Bassmaster Elite Series angler Chris Johnston won the inaugural Touring Anglers Association event at Lake Lanier in Georgia that concluded Thursday. Johnston weighed 65.38 pounds over three days and earned $65,000.
Billed as the "World's Largest Pot Tournament", the derby was conducted without tournament staff and with no forward-facing sonar, LiveScoping or 360-degree imaging allowed. The entry fee was $5,000.
Johnston caught bags that exceeded 24 pounds on each of the first two days before the 47-angler field was reduced to the Top 10. He weighed 16.50 on the final day to outdistance the runner-up, veteran tour pro David Williams, by about 3 1/2 pounds.
Here are the final totals for the Top 12:
1. Chris Johnston: 65.38 -- $65,000
2. David Williams: 61.79 -- $30,000
3. Emil Wagner: 59.85 -- $25,000
4. Drew Cook: 59.09 -- $20,000
5. Jared Lintner: 58.25 -- $15,000
6. Cory Johnston: 57.21 -- $10,000
7. Cazwell Anderson: 56.39 -- $10,000
8. Jeff Gustafson 53.84 -- $10,000
9. Rob Jordan: 52.86 -- $10,000
10. Joey Cifuentes: 52.42 -- $10,000
11. William Fletcher: 51.41 -- $10,000
12. Jimmy Millsaps: 49.54 -- $10,000
