Friday is the final competition day of the season for the co-anglers. At the weigh-in one of them will hoist the first of many trophies to be awarded this week. The co-angler winner receives a Nitro Z18 with a Mercury 150 Pro XS outboard and related factory accessories.
Leading the co-angler division with 8 pounds, 9 ounces is Alex Heintze of Denham Springs, La. Should he win the trophy it won’t be his first B.A.S.S. title. That came at the 2015 Bassmaster High School Championship, when Heintze joined partner Justin Watts to win the title for the Livingston Parish Bassmasters. At the time, Heintze was a 16-year-old junior at Denham Springs High School.
Mandel Pettus of Miller Place, N.Y., holds down second with 7-7, and Jeff Wallace of West Monroe, La., is third with 5-11. Jonathan Hankins of North Tazewell, Va., is fourth with 6-6, and Chad Smith of Minnetonka, Minn., is fifth with 5-10.