By MLF Communications Staff

It was a fight to the finish during Thursday’s Championship Round among some of the best anglers in the sport, but when time ran out it was Ryan Salzman of Huntsville, Ala., whose name sat at the top of the ScoreTracker at the MLF Bass Pro Tour event on Watts Bar Lake in Spring City, Tenn. The BPT newcomer weighed 13 bass totaling 24 pounds, 3 ounces to earn his first career tour-level victory and capture the $100,000 top prize.

“Right now, I’m just putting all my trust in God, and that’s the only way I can rise up to this moment because it’s too big for me,” Salzman said in the final moments as the clock ticked down. “Words just can’t describe how I feel even being in contention to win this event, especially going up against some of the greatest anglers in the world. Fishing against my childhood heroes, it’s just amazing.”

“I never in my life thought I would win this event,” Salzman said excitedly, amid cheers from fans and followers who surrounded him on the water. “I knew the winning fish were in this area, but I didn’t know if they would bite today. I’ve lost several fish this week, even lost two or three today that would have given me more of a cushion at the end of the day, but I’m just speechless and so thankful for this opportunity.”

Thursday marked the first time the Alabama pro has qualified for the Championship Round on the BPT since joining the tour in February. It culminated in a moment he said he will never forget.

“First and foremost, I have to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,” Salzman said. “I’ve been a mess the last few years but have made a lot of life changes and attitude changes, so to go from where I was 3-4 years ago to where I am today, there just isn’t anything that He can’t do.”

Salzman said he found his winning area above the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) Watts Bar Dam during practice and knew it had potential, but as the tournament progressed, he realized the bass were only schooling and feeding during certain time windows.

“This has been a week of highs and lows and the way my tournament began, I didn’t think this win was a possibility,” Salzman said. “I found this spot above the dam on the first day, with hundreds of bass schooling and stacked up against this wall. I knew there were enough fish here to win the event, I just had to figure out how to catch them.”

Salzman hit the first obstacle during his Qualifying Round, in large part because the fish in his area weren’t schooling. He was in 15th place after his first day and ended the second day in 16th place to advance to the Knockout Round – and that’s where the fun really began.

“On Wednesday, the TVA began running water through the dam, generating 30,000, 40,000 watts, stirring up the baitfish and in turn, the bass,” Salzman said. “Once they started moving the water, this spot really lit up. The majority of the fish I caught this week were right here in this spot, on a 4 1/2-inch morning dawn-colored Roboworm with an 1/8-ounce Titan Tungsten ball weight.”

Salzman’s flurry came to a stop about an hour and a half prior to the end of the tournament day, as the TVA turned down the generators and the bass around him stopped feeding. Not to be deterred from the win, Salzman made a quick pivot to another place on the dam, boating a 2-pounder.

“With only 25 minutes left in the day, that kicker fish made all the difference,” Salzman concluded.

He earned the win by a slim 11-ounce margin over Jacob Wheeler of Harrison, Tennessee, who finished the day in second place with a total of 10 scorable bass weighing 23-08. Although Wheeler missed the $100,000 win by mere ounces, he earned valuable points in the Angler of the Year (AOY) race. Wheeler, the reigning 2021 AOY, currently leads again with 379 points after five regular-season events, while Jordan Lee sits in second place with 341. Andy Morgan sits in third with 315, followed by Kevin VanDam with 302.5 and Randall Tharp with 302.

Wheeler caught a largemouth weighing 4-02 on a dropshot rig in the second period to win Thursday’s 1,000 Berkley Big Bass Award. Brandon Coulter took home the $3,000 Berkley Big Bass of the tournament with his 6-07 largemouth that he caught on Day 1. Berkley awards $1,000 to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass each day, and a $3,000 bonus to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass of the tournament.

The event featured anglers competing with a 1-08 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.



Championship Round

(Figure at far right indicates weight of angler's heaviest fish for the day)

1. Ryan Salzman -- 24-03 (13) -- 2-10 -- $100,000

2. Jacob Wheeler -- 23-08 (10) -- 4-02 -- $45,000

3. Dakota Ebare -- 16-04 (7) -- 3-08 -- $38,000

4. Randall Tharp -- 14-12 (7) -- 2-12 -- $32,000

5. Mark Davis -- 13-12 (6) -- 2-14 -- $30,000

6. Kevin VanDam -- 12-09 (7) -- 2-02 -- $26,000

7. Alton Jones -- 10-11 (4) -- 3-02 -- $23,000

8. Brent Ehrler -- 8-13 (4) -- 3-10 -- $21,000

9. Fletcher Shryock -- 8-07 (5) -- 1-15 -- $19,000

10. David Walker -- 4-00 (2) -- 2-02 -- $16,000