2024
Prizes
Prizes will be awarded as follows with Anglers getting Orvis Gift Certificates and Guides getting cash.
Points Prizes
Overall Winner
Angler $250
Maybank Hagood - 936
Guide $250
Sam Dennis – 2,371
Runner Up
Angler $150
Tim Belk - 863
Guide $150*
* Sam Dennis had the most points of the guides. His new approach was within the rules, and he had taken the precaution of clearing the jet boat and location (Holston vs. South Holston) during his orientation session before the tournament. The rules committee decided to give equal guide prize money to Jimmy Cheers, who had the most points (1,232) of the guides fishing in the traditional waters. Travis Honeycutt came in second in the traditional waters and was awarded $150 (957 pts).
Most Fish
Angler $100
Haynes Lea - 40
Biggest Fish over 2 days
Each angler contributes $20 to the pool, which will be $240. The Big Fish prize is split between the angler and the guide.
Entry $20
Angler $120
Maybank Hagood 24"
Cooper Brantley 24”
Guide $120
Sam Dennis 24"
Forrest Marshall 24"
Note: Guide awards will be determined by the total angler points for both anglers for 2 days.
There will be a separate scoring for anglers and for guides for each day and for the total of the two days.
Anglers
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Total Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belk | 590 | 273 | 863 |
| Brantley | 40 | 434 | 474 |
| Chesson | 132 | 248 | 380 |
| Dunn | 404 | 445 | 849 |
| Gibson | 82 | 240 | 322 |
| Hagood | 816 | 120 | 936 |
| Kittrell | 82 | 318 | 400 |
| Lea | 38 | 322 | 360 |
| Ratigan | 452 | 140 | 592 |
| McElwee | 64 | 170 | 234 |
| Edens | 181 | 520 | 701 |
| Tomlinson | 188 | 192 | 380 |
Biggest Fish
Day 1
Hagood 24”
Day 2
Brantley 24”
Guides
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Champion | 214 | 260 | 474 |
| Cheers | 592 | 640 | 1232 |
| Dennis | 1406 | 965 | 2371 |
| Honeycutt | 492 | 465 | 957 |
| Marshall | 102 | 682 | 784 |
| Shroyer | 263 | 410 | 673 |
Biggest Fish
Dennis ‘24
Marshall ‘24
Anglers - Total Fish
| Day 1 | Day 2 | Total Fish | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belk | 15 | 9 | 24 |
| Brantley | 5 | 2 | 7 |
| Chesson | 16 | 8 | 24 |
| Dunn | 22 | 10 | 32 |
| Gibson | 11 | 25 | 36 |
| Hagood | 13 | 5 | 18 |
| Kittrell | 6 | 29 | 35 |
| Lea | 9 | 31 | 40 |
| Ratigan | 16 | 5 | 21 |
| McElwee | 7 | 20 | 27 |
| Edens | 3 | 10 | 13 |
| Tomlinson | 19 | 6 | 25 |
Most Fish Caught
Lea 40
Gibson 36
2024 Recap
The overall winner was Maybank Haygood with a new record of 936 points. Guide Sam Dennis showed up with a jet boat and headed to the Holston in Kingsport. In 2 hours Maybank caught 24”, 22”, 20” and 18” rainbows as the boat did laps in front of the Eastman plant. It was electric.
Maybank’s boatmate, Tim Belk came in second with 863 points, also benefiting from the new territory and technique, catching a 20”, two 19”, and an 18”. It was his second year as runner up.
Jed Dunn was close behind with 849 points. He had Sam on Day 2 and was over 400 points the first day.
Sam Dennis’ new approach was within the rules, and he had taken the precaution of clearing the jet boat and new location during his orientation session before the tournament. Sam blew away past point records with 2371 points. The rules committee decided to give equal guide prize money to Jimmy Cheers, who had the most points (1232) of the guides fishing in the traditional waters, and to Travis Honeycutt (957) who came in second.
Maybank and Cooper Brantley tied in the biggest fish contest, each catching a 24”. Cooper landed his fish with with 20 minutes remaining in Day 2 with 2 other boats watching. Forest Marshall got the assist.
Haynes Lea caught the most fish (40), and was the only angler to make the 30 fish bonus. Special shout out to his guide, Jimmy Cheers, who nymphed on the South Holston while most fished with streamers.
The predicted rain never really happened on Day 1. Day 2 there was one intense burst then the sun came out. Streamer fishing was good Day 1 for those who had smaller sizes, and the bite on streamers Day 2 faded.
The rules committee will look at 4 issues; jet boats, eligible waters, dry fly weighting, and timing of fly selection.