Kicker Carries Anders to Top Spot

Schnupp wins co-angler division on Hartwell

LAVONIA, Ga. – Michael Anders of Anderson, South Carolina, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 23 pounds, 13 ounces Saturday to win the fourth Walmart Bass Fishing League Savannah River Division tournament of 2015 on Lake Hartwell. For his victory, Anders earned $4,155.

“It was a nice payday,” said Anders. “I couldn’t have asked for a better day on the water.”

Anders said he spent his morning targeting the blueback herring along main-lake points using a pearl white-colored Zoom Super Fluke.

“At my second spot I caught a 6-pounder,” Anders said. “I set a nice pace and boated around 18 pounds of fish by 11 o’ clock.”

Chasing a kicker, Anders fished deeper and caught a few more keepers.

“I knew there was a tournament down on the south end of the lake,” Anders said. “I also knew anglers were fishing shallow, so I figured the 8-foot depths would be untouched.”

Around 1:15 p.m., Anders said he made his way to a spawning bed a mile north of the dam, near Powderbag Creek. Using a black and blue-colored Knights Custom Lures jig, he hauled in an 8-pound, 13-ounce behemoth, the largest fish of the tournament.

“Of the 30 bass I caught over the course of the tournament, that was the fish that sealed the deal for me,” said Anders. “I knew it pushed me well over 20 pounds.”

The top 10 boaters:

1^st:          Michael Anders, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 23-13, $4,155

2^nd:         Joseph Marks, Duncan, S.C., five bass, 16-3, $2,078

3^rd:          Chris Baxter, Winder, Ga., five bass, 15-7, $1,383

4^th:          Paul Ham, West Columbia, S.C., five bass, 15-6, $970

5^th:          Sean Skey, Sumter, S.C., five bass, 15-4, $831

6^th:          Scott Browning, Franklin, N.C., five bass, 15-1, $762

7^th:          Brian Latimer, Belton, S.C., five bass, 14-5, $693

8^th:          Stacy Lowe, Belton, S.C., five bass, 14-2, $623

9^th:          Matthew Roesch, Toccoa, Ga., five bass, 13-15, $554

10^th:        Greg Willimon, Pickens, S.C., five bass, 13-13, $485              

Complete results can be found here.  

Anders also caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the pro division, a fish weighing 8 pounds, 13 ounces, and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $570.

Schnupp wins co-angler title

Mike Schnupp of Powder Springs, Georgia, weighed in a five-bass limit totaling 14 pounds, 15 ounces Saturday to win $2,078 in the co-angler division.

The top 10 co-anglers:

1^st:          Mike Schnupp, Powder Springs, Ga., five bass, 14-15, $2,078

2^nd:         Darren Jeter, Marshall, N.C., five bass, 14-6, $1,039

3^rd:          Nathaniel Moore, Fairview, N.C., five bass, 13-1, $691

4^th:          Chester Tucker, Seneca, S.C., five bass, 12-15, $450

4^th:          Collin Willis, Easley, S.C., five bass, 12-15, $450

6^th:          Adam Fincher, Roebuck, S.C., five bass, 12-6, $381

7^th:          Travis Spivey, Tiger, Ga., five bass, 12-0, $346

8^th:          Brandon Brown, Chesnee, S.C., five bass, 11-7, $312

9^th:          Paul Smith, Ninety Six, S.C., five bass, 11-1, $277

10^th:        Michael Marano, Martinez, Ga., three bass, 11-0, $242

Moore caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division and earned the day’s Big Bass award of $285.

The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 15-17 Regional Championship on Lake Wateree in Camden, South Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.