Mason Brock went to bed to win the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Weekend Series, operated by American Bass Anglers, Georgia Division 8 opener, held Feb. 4, 2012, on Lake Seminole.

Running out of Bainbridge Earle May Boat Basin Marina to fish the 37,500-acre impoundment on the Georgia-Florida line, the Marianna, Fla., angler brought in five bass for 20.35 pounds. For the Boater Division victory, he took home a check for $2,409.

“I fished all over the lake,” Brock admitted. “Every fish I caught came off a bed. I stayed around sandbars and threw lizards. I had every fish I weighed by 9:30 a.m.”

In second for the boaters, Jason S. Smith of Albany, Ga., landed a five-bass tournament limit, weighing 20.22 pounds. He anchored his bag with a 5.29-pound kicker and went home $1,205 richer.

Howard E. Poitevint of Bainbridge landed in third among the boaters with five bass at 19.97 pounds, including a 5.86-pound kicker. He pocketed $803.

“I caught most of my fish by sight fishing,” Poitevint said. “For that biggest fish, I had to catch the male and pull him off the bed first and then put him back in the water. He bit about five or six more times before I caught the big female. I lost several nice fish. I also culled a really nice fish that was starting to look sick and replaced it with a smaller fish. I later culled the smaller fish.”

In fourth for the boaters, Clint R. Brown of Quincy, Fla., landed five bass for 19.10 pounds with a 4.24-pound kicker. Bradford “Brad” Hambric of Leesburg, Ga., rounded out the top five boaters with a five-bass limit going 17.85 pounds including one 6.37-pounder. Lindsey Page of Fountain, Fla., only brought one bass to the scales, but his 7.59-pound bucketmouth took tournament lunker honors.

“I caught that big fish on the end of a sandbar,” Page said. “It hit a Rat-L-Trap about an hour after we started fishing.”

 

Jeter wins co-angler division

In the Co-Angler Division, James “Greg” G. Jeter of Bainbridge won it all. He brought in a three-bass division limit weighing 16.23 pounds for a 5.41-pound average. He anchored his bag with a 6.99-pounder that took the division big bass title. For the win, Jeter collected $1,250, plus a $138 bonus for the bucketmouth.

“We caught fish early on a 1/2-ounce Rayburn Red Rat-L-Trap,” Jeter said. “We’d pick up one fish here and one there. My partner missed a big one as soon as we started to fish. I caught my biggest about five minutes later and the second biggest about an hour later. About an hour before the tournament ended, I caught another big one on a Rat-L-Trap and culled a smaller fish.”

In second, Stephen McCord of Dothan, Ala. landed three keepers for 13.22 pounds, capped by a 4.92-pound kicker. He earned $626.

Danny L. Daniel of Thomaston, Ga., took third among the co-anglers with three bass and 11.57 pounds. His biggest fish weighed 4.53 pounds, giving him a check for $417.

Nicholas S. Ward of Fayetteville, Ga., took fourth with a three-bass limit going 8.17 pounds. Dennis McGouirk of Carrollton, Ga., followed in fifth place with three keepers and 8.07 pounds.

For more information on this tournament, call Billy Benedetti at (256) 230-5632 or ABA at (888) 203-6222. Online, see www.americanbassanglers.com.