Combs and Tipton Hammer Out the Win with 23.38 lbs. on Lake Guntersville at the Bill Lewis Lures All Traps No Scopes Open Tournament
Shane Combs and Wayne Tipton weigh 23.38 lbs. for the win. Photos by Kenneth Grover
173 boats entered the 2026 Bill Lewis Lures All Traps No Scopes Open Tournament on Lake Guntersville March 1, 2026. The tournament was hosted by GTO (Guntersville Tackle and Outdoors) at Goose Pond. The anglers were able to check-in at the Goose Pond Civic Center Saturday afternoon from 3 – 6 pm. Each team received their boat number, assigned starting time, and time to check in for the weigh-in. The teams were able to launch from any boat ramp they choose but could not make a cast until their assigned time (based on their boat number). Each team had to be in the parking lot (if they trailered back to the weigh-in) or be checked in at the docks located behind GTO at Goose Pond by their assigned check-in time.
After many days of cold temperatures during the last half of January and most of the month of February, we finally started to see that trend turn around during the week before this tournament. This always leaves anglers with the decision to fish for the deeper bass that have not moved up yet or cover the shallower grass flats searching for the bass that have already started the staging process. Lake Guntersville is a very popular tournament lake due to the abundant grass flats and the large population of bass. This is also the perfect combination to showcase the Bill Lewis Lures Rat-L-Traps, Hammer Traps, and the new Big Gizz.
Shane Combs and Wayne Tipton used 3/16 oz. Hammer Traps in Baton Rouge and Purple Nurple colors to catch 23.38 lbs. and take 1st place for this event. They earned $5000.00 for the win. They also caught a largemouth bass that weighed 7.57 lbs. which was big enough to take the 3rd place big fish prize of $500.00. They reported catching the 7.57 lb. fish and one over 5 lbs. first thing in the morning. The bite lasted about an hour and it got really tough after that. Fortunately for them, they had enough to pull out the win during that first hour. They targeted eel grass flats and reported using a yo-yo retrieve to catch these fish.
Chad Jones and Danny Crockett used 3/8 oz. Hammer Traps in Rayburn Red and Baton Rouge colors to catch 22.81 lbs. and finish in 2nd place. They earned $1800.00 for the 2nd place finish. They reported catching their fish throughout the morning but the bite died at about 10:00 am. They targeted shallow grass to catch these fish.
James Pritchett and Donavon Williams used 1/2 oz. Knock’n Rat-L-Traps in crawfish and red colors to catch 22.12 lbs. and finish in 3rd place. They earned $1300.00 for the 3rd place finish. They also caught a largemouth bass that weighed 8.34 lbs. that was big enough to take the 2nd big bass prize of $1000.00. They reported catching their biggest fish on the fourth cast of the day. They said the bite overall was slow and it took them until 11:00 to catch their five bass limit.
Cody Hudson and Eric Stafford used 1/2 oz. Rat-L-Traps in Red Craw color to catch a largemouth bass weighing 8.45 lbs. to win the overall big fish prize of $2200.00. They reported catching that fish at 7:00 am and they did not think it would hold up for the biggest bass weighed.
Top 34 places are listed below
| Pl | Team | # of Fish | Big Fish | Weight | Penalty | Total Weight | Winnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shane Combs & Wayne Tipton | 5 | 7.57 | 23.38 | 23.38 | $5,000.00+$500.00 3rd Big Bass | |
| 2 | Chad Jones & Danny Crockett | 5 | 5.40 | 22.81 | 22.81 | $1,800.00 | |
| 3 | James Pritchett & Donavon Williams | 5 | 8.34 | 22.12 | 22.12 | $1,300.00+$1,000.00 2nd Big Bass | |
| 4 | Scott Sisson & Tanner Sisson | 5 | 6.60 | 22.01 | 22.01 | $1,000.00 | |
| 5 | Hayden Bevel & John Brannon | 5 | 7.13 | 21.06 | 21.06 | $900.00 | |
| 6 | John Dickerson & Johnathan Alonzo | 5 | 6.61 | 20.72 | 20.72 | $600.00 | |
| 7 | Brad Vice & Theron Livingston | 5 | 6.82 | 20.66 | 20.66 | $550.00 | |
| 8 | Michael Glasgow & Lindsey Glasgow | 5 | 19.93 | 19.93 | $500.00 | ||
| 9 | Matthew Tucker & Luke Mason | 5 | 19.90 | 19.90 | $500.00 | ||
| 10 | Mark Jackson & Steve Patton | 5 | 5.31 | 19.33 | 19.33 | $500.00 | |
| 11 | Jett Loach & Wayne Christopher | 5 | 5.13 | 19.21 | 19.21 | $400.00 | |
| 12 | Tristan Abbott & Derek Flynn | 5 | 19.14 | 19.14 | $300.00 | ||
| 13 | Ryan Salzman & Alex Roberts | 5 | 19.03 | 19.03 | $300.00 | ||
| 14 | James Marshall & Jim Marshall | 5 | 18.92 | 18.92 | $250.00 | ||
| 15 | Cody Hudson & Eric Stafford | 5 | 8.45 | 18.88 | 18.88 | $250.00+.$2,200.00 Big Bass | |
| 16 | Jimmy Carruth & Jon Simpson | 5 | 4.38 | 18.77 | 18.77 | $250.00 | |
| 17 | Daniel Holt & Austin Martin | 5 | 18.45 | 18.45 | $250.00 | ||
| 18 | Owen McGlasson | 5 | 18.43 | 18.43 | $250.00 | ||
| 19 | Chris Gentry & Dawson Stripling | 5 | 18.34 | 18.34 | $250.00 | ||
| 20 | Zach Lemmond & James Blakefield | 5 | 18.17 | 18.17 | $250.00 | ||
| 21 | Lee Adams & Joe Ernst | 5 | 6.42 | 18.14 | 18.14 | $220.00 | |
| 22 | Tim Thomas & Tom Cates | 5 | 17.84 | 17.84 | $220.00 | ||
| 23 | Jason Levert & Levi Yealock | 5 | 17.80 | 17.80 | $220.00 | ||
| 24 | Benny Mello | 5 | 6.00 | 17.67 | 17.67 | $220.00 | |
| 25 | Chris Kelsey & Butch Kelsey | 5 | 17.63 | 17.63 | $220.00 | ||
| 26 | Don Sanders & Danny Woodard | 5 | 6.32 | 17.49 | 17.49 | $220.00 | |
| 27 | John Maner & Cody Harrison | 5 | 17.32 | 17.32 | $220.00 | ||
| 28 | Scott Schmidt & Joe Mazzuca | 5 | 16.96 | 16.96 | $220.00 | ||
| 29 | Stanley Miller & Brent Johnson | 5 | 16.66 | 16.66 | $220.00 | ||
| 30 | James Bean & Kelly Marchal | 5 | 16.63 | 16.63 | $220.00 | ||
| 31 | Blake Tully & Cooper Lively | 5 | 16.62 | 16.62 | $220.00 | ||
| 32 | Brett Peaks & Art Martscal | 5 | 16.53 | 16.53 | $220.00 | ||
| 33 | Vince Hicks & Jeffrey Mahaffey | 4 | 16.52 | 16.52 | $200.00 | ||
| 34 | Luke Coleman & Ryan Coleman | 5 | 16.45 | 16.45 | $200.00 |
We would like to thank XTREME Bass Series for their work in making this tournament possible. We would also like to thank GTO at Goose Pond for their hospitality in hosting this event. The Tournament Sponsors include GSM Outdoors, Bill Lewis Lures, Big Bite Baits, Yamamoto Baits, Buckeye Lures, Dobyns Rods, Phenix Rods, Roboworm, Bucca Brand, Frog Factory, Northland Tackle, Cuda, Steelshad, Cyclops, Bajio Sunglasses, and Mustad Hooks.
