Alabama's Jamie Horton mined a single area on the Ouachita River to win the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Championship Saturday and claim one of six Bassmaster Classic berths that were doled out at the event.
Horton made a 1-hour run from the launch in Monroe, La. each day, at times traveling through extremely shallow water, and amassed a 3-day total of 36-02. His prize package included a Skeeter/Yamaha rig valued at $45,000.
He threw an XCalibur crankbait, making precise casts into an eddy near a spillway. He caught sacks that were an ounce shy of 10 pounds on each of the last 2 days after walloping a massive 16-04 bag on day 1.
"I could see bass up there busting on shad and I could see their heads out of the water,” he said. “I just kept on hammering and hammering them.”
Other regional winners who also claimed Classic berths were New Hampshire's John Diaco (Eastern), Idaho's Josh Polfer (Western), Texas' Tom Jessop (Central), Indiana's Matt McCoy (Northern) and Maryland's Chris Price (Mid-Atlantic).
