MRM Mega Buc$ Win Claimed by the Fountain Brothers
by Ron Presley
Photos courtesy of MRM
They chose to fish!
The 2023 Mississippi River Monsters Mega Buc$ Pro Series tournament was held out of Vicksburg, MS on the Mississippi River. The August 5-6, 2023 event attracted a field of 127 professional anglers representing 50 teams. They were fishing for a total payout of $120,000 and a top prize of $50,000.
Mega Buc$ was an optional 2-day elimination tournament capped at 50 boats. At the end of day one, the top 4 finishing teams had the option to compete on day 2 or if unanimously agreed upon they could split the prize money allocated to the top four places and the tournament would end after one day of competition. The top 4 teams, consisting of Lonne and Donnie Fountain, Casey Tutorow and Andy Han, Jeff Dodd, Randy Dodd and Cedric Poynor, and Thomas Walker Jr. and Dee Young, decided to go for it and fish. $95,000 was paid to the 4 finalist teams based on placement.
Following day one, places 5 through 10 earned checks and as part of the ACA Tournament Alliance, each ACA Member Angler registered for the tournament had their names entered into a lottery to win a SeaArk Boat at the end of the year.
The event began Thursday night with a mandatory Captains Meeting at the Beechwood Restaurant and Lounge in Vicksburg which included a steak dinner. The festivities included a special award to avid catman and recent inductee into the ACA Catfish Hall of Fame, Larry Muse. He was presented with an award in recognition of his many contributions to the catfish community by the MRM staff. Muse was on hand to receive the award as a competitor in the event.
Weigh-in was scheduled for 5:30 pm inside the Vicksburg Convention Center, where the winning weight would be determined by a maximum of 3 fish with no over or under limits. This was the first catfish weigh-in to be held inside a convention center and the largest 1st place cash payout in catfish tournament history.
The final day’s rules were the same as day one. Competing anglers were allowed to fish from 7:30 am to 3:30 pm. Boat Check-in and launch began at 5:00 am at the Vicksburg boat ramp. The final day proved to be tougher fishing than day one.
First Place
The 2023 MRM Mega Buc$ Champions at Vicksburg are the brothers’ Fountain. Lonnie and Donnie came to the scales with a 3-fish limit that weighed 146.50 pounds. Their bag included the biggest fish of the day at 58.30 pounds. They earned a check for $50,000!
Lonnie and Donnie took their Vicksburg adventure very seriously. They made the trip from Georgia about a week early to scout and prepare for the tournament. Before the tournament, they found fish at about 65 feet deep. They completed day one in first place with a whopping total weight of 179.05 pounds in 3 fish.
“We found the fish last Monday,” noted Donnie following the tournament. “We bumped all day both days. We targeted a half-mile stretch of river where the fish were holding at about 50 feet deep. On the final day, we caught our fish around 75 feet deep.”
According to Donnie, Lonnie had been catching all the big fish. Every time Donnie put a good fish in the boat Lonnie would catch a bigger one. During one prefishing day, Lonnie topped Donnie with a 96-pound blue. That pattern continued on the final day with just minutes left in the competition.
“We needed one more fish for the win,” recalled Donnie. “I started cleaning up everything and Lonnie was still bumping. I told him he had 4 minutes. I turned around and said Lord if we ain’t got enough fish to win let him catch one. I looked back around and his line was peeling off with a 45-pounder on there. I stepped up there to net that fish with chills all over me. Prayer works!”
That last fish was good enough to cull a smaller blue and give the Fountain brothers the margin they needed to win. They finished in front of the second-place team by only 6.5 pounds.
“The people here at Vicksburg are great,” said Donnie. “They are so friendly and this fishery is one of the best in the country.”
He went on to say that he agreed with others who have said that the next world record may just come from the Vicksburg area.
“We fished a 125-mile stretch of the river last week,” continued Donnie. “We caught good fish almost every day. It is an awesome place to fish. In most tournaments you go to 100 pounds will get you in the money. In this case, there were a lot of anglers (24 teams) who had 100 pounds or more. I think it’s very possible that the next world record could come from here.”
“It’s amazing to come out and fish with great anglers like Jeff Dodd, Larry Muse, and all the others,” concluded Donnie at the final weigh-in. “With all those great fishermen it’s unreal to stand on this stage and say, ‘You won it!’”
Lonnie and Donnie thanked their sponsors Anvil rods, Dry Creek Marina, B-KAT Boards, Dales Tackle, Driftmaster Rod Holders, and River Rat Real Repair.
Second Place
The runner-up spot went to Jeff “Big Daddy” Dodd, Randy Dodd, and Cedric Poynor. They teamed up on day one to bring 154.05 pounds to the scales to finish 3rd and earn a spot in the top four. On the final day, they weighed a 3-fish limit of 140.00 pounds to move up one spot and finish in 2nd place. Their big fish of the day was 48.85 pounds. They earned a check for $20,000.
The team found fishing to be tougher on day 2 although it started good with a nice fish in about 8 minutes of starting. Then the team struggled for a while before picking up a couple more good fish. They caught a lot of fish on day one but no more than 10 on day two.
At the weigh-in interview, Jeff Dodd noted that the fish had moved completely from where they were at the first of the week. He attributed the move to a rapidly falling river but it had been stable for a couple of days and he thought it helped the bite.
“We are very fortunate that we got to play the game today,” said Cedric Poynor following the tournament. “We caught a bunch of fish on Saturday and were culling fish most of the day. We probably boated 25 to 30 fish on the first day and were lucky that we got 3 that put us in the top 4.”
The team used conventional bottom bumping most of the time. However, occasionally they would spot-lock and walk baits. They were targeting water in the 30 to 70 feet deep range using skipjack. They described the fishing as amazing overall.
“We culled several fish in the 30-pound range and 1 in the lower 40s,” reported Poynor. “The fish seemed to be moving off the structure Saturday but Jeff kept us on em. Sunday was more of the same but they were moving back to structure, or hanging out just behind it.”
“We did end up using bigger and bigger baits,” asserted Poynor. “We were trying to keep baits in the water and keep the smaller fish from getting the hook. There were times that we used 2/3 of a skipjack on the hook.”
“Today we went out and fished hard,” continued Poynor commenting on the final day. “We were blessed that we got the 3 good bites. We didn’t break any fish off or have any come off at the boat. Our stars aligned for the last two days.”
“Lots of credit needs to go to Jeff for staying on the fish,” praised Poynor. “Thanks also to B’n’M Bumping Rods, the good Lord for blessing us, and family for understanding, so we can do what we do.”
“Vicksburg is probably the best place I’ve ever fished,” concluded Jeff speaking to the crowd at the weigh-in. “Y’all have a fantastic fishery out there. It’s big fish after big fish and I hope you have us back because I can’t wait to come back.”
Jeff Dodd thanked the team sponsors, SeaArk Boats, B’n’M Fishing, Driftmaster Rod Holders, Millennium Seats, Wave Pro Seat Pedestals, Dales Tackle, and River Rat Reel Repair.
Third Place
Thomas Walker Jr. and Dee Young claimed the final spot in the final 4 with a 3-fish limit of 152.85 pounds on day one. Fishing under the name Team Drop Off, they broke the 100-pound mark again on Sunday with 117.45 pounds to finish the tournament in 3rd place. Their biggest fish on day two was 41.35 pounds. They earned a check for $15,000.
Walker and Young began the day with what could have spelled disaster. The Vicksburg ramp was extremely steep due to dropping water in the record heat wave the area was experiencing. They headed upriver and deployed the trolling motor at the first spot.
“Once I turned on the trolling motor we quickly realized we were in trouble,” recalled Walker. “While launching that morning we busted the prop and we had no idea until we were ready to go. At that point, we felt the Mississippi had beaten us!”
The team took a few minutes to reflect and switch gears. With no trolling motor they had no choice but to fish on the rope! They anchored in 100-feet-deep water with a fast current.
“If it was not for Dee we could not have done this,” stated Walker. “There is no way I could pull that anchor back up. But the first spot was pure fire. After dropping our lines in it was on.”
Young had their second biggest fish of the day at 7:45 and they had 3 in the boat by 8:00 am. They began culling and working their way to their final weigh-in bag. They caught 26 fish on that first day with many in the 30-pound range using fresh skipjack for bait. The weather was brutally hot.
“It was hot,” Walker said. “It was well over 100 degrees. The Go Pros overheated as well as our phones. We had to cut the fishing day short and head to the weigh-in around 1:00 pm. We did not want our fish to struggle.”
On day two Walker and Young went to the same area and due to some Catfish Kindness they were able to use the trolling motor and fish all day on a somewhat cooler and overcast day.
“Secody Howard and Arron Churchwell fabricated a prop for us,” noted Walker. “It was like having a pit crew. Another angler came over with a grinder and a generator. It was amazing. As soon as we dropped baits in the water it was on again.”
“We had 3 in the boat by 8:00 am and spent the whole day culling,” continued Walker. “We were gaining a pound or two every hour. We hit multiple spots trying to find a big gal before quitting time. We caught 32 fish on the day.”
“We want to thank Catch the Fever, C2 Outdoors, Liberty Threads, and Rod Trees for their support,” concluded Walker. “And a big shout out to my partner Dee Young. I could not do any of this without him! It was an amazing time. To fish against so many of the top catfish anglers in the country was an honor!”
Fourth Place
Team Indy brought the fourth-place weight to the scales. Casey Tutorow and Andrew Han teamed up in the finals to bring 162.25 pounds to the scales on day one to claim the runner spot and a place in the finals. On day two they failed to find the big fish and ended the tournament in 4th place with 67.75 pounds. They earned a check for $10,000.
Team Indy was the only team in the final 4 that were also there last year. They were one of the 4 teams who split the Mega Buc$ pot in 2022, actually earning first place with a 3-fish limit that weighed 161.40 pounds. They also had the second-biggest fish last year at 60.70 pounds.
Tutorow and Han fished both days in the same area. They ran upriver about 40 miles where they were targeting water that ranged from 70 to 90 feet deep.
“We were using a method called slippin in the current,” advised Tutorow. “We were suspending and drifting backward. The bite was early on the first day but late on the second day. After a great day on Saturday, we just couldn’t find the big bites we needed on Sunday. The fished moved on the second day and we just couldn’t adjust in time.”
“We loved Vicksburg,” concluded Tutorow. “It is among the best fisheries we have had the pleasure to fish. I want to congratulate all the winners and say thanks to our families for all their support as we look forward to the event at Helena.”
Team Indy thanked Ripping Lips, SeaArk Boats, Spread Em Planer Boards, and Monster Rod Holders for their support.
Big Fish Determined on Day One
Big fish honors went to Bruce Paulk with a 75.20-pound blue. Bruce was fishing with David Shipman and Phil King. The team finished in 5th place overall.
Fifth thru Tenth Place Determined on Day One
5th Place – David Shipman, Phil King, and Bruce Paulk – 148.90
6th Place – Chris Stout and Hunter Jones – 145.45
7th Place – Adam Cook and Jay Berns – 142.85
8th Place – John Berglund, Eddie Henney, Jason Hamilton – 135.45
9th Place – Secody Howard, Matt Russell, Doug McAnally– 132.70
10th Place – Andy Needham, Richard Rackley, Chris Magness– 123.50
Final Thoughts
Mega Bucs was a well-ran tournament with a different format than most catfish tournaments. The was much praise from the anglers competing in the event.
Co-tournament director Chris Ramsey with assistance from Jessie Adams, Lisa Gail Haraway, and Bryan Wayman was on hand to perform the stage duties and make the weigh-in go smoothly for the anglers. There was a large crew of additional volunteers on hand to contribute to the effort.
MRM originator George Young Jr. was very pleased with the event. Especially having it inside the convention center.
“Having the weigh-in at the Vicksburg Convention Center was like no other weigh-in,” commented Young following the event. The facility is amazing and the people enjoyed having it inside. No one had to be concerned about the weather. This is moving the needle forward for the future of catfish tournaments. We are always working on getting bigger and better at MRM.”
“Thank you to all the sponsors and supporters,” continued Young. “Special thanks to the City of Vicksburg, Vicksburg Convention Center, and the Vicksburg community for coming out. We had over 1,200 people in attendance and many more watching online.”
Overall the Vicksburg Mega Buc$ event was a huge success. There was a lot of enthusiasm about the big money that was on the line. This was only the second time in history that the industry had seen a $50,000 cash payout and the first drive-thru indoor pro-series catfish weigh-in.
At the end of day one, a total of 4174.25 pounds were weighed and released to determine the day’s winners. All of the top 10 teams on day one brought more than 120 pounds to the scales in 3 fish. Twenty-four teams weighed more than 100 pounds and it required more than 150 pounds to make the final 4!
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