By MLF Communications Staff

Major League Fishing (MLF) returns to Tennessee this week for the fifth stop on the 2022 Bass Pro Tour at Watts Bar Lake. Competition gets under way Monday and runs through Thursday.

Although the Bass Pro Tour has visited Rhea County several times, this event marks the first time it's competed on Watts Bar Lake.

“Everything is a little slow this year, a little behind,” BPT competitor and Spring City, Tenn. resident Wesley Strader said. “I’ve seen things happen that shouldn’t have happened – like shad spawning in 63-degree water – and other things that should have happened, but haven’t yet, so it’s been a bit of an odd year.”

Despite that, Strader said anglers can expect a typical Tennessee River tournament in June, and said he believes the majority of the fish will be caught out deep.

“I think we will see a lot of deep-diving crankbaits, dropshots, big worms, spoons, typical ledge stuff,” Strader said. “The Zoom Ol’ Monster Worm will be a player, as well as a ( Zoom) Trick Worm.”

With most of the fish well past the spawn and out in deeper water, Strader said the tournament will ultimately come down to electronics and who can see the fish best.

“I think guys are going to need to have at least 15 pounds to make it into the Top 20 for each group and move on to the Knockout Round,” Strader said. “As for the Knockout Round or Championship Round, I expect we will see an angler pull in 50-60 pounds for a one-day total.”

Strader said coming to his home lake adds a little extra pressure for him, especially after having back-to-back Top 10s at the last two Bass Pro Tour events. Despite the added pressure, he’s still very excited to showcase his hometown.

“I’ve been going over my game plan and my strategy for the past week or so,” Strader said. “I’m not even on the lake yet, but I’ve come up with about 3,427 spots that I need to check and hit during practice, so my brain is in major overdrive right now.

“Fans and anglers can expect a warm welcome from the Spring City community,” Strader went on to say. “Everyone is super pumped to have us there and it’s the talk all over town. It’s going to be a great event.”

After four events in the Bass Pro Tour regular season, reigning 2021 Angler of the Year (AOY) Jacob Wheeler leads the 2022 AOY race with 300 points. Alabama pro Jordan Lee sits behind Wheeler in second place with 284 points, while Tennessee’s Andy Morgan is in third with 255 points. Jesse Wiggins currently sits in fourth place with 251.5 points, with Alton Jones, Jr. rounding out the top five with 231 points.

Anglers will launch each day at 7:30 a.m. ET from the Spring City Boat Ramp, located at 417 Toestring Valley Road. Takeouts will be held at the ramp, beginning at 4 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and takeout events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLF NOW! livestream and ScoreTracker coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

As part of the event, on Saturday from 8 a.m. to Noon, the MLF Fisheries Management Division in partnership with Berkley Labs will be participating in a Minn Kota Habitat Restoration Project supported by Berkley Labs at the Dayton Boat Dock, located at 175 Lakeshore Street in Dayton, Tenn. Volunteers from the MLF-FMD and the Union Sportsman’s Alliance will build 50 MossBack fish structures and place the habitats at various locations throughout Richland Creek. Another 35 structures will be donated to the state for a separate deployment later in the year. MLF pros who will be on site for the build include Casey Ashley, Josh Bertrand, Brent Chapman, Roy Hawk and Skeet Reese.

Fans are encouraged to come out to Meet The Pros Day on Saturday from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. All 80 Bass pro Tour anglers will be present at the Spring City Park, located at 448 E. Jackson Ave., to meet fans, sign autographs, snap selfies, participate in tackle giveaways and talk fishing on Watts Bar Lake. The first 50 children 10 and under will receive a free Dora the Explorer rod and reel combo.

On the final day of the tournament from 4 to 6 p.m., MLF will host a Celebration Event for fans of all ages, inviting fans to come out and celebrate with the BPT anglers as they crown the champion. The first 50 middle school or high school anglers will receive a free Abu Garcia rod and reel combo valued at $100. The final Championship Round competitors will be on hand to meet and greet fans, sign autographs, take selfies and participate in tackle giveaways.

The tournament will feature anglers competing with a 1 1/2-pound minimum weight requirement for a bass to be deemed scorable. Minimum weights are determined individually for each competition waters that the Bass Pro Tour visits, based on the productivity, bass population and anticipated average size of fish in each fishery.

The 40 Anglers in Group A compete in their two-day Qualifying Round on Saturday and Monday, with the 40 anglers in Group B on the water on Sunday and Tuesday. After each two-day Qualifying Round is complete, the anglers who finish in 2nd through 20th place from both groups advance to Wednesday’s Knockout Round, while the winner of each group advances directly to Thursday’s Championship Round. In the Knockout Round, weights are zeroed and the remaining 38 anglers compete to finish in the Top 8 to advance to the Championship Round. Weights will again be zeroed for the Championship Round, and the highest one-day total wins the top prize of $100,000.

The MLF NOW! broadcast team of Chad McKee, Marty Stone and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action on all six days of competition from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET. MLF NOW! will be livestreamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.