By MLF Communications Staff

Gerald Spohrer boated eight scorable bass Wednesday weighing 23-14 to win the two-day Group B Qualifying Round at the Sam Rayburn Reservoir MLF Bass Pro Tour out of Jasper, Texas. Spohrer’s two-day total of 15 bass weighing 50 pounds even earned him the victory by a 2-01 margin and advances him directly into Friday’s Championship Round.

Randall Tharp caught a two-day total of 16 bass weighing 47-15 to end the round in 2nd place, and Shinichi Fukae finished the round in 3rd place with a two-day total of 15 bass weighing 43-13.

The remaining 38 anglers – 19 from Group A and 19 from Group B – will now compete Thursday in the Knockout Round, where weights are zeroed, and the anglers compete to finish in the Top 8 to advance to the finals. Friday’s Championship Round will feature Group A winner Ott DeFoe, Group B winner Spohrer, and eight anglers from the Knockout Round competing in a final-day shootout for the top prize of $100,000.

“This is my first round that I’ve won with Major League Fishing and it’s overwhelming the joy that I have right now,” Spohrer said. “Duking it out with my buddy Randall Tharp right at the end was exciting and to get to do it right here, on Sam Rayburn, is a big deal to me.”

Spohrer credited his equipment as being the key to his success – the same 7-foot Quantum Smoke heavy-action casting rod paired with a Quantum Smoke 8:1 reel and spooled with 50-pound-test Seaguar Smackdown braided line (stealth gray) has caught every one of his fish this week.

“I’ve been a one-trick pony the last two days,” Spohrer said. “If you’ve been watching the live stream, you probably saw how deep I was getting my swimjig into the wood and dragging those fish out of there. It’s all worked out for me and I can’t tell you how happy I am.

“Now I get a day off and I’m going to get ready for the Championship Round,” Spohrer went on to say. “There will only be 10 of us, so I start the year automatically with a Top-10 finish and now I’ve got a real legitimate chance to compete for that red trophy. I can’t wait.”

Tharp was very happy to see his good friend win and advance directly to the Championship Round.

“That’s why I’ve always loved tournament fishing – when it comes down to the last second, the last cast, and having the opportunity like I did,” Tharp said. “My hat’s off to Gerald. I hope I made him sweat a little bit because I sure had a good time this afternoon. I had my opportunities.”

Tharp said he relied on just two rods Wednesday and likely would only use two in the Knockout Round as well.

“Basically, I’m just flipping bushes and trees, and anything in front of me,” the Florida pro said. “I threw a Zoom Z-Hog with a 5/16-ounce weight and a straight-shank flipping hook. Later in the day I picked up a little frog and that baby was awful good to me today. The average bite on the frog was way better than the flipping bite. I’m probably going to keep those two rods in my hand all day tomorrow and go to work and hopefully make the Championship Round.”

An emotional Jeff Kriet of Ardmore, Oklahoma, was the last man in, finishing the day in 20th place.

“Thank God, man. It has been such a stressful day,” Kriet said. “I needed this. I’ve been sucking, and I haven’t been catching them. Last year, in the first two tournaments of the year, I finished like dead last. I only made a couple of cuts last year. I need a good year, badly.

"This gives me confidence and that’s important because I’d lost all confidence. I was literally thinking I might have to hang this stuff up. I know it’s not like I won the tournament today, but making the cut really means a lot to me. It’s not easy to do. And it’s some positive momentum. I’m tickled that I get to come back out here, tomorrow.”

Kriet credited two baits – a wacky-rigged Big Bite Baits Trick Stick and a Big Bite Baits Methiolate Floating Worm – for his success in the Qualifying Round.

Overall Wednesday, there were 194 bass weighing 543-13 caught by 39 pros, which included two 7-pounders, three 6-pounders and three 5-pounders.

Justin Lucas won the $1,000 Berkley Big Bass Award for the day, catching a 7-14 largemouth that bit a swimbait in Period 2. Berkley will award $1,000 to the angler that weighs the biggest bass each day and a $3,000 bonus to the angler who weighs the largest bass of the tournament.



Group B Qualifying Round – Day 2

(Figure at far right indicates weight of angler's heaviest fish for the round)

1. Gerald Spohrer -- 26-02 (7) -- 23-14 (8) -- 50-00 (15) -- 7-00

2. Randall Tharp -- 16-03 (6) -- 31-12 (10) -- 47-15 (16) -- 4-11

3. Shin Fukae -- 10-00 (4) -- 33-13 (11) -- 43-13 (15) -- 4-03

4. Mark Daniels Jr. -- 21-11 (8) -- 20-05 (7) -- 42-00 (15) -- 5-14

5. Brent Ehrler -- 22-02 (7) -- 19-07 (5) -- 41-09 (12) -- 7-01

6. Brandon Coulter -- 21-04 (7) -- 16-04 (6) -- 37-08 (13) -- 4-12

7. Justin Lucas -- 4-15 (2) -- 31-13 (9) -- 36-12 (11) -- 7-14

8. Mark Davis -- 28-02 (12) -- 6-06 (3) -- 34-08 (15) -- 2-15

9. Skeet Reese -- 18-10 (6) -- 13-09 (3) -- 32-03 (9) -- 6-10

10. Tommy Biffle -- 15-08 (5) -- 16-10 (6) -- 32-02 (11) -- 4-12

11. Jeff Sprague -- 15-05 (6) -- 15-11 (6) -- 31-00 (12) -- 3-08

12. Matt Becker -- 17-01 (5) -- 13-08 (5) -- 30-09 (10) -- 5-07

13. Bobby Lane -- 11-08 (5) -- 18-13 (6) -- 30-05 (11) -- 3-13

14. Greg Vinson -- 6-09 (3) -- 22-13 (9) -- 29-06 (12) -- 4-00

15. Takahiro Omori -- 9-09 (4) -- 19-08 (8) -- 29-01 (12) -- 4-05

16. Alton Jones Jr. -- 9-13 (3) -- 18-08 (8) -- 28-05 (11) -- 5-01

17. Timmy Horton -- 9-08 (4) -- 17-10 (7) -- 27-02 (11) -- 3-10

18. Stephen Browning -- 17-11 (6) -- 8-05 (3) -- 26-00 (9) -- 5-04

19. Jeff Kriet -- 10-13 (5) -- 14-14 (7) -- 25-11 (12) -- 2-06

20. Brent Chapman -- 16-10 (7) -- 8-01 (3) -- 24-11 (10) -- 3-13

The following anglers did not make the cut and will not advance to the Knockout Round

21. Terry Scroggins -- 13-15 (3) -- 8-15 (4) -- 22-14 (7) -- 7-09

22. Todd Faircloth -- 4-11 (2) -- 17-04 (7) -- 21-15 (9) -- 3-05

23. James Watson -- 7-04 (3) -- 13-11 (4) -- 20-15 (7) -- 5-15

24. Russ Lane -- 10-05 (4) -- 10-01 (3) -- 20-06 (7) -- 4-00

25. Chris Lane -- 12-03 (4) -- 8-03 (2) -- 20-06 (6) -- 6-02

26. Casey Ashley -- 11-09 (4) -- 7-16 (3) -- 19-09 (7) -- 3-08

27. Mark Rose -- 9-02 (4) -- 10-01 (4) -- 19-03 (8) -- 2-14

28. Cody Meyer -- 13-08 (5) -- 4-09 (2) -- 18-01 (7) -- 3-15

29. Josh Bertrand -- 4-05 (2) -- 13-11 (5) -- 18-00 (7) -- 3-13

30. Randy Howell -- 11-10 (5) -- 6-05 (3) -- 17-15 (8) -- 2-14

31. John Cox -- 3-01 (1) -- 14-13 (6) -- 17-14 (7) -- 3-01

32. Keith Poche -- 2-04 (1) -- 15-03 (6) -- 17-07 (7) -- 3-00

33. David Dudley -- 12-11 (5) -- 2-01 (1) -- 14-12 (6) -- 3-00

34. James Elam -- 9-11 (4) -- 5-01 (2) -- 14-12 (6) -- 3-00

35. Ron Nelson -- 3-06 (1) -- 10-14 (4) -- 14-04 (5) -- 3-12

36. John Murray -- 3-13 (1) -- 9-03 (3) -- 13-00 (4) -- 4-01

37. Boyd Duckett -- 8-09 (4) -- 2-09 (1) -- 11-02 (5) -- 2-09

38. Jordan Lee -- 4-11 (2) -- 6-07 (3) -- 11-02 (5) -- 2-06

39. Matt Lee -- 0-00 (0) -- 11-01 (3) -- 11-01 (3) -- 6-12

40. Britt Myers -- 2-01 (1) -- 0-00 (0) -- 2-01 (1) -- 2-01