Florien’s Reynolds posts third career win at Phoenix Bass Fishing League event at Toledo Bend Lake
Slaughter, of Dallas, Texas, tops Strike King co-angler division
ZWOLLE, La. – Boater Tater Reynolds of Florien, Louisiana, caught a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 3 ounces, Saturday to win the Phoenix Bass Fishing League Presented by T-H Marine on Toledo Bend Lake. The tournament was the third event of the season for the BFL Cowboy Division. Reynolds earned $3,845 for his victory.
In classic spring fashion, anglers fishing the Toledo Bend event saw borderline easy fishing evaporate on tournament day in the wake of an end-of-the-week cold front. Reynolds said that during the week prior to the tournament, consistently warm weather had pushed many bass to the banks to spawn, and it was possible to catch 20 to 30 pounds by sight-fishing. Just going down the bank throwing a vibrating jig, wacky worm or just about anything could produce 15 to 18 pounds.
“But this cold front finished them up on the bed or they just got finished in general during the week, and they were gone (from up shallow),” Reynolds said. “Four of my fish I weighed were postspawn.”
The tournament champ adjusted to the change by backing out of the shallows and targeting fish in 8 to 12 feet of water.
Despite high winds that roiled the lake and forced many competitors to stay closer to takeoff, Reynolds made the call to make a 44-minute run to the south end of Toledo Bend. He lives on the lake down south and said that’s where he feels most confident.
Throughout the day, Reynolds relied on forward-facing sonar to catch roaming bass or bass around standing timber, but it wasn’t the usual cat-and-mouse “digital sight-fishing” approach. Prior to the rain, there was heavy pine pollen on the water’s surface. Reynolds said the rain spread the pollen throughout the water, which clouded up his sonar imaging.
“It clutters the screen so bad that you can’t see your bait,” he said. “I don’t think I saw my bait all day long. What I would do is I would kind of see a glob – just a little speck (a bass) – out there, and I would throw my bait in that direction. And when I’d get the bite, I’d catch the fish, but I never did see my bait on the scope all day.”
Reynolds caught his fish on two presentations: a 6th Sense Juggle Minnow on a 1/8-ounce 6th Sense Finesse Swimbait Jig Head and a 6th Sense Provoke 97DD Jerkbait.
The Top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Tater Reynolds, Florien, La., five bass, 20-3, $3,845
2nd: Lane Haeger, Flint, Texas, five bass, 18-4, $1,773
3rd: Bill Cook, Houston, Texas, five bass, 17-8, $1,626
4th: Daniel Bryant, Scott, La., five bass, 16-13, $827
5th: Randy Brewer, Bedford, Texas, five bass, 15-10, $709
6th: Brad Smith, Longview, Texas, five bass, 15-8, $650
7th: Reese Ray, Glenmore, La., four bass, 13-15, $591
8th: Charles Dubroc, Hessmer, La., five bass, 13-13, $532
9th: Zack Fogle, Longview, Texas, five bass, 13-7, $973 (includes $500 Phoenix MLF Contingency Bonus)
10th: Ricky Guy, Humble, Texas, five bass, 13-3, $414
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Bill Cook of Houston, Texas, caught a bass that weighed 7 pounds, 8 ounces, and earned the Berkley Big Bass Boater award of $445.
Logan Slaughter of Dallas, Texas, won the Strike King co-angler division and $1,773 Saturday, after bringing five bass to the scale that totaled 15 pounds, 7 ounces.
The Top 10 Strike King co-anglers finished:
1st: Logan Slaughter, Dallas, Texas, five bass, 15-7, $1,773
2nd: Daryl Powell, Leesville, La., three bass, 12-14, $1,108
3rd: Allen Musser, Ada, Okla., four bass, 12-11, $502
3rd: Colton Hatzold, Montgomery, Texas, five bass, 12-11, $502
5th: Michael Glynn, Boerne, Texas, five bass, 12-3, $355
6th: Jeffrey Higgs, San Antonio, Texas, five bass, 11-10, $325
7th: Justin Overstreet, Brookeland, Texas, five bass, 11-9, $295
8th: Clay Carpenter, Joyce, Texas, five bass, 11-3, $266
9th: Todd Brown, Little Rock, Ark., five bass, 11-2, $236
10th: Al Longoria, Pottsboro, Texas, five bass, 10-14, $207
Powell earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $222, catching a bass that weighed in at 6 pounds, 15 ounces – the largest co-angler catch of the day.
After three events, Tater Reynolds of Florien, Louisiana, leads the Fishing Clash Cowboy Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 744 points, while Allen Musser of Ada, Oklahoma, leads the Fishing Clash Cowboy Division Strike King Co-Angler of the Year race with 715 points.
The next event for BFL Cowboy Division anglers will be held April 6, 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.