After a round of postponements due to inclement weather, 41 teams took off from the Mill Creek ramp to kick off the third derby of the 2026 Joe Bass Team Trail Table Rock division sponsored by Blackbeard Marine. The recent cold snap and snow had tempered surface temps and iced in some of the upper reaches of the lake. Nonetheless, anglers were hopeful they could push through and see their names at the top of the Window World leaderboard at the end of the day.
Signifying its commitment to the integrity of their events, Joe Bass administered polygraph tests at the conclusion of the tournament. With the intent of ensuring a level playing field. The trail will have random tests throughout the season to ensure everyone has a fair shot at qualifying for the Invitational on Truman Lake out Bucksaw Resort & Marina next fall.
Nick Lawler teamed with Jabob Wade to take top honors for the day. They scoped a Damiki rig bite to catch over 30 keepers for the day. Their Blackbeard Marine key for success was sticking with the minnow rig as they found fish scattered on an all-day bite. They leveraged their plan to log a final weight of 19.15 pounds.
Bryan Badock and Cody Spetz brought an 18.49-pound limit to the weigh-in to secure the runner up finish. They also used a minnow rig to catch their fish with 15+ keepers to show for their efforts. They noted their better fish came early but they caught fish throughout the day. Bryan and Cody anchored their sack with the Wilson Truck Sales big bass of the event. Their kicker fish weighed a stout 5.15 pounds.
Wyatt Marler and Rhett Hill rounded out the top three with a five fish limit that locked the scales at 17.13 pounds. They used a minnow bait to catch their fish. Wyatt and Rhett concentrated on the 30’-40’ depth range to catch a couple of dozen keepers throughout the day.
Larry Selig went solo to take the 7th place check but padded it by taking Top Skeeter honors as he fished from his beautiful 2023 ZX200. He combined a jerk bait with a minnow rig to load the live wells of his Skeeter.
Thank you Taylor Grubaugh Chevrolet, Buick & GMC for sponsoring the release boat!
Bring your empty packages of Rapala, Crush City, Storm, VMC and Suffix with your name and phone number to your next Joe Bass Tournament for a chance at a tackle pack. Drawings are done monthly throughout the tournament season.
Clear Cast marine electronics repair is continuing to support Joe Bass Team Trail. Their support of the Tournament of Champions and Staff Shootout opportunities at the Invitational is paramount to it’s success. SUPPORT their efforts! Be sure and visit their website for details for your repair and setup needs!
The fourth event of the 2026 Winter Division will launch from Mill Creek Saturday 2/21 with a 7:00 am takeoff.
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Photos
Results
| Place | Team Members | Fish | B/F | TotWgt | Pts | Payout |
| 1 | *Nick Lawler – Jacob Wade | 5 | 4.38 | 19.15 | 220 | $2,400.00 |
| 2 | Bryan Badock – Cody Spetz | 5 | 5.15 | 18.49 | 219 | $1,590.00 |
| 3 | Wyatt Marler – *Rhett Hill | 5 | 3.9 | 17.13 | 218 | $760.00 |
| 4 | Eric White – Gavin White | 5 | 3.74 | 16.82 | 217 | $500.00 |
| 5 | Colton Mease – Jese Cole | 5 | 16.78 | 216 | $406.00 | |
| 6 | Dustin Blevins – Eric Blevins | 5 | 3.95 | 16.46 | 215 | $200.00 |
| 7 | Larry Selig – | 5 | 4.9 | 16.36 | 214 | $590.00 |
| 8 | Wyatt Tasker – Larry Tasker JR | 5 | 4.04 | 16.29 | 213 | $180.00 |
| 9 | Kyle Burke – Brian Walkup | 5 | 16.28 | 212 | ||
| 10 | Huner Baird – Dayne Kobridger | 5 | 16.27 | 211 | ||
| 11 | *Jacob Bennett – Brock Becks | 5 | 4.71 | 16.21 | 210 | |
| 12 | Jeff Epley – Danny Burns | 5 | 4.35 | 15.76 | 209 | |
| 13 | Landon Edwards – Cody Ellison | 5 | 15.75 | 208 | ||
| 14 | Will Billeter – Chandler Robertson | 5 | 3.5 | 15.37 | 207 | |
| 15 | Easton Pendagrass – Ethan Enochs | 5 | 4.27 | 15.36 | 206 | |
| 16 | Aaron Stanphill – *Clint Brannon | 5 | 14.88 | 205 | ||
| 17 | Jack Cunningham – Jim Cunningham | 5 | 3.25 | 14.6 | 204 | |
| 18 | Kaden Zimmerman – Andrew Esterhold | 5 | 13.85 | 203 | ||
| 19 | Randy Sade – | 5 | 3.79 | 13.77 | 202 | |
| 20 | Mark Thompson – Luke Thompson | 5 | 13.67 | 201 | ||
| 21 | Josiah Ennes – Dylan Delahay | 5 | 13.64 | 200 | ||
| 22 | Brett Rider – Steve Rider | 5 | 13.45 | 199 | ||
| 23 | Chris Bridges – | 5 | 13.12 | 198 | ||
| 24 | Sam Grace – Henry Matuika | 5 | 11.76 | 197 | ||
| 25 | Dallas Beasley – Rodney Dawson | 5 | 11.42 | 196 | ||
| 26 | Josh Tate – JD Tate | 5 | 11.15 | 195 | ||
| 27 | Scott Lippe – Evan Villines | 5 | 10.82 | 194 | ||
| 28 | Rusty Darnell – *Tim Newberry | 4 | 3.3 | 9.83 | 193 | |
| 29 | Jacob Delong – Noah Long | 4 | 9 | 192 | ||
| 30 | Steve Huff – Brad Martin | 2 | 5.04 | 191 | ||
| 31 | Harvey Horn – Jim Ford | 2 | 3.92 | 190 | ||
| 32 | Shane Erickson – Rhett Erickson | 2 | 3.74 | 189 | ||
| 33 | John Williams – Jim Williams | 1 | 2.25 | 2.25 | 188 | |
| 34 | James Brown – John Campbell | 0 | 20 | |||
| Zachary Cooley – Kent Whitaker | 0 | 20 | ||||
| Tyler Frahm – Austin Frahm | 0 | 20 | ||||
| Terry Hutchison – Jason Coley | 0 | 20 | ||||
| Tom Mason – Chris Reese | 0 | 20 | ||||
| Jim Morey – Rod Park | 0 | 20 | ||||
| Justin Pruitt – | 0 | 20 | ||||
| Seth Thompson – Ryan Thompson | 0 | 20 |
*alternate