GREERS FERRY, Ark. (April 27, 2026) – Boaters Shonn Goodwin of Moore, Oklahoma, and Wayne Dixon of Morrilton, Arkansas , both brought five-bass limits to the scale totaling 14 pounds, 14 ounces, to tie for the win Saturday at the Bass Fishing League (BFL) tournament on Greers Ferry Lake. The tournament was the third of five events of the season for the BFL Arkie Division. The duo split the top payout, with Dixon taking home $2,510 and Goodwin taking home $2,610 after contingency bonuses. Goodwin and Dixon employed two very different approaches to arrive at the same winning weight, each adjusting to conditions on Greers Ferry Lake to capitalize on postspawn fish.
Fishing the clearer, southern portion of the lake, Goodwin started the morning with a topwater bite in mind but quickly recognized it wasn’t developing.
“I thought I could just throw topwater all day, but it was not on,” Goodwin said. “I changed up pretty quickly and went to a Ned rig and fished main-lake points, targeting postspawn fish.”
That adjustment proved critical, especially late in the morning when he turned elected to use his 3-hour forward-facing sonar period and quickly dialed in bigger bites.
“My first cast with it was a 4-pounder, and I caught two other good ones after that,” Goodwin added. “The main thing was getting off the topwater quickly and not trying to force it.”
Dixon, meanwhile, committed to a slower, more methodical presentation, dragging a Texas-rigged worm in mid-lake areas throughout the day. Targeting fish holding in a specific depth range, he focused on maintaining contact with the bottom and staying in productive water.
“I caught all my fish dragging a JP custom worm on a Texas rig,” Dixon said. “They were in about 12 to 14 feet all day long.”
Dixon’s consistency paid off, as he boated an estimated 30 to 40 fish over the course of the day. He said the key was recognizing exactly where the fish were positioned and sticking with it.
“Just paying attention to what zone the fish were in,” he said. “I could go shallow and not get bit, go deeper and not get bit – they were just locked in that 12 to 14 range.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Shonn Goodwin, Moore, Okla., five bass, 14-14, $2,610
1st: Wayne Dixon, Morrilton, Ark., five bass, 14-14, $2,510
3rd: Blake Wilson, Benton, Ark., five bass, 12-9, $850
4th: Matt Baker, Glenwood, Ark., five bass, 12-0, $930
5th: Cody Burke, Greenbrier, Ark., five bass, 11-3, $800
6th: Fisher Davis, Mount Ida, Ark., five bass, 11-2, $520
7th: Justin Howard, Austin, Ark., five bass, 11-1, $500
8th: Larry Nixon, Quitman, Ark., five bass, 11-0, $480
9th: Shawn Gordon, Russellville, Ark., five bass, 10-15, $445
9th: Randy Pickrell, Carlisle, Ark., five bass, 10-15, $445
Complete results can be found at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Burke earned the Big Bass Boater award honors with a 3-pound, 15-ouncer, worth $200. Alexander, Arkansas, native Christian Knight won the co-angler division and the top prize of $1,770 Saturday after bringing three bass to the scale that weighed in at 9 pounds, 4 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Christian Knight, Alexander, Ark., three bass, 9-4, $1,770
2nd: Larry Ivens, Hot Springs, Ark., three bass, 7-12, $632
2nd: Tony Thompson, Marshall, Texas, three bass, 7-12, $632
4th: Don Billiot, Hot Springs Village, Ark., three bass, 7-11, $340
5th: Keagan Harrison, Sulphur Rock, Ark., three bass, 7-8, $300
6th: Daryl Powell, Leesville, La., three bass, 7-6, $260
7th: Steve Lee, Benton, Ark., three bass, 7-4, $300
8th: Edward Hendricks, Conway, Ark., three bass, 7-2, $240
9th: Joey Villines, Compton, Ark., three bass, 7-0, $230
10th: Marc Maroney, Rison, Ark., three bass, 6-14, $215
Knight also earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award after landing a 4-pound, 12-ounce bass worth $100.
After three events, Matt Baker of Glenwood, Arkansas, now leads the 7 Brew Arkie Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 744 points, while Christian Knight of Alexander, Arkansas, leads the Arkie Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 740 points.
https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/bfl-greers-42726.html
Bass Fishing League (BFL) News