Story by Justin Brouillard | Photos by Tanner & Travis Lyons
Showdown Saturday is here at Lake Hartwell. Hosted by Anderson County, stop #3 in South Carolina has been an interesting event with the anglers getting it done under tough conditions. With weights tight across the board, and just over four pounds separating the top ten, it is anyone’s game on the final day.
Mike Corbishley took over the top spot as the top of the leaderboard shifted on day two. With the biggest bag of the tournament at 17 pounds, 7 ounces, Corbishley enjoys a 1 pound, 3 ounce lead over Florida angler John Cox, who won the 2016 Walmart FLW Tour Event on Lake Hartwell earlier in his career.
Corbishley is fishing how he is comfortable this week and understands the importance of getting a big bite. Lacking on day one, he landed two quality largemouths to anchor his bag and plans on continuing to efficiently fish his offshore pattern today. Corbishley is anticipating that the increase in the wind on day three will help the bite for the whole field.
Behind him, John Cox is junk fishing and running around Hartwell like a madman. Cox is focusing on whatever looks good in each area and targeting bigger fish with Berkley Swimbaits while slowing down with a Berkley General to pick up a limit. The bite has been tough for Cox, like the rest of the field, but his 16-pound, 1-ounce effort on day two moved him into the second-place spot with one day remaining.
In third, Jason Burroughs struggled on day two, but his 15-pound, 9-ounce effort on day one is enough to keep him in contention. With the weights tight, Burroughs hopes to capitalize this morning, something he was unable to do on day two and get a few better-quality bass in the boat.
With two bags over 13 pounds, Michael Stout is looking forward to hitting his best areas on the final day. Conserving fish over three days is tough, but now the Tennessee angler can settle in and hunt for bigger quality fish without worrying about catching fish that will not help him cull.
Rounding out the top five, Buddy Gross used his kicker on day one weighing 5 pounds, 6 ounces to anchor his day one weight. Adding a smaller 10-pound limit on day two, Gross sits just over three pounds back from Corbishley.
Currently in 15th place, angler Matt Mollohan maintains the highest Bass Cat Boats angler after two days, putting him great position to earn additional rewards through the Bass Cat Quest Program, and an additional $5,000 for being the highest-finishing Bass Cat Boats angler.
Top Ten
Mike Corbishley 30-0
John Cox 28-13
Jason Burroughs 27-4
Michael Stout 27-0
Buddy Gross 26-11
Trent Palmer 26-10
Kyle Welcher 26-5
Hunter Sales 26-3
Will Harkins 26-2
Richard Kee 25-14
Weather Watch
The anglers launch into cloudy skies this morning with temperatures in the upper 60’s. As highs creep into the 80’s, scattered thunderstorms and gusty winds are expected this afternoon. Winds are SW at 10 to 15 MPH.
How to Watch
Tune in to watch the final daily action from Lake Hartwell with Live Coverage here and on the FREE PHYX TV App.
Follow along and watch the daily LIVE Leaderboard, LIVE Blog, and on-the-water photo galleries and blogs of the anglers on Lake Hartwell.
Under the Go Live Tab, choose LIVE Broadcast or check out the real-time leaderboard on the Weigh Live Tracker with estimated weights entered by the anglers on the water and join us for the LIVE Weigh-ins, here!
And be sure to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, & Twitter.
NPFL Stop #2 on Lake Hartwell is hosted by Anderson County. For more event Information, here.
