Lugoff Bassmasters Tournament Report: Lake Russell, 21-22 Mar 09

The 8th tournament of the year for the Lugoff Bassmasters took place on Lake Russell. This was the first of our three 2-day tournaments for the year. Next up will be Lake Hartwell on 18/19 April. Lake Russell was a mixed bagas far as weather goes. Saturday was cold and windy and Sunday was warm and light winds. Water temps for both days ranged from 57 to 61 degrees. This was down from 2 weeks ago by nearly 10 degress! The Savannah and Rocky Rivers were slightly stained while the Beaverdam Creek area was clear. On Saturday most anglers caught fish on rocky points and shoals with deep water nearby. Sunday the fish moved into shallow cuts closeby. Most fish came on a c-rig or jig fished slowly. The best area was the Savannah River, which clearly produced the best fish. It was 5 to 7 degrees warmer. Look for rocks and laydowns/wood cover. Lake Russell seems like it is getting ready to explode! The bass are moving shallow and getting ready to do their thing! If you are heading there soon, I would fish the Savannah River and hit wind-protected cuts and coves. None of the better bass were caught on reaction baits. Soft plastics or jigs fished slowly seemed to be the ticket. Numerous spots and largemouths in the 2 to almost 4 lb range were caught. The big bass of the tournament, a nice spot, was caught by Jim Timmerberg and weighed in at 3.87 lbs. Jim also caught a 6.2 lb largemouth, unfortunately, that was while pre-fishing on Friday. This is definitely a good time to fish Russell. If you haven't been there, you will love the fact that it is totally undeveloped and pristine. No homes or docks, and the DayNite Inn in Elberton, Ga is a reasonable place to stay. Elbert Landing, off of HWY 72 is a decent place to launch, and you can enjoy mother nature at it's best.
~Jim Timmerberg