MARBURY, Md. – The Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Northern Division event on the Potomac River provided solid fishing for the co-anglers with lots of limits hitting the scales. Earning the win and moving up from 20th on Day 1 to do it, Justin Bronson got the job done on his home river with a 37-pound, 12-ounce total.
On the final day, Bronson weighed 15-5 and edged out Jesse Colie by a single ounce for the win. For his efforts, Bronson takes home a Phoenix Boats package worth $33,500 and his first winner’s trophy with MLF.
In the Angler of the Year standings, Glenn Hall came out on top in the Northern Division with 737 points, earning an extra $2,000. Jakob LaBelle finished second, and Colegan Stiner finished third.
Finesse leads to success for Bronson
All three days, Bronson relied heavily on a Neko rig, which he made with a 1/16-ounce nail weight broken in half, a junebug worm and a 1/0 VMC Weedless Neko Hook. In fact, the finesse presentation accounted for 14 of his 15 bass.
“The first day, I fished with Robert Hoyt Jr,” he said. “We had a good day. It was tough fishing, but I caught a limit – we were up in a creek, fishing pads and stuff. The second day, I fished with Todd Rose, and we were more in open flats, and I relied on the Neko, too. With the amount of boats and fishing behind all these great anglers, I really leaned on the finesse.”
Day 3, Bronson caught more than 15 pounds to rally for the win.
“I made up a lot of ground there,” he said. “I fished with Jason Burger, and we made a long run. The first couple casts, I caught one almost 4 – it was a real morning bite, we had a big flurry, even while the tide was still high.”
On the pro side, supreme local Bryan Schmitt got the job done, and local knowledge was also important on the co-angler side.
“I was fishing painfully slow,” said Bronson. “I grew up fishing the Potomac. I’ve been fishing the Potomac since I was 12 years old. It makes a big difference in the confidence.”
Fishing at home, Bronson had his family on hand for the win.
“I’m planning on selling the voucher and trying to buy my first house,” he said. “I’ve got a 5-month-old baby, our first kid, and I need a place to stay. My other half and my son were there to see it go down; that was probably the best part.”
Top 10 co-anglers
1. Justin Bronson – 37 – 12 (15) – $33,500
2. Jesse Colie – 37 – 11 (15) – $4,378
3. Corey Henderson – 34 – 06 (15) – $3,422
4. Cornell Badra – 31 – 03 (15) – $2,995
5. Safulla (Safu) Rana – 30 – 09 (14) – $2,567
6. Kade Wesner – 30 – 00 (15) – $2,139
7. Michael Duarte – 29 – 15 (15) – $1,711
8. Tim McGlenn – 29 – 10 (14) – $1,497
9. Keyshawn Bratcher – 28 – 11 (14) – $1,283
10. Glenn Hall – 28 – 07 (13) – $1,219