PALATKA, Fla. (Oct. 25, 2021) – Boater David Lowery of Milledgeville, Georgia, brought a three-day total of 15 bass to the scale weighing 62 pounds, 15 ounces to win the Bass Fishing League Regional Championship Tournament at the St. Johns River . For his victory, Lowery earned $68,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro bass boat with a 200-horsepower Mercury outboard and $10,000, along with the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF contingency bonus. Lowery also received automatic entry into the 2022 Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American Championship, June 2-4, at Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Arkansas, as well as priority entry into the Toyota Series – the pathway to the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit and ultimately the Bass Pro Tour.
“The key to my victory this week was just keeping my head down and fishing,” said Lowery, who earned the seventh BFL victory of his career. “Catching 33-12 on the first day really helped the cause as well. I really had a bad practice, so I just put my head down and went. I had eight bites on that first day, and landed all of the ones that counted on top and that is very rare.”
Lowery said he caught his fish on a Spro Bronzeye Poppin’ Frog (Killer Gill and Rainforest Black) and a Big Bite Baits Tour Toad Buzzbait.
“I caught most of my fish within sight of the boat ramp, going south towards Lake George,” Lowery went on to say. “I also caught several key fish just north of Lake George, on seawalls.”
The top six boaters that qualified for the 2022 Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American were:
1st: David Lowery, Milledgeville, Ga., 15 bass, 62-15, $68,000
2nd: Christopher Chavis, Guyton, Ga., 14 bass, 59-7, $10,000
3rd: Robert Crosnoe, Inverness, Fla., 15 bass, 58-8, $5,000
4th: Matt Henry, Milledgeville, Ga., 15 bass, 57-5, $3,000
5th: Justin Kimmel, Athens, Ga., 14 bass, 52-6, $2,500
6th: Laker Howell, Guntersville, Ala., 15 bass, 49-11, $1,800
Rounding out the top 10 boaters were:
7th: Nathan Thomas, Weirsdale, Fla., 15 bass, 47-11, $1,600
8th: Levi Crossway, Jacksonville, Fla., 15 bass, 47-1, $1,400
9th: Kevin Izzi, Smithville, Texas, 15 bass, 41-7, $1,200
10th: Mickey McHenry, Eatonton, Ga., 11 bass, 38-1, $1,000
Lowery took home an extra $7,000 as the highest finishing Phoenix MLF Bonus member. Boaters are eligible to win up to an extra $7,000 per event in each Phoenix Bass Fishing League tournament if all requirements are met. More information on the Phoenix MLF BIG5 Bonus contingency program can be found at PhoenixBassBoats.com.
Randy Paquette of Sarasota, Florida, weighed in 11 bass over three days totaling 31 pounds, 10 ounces to win the top Strike King co-angler prize package of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro bass boat with a 200-horsepower Mercury outboard.
The top six Strike King co-anglers that qualified for the 2022 Phoenix Bass Fishing League All-American were:
1st: Randy Paquette, Sarasota, Fla., 11 bass, 31-10, $50,000
2nd: Kenneth Hunnicutt, Jacksonville, Fla., 12 bass, 30-7, $5,000
3rd: Samuel Jones, Fuquay Varina, N.C., 13 bass, 30-0, $2,500
4th: Steven Obester, Palatka, Fla., nine bass, 24-1, $1,750
5th: Harold Addison II, Columbia, S.C., 11 bass, 23-0, $1,000
6th: Chandler White, Covington, Ga., seven bass, 22-6, $900
Rounding out the top 10 Strike King co-anglers were:
7th: Chris O’Bryan, Harned, Ky., 10 bass, 21-2, $800
8th: Ernie Thompson, Anthony, Fla., 11 bass, 20-10, $700
9th: Will Thomas, Madison, Ga., 10 bass, 19-15, $600
10th: Giovanni Pizza, Boca Raton, Fla., seven bass, 19-11, $500
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