Liberty’s Parrish posts second career win at Phoenix Bass Fishing League event at Sam Rayburn Reservoir
Jacksonville’s Beckham tops Strike King co-angler division
BROOKELAND, Texas – Boater Jaden Parrish of Liberty, Texas, caught a five-bass limit weighing 27 pounds, 11 ounces, Saturday to win the Phoenix Bass Fishing League (BFL) Presented by T-H Marine on Sam Rayburn Reservoir. Hosted by the Jasper County Development District, the tournament was the fourth event of the season for the BFL Cowboy Division. Parrish earned $11,052, including the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus, for his victory.
Anytime you catch 27 pounds of bass, you’ve had an incredible day. Interestingly, when reflecting on his win, Parrish felt like he left a little bit out there.
“I could’ve had more,” he said.
The biggest culprit was a fog delay that kept Parrish from fully capitalizing on the morning crankbait bite. Regardless, it was still an impressive outing.
Parrish began the day on a small secondary point; a transition area where fish were moving in and out of a spawning area. This was one of three areas he targeted with a deep-diving crankbait.
“I caught roughly 16 pounds on a 6th Sense (Crush) 300DD crankbait,” Parrish said. “And then after that I just rotated through like 50 brush piles and just got two big ones to bite throwing a 6th Sense Whale (swimbait).”
Those “big ones” were giants; a 7-12 and a 9-4 that won Berkley Big Bass for the day.
Parrish used Garmin LiveScope to check each brush pile before he made a cast. Those two big ones were the only good ones he spied – and the only bass he tried to catch off the brush.
It’s been an impressively successful spring for Parrish. In addition to this win, he finished in the top 13 at the Toledo Bend Toyota Series event, the January 6 BFL event on Sam Rayburn, the Tackle Warehouse Invitational on Rayburn and the Toyota Series event on Rayburn.
“It’s going pretty good right now,” said Parrish, who’s in third place in the Toyota Series Southwestern Division standings. “I need to keep it rolling.”
The Top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
- 1st: Jaden Parrish, Liberty, Texas, five bass, 27-11, $11,052 (includes $7,000 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
- 2nd: Bryan McDonough, Brookeland, Texas, five bass, 21-2, $1,796
- 3rd: Jerry Mason, Ragley, La., five bass, 19-12, $1,201
- 4th: Red Ballard, Sulphur, La., five bass, 19-11, $838
- 5th: Hayden Heck, Lufkin, Texas, five bass, 19-9, $718
- 6th: Neal Gilmore, Magnolia, Texas, five bass, 17-0, $659
- 7th: Dylan Sorrells, Dallas, Texas, five bass, 14-14, $599
- 8th: Maverick Winford, Humble, Texas, five bass, 13-7, $539
- 9th: Tiffany Hart, Marquez, Texas, five bass, 12-10, $479
- 10th: Jacob Keith, Jefferson, Texas, five bass, 12-3, $419
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Parrish caught a bass that weighed 9 pounds, 4 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $460.
Neill Beckham of Jacksonville, Texas, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,796 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 13 pounds, 12 ounces.
The Top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
- 1st: Neill Beckham, Jacksonville, Texas, five bass, 13-12, $1,796
- 2nd: Tony Irby, Baytown, Texas, five bass, 12-12, $898
- 3rd: Allen Musser, Ada, Okla., five bass, 12-1, $598
- 4th: Michael Glynn, Boerne, Texas, five bass, 11-10, $419
- 5th: Colton Hatzold, Montgomery, Texas, five bass, 11-9, $359
- 6th: Adrian Galvan, Deridder, La., five bass, 11-6, $329
- 7th: Zachary Hebert, Lake Charles, La., five bass, 11-0, $299
- 8th: Al Longoria, Pottsboro, Texas, five bass, 10-3, $254
- 8th: Tyrell Harmon, Manor, Texas, five bass, 10-3, $254
- 10th: Velin Sims, Spring, Texas, five bass, 9-12, $210
Jay Carranza of Houston, Texas, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $230, catching a bass that weighed in at 7 pounds, 14 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After four events, Tater Reynolds of Florien, Louisiana, leads the Fishing Clash Cowboy Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 984 points, while Allen Musser of Ada, Oklahoma, leads the Fishing Clash Cowboy Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 963 points.
The next event for BFL Cowboy Division anglers will be held Sept. 7-8, at Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Brookeland, Texas. To register for the event as a boater or a co-angler, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com or call 270-252-1000.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 17-19 BFL Regional tournament on Wright Patman Lake in Texarkana, Texas. Boaters will fish for a top award of $60,000, including a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki 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 or Suzuki outboard.
The 2024 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.
Proud sponsors of the 2024 MLF Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine include: 7Brew, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Berkley, BUBBA, E3, Epic Baits, Fishing Clash, General Tire, GSM Outdoors, Lew’s, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Suzuki, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Toyota 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.