By MLF Communications Staff

HARRISON TOWNSHIP, Mich. – Jordan Lee of Cullman, Ala. caught 23 scorable bass Wednesday – his best five weighing 24 pounds, 9 ounces – to lead the Knockout Round and advance with nine other anglers to the final day of competition at the MLF Bass Pro Tour event on Lake St. Clair.

Lee quickly rose to the top of the leaderboard early in Period 1 and never looked back. He has a 1-07 cushion over Alton Jones Jr. of Waco, Texas, who ended the day with a five-bass-limit weighing 23-02. Mark Rose of Wynne, Arki., sits in third place with a limit weighing 22-14, while Texas veteran Gary Klein finished the day in fourth with 22-11. Reigning Angler of the Year (AOY) Jacob Wheeler of Harrison, Tenn., weighed in five bass totaling 22-02 to round out the Top 5.

It was the closest Knockout Round finish in the history of the BPT, featuring six moves in and out of the Top 10 in the final hour and ending with a three-way tie on either side of the cutline, in ninth, 10th and 11th place. The tiebreaker is decided by each angler’s heaviest bass of the day.

Josh Bertrand of Queen Creek, Ariz. made the biggest move on the leaderboard in the final minutes of Period 3, catching a clutch 5-11 smallmouth that moved him from 19th place into the Top 10, to finish the day in seventh. Five-pound smallies were key in the Knockout Round, with nine of the top 10 pros finishing the day with at least one 5-pound kicker in their limit.

Competition resumes Thursday morning with the Championship Round. Weight carries over from the Knockout Round and the angler with the heaviest two-day total will win the top prize of $100,000.

Lee has been atop the leaderboard every day he’s competed in the event thus far, and it seems he is on the hunt for his first BPT win since 2020.

“We put ourselves in good position today, we just need a big bag tomorrow,” said Lee. “I stopped where I thought the bass were going to be first thing this morning, and they were stacked up. I was throwing a dropshot rig with a 5-inch Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Flatnose Jerk Shad at a depth of 17 feet. I’ve noticed the fish have been spitting up big perch all day long, so that’s what I’m trying to mimic with this bait, and it’s worked really well.”

Lee said he is targeting smallmouth on grassy edges in the mid-section of Lake St. Clair, using his Lowrance ActiveTarget.

“I’m just looking for grass edges and fish, then throwing my bait in that direction,” said Lee. “Once it gets to the bottom, they’re eating it up.”

For the third time in three days of competition during this event, Lee captured Berkley Big Bass honors, with a 6-07 smallmouth – the biggest bass of the event thus far – on a dropshot rig in the second period.

“I mixed it up a little today by throwing a 3/8-ounce Ned Head with a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Lil’ General and that’s what I caught the 6-07 on,” Lee said. “That fish was definitely one of the Top 5 best smallmouth I’ve ever caught.

“I’m just going to keep trying to find the right fish. That’s the key on Lake St. Clair, getting around a little better quality, bigger than average fish, and we’ve got to do that one more day.”

The final 10 anglers will launch Thursday at 7:20 a.m. ET from Lake St. Clair Metropark, located at 31300 Metro Parkway in Harrison Township. The takeout will be held at the Metropark beginning at 4 p.m.

MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee, Marty Stone and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live on Thursday from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET. MLFNOW! is livestreamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.



Knockout Round

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

1. Jordan Lee -- 24-09 (5) -- 6-07

2. Alton Jones Jr. -- 23-02 (5) -- 5-00

3. Mark Rose -- 22-14 (5) -- 5-03

4. Gary Klein -- 22-11 (5) -- 5-06

5. Jacob Wheeler -- 22-02 (5) -- 5-00

6. Mark Daniels Jr. -- 21-14 (5) -- 5-05

7. Josh Bertrand -- 21-10 (5) -- 5-11

8. Jesse Wiggins -- 21-08 (5) -- 5-00

9. Terry Scroggins -- 21-04 (5) -- 5-00

10. John Hunter -- 21-04 (5) -- 4-09

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not advance to the Knockout Round

11. Justin Lucas -- 21-04 (5) -- 4-06

12. Dustin Connell -- 21-03 (5) -- 4-10

13. Scott Suggs -- 21-00 (5) -- 4-10

14. Bryan Thrift -- 20-11 (5) -- 5-01

15. Spencer Shuffield -- 20-02 (5) -- 5-15

16. Jonathon VanDam -- 19-13 (5) -- 4-08

17. Matt Becker -- 19-12 (5) -- 4-12

18. Gerald Spohrer -- 19-07 (5) -- 4-10

19. Bradley Roy -- 19-07 (5) -- 4-03

20. Cole Floyd -- 19-04 (5) -- 4-01

21. Kevin VanDam -- 18-07 (5) -- 4-08

22. Greg Vinson -- 18-07 (5) -- 4-07

23. Jeremy Lawyer -- 18-05 (5) -- 4-01

24. Michael Neal -- 18-02 (5) -- 4-05

25. Mark Davis -- 17-13 (5) -- 4-01

26. Jeff Sprague -- 17-12 (5) -- 4-01

27. Cliff Pace -- 17-12 (5) -- 3-13

28. David Dudley -- 17-09 (5) -- 4-03

29. Dylan Hays -- 17-03 (5) -- 3-15

30. Dean Rojas -- 17-02 (5) -- 4-05

31. Marty Robinson -- 16-05 (5) -- 3-12

32. Jacob Wall -- 16-04 (5) -- 4-02

33. Cody Meyer -- 16-03 (5) -- 4-08

34. Ryan Salzman -- 16-02 (5) -- 3-07

35. Adrian Avena -- 15-08 (5) -- 3-03

36. James Watson -- 15-00 (5) -- 4-02

37. Brent Chapman -- 14-08 (5) -- 3-10

38. Fred Roumbanis -- 14-05 (5) -- 3-11

39. Brett Hite -- 14-04 (5) -- 3-12

40. Andy Morgan -- 11-11 (5) -- 2-14