Guntersville, Alabama pro lands two-day total of 44 scorable bass weighing 127 pounds to advance straight to Sunday’s Championship Round, Knockout Round field set for Saturday
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (April 4, 2025) – The race for the top spot in the Qualifying Round at Bass Pro Shops REDCREST Presented by MillerTech – and the automatic Championship Round berth that comes with it – started out wide open on the second day of competition on Lake Guntersville. Five different anglers topped SCORETRACKER® at various points during Friday’s opening period.
By the second period, it turned into a two-man race between a pair of Alabamians in Chris Lane of Guntersville and Jacob Walker of Springville. Eventually, Lane used his Guntersville knowledge and aptitude catching shallow spawners to pull away. He added 24 scorable bass for 72 pounds, 9 ounces (the best day any competitor has put together so far) to bring his two-day total to 127 pounds even, 17-7 clear of Walker.
That will earn Lane a day off as he prepares to chase his first REDCREST trophy and the $300,000 paycheck that comes with it on Championship Sunday. The rest of the Top 20 will take to the water Saturday for the Knockout Round.
Lane has found his comfort zone on Guntersville, and not just because he’s lived on the shores of the lake for the past 15 years.
Prior to REDCREST, Lane took the forward-facing sonar transducers off his Nitro. He figured he could find plenty of fish flocking to shallow water – his area of expertise – so he planned to go all-in on targeting them. He didn’t even want to be tempted by the technology.
“I took that thing off my boat, and the reason I did is because it was a distraction to me and what I do and the way that I do it,” Lane said. “Taking it off coming into REDCREST before the first day of the tournament allowed me to focus on what I do, and that was reassuring and beneficial to have success without it.”
Lane’s instinct that he’d be able to find success targeting shallow spawners proved correct. He noted that the lake level has risen about a foot since the start of practice. While that might not seem like a lot, when combined with the time of year and steadily climbing water temperatures, it triggered a wave of fish to move into their spawning grounds. He found even more fish on Day 2 than Day 1 – an hour into Period 2, he had nearly surpassed his opening-day total with 47-15.
“I think it’s just the water coming up a half a foot,” Lane explained. “It may not even be that much, but it’s come up over a foot since practice started. And the water is warming, so that’s why the fish got bigger and more plentiful.”
Lane targeted his fish with a Texas-rigged Bass Pro Shops XPS Log Father. That produced both quantity and quality. He landed four bass over 4 pounds on the day, including a 5-15 and a 7-5, the latter of which earned Berkley Big Bass honors.
While Lane is at his best pitching for bedding bass, he doesn’t expect to replicate that pattern on Sunday. Thunderstorms are in the forecast with the potential to dump 1-2 inches of rain. Knowing that made Lane more eager to fish for the Qualifying Round win, since he doesn’t think the conditions will allow him to catch the same fish he targeted Friday.
“I think it’ll be different; I think you’re going to have to fish different,” Lane said. “I’ll play that by ear come Sunday, to see how much sun there is – if there’s any – and if they drop the water. Because they could pull that water in 2 seconds, and they probably will. So, I’m going to have to pay attention to all of that.”
Lane knows he’ll need to adjust if he’s going to contend for the championship trophy. His knowledge of the fishery gives him confidence he’ll be able to figure out the right moves based on the conditions.
“I think that’s probably the reassuring thing is knowing, okay, I’ve got 978 other spots where they like to get this time of year,” he said. “I think it’ll be a big adjustment for everybody, so it’ll be nice having the day off to get re-geared and re-focused, pay attention to the weather, not be tired, not get in a hurry and go from there.”
Lane has won both a Bass Pro Tour event (2023 on the Kissimmee Chain) and a tour-level championship (the 2012 Bassmaster Classic). But he said a victory at REDCREST on Guntersville would be extra sweet because of all the family, friends and sponsors who will be on hand Sunday.
“It would mean the world to me to win, not only for another victory and a check for $300,000, but for your support system, for your sponsors,” Lane said. “For the whole support team and for my family, it would just be awesome. And for the hometown. Geez, that doesn’t usually work out like that at big tournaments.”
The top 20 pros that made the cut and will advance in competition at REDCREST 2025 on Lake Guntersville are:
1st: Chris Lane, Guntersville, Ala., 44 bass, 127-0
2nd: Jacob Walker, Springville, Ala., 38 bass, 109-9
3rd: David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., 33 bass, 102-14
4th: Zack Birge, Blanchard, Okla., 39 bass, 99-13
5th: Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., 34 bass, 99-1
6th: Edwin Evers, Talala, Okla., 34 bass, 92-3
7th: Jake Lawrence, Paris, Tenn., 32 bass, 91-1
8th: Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., 34 bass, 90-8
9th: Ron Nelson, Berrien Springs, Mich., 28 bass, 89-6
10th: Jeff Sprague, Wills Point, Texas, 30 bass, 87-7
11th: Brent Ehrler, Redlands, Calif., 29 bass, 87-1
12th: Justin Cooper, Zwolle, La., 31 bass, 85-5
13th: Martin Villa, Charlottesville, Va., 33 bass, 83-4
14th: Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., 27 bass, 80-8
15th: Paul Marks Jr., Cumming, Ga., 29 bass, 80-6
16th: Marshall Robinson, Landrum, S.C., 26 bass, 79-4
17th: Dustin Connell, Clanton, Ala., 26 bass, 78-9
18th: Michael Neal, Dayton, Tenn., 24 bass, 76-13
19th: Jacob Wall, New Hope, Ala., 28 bass, 76-13
20th: Nick Hatfield, Greeneville, Tenn., 28 bass, 73-13
Finishing in 21st through 50th place are:
21st: Spencer Shuffield, Hot Springs, Ark., 27 bass, 72-13
22nd: Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., 24 bass, 69-1
23rd: Casey Ashley, Donalds, S.C., 24 bass, 68-4
24th: Alton Jones Jr., Waco, Texas, 24 bass, 66-11
25th: Tyler Stewart, Dubach, La., 25 bass, 66-7
26th: Jacob Wheeler, Harrison, Tenn., 22 bass, 65-5
27th: Mark Daniels Jr., Tuskegee, Ala., 24 bass, 64-15
28th: John Hunter, Shelbyville, Ky., 24 bass, 64-8
29th: Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 23 bass, 63-11
30th: Mark Davis, Mount Ida, Ark., 21 bass, 61-7
31st: Andrew Nordbye, Guntersville, Ala., 24 bass, 60-6
32nd: Drew Gill, Mount Carmel, Ill., 23 bass, 58-1
33rd: Luke Clausen, Spokane, Wash., 18 bass, 55-14
34th: Justin Lucas, Guntersville, Ala., 19 bass, 55-13
35th: Alec Morrison, Peru, N.Y., 19 bass, 55-7
36th: Gerald Spohrer, Gonzales, La., 19 bass, 53-6
37th: Adrian Avena, Vineland, N.J., 21 bass, 51-11
38th: Skeet Reese, Auburn, Calif., 17 bass, 50-15
39th: Braylon Eggerding, Grand Rapids, Mich., 17 bass, 50-3
40th: James Elam, Tulsa, Okla., 16 bass, 48-2
41st: Cole Floyd, Leesburg, Ohio, 16 bass, 44-9
42nd: Hayden Marbut, Birmingham, Ala., 14 bass, 42-6
43rd: Ott DeFoe, Blaine, Tenn., 16 bass, 41-14
44th: Jesse Wiggins, Addison, Ala., 16 bass, 41-2
45th: Matt Becker, Ten Mile, Tenn., 13 bass, 40-10
46th: Keith Carson, DeBary, Fla., 14 bass, 40-1
47th: Keith Poche, Pike Road, Ala., 13 bass, 37-2
48th: Terry Scroggins, San Mateo, Fla., 12 bass,32-15
49th: Nick LeBrun, Bossier City, La., eight bass, 23-0
50th: Dylan Hays, Hot Springs, Ark., eight bass, 17-8
Overall, there were 607 scorable bass weighing 1,706 pounds, 3 ounces caught by the 50 pros Friday.
For the second consecutive year, Chris Lane also earned the $1,000 Berkley Big Bass Award on Day 2 of REDCREST with a 7-pound, 5-ounce largemouth bass that he in Period 2. Berkley awards $1,000 to the angler who weighs the heaviest bass each day.
The full field of anglers competed in the two-day Qualifying Round on Thursday and Friday. Now, with the two-day Qualifying Round complete, Lane advances directly to Sunday’s Championship Round. The anglers that finished in 2nd through 20th advance to Saturday’s Knockout Round. In the Knockout Round, weights are zeroed, and the remaining anglers compete to finish in the top nine to advance to Sunday’s Championship Round. In the final day Championship Round, weights are zeroed, and the highest one-day total wins professional bass fishing’s top prize of $300,000.
Anglers will launch each morning from Civitan Park, located at 1130 Sunset Drive, in Guntersville, Alabama, at 7:15 a.m. Fans are welcome to attend all launch events and also encouraged to follow the event online throughout the day on the MLF NOW!® live stream and SCORETRACKER® coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
The free, family-friendly MLF Outdoor Sports Expo will also take place throughout the weekend at the Von Braun Center, located at 700 Monroe St. SW, in Huntsville. Fishing and outdoor enthusiasts are invited to explore an array of booths and vendors, featuring the newest innovations and gear in fishing, boating, and outdoors. Meet some of the biggest names in the industry, including professional anglers from the Bass Pro Tour and legendary Bass Fishing Hall of Famers like Jimmy Houston, Roland Martin and Kevin VanDam.
The four-day event, hosted by the Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association, and the Madison County Commission , showcases the top 50 MLF anglers from 2024 – including the top 40 anglers from the Bass Pro Tour – competing for the prestigious REDCREST Championship and a total prize pool for more than ¾ of a million dollars.
The 2024 Bass Pro Tour featured a field of 78 of the top professional anglers in the world, competing across seven regular-season tournaments around the country, for millions of dollars and valuable points to qualify for the Bass Pro Shops REDCREST 2025 Presented by MillerTech Energy.
The MLFNOW!® broadcast team of Chad McKee and J.T. Kenney will break down the extended action live on each day of competition from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. MLFNOW!® is live streamed on MajorLeagueFishing.com, the MyOutdoorTV (MOTV) app and Rumble.
Television coverage of MLF’s Bass Pro Shops REDCREST 2025 Presented by MillerTech Energy at Lake Guntersville will premiere as a two-hour episode starting at 7 a.m. ET, on Saturday, July 5 on Discovery, with the Championship Round premiering on Saturday, July 19. New MLF episodes premiere each Saturday morning on Discovery, with re-airings on Outdoor Channel and Vice TV.
Proud sponsors of the MLF Bass Pro Tour and REDCREST 2025 include: 7Brew Coffee, Abu Garcia, Athletic Brewing, Bass Force, B&W Trailer Hitches, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, BUBBA, E3 Sports Apparel, Fishing Clash, Grizzly, Lowrance, Mercury, MillerTech Energy, Mossy Oak Fishing, NITRO, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Power-Pole, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Star brite, Suzuki Marine and Toyota.
For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the Bass Pro Tour, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.
About Major League Fishing
Major League Fishing (MLF) is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, producing more than 250 events annually at some of the most prestigious fisheries in the world, while broadcasting to America’s living rooms on CBS, Discovery Channel, Outdoor Channel, CBS Sports Network, World Fishing Network and on demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV). Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, the MLF roster of bass anglers includes the world’s top pros and more than 30,000 competitors in all 50 states and 20 countries. Since its founding in 2011, MLF has advanced the sport of competitive fishing through its premier television broadcasts and livestreams and is dedicated to improving the quality of life for bass through research, education, fisheries enhancement and fish care.
