Compton wins Walmart Bass Fishing League South Carolina Division on South Carolina’s Clarks Hill Lake
OutdoorHub 05.13.13
Derrick Compton of Columbus, N.C., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 17 pounds, 12 ounces Saturday to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League South Carolina Division event on Clarks Hill Lake. For his victory, Compton earned $3,156.
“The key to this tournament for me were my areas,” said Compton. “There wasn’t really a pattern. It was real area-specific, and I had three pretty good spots.”
Compton fished in the mid-lake area, targeting points with grass. He fished shallow, targeting bass in 6 feet of water or less with a white and chartreuse-colored War Eagle spinnerbait on a 7-foot, medium-heavy Denali rod. He said that he also boated some bass on a Zoom Fluke, disco green-colored.
“I found these three areas in practice on Thursday,” Compton said. “They were about a 10-minute run south from the marina. On Saturday, I really milked them for as much as I could. There was a little lull in the afternoon, but I caught 10 to 12 fish throughout the day.
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., five bass, 15-2, $1,578 + $300 Evinrude Bonus
3rd: Ross Burns, Columbia, S.C., five bass, 14-12, $1,052
4th: Brian Tidwell, Seneca, S.C., five bass, 14-5, $736
5th: Chris Hadden, North Augusta, S.C., five bass, 13-10, $631
6th: Mike Bouknight, Greenwood, S.C., five bass, 12-6, $579
7th: Bradley Gunter, Greenwood, S.C., five bass, 12-5, $526
8th: Darren Ashley, Calhoun Falls, S.C., five bass, 12-2, $473
9th: Wallace Kniphfer, Cassatt, S.C., five bass, 11-6, $421
10th: Rob Thames, Lexington, S.C., five bass, 10-7, $368
David Clark of Moore, S.C., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 12 pounds, 4 ounces Saturday to win $1,578 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Collin Willis, Chesnee, S.C., four bass, 12-1, $789
3rd: William Young Jr., Eutawville, S.C., five bass, 9-7, $526
4th: Dale Webber, Kernersville, N.C., five bass, 9-3, $368
5th: Ron Figueroa, Appling, Ga., five bass, 8-5, $316
6th: Jerry Hayden, Charlotte, N.C., five bass, 7-6, $289
7th: Nicholas Ireland, Columbia, S.C., three bass, 7-5, $263
8th: Joseph Butler, Charlotte, N.C., three bass, 7-0, $237
9th: Andy Burgess, Greenville, S.C., three bass, 6-15, $210
10th: Christopher Labuz, Pawley’s Island, S.C., one bass, 6-10, $184
The next BFL South Carolina Division tournament is scheduled for June 15 on Lake Wylie in Lake Wylie, S.C. After the last divisional tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 3-5 Regional Championship on Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Ala. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 40 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and compete to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. The 2013 BFL All-American is being held June 27–29 on Nickajack Lake in Chattanooga, Tenn. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
