Hampton Shull of Lander University takes the Day 1 lead at the 2024 Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops with 17 pounds.
ANDERSON, S.C. — It was awfully lonely on the boat for Hampton Shull, but the Lander University junior used solitude to his advantage and sacked up a five-bass limit of 17 pounds that leads Day 1 of the Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops at Lake Hartwell.
Shull, who has fished solo all year, made his mark back in May at the Strike King Bassmaster College Series at Sam Rayburn Reservoir presented by Bass Pro Shops, where he caught the event’s biggest bass — a 9-8. Shull heads into Day 2 with a 10-ounce lead over Parker Guy and Tyler Campbell of Emmanuel College.
Competing against a field mostly comprising two-angler teams was no concern for Shull. In fact, it likely contributed to his overall success.
“Being alone didn’t bother me,” Shull said. “It allowed me to fish freely without having to consider other opinions.”
Shull split his time between shallow fish and offshore fish that were in 10 to 50 feet. Hartwell has a mix of natural and man-made structure and Shull fished some of everything.
“It was about 50/50 between shallow and deep fish, but I think the deep bite is (most promising) for a three-day tournament,” Shull said.
After bagging a limit by 12:30 p.m., Shull finished his weight by about 2 o’clock. His biggest fish, a 4-plus-pounder, bit mid-morning and put Shull through the wringer.
“When I was trying to net my biggest one, the net got tangled up in my Minn Kota Raptor switch and I had to reach down and grab the fish with my hand,” he said. “It got dramatic, and the fight stretched out about 2 minutes.
“I didn’t panic because I really don’t use a net unless I’m tournament fishing, so I just treated it like a practice day.”
Moreover, his big-bass achievement at Sam Rayburn gave Shull the confidence to manage a stressful moment.
“Knowing that I could do that calmed my nerves,” he said.
Shull said he fished throughout much of the lake and found each of his eight keepers on different spots.
“I think it had to do with it being August and fish are tough to catch,” he said. “It was just junk fishing all day.
“I was just fishing by the seat of my pants and trusting my gut to fish what looked good.”
Shull fished a mix of baits and caught two of his limit fish on a worm and three on a topwater. As for Day 2, he’s keeping an open mind and trusting the game plan that got him to the top of the leaderboard.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do tomorrow,” Shull said. “I’ll be listening to my gut and not getting locked in on any one thing.”
Guy and Campbell are in second place with 16-6.
Blake Milligan and Carson Maddux of Auburn University are in third place with 15-11.
Andrew Oswalt and Evan Mabrey of University of Montevallo are in the lead for Big Bass honors with their 5-15.
Friday’s takeoff is scheduled for 6:30 a.m. ET at Green Pond Landing and Event Center. The weigh-in will be held at the same location at 2:30 p.m.
The tournament is being hosted by Visit Anderson.
