Elite

Big bass of Lake Murray

Paul Marks’ consistency leads to second Elite title, crown as blueback herring king.

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Captions by
Mike Suchan
Rainy, overcast weather affected several rounds of Tedy’s Team Bassmaster Elite at Lake Murray, where Paul Marks was one of only two anglers to top 20 pounds each day. The second-year pro from Cumming, Ga., proved his prowess with forward-facing sonar and blueback herring with his second Elite title. Take a look at the big bass that made a difference on Lake Murray.
On Day 1, rainy conditions helped 93 catch limits with an average fish of 3 pounds, 13 ounces. Trey McKinney was among the 29 anglers topping 20 pounds. McKinney, who came into the tournament with a one-point lead in the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year race, extended it. He started in ninth with 23-11, including a 5-8 big.
Surge Squad member Andrew Loberg caught a 5-9 in his eight-place, 23-13 total. The Guntersville, Ala., pro topped 20 pounds the next two rounds and settled for eighth. His finish put him eighth in the points race.
North Carolina’s Jake Whitaker, with daughter Mia, landed a 6-9 as he tied for fifth with 24-3. Just 16-10 on a sunny, tougher Day 2, knocked him to 19th and he eventually finished 18th, moving up 11 spots to 26th in AOY.
South Carolina’s Brandon Cobb, who lives one lake up from Murray, had a pair of 5-plus-pounders to equal Whitaker’s weight. Cobb, too, fell off with 16-6 on Day 2 but overcast conditions on Semifinal Saturday turned things back in his favor.
Conditions served Cody Meyer on Day 1 as he blasted 24-10 to stand fourth. However, just 14-6 knocked the Eagle, Idaho, pro down the leaderboard. He wound up 28th, moving up one notch to 11th in AOY.
Japanese pro Taku Ito had five nearly identical bass in his 25-0 day that put him third. With his next two rounds in the teens, Ito finish 20th, jumping 10 spots to 36th and inside the projected cut to qualify for the 2027 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.
Jacob Foutz of Tennessee started in second place just 1 ounce behind the leader. Foutz posted a 5-15 on BassTrakk and came in with 25-6. Just 14-8 then 12-8 dropped him to 48th, which pushed him down four spots in AOY to 15th.
Emil Wagner of Marietta, Ga., had a Bassmaster LIVE camera on Day 1 and didn’t disappoint. With five cookie cutters all around 5 pounds, the second-year pro led with 25-7. He fell to 12th after 16-6 but would climb again.
Drew Benton caught the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of Day 1, a 7-0 that helped him start 27th with 20-8. Benton caught a 7-3 in Day 2’s 23-13 that propelled him to fifth. With 18-13, he made Championship Sunday in 10th. That brought comparisons to 2023, when he rallied from 10th with 26-7 to total 87-0 and win his second Elite title. This time, 17-4 left him ninth. He did jump 16 spots, now inside Classic consideration at 27th.
Kyoya Fujita of Japan backed up round 1’s 24-2 with 20-5 to stand fourth. He held the lead momentarily when he landed this 6-8 around 10 a.m. Fujita missed Championship Sunday by 10 ounces, finishing 12th. He moved up 12 spots in AOY to 19th as he seeks a fourth Classic appearance.
Canada’s Evan Kung rallied on Day 2 with 22-2, bolstered by this 7-5. He weighed 22-5 and climbed from 37th to 14, but he dropped to finish 22nd. Kung jumped 17 places in AOY to 68th and still has hope to climb inside the Classic cut as the season heads north for the final three events.
Robert Gee of Knoxville, Tenn., showed consistency at Murray, starting 23rd with 20-11 and moving to 15th with 20-13. A third of his Day 2 total came in this 7-0. And he wasn’t done.
Rookie Sam Hanggi, also from Knoxville, catapulted from 43rd to seventh with 24-0. His big bass was a 7-4 and it helped him make his first Elite cut, but he wasn’t done either.
Two-time Classic champ Jordan Lee made an even bigger jump. Starting 49th, Lee took the unofficial lead on BassTrakk. At the scales, Lee weighed Day 2’s best of 26-5, which included a 7-7, the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the day. He started Semifinal Saturday in third, and despite topping 19 pounds the next two rounds, he wound up seventh. That put him inside the Top 10 in AOY and on mark for an eighth Classic.
Marks, who won last year on Lake Hartwell, another blueback herring lake, added 22-15 to his Day 1 21-14 to hold second place. On Friday, there were another 22 bags over 20 pounds, one less limit than Thursday and the average fish dropped 5 ounces to 3-8.
California’s Bryant Smith posted a 5-6 on BassTrakk and took the unofficial lead with 22 pounds. On the B.A.S.S. stage, he made it official. His limit weighed 24-7, and with 46-6, he went into Day 3 leading Marks by 1-9. Just 16-2 left Smith 13th, moving him 16 places to 31st in AOY.
Tyler Williams, who moved from Maine to Missouri, had a big of 6-9 in his Day 3 limit of 23-8. That propelled Williams to a 14-place finish, after 20-7 on Day 2 jumped him to 32nd from 46th. He left Murray 20th in AOY.
Rookie Caleb Hudson was steady Eddy through first three rounds. He weighed 21-4, 21-8 and 21-12 to stand sixth heading into Championship Sunday, when the magic eluded him. He weighed 13-15 to take 10th, but he moved to second in the AOY race while leading Fisher Anaya, who won at Lake Martin, by 91 points in the Pro-Guide Batteries Rookie of the Year race.
After his off-day, Wagner busted 22-3 to climb back into the Top 10. He started Championship Sunday in eighth and 20-2 had him finish sixth. Beginning Murray 72nd in AOY, Wagner’s 96 points saw him climb 27 places to within reach of the Classic cut.
Gee was on the belly patters on Day 3, when 22-12 gave him a seat at the final table. With the third best limit of 21-7 on Day 4, Gee finished fourth with 85-11, a big swing from taking 100th in the previous Elite on the Arkansas River. Only he and Marks topped 20 pounds each round. He was among the nine anglers eclipsing 80 pounds this time at Murray, the same as in 2023. Only two surpassed that mark in 2024.
With a 5-12 in his 22-14 Day 3 limit, McKinney climbed into second place just 1-7 off the lead. He dropped to fifth after his slowest day of 18-11, but McKinney left Murray atop the AOY leaderboard, 42 points ahead of Hudson.
Alex Redwine of Blue Ash, Ohio, made a big statement on Day 3 and nearly climbed from 38th to the Top 10. Redwine had the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the day, a 7-15, that held out for $2,000 bonus as biggest of the event. It helped him weigh 23-4 and finish 19th, giving him Classic hopes by moving within the cut range at 53rd.
Cobb landed a 7-7 early and took the lead on BassTrakk after posting a 5-10 late on Day 3. His five weighed 26-10, the Rapala CrushCity Monster Bag of the event, and he took the tournament lead with 67-3. Five for 19-4 left him third with 86-7, moving him to third in AOY.
On Day 3, Hanggi showed his excitement on camera with a last-cast 6-12 that helped him make his first Championship Sunday. Again live, the 25-year-old put on another show with 21-12 to finish second, 3-9 back of the winning weight.
Marks switched gears early on Day 4, throwing a crankbait on riprap to catch two 5-pounders before plying the herring bite. He landed the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of 6-2 in the day’s best limit going 25-2. He totaled 90-14 in winning his second Elite title. “Today was just spectacular, it was one of those days you dream of,” Marks said. “Everything went perfectly.”

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