LAVONIA, Ga. (May 2, 2022) – Boater Jason Burroughs of Hodges, South Carolina, caught five bass Saturday weighing 18 pounds, 5 ounces, to win the MLF Bass Fishing League tournament on Lake Hartwell . The tournament, hosted by the City of Lavonia, was the third event for the Bass Fishing League Savannah River Division. Burroughs earned $13,472, which includes the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory.
“I fished the lower end of the lake from Andersonville Island to the dam,” said Burroughs, who tabs Lake Hartwell as his home body of water. “I caught 10 or 11 fish during the day, and they were all keepers.”
Burroughs said he focused on fishing blueback herring patterns by utilizing a white swimbait and chrome topwater bait, as well as a shaky-head rig to catch his bass.
“The fishing was just spread out all during the day,” Burroughs said. “I had one fish that weighed 6 pounds, 3 ounces, and it made all the difference in the world. I caught it at 1:45.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Jason Burroughs, Hodges, S.C., five bass, 18-5, $13,472 (includes $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
2nd: Greg Glouse, Liberty, S.C., five bass, 17-2, $2,436
3rd: Joe Anders, Easley, S.C., five bass, 16-5, $1,623
4th: Baylor Ronemus, Tiger, Ga., five bass, 15-10, $1,137
5th: Austin Davis, Pelzer, S.C., five bass, 15-7, $974
6th: Blake Campbell, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 14-13, $852
6th: Michael Webster, Gastonia, N.C., five bass, 14-13, $852
8th: Daulton Smith, Martin, Ga., five bass, 14-10, $1,466
9th: Darren Ashley, Calhoun Falls, S.C., five bass, 14-5, $609
9th: Jayme Rampey, Liberty, S.C., five bass, 14-5, $609
Smith earned the day’s Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $735 with a largemouth that weighed 6 pounds, 5 ounces. Sammy Evans of Hodges, South Carolina, won the Strike King Co-angler Division and $2,664 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 13 pounds, 5 ounces.
The top 10 Strike King co-anglers were:
1st: Sammy Evans, Hodges, S.C., five bass, 13-5, $2,664
2nd: Jason Goldman, Commerce, Ga., five bass, 12-4, $1,182
3rd: Gavin Ballew, Travelers Rest, S.C., five bass, 11-8, $670
3rd: Brandon Hendrix, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 11-8, $670
5th: Harold Grizzle, Gainesville, Ga., five bass, 11-7, $473
6th: Kevin Dye, Central, S.C., five bass, 11-5, $413
6th: Scott Gardner, Seneca, S.C., five bass, 11-5, $413
8th: Johnny Hancox, West Union, S.C., five bass, 10-15, $335
8th: Matthew Bourgoin, North Augusta, S.C., five bass, 10-15, $335
10th: Casey McQuerns, Appling, Ga., five bass, 10-13, $628
McQuerns caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 4 pounds, 8 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Berkley Big Bass Co-angler award of $352.