Ott DeFoe Wins Lake Fork/Lake Athens MFL Event with 57-4lbs!

Last Period Charge Secures Win

By Tyler Binks

MLF Press Release

After five days watching the field battle with big bass at the General Tire Stage Three Presented by TrueTimber on Lake Fork, the Championship Round moved to Lake Athens.

Athens set up much differently than Fork and was a complete unknown to nearly every angler in the field. And while very little was known about this 1,799-acre lake located an hour south of Lake Fork, the day developed into one of the closest races seen in the final round of a Bass Pro Tour event.

That was until Ott DeFoe caught fire and turned a close tournament into an all-out blowout. His ascension to the top was quick and unrelenting.

With just over an hour to go, DeFoe found himself in fifth place with less than 20 pounds for the day, trailing then-leader Mark Daniels, Jr. by over 15 pounds. That’s when he turned things on and left the field in the dust.

In the end, he won by over 28 pounds.

DeFoe Rallies to a Landslide Win

DeFoe did most of his damage a short idle from takeoff, fishing near a bridge. He put on a clinic in the final 75 minutes of the day with a flotilla of bass boats, kayaks and pontoon boats getting a front-row seat to watch one of the best anglers in the world dominate the competition.

DeFoe’s fishing spot was so close to the ramp that he was easily the first angler back; when he put his boat on the trailer a few short minutes after lines-out, he was still trying to process what just happened.

This was surely what the other nine anglers were feeling.

DeFoe finished the day with 23 bass for 69 pounds, 12 ounces.

“That last hour was one of the more special hours that I have ever had in all of my time bass fishing,” DeFoe said.

He discovered his honey hole by watching his electronics, specifically side imaging.

2018 Bassmaster Elite Lake Oahe Day 3: MDJ Out in Front with 56-06 lbs!

Boyd Duckett 2nd, Casey Ashley 3rd. 

By James Hall

BASS PRESS RELEASE 

Drop shot key to Daniels' success.
(Photo: BASS)

Alabama’s Mark Daniels Jr., who vaulted to the lead in the Berkley Bassmaster Elite at Lake Oahe presented by Abu Garcia Saturday, distanced himself from the rest of the field today. The second-year Elite Series pro brought 17 pounds, 6 ounces to the scales for a three-day total of 56-6, which gives him a nearly 6 1/2-pound cushion going into Championship Monday.
 
“Man, it was tougher today. I need to get more bites,” Daniels said. “There is fishing pressure in the area, and I think the bass are starting to get hip to what’s going on. I had a lot of fish swim up and look at my bait and not bite today. The first day they would come eat it while it was sinking.”
 
Daniels is concerned that his school is almost fished out, so his impressive cushion does not make him overconfident. “Tomorrow, I’m going to expand on my area and probably try some new water. I need those 4-pound bites, and I feel like they will be pretty hard to come by if I stay where I’m at.”
 
Boyd Duckett made a huge surge to second place on the strength of a 16-pound, 6-ounce limit of smallmouth on Day 3. This pushed his total to 50-1. The Alabama pro and former Bassmaster Classic champion credits his success to fish management.
 
“During practice, I had found three schools of fish,” he said. “One was a community hole that a lot of guys found. One was a little less obvious. And my third was a little hidey hole that I was hoping nobody found.
 
“I started the first day on the community hole and then went and caught a couple on my second place. Yesterday I just fished my second spot and it had one other angler on it. Today, I finished out my limit on the hidey hole and nobody was on it. So, I feel good about starting there tomorrow.”
 

2018 FLW Tour Kentucky Lake Day 3: Lambert Controls with 74-06lbs!

Gustafson 5th, Haynes Leaves in protest 
by Curtis Niedermier
FLW PRESS RELEASE

His 30lb limit vaults Lambert 19lbs ahead of field.
(Photo: FLW)

Most folks assumed the FLW Tour event presented by Costa Sunglasses on Kentucky Lake would feature a final-day, down-to-the-wire duel between the two best ledge fishermen in the country, Randy Haynes and Jason Lambert. The two Tennessee Valley hammers were far in front of the rest of the top 30 coming into today’s third day of competition.

However, an unusual situation played out on Kentucky Lake this morning that, if you watched the FLW Live broadcast or followed the FLW coverage blog, you’re already aware of.

Shortly after takeoff, Lambert and Haynes both arrived on the same spot – a well-known community hole at the north end of the lake. It’s a spot that both anglers fished on days one and two. Lambert arrived first, and the two anglers ended up fishing side-by-side for several minutes. Lambert caught several keepers quickly. Frustrated by the situation, Haynes chose to give Lambert the spot and return to the ramp and finish his day early. Haynes officially finished with zero keepers today.

It was previously reported that Haynes had committed a rule infraction by failing to compete on a day in which he was qualified to fish. However, the tournament directors later clarified that, because Haynes did compete, there was no infraction. He voluntarily finished early.

Again, if you watched FLW Live or followed the blog, you know what happened next. Jason Lambert put an absolute beatdown on Kentucky Lake. By lunchtime, it was clear he had a mega-bag. By weigh-in time, it was clear he would be miles ahead of everyone else by the time the day was done. The only uncertainties were how big Lambert’s limit was, and exactly how far he’d be ahead of second place.

We got our answer back at Kentucky Dam State Park this afternoon, when Lambert weighed in a 30-pound, 8-ounce limit of bass, which was anchored by a 9-pound, 2-ounce giant. His three-day total stands at 74 pounds, 6 ounces. Scott Martin, now in second place, has 55-3. He’s 19 pounds, 3 ounces behind Lambert with one day left to fish.