December 2020 Toyota Series Championship
Lake Cumberland - Chris Malone Wins on Vertical Reaction Bite
Watch Chris Malone break down his winning pattern—pitching tail spinners to suspended smallmouth on rocky main-lake banks near channel swings.
The Tournament in One Sentence
Malone won by pitching a 1/2-oz tail spinner to rocky main-lake banks near channel swings and letting it fall almost vertically past suspended smallmouth to force reaction bites.
Tournament Snapshot
Event Details
- Event: Toyota Series Championship
- Dates: December 3–5, 2020 (3 competition days)
- Season: Late fall / early winter drawdown period
Lake Conditions
- Full Pool: 723 ft MSL
- Winter Pool: 690 ft MSL
- Status: Seasonal drawdown in progress
Weather & Conditions (from angler reports):
Why It Was So Effective
Not fully winter-deep, but already oriented toward wintering areas—meaning lots of fish were suspended and catchable with a falling bait. As Malone noted: smallmouth "winter deep," but it "wasn't cold enough to push them deep."
A tail spinner falling past a suspended fish is hard to ignore—especially when you're not trying to "feed" them so much as make them snap. The vertical fall triggered reaction bites.
He "beat the bank" on the main lake near channel swings—a structural theme that shows up repeatedly in highland-reservoir winter transitions.
Winning Tackle
Pitched to rock and allowed to fall past fish. The vertical presentation was key.
Produced a few weighed fish—a true Cumberland staple that showed up across the Top 10.
The Broader Top 10 Story
Across the rest of the Top 10, the theme was simple: cover water and let the bank tell you where the better fish live. A few patterns kept repeating:
1) Transition Banks Were Money
Rock → gravel → clay, etc. Anglers hunted subtle changes in bank composition and small shoreline features (tiny pockets/indents), often adjusting based on water color/clarity and light conditions.
2) Cumberland Staples Did Heavy Lifting
The craw-style crankbait bite was real: most of the field kept one on deck. Multiple finalists leaned on the RKCrawler 55 or similar crankbaits as primary or secondary tools.
3) Wind + Stain Helped the Reaction Bite
A bit of stain (even limiting visibility to ~4 ft) and wind on the right rock stretches made those banks better.
Quick-Hit Rundown: Other Top 10 Patterns
Even the Best Can Struggle: Jacob Wheeler's Tournament
Jacob Wheeler—widely considered one of the best bass fishermen alive—didn't even crack the Top 10 at this event. It's a reminder that Lake Cumberland can humble anyone, and that finding the right pattern in late-fall transition fishing is genuinely difficult. Here's his tournament coverage:
The Takeaway: If You Want to Copy the Winner
If you want the most "portable" lesson from this Cumberland championship, it's this:
When late-fall smallmouth are suspended and skittish, stop trying to drag them into biting—make them react.
Malone's near-vertical tail spinner fall beside rock on main-lake channel-swing banks was the cleanest, most repeatable expression of that idea, and it won the tournament.
Quick Summary:
- •Tail spinner pitched to rock, falling vertically past suspended fish
- •Main-lake banks near channel swings
- •RKCrawler 55 as a backup (Cumberland staple)
- •Wind + slight stain improved reaction bites
- •Transition banks with composition changes
More Information
For the full breakdown from Major League Fishing, check out these resources: