ALEXANDRIA – (February 7, 2023) – The final episode of the Major League Fishing (MLF) General Tire Team Series Lucas Oil Qualifier presented by B&W Trailer Hitches premiered last weekend, and three teams closed in on the Bass Pro Shops Championship presented by B&W Trailer Hitches and the First Prize of $300,000.
Team Crockett Creek (Jacob Wheeler, Dylan Hays and Jason Lambert) rode in Game 1, as Lambert led his team to a whopping 66-pound, 4-ounce lead after the first day of competition that saw the Crockett Creek team to play “defense” on day two and coast to an easy victory.
In Game 2, Team Knighten Industries (Wesley Strader, Scott Suggs, and Mike McClelland) dominated to claim victory over Team Builders FirstSource by over 100 pounds. Suggs was Team Knighten’s top scorer as the Arkansas pro singlehandedly caught 71 bass over the two days of competition totaling 146 pounds, 4 ounces to pace his team.
In the third and final game, which premiered on the Outdoor Channel last weekend, despite starting the day with a 26-pound, 2-ounce deficit, the Fox Rent A Car team (James Elam , Jonathon VanDam and Brent Chapman) crushed 188 pounds, 12 ounces on the final day to pass Team Star brite and earn final qualification for the Bass Pro Shops Championship. VanDam had a great second day of competition, catching 43 basses for 81-10 to lead the way for Team Fox Rent A Car.
The final results of Game 1 at the Lucas Oil Qualifier presented by B&W Trailer Hitches in Alexandria, Minnesota were:
1st: Crockett Creek Team, 165 bass, 310-7
Jason Lambert, 76 bass, 131-9
*Jacob Wheeler, 44 bass, 93-11
Dylan Hays, 45 bass, 85-3
2n/a: Team Kubota, 119 bass, 224-8
Bradley Roy, 47 bass, 94-15
Ryan Salzman, 40 bass, 68-11
*Greg Vinson, 32 bass, 60-14
3rd: Team Ferguson, 72 bass, 129-14
Corey Neece, 22 bass, 44-4
Marty Robinson, 27 bass, 43-4
*Shin Fukae, 23 bass, 42-6
The final results of Game 2 at the Lucas Oil Qualifier presented by B&W Trailer Hitches in Alexandria, Minnesota were:
1st: Knighten Industries Team, 177 Bass, 369-13
Scott Suggs, 71 bass, 146-4
Mike McClelland, 57 bass, 120-1
*Wesley Strader, 49 bass, 103-8
2n/a: Team Builders FirstSource, 142 bass, 269-10
*Stephen Browning, 66 bass, 124-14
Jeff Kriet, 48 bass, 93-9
Timmy Horton, 28 bass, 51-3
3rd: Team Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff & Pouches, 115 bass, 237-15
Andy Morgan, 22 bass, 44-4
Brandon Coulter, 27 bass, 43-4
*Josh Bertrand, 23 bass, 42-6
The final results of Match 3 at the Lucas Oil Qualifier presented by B&W Trailer Hitches in Alexandria, Minnesota were:
1st: Team Fox Rent A Car, 173 bass, 313-15
*James Elam, bass 65, 109-12
Jonathon VanDam, 54 bass, 103-1
Brent Chapman, 54 bass, 101-2
2n/a: Team Star brite, 158 bass, 281-14
*Alton Jones, Jr., 53 bass, 106-14
Britt Myers, 67 bass, 105-6
Roy Hawk, 38 bass, 69-10
3rd: Team B&W trailer hitches, 153 low, 254-14
Cliff Pace, 67 bass, 107-5
Gary Klein, 49 bass, 87-9
*Mark Davis, 37 bass, 60-0
Full results and photos from the event are available at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Overall, for the entire week, 1,274 bass weighing 2,247 pounds, 14 ounces were caught by the nine teams in three games of the Lucas Oil Qualifier presented by B&W Trailer Hitches.
The 2023 MLF General Tire Team Series Lucas Oil Qualifier presented by B&W Trailer Hitches was hosted by Explore Alexandria Tourism and aired on the Outdoor Channel as six original two-hour episodes each Saturday afternoon, beginning December 31, 2022, and continuing through as of February 4, 2023.
The next General Tire Team Series event will premiere on the Outdoor Channel on Saturday, February 11 – the Costa Qualifier presented by Toyota on Stockton Lake in Bolivar, Missouri. For a complete schedule of General Tire Team Series events, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The Lucas Oil Qualifier presented by B&W Trailer Hitches was filmed over six days in October and featured nine teams of three anglers visiting Alexandria to compete on Lake Le Homme Dieu or Lake Ida each competition day. The fisheries were unknown to the anglers – they didn’t know where they were competing until they arrived at the launch pad each competition morning.
All six episodes of the General Tire Team Series Lucas Oil Qualifier event from Alexandria, Minnesota are now available for viewing on the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) streaming app. The full TV schedule can be viewed at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Proud sponsors of the MLF General Tire Team Series include: B&W Hitches, Barbasol, Bass Cat Boats, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Builders FirstSource, C-MAP, Crockett Creek Beef Jerky, Epic Baits, Favorite Fishing, Ferguson, General Tire, Knighten Industries, Kubota, Lowrance, Lucas Oil, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Optima Batteries, Phoenix Boats, Power-Pole, Rapala Baits, Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff, Star brite, TH Marine, Toyota, USAA and YETI.
For more details and up-to-date information on Major League Fishing and MLF General Tire Team Series events, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF social media on Facebook,
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