Winners of Phoenix Bass Fishing League Super Tournament

LAVONIA, Ga. (Oct. 2, 2023) – Boater Matt O’Connell of Brooks, Georgia, caught 10 bass weighing 31 pounds, 5 ounces, to win the two-day MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine on Lake Hartwell Presented by Harrison Oil Company in Lavonia, Georgia. The tournament, hosted by the City of Lavonia, was the fifth and final regular-season event for the Bass Fishing League South Carolina Division Presented by Mystik Lubricants. O’Connell earned $14,448 for his victory, including the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF contingency bonus.

“I got to Hartwell on Thursday and started looking around to see how things were setting up,” said O’Connell, who finished second in the Phoenix Bass Fishing League 2023 All-American Championship at Lake Hartwell in June. “I found some big schools set up in places, and that led me down the path I would continue on for the rest of the weekend. I just picked up all the different blueback (herring) style baits and ran all over the lake fishing the big schools and brush piles and dialing it in as the weekend continued.”

O’Connell said he caught more keepers than short fish during the two-day event but never felt confident his weight would be enough for a win.

“I thought after Day 1 if I could duplicate that weight, I might have a shot at a win,” O’Connell said. “My goal was to get the same weight, basically. But at Hartwell, anybody can catch 20 pounds, and a bunch of guys had 11, 12, and 13 pounds after the first day, so I was super worried.

“This win definitely feels good,” O’Connell continued. “I’ve fished close to a hundred BFLs and hadn’t won one, and it definitely feels a little different than when you finish second or third.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

        1st:    Matt O’Connell, Brooks, Ga., 10 bass, 31-5, $14,448 (includes $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)

        2nd:    Joe Anders, Easley, S.C., 10 bass, 28-14, $2,824

        3rd:    Emil Wagner, Marietta, Ga., 10 bass, 27-2, $1,882

        4th:    Robert Clarke III, Pineville, S.C., 10 bass, 26-11, $1,318

        5th:    Bradford Beavers, Summerville, S.C., 10 bass, 25-4, $1,130

        6th:    Scott Hamrick, Denver, N.C., 10 bass, 24-8, $1,035

        7th:    Troy Morrow, Eastanollee, Ga., 10 bass, 24-7, $1,691

        8th:    Chris Dover, Blacksburg, S.C., 10 bass, 23-4, $847

        9th:    Brad Benfield, Demorest, Ga., 10 bass, 23-1, $753

        10th:   Jeremy Bouldin, Kings Mountain, N.C., 10 bass, 23-0, $659

Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Troy Morrow of Eastanollee, Georgia, had a bass that weighed 4 pounds, 10 ounces that was the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $750.

Wesley Mullins of Guyton, Georgia, won the Strike King Co-angler Division and $3,199 Sunday after catching a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 20 pounds, 15 ounces.

The top 10 Strike King co-anglers were:

        1st:    Wesley Mullins, Guyton, Ga., 10 bass, 20-15, $3,199

        2nd:    Bobby Henderson, Charlotte, N.C., 10 bass, 17-9, $1,812

        3rd:    Thomas Pennell III, Boiling Springs, S.C., 10 bass, 17-7, $940

        4th:    Kevin Henderson, Honea Path, S.C., 10 bass, 15-5, $659

        5th:    Ashley Klaus, Thomson, Ga., nine bass, 15-4, $565

        6th:    Dylan Locklear, Elgin, S.C., seven bass, 14-13, $518

        7th:    Jacob Yaden, Evans, Ga., 10 bass, 14-13, $621

        8th:    Mark Garrett, Walhalla, S.C., 10 bass, 14-1, $424

        9th:    Rob Nicholson, Union Mills, N.C., nine bass, 13-13, $377

        10th:   Lonnie Drusch, Sumter, S.C., nine bass, 13-9, $329

Mullins also caught the largest bass in the Strike King Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 5 pounds, 14 ounces. The catch earned him the Berkley Big Bass Co-angler award of $375.

With the regular season now complete, boater Troy Morrow of Eastanollee, Georgia, won the 2023 Bass Fishing League South Carolina Division Presented by Mystik Lubricants Boater Angler of the Year (AOY) race with a five-event total of 1,275 points to earn the $1,000 boater AOY award. Wesley Mullins of Guyton, Georgia, won the 2023 Strike King Co-Angler South Carolina Division Presented by Mystik Lubricants AOY race with 1,310 points and earned the $500 Strike King Co-angler of the Year award.

Now, the top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the division based on point standings, along with the five winners of each qualifying event, will advance to compete in the Oct. 19-21 Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on Lake Norman in Huntersville, North Carolina. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury outboard and $10,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $50,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury outboard.

The 2023 Phoenix BFL Presented by T-H Marine is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 events throughout the season, five qualifying tournaments in each division. The top 45 boaters and Strike King co-anglers from each division, along with the five qualifying event winners, will advance to one of six BFL Regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American.

The top 45 boaters and Strike King co-anglers plus tournament winners from each Phoenix Bass Fishing League division will also earn priority entry into the MLF Toyota Series, the pathway to the MLF Tackle Warehouse Invitationals and ultimately the MLF Bass Pro Tour.

Proud sponsors of the 2023 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 13 Fishing, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, Black Rifle Coffee, E3, Epic Baits, Favorite Fishing, General Tire, Grundéns, Gill, Lew’s, Lowrance, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Mystik Lubricants, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota, Wiley X and YETI.

For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular Bass Fishing League updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

About Major League Fishing

Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, the Discovery Channel, the Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, the World Fishing Network and on-demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 13 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.