Fleming Wins Bass Fishing League Tournament on Grenada Lake

GRENADA, Miss. (April 4, 2022) – Boater Dakota Fleming of Oak Grove, Louisiana, caught five bass Saturday weighing 14 pounds, 9 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League tournament on Lake Grenada . The tournament, hosted by the Grenada Tourism Commission, was the third event for the Bass Fishing League Mississippi Division. Fleming earned $2,890 for his victory.

“I had planned on fishing close to takeoff to start off, but when I saw there were five boats that had turned in that direction, I ran down the lake to start on my best spot,” Fleming said. “I thought we could pick up a few on the way and then cull at my best spot.”

Fleming said he had found a point that bled into some spawning pockets during practice, and his second pitch of the day resulted in a 2½-pounder that fell for a black and blue Yum Christie Craw. After that, Fleming said he relocated and kept looking for fish, but always ended back up on the point that was producing.

“It kept reloading, and the fish kept getting bigger throughout the day,” Fleming said. “My last two fish were my biggest. I caught six of my seven keepers in a bush that had a floating tree above it. It wasn’t attached; it was going up and down with the waves. If you could pitch just under the tree - not in the bush - you’d get bit.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

                1st:        Dakota Fleming, Oak Grove, La., five bass, 14-9, $2,890
                2nd:       Luke Glasgow, Guin, Ala., five bass, 13-15, $1,445
                3rd:       Evan Horne, Tuscumbia, Ala., five bass, 11-14, $964
                4th:        Will Dupler, Columbus, Miss., five bass, 11-3, $674
                5th:        Rick Pullen, Houston, Miss., four bass, 10-14, $908
                6th:        J.R. Dukes, Tillatoba, Miss., four bass, 10-2, $730
                7th:        Danny Carter, Hernando, Miss., five bass, 9-4, $482
                8th:        Brennon Murphy, Ackerman, Miss., five bass, 8-7, $433
                9th:        Timmy Ming, Louisville, Miss., two bass, 8-3, $385
                10th:     Chris Greer, Grenada, Miss., four bass, 8-2, $337

Pullen had a 6-pound, 10-ounce largemouth that was the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division and earned the day’s Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $330. Thomas Sanderson of Amory, Mississippi, won the Co-angler Division and $1,445 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 10 pounds, 14 ounces.

The top 10 Strike King co-anglers were:

                1st:        Thomas Sanderson, Amory, Miss., five bass, 10-14, $1,445
                2nd:       Adam Hickman, Caledonia, Miss., five bass, 9-10, $722
                3rd:       Keith Ramage, Raleigh, Miss., three bass, 7-14, $480
                4th:        Steve Ruth, Columbus, Miss., three bass, 7-13, $337
                5th:        Bobby Speake, Terry, Miss., four bass, 7-11, $389
                6th:        David Huey, Tupelo, Miss., three bass, 7-8, $253
                6th:        Zachary Barnes, Franklinton, La., three bass, 7-8, $253
                8th:        Scott Kirk, Houston, Miss., one bass, 6-14, $382
                9th:        William Herren, Gardendale, Ala., four bass, 6-11, $193
                10th:     Blake Koenigsberger, Columbus, Miss., three bass, 5-6, $169

Kirk caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 6 pounds, 14 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Berkley Big Bass Co-angler award of $165.

After three events, Evan Horne of Tuscumbia, Alabama, leads the Bass Fishing League Mississippi Division Boater Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 696 points, while Blake Koenigsberger of Columbus, Mississippi, leads the Co-Angler Division AOY race with 739 points.