CAMDEN, S.C. (June 6, 2016) – Chuck Howard of Elloree, South Carolina, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 17 pounds, 11 ounces, Saturday to win the Bass Fishing League (BFL) South Carolina Division tournament on Lake Wateree. For his victory, Howard took home $5,718. Howard said he started out his day running a swimjig through mid-lake grass. He said he fished a long stretch, dialing in on specific spots he knew fish were congregating.
“I swam a black and blue-colored Dirty Jigs Swim Jig through the grass and caught a limit before 9 a.m.,” said Howard, who earned his second win in BFL competition. “After the sun came up and the air got hot, I started pitching a worm around docks.”
The South Carolina angler said he hit more than 50 docks using a Junebug-colored Zoom Trick Worm.
“I probably brought in 10 keepers over the course of the day,” said Howard. “They all came in less than 3 feet of water. I ended up weighing in three on the Trick Worm and two on the swimjig.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Chuck Howard, Elloree, S.C., five bass, 17-11, $3,718 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Ronnie McCoy, Lamar, S.C., five bass, 17-2, $1,709
3rd: Charles Story, Evans, Ga., five bass, 16-13, $1,138
4th: Steve Phillips, Lugoff, S.C., five bass, 16-5, $798
5th: James Buchanan, Monroe, N.C., five bass, 15-11, $684
6th: Wendell Causey Jr., Irmo, S.C., five bass, 15-9, $627
7th: Tom Rubbo, Lexington, S.C., five bass, 15-6, $570
8th: Brett Collins, Ridgeway, S.C., five bass, 14-4, $513
9th: Dustin Henson, Landrum, S.C., five bass, 13-10, $456
10th: Steve Thornhill, Pineville, S.C., five bass, 13-3, $399
Joey Sabbagha of Prosperity, South Carolina, caught a 5-pound, 13-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $420. David Hunt of Camden, South Carolina, weighed in five bass totaling 17 pounds, 11 ounces, Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $1,709. The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: David Hunt, Camden, S.C., five bass, 17-11, $1,709
2nd: Ronald Harrell, Mitchell, Ga., five bass, 12-9, $1,065
3rd: Ezell Mullinax Jr., Gaffney, S.C., five bass, 11-14, $570
4th: Ron Figueroa, Appling, Ga., five bass, 11-5, $399
5th: Adam Fincher, Roebuck, S.C., four bass, 10-11, $342
6th: Jonathan Stokes, Camden, S.C., four bass, 10-4, $313
7th: Jack Daniel Hoy, Hollywood, S.C., four bass, 10-3, $285
8th: Michael Thomas, York, S.C., four bass, 10-1, $256
9th: Mitchell Pare, Guyton, Ga., four bass, 9-12, $228
10th: Shawn Bailey, Starr, S.C., four bass, 9-4, $199
Harrell caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 5 pounds, 3 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $210.