SENECA, S.C. (Feb. 6, 2017) – Ken Wheeler of Martin, Georgia, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 15 pounds, 6 ounces, Saturday to win the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Savannah River Division tournament on Lake Keowee. For his win, Wheeler took home the top award of $5,889.
“I started in Cane Creek and got my first bite on a brown Outkast football-head jig with a watermelon-red Zoom Super Chunk Jr. trailer,” said Wheeler, who earned his first career win in FLW competition. “I ran through three areas before moving to a mid-lake hole where I caught another on a Zoom Z Drop Worm rigged on a drop-shot in about 50 feet of water.”
Wheeler said he switched to a Fish Head Spin to catch his third fish out of some rocks that were 25 feet down.
“My first three bites were the only ones I had in those areas, so I had to keep moving,” said Wheeler. “I kept fishing nearby rocks with the Z Drop and caught four or five more to finish my limit. I culled a couple of times and ended up bringing in what I had.”
Wheeler said his total catch for the day included 15 keepers.
“I didn’t catch a lot of fish, but they were the right bites,” said Wheeler. “I mixed up my lures and kept trying something different and it worked out.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Ken Wheeler, Martin, Ga., five bass, 15-6, $5,889
2nd: Hunter Eubanks, Inman, S.C., five bass, 14-15, $3,764
3rd: Jeremy Strong, Elberton, Ga., five bass, 13-5, $2,198
4th: Anthony Marks, Spartanburg, S.C., five bass, 12-9, $1,232
4th: Vince Smith, Westminster, S.C., five bass, 12-9, $1,332
6th: Heath Pack, Mineral Bluff, Ga., five bass, 12-7, $995
6th: Greg Glouse, Liberty, S.C., five bass, 12-7, $995
8th: Todd Goade, Suwanee, Ga., five bass, 11-14, $805
8th: Conrad Bolt, Seneca, S.C., five bass, 11-14, $805
10th: Chris Nelson, Social Circle, Ga., five bass, 11-11, $664
Eubanks caught a 6-pound, 11-ounce bass – the largest of the event – which earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $920. Dwayne Parton of Anderson, South Carolina, weighed in five bass totaling 12 pounds, 14 ounces Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $3,044.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Dwayne Parton, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 12-14, $3,044
2nd: Jimmi Leuthner, Tamassee, S.C., five bass, 11-3, $1,422
3rd: Bob Brown, Seneca, S.C., five bass, 10-15, $1,408
4th: Shane Swann, Mars Hill, N.C., five bass, 10-14, $616
4th: Jody Rogers Sr., Clarkesville, Ga., five bass, 10-14, $616
6th: Douglas Bryson, Westminster, S.C., five bass, 10-13, $521
7th: Edward Cooper, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 10-3, $474
8th: Matthew Guffey, Simpsonville, S.C., five bass, 9-15, $403
8th: Brad Surett, Travelers Rest, S.C., five bass, 9-15, $403
10th: Ron Bryson, Mount Airy, Ga., five bass, 9-14, $332
Brown caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, weighing 4 pounds, 6 ounces, and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $460.