BRANDON, Miss. – Lloyd Pickett Jr. of Bartlett brought five bass weighing 16 pounds, 11 ounces, to the scale on March 10 to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Mississippi Division opener on Ross Barnett Reservoir presented by Navionics.
For his win, Pickett earned $5,766.
Pickett said he fished mid-lake bank lines in one to one-and-a-half feet of water on the western side of Ross Barnett Reservoir. He said he had three main areas and that he used a Carolina rig to pick them apart.
“It was a slow, methodical fishing day of fishing,” said Pickett, who earned his fifth win in BFL competition, his third on Ross Barnett. “The areas had patches of grass in the water. If it was one solid clump you wouldn’t get a bite, but if there were isolated clumps off to the side, I’d throw at those.
“I think they were pre-spawn bass trying to pull up. I worked them over slow because of the cold front that was coming through Sunday morning,” continued Pickett. “During practice, the weather was bad, but I caught 20 and shook off 20, so I think that weather really shut them down. On the day of the tournament, I maybe had 10 keepers, but they were quality.”
Pickett said he used a Carolina-rigged Zoom Baby Brush Hog and a small Strike King creature bait to entice his fish. He said he used darker colors like junebug if the water was stained, and green-pumpkin if it was clearer.
“Water temperature was a huge factor – I can’t stress that enough,” said Pickett. “At takeoff, it was around 56 degrees, and when it hit 60 or 61, it made all the difference in the world. My first two areas were colder, but the third stretch was sheltered from the wind and was about 62 degrees. It took a little while, but the bite got better around 11 (a.m.).”
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 17-19 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Ala. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard.
For complete details, visit FLWFishing.com.
