SENECA, S.C. (March 10, 2025) – Boater Kerry Partain of Elberton, Georgia, caught a five-bass limit weighing 17 pounds even Saturday to win the MLF Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournament on Lake Keowee. The tournament was the second event of the season for the BFL Savannah River Division. Partain earned $3,505 for his victory.
The spawn is just getting going on Lake Keowee, and spawners would play a role in Partain’s victory. Just not right off the bat.
“I started out with (Lowrance) ActiveTarget, just catching some on a Zoom Winged Fluke on jigheads,” he said. “When I got to 12 pounds, I just left and started looking for some bedded fish. I caught a 6-pound, 2-ounce bass on a Zoom Fluke Stick wacky rigged. I saw two more after that, and I caught a few more on a shaky head with a Zoom Speed Craw.”
For his sonar fish, Partain prefers a more patient approach than many run-and-gun anglers have adopted. Instead of covering a ton of water, he sits tight in areas where he knows there are fish – in this case, an area where he’s been catching them the last few weeks – and waits for fish to funnel in and out. Whenever he sees the school, he throws on them. For the bedding fish, Partain benefitted from a fortunate “discovery.”
“I hung up on a dock, and I went up there to get it loose and saw it sitting there,” he said, referring to the 6-2 kicker he caught. “I would have never seen it. So I kind of backed off of it and kept throwing a few things in there, and it finally bit a Fluke Stick. It was kind of crazy. That was a gift for sure. Thank you, Lord.”
Reflecting on the win, Partain extended his gratitude to the team at 72 Marine Sales in Elberton, Georgia, which hooked up his lithium batteries last week in time for the tournament.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Kerry Partain, Elberton, Ga., five bass, 17-0, $3,505
2nd: Chase Stewart, Laurens, S.C., five bass, 15-14, $1,901
2nd: Furman (Joe) Thompson, Clayton, Ga., five bass, 15-14, $1,961 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
4th: Lane Parker, Waleska, Ga., five bass, 15-13, $818
5th: Logan Smith, Easley, S.C., five bass, 15-12, $701
6th: Britt Myers Jr., Lake Wylie, S.C., five bass, 15-8, $643
7th: Landon Lawson, Jonesborough, Tenn., five bass, 15-2, $584
8th: Jody Holland, Clermont, Ga., five bass, 15-1, $526
9th: John Micheal, Ortman Douglas, Ga., five bass, 14-15, $467
10th: Flint Davis, Leesburg, Ga., five bass, 14-13, $409
Partain caught a bass that weighed7 pounds, 11 ounces, and earned the Big Bass Boater award of $440. Chase Gurkin of Simpsonville, South Carolina, won the co-angler division and $1,753 Saturday, after bringing three bass to the scale that totaled 9 pounds, 1 ounce.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Chase Gurkin, Simpsonville, S.C., three bass, 9-1, $1,753
2nd: Rusty Odom, Simpsonville, S.C., three bass, 8-13, $876
3rd: Clint Jackson, Six Mile, S.C., three bass, 8-4, $497
3rd: Harold Grizzle, Gainesville, Ga., three bass, 8-4, $497
5th: Dax Liner, Mineral Bluff, Ga., three bass, 8-2, $351
6th: Don Meury, Marietta, S.C., three bass, 8-0, $306
6th: Brandon Lawson, Union, S.C., three bass, 8-0, $406
8th: Blane Holcombe, Inman, S.C., three bass, 7-15, $263
9th: Gibson Huntley, Inman, S.C., three bass, 7-14, $234
10th: Jeff Rikard, Leesville, S.C., three bass, 7-5, $204
Craig Monnin of Cumming, Georgia, earned the Big Bass co-angler award of $220, catching a bass that weighed in at 3 pounds, 15 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After two events, Lane Parker of Waleska, Georgia, now leads the Fishing Clash Savannah River Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 490 points, while Rusty Odom of Simpsonville, South Carolina, leads the Fishing Clash Savannah River Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 497 points.
The next event for BFL Savannah River Division anglers will be held April 12, at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, South Carolina.
https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/bfl-keowee-31025.html
Bass Fishing League (BFL) News