By Thomas Grant, Jr.
Boater Michael Murphy of Gilbert, South Carolina, weighed in five bass totaling 29 pounds, 11 ounces to win the Phoenix Bass Fishing League event presented by T-H Marine on Lake Murray.
The tournament marked the first of five events this season for the Phoenix Bass Fishing League South Carolina Division. Murphy earned $2,890 for the victory.
“Lake Murray isn’t fishing very typical right now,” Murphy said. “The water right now at Murray has only come up about a half a foot if any, so these fish normally would be in full-on prespawn mode by now. But you have fish that are still in winter mode because it’s been so cold and the water is so clear.”
Pattern Adjustment Proves Critical
Murphy credited his understanding of seasonal fish progression — aided by his background as a fisheries biologist — for adapting throughout the day.
“I’ve caught fish three different ways in recent local tournaments,” he said. “I’m not catching them in the same places – I just understand what they’re doing and their progression. They want to be in prespawn, and they’re at 9 to 12 feet, and they’re starting to get into that last two weeks before the spawn where they get really fickle.”
With a northwest wind early, Murphy initially targeted “windy bank” areas but shifted at 8:30 a.m. to docks and boat ramps after finding smaller fish.
“I think the biggest key to my success was recognizing the transition quickly and smoothly,” he said. “You can call it junk fishing. I call it watching the transition.”
Murphy worked swimbaits and a jighead minnow along docks in about 6 feet of water. When rain moved in, he switched to a spinnerbait and jig.
“It seemed like every time it rained, I caught a big one,” Murphy said. “I just really fished instinct.”
Later, he turned to forward-facing sonar and ran to the Crystal Lake and Bear Creek areas, targeting outside grass lines and deeper rock with a drop-shot, Neko rig and jig.
“Everywhere I went there was a big fish,” Murphy said. “I was just trying to focus and think, ‘What do big fish do?’ It was really just following the big fish. I had 15 rods on my deck, and I used 12 or 13 of them. It was controlled junk fishing, with the fish in a winter cycle and some fish wanting to pre-spawn pretty hard.”
Top 10 Boaters
- Michael Murphy, Gilbert, S.C. — 5 bass, 29-11, $2,890
- Joey Phegley, Graniteville, S.C. — 5 bass, 22-6, $1,330
- Lucas Murphy, West Columbia, S.C. — 5 bass, 22-4, $1,200 (includes $500 Phoenix bonus)
- Kevin Banks, Prosperity, S.C. — 5 bass, 21-0, $570
- David Fluker Sr., Lexington, S.C. — 5 bass, 20-15, $510
- Andy Wicker, Cayce, S.C. — 5 bass, 19-15, $450
- T.J. Souther, Brevard, N.C. — 5 bass, 19-7, $430
- Logan Buttolph, Doswell, Va. — 5 bass, 19-2, $420
- Paul Selle, Lexington, S.C. — 5 bass, 19-0, $400
- Kevin Whitmore, Easley, S.C. — 5 bass, 18-14, $390
Complete tournament results are available at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
