SPARTA, Tenn. (April 27, 2026) – Boater Skip Howell of Okolona, Mississippi, brought a five-bass limit to the scale weighing 18 pounds, 6 ounces, to win the Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournament on Center Hill Lake. The tournament was the third of five events of the season for the BFL Music City Division. Howell earned $2,890 for his victory.
Howell relied on a shallow-water pattern anchored by a vibrating jig to secure the win. Targeting fish in various stages of the spawn, he was able to generate consistent bites in the shallows and put together a strong five-bass limit.
“No doubt, the key bait for me today was a (Z-Man Evergreen Jack Hammer) ChatterBait,” Howell said. “I filled my limit just throwing that.”
While the ChatterBait did most of the heavy lifting, Howell mixed in a few key adjustments to maximize his weight. He caught a fish off a bed early in the day, then later upgraded with one of his biggest bites using forward-facing sonar late in the afternoon.
“I found one on the bed, and then I culled with a 4-10 that I ‘scoped there at the end,” he said. “I saved my three hours at the end to use my forward-facing sonar.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Skip Howell, Okolona, Miss., five bass, 18-6, $2,890
2nd: Cody Mackie, McMinnville, Tenn., five bass, 17-3, $1,015
2nd: Braxton Campbell, McMinnville, Tenn., five bass, 17-3, $1,015
4th: Adam Wagner, Cookeville, Tenn., five bass, 17-0, $570
5th: Drew Boggs, Lebanon, Tenn., five bass, 16-11, $510
6th: Lee Sinclair, Albany, Ky., five bass, 16-6, $450
7th: Corey Steakley, Lebanon, Tenn., five bass, 16-4, $430
8th: Timothy Reagan, Livingston, Tenn., five bass, 16-1, $410
8th: Shawn Panick, Nolensville, Tenn., five bass, 16-1, $410
10th: Zach Sparks, Dowelltown, Tenn., five bass, 16-0, $390
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Howell also earned the Big Bass Boater award honors with a 4-pound, 10-ounce bass worth $200. Michael League of Sparta, Tennessee, won the co-angler division and the top prize of $1,295 Saturday after bringing three bass to the scale that totaled 10 pounds, 13 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Michael League, Sparta, Tenn., three bass, 10-13, $1,295
2nd: Grant Frazier, Manchester, Tenn., three bass, 10-5, $715
3rd: Shane Jewell, Lawrenceburg, Tenn., three bass, 10-2, $450
4th: John Carman, Berea, Ky., three bass, 9-9, $285
5th: Cole Panick, Nolensville, Tenn., three bass, 9-8, $255
6th: Richard Payne, Portland, Tenn., three bass, 9-7, $225
7th: Pop Catalin, Cookeville, Tenn., three bass, 9-6, $220
8th: Kyle Miller, Fulda, Ind., three bass, 9-5, $210
9th: David Wiley, Greenbrier, Tenn., three bass, 8-15, $200
10th: Remington Tatrow, Smithville, Tenn., three bass, 8-7, $195
Shane Jewell of Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award after landing a bass weighing 5 pounds even, worth $100.
After three events, Daniel Johnson of Lebanon, Tennessee, now leads the 7 Brew Music City Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 721 points, while Dylan Beard of Dickson, Tennessee, leads the Music City Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 725 points.
https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/bfl-center-hill-42726.html
Bass Fishing League (BFL) News