By MLF Communications Staff

In the biggest Qualifying Round comeback in Bass Pro Tour history, Tuskegee, Ala. pro Mark Daniels Jr., boated 20 scorable bass weighing 79 pounds, 12 ounces to overtake Day-1 leader Josh Bertrand of
Arizona and win the Group A Qualifying Round Monday at the MLF Bass Pro Tour regular-season finale at Mille Lacs Lake in Onamia, Minn.

Daniels started the day in 7th place with a 42-pound, 15-ounce deficit to the leader. Bertrand struggled, only catching eight keepers on the day for 25 pounds, while Daniels slowly rallied throughout the day, eventually overtaking Bertrand in the third period and coasting to the win by an 11-13 margin. Daniels ended the Qualifying Round with a two-day total of 32 bass for 123-10, while Bertrand finished 2nd with 35 bass weighing 111-13.

The top 20 anglers from Group A will now have an off day from competition Tuesday, while the 40 anglers competing in Qualifying Group B will complete their two-day Qualifying Round. The Knockout Round, featuring 38 anglers competing to finish in the Top 8, will take place Wednesday. Thursday’s Championship Round will feature Daniels, Tuesday’s Group B winner and the eight advancing anglers from the Knockout Round competing in a final-day shootout for the top prize of $100,000.

“Man, what a crazy, crazy day,” Daniels said in his post-game interview. “I went out this morning knowing I needed to catch a few bass to ensure I made the Knockout Round. I caught a few early – a couple of really big ones – and those 5-pounders can really add up quick. Next thing you know, I’m 30 pounds back. But I’m still thinking no, that’s still quite a bit.

“So I keep plucking, just fishing around, and boom, I catch two or three more. Now I’m at 25. I keep fishing around and it’s just going down. 25. 17. 15. 11. Once I heard 15, I was like, ‘that’s only three or four bites, if they don’t start catching them pretty quick, I can probably make something happen.’ And that’s what happened. I just circled through areas where I knew fish were living and tried to maximize my fishing time. And man, I caught some big ones today.”

Daniels caught his bass mainly on a dropshot rig, but he also added a few scorable keepers on a swimbait. He credited his Garmin electronics and Favorite Fishing HEX spinning rods as being the keys to his success.

“I was fortunate to win the round and I couldn’t be any happier,” Daniels went on to say. “I just kept it simple, panning around, looking at my electronics, and making precise casts to targets. It was such a fun day and hopefully we can drag in some more like we did today on Championship Thursday.”

Bertrand, despite his Day-2 struggles, remained optimistic about his chances in Wednesday’s Knockout Round.

“Overall, it was a really tough day for me, but late in the day I learned a couple of things that can be really valuable for me in the Knockout Round,” Bertrand said. “The biggest thing that I learned is that when it’s calm, these fish definitely seem to get up and cruise the flats.

“In the Knockout Round, I’m going to use the same dropshot rig with the same (Berkley PowerBait MaxScent) Hit Worm I was using in the deep boulders, but I’m going to a lighter weight,” he continued. “I am switching to a 3/8-ounce weight instead of the 1/2-ounce. I’m just going to lighten everything up and try to get a little stealthier.”

Stephen Browning of Hot Springs, Ark. earned Monday’s $1,000 Berkley Big Bass Award with a huge smallmouth weighing 6-08 that he caught in Period 3 on a vibrating jig. Berkley awards $1,000 to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass each day and a $3,000 bonus to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass of the tournament.

Anglers launch each day at 7:30 a.m. CT from Eddy’s Resort, located at 41334 Shakopee Lake Road in Onamia. Each day’s takeout is held at the Resort, beginning at 4 p.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch and takeout events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLF NOW! livestream and ScoreTracker coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.

The tournament features anglers competing with a 2-pound minimum weight requirement for a bass to be deemed scorable. Minimum weights are determined individually for each competition waters that the Bass Pro Tour visits based on the productivity, bass population and anticipated average size of fish in each fishery.

The MLF NOW! broadcast team of Chad McKee, Marty Stone and J.T. Kenney break down the extended action on each day of competition from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CT. MLF NOW! is livestreamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com and the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app.



Group A Qualifying Round – Day 2

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

1. Mark Daniels Jr. -- 43-14 (12) -- 79-12 (20) -- 123-10 (32) -- 5-13

2. Josh Bertrand -- 86-13 (27) -- 25-00 (8) -- 111-13 (35) -- 4-09

3. Stephen Browning -- 84-13 (20) -- 23-09 (6) -- 108-06 (26) -- 6-08

4. Jordan Lee -- 46-11 (15) -- 47-01 (13) -- 93-12 (28) -- 4-06

5. Brent Chapman -- 31-11 (11) -- 54-08 (19) -- 86-03 (30) -- 4-12

6. Luke Clausen -- 34-06 (9) -- 47-09 (12) -- 81-15 (21) -- 4-14

7. David Walker -- 37-10 (11) -- 44-02 (11) -- 81-12 (22) -- 5-07

8. Michael Neal -- 43-14 (13) -- 36-04 (10) -- 80-02 (23) -- 5-00

9. Dakota Ebare -- 31-03 (8) -- 48-01 (13) -- 79-04 (21) -- 5-00

10. Matt Lee -- 53-11 (15) -- 24-13 (6) -- 78-08 (21) -- 5-11

11. Mark Rose -- 42-12 (14) -- 35-08 (13) -- 78-04 (27) -- 3-12

12. Brent Ehrler -- 41-09 (11) -- 36-08 (11) -- 78-01 (22) -- 5-03

13. Jeff Kriet -- 50-05 (13) -- 24-08 (7) -- 74-13 (20) -- 4-14

14. Jonathon VanDam -- 30-12 (8) -- 42-15 (12) -- 73-11 (20) -- 4-14

15. Todd Faircloth -- 20-09 (7) -- 51-12 (16) -- 72-05 (23) -- 4-07

16. Roy Hawk -- 17-14 (6) -- 54-07 (15) -- 72-05 (21) -- 4-08

17. Jesse Wiggins -- 34-07 (10) -- 37-09 (10) -- 72-00 (20) -- 5-04

18. Ish Monroe -- 29-11 (9) -- 41-08 (12) -- 71-03 (21) -- 4-11

19. Marty Robinson -- 41-02 (11) -- 29-11 (9) -- 70-13 (20) -- 4-11

20. Boyd Duckett -- 33-06 (11) -- 37-05 (12) -- 70-11 (23) -- 5-05

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

21. Greg Vinson -- 18-06 (6) -- 52-01 (15) -- 70-07 (21) -- 4-08

22. Zack Birge -- 33-10 (10) -- 34-12 (10) -- 68-06 (20) -- 4-15

23. David Dudley -- 27-06 (9) -- 36-10 (12) -- 64-00 (21) -- 5-04

24. Anthony Gagliardi -- 38-08 (11) -- 20-11 (6) -- 59-03 (17) -- 4-08

25. Dylan Hays -- 18-11 (7) -- 35-04 (10) -- 53-15 (17) -- 4-08

26. James Watson -- 31-03 (10) -- 21-11 (7) -- 52-14 (17) -- 4-12

27. Gary Klein -- 27-13 (8) -- 24-14 (8) -- 52-11 (16) -- 4-06

28. Edwin Evers -- 30-14 (9) -- 21-02 (6) -- 52-00 (15) -- 4-00

29. Cole Floyd -- 32-04 (10) -- 19-07 (5) -- 51-11 (15) -- 4-04

30. Fred Roumbanis -- 20-14 (6) -- 30-08 (10) -- 51-06 (16) -- 3-10

31. Andy Montgomery -- 31-04 (11) -- 19-09 (6) -- 50-13 (17) -- 4-02

32. Chris Lane -- 26-08 (9) -- 21-12 (7) -- 48-04 (16) -- 3-14

33. Scott Suggs -- 18-03 (6) -- 27-04 (10) -- 45-07 (16) -- 3-07

34. Takahiro Omori -- 31-05 (8) -- 13-01 (4) -- 44-06 (12) -- 4-09

35. Mike McClelland -- 34-01 (9) -- 4-15 (2) -- 39-00 (11) -- 2-11

36. Paul Elias -- 23-02 (7) -- 15-05 (6) -- 38-07 (13) -- 3-12

37. Fletcher Shryock -- 11-02 (4) -- 25-02 (7) -- 36-04 (11) -- 5-03

38. Andy Morgan -- 22-02 (7) -- 13-08 (4) -- 35-10 (11) -- 5-01

39. Dave Lefebre -- 16-01 (5) -- 16-15 (6) -- 33-00 (11) -- 3-09

40. Tommy Biffle -- 8-13 (3) -- 19-00 (5) -- 27-13 (8) -- 5-00