calmness of the night, combined with the adrenaline of reeling in a big bass, creates a memorable experience that keeps anglers coming back for more. Each night on the water presents its own set of challenges and exciting rewards.The new FreshBaitz Lizards deliver a realistic profile that excels in both power and finesse techniques. Act fact, we just released new Hot Sauce, MidNight, Ghost and 10w30 Syntheic Lizard designs! The unique forward-facing leg design creates drag that holds it in the strike zone longer or produces wild flapping action with every pull of the rod. Additionally, its slightly ribbed solid body and large head hold your hook in place and provide much better weedless performance making it the ideal bait to use in any condition. Water clarity always plays a super big role in color selection but in any season year-round, you can’t miss when using colors such as Watermelon Red, Black & Blue, or Green Pumpkin. Its flexible tail design ensures added movement, tempting even the most cautious fish. The superior 5.5-inch profile stretches to a whole 7 inches which is perfect for predatory fish including bass year round. Made from long-lasting durable high-grade non-salted plastic for total and maximum attention-grabbing action underwater.
Night bass fishing has been practiced for decades, gaining popularity alongside the development of modern fishing gear. Traditional techniques often involved simple lures, and today’s anglers have a variety of options to choose from, particularly soft plastics like worms, lizards, insect larvae, cray-styled baits, and beetles. While many anglers stick to these proven methods, there’s always room to experiment with different types of soft plastics to find what works best under the cover of darkness. The key is to understand that the basic principles of bass fishing remain the same regardless of the time of day. Anglers should feel confident using their daytime gear and techniques while remaining open to trying new approaches that might be even more effective at night. By experimenting with different retrieve speeds, rigging methods, and bait profiles, anglers can adapt to the unique conditions of night fishing and increase their chances of success. The quiet, calm waters at night often provide opportunities to refine these techniques. The absence of visual distractions allows anglers to focus more on the feel of the line and subtle changes in the bait’s movement. We use our Fresh Scorpion because it closely imitates a crawfish. Our newest 10w30 Synthetic, Slimer Green, and Barbie Pink Scorpion colors work wonders. The Scorpion is a revolutionary new look to soft plastics. Its intricate detailing and texture mimic the nuances of a real crawfish, making it hard for bass to resist. Of course, water clarity always plays a role in color selection but in any season, you can’t miss using colors such as Green Pumpkin Seed, Brown Bark, Magneto. This bait not only appears natural to fish but gives them something to become curious about. The Scorpion paired with a stand-up jig is deadly because the jig actually sits the bait upright in a defensive stance. The subtle color variations across the bait further enhance its appeal, mimicking the natural color shifts found in live prey. Each Fresh Scorpion has a unique and exclusive 3-axis tail design that is engineered like no other soft plastic bait. Our Scorpions are made by anglers from high-grade non-salt plastic to provide superior life-like action-triggering strikes!
Summer is the ideal season for night fishing, offering cooler temperatures and quieter waters compared to the daytime. Bass remain active throughout the night, allowing anglers to target them in both deep and shallow waters. The presence of a full moon can enhance the experience, as it encourages bass to feed more actively and provides natural light to navigate by. Even without a full moon, anglers can still find success by focusing on areas with good structure and cover. The combination of favorable conditions and fewer distractions makes night fishing a highly productive and enjoyable activity during the warmer months. The cooler nighttime temperatures can reduce angler fatigue, allowing for longer and more comfortable fishing sessions. Many seasoned anglers prefer fishing during the nighttime hours to avoid the crowds that often fill the lakes during the day, creating a more peaceful and focused environment. The reduced boat traffic means less disturbance in the water, increasing the chances of a successful catch. By knowing the prime conditions and adjusting strategies accordingly, anglers can maximize their success during summer night fishing.Our Fresh HellaMite is designed to imitate a major aquatic food source, delivering a realistic profile of an insect larva that fish can’t resist. Scented for complete and total attraction underwater along with being made in the USA by real fishermen just like you. Grab our newest Hot Sauce, MidNight, Glow, 10w30 Synthetic, Slimer Green, and Barbie Pink HellaMite colors. Act quickly, these new colors won’t stay in stock for long. We also recently restocked our Ghost, Red Bug, Purple Rain, Brown Bug, Electric Chicken, and Goby Wan colors. The HellaMite’s solid body and hyperactive ribbed tail design produce a life-like quivering action with every twitch of the rod. Additionally, its unique flat underbelly detail enables this bait to be fished as a drop shot, Ned rig, neko rig, and even a small Carolina-rig, making it the ideal bait in any condition year-round. When the water is clear, the fish can see the bait and look like real food, causing strikes. Each cast becomes an opportunity for an exhilarating catch, thanks to the HellaMite’s superior performance and versatility
Choosing the right lures and colors is critical when fishing at night. Dark-colored soft plastics, such as black or blue, are preferred because they stand out against the night sky, making them easier for bass to spot. In clear water, using soft plastics like worms, lizards, insect larvae, cray-styled baits, and beetles can be particularly effective, as these lures mimic the natural prey of bass and can entice strikes even in low visibility. In murkier conditions, these same soft plastics can still be highly effective, especially when paired with rattles or other noise-making features that bass can detect through their lateral lines. Knowing the water conditions and selecting the appropriate gear will greatly increase an angler’s chances of success when fishing after dark. Adjusting your retrieval speed and technique to match the activity level of the bass can also make a significant difference, as slower, more deliberate movements are often more enticing in the dark. Using sensitive rods and reels with a smooth drag system is essential, as it allows anglers to detect subtle bites. Incorporating scent attractants into your soft plastics can also enhance their appeal, especially when visibility is low. Our Fresh Beetle delivers ultimate versatility in a soft plastic bait. Its slim yet wide body design and four claws are engineered to naturally glide and wobble as it moves through the water. This design ensures they remain enticingly active longer than conventional baits. Its unique texture also provides a realistic feel, making bass hold on longer once they bite. Water clarity plays a big role in color selection but year-round you can’t miss when using go-to colors such as Chocolate Mint, Ox Blood, or 10w30 Synthetic beetles. The hyper-active swimming claws are designed thin with long-lasting durable non-salt plastic to make them come alive with the slightest movement. The Fresh Beetle offers an enticing 4-inch profile and is scented for complete and total attraction! You can rig these Beetles as a Jig/ Chatter Trailer, Flippin/ Punching, Texas Rig, Swing Jig, and Carolina Rig. Making the beetle beyond perfect in any weather condition year-round!
Safety is paramount when fishing at night, and proper preparation can make all the difference. Before heading out, anglers should ensure that their boat’s running lights are fully functional, as visibility is limited in the dark. Bringing two flashlights is a good practice, providing a backup in case one fails. Carrying essential tools like needle-nose pliers and insect repellent is important for addressing any challenges that may arise during the trip. It’s also wise to inform someone of your plans, including your fishing location and expected return time, to ensure help is available if needed. Wearing a life jacket at all times is crucial, as unexpected situations can occur, and it’s harder to respond quickly in the dark. Keeping your tackle organized and easily accessible will also minimize the need to search for gear. Being aware of your surroundings and using GPS or other navigation tools can help prevent getting lost, especially on unfamiliar waters. Staying calm and focused, even in challenging conditions, will help you make better decisions. Regularly checking weather conditions and preparing for changes can also enhance safety and ensure a more enjoyable experience while bass fishing.Using a stick-styled worm is the most tried and true ways to catch fish. We have a variety of 5-inch Worms to choose from but we just added new MidNight, Glow, and Ghost Worms! You can also experience our new wacky rigging kit while it’s ON SALE! The WACKY Pack offers our most popular colors and essential tools for wacky rigging. If you’re fast enough you might be able to grab the limited-release Pumpkin Spice Worm before it’s completely sold out along with some of our newest colors including the Brown Worm, Electic Chicken Worm, and Goby Wan Worm colors. The high-grade non-salt plastic they’re made from provides positive buoyancy and it even floats underwater! We also released new 6-inch Worms including Charmeleon, Rainbow TRT, Bone, Chocolate Mint, and Fire TGR are all available in 5 and 6-inch. We’ve also recently released new 8-count packs of worms available in Watermelon Red, Black & Blue, and Green Pumpkin. We also offer worms that have the unique ability to shift from one color to another. Scented for total attraction underwater.
Effective lure presentation is key to successful night fishing, particularly in shallow waters where bass often hunt for food. In these areas, soft plastics such as worms, lizards, insect larvae, cray-styled baits, and beetles can be particularly effective. These lures mimic the natural prey of bass and can entice strikes even in low visibility. Adding a rattle or choosing soft plastics that emit subtle vibrations can further increase the chances of drawing a strike, as bass rely heavily on their senses of hearing and vibration detection at night. The goal is to create enough disturbance in the water to capture the attention of bass. It’s also important to vary your retrieval speed and technique, experimenting with slow, steady pulls or more erratic movements to see what triggers a response. Focusing on areas with ample cover, such as weeds or submerged logs, can increase your chances of success, as these are prime spots for bass to ambush prey. By staying patient and adapting to the changing conditions, you can turn a challenging night into a rewarding fishing experience. Consistently fine-tuning your approach based on the bass’s reactions will enhance your overall effectiveness.Our newest FreshBaitz Mandingo Trick Worm is the ultimate game-changer for anglers with a passion! Engineered for the angler who knows SIZE does matter, this lure is designed to attract only the BIGGEST bass with a penchant for the larger bait. The Mandingo Trick Worm boasts a solid 7-inch body enhanced with a hyperactive ribbed design, ensuring irresistible mouth-watering action for those trophy bass. Officially available in a vibrant array of 8 colors. Each worm is made from durable, high-grade Non-Salted plastic for lifelike action and unparalleled durability. Perfectly balanced for a variety of rigging options and scented for total and maximum attraction, the Mandingo Trick Worm promises year-round effectiveness in lakes, rivers, and streams. Whether you’re rigging it on a Shakey Head, Drop Shot, Texas Rig, or Carolina Rig, these worms are your ticket to landing the big ones. Proudly made in the USA by real anglers to help elevate your fishing experience and catch more bass year-round!
Understanding the characteristics of local lakes can greatly enhance night fishing success. Lakes with clear water and abundant aquatic vegetation are often prime spots for nighttime bass fishing, particularly in shallow areas where bass are more likely to be feeding. While deep-water fishing can also be productive, many anglers find that targeting bass in the shallows at night yields better results. The presence of lighted docks or other structures can also be beneficial, as these areas tend to attract baitfish and bass. Anglers who familiarize themselves with conditions and features of their chosen fishing spots can develop more effective strategies for night fishing. Knowing the local weather patterns and moon phases can help predict when bass are most likely to be active. Consulting with local anglers or bait shops can provide valuable insights into what soft plastics or techniques are currently producing the best results in the area. Taking the time to scout the lake during the day can also pay off, as you’ll be better prepared to navigate and identify key fishing spots once the sun goes down. Combining this knowledge with strategies will improve your chances of success at night.We have a wide variety of terminal tackle to choose. For creature baits, we love to use the Stand-Up Jig because it sits your bait up-right in a defensive stance! Mosquito Hooks work for drop-shotting and perfectly accommodates a wide range of soft plastics. The popular All Purpose Hooks are built with an extra-wide gap and are made to accommodate a wide range of soft plastics. The Block Head Jig is perfect for ned rigging the HellaMite with its mushroom-style head that seamlessly matches a wide variety of soft plastics. The Offset Block Head Jig, offers the same mushroom-style head with a unique offset hook, making it a go-to for weedless Ned Rig applications. The Shakey Ultrahead can permanently secure baits by inserting the pin in the center and screwing the twist lock coil spring for perfect rigging every time! The Ultrahead Wacky Jig features precise weight positioning and hook orientation for the ultimate wacky presentations. For fast Texas rigging, we use the Bullet-Type Rig which has an attached weight saving you pressure time when fishing cover. The 4x Jungle Flippin Hook is designed for big fish and the toughest conditions. The Range Roller Jig Head is crafted for precision with its high center axis design, perfect for hover-strolling and mid to bottom strolling with forward facing sonar, ensuring an enticing rolling action.



Indiana’s Arnett Gets His First Win at the Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Detroit River Presented by Suzuki Marine

Brian Carter
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Indiana’s Arnett Gets His First Win at the Phoenix Bass Fishing League Event at Detroit River Presented by Suzuki Marine

Boater winner Jerry Arnett of Mexico, Indiana, and Strike-King co-angler winner Bryan Kalen of Massillon, Ohio.
Kalen, of Mooresville, Ind., Tops Strike King Co-Angler Division

TRENTON, Mich. (Aug. 26, 2024) – Boater Jerry Arnett of Mexico, Indiana, caught a five-bass limit weighing 22 pounds, 10 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on the Detroit River Presented by Suzuki Marine. The tournament was the fourth event of the season for the BFL Michigan Division. Arnett earned $3,514 for his victory.

In most Detroit River tournaments, anglers have options of staying in the river, running to Lake St. Clair or running to Lake Erie. Typically, the lakes dominate the top of the standings.

That didn’t matter to Arnett. He stayed in the river the whole time and fished the way he likes to fish. 

“I was fishing a jig, and I had to be moving the bait as slow as possible,” he said. “It’s just my cup of tea of fishing. I’m an old river rat, I guess. I just love fishing the river stuff better.”

In the river, he was able to target smallmouth bass on smaller rocky current breaks, rather than searching them out across vast flats in the lakes. His best areas were close to deep water, near the main river channel.

“They’re just like isolated areas,” he said. “It seems like where the fish congregate.”

Arnett started on his best spot in the morning and caught a limit. Once the fish quit biting there, he hit two other spots before circling back to the starting area and making a couple of crucial culls.

His jig was a simple 1/2-ounce green-pumpkin brush jig matched with various Zoom and beaver-style trailers. Casting a jig is old-school smallmouth fishing, which fits just right for Arnett.

“That’s my favorite way of fishing,” he said.

After 66 BFL tournaments, this is Arnett’s first win. And in every way, he’s the definition of a BFL weekend warrior. Arnett, 68, has been grinding it out in BFL events on a regular basis since 2011, all while managing the paving company he’s owned for 48 years. It’s a business that has him “still out there on the job every day working.”

Of course, this workweek will be a little different. That’s because when the pavers start rolling, they’ll be under the direction of a BFL champ.

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:

1st:        Jerry Arnett, Mexico, Ind., five bass, 22-10, $3,514
2nd:       Hunter Colwell, Sidney, Ohio, five bass, 21-9, $2,257 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
3rd:       Jonathon Dewey, Fort Gratiot, Mich., five bass, 21-2, $1,172
4th:        Clayton Reitz, Morton, Ill., five bass, 19-6, $820
5th:        Brett Haake, Shorewood, Ill., five bass, 19-1, $673
5th:        Nolan Mandel, Harrison Township, Mich., five bass, 19-1, $673
7th:        Brandon Cottrell, Germantown, Ohio, five bass, 19-0, $586
8th:        Matthew Davis, Morenci, Mich., five bass, 18-14, $527
9th:        Ryan Kwiecinski, Oak Forest, Ill., five bass, 18-11, $469
10th:     Jeremy Reese, Powell, Ohio, five bass, 18-10, $410

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Matt Nashadka of Massillon, Ohio, caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds, 14 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $450.



Bryan Kalen of Mooresville, Indiana, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,995 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that also totaled 22 pounds, 10 ounces.

The top 11 Strike King co-anglers finished:

1st:        Bryan Kalen, Mooresville, Ind., five bass, 22-10, $1,995
2nd:       Tommy Bayer, Cincinnati, Ohio, five bass, 17-13, $886
3rd:       Robert Miller, Litchfield, Mich., five bass, 17-4, $591
4th:        John Wall, Western Springs, Ill., five bass, 16-14, $414
5th:        Scott Davis, Morenci, Mich., five bass, 16-12, $355
6th:        Terry Bucciarelli, Ypsilanti, Mich., five bass, 16-8, $575
7th:        Greg Shaughnessy, Miami, Fla., five bass, 16-7, $295
8th:        Jason Cook, Edwardsburg, Mich., five bass, 15-12, $266
9th:        Josh Morrison, Whitehouse, Ohio, five bass, 15-11, $236
10th:     Freddy Adkins, East Bernstadt, Ky., five bass, 15-5, $196
10th:     Daniel Dumais, Trenton, Mich., five bass, 15-5, $196

Kalen also earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $222, catching a bass that weighed in at 6 pounds, 1 ounce – the largest co-angler catch of the day.

After four events, Nolan Mandel of Harrison Township, Michigan, leads the Fishing Clash Michigan Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 989 points, while Scott Davis of Morenci, Michigan, leads the Fishing Clash Michigan Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 981 points.

The next event for BFL Michigan Division anglers will be held Sept. 21-22, at the Detroit River in Trenton, Michigan. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call (270)-252-1000.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional tournament on Pools 13-17 of the Mississippi River in Quad Cities, Illinois. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard.

The 2024 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 Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2025 BFL All-American will take place May 29-31, 2025, at Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and is hosted by hosted by Visit Hot Springs and the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism.

Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, PowerStop Brakes, REDCON1, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, WIX Filters and YETI.

For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.



Best Braid Ever Now Available – DAIWA

Brian Carter
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Best Braid Ever Now Available – DAIWA
Best Braid Ever Now Available
DAIWA partners with Japan’s XBRAID to bring the world’s finest braided fishing lines to the North American market.
FOOTHILL RANCH, CA (August 27, 2024) – A 70 year old company that stands as the world’s largest fishing line manufacturer is impressive, to say the least. Add in that their premium house brand – XBRAID – is now available to the North and South American markets via DAIWA, and serious freshwater and saltwater anglers are in for a real treat.XBRAID states that being the world’s number one fishing line manufacturer requires bringing together skilled employees and fishing’s most advanced manufacturing facility. The brand charter goes on to say they want to create a sustainable society where people, the sea, and the forests coexist in harmony with the morals and spirit of people who love fishing. “We have a gratitude for nature in our hearts and will gain the support of anglers around the world and pave the way for the future.”That’s deep…and meaningful. 
PARTNER AND NORTH AMERICAN DISTRIBUTOR“XBRAID is the ideal addition to DAIWA’s already wide spectrum of fishing lines,” said DAIWA Marketing Manager, Marc Mills. “It sits at the top of the food chain amongst all braided fishing line brands in the North American market and is much more technologically advanced. It really caters to the angler that wants to take his or her fishing techniques and performance to another level – a level they’ve never dreamed of achieving.”Developed for elite-level anglers who have fished every option on shelves, XBRAID presents a species and technique-specific fishing line to align with their arsenal of species and technique-specific rods and reels.“XBRAID takes fishing to a performance level anglers have never been, or thought of going in freshwater and saltwater,” said Mills. “Do yourself a favor and fish a spool. Its performance will trump anything you’ve ever cast.” 
XBRAID TECHNOLOGYThe company’s proprietary “WX Method” has revolutionized the manufacturing of PE (polyethylene) braided fishing lines. Most competing PE lines are braided using a method called “Kakuuchi.” The raw threads wound around the bobbins, which rotate clockwise and counterclockwise, are pulled out little by little and are braided while crossing each other to form a single line. And like when line is released from a spinning reel, when the raw thread is pulled out from the bobbin, the thread becomes twisted. In the case of XBRAID and its WX Method, the clockwise bobbin is turned clockwise, and the counterclockwise bobbin is turned counterclockwise, so the combined raw threads result in a straight, well-balanced line with high linear strength and no twists.Just like a rubber band returns to its original shape when you let go of it after twisting it, even if XBRAID twists during fishing, one of the threads becomes over-twisted and the other thread is untwisted, so it returns to its original shape. Reducing twist means that when a knot is tied it’s less likely to float, too, reducing any loss of strength. In addition, because the knot is turned, it is firmly solidified, like a tightly wrung rag, so it has the advantage of being highly abrasion-resistant and drains easily.Above all, because XBRAID returns to its original shape by its own force, the structural stretch and strength are maintained to extend the life of the line. Further evolving the technology, in 2019 XBRAID launched a double-structure PE line whereby a sheath thread is braided around a core thread using the WX Method. In addition to the increased structural strength due to the core-sheath structure, the coating is applied with pressurized resin processing, which makes the coating last longer. 
XBRAID HISTORYXBRAID’s 70 years history began with the establishment of the Yotsuami Tsuriito Nakanishi Factory in 1949.Company President, Nakanishi Saburo, trained in the days of real and artificial fishing line. In 1949, the company was founded as “Yotsuami Fishing Line Nakanishi Factory”. In 1950, the Four-Strand Fishing Line Research Institute Fishing Line Factory was established behind Fukura Station on Japan’s Awaji Island. In 1953, the company obtained a utility model patent for “Yotsuami Fishing Line”, a fishing line with a twist that does not move and does not slacken.In 1989, the manufacturing department of the Yotsuami Fishing Line Nakanishi Factory was separated and incorporated, and Nakanishi Shigeru established YGK Co., Ltd. During the era when fishing lines were changing from nylon monofilament and polyester braided lines to PE lines, Nakanishi made numerous inventions, and in 2005, he created the string-making method that became the basis of the now WX Method.”Thinner and stronger fishing lines change the tools and fishing methods. If you make a good product, it will surely be accepted. I want to show the world the best line under the brand name XBRAID someday,” said Saburo. Those words became the trigger for launching the new brand.Then, in the first year of the Reiwa Era (232nd era of the official calendar of Japan), the baton was passed to new management. With the words of the previous president in mind, the team combined the inherited technology with new ideas to bring the best lines to the world, and this was the birth of XBRAID.
For Daiwa’s latest color catalog and/or information on Daiwa dealers in your area, call Daiwa’s Customer Service Department at 562-375-6800 or e-mail inquiries to: [email protected]. The URL for Daiwa’s web site is daiwa.us



Browning/Gagliardi and Becker/Shuffield Advance after Day 2 Elimination Round at General Tire Team Series B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota

Brian Carter
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Browning/Gagliardi and Becker/Shuffield Advance after Day 2 Elimination Round at General Tire Team Series B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota

Four new teams compete in Erie’s Presque Isle Bay, Team U.S. Air Force (Browning/Gagliardi) catches 76 largemouth weighing 110 pounds, 11 ounces to finish atop the leaderboard

ERIE, Pa. (Aug. 26, 2024) – Although anglers had to contend with rainy, overcast conditions for the first half of the competition day, even water from the sky couldn’t dampen the second day of competition at the season-opening event of the 2024 General Tire Team Series Presented by Bass Pro Shops.

Teams took off and began their 30 minute ride-around under sunny conditions, with no rain in the forecast. However, a storm rolled in right after takeoff, lingering over the fishery most of the morning as four new teams launched at Erie’s Presque Isle Bay for the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota.

Link to HD Video Clip of Day 2 Elimination Round Highlights
Link to Photo Gallery of Day 2 Elimination Round On-The-Water Highlights

Team U.S. Air Force, made up of pros Stephen Browning of Hot Springs, Arkansas, and Anthony Gagliardi of Prosperity, South Carolina, quickly rose to the top of the leaderboard Monday, catching 76 largemouth bass weighing 110 pounds, 11 ounces, to earn the win after the Day 2 Elimination Round. The duo will now advance to the Knockout Round along with second-place finishing Team B&W Trailer Hitches – pros Matt Becker of Ten Mile, Tennessee, and Spencer Shuffield of Hot Springs, Arkansas – who caught 50 bass weighing 88 pounds even to finish in second. 

The entire field spent the day trying to duplicate what Team U.S. Air Force accomplished in the opening period alone. With only 23 scorable bass caught by the entire field during the opening period on the first day of competition, Team U.S. Air Force blew that out of the water, catching 27 scorable bass weighing 40 pounds, 6 ounces, in the opening period on Monday, often weighing them in two at a time throughout the day.

Although Browning and Gagliardi each caught more than 20 pounds in the first period, the duo said they fished a quarter of a mile after Lines In before catching their first fish.

“We had a few bites, and caught one scorable bass, but we were still looking for them” said Browning. “Then we got to an area and caught two back-to-back, so we settled in there. We started off throwing the little Z-Man Chatterbait MiniMax. We had some clouds, some rain and a little bit of wind this morning, and that bait really showed out in those conditions. We pretty much just let the ChatterBait and the weather conditions dictate the first period.

“I think with the clouds and everything this morning, the fish were probably a little bit more active on moving baits,” Browning continued. “We were able to catch quite a few during the rain, and that got us clued in on an area, which was really key for us.”

Gagliardi said when they caught the third bass in the same spot, he knew they were on to something.

“I knew if they were biting that ChatterBait, they’d bite a worm,” said Gagliardi. “So I picked up a worm and started throwing it, hoping I could get bites on the worm while Browning was throwing the ChatterBait, and we’d have two different things going on.”

And it worked, for a bit. As the day went on, the ChatterBait bite died out, so Browning ditched the moving bait and picked up a worm as well.

“We threw that worm every which way – wacky worm, put it on a jighead, shaky style – it really didn’t matter how we rigged it, it was just a matter of getting it around them today,” said Browning. “There are a couple thousand acres out there to try to cover, and thankfully we guessed right in the beginning and got in an area that we felt like might have some water moving through it.”

That area was a big grass mat in about 8 to 12 foot of water, right in the middle of Presque Isle Bay.

“What we found was a giant grass clump, but the water’s deep on either side of it,” Browning said. “It’s got some cover and a little bit of current – evidently it has a ton of bait – and if you can get all three of those in one area, that’s a good indicator that there’s going to be some good fish there.”

And there were. Around 60 scorable largemouth, to be exact.

“We were really just fishing slow around the edges of a big grass mat, not really covering much water,” said Gagliardi. “But it seemed like every 50 to 100 yards, we’d run into another fresh group of fish and get some bites. Those fresh fish helped us maintain the lead that we had over second all day long.”

It’s no secret there’s a lot of grass in Presque Isle Bay, and although there have been fish caught in eel grass over the past two days, the teams that are punching their ticket to the next round seem to have dialed in on the big schools of largemouth camped out in the milfoil.

“The trick for us was to just keep the bait clean,” said Browning. “There’s a lot of milfoil and eel grass in here, so whatever we could throw in this dense grass, and keep it clean, seemed to be the deal. The grass is really the ticket out there right now.

“The rock walls with grass lines are definitely holding some bass, but they must have been hit hard yesterday. Out on these big, expansive areas of grass, there’s a lot of real esate – not only for the bass, but for the bluegill and gobies and other baitfish that these bass are feeding on.”

The U.S. Air force team said they spent the day fishing along those grass lines until they caught one, then hunkered down in that area and waited for more.

“That was the key,” Browning said. “They really came in flurries throughout the day, so once you caught one, you could almost count on catching at least three or four more with it. Sometimes we’d catch seven or eight with it. I found a few with the [Lowrance] Active Target, but the majority of the ones we caught were pretty much just from casting blind.

“The fish seemed like they were high in the water column and aggressive this morning, but once the sun poked out later on in the day, the brighter conditions moved them down to the bottom and that’s where the worm really shone,” Browning continued. “It was just kind of a one-two punch and it worked out for us.”

Team B&W Trailer Hitches pros Matt Becker and Spencer Shuffield settled into the second place spot early Monday morning and were able to maintain that position throughout the competition day. Becker is no stranger to Lake Erie – he grew up fishing on the famed bass factory and is one of the only anglers with extensive experience on the fishery. That experience paid off for him and his teammate.

“We had a lot of bites, a lot of catches and only lost one fish each, so we can’t complain,” said Becker. “We’re moving on to the Knockout Round, so it will be a new day, with possibly a new body of water, and we’re ready.”

Becker spent most of the day pitching a tube around the rock walls and grass, while Shuffield threw a vibrating jig.

“Man, today was fun,” said Shuffield. “Jacking on them with a big line, flipping a tube, flipping a jig, throwing a ChatterBait. We even caught a couple on a dropshot rig. It was a great day of fishing and we’re really looking forward to the Knockout Round.”

The results from the Day 2 Elimination Round at the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota are:

1st:          Team U.S. Air Force, 76 bass, 110-11
                Stephen Browning, Hot Springs, Ark., 40 bass, 60-3
                Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, N.C., 36 bass, 50-8
2nd:        Team B&W Trailer Hitches, 50 bass, 88-0
               Matt Becker, Ten Mile, Tenn., 27 bass, 48-10
               Spencer Shuffield, Hot Springs, Ark., 23 bass, 39-6
3rd:        Team Builders FirstSource, 38 bass, 58-1
               Michael Neal, Dayton, Tenn., 21 bass, 30-4
               Dean Rojas, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., 17 bass, 27-13
4th:         Team 7 Brew Coffee, 27 bass, 42-6
               Adrian Avena, Vineland, N.J., 12 bass, 18-10
               Mark Daniels Jr., Tuskegee, Ala., 15 bass, 23-12

Complete results from throughout the week can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Overall, there were 191 bass weighing 299 pounds, 2 ounces caught by the four teams during the Day 2 Elimination Round on Presque Isle Bay. Team B&W Trailer Hitches pro Matt Becker caught the Berkley Big Bass of the day – a largemouth weighing 3 pounds, 11 ounces.  

The B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota is hosted by VisitErie and takes place over six days in Erie, Pennsylvania. The competition water for each day is top-secret and is only revealed to the anglers after they arrive at the host hotel each morning.

Anglers depart the host hotel in Erie each morning at 4:30 a.m. ET. They are driven directly to the day’s competition area launch ramp by their officials. Competition begins on the water at 7:45 a.m.

The MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live every day of competition from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET. MLFNOW!® is live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com, the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app and Rumble.

The Challenge Cup features 12 two-man teams divided into three groups as they enter the one-day Elimination Rounds. Each of the three Elimination Rounds will feature four new teams, with the top two teams from each of the Elimination Rounds advancing to the Knockout Rounds on Days 4 & 5. In the Knockout Rounds, three teams will compete each day, with the top two teams from each Knockout Round moving on to the Championship Round on Day 6. In Friday’s Day 6 Championship Round, the final four teams will compete in a one-day shootout to determine which team will win the 2024 B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota.

The 2024 General Tire Team Series is comprised of four events – Challenge Cup, Heritage Cup, Patriot Cup and Summit Cup – featuring two-man teams of MLF Bass Pro Tour pros competing from the same boat. Each event features a roster of 24 anglers, teamed up and working together to claim part of a season purse of more than $720,000. Teams were formed through a selection process, where 48 team captains – based on Fishing Clash Angler of the Year (AOY) standings throughout the 2024 Bass Pro Tour season – selected a teammate. Teams will compete throughout the fall of 2024.

Television coverage of the B&W Trailer Hitches Challenge Cup Presented by Toyota will premiere on Outdoor Channel as six two-hour episodes starting in January 2025. New MLF General Tire Team Series episodes will premiere each Saturday morning on Outdoor Channel and posted to MOTV.

Proud sponsors of the MLF General Tire Team Series include: 7 Brew Coffee, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Barbasol, Bass Boat Technologies, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, BUBBA, Builders FirstSource, C-MAP, Coign, Epic Baits, Ferguson, Fishing Clash, General Tire, Knighten Industries, Kubota, Lowrance, Lucas Oil, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Nitro Boats, Onyx, Plano, Power-Pole, Ranger Boats, Rapala Baits, REDCON1, Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff, Star brite, Toyota, USAA, WIX Filters and YETI.

For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the General Tire Team Series Presented by Bass Pro Shops, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook , X, Instagram and  YouTube.



Chad Green Wins Basskings event on Smith Mountain Lake with 20.94lbs

Brian Carter
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Chad Green Wins Basskings event on Smith Mountain Lake with 20.94lbs

What a start to the CATT Basskings season on Smith Mountain Lake. Thirty one anglers fished the 1st stop of the 2024 season. Congratulations to everyone that cashed a check & we hope you enjoy the photos & videos bellow.

CLICK TO SEE RESULTS



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