Colquitt County’s J.Todd Tucker’s total of 34 pounds, 3 ounces jumped him from 51st place to fifth in last weekend’s Bassmaster Southern Open on Santee Cooper Reservoir in Summerton, S.C.

Randal Tharp of Gardendale, Ala., won the tournament and took home $47,571.

Pros earned points toward qualifying for the 2009 Bassmaster Elite Series and the Bassmaster Classic, to be held Feb. 20-22 on the Red River out of Shreveport/Bossier City, La.

At the end of the Southern Open season, the top three in the points race will earn berths in the Classic.

The top 10 will get invitations to join the Bassmaster Elite Series, the highest level of BASS competition.

Of this and that:

• Cole Willis, grandson of Bennett and LeVonne Willis of Moultrie, has been selected to be among the 288 entrants to play in next month’s British Amateur Championship.

The British Amateur will be played June 16-21 at Turnberry in Scotland.

Willis learned of his selection in a phone call from his father, former Packer golfer Zess Willis, while playing with the Valdosta State golf team in the Southern Region Championship.

Cole will be one of just a few Americans to play in the event.

Zess Willis will caddy for his son at the British Amateur.

• The Valdosta State golf team finished eighth at the Southern Regional, which was held at the Gray Rock Golf Course in Austin, Texas.

Former Packer Jason Flowers led the Blazers on the final day with an even-par 71. He finished 33rd with a 9-over 222. Cole Willis was 35th with a 12-over 225.

• The Valdosta State University baseball team was defeated 11-5 by Delta State in the Gulf South Conference tournament elimination game and finished the season 36-18-1.

Former Packer Thomas Tripp ended the season with a 2-1 record and 4.95 ERA.

The 6-foot-3, 220-pound junior finished tied for second on the team in appearances with 20. He struck out 24 and walked 16 in 36.1 innings.

• Another former Packer pitcher, Aaron Eubanks, started on the mound for Georgia Southern on Tuesday, but did not figure in the decision in the Eagles 9-4 loss to Jacksonville.

Eubanks, a senior left-hander, is 5-1 with a 6.85 ERA.

Teammate Will Southwell, also from Colquitt County, is batting .318 with six doubles and nine runs batted in.

Southern, now 31-21 overall and 15-9 in the Southern Conference, opens a three-game series at Furman today. The Southern Conference tournament opens Wednesday, May 21 at Charleston, S.C.

• Walton girls won the its fifth straight Class AAAAA state tennis championship recently, defeating Northview 4-0 in the finals.

Walton has not lost since Roberta Manheim took over as coach in 2004.

The Tift County girls reached the Final Four before being eliminated by Northview.

• Northview defeated Etowah 4-0 to claim the Class AAAAA boys title.

Valdosta reached the Final Four before being eliminated by Northview 0-3. Lowndes also reached the semifinals before losing to Etowah 0-4.

• In the Class AAAAA girls soccer finals, Parkview, ranked No. 1 in the nation, defeated South Forsyth 1-0.

• Walton defeated Collins Hill 2-1 to win the Class AAAAA boys soccer championship.