Should I stay or should I go? Pros fishing the AFS on Pickwick Lake this week must decide whether to run far, lock out or stay on Pickwick. Photo by Rob Newell.

March 4, 2011 • MLF • Archives

IUKA, Miss. – The Walmart Bass Fishing League is headed to Pickwick Lake March 12 for the first of five stops in the Mississippi Division. As many as 400 boaters and co-anglers will be competing for top awards up to $9,500 and $3,000, respectively.

“The fishing is going to be phenomenal,” said EverStart pro Randall Tharp of Gardendale, Ala. “Temperatures are starting to warm up and the fish are going to be moving up into their staging areas. The key to victory is going to be finding those staging areas and reeling `em in.

“The smallmouth bite is going to be huge,” Tharp went on to say. “I would use a Rat-L-Trap or spinnerbait in the grass. Some jig fishing will work as well. It’s probably going to take over 20 pounds to win.”

Takeoffs and weigh-ins will be at JP Coleman State Park located at 613 County Road 321 in Iuka, Miss. Takeoff is scheduled for 6 a.m. while weigh-in will begin at 2 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, offering bigger prizes to those who qualify for regional championships and those who make it to one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.