BYRDSTOWN, Tenn. (March 3, 2025) – Boater Bryce McDonald of Paintsville, Kentucky, caught a five-bass limit weighing 19 pounds, 4 ounces, Saturday to win the MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournament on Dale Hollow Lake. The tournament was the first event of the season for the BFL Mountain Division. McDonald earned $3,679 for his victory. McDonald started the day throwing an Alabama rig around grass to put together a limit. At about 10 a.m., he made a move.
“The water cleared up up the river a little bit, and I ended up scoping them in a few pockets up there with an Alabama rig and a (Missile Baits) Spunk Shad in frosted purple,” he said. “(They were in) pockets they move up into in springtime. The ones I caught were 10, 15 feet suspended. They were probably in 25 foot of water.”
Upriver, McDonald was able to cull out four of his initial keepers while putting together a final limit that included one smallmouth over 21 inches and four quality largemouths.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Bryce McDonald, Paintsville, Ky., five bass, 19-4, $3,679
2nd: Jake Mattingly, Stanford, Ky., five bass, 18-14, $1,840
3rd: Christian Nash, Allons, Tenn., five bass, 18-10, $1,725 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
4th: Lucas Reagan, Byrdstown, Tenn., five bass, 18-6, $859
5th: Josh Womack, Gallatin, Tenn., five bass, 18-1, $705
5th: Isaac Peavyhouse, Jamestown, Tenn., five bass, 18-1, $705
7th: Cole Logsdon, Brownsville, Ky., five bass, 17-12, $613
8th: Colt Blanton, Piketon, Ohio, five bass, 17-10, $552
9th: Lee Sinclair, Albany, Ky., five bass, 17-7, $491
10th: Blake Smith, Byrdstown, Tenn., five bass, 17-2, $429
James Duffy of Livingston, Tennessee, caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds, 2 ounces, and earned the Big Bass Boater award of $480. Ben Carter of Lancaster, Kentucky, won the co-angler division and $1,840 Saturday, after bringing three bass to the scale that totaled 9 pounds, 6 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Ben Carter, Lancaster, Ky., three bass, 9-6, $1,840
2nd: Doug Back, Jackson, Ky., three bass, 8-11, $920
3rd: Dustin Forrest, Knob Lick, Ky., three bass, 8-9, $612
4th: Robert Jones, Whitley City, Ky., three bass, 8-1, $429
5th: Scott Bateman, Jasper, Ind., three bass, 7-13, $368
6th: Shane Bowman, Caryville, Tenn., three bass, 7-8, $337
7th: Parker Burgess, Granville, Tenn., three bass, 6-2, $307
8th: Allen Neal, Whitley City, Ky., two bass, 5-15, $516
9th: Caleb Edgerton Dayton, Ohio, three bass, 5-12, $345
10th: James Maynard, Marysville, Ohio, two bass, 5-6, $215
Allen Neal of Whitley City, Kentucky, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $240, catching a bass that weighed in at 4 pounds, 5 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
In addition to winning the event, Bryce McDonald of Paintsville, Kentucky, also has the early lead in the Fishing Clash Mountain Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 250 points, while Ben Carter of Lancaster, Kentucky, leads the Fishing Clash Mountain Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 250 points.
The next event for BFL Mountain Division anglers will be held March 22, at Dale Hollow Lake in Byrdstown, Tennessee.
https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/bfl-dale-hollow-5325.html
Bass Fishing League (BFL) News