Harrison Wins Bass Fishing League Tournament on the Columbus Pool

COLUMBUS, Miss. (May 9, 2022) – Boater Cody Harrison of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, caught five bass Saturday weighing 14 pounds, 14 ounces, to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League tournament on the Columbus Pool. The tournament, hosted by Visit Columbus, was the fourth event for the Bass Fishing League Mississippi Division. Harrison earned $4,122 for his victory.

“I had a pretty early boat number and started out fishing a community area in the Columbus Pool,” Harrison said. “I spent my entire day going back and forth, fishing behind guys and trying to cover as much water and grass as I could.

“There was a shad spawn early in the morning, so I just stuck with that bite all day long,” added Harrison, who caught 12 bass during the day. “I culled three times and lost two I hooked up on, and I missed a few bites early.”

Harrison said he believes the key to his victory was the fact he was using a fluorocarbon line instead of the braided line that seemed to dominate the event. He said the fluorocarbon line aided his ability to feel bites on his white 3/8-ounce hand-tied swimjig that was given to him.

Harrison said the tournament was his first tournament experience on the Columbus Pool.

“I wasn’t expecting this win at all,” Harrison said. “Qualifying for the Regional Championship on Smith Lake now is just a huge weight off my shoulders. And I’ve had some top-5 finishes before, but to finally get this win is nice.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

                1st:        Cody Harrison, Muscle Shoals, Ala., five bass, 14-14, $4,122
                2nd:       David Watkins, Caledonia, Miss., five bass, 14-5, $1,561
                3rd:       Eddie Armstrong, West Point, Miss., five bass, 11-10, $1,043
                4th:        Nick Churchill, Brandon, Miss., five bass, 11-9, $1,103
                5th:        Jerry Gilliam, Ethelsville, Ala., five bass, 10-15, $624
                6th:        John Anderson, Baysprings, Miss., four bass, 10-6, $1,772 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
                7th:        Evan Horne, Tuscumbia, Ala., five bass, 10-2, $520
                8th:        Timmy Ming, Louisville, Miss., five bass, 10-0, $468
                9th:        Keith Brumfield, Vicksburg, Miss., four bass, 9-10, $416
                10th:     D. Scott Gibson, Hattiesburg, Miss., five bass, 9-1, $364


Churchill had a largemouth that weighed 4 pounds, 9 ounces that was the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division and earned the day’s Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $375. Joey Tanner of Meridian, Mississippi, won the Strike King Co-angler Division and $1,661 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 10 pounds, 5 ounces.

The top 10 Strike King co-anglers were:

                1st:        Joey Tanner, Meridian, Miss., five bass, 10-5, $1,661
                2nd:       Cameron Petras, Biloxi, Miss., three bass, 7-15, $781
                3rd:       Steve Shirley, Guin, Ala., three bass, 7-7, $521
                4th:        Colby Gaddy, Gordo, Ala., three bass, 7-2, $564
                5th:        Reggie Thornton, Columbus, Miss., four bass, 6-14, $312
                6th:        Glenn Rawson, Daleville, Miss., three bass, 6-5, $286
                7th:        Bryan Gibson, Arlington, Tenn., two bass, 6-3, $447
                8th:        Harpole Perkins, Pheba, Miss., three bass, 5-15, $234
                9th:        Ken Pecanty, Vicksburg, Miss., three bass, 5-14, $208
                10th:     Bobby Speake, Terry, Miss., three bass, 5-12, $182

Gibson caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 4 pounds, 10 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Berkley Big Bass Co-angler award of $187.

After four events, Evan Horne of Tuscumbia, Alabama, leads the Bass Fishing League Mississippi Division Boater Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 940 points, while Joey Tanner of Meridian, Mississippi, leads the Strike King Co-Angler Division AOY race with 928 points.