Bradley Dortch of Bay Minette, Ala. weighed a 16-11 sack on Saturday to win the FLW Series Southeastern Division finale on Wheeler Lake with a 3-day total of 45-10. For his win, Dortch took home $40,000.
“I spent each day of the tournament targeting postspawn bass on the Elk River,” said Dortch, who earned his first win in FLW competition. “I focused on stretches of bank on the outsides of spawning pockets where fish were moving out from the shallows.
“On day 1 I rotated between six areas that were 100- to 150-yard stretches of bank. I threw a green-pumpkin Picasso Straight Shooter Swimjig with a green-pumpkin NetBait Paca Craw trailer to laydowns and flipped another Paca Craw under bushes and to undercut banks. I ended up catching six keepers."
Dortch said a specific fish on day one helped him dial in on where the bass were congregating in his areas.
“I skipped the swimjig all the way to the bank where the current had eroded a lip and caught a 3-pounder in six inches of water. The bream were feeding right there under the shore. It was a huge discovery for me. From then on, when I skipped laydowns, I made sure to get the bait all the way to the bank into those undercuts. If it didn’t get there, you weren’t getting a bite.”
He said the discovery allowed him to narrow down his six areas to two specific stretches, 15 to 20 miles up the Elk River.
“I kept on skipping and flipping and caught eight keepers on day 2 and another eight on day 3. They were good bites, but I was not expecting to win. It was a great tournament.”
Here are the final totals for the Top 10:
1. Bradley Dortch: 45-10
2. Kim Carver: 44-14
3. Dustin Smith: 44-05
4. Bryan New: 42-02
5. Glenn Browne: 40-08
6. Allan Glasgow: 40-02
7. Terry Tucker: 39-11
8. Jared Dial: 38-10
9. Bradford Beavers: 37-05
10. Bryant Adam: 30-05
