DeFoe Repeats on Douglas Lake using the FishSmart App from Humminbird!

Courtesy of Humminbird - Photos Courtesy of BASS/Ronnie Moore & James Overstreet

Winner borrows boat from friend and fishes the entire tournament with no boat-mounted electronics

In this era of high-definition side image and detailed mapping, when is the last time a major bass fishing event was won without a single fish finder mounted on the winner’s boat?

If you guessed as recent as one month ago, you are correct.

When B.A.S.S. announced that tunnel hull boats, like the one Ott DeFoe used to win the Bassmaster Open at Douglas Lake in 2017, would not be allowed in 2018, the Humminbird/Minn Kota pro considered not even fishing the event. In fact, he didn’t even enter the tournament until just before the cut-off when he made the decision to borrow a friend’s flat-bottom aluminum boat to head up the French Broad River to ply the waters in the mountains of eastern Tennessee for another tournament-winning stringer.

“My buddy hadn’t even fished out of his boat but he was kind enough to let me use it so I could access some skinnier water, which I knew would likely be key to my success in the tournament,” explains DeFoe. “He hadn’t even put electronics on it. It was basically a blank canvas.”

DeFoe got to work rigging the boat, immediately mounting an Minn Kota Ultrex on the bow.

“I knew I’d be fishing some pretty heavy current and Spot-Lock would be critical,” DeFoe added. “Ever since I won the first tournament I ever fished with an Ultrex on the Mississippi, I’ve been a staunch believer that when you can concentrate on fishing and leave boat control to the experts, you significantly increase the odds of success. It was proven once again on Douglas where I used Spot-Lock to position my boat exactly where it needed to be to make the best presentation possible.”

For those who have seen the Minn Kota Ultrex change the face of fishing over the last couple years, the addition of the groundbreaking trolling motor to his friend’s boat isn’t much of a surprise. But when it came time to consider electronics, Ott made a move many would find counterintuitive for an angler accustomed to fishing with all the bells and whistles of a tournament-style bass rig.

“The area I planned to fish is shallow. I knew I wouldn’t really need a depthfinder. I could see bottom. But I needed a GPS and flawless mapping,” said DeFoe. “Rather than spend the limited time I had leading up to the tournament rigging a locator, I simply relied on my Humminbird FishSmart app to navigate to my fishing area each day.”

Operating through a clean, intuitive interface directly on his iPhone6 and working with the device’s GPS, FishSmart allowed DeFoe to view his precise location at every point in his journey upriver. He had previously downloaded the high-definition LakeMaster map for Douglas.

FishSmart was introduced by Humminbird in March 2018. Within the app, users can purchase and download any of the 1,500+ high-definition LakeMaster maps. From there, they can highlight depth contours and shallow water, offset the water depth based on seasonal changes, or even mark waypoints or routes.

“The water level dropped every day of the tournament. The water level offset and shallow water highlight features were incredibly important as I was able to adjust my map to the actual current depths and identify places I was able to run my boat,” DeFoe explained. “The boat was obviously not as fast as the Nitro I typically run so if I could pick up a couple minutes on my commute by taking a shortcut here and there, I wanted to do it. Plus it was a bit foggy a couple mornings of the tournament so having the map in front of me was important to stay on course. It’s amazing that I can have all that information on my phone.”

Individual high-definition LakeMaster lake maps like the one DeFoe downloaded for Douglas Lake are easy to search, buy, and download within the free FishSmart app. Once purchased within the app, maps can wirelessly transfer to a Bluetooth®-enabled HELIX® and SOLIX® Series fish finder.

On DeFoe’s part, he doesn’t have plans to strip his regular tournament rig of his Humminbird electronics anytime soon, but he certainly learned to trust the FishSmart app during his victorious run on Douglas Lake.

“I see plenty of uses for the FishSmart app, from downloading high-definition maps for single lakes, navigating smaller boats or boats without sophisticated electronics and even updating the software on Humminbird units. Plus, I use it religiously to study lake maps at home before ever hitting the water. FishSmart will always be on my phone and will get plenty of use from here on out, I can promise you that.”


Fowler Wins Berkley Big Bass on Lake Fork with 8.95 Giant!

Zach Fowler, holds off a record field of over 1150 anglers at the 13th Annual Berkley Big Bass event on Lake Fork with an 8.95 lb Giant and wins a new Skeeter ZX 200/ Yamaha/ Lowrance / Power Pole rig + $1000.

Angler City State Weight Prize Amount
ZACH FOWLER Aledo TX 8.95
Skeeter ZX 200 Yamaha SHO Lowrance PowerPole
THOMAS YOUNG Eros LA 2.60
Skeeter ZX 190 Yamha SHO Lowrance PowerPole
ZACH FOWLER Aledo TX 8.95
$1000.00
THOMAS YOUNG Eros LA 2.60
$1000.00
RONALD MORRISON Durant OK 2.52
$1000.00
DAVID CROW Henderson TX 2.51
$1000.00
GENE DENNIS Emory TX 2.51
$1000.00
LYNN ROLLER Fort Worth TX 2.50
$1000 Abu Garcia Exact Weight Bonus
MIKE EDWARDS Emory TX 2.50
$1000.00
LYNN ROLLER Fort Worth TX 2.50
$1000.00+$1000 Abu Garcia Exact Weight Bonus
JAY SHIPE Mineola TX 2.50
$1000.00
TREY ESCHBERGER III Lindale TX 2.42
$1000.00
DON OVERSTREET Sulphur Springs TX 2.38
$1000.00
SCOTT SWENSON Saginaw TX 2.33
$1000.00
FRANK HENRY Downsville LA 2.33
$1000.00
RONNY MCADAMS Fairfield TX 2.30
$1000.00
JUSTIN WEBB Texarkana TX 2.29
$1000.00
JIM KIRKPATRICK Golden TX 2.52
$400.00
BUDDY LEE Calhoun TX 2.48
$400.00
LANE SHAW Plano TX 2.42
$400.00
HERSHEL MADDOX Jonesboro LA 2.42
$400.00
TIM HAWKINS Anna TX 2.39
$400.00
CHRIS NEWTON Heath TX 2.38
$400.00
JIMMY BRAY Tulsa OK 2.37
$400.00
JESSIE AYERS Antlers OK 2.33
$400.00
MARK BRITAIN Gordonville TX 2.28
$400.00
KIT LOHR SR Rockwall TX 2.22
$400.00
MARK VAN WINKLE Converse LA 2.21
$400.00
TOM PEGODA Tomball TX 2.21
$400.00
VERLON CRONEY Alba TX 2.10
$400.00
JAMES HAMM Jefferson TX 2.40
$350.00
ROBERT BENTON Hudson Oaks TX 2.40
$350.00
JIMMY QUALLS Euless TX 2.46
$300.00
TOMMY CORNELIUS Terrell TX 2.41
$300.00
MICHAEL STEVENS White Oak TX 2.40
$300.00
JOSH WINFREE Converse LA 2.40
$300.00
BRET NEW Rhome TX 2.33
$300.00
CURTIS DANIELS Emory TX 2.32
$300.00
RICKY PHILLIPS Trinidad TX 2.32
$300.00
JULIE ARRANT West Monroe LA 2.31
Ladies Division 1st Place
MIKE DUGGER Tool TX 2.24
$300.00
ALAN PAYNE Kerens TX 2.19
$300.00
ROGER NIXON Homer LA 2.17
$300.00
CODY BENSON Combine TX 2.11
$300.00
PENNY MCCURDY Gilliam LA 2.09
$300.00
RILEY MUDFORD Texarkana AR 2.00
Junior Division 1st Place
GREG HOLDER Eden TX 2.34
$275.00
GARRY DUHON Lafayette LA 2.34
$275.00
JACOB MOORHEAD Celina TX 2.44
$250.00
GARRY DUHON Lafayette LA 2.37
$250.00

SPRING HILL HIGH SCHOOL WINS BASS PRO SHOPS FLW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING LAKE MURRAY OPEN

PROSPERITY, S.C. (Oct. 15, 2018) – The Spring Hill High School duo of Aaron Weed and Robert Wise, both of Columbia, South Carolina, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 15 pounds, 13 ounces to win the 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Lake Murray Open presented by Berkley.

According to post-tournament reports, the duo caught their fish targeting points and humps near the dam with a white Zoom Fluke.

A field of 73 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from Dreher Island State Park. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship. Due to a tie between 7th and 8th place teams, both teams will advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.

The top eight teams on Lake Murray that advanced to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship were:

1st:     Spring Hill High School, Richland County, S.C. – Aaron Weed and Robert Wise, both of Columbia, S.C., five bass, 15-13

2nd:    Woodruff High School, Woodruff, S.C. – Austin Lanford, Greer, S.C., and Clayton Caldwell, Woodruff, S.C., five bass, 15-5

3rd:     North Augusta High School, North Augusta, S.C. – Landon Williamson and Brycen Williamson, both of Wagener, S.C., five bass, 14-7

4th:     Greenbrier High School, Evans, Ga. – Henry Garrett and Joshua Ortt, both of Evans, Ga., five bass, 12-14

5th:     Morgan County High School, Madison, Ga. – Cole Holloway and Landon Huff, both of Madison, Ga., five bass, 11-13

6th:     Union County High School, Union, S.C. – Hunter Enlow and Tanner Duncan, both of Union, S.C., four bass, 10-7

7th:     Clarks Hill Youth Fishing Team – Corey Yaden, Evans, Ga., and Brayden Batchelor, Greensboro, Ga., five bass, 9-15

8th:     Greenbrier High School, Evans, Ga. – Tanner Hadden and Cy Casey, both of Evans, Ga., five bass, 9-15

Rounding out the top 10 teams were:

9th:     North Augusta High School, North Augusta, S.C. – Maddux Sutton, North Augusta, S.C., and Logan Geisler, Warrenville, S.C., three bass, 9-10

10th:   Travelers Rest High School, Travelers Rest, S.C. – David Ackerman and Bobby Long, both of Greenville, S.C., four bass, 9-9

Complete results from the event can be found at FLWFishing.com.

The 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Lake Murray Open presented by Berkley was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12, open to any Student Angler Federation (SAF) affiliated high school club in the United States. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship on a body of water that has yet to be revealed. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.

In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest open high school bass tournament, the 2019 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship. At the 2018 World Finals more than $150,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded.

Full schedules and the latest announcements are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com.

About FLW

FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


PENNSYLVANIA’S THOMPSON WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ON THE CHESAPEAKE BAY

Bahnweg Takes Co-angler Title

NORTH EAST, Md. (Oct. 15, 2018) – Boater Joseph Thompson of Coatesville, Pennsylvania, caught a two-day cumulative total of 10 bass weighing 29 pounds, 9 ounces, to win the weather-shortened T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Regional championship on the Chesapeake Bay presented by Lowrance. Thompson pocketed $66,000 for his efforts, including a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and automatic entry into the 2019 BFL All-American Championship.

Originally scheduled for Oct. 11-13, competition Friday, Oct. 12, was cancelled by FLW officials due to high winds. As a result, the winner was determined by combining Thursday and Saturday’s weights.

“I really struggled on the first day until about noon,” said Thompson, who earned his second career win in BFL competition. “Every piece of structure in the North East River was covered with two or three boats because the fishing was so tough out on the flats.

“I went up into the North East Creek and found a little spot where there was just enough room for one more boat on a small piece of structure – a tree laydown. I fished it with a (green-pumpkin-colored) Zoom Finesse Worm on a drop-shot rig, and managed to catch a limit just before the end of the day.”

With just over 10 pounds of bass on Day One, Thompson knew he needed a big catch on Day Two to break into the top six – his ultimate goal.

“On the final morning I got a water temperature reading and found it had dropped 8 or 9 degrees,” said Thompson. “I was happy with how cold it got. With some history in mind, I knew people would have a hard time with the cold front, but also felt that I would excel.”

Thompson said he re-rigged a couple of rods for the conditions and proceeded to work through three big-fish areas.

“These are my home waters and there are three areas that I feel hold the big fish,” said Thompson. “In the morning, I targeted a dock in the North East River. I fished an Avocado-colored grub, very slowly, on a light, plain ball-headed jig and had two fish at noon. When the tide started to fall, I moved out into about 13 feet of water and fished a (green-pumpkin) Yamamoto Senko with a 1/16th-ounce (Picasso) tungsten bullet weight. I let the current move it along the bottom and got three bites.”

Thompson went on to give Susquehanna Fishing Tackle in Columbia, Pennsylvania, a special thanks for delivering all of the necessary tackle and credited his Minn Kota Ultrex trolling motor as his key piece of equipment at the event.

“This is the biggest win I’ve ever had and my Ultrex played a big role in it,” said Thompson. “The wind was really blowing on Day Two, but I was able to use the Spot Lock feature and focus on the fishing. The bites were subtle and I had to pay attention.”

The top six boaters that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Joseph Thompson, Coatesville, Pa., 10 bass, 29-9, $66,000

2nd:         Ronnie Baker, Providence Forge, Va., nine bass, 27-1, $10,200

3rd:          Moo Bae, West Friendship, Md., nine bass, 26-2, $5,100

4th:          Ryan Bauman, Fleetwood, Pa., 10 bass, 25-13, $3,000

5th:          Chris Martinkovic, Hamilton, Ohio, 10 bass, 25-12, $2,000

6th:          Steven Wiseman, Bryans Road, Md., 10 bass, 25-6, $1,800

Rounding out the top-10 boaters were:

7th:          Dave Lauer, McConnelsville, Ohio, nine bass, 25-3, $1,600

8th:          Jon Werner, Nazareth, Pa., 10 bass, 24-10, $1,400

9th:          Otis Darnell, Linden, Va., 10 bass, 24-9, $1,200

10th:        Ryan Powroznik, Hopewell, Va., 10 bass, 24-8, $1,000

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Michael Bahnweg of Union Dale, Pennsylvania, won the Co-angler Division and a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard with a two-day cumulative catch of nine bass weighing 22 pounds, 6 ounces.

The top six co-anglers that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Michael Bahnweg, Union Dale, Pa., nine bass, 22-6, $45,000

2nd:         William Allie, Wynantskill, N.Y., eight bass, 21-9, $5,200

3rd:          Henry McKee, Haddon Heights, N.J., 10 bass, 18-8, $2,550

4th:          Michael Nelms, Hartwood, Va., eight bass, 17-15, $1,500

5th:          Howard Smith, Hamilton, Ohio, six bass, 17-11, $1,000

6th:          David Williams, Fredericksburg, Va., five bass, 17-6, $900

Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers were:

7th:          Matthew Cozad, Okeana, Ohio, seven bass, 17-4, $800

8th:          Mike Geisler, Oxford, Ohio, eight bass, 16-12, $700

9th:          Cort Gardner, Jessup, Md., eight bass, 16-10, $600

10th:        Michael Duarte, Baltimore, Md., seven bass, 16-1, $500

The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on the Chesapeake Bay presented by Lowrance was hosted by Cecil County Tourism.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


MORROW WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ON THE ST. JOHNS RIVER PRESENTED BY RANGER

Sarasota’s Paquette Grabs Co-angler Title

PALATKA, Fla. (Oct. 15, 2018) – FLW Tour pro Troy Morrow of Eastanollee, Georgia, caught a three-day cumulative total of 15 bass weighing 57 pounds, 10 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Regional championship on the St. Johns River presented by Ranger. Morrow earned $65,000 for his efforts, including a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and automatic entry into the 2019 BFL All-American Championship.

“I had a rough start to practice. I got in late and had issues with my boat, so I missed some time,” said Morrow, who logged his fourth career victory in BFL competition. “I elected to stay close to where I was staying and learn as much as I could about the area, which was from the north end of Lake George to Little Lake George. I ended up fishing there all three days.

“As practice progressed, I found two shell beds they were schooled up on, so I started there on Day One,” Morrow continued. “I had a limit by the time I got to the second one, but they weren’t as big as they were in practice. After the second shell bed, I ran to some docks. I didn’t want to burn too many docks from my main area, so at about 12:30 (p.m.) I focused on a row of new docks and caught another big one.”

Morrow said that in addition to his keeper on Day One, those particular docks produced a 7-pound, 12-ouncer, on Day Three.

On Day Two, Morrow said he made the same milk run, but the fishing was slower. He said it took him longer to put together a limit and leave his main area.

“Day Three was even slower – I only had five keeper bites and thought I blew it,” said Morrow. “I stayed close to takeoff for the first 20 minutes and caught a keeper. The outgoing tide was later each day, and by Day Three it was approximately 11 (a.m.) before I felt comfortable fishing my key stuff. I went to the shoals, but didn’t get anything. At my main docks, I did get one that was close to 4 pounds at slack tide, which was a bonus. Once the tide got moving I caught the 7-pound, 12-ouncer.”

Morrow finished out the day by catching two keepers at the shoals.

For lures, Morrow said he used a Texas-rigged, Black Grape-colored Zoom Ol’ Monster Worm on a 5/0-sized Gamakatsu round bend hook with a ¼-ounce tungsten weight for both the shoals and the docks. His rig was attached to 20-pound-test Sunline fluorocarbon line and a 7-foot, 6-inch heavy-action Duckett Fishing rod. He also worked in a chrome-colored topwater bait at the shoals.

The top six boaters that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Troy Morrow, Eastanollee, Ga., 15 bass, 57-10, $65,000

2nd:         Matt Kinney, Bunnell, Fla., 15 bass, 51-0, $10,200

3rd:          Grant Kelly, Milledgeville, Ga., 13 bass, 49-11, $5,100

4th:          Jason Reed, Hollister, Fla., 15 bass, 49-10, $3,000

5th:          Nicholas Hoinig, Port St. Lucie, Fla., 15 bass, 49-6, $2,000

6th:          Kip Carter, Mansfield, Ga., 15 bass, 48-11, $2,800

Rounding out the top-10 boaters were:

7th:          George Kapiton, Inverness, Fla., 15 bass, 47-5, $1,600

8th:          Dylan Peppers, Good Hope, Ga., 15 bass, 47-4, $1,400

9th:          Kevin Dees, Montgomery, Ala., 14 bass, 42-5, $1,200

10th:        Stacy Adams, Hazlehurst, Ga., 15 bass, 41-8, $1,000

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Randy Paquette of Sarasota, Florida, won the Co-angler Division and a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard with a three-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 34 pounds, 10 ounces.

The top six co-anglers that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Randy Paquette, Sarasota, Fla., 10 bass, 34-10, $45,200

2nd:         Gary Murphy, Homer, Ga., 10 bass, 30-13, $5,050

3rd:          Donnie Davis, Greer, S.C., 11 bass, 26-7, $2,500

4th:          Ernie Thompson, Anthony, Fla., 13 bass, 24-2, $1,500

5th:          Frank Godwin Jr., Bainbridge, Ga., 13 bass, 23-13, $1,000

6th:          Levi Crossway, Jacksonville, Fla., 11 bass, 23-7, $900

Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers were:

7th:          Kenneth Hunnicutt, Jacksonville, Fla., 13 bass, 23-3, $800

8th:          Donald Dills, Mineral Bluff, Ga., 10 bass, 23-0, $700

9th:          Christian Greico, Tampa, Fla., 10 bass, 22-2, $600

10th:        Spencer Sato, Warner Robins, Ga., nine bass, 21-6, $500

The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on the St. Johns River presented by Ranger was hosted by the Putnam County Tourist Development Council.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


Bud Pruitt & Kevin Mason crowned 2018 Skeeter Bass Champs CHAMPIONS

By: Patty Lenderman
It has been an incredible season for four regions of Skeeter Bass Champs. On October 13-14, 2018 the two day championship was held for the first time on Lake Texoma with a record 275 teams competing for the crown. Rainy conditions, rising water and tough teams were but some of the challenges each angler faced. Not only was the title up for grabs, but two Skeeter boats powered by Yamaha and outfitted with Lowrance were in the sights for these qualifiers. The leaderboard showed major shifts over the course of the event as many teams climbed the ladder to top positions. In all, over $218,000 was awarded in cash and prizes – an amazing 269% payback! Skill, tenacity and maybe a little luck mixed in paid off for the winners Bud Pruitt and Kevin Mason.

Contenders were allowed to trailer to any available boat launch on Lake Texoma to launch closer to their fishing areas. This helped a great deal considering the weather conditions with huge downpours of rain and wind over the playing field. Texoma produced a lot of solid sacks at the scales!

Bud Pruitt of Sam Rayburn, TX and Kevin Mason of Coldspring captivated 1st place with a dominating two pound spread. “We started with a phenomenal practice,” the team agreed. “The first day we had some boat pressure where we were fishing, but managed an initial limit in 45 minutes. After that we moved to another area and upgraded our fish a few times.” At the end of the first day, they had 17.94 pounds, putting them in a top five position going into day two. “The lake rose every day significantly. One thing I have always lived by,” Bud stated, “is you never tell the bass where they are supposed to be. You have to follow them.” They found the bass were keyed in on clean spots between weeds, roadbeds and trails. They found their best spot on the second day, and using bladed baits and swim jigs trailered with black & blue Rage Craws and Reaction Innovation ‘Twerks’ as well as Strike King spinnerbaits, they amassed a second day limit of 18.80 pounds. In two days they tallied 36.74 pounds of bass to win the Championship and the top prize – a Skeeter FX20 powered by a Yamaha SHO and outfitted with Lowrance electronics. “We had such a blessed weekend. Everything just lined up. We lost as many fish as we caught!” Bud and Kevin would also like to tip their hats at the Bass Champs staff and crew, Skeeter Bass Boats “and all of the guys who fished this brutal weather weekend!”

2nd place winners were Adam Dunn of Houston and Joshua Ware of New Caney, TX. “The first day it was so windy, and the rain was pretty heavy,” Adam recalled. “We hit about five different spots the first day using topwater baits. Our better fish came in the afternoon.” Bringing in around 15 pounds on Day 1, they were sitting in 22nd position. “The second day the water was slick and calm. The bass would hit our bait, but not take it.” They were catching a few, but knew they needed more. “We kept moving, looking for the fish we needed. We switched to buzz baits and flukes, and with only twenty minutes to go the wind switched out of the north and put a little chop on the water. That’s exactly what we needed! The shad were busting in spots, and while it seemed that it was white bass and striper after them, the better black bass was there with them. We were able to cull three more times before having to pack it in.” They caught 19 pounds on the final day, and had a two day total weight of 34.73 lbs to win a Skeeter ZX225 powered by a Yamaha SHO with Lowrance electronics.

Chad Bailey of Comanche, OK and Lee Livesay of Gladewater, TX landed in 3rd place overall. “Lee found our spot in practice, and we stayed there both days,” Chad explained. “We only used Frogs, and stayed way back in the flooded woods and fields.” They culled a few times by mere ounces, ending up with 16.06 lbs for the first day in a 13th place position. “We went right back there to our starting spot on the second day. It was being hit pretty hard by other boats. We decided to stick it out and made a million circles covering it.” Lee reeled in their biggest fish so far, then right after that lost a nice one. “We let that spot rest for a little bit then came back to it. We didn’t get bit where he lost the fish, so we decided to scoot out just a little to see if it moved down the bank some.” That’s when Chad landed their kicker with only five minutes left to fish. It was their last cull, giving them a day two sack weighing 16.68 lbs. Their two day total was 32.74 lbs winning 3rd place and $6,000. “We’d like to thank Lake Fork Resort, R&K Distributing, Anheuser-Busch and Honey Hole Tackle Shop in West Monroe, LA.” An additional congratulations to each of these men as Chad recently welcomed an addition to his family and Lee has qualified to fish the Elite Series in 2019. “We will both take next year off from Bass Champs, but we’ll be back!”

The biggest bass of the tournament was reeled in by Keith McMillen from Quinland, TX, fishing with Pete Brandt of Garland. “We found some good fish in practice, and stayed in one cove both days of the tournament,” Pete recalled. They caught fish on a variety of baits, including a buzz bait, frog, and swim jigs. “The first day we fished there until around noon, and left the fish biting as we checked out a couple of other spots. The rain was horrible.” They had 14.23 pounds putting them in 38th place going into Day 2. “On the second day, the lake had risen quite a bit. Our fish had moved, and at 9:30 we still didn’t have a single fish in the boat.” They had confidence in their fish and in the area. “We moved in shallower to freshly flooded shoreline. It was covered in debris from the storms and rising water. That’s when we got our first bite of the day.” At 9:45am Keith caught the 6.86 lb’r that won Big Bass of the tournament. “We kept fishing frogs in literally 6” of water in the flooded grass.” Their efforts landed four fish for the final day, weighing in at 14.41 lbs. They finished in 12th place overall with 28.64 lbs, winning $1,500 plus $750 for Big Bass and the Abu Garcia bonus.

“This has been such a great season,” declared Chad Potts, Bass Champs President. “We would like to congratulate all of the teams as well as the champions at this event. It is each of you in every region that makes Bass Champs what it is, and all of us here would like to thank everyone who has fished with us. Our goal is to just keep making it better and better, so we will look forward to seeing you again next year!”

e Boat Truck Angler 1 Angler 2 Fish Big Bass Wt. Prize Amt.
1 BUD PRUITT
HOUSTON , TX
KEVIN MASON
COLDSPRING , TX
10 0 36.74
SKEETER FX20 YAMAHA SHO Lowrance
2 ADAM DUNN
HOUSTON , TX
JOSHUA WARE
NEW CANEY , TX
10 0 34.73
SKEETER ZX 225 YAMAHA SHO Lowrance+$1000 Lowrance
3 CHAD BAILEY
COMANCHE , OK
LEE LIVESAY
GLADEWATER , TX
10 0 32.74
$6000.00
4 DAVID REYNOLDS
MCKINNEY , TX
ROBERT BROCK JR
PRINCETON , TX
9 0 32.47
$5000.00
5 CHARLES WHITED
SAN MARCOS , TX
BILL POLKINGHORN
CANYON LAKE , TX
10 0 31.46
$4000.00
6 BRANDEN HOLLINGSHEAD
AZLE , TX
JEREMY LAMBERT
DECATUR , TX
10 0 31.23
$3000.00 + $2500 Sportsmans Auto Bonus
7 BRADLEY HILLEBRANDT
RAGLEY , LA
JORDAN BREAUX
SULPHUR , LA
10 0 31.13
$2000.00
8 AARON WALKER
MT VERNON , TX
STEVEN STROMAN
SCROGGINS , TX
10 6.36 29.65
$1800.00
9 SHAWN VERINSKY
LUMBERTON , TX
BLAKE COLE
GROVES , TX
9 0 29.63
$1700.00
10 PHILLIP CRELIA
CENTER , TX
TJ GOODWYN
CENTER , TX
10 0 29.15
$1600.00
11 TOBY JONES
STONEWALL , LA
CARL JONES
DAYTON , TX
10 0 28.73
$1500.00
12 PETE BRANDT
GARLAND , TX
KEITH MCMILLAN
QUINLAN , TX
9 6.86 28.64
$1500.00 + $750.00 Big Bass Day 2+Abu Garcia Bonus
13 MATT HILL
JONESTOWN , TX
BARRY MOTT
LIBERTY HILL , TX
10 0 28.52
$1500.00 + $1500 Skeeter Bonus
14 WILL CARSTENS
ALEXANDRIA , LA
ROSS BRYANT
ALEXANDRIA , LA
10 0 28.45
$1500.00
15 CHARLIE GANTENBEIN
SALADO , TX
JIMMY WILLOUGHBY
TEMPLE , TX
10 0 28.28
$1500.00
16 DAVID UNDERWOOD
WACO , TX
CHARLES SIMMONS
WACO , TX
10 0 28.05
$1500.00
17 MARK PERRY
ROANOKE , TX
MIKE PETROVIC
ALVIN , TX
10 0 27.96
$1500.00
18 ADAM CLARK
DRIPPING SPRINGS , TX
RICK CLARK
TERRELL , TX
10 0 27.83
$1500.00
19 MIKE COON
KERRVILLE , TX
WESLEY GRAHAM
EMORY , TX
9 0 27.63
$1500.00
20 CHUCK BLACK
LOGAN , NM
CHAD BLACK
SAN ANTONIO , TX
10 0 27.48
$1500.00
21 BILL GARZA JR
FLORESVILLE , TX
IRA LYNN
ADKINS , TX
10 0 27.44
$1500.00
22 ERIC WASHBURN
GATESVILLE , TX
ZANE WASHBURN
GATESVILLE , TX
10 0 27.09
$1500.00
23 SHAWN ONEAL
DRY PRONG , LA
MATT BATES
ALEXANDRIA , LA
10 0 26.91
$1500.00
24 BOB SIGNORIN
OAKHURST , TX
TRAVIS SIGNORIN
OAKHURST , TX
8 4.93 26.86
$1500.00
25 JACOB JOHNSON
LAKE CHARLES , LA
SHANE CORMIER
RAGLEY , LA
10 0 26.72
$1500.00
26 BRIAN MATER
AUSTIN , TX
PHILLIP WARREN
AUSTIN , TX
10 0 26.53
$1200.00
27 JOHN BYLER
SOUTHLAKE , TX
MATT FRANCE
COLLEYVILLE , TX
10 0 26.51
$1200.00
28 ANTHONY JONES
IRVING , TX
CRAIG BROWN
FLOWER MOUND , TX
10 0 26.41
$1200.00
29 STEVE MAGNELIA
AUSTIN , TX
MICHAEL TENNANT
PFLUGERVILLE , TX
10 0 25.96
$1200.00
30 LOGAN SHERRER
BOSSIER CITY , LA
RYAN LAVIGNE
GONZALES , LA
10 0 25.95
$1200.00
31 CORY RAMBO
ORANGE , TX
RUSTY CLARK
SAM RAYBURN , TX
10 0 25.91
$1200.00
32 GARRETT HENNIG
BELTON , TX
BRANDON MCQUEEN
BELTON , TX
10 0 25.42
$1200.00
33 COY GREATHOUSE
CORINTH , TX
KEVIN BRYANT
FLOWER MOUND , TX
9 5.26 25.37
$1200.00
34 CODY BURDINE
BRIDGEPORT , TX
BOBBY POINTER
ALVORD , TX
9 5.06 24.92
$1200.00
35 DAVID LAINE
HORSESHOE BAY , TX
WILLIAM FESLER
LAMPASAS , TX
9 0 24.88
$1200.00
36 CHANS MARTIN
FAIR OAKS RANCH , TX
MAX MARTIN
CLOVIS , NM
9 5.73 24.65
$1000.00
37 ANDY WILBURN
ROYSE CITY , TX
CLAYTON PASS
GUN BARRELL CITY , TX
10 0 24.56
$1000.00
38 JD LAUGHERY
ROCKWALL , TX
STAN LAWING
TERRELL , TX
10 0 24.51
$1000.00
39 KYLE ROWE
WACO , TX
TED PATE
ALEXANDRIA , LA
10 0 24.29
$1000.00
40 MATT MCMILLAN
FORT WORTH , TX
TREVOR ROMANS
CELINA , TX
8 0 24.24
$1000.00
41 SPIKE STOKER
STEPHENVILLE , TX
STUART JEFFREY
ANSON , TX
6 6.01 24.02
$1000.00
42 TIM WILCOXSON
EDGEWOOD , TX
JERAMY MARINELLI
ROYSE CITY , TX
9 6.09 24.00
$1000.00
43 MARTIN ELSHOUT
ABITA SPRINGS , LA
MARK PRICE
RUSTON , LA
10 0 23.70
$1000.00
44 GARY ABLES
KENNEDALE , TX
MONTE COON
FORT WORTH , TX
10 0 23.66
$1000.00
45 DONNIE ONEAL
PFLUGERVILLE , TX
KENNETH MCDONNEL
GRANGER , TX
9 0 23.62
$1000.00
46 JOE ROME
FLOWER MOUND , TX
JOEL MCBRIDE
CORINTH , TX
10 0 23.11
$1000.00
47 BO MCGRAW
COLLEGE STATION , TX
CLINT LIPHAM
MONTGOMERY , TX
9 0 23.04
$1000.00
48 KENNETH CUMMINS
PAIGE , TX
JIMMY CHAPMAN
HUTTO , TX
10 0 22.97
49 ROB BURNS
PLANO , TX
JAMES CURGUS
FRISCO , TX
9 0 22.92
50 SHANE HENDERSON
YANTIS , TX
CHADD DEAREN
ROWLETT , TX
8 0 22.50

TENNESSEE’S PICKETT GOES WIRE-TO-WIRE, WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ON KENTUCKY LAKE PRESENTED BY EVINRUDE

Mississippi’s Ladnier Takes Co-angler Title

GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (Oct. 22, 2018) – Boater Lloyd Pickett Jr. of Bartlett, Tennessee, caught a three-day cumulative total of 10 bass weighing 32 pounds, 12 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Regional championship on Kentucky and Barkley lakes presented by Evinrude. Pickett earned $65,000 for his efforts, including a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and automatic entry into the 2019 BFL All-American Championship.

“The goal was to make the All-American. This makes No. 7 for me,” said Pickett, who earned his sixth win in FLW competition. “I’ve been second and third a couple times in these Regionals, and it’s always a back-breaker. So to win this, it feels real good.”

Pickett targeted bass on main-lake gravel bars, secondary points and secondary pockets to catch his fish.

“If you found the shad, you got bit, but if you found the skipjack, you caught big ones,” said Pickett. “I fished some gravel bars out on the main lake, and when that wasn’t happening, I fished secondary points in the creeks.”

The winning spots, all located around the Paris, Tenn., area, varied from about 1 to 7 feet deep.

“I had eight holes that had fish on them,” said Pickett. “I only hit two the first day, three yesterday [Friday], and I hit two today [Saturday]. I only re-fished one spot each day, but I didn’t really catch much on it.”

The speed at which he fished allowed Pickett to get by with so few spots while many of his competitors fished dozens of places a day. Limiting his travel between spots was also part of a strategy to make the most of his competition time after making the long run south and dealing with high winds.

“When you run that far down there, you burn two hours [round trip], and when you [use a] Carolina rig as slow as I do, I can burn three hours just like that,” said Pickett.

He dragged his Carolina rig about as slow as possible and milked each spot for all it had, not changing locations until he was no longer seeing any bass or bait.

Pickett’s Carolina rig was baited with a Zoom Brush Hog in green pumpkin, watermelon candy or blueberry (black with purple fleck) on a 4/0-sized Gamakatsu EWG hook. Occasionally, he mixed in another creature bait. Pickett used a 3- to 5-foot-long leader of 12-pound-test Bass Pro Shops XPS Fluorocarbon line connected to 15-pound-test XPS main line and added a couple of glass beads – for extra sound – between his swivel and either a 3/4- or 1-ounce weight. The Tennessean used a custom Muddy River Rods model 714.

Other than dragging painfully slow, the biggest key to Pickett’s presentation was to keep it natural.

“I like to get off the side of the point and throw over the end of the point,” said Pickett. “If there’s current, I’ll pull with the current. If I’m fishing a secondary pocket with wind blowing in, I come around and pull with the wind the way the shad would be coming. On gravel bars, I just throw as far as I can.”

The top six boaters that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Lloyd Pickett Jr., Bartlett, Tenn., 10 bass, 32-12, $65,000

2nd:         John Devries, Fishers, Ind., seven bass, 30-1, $10,200

3rd:          Doug Ruster, New Palestine, Ind., nine bass, 29-1, $5,000

4th:          Nick Uebelhor, Jasper, Ind., 10 bass, 26-11, $3,100

5th:          Rich Fye, Galveston, Ind., eight bass, 25-10, $2,000

6th:          Ken Garbe, Wyoming, Ohio, seven bass, 23-5, $1,800

Rounding out the top-10 boaters were:

7th:          Frank McClain, Scottsburg, Ind., six bass, 22-1, $1,600

8th:          Daniel Houser, Washington Township, Mich., eight bass, 21-10, $1,400

9th:          Clayton Reitz, Morton, Ill., seven bass, 19-12, $1,200

10th:        Marcus Sykora, Osage Beach, Mo., seven bass, 19-1, $1,000

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Brent Ladnier of Wiggins, Mississippi, won the Co-angler Division and a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard with a three-day cumulative catch of six bass weighing 22 pounds, 8 ounces.

The top six co-anglers that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Brent Ladnier, Wiggins, Miss., six bass, 22-8, $45,000

2nd:         Carl Breeden, Valley Park, Mo., five bass, five bass, 14-10, $5,200

3rd:          Leroy Miller, Napoleon, Ohio, two bass, 8-2, $2,500

4th:          Jacob Sloan, Paola, Kan., two bass, 8-7, $1,550

5th:          Daniel Dumais, Trenton, Mich., three bass, 9-12, $1,000

6th:          Ryan Helbling, Martinsville, Ind., four bass, 10-8, $900

Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers were:

7th:          Joshua Shinault, Baldwyn, Miss., four bass, 10-6, $800

8th:          Steve Garman, Dayton, Ohio, three bass, 9-15, $700

9th:          Dan O’Neil, Canton, Mich., two bass, 9-2, $600

10th:        Justin Kivett, Indianapolis, Ind., three bass, 9-2, $500

The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on Kentucky Lake presented by Evinrude was hosted by the Kentucky Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


LEXINGTON’S WALSER WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ON LAKE NORMAN PRESENTED BY COSTA SUNGLASSES

Virginia’s Smelser Grabs Co-angler Title

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (Oct. 22, 2018) – Boater Robert Walser of Lexington, North Carolina, caught a three-day cumulative total of 15 bass weighing 35 pounds, 8 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Regional championship on Lake Norman presented by Costa Sunglasses. Walser earned $66,000 for his efforts, including a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and automatic entry into the 2019 BFL All-American Championship.

Walser said he made a 20- to 25-minute run to the Buffalo Shoals Road bridge near Long Island, North Carolina, each morning of the tournament and fished his way back to the takeoff ramp. Along his route, he flipped docks using a Texas-rigged, green-pumpkin-colored Zoom Baby Brush Hog and a Zoom Z Craw Jr. with 5/16th-ounce Echo Pro tungsten weights and 3/0-sized Berkley Fusion19 offset hooks. He also caught some bass on the bank between docks with a Rush Lures spinnerbait.

“I probably hit 80 to 100 docks each day. I’d fish three or four in a stretch and then move on,” said Walser, the 2006 BFL All-American champion who logged his 11th career victory in BFL competition. “A lot of the docks I targeted had brush, which I could see on my Garmin Panoptix electronics, so that’s where I concentrated my casts. All of my fish came from less than 10 feet of water.

“I keyed in on docks that have had fish on them over the past couple of weeks. Depth- and structure-wise, there wasn’t really anything that made one dock better than the next, they just needed to have fish,” continued Walser. “You could have three or four bites at one dock, and then not have anything at any others in the area.”

Walser said he caught 8 or 10 keepers each day Thursday and Friday, and at least three or four limits on Saturday. He used an 8-foot Lamiglas 806 flipping rod with a Pflueger 7:1 Supreme reel and 20-pound-test Berkley Trilene 100-percent fluorocarbon line.

“I think the south wind pushing the cold front toward us made them bite better Saturday,” said Walser. “There was also less fishing pressure [since only the top 12 anglers fish on Saturday].”

Walser went on to say that in addition to catching fish, he also had to deal with various mechanical issues. The North Carolina boater said he ended up needing to use a different boat each day of the event.

“An employee at Angler’s Choice Marine brought me the other boat I own on Thursday, which I used until a gasket failed on Friday. I’d like to give them a special thanks for helping me,” said Walser. “The mental strain of having all that stuff fail was a lot, but I got through it and it all worked it out.”

The top six boaters that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Robert Walser, Lexington, N.C., 15 bass, 35-8, $66,000

2nd:         Scott Beattie, Lincolnton, N.C., 15 bass, 32-1, $10,000

3rd:          Dylan Fulk, Concord, N.C., 15 bass, 30-10, $5,200

4th:          Bryan New, Belmont, N.C., 15 bass, 29-14, $3,100

5th:          Michael Fox, Statesville, N.C., 15 bass, 29-11, $2,000

6th:          Travis Young, Charlotte, N.C., 15 bass, 29-9, $1,800

Rounding out the top-10 boaters were:

7th:          Jack Dice, Lynchburg, Va., 15 bass, 29-4, $1,600

8th:          Jake Frye, Charlotte, N.C., 13 bass, 27-7, $1,400

9th:          Chad Poteat, Mount Airy, N.C., 15 bass, 27-1, $1,200

10th:        Cole Huskins, Mt. Holly, N.C., 12 bass, 25-8, $1,000

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Wayne Smelser of Rural Retreat, Virginia, won the Co-angler Division and a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard with a three-day cumulative catch of 15 bass weighing 28 pounds, 12 ounces.

The top six co-anglers that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Wayne Smelser, Rural Retreat, Va., 15 bass, 28-12, $45,200

2nd:         Larry Freeman Jr., La Crosse, Va., 13 bass, 27-11, $5,000

3rd:          Tristen Trull, Mt. Holly, N.C., 13 bass, 25-13, $2,500

4th:          Ben Dacey, Chesterfield, Va., 15 bass, 25-3, $1,550

5th:          Jeff Rikard, Leesville, S.C., 12 bass, 23-7, $1,000

6th:          Khris Williams, Mount Holly, N.C., 13 bass, 21-3, $900

Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers were:

7th:          Ronnie Cutshall, Piedmont, S.C., 12 bass, 18-15, $800

8th:          Darren Kelly, Wartburg, Tenn., 10 bass, 18-8, $700

9th:          David Blakely, Kingsport, Tenn., 10 bass, 18-6, $600

10th:        Bart Beasley, Mount Pleasant, S.C., eight bass, 16-13, $500

The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on Lake Norman presented by Costa Sunglasses was hosted by Visit Lake Norman, Visit Charlotte and Mecklenburg County Park & Recreation.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


OKLAHOMA STUDENT ANGLER FEDERATION WINS BASS PRO SHOPS FLW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING GRAND LAKE OPEN PRESENTED BY YETI

GROVE, Okla. (Oct. 22, 2018) – The Oklahoma Student Angler Federation duo of Owen Williams, Afton, Oklahoma, and Easton Hitt, Bella Vista, Arkansas, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 14 pounds, 5 ounces, to win the 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Grand Lake Open presented by YETI.

A field of 68 teams competed in the no-entry-fee tournament, which launched from Grove City Ramp at Wolf Creek Park. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10 percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.

According to the post-tournament report, Williams and Hitt caught their fish flipping ledges and docks on the lower end of the lake using green-pumpkin-colored, football-headed jigs.

The top six teams on Grand Lake that advanced to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship were:

1st:     Oklahoma Student Angler Federation – Owen Williams, Afton, Okla., and Easton Hitt, Bella Vista, Ark. five bass, 14-5

2nd:    Ketchum High School, Ketchum, Okla. – Austin Chandler and Ty Bishop, both of Ketchum, Okla., five bass, 12-7, $600

3rd:     Vinita High School, Vinita, Okla. – Tyler Lake and Jesse Woodward, both of Vinita, Okla., five bass, 10-12

4th:     Rogers County Bass Anglers – James Cagle and Jordan Gotcher, both of Claremore, Okla., five bass, 10-8

5th:     Mannford High School, Mannford, Okla. – Charley Williams and Joseph Case, both of Mannford, Okla., five bass, 9-1

6th:     Jenks High School, Jenks, Okla. – Jake Peck, Tulsa, Okla., and Garrison Snedon, Jenks, Okla., four bass, 8-7

Rounding out the top 10 teams were:

7th:     Deer Creek High School, Oklahoma County, Okla. – Lane Whitsell and Davis Greaud, both of Edmond, Okla., five bass, 8-6

8th:     Branson High School, Branson, Mo. – Skyler McGrath, Branson, Mo., and Keegan Barber, Reed Spring, Mo., two bass, 7-10

9th:     Broken Arrow High School, Broken Arrow, Okla. – Michael Reiss and Max Klein, both of Broken Arrow, Okla., four bass, 7-9

10th:   Rogers County Bass Anglers – Dakota Page, Catoosa, Okla., and Bryce Page, Claremore, Okla., three bass, 7-2, $200

Complete results from the event can be found at FLWFishing.com.

The 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Grand Lake Open presented by YETI was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12, open to any Student Angler Federation (SAF) affiliated high school club in the United States. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship on a body of water that has yet to be revealed. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.

In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest open high school bass tournament, the 2019 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship. At the 2018 World Finals more than $150,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded.

Full schedules and the latest announcements are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com.

About FLW

FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


Lamb & Porter's 2-day Total of 35.96 Wins Chattanooga Bass Association Classic on Chick!

Courtesy of WRCB News

CHATTANOOGA (WRCB) - The team of Haden Lamb and Trevor Porter caught a 2 day total of 35.96 pounds topping out the field of 116 anglers to win first place and $10,000.00 in the Tow Boat US Chattanooga Bass Association 2018 Classic Bass Tournament. This 2 day bass event was held October 20th and 21st 2018 out of Chester Frost Boat Ramp.

Haden said “We didn’t have a great day one, catching 13 pounds around grass beds. We changed patterns on day 2 throwing swim baits and looking for areas that had lots of bait in 12 feet of water. We had a 5 fish limit by 8:30 a.m. and later in the day caught a giant 10 pound bass that took us to 22 pounds. This tournament is hard to win and this is our second classic win in 15 years. You have to get a monster bass and we were lucky to get the right bite”.
Steve Barnes and Spenser Smith had day 1 big bass a nice 9.00 largemouth bass. Good for 400 dollars. Second big bass on day 1 was caught by David Powell a 7.73 largemouth. Good for 170 dollars.
Day 2 big bass went to Haden Lamb and Trevor Porter a nice 10.44 largemouth good for 400 dollars. Second big bass went to Logan Kokozka a 7.48 largemouth good for 170 dollars.
The top 10 places are as follows:
  1. Haden Lamb and Trevor Porter, 35.96 pounds, $10,000
  2. Jim Cofer and Matt Wendorf , 33.96 pounds, $4000
  3. Chuck James and Brad James 32.97 $3000
  4. Josh Wofford 31.95 pounds $2500
  5. Scott Gilley and Wes Hardin 31.76 pounds $2000
  6. Mark Keith and Mark Varaday 31.55 pounds $1800
  7. Jeff Knight and Michael Knight 30.52 pounds $1600
  8. Jayme Cophenever and Adam Dysart 29.96 pounds $1400
  9. Steve Barnes and Spenser Smith 28.69 pounds $1200
  10. Logan Kokozka 28.27 pounds $1100


Tharp Hurricane Help - Go Fund Me

Tharp Hurricane Help

Thanks to Hurricane Michael, Our friends,  Randall and Sara Tharp, have had significant damage to the ground floor area of their home.
Randy and Sara are looking at an expensive rebuild that insurance will not cover.
All funds raised will be used to return the Tharp’s home to its original condition before Michael paid the coast a visit.
We are  just friends trying to help friends get back to normal.

All funds will go directly to Randy and Sara as I have the campaign withdrawals set up to go directly to their account.

Click Here to Donate

Thank you for helping!

 

 

 


Crankbaits rule Quantum Next Generation tourney on Grand Lake

Courtesy of Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships

Of the 102 high school and college teams that participated in the no entry fee, prize rich Quantum Next Generation Open event on Oklahoma’s Grand Lake, crankbaits were among the most popular choice of lures. And whether cast into shallow muddy water uplake, or dredged deep in the southern end’s clearer water, treble hooked diving plugs of both varieties eventually proved victorious.

The high school team of Noah and Micah Belt caught the highest winning weight overall with 17 pounds 8 ounces using Tennessee Shad colored shallow diving sqaurebill crankbaits tied to 12-pound Seaguar line.

“This is incredible. What an awesome event! Our family drove three hours up here to Grand from home, and rented a house on the lake to have sort of a vacation around the tournament, and to win is just unbelievable,” says Noah Belt, whose dad Lloyd served as their boat captain.

In great contrast, the highest winning weight posted by a college team was 13 pounds 8 ounces from much deeper cleaner water by Blaine Timonera and Colton Harper of the University of Oklahoma, who caught their fish in nearly 20-feet of water on a Strike King 6XD crankbait.

This fast growing event begins Saturday evening with a registration meeting featuring truckloads of free pizza, a chance to visit with pro angler Matt Lee, and a pitching contest. And by its conclusion on Sunday, nearly every team walks away with incredible prizes from Carhartt, Costa, Garmin, Honey Creek Tackle Store, Lowrance, PowerPole, Plano, Yamaha, and Quantum.

“As somebody who came up through the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series, it just blows my mind how incredible the prizes are at this event, and the whole thing is just so well run and organized. It’s just awesome,” says Matt Lee.

The large team of Zebco Brands employees who graciously volunteer to organize this popular event are already making plans for the 2019 edition of the fast-growing tournament, and encourage all young anglers to follow Quantum.Fishing on Instagram for more details.


Fogelman & Perkins Win PBC Jordan Lake Derby with over 19 pounds!

PBC CASHION FISHING RODS 'End of Year' TEAM TOURNAMENT BASS FISHING TRAIL

QUALIFIER #8 RESULTS
Saturday October 20th, 2018 ~ Jordan Lake ~ Farrington Point Wildlife Ramp

Well we finally got a little rain during the tournament! The Final PBC Cashion Fishing Rods 'End of Year' Trail Qualifier #8
at Jordan Lake was fished by 32 boats on a cool 57 degree morning with stiff 15 mph winds. The winds finally let up about
10 am then the rain moved in about 11:30 and kept up until weighin at 3 pm. when air temps were about 69.
Water temps averaged about 68 degrees. The bite was wild with plenty of dinks caught everywhere! We did have a good
number of 'fall weight' bags brought in so it wasn't too bad. We also had 4 bass over 7 lbs. and plenty of 5's & 6's weighed
in! Actually the bite was pretty good considering how high Jordan got and how much water was released after the storm.

First time winners this year, Jay Fogleman & Robert Perkins, took 1st Place weighing in 5 bass at 19.67 lbs. and also
won 1st Place TWT for a total of $1,690 in winnings. 
Zach Hall & Ricky Parker came in 2nd place with 5 fish
weighing 17.64 lbs. & also won 2nd Place TWT to pocket a total of $867. 3rd place team, Dennis Reedy & Tommy
Marrow won $385 with 5 weighing 16.80 lbs. The 4th Place Team of Jerry Marshburn & his sub Randy Parker had 5
at 16.34 lbs. and the Big Fish for the day at 7.78 lbs. netting them $730. Money got spread around pretty good!

94 fish were weighed in for a total of 275 pounds for an average of 2.93 lbs. each. Most of the fish were caught on
Wacky Worms, Carolina rigs, Rat-L-Traps, jerk baits and Crankbaits in 2 to 10' of water way up in the woods &
bushes, off main point dropoffs, wood & rock ledges and creek channels.

I want to thank all the anglers that participated and all our sponsors that support this trail. The next Cashion Fishing
Rods 'End of Year' Tournament will be the Championship for qualifiers only, October 27th at Falls Lake out of Ledge
Rock Wildlife Ramp. Go to this webpage for the info on the 'End of Year' Trail:
http://piedmontbassclassics.com/2018CashionEOYTrailMainPage.html
All the information on our tournaments can be found http://piedmontbassclassics.com/

Now here are the full results:

1st Place: Jay Fogleman & Robert Perkins of Durham & Rougemont...5 bass...19.67 lbs...$920
2nd Place: Zach Hall & Ricky Parker of Holly Springs & Pittsboro...5 bass...17.64 lbs...$537
3rd Place: Dennis Reedy & Tommy Marrow of Oxford & Siler City...5 bass...16.80 lbs...$385
4th Place: Jerry Marshburn & Tim Parker of Sanford & New Hill...5 bass...16.34 lbs...$282
5th Place: Keith Deal & Tony Miller of Holly Springs...5 bass...15.85 lbs...$231
6th Place: Clay Ausley & Allen Parker of Fuquay Varina & Sanford...5 bass...15.79 lbs...$205

1st Place Big Fish..4th Place Team above...7.78 lbs...$448
2nd Place Big Fish..Chuck Byrd & Gale Watson of Sanford...7.65 lbs...$192

         1st Place TWT..1st Place Team above...19.67 lbs...$770

2nd Place TWT..2nd Place Team above...17.64 lbs...$330


Californian Bub Tosh Wins 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open Oklahoma’s Matt Pangrac Wins AAA Division

by Dan O'Sullivan

Las Vegas, Nev. - September 17, 2018 – When the first day of the 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open concluded, Jason Borofka’s 13.84 pounds held little more than a half pound lead over Bub Tosh’s 13.20 pounds.  With the first day having been cancelled due to extreme winds causing unsafe conditions, the shortened event became more of a shootout with the anglers competing for two days instead of three.

The stiff winds continued into the following day, and anglers found that they had to adjust to the conditions.  As can happen during bass fishing tournaments, the conditions made a complete 180-degree turn, and the final day brought high skies, light winds with very little surface disturbance.

While the conditions didn’t make for a typical power fishing bite, Tosh managed to ride a Double Soft Jerkbait rig in the Vegas Wash and produce enough quality bites to post an 11.74-pound limit to close out the victory in the weather shortened 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open presented by Bass Cat Boats and Mercury Marine with a two-day total weight of 24.94.

Tosh said he employed a method he learned from Lake Mead and Western bass fishing legend Pat Donoho when he was a kid.  “I talked to my dad when I came down here and he reminded me of how Pat prepared for this event, and that was to look for bait,” he said.  “I spent my whole practice period driving around and looking for clouds of baitfish; and I spent the whole tournament fishing in those few areas.”

He said he caught the primarily on a pair of Yamamoto D Shad soft jerkbaits in shad colors rigged on an 7’ medium heavy IRod AIR Series casting rod.  The key was a special swivel that he is developing for Paycheck Baits.  “The swivel helps me cast the rig without it getting me tangled, it is a very important part of the rig,” he said.  “I threw it around shallow grass and rocks in the Vegas Wash, and the current in the back of it was very important factor as well.”

Tosh takes home a 2018 Bass Cat Puma FTD powered by a Mercury 250ProXS rigged with Lowrance Electronics and MotorGuide Trolling Motor valued at $64,000 and $52,000 cash plus bonuses to bring his total earnings for the event to over $116,000.

Nick Salvucci, who has won on Lake Mead in the past, started day two in 11th place with 11.41 pounds, posted 12.89 to leap all the way to second place with 24.30; his second top five in a row.  Salvucci said that he caught his fish in the Overton Arm on bladed jigs and buzz baits.  But, he said that he was a little disappointed overall.  “I didn’t come here for another top five, I came here to win this event,” he said.  “I’m not happy with a second place finish, but I did all I could do, and this is how this sport goes.  I wish I could have done a little more, but I’ll take the finish and let it drive me for next year.”  Salvucci takes home $21,600 for his efforts.

The AAA Division was won by Oklahoma’s Matt Pangrac; who works for U.S. Open broadcast partner BASSZONE.com.  He practiced with fellow Soomer State pro Bradley Hallman, and drew Salvucci and Arizona’s Matt Shura, and thanked them all profusely.  “We all meshed really well and got into a rhythm,” he said.  “I had a great time, and learned a lot.  This is a great event, and because of my Pro partners and my boss Mark Jeffreys who allowed me the time to fish it, I was able to do something I would have never imagined; I can’t believe I won the U.S. Open.”  Pangrac earned $10,600 for his tournament.

Complete final standings can be found below.

That wraps up the 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open from Lake Mead.  The event was presented by Bass Cat Boats and Mercury Marine, and the live streaming broadcasts of the event were brought to you by Costa.

The Sponsors of the 2018 U.S. Open are: Bass Cat Boats, Mercury, Costa, Daiwa, St. Croix, Lowrance, Yo-Zuri, Bridgford, Seaguar Fluorcarbon, Rapala, Hayabusa, Plano, Frabill, MotorGuide, Phenix Rods, Lew's, Kuiu, Sure Life, Sportsman’s Warehouse, Storm, Anglers Marine, Century Marine, Boatmasters, Last Chance Performance Marine, Strike King, BG Insurance, Chevy Montebello and Boulder Station Casino.

 

2018 WON Bass U.S. Open Final Pro Standings

Place Name Hometown Big Fish Total
1 Steve Tosh, Jr. Modesto CA 3.91 24.94
2 Nick Salvucci Paso Robles CA 4.05 24.30
3 Jason Borofka Salinas CA 3.79 22.68
4 Kurt Dove Del Rio TX 22.08
5 Scott Helleson Whittier CA 3.22 21.37
6 Kevin Short Mayflower AR 4.14 21.14
7 Todd Woods Los Angeles CA 2.73 20.91
8 Chase Colby Heber City UT 20.27
9 Kevin Finley Phoenix AZ 3.13 20.21
10 Randy Blaukat Joplin MO 3.74 20.05
11 Bill O'Shinn Bakersfield CA 19.68
12 Michael Crowther Page AZ 19.67
13 Bill Brown Grand Junction CO 3.96 19.66
14 Steve Kennedy Auburn AL 19.63
15 Matt Stefan Junction City WI 3.41 19.58
16 Kona Borja Henderson NV 3.60 19.40
16 Chris Zaldain San Jose CA 2.82 19.40
18 Ricky Shabazz La Mesa CA 3.22 19.35
19 Bradley Hallman Norman OK 19.33
20 Tommy Jonovich Phoenix AZ 3.65 19.31
21 Greg Miser La Mesa CA 19.24
22 David Kemper Tempe AZ 18.95
23 Matt Shura Gilbert AZ 18.47
24 Roy Hawk Lake Havasu City AZ 3.25 18.40
25 Sean Coffey Mesa AZ 3.04 18.17
26 Randy Estrada, M.D. Corona CA 3.32 18.15
27 Justin Hanold Poway CA 17.98
28 Shannon Abbott Oceanside CA 3.70 17.88
29 Doug Gaskill Las Vegas NV 17.80
30 Ken Mah Elk Grove CA 2.95 17.75
31 Scooter Griffith Mesa AZ 17.74
31 Rich Vincent Wildomar CA 2.40 17.74
33 Joe Patz Surprise AZ 17.69
34 Kyle Grover Trabuco Canyon CA 17.61
35 Matthew Williams Lake Havasu City AZ 3.91 17.60
36 Clayton Eslick Gilroy CA 2.92 17.53
37 Aaron Martens Leeds AL 17.52
38 Jess Torre Riverside CA 17.46
39 Chris Kinley Lake Havasu City AZ 17.38
40 Tom Leedom Escondido CA 17.32
41 Bryan Grier Salinas CA 17.30
42 Luke Clausen Oakdale CA 17.16
42 John Mackey Boulder City NV 17.16
44 Julius Mazy Phoenix AZ 17.11
45 Tyler Rempe Sierra Vista AZ 2.90 17.08
46 Mike Wood Bayfield CO 2.45 17.00
47 Michael McLernon Oceanside CA 16.93
48 Clayton Meyer Henderson NV 3.02 16.89
49 Tai Au Glendale AZ 2.48 16.67
50 Johnny Johnson Lakeside AZ 16.62
50 Justin Kerr Simi Valley CA 16.62
52 Tom Lowery Lakeside CA 16.60
53 Tim Price Glendale AZ 16.55
54 Guy Savidan NORCO CA 16.50
54 Jerren Slaton Afton TX 16.50
56 John Stewart Peoria AZ 4.06 16.39
57 Travis Jewell Sandy UT 16.37
58 Dan Merchant Canyon Lake CA 3.02 16.33
59 Rusty Salewske Alpine CA 16.30
60 Richard Garcia Beaumont CA 16.29
61 Kevin Caruso Glendale AZ 16.22
62 Scott Frazier El Cajon CA 16.20
63 Todd Holverson San Diego CA 2.85 16.16
64 John Morrow Brea CA 16.14
65 Todd Kline San Clemente CA 16.12
66 Kevin Wiggins Las Vegas NV 16.10
67 Jay Guterding Redding CA 16.04
68 Joe Uribe, Jr. Surprise AZ 16.02
69 Mike Peterson Valley Center CA 15.96
70 Todd Herman Gilbert AZ 15.93
71 Matthew Luna Santee CA 15.92
71 Dick Watson Alta Loma CA 15.92
73 Brent Shores Boise ID 15.87
74 Michael Phua Chino CA 15.84
75 Bryant Smith Castro Valley CA 15.83
76 Adam Hinkle San Diego CA 15.79
77 Jason Hickey Weiser ID 15.78
78 Paul Hodges Glendale AZ 15.77
79 Cody Spetz Menifee CA 3.24 15.62
80 Mike Brillhart Waddell AZ 2.35 15.60
81 Keegan Graves Meridian ID 3.95 15.59
82 Tyler Brinks Spokane WA 15.54
82 Don Iglinski Henderson NV 3.31 15.54
84 Patrick Touey Nipomo CA 2.73 15.51
85 Thomas Wennerlund Queen Creek AZ 15.50
86 James Salazar Las Vegas NV 15.49
87 Noah Cook Lancaster CA 15.45
88 Jeff Martineau Phoenix AZ 15.44
89 Mark Dotterer Phoenix AZ 15.42
90 Chris Bozarth Henderson NV 3.34 15.38
91 Andrew Napoleon Mesa AZ 15.28
92 Tom Ormsby Parowan UT 15.25
93 Dylan Maxon Phoenix AZ 15.23
94 Brett Hite Phoenix AZ 2.35 15.17
95 Gerard Thomas Ralston WY 2.10 15.11
96 Raymond Archer Greeley CO 3.81 15.08
96 Tony Lain Lake Havasu City AZ 15.08
98 Ben Byrd Moab UT 15.07
99 Carlos Garcia Murrieta CA 3.14 15.03
100 Jim Moynagh Carver MN 14.95
101 Carl Limbrick, Jr. Bonita CA 3.49 14.79
102 Chad Randles Elkhorn NE 3.14 14.77
103 Laythe Moore Banning CA 14.73
104 Mike Powell Lake Havasu City AZ 14.71
104 Derek Spetz Menifee CA 14.71
106 Mitch Southern Yucaipa CA 14.69
107 Wade Strelic El Cajon CA 14.57
108 Cliff King Ione CA 14.55
109 Jeremy Fasuga Peoria AZ 14.41
110 Anthony Salazar Pahrunp NV 14.40
111 Jamie Shaw Coolidge AZ 14.39
112 Jay Wright Seal Beach CA 3.83 14.22
113 Mark Rauenzahn San Diego CA 14.21
114 Dung Van Vu Paramount CA 2.22 14.20
115 Bobby Lanham Cave Creek AZ 3.18 14.19
116 Jason Bradshaw Sacramento CA 2.82 14.16
116 Mike Simon Henderson NV 14.16
118 Tyler Bailey Logandale NV 14.14
119 Mike Williams Mesa AZ 14.13
120 Jonathan Schuyler Henderson NV 14.09
121 Rodney Reed Chelan WA 14.02
122 Pete Marino Moreno Valley CA 14.01
123 Jordan Collom Temecula CA 14.00
124 Mark Williams Lake Havasu City AZ 13.98
125 David Baca Prescott Valley AZ 13.96
126 Jim Hawkes Apache Junction AZ 3.07 13.91
127 Jason Haley Medford OR 13.86
128 Gabe Thomas Tuscon AZ 13.73
129 Paul Tassie Lake Havasu City AZ 2.38 13.70
130 John Zeolla Oak Park CA 13.61
131 Jim Wells New Plymouth ID 13.54
132 Douglas Jones North Las vegas NV 13.50
133 Fred Proudfoot Kingman AZ 2.39 13.43
134 Dustin Remy Lake Havasu City AZ 13.40
135 Andy Manahl Mesa AZ 13.37
136 Kevin Hugo Canyon Lake CA 13.21
137 Vince Borges Salida CA 13.13
138 Mike Rennie Pioche NV 2.05 13.09
139 Andrew Upshaw Tulsa OK 13.08
140 Morizo Shimizu Osaka JP 2.56 13.05
141 Hobby Nelson Peoria AZ 13.03
142 Gary Robbins Burbank CA 12.89
143 Gary Moore Hemet CA 12.79
144 Matt Raynor Henderson NV 1.80 12.59
145 Ryan Yamagata Las Vegas NV 2.09 12.57
146 Billy Hines Vacaville CA 12.53
147 Ray Arbesu Henderson NV 12.50
148 Vince Gennaro Henderson NV 12.47
149 Jim Elliott Redding CA 12.41
150 Kyle Richins Washington UT 12.22
151 Tim Rath Lake Havasu City AZ 12.18
152 Justin Patti Phoenix AZ 12.14
153 Vern Ridgway Chandler AZ 11.94
154 Daniel Devries Page AZ 11.93
155 Sheldon Collings Grove OK 11.90
156 Miles Howe San Juan Capistrano CA 11.83
157 Kazuki Kodama Tokyo Japan 11.78
158 Eddie Lero Bryan TX 11.77
159 Ryan Chambers Chandler AZ 11.72
159 Steve Molinari Waddell AZ 11.72
161 Jimmy Reese Ukiah CA 11.64
162 Keith Diffey Elk Grove CA 11.62
163 Louis Fernandes Santa Maria CA 11.58
164 Jim McLaughlin Bakersfield CA 11.56
165 Garrett Howard Riverside CA 11.54
165 Miles Peshlakai Las Vegas NV 11.54
167 Jordon Erekson Apache Junction AZ 2.84 11.50
168 Brian Tressen Corona CA 11.48
169 Jeff Van Nimwegen Menifee CA 11.46
170 Shane Spinning Canyon Lake CA 11.42
171 Russ Barger Boise ID 11.36
172 Mike Walsh El Cajon CA 11.35
172 Benjamin Green Pasadena CA 11.35
174 Steve Gibson Las Vegas NV 11.28
175 Onelio J. Silva Las Vegas NV 11.21
176 Stephen Tauriello Las Vegas CA 2.17 11.10
177 Shane Edgar Glendale AZ 10.91
178 Ken Whalen Lompoc CA 10.89
179 Clifford Pirch Payson AZ 10.81
180 Murray White Glendale AZ 10.73
181 James Broughton Henderson NV 10.69
182 Nathan Foreman Queen Creek AZ 10.65
183 Brent James St George UT 10.61
184 Steve Lund Glendale AZ 10.54
185 Danny Clark San Tan Valley AZ 10.48
186 Shaun Bailey Lake Havasu City AZ 10.37
187 Gary Freeman Sun City AZ 10.29
188 Kirk McKinney Phoenix AZ 10.08
188 Trait Zaldain Fort Worth TX 3.56 10.08
190 Tim Klinger Boulder City NV 9.82
191 Justin Ramsay Peoria AZ 9.78
192 Tom Nokes Riverton UT 9.77
193 Jiggs Benn Myrtle Creek OR 9.73
194 Ellison Hubbard LAS VEGAS NV 9.70
195 Ron Hammett La Mesa CA 9.57
196 Scott Davis Preston ID 9.35
197 Rod Wynn Inglewood CA 9.15
198 Jason Swim Peoria AZ 9.02
199 John Basmadjian Fullerton CA 8.81
200 Robert Sedillo, Jr. Chino CA 8.48
201 Cy Floyd Spokane WA 8.26
202 Greg Espinoza Henderson NV 2.52 8.09
203 Jeff Hudson Las Vegas NV 7.98
204 Matt Massey Littleton CO 7.85
205 Trace Myers Santaquin CA 7.80
206 Eddie Rodriguez Lakewood CO 7.67
207 Aaron Britt Yuba City CA 7.32
208 Patrick Whitaker Gilbert AZ 7.17
209 David Davis Big Piney WY 7.13
210 Sam Rosefsky Morris IL 7.04
211 Mike Crothers Chandler AZ 6.87
212 Kenneth Cates Suncity West AZ 6.85
213 Zack Holwerda Maricopa AZ 6.72
214 Greg Garcia Cibola AZ 6.49
215 Elliott Holsbo Lakeside CA 6.36
216 Joey Letsinger Wilton CA 6.06
217 George Kramer Lake Elsinore CA 5.83
218 Dusty Kahler Paso Robles CA 4.94
219 Allen Clark Florence AZ 4.43
220 Delaney Dwyer Scottsdale AZ 3.80
221 Kyle Coppinger Pheonix AZ 3.30
222 Brett Leber Dixon CA 2.68
223 Robert Ostercamp Chandler AZ 2.20
224 Ed Webb Stanwood WA 1.31

 

2018 WON Bass U.S. Open Final AAA Standings

Place Name Hometown Big Fish Total
1 Matt Pangrac Broken Arrow OK 3.50 21.78
2 Scott Robertson Norco CA 4.30 21.16
3 Larry White Sun City AZ 2.72 21.00
4 Kelly Burns Avondale AZ 1.82 20.99
5 Steve Pectol Las Vegas NV 3.12 20.61
6 David Peltier Henderson NV 2.79 20.14
7 William McAninch CARSON CA 20.12
8 Bobby Hamner Phenix AZ 3.30 20.11
9 Rick Cofield Las Vegas NV 2.87 19.85
10 Wade Goodwin Wilson CA 19.57
11 Mike McCrossen Bakersfield CA 1.95 19.37
12 Shawn Carnahan Gilbert AZ 2.86 19.26
13 Brian Eslick Gilroy CA 3.77 19.12
14 Ryan Borba Atascadero CA 3.37 19.09
15 Byron Steed Downey ID 18.87
16 Randy Droll Apache Junction AZ 5.23 18.81
17 Jake Back Mesa AZ 4.26 18.73
18 Todd Anderson Surprise AZ 18.52
19 Chuck Kavros Grass Valley CA 18.45
20 Shawn Cooley Qual Valley CA 2.02 18.40
21 Cole Wright Alpine CA 2.87 18.30
22 David Swendseid Bend OR 2.79 18.15
23 Nathan Cummings Peoria AZ 18.05
24 Randall Bruce Las Vegas NV 3.09 17.91
25 Jordan Schwartzkopf Peoria AZ 2.35 17.81
26 Tony Neal Australia 17.78
27 Preston Smith Cave Creek AZ 17.69
28 Coy Mott Fruitland ID 17.68
29 Zach Holt Las Vegas NV 17.63
29 John Tubbs Oxnard CA 17.63
31 Brian Senter Tucson AZ 17.56
32 Gabriel Jones Henderson NV 2.61 17.49
33 Russell Leise Beaverton OR 2.86 17.47
34 Sam Piacenza Las Vegas NV 17.45
35 Hermie Romero Las Vegas NV 2.85 17.40
36 Keith Gunsauls El Cajon CA 17.32
37 Brett Posladek Valley Center CA 2.16 17.27
38 Terry Stark Georgetown TX 2.51 17.23
39 Hector Gracia Poway CA 2.30 17.19
40 James Ochs Scottsdale AZ 17.17
40 Michael Powell Fort Mohave AZ 2.00 17.17
42 Tom Karavites Payson AZ 17.13
43 Rusty Rath Page AZ 17.12
44 Kevin Gross Claremont CA 17.11
45 Kevin McBean Shafter CA 17.09
46 Mike Gowey Snowflake AZ 17.06
47 Glenn Wyatt Fremont CA 17.02
48 Rachel Uribe Long Beach CA 16.91
49 Michael Renteria El Mirage AZ 16.87
50 Brian P. Day Rancho SM CA 2.51 16.84
50 Thomas D. White, Jr. Costa Mesa CA 16.84
52 Josh Kimmel Colorado Springs CO 16.77
53 Patrick McLaren Las Vegas NV 2.79 16.72
53 Brian Reaves Covina CA 16.72
55 Yasuhiro Okada Los Angeles CA 16.70
56 John Bryson Las Vegas NV 1.49 16.64
57 Ryan Wischnack Valencia CA 2.28 16.48
58 Doug Slaton Salinas CA 16.44
59 Keith Bridges Mission Viejo CA 16.42
60 Colby King Ione CA 2.77 16.40
61 Craig Hammett Eagle ID 16.21
62 Chris Allen Grand Junction CO 16.18
63 Jason Okamoto Glendale AZ 1.83 16.17
64 Rick Grover Trabucco Canyon CA 2.45 16.11
65 Eric Hammer Peoria AZ 3.10 16.05
65 Aaron Bartelt Grand Junction CO 16.05
67 Geoff Peterson Huntington Beach CA 16.02
68 Christopher Owens Las Vegas NV 15.99
69 Cody Steckel Las Vegas NV 2.22 15.97
70 Teddy Snyder Redding CA 4.43 15.92
71 Bernie Villalobos Las Vegas NV 15.91
72 Jacob Shull Willcox AZ 15.86
73 Bret Felter Malad ID 3.56 15.80
74 Steve Amata Norco CA 15.77
75 Paul Reutlinger Mineola TX 15.73
76 Adam Buchholz Elk Grove CA 15.67
77 Austin Melville Gilbert AZ 2.77 15.62
78 Ray Caldwell Quartz Hill CA 15.59
78 Cameron Rodriguez San Diego CA 15.59
80 Rick Melead Yorba Linda CA 3.04 15.47
81 Broc Lindauer Honeyville UT 15.42
82 Joshua Rojas Fontana CA 2.47 15.41
83 Ron Ratlief Lake Havasu City AZ 15.32
84 Terrence Rath Lake Havasu City AZ 15.29
85 Robert A. Morris Colorado Springs CO 15.22
86 Nathan Hill Las Vegas NV 15.19
87 Robert Lee Record, Jr. Lake Elsinore CA 15.18
88 Ken Hromada Chandler AZ 15.14
89 Joseph George, Jr. El Dorado Hils CA 2.31 15.11
89 Yoshikazu Komada Japan 15.11
91 Brent Benish San Diego CA 15.08
92 Brad Smith Riverside CA 15.05
93 Steve Jenkins Mesa AZ 14.99
94 Robert Schneider Temecula CA 14.97
95 Ian Hastie Cambridge ID 3.03 14.95
96 Jeff Przybylek Canyon Lake CA 14.94
97 Jim Poff Apple Vally CA 2.52 14.93
98 David Bebawy Chandler AZ 14.85
99 Donnie Scroggins Kingman AZ 14.81
100 Jake Anderegg Henderson NV 14.79
101 Ron Chambers Tonto Basin AZ 14.71
101 Mario Saucedo Hollister CA 1.94 14.71
103 Levi Samz Green River WY 14.64
104 Ian Boehm Desrt Hills AZ 2.21 14.55
105 Niko Romero Prescott AZ 14.53
106 Rich Henson Redding CA 14.51
107 Brandon Smith Indio CA 14.47
108 Sonny Gibson Las Vegas NV 14.44
109 Joshua Taylor Winslow AR 2.00 14.36
110 Shawn Plunkett Tucson AZ 14.26
111 Douglas Mulford Henderson NV 2.15 14.25
112 Bryan Klem San Diego CA 14.17
112 Dwayne Stiles Oxnard CA 14.17
114 Javier Franco Sun Valley CA 14.16
115 Mark Snitow Lake Havasu City AZ 14.05
116 Dan Frazier Arroyo Grande CA 14.00
117 Dave Gerhardt Durango CO 3.98 13.95
118 Jesstin McNett Escondido CA 13.94
119 Dante Ray Fernley NV 13.92
120 Bryan Coy Clovis CA 13.91
120 Conrad Demecs Phoenix AZ 13.91
122 Lyle Valador Boulder City AZ 3.04 13.90
123 Joe Uribe, Sr. Lake Havasu City AZ 2.21 13.89
124 Joe Ahrens San Diego CA 13.87
125 Mona Dunlap Cottage Grove OR 1.89 13.85
126 Robert Nicholson Grand Terrace CA 13.84
127 Jeff Mabry Phoenix AZ 3.59 13.72
128 Larry Warren Laverkin UT 1.93 13.63
129 Kyle Greenlaw Morro Bay CA 1.76 13.60
129 Lindsee Jonovich Phoenix AZ 2.51 13.60
129 Szu Nien Yeh Las Vegas NV 13.60
132 Kota Hamai Konocti V 232 13.58
133 Victor Azevedo Filer ID 13.40
134 Thor Dusenberry Pheonix CA 4.42 13.20
135 Todd Tobiasson Las Vegas NV 13.10
136 Mark Chadeayne Pomona CA 13.01
137 Randy Austin Cedar City UT 1.84 12.99
138 Jonathan Green San Pablo CA 12.98
139 Joe Ramos Arvada CO 12.97
140 Dave Kiesgen Peorea AZ 12.93
141 Bret Nagelhout Red Rock AZ 12.80
142 Bryan Hunt Santee CA 12.77
143 Evan Roorda Redlands CA 2.15 12.75
144 Kenny Myers Lakeside AZ 12.72
144 Tim Roden Queen Creek AZ 12.72
146 George Fedor Yucaipa CA 12.71
147 Stephen Pike Las Vegas NV 12.66
148 Dink Mendez Campbell CA 12.59
149 Ted Romero Lakewood CA 2.90 12.58
150 Steve Larsen Henderson NV 12.54
151 Brian Mills Phoenix AZ 12.52
151 William Penrod Salome AZ 12.52
153 Bill Lansford Needles CA 2.91 12.47
154 Dan Zehring Gilbert AZ 12.34
155 Matt Frazier Delhi CA 12.32
156 Jimmy Pinkerman Fleming Island FL 12.30
157 Geroge Azevedo Desert Hot Springs CA 12.27
158 Tyler Hogan Newport Beach CA 12.18
159 Scott Stanard Solana Beach CA 3.50 12.14
160 Carol Martens West Hills CA 2.14 12.13
161 Marvin Finley Peoria AZ 12.06
162 Mike Contreras Ontario CA 2.78 11.99
162 John Browning Surprise AZ 11.99
164 Taj White Glendale AZ 11.94
164 Cody Stentz East Wenatchee WA 11.94
166 Steve Watson Phoenix AZ 11.85
167 John D. Helm Tempe AZ 11.76
168 Matt Gene Menifee CA 3.42 11.69
169 Chris Rains Soledad CA 11.61
170 Bill Hart Lincoln CA 11.57
171 Brian Kemp Perris CA 11.54
172 Liz Jones Conoga Park CA 11.34
173 Daniel Partida II Las Vegas NV 11.22
174 Chad Roorda Beaumont CA 11.18
175 Chris Martens Lancaster CA 11.03
176 Akiko Totsuka Japan 10.89
177 Jason Caine Las Vegas NV 10.80
178 Bryan Partak Marseilles IL 10.71
179 Dallas Braun Eagar AZ 10.60
180 Kevin H Duncan Brea CA 2.18 10.57
181 Anthony Souza Turlock CA 10.55
182 Aaron Manning Mesa AZ 10.46
183 Erik Tuenge Henderson NV 10.40
184 Michael Fisher Santee CA 10.33
185 Ryan Gutierrez Weiser ID 10.24
185 Larry Upshaw Hemphill TX 10.24
187 Tim Domingues San Jose CA 2.68 10.22
188 Nicholas Guerrero Castaic CA 10.09
189 Tom Cilluffo Napa CA 1.71 9.84
190 Jack Roorda Beaumont CA 9.68
191 Chris Teixeira El Mirage AZ 2.12 9.63
192 Mark Torrez Camarillo CA 2.26 9.57
193 Ed Shaver Lake Havasu City AZ 9.56
194 Marty Martinez Colorado CA 9.37
195 Len Scinto Valencia CA 9.36
196 Ralph Wells Lake Havasu City AZ 9.30
197 Jeremy Burns Santa Margarita CA 9.25
198 Lynn Irwin Las Vegas 9.24
199 John Bitting Westminster CA 3.16 9.23
199 Kenny Johnson Eager AZ 9.23
201 Dave Davis Mesa AZ 2.55 9.00
202 Kenneth Helms Newman CA 2.88 8.87
203 Jim Sanders Gifford WA 8.76
204 David Burrows Placentia CA 8.38
205 Eric Toms Las Vegas NV 8.18
206 Steve Mawson Mesa AZ 8.14
207 Troy Dennis Apple Valley CA 8.02
208 Gale Fox Jr. Shelton WA 7.84
209 Todd Barnes Murrietta CA 7.79
210 Richard Hanning Tucson AZ 7.42
211 Todd Belzner Scottsdale AZ 7.40
212 Brant List Huntington Beach CA 7.17
213 Bo McNeely Rancho Cucamunga CA 7.16
214 Jay Cranney Sandy UT 3.42 7.12
215 Ryan Furno Aloha OR 6.83
216 Daniel Trejo Covina CA 6.40
217 Jason Akins Apple Valley CA 6.34
218 Ron Christensen Las Vegas NV 6.31
219 Kevin A. Smith Phoenix AZ 6.25
220 Robert Chor San Pedro CA 3.77 6.23
221 Rufus Cassadas Thousand Palms CA 5.99
222 Robert Zumwalt Las Vegas NV 5.44
223 Robby Rogers Redondo Beach CA 5.39
224 Tracy Purtee Payson AZ 5.00

 


FLW Tour loses 4; keeps Dudley

David Dudley is fishing the FLW Tour in 2019.

He had an invite to join the Bassmaster Elite Series. He turned it down.

There has been much speculation as to how B.A.S.S. would fill out its Elite Series roster which is far short of the projected 80-angler field upon which the exciting new entry fees and payout structures were based.

It would appear that B.A.S.S. has tried to siphon a few top pros from the FLW Tour.

Jeff Gustafson and Clark Wendlandt have accepted invites to fish the Elite Series next year instead of the FLW Tour where they competed this season.

And the Bass Pro Tour just took another bite out of FLW as well. They have enlisted the services of Jeff Sprague and Anthony Gagliardi – two FLW Tour veterans.

The upheaval continues. Stay tuned.


Jared Lintner Wins Bassmaster Opens Championship At Table Rock

Jared Lintner of Arroyo Grande, Calif., takes the lead on the final day of the 2018 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Championship held on Table Rock Lake with a three-day total weight of 37 pounds.

Photo by James Overstreet/B.A.S.S.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 20, 2018

Jared Lintner Wins Bassmaster Opens Championship At Table Rock

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Dialing into the details was the ticket to victory for Jared Lintner, winner of the 2018 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Championship on Table Rock Lake.

Linter of Arroyo Grande, Calif., added 10 pounds, 15 ounces of bass today to push his winning total weight to 37 pounds for three days of fishing. Brandon Lester of Fayetteville, Tenn., took second \with 34-11, and Derek Hudnall of Baton Rouge, La., was third with 34-1. Bobby Lane Jr. of Lakeland, Fla., was fourth with 32-7, and Scott Suggs of Alexander, Ark., took fifth with 32-3.

Weather was a key factor throughout the three-day tournament. A chilly rain on Friday was braced by sunny, unseasonably warm weather on Thursday and Saturday. The best fishing occurred during the worst weather, when the bass were most active in the low-light conditions.

Everyone, especially including Lintner, knew the bass were in the fall transition, moving from deep to shallow water.

“I knew the bass were moving shallow, just not enough to put together a reliable pattern,” he said.

When the bites began Lintner, took note. He discovered greater concentrations of bass holding on steeper tapering shorelines used as migration routes.

“It started replicating itself so I went searching for similar areas,” he explained.

The steep dropoffs near shorelines where Lintner initially discovered the pattern were a 45-mile run from the launch site. Table Rock is a big lake, and Lintner decided to search nearer the weigh-in site. After two days, he found enough of the steep transition areas to complete a pattern. Lintner could spend more time fishing, allowing the continually moving bass to come to him.

On Thursday, Lintner moved into fourth place with 12-14, a respectable catch compared to the rest of the field. The next day, rain and overcast skies made the bite better, producing a limit weighing 13-3.

Today, the sun came out and the post-frontal funk set in. Lintner caught his limit by 8:30 a.m. The sun grew brighter, the wind went calm and the bite shut down.

“The low light compensated for the lack of wind, which made the pattern really click,” he said. “Without wind, the fish could see lures from farther away in the clearer water.”

By midday the wind picked up but the bite did not for Lintner. That made the early morning bite the saving grace for the Californian.

Lintner alternated between a Spro Mike McClelland RkCrawler 55 crankbait, and a Jackall MC/60. He also used a 3/4-ounce jig with a Strike King Rage Bug. He flipped the latter setup when encountering isolated cedar trees near the transition areas.

Lester used a technique that is popular on his native middle Tennessee bass fisheries during the wintertime. Called tight lining, it involves methodically fishing a lightweight jig across deepwater structure. Very little movement is necessary to make the fish bite.

“I found bass at the ends of bluffs but couldn’t make them bite anything,” he said. “I thought of tight lining and it worked.”

Lester used a 3.75-inch X Zone Lures Shiver Shad on a 1/8-ounce jighead for his tight-lining rig fished on 10-pound braid with a 6-pound test leader.

He further dialed into the pattern by finding bass staging where deep bluffs transitioned into other forms of structure, such as rocky points or gravel shorelines.

The Opens Championship was the climax of a year featuring eight events in as many states. The Top 28 pro and co-anglers in the point standings from the Central and Eastern divisions qualified for the championship.

Lintner and the Top 3 pro anglers in points from each division were invited to bass fishing’s premier event, the 2019 Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods. Frank Talley, Brad Whatley and Derek Hudnall advanced from the Central Division, while Brandon Lester, Bobby Lane Jr., and Garrett Paquette qualified from the Eastern Division. The Classic is set for March 15-17 in Knoxville, Tenn. Lester won the Eastern points title, while Frank Talley of Temple, Texas, won the Central title.

Lintner earned a Classic berth, $10,000 bonus cash and a Triton 19 TrX with Mercury 200 Pro XS and accessories worth $45,000.

Winning the $750 Phoenix Big Bass Award on the pro side was Mark Rose of Wynne, Ark., with a largemouth weighing 6-1. Alex Heintz of Denham Springs, La., won the co-angler $250 Phoenix Big Bass Award with a largemouth weighing 4-7.

Lane earned the Power-Pole Captain’s Cash Award of $500 on the pro side for being the highest-placing angler who is registered and eligible and uses client-approved product on his boat.

 

2018 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster  Opens Championship 10/18-10/20
Table Rock Lake, Springfield   MO.
(BOATER) Standings Day 3
Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

1.  Jared Lintner          Arroyo Grande, CA       15  37-00  200  $56,500.00
Day 1: 5   12-14     Day 2: 5   13-03     Day 3: 5   10-15
2.  Brandon Lester         Fayetteville, TN        15  34-11  199  $17,000.00
Day 1: 5   10-10     Day 2: 5   12-09     Day 3: 5   11-08
3.  Derek Hudnall          Baton Rouge, LA         15  34-01  198   $5,500.00
Day 1: 5   10-00     Day 2: 5   12-08     Day 3: 5   11-09
4.  Bobby Lane Jr.         Lakeland, FL            14  32-07  197  $10,000.00
Day 1: 4   08-06     Day 2: 5   13-06     Day 3: 5   10-11
5.  Scott Suggs            Alexander, AR           14  32-03  196   $1,000.00
Day 1: 4   08-09     Day 2: 5   13-11     Day 3: 5   09-15
6.  Carl Jocumsen          Queensland TX AUSTRALIA 13  31-15  195     $600.00
Day 1: 4   07-12     Day 2: 5   13-05     Day 3: 4   10-14
7.  Stephen Browning       Hot Springs, AR         13  31-08  194     $600.00
Day 1: 4   08-13     Day 2: 5   13-14     Day 3: 4   08-13
8.  Luke Palmer            Coalgate, OK            14  30-10  193   $1,000.00
Day 1: 5   10-09     Day 2: 4   10-02     Day 3: 5   09-15
9.  Caleb Sumrall          New Iberia, LA          11  28-15  192   $1,500.00
Day 1: 5   15-01     Day 2: 5   12-03     Day 3: 1   01-11
10. Mark Rose              Wynne, AR               11  27-01  191   $2,750.00
Day 1: 5   15-09     Day 2: 3   06-01     Day 3: 3   05-07
11. Justin Atkins          Florence, AL            11  26-06  190     $600.00
Day 1: 5   10-04     Day 2: 5   14-02     Day 3: 1   02-00
12. Tyler Rivet            Raceland, LA             8  22-13  189   $1,000.00
Day 1: 5   14-06     Day 2: 3   08-07     Day 3: 0   00-00
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Mark Rose                Wynne, AR           06-01        $750.00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight
1        10       111       250-00
2        18       117       285-10
3         6        43        93-06
----------------------------------
34       271       629-00


Caleb Sumrall Takes Lead In Bassmaster Opens Championship At Table Rock

Caleb Sumrall of New Iberia, La., takes the lead on the second day of the 2018 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Championship held on Table Rock Lake with a two-day total weight of 27 pounds, 4 ounces.

Photo by James Overstreet/B.A.S.S.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 19, 2018

Caleb Sumrall Takes Lead In Bassmaster Opens Championship At Table Rock

RIDGEDALE, Mo. — Caleb Sumrall is turning a handicap in his favor, and today it earned him the lead at the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Championship on Table Rock Lake.

Fishing from a borrowed boat, Sumrall has no fish-finding electronics to function as his underwater eyes in his search for bass. Instead, he is relying on his own vision to pattern what is emerging as a winning pattern.

Sumrall, of New Iberia, La., today added 12 pounds, 3 ounces to his overall total of 27-4. Jared Lintner of Arroyo Grande, Calif., is second with 26-1, while Justin Atkins of Florence, Ala., moved into third place with 24-6. Brandon Lester is fourth with 23-3, and Tyler Rivet holds down fifth place with 22-13.

Sumrall, a Bassmaster Elite Series rookie, is targeting bass in transition between summer and fall fishing patterns. The bass are moving from deeper areas in the main lake into shallower creeks to feed on baitfish. Sumrall is wisely choosing to stay shallow to let the bass come to him.

He said the heavier largemouth he had been catching were being replaced by more aggressive, but smaller, spotted bass. “I made a key adjustment so I could get dialed back into the largemouth,” he said.

The payoff was adding a much-needed 4-pound largemouth to his livewell.

“Fishing without the electronics makes me think how many times we overthink, overanalyze the simple basics of finding fish,” he noted. “Honestly, with fishfinders I would probably be more distracted, not so dedicated to finding these key areas that are visible above water.”

For Sumrall that is the right combination of trees, rock and depth that are rest stops and ambush cover for the migrating bass.

“It’s likely I wouldn’t have found that combination if not forced to visually search while I fished,” Sumrall explained. “I’m literally going in and out of creeks, reading the water as I go, fishing with my eyes.”

Catching so many smallmouth in textbook areas normally favored by largemouth pleasantly baffles Lintner. On Thursday smallmouth filled his weigh-in bag; today only one largemouth occupied the space.

“I don’t get it at all because I’m flipping jigs into cedar trees in shallow water — classic largemouth areas,” he said.

Vital to the success of his pattern is wind, which adds a prismatic effect to break up the water clarity. Lures are less easy to identify, and the bass can be more easily fooled into biting.

“Cloudy wind, sunny wind, it doesn’t really matter,” he added. “I caught eight keepers off one windblown stretch where yesterday there were none.”

Sunny, mild weather on Thursday gave way to rainy, chilly conditions on Friday. Daytime temperatures struggled to reach the mid-40s and rain chilled the water even more.

Fishing in such miserable weather seems absurd unless you are fishing for the most coveted prizes in the sport. Those are seven coveted berths in the 2019 Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.

The Opens Championship is the climax of a year featuring eight events in as many states. The Top 28 pros and co-anglers in the point standings from the Central and Eastern divisions qualified for the championship.

The overall winner earns a Classic berth, $10,000 cash and a Triton 19 TrX with Mercury 200 Pro XS and accessories worth $45,000.

The Top 3 pro anglers in points from each division following the championship are also invited to the Classic, set for next March in Knoxville, Tenn.

The Thursday leaders of the Phoenix Big Bass Award still hold those spots. They are Mark Rose of Wynne, Ark., with a largemouth weighing 6-1, and co-angler Alex Heintz of Denham Springs, La., with a largemouth weighing 4-7.

Winning the co-angler division with a weight of 13-7 was Mandel Pettus. The angler of Miller Place, N.Y., won a Nitro Z18 with a Mercury 150 Pro XS outboard and accessories, $10,000 cash and paid entry fees in the 2019 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens division of his choice.

Pettus won the title in his rookie season as a co-angler in 2014, and is now able to make a dream come true.

“I just fished my last event as a co-angler, am going to live my dream, hone my trade as a boater and pro angler,” said Pettus, a fitness business owner.

The Top 12 anglers launch at 7:15 a.m. CT from Long Creek Marina. The Saturday weigh-in begins at 4:30 p.m. at Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World in Springfield.

On Saturday you can follow the action live on a special edition of Bassmaster LIVE, from 8-11 a.m. and Noon until 3 p.m. CT. Find the show on Bassmaster.com and see BASSTrakk real-time scores, updated photo galleries, videos, a live blog and articles.

2018 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster  Opens Championship 10/18-10/20
Table Rock Lake, Springfield   MO.
(BOATER) Standings Day 2
Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

1.  Caleb Sumrall          New Iberia, LA          10  27-04  200
Day 1: 5   15-01     Day 2: 5   12-03
2.  Jared Lintner          Arroyo Grande, CA       10  26-01  199
Day 1: 5   12-14     Day 2: 5   13-03
3.  Justin Atkins          Florence, AL            10  24-06  198
Day 1: 5   10-04     Day 2: 5   14-02
4.  Brandon Lester         Fayetteville, TN        10  23-03  197
Day 1: 5   10-10     Day 2: 5   12-09
5.  Tyler Rivet            Raceland, LA             8  22-13  196
Day 1: 5   14-06     Day 2: 3   08-07
6.  Stephen Browning       Hot Springs, AR          9  22-11  195
Day 1: 4   08-13     Day 2: 5   13-14
7.  Derek Hudnall          Baton Rouge, LA         10  22-08  194
Day 1: 5   10-00     Day 2: 5   12-08
8.  Scott Suggs            Alexander, AR            9  22-04  193
Day 1: 4   08-09     Day 2: 5   13-11
9.  Bobby Lane Jr.         Lakeland, FL             9  21-12  192
Day 1: 4   08-06     Day 2: 5   13-06
10. Mark Rose              Wynnee, AR               8  21-10  191
Day 1: 5   15-09     Day 2: 3   06-01
11. Carl Jocumsen          Queensland TX AUSTRALIA  9  21-01  190
Day 1: 4   07-12     Day 2: 5   13-05
12. Luke Palmer            Coalgate, OK             9  20-11  189
Day 1: 5   10-09     Day 2: 4   10-02
13. Brad Whatley           Bivins, TX              10  20-10  188
Day 1: 5   09-04     Day 2: 5   11-06
14. Rob Digh               Denver, NC               8  20-04  187
Day 1: 3   06-07     Day 2: 5   13-13
15. Toby Hartsell          Afton, OK                9  20-04  186
Day 1: 4   08-15     Day 2: 5   11-05
16. Todd Auten             Lake Wylie, SC           8  20-00  185
Day 1: 3   07-05     Day 2: 5   12-11
17. Harvey Horne           Bella Vista, AR          9  19-11  184
Day 1: 4   09-07     Day 2: 5   10-04
18. Wesley Strader         Spring City, TN          9  19-07  183
Day 1: 4   07-00     Day 2: 5   12-07
19. Mike Huff              Corbin, KY               9  18-15  182
Day 1: 4   08-01     Day 2: 5   10-14
20. John Cox               Debary, FL               8  18-08  181
Day 1: 3   06-05     Day 2: 5   12-03
21. Chad Pipkens           Lansing, MI              9  18-07  180
Day 1: 4   09-06     Day 2: 5   09-01
22. Ed Loughran III        Mechanicsville, VA       8  17-14  179
Day 1: 5   12-12     Day 2: 3   05-02
23. Garrett Paquette       Canton, MI               7  17-05  178
Day 1: 3   06-03     Day 2: 4   11-02
24. Patrick Walters        Ladson, SC               6  12-06  177
Day 1: 2   03-08     Day 2: 4   08-14
25. Frank Talley           Temple, TX               6  11-12  176
Day 1: 4   07-14     Day 2: 2   03-14
26. Yusuke Miyazaki        Forney, TX               5  11-04  175
Day 1: 2   04-06     Day 2: 3   06-14
27. Brock Mosley           Collinsville, MS         3  07-00  174
Day 1: 2   04-11     Day 2: 1   02-05
28. Drew Cook              Midway, FL               3  05-11  173
Day 1: 3   05-11     Day 2: 0   00-00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight
1        10       111       250-00
2        18       117       285-10
----------------------------------
28       228       535-10

2018 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster  Opens Championship 10/18-10/20
Table Rock Lake, Springfield   MO.
(NON_BOATER) Standings Day 2

Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

1.  Mandel Pettus          Miller Place, NY         6  13-07  200  $33,000.00
Day 1: 3   07-07     Day 2: 3   06-00
2.  Alex Heintze           Denham Springs, LA       5  12-07  199  $10,250.00
Day 1: 3   08-09     Day 2: 2   03-14
3.  Austin Bonjour         Templeton, CA            5  10-08  198  $10,000.00
Day 1: 2   04-12     Day 2: 3   05-12
4.  Gary Haraguchi         San Jose, CA             5  09-14  197   $2,000.00
Day 1: 2   03-09     Day 2: 3   06-05
5.  Todd Lee               Jasper, AL               4  09-06  196   $4,000.00
Day 1: 1   02-01     Day 2: 3   07-05
6.  Brian Murphy           Sulphur, LA              4  08-14  195   $2,000.00
Day 1: 1   02-10     Day 2: 3   06-04
7.  Jordan Lane            Conroe, TX               4  08-12  194   $1,500.00
Day 1: 1   01-13     Day 2: 3   06-15
8.  Jared Rudd             Salyersville, KY         4  08-08  193     $800.00
Day 1: 1   01-13     Day 2: 3   06-11
9.  Jonathan Hankins       North Tazewell, VA       4  08-05  192   $1,500.00
Day 1: 3   06-06     Day 2: 1   01-15
10. Noel Allen Jr          Brandon, MS              4  07-10  191   $3,000.00
Day 1: 2   03-07     Day 2: 2   04-03
11. Jeff Wallace           West Monroe, LA          3  06-11  190     $750.00
Day 1: 3   06-11     Day 2: 0   00-00
12. Brett Walker           Pleasant Valley, MO      2  06-07  189   $1,300.00
Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 2   06-07
13. Chad Smith             Minnetonka, MN           4  06-07  188   $5,000.00
Day 1: 3   05-10     Day 2: 1   00-13
14. Todd Walters           Ladson, SC               3  06-01  187   $1,300.00
Day 1: 1   01-13     Day 2: 2   04-04
15. John Connell           Marion, IL               3  06-00  186   $4,000.00
Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 3   06-00
16. Mark Powers            Platteville, CO          3  05-11  185   $2,500.00
Day 1: 2   03-13     Day 2: 1   01-14
17. Bobby Bakewell         Orlando, FL              2  04-12  184   $2,500.00
Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 2   04-12
18. Steve Robbins          Piketon, OH              2  04-12  183     $700.00
Day 1: 1   02-11     Day 2: 1   02-01
19. Joe Lee                Midlothian, TX           2  04-01  182   $5,000.00
Day 1: 1   02-07     Day 2: 1   01-10
20. Paul Tabisz            Virginia Bch, VA         2  03-14  181     $750.00
Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 2   03-14
21. Daniel Corkern         Florence, MS             2  03-12  180   $1,000.00
Day 1: 1   01-12     Day 2: 1   02-00
22. Beau Browning          Hot Springs, AR          2  03-09  179     $900.00
Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 2   03-09
23. Eulon Lee Jr.          Eclectic, AL             2  03-07  178   $1,000.00
Day 1: 1   01-11     Day 2: 1   01-12
24. Dennis Akers           South Portsmouth, KY     2  03-05  177     $900.00
Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 2   03-05
25. Justin Leet            Bartlett, TN             1  03-00  176     $700.00
Day 1: 1   03-00     Day 2: 0   00-00
26. Stephen Parnell        Brandon, MS              1  02-07  175     $800.00
Day 1: 1   02-07     Day 2: 0   00-00
27. Skyler Anderson        Harlem, GA               0  00-00    0     $550.00
Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 0   00-00
27. William Mcnutt II      Bossier City, LA         0  00-00    0     $550.00
Day 1: 0   00-00     Day 2: 0   00-00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight
1         5        34        74-06
2         8        47        97-09
----------------------------------
13        81       171-15


Rose Leads Day 1 of Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Championship on Table Rock Lake

Mark Rose is fishing by the seat of his pants and that approach is paying off for him so far as he holds the early lead by a half-pound at the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Championship on Table Rock Lake.

Rose has 15 pounds, 9 ounces.

Caleb Sumrall has 15-1. Tyler Rivet is 3rd with 14-6. Jared Lintner is 4th with 12-14. Ed Loughran III holds the 5th spot with 12-12.

The typical fall migration of shad, and therefore, bass, is taking place. That means the fish may move shallower every day, perhaps inundating the back ends of creeks before the event is over.

Rose says things change rapidly on Ozarks lakes and he intentionally skipped the scouting period prior to the championship. He is relying on his instincts and fishing the moment. He caught fish as deep as 35 feet and as shallow as the bank.

In spite of his Day 1 success, Rose plans to completely change up his game plan on Friday as the forecast calls for rain and cooler temps - the opposite of what happened Thursday.

The old saying goes, "make hay while the sun is shining". The top anglers Thursday bucked that advice, covering water and catching bass best during brief periods of cloud cover. Friday's weather bodes well for some bass snatchin' action.

Stay tuned!


Jason Borofka Leads Day One of 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open

Jason Borofka Leads Day One of 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open
Bub Tosh Stands in Second after Opening Round

by Dan O'Sullivan

Las Vegas, Nev. - September 16, 2018 – Following the cancellation of the first scheduled day of the 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open due to extreme winds, Jason Borofka battled the post front conditions to post a 13.84-pound limit to grab the lead on the first day of competition.

He is followed in second place by Bub Tosh with 13.20 pounds, and third place by FLW Tour pro Kurt Dove with 12.85 pounds.

Borofka said that he made a 40-minute run and fished a few key areas to get his limit, and left fish biting midday.  “I made the long run, which took a little longer than usual because of the wind, and caught 25 to 30 fish, finishing our final limit by 11:00 this morning,” he said.  “I have four rods on my deck, and when I get to grass, I pick one up, when I get rock, I pick up a different one; it was a good day, and feel pretty good about tomorrow.”

Tosh, said that he had a pair of casualties that cost him, but that he really enjoyed their day.  “I made a long run, and lost a couple of big ones, so I had to regroup, but it worked out,” he said.  “I really covered a lot of water, fished far and close, and junk fished with several baits.  My partner caught a big one, and was really excited, and that is what this is all about.  I’m happy to be here, and we’ll see what tomorrow holds.”

Dove, from Del Rio, Tex. is fishing his second WON Bass U.S. Open, and is excited to be where he is.  “I had to scramble a little to catch ‘em, but that’s the name of this game,” he said.  “I feel good about what I did today, and am looking forward to getting back out there tomorrow.”

The amateur partners earned the shared weight equal to that of their pro partners for the day.  Robert Schneider ended the day in first place with 13.84 pounds followed by Thor Dusenberry, with 13.20 pounds, and third place AAA Brian Eslick with 12.85.  Full Standings are posted below.

The final day of the weather shortened 2018 WON Bass Open will occur tomorrow, and the pro winner will receive the keys to a 2018 Bass Cat Puma FTD powered by a Mercury Pro XS 250 outboard.  The live broadcast, presented by COSTA will bring all of the final day’s action to you from the waters of Lake Mead, the weigh-in at Callville Bay Marina, and the awards ceremony from the Railhead Room at Boulder Station Casino.

The Sponsors of the 2018 U.S. Open are: Bass Cat Boats, Mercury, Costa, Daiwa, St. Croix, Lowrance, Yo-Zuri, Bridgford, Seaguar Fluorcarbon, Rapala, Hayabusa, Plano, Frabill, MotorGuide, Phenix Rods, Lew's, Kuiu, Sure Life, Sportsman’s Warehouse, Storm, Anglers Marine, Century Marine, Boatmasters, Last Chance Performance Marine, Strike King, BG Insurance, Chevy Montebello and Boulder Station Casino.

2018 WON Bass U.S. Open Day One Pro Standings

Place Name Hometown Big Fish Total Weight
1 Jason Borofka Salinas CA 3.79 13.84
2 Steve Tosh, Jr. Modesto CA 2.86 13.20
3 Kurt Dove Del Rio TX   12.85
4 Matt Stefan Junction City WI 3.41 12.75
5 Kona Borja Henderson NV 3.60 12.44
6 Chase Colby Heber City UT   12.24
7 Randy Blaukat Joplin MO 3.74 11.84
8 Chris Bozarth Henderson NV 3.34 11.74
9 Bill Brown Grand Junction CO 3.37 11.61
10 Ricky Shabazz La Mesa CA 3.22 11.47
11 Nick Salvucci Paso Robles CA   11.41
12 Chris Zaldain San Jose CA 2.82 11.21
13 Kevin Short Mayflower AR   10.81
14 Shannon Abbott Oceanside CA 3.70 10.79
15 Tommy Jonovich Phoenix AZ 3.65 10.72
16 Jess Torre Riverside CA   10.68
17 Michael Crowther Page AZ   10.50
18 Thomas Wennerlund Queen Creek AZ   10.47
19 Roy Hawk Lake Havasu City AZ 3.25 10.39
20 Shaun Bailey Lake Havasu City AZ   10.37
21 Steve Kennedy Auburn AL   10.19
22 Todd Woods Los Angeles CA 2.73 10.17
23 David Kemper Tempe AZ   10.11
24 Julius Mazy Phoenix AZ   10.07
25 Richard Garcia Beaumont CA   10.04
26 Clayton Eslick Gilroy CA 2.92 10.03
27 Bradley Hallman Norman OK   9.99
28 Jason Bradshaw Sacramento CA 2.82 9.96
29 Dylan Maxon Phoenix AZ   9.76
30 Ellison Hubbard LAS VEGAS NV   9.70
31 Jerren Slaton Afton TX   9.67
32 Mike Brillhart Waddell AZ 2.35 9.62
33 Kyle Grover Trabuco Canyon CA   9.59
34 John Stewart Peoria AZ 4.06 9.58
35 Kazuki Kodama Tokyo Japan   9.50
36 Dan Merchant Canyon Lake CA 3.02 9.48
37 Michael McLernon Oceanside CA   9.39
38 Jordan Collom Temecula CA   9.26
39 Todd Holverson San Diego CA 2.85 9.23
39 Mike Wood Bayfield CO   9.23
41 Brent Shores Boise ID   9.21
42 Jason Hickey Weiser ID   9.19
43 Chris Kinley Lake Havasu City AZ   9.17
44 Don Iglinski Henderson NV 3.31 9.16
45 Justin Kerr Simi Valley CA   9.13
45 Tim Price Glendale AZ   9.13
47 Miles Peshlakai Las Vegas NV   9.11
47 Guy Savidan NORCO CA   9.11
49 Laythe Moore Banning CA   9.10
50 Carl Limbrick, Jr. Bonita CA 3.49 9.08
51 Dung Van Vu Paramount CA 2.22 9.04
52 Gerard Thomas Ralston WY 2.10 9.00
53 Doug Gaskill Las Vegas NV   8.98
54 Noah Cook Lancaster CA   8.93
55 Johnny Johnson Lakeside AZ   8.90
56 Aaron Martens Leeds AL   8.87
57 Garrett Howard Riverside CA   8.86
58 Bryan Grier Salinas CA   8.83
59 Fred Proudfoot Kingman AZ 2.39 8.80
60 Clayton Meyer Henderson NV 3.02 8.78
61 Michael Phua Chino CA   8.72
61 Matthew Williams Lake Havasu City AZ   8.72
63 Patrick Touey Nipomo CA 2.73 8.67
64 Tom Lowery Lakeside CA   8.63
65 Tyler Rempe Sierra Vista AZ   8.59
66 Scooter Griffith Mesa AZ   8.58
67 Jim Hawkes Apache Junction AZ 3.07 8.54
67 Tom Leedom Escondido CA   8.54
69 Kevin Caruso Glendale AZ   8.52
69 Ken Mah Elk Grove CA   8.52
71 Kevin Hugo Canyon Lake CA   8.49
72 Todd Kline San Clemente CA   8.45
73 Stephen Tauriello Las Vegas CA 2.17 8.44
74 Ben Byrd Moab UT   8.43
75 James Salazar Las Vegas NV   8.39
76 Carlos Garcia Murrieta CA 3.14 8.38
76 Matthew Luna Santee CA   8.38
78 Jordon Erekson Apache Junction AZ 2.84 8.37
78 Cody Spetz Menifee CA   8.37
80 Rich Vincent Wildomar CA 2.40 8.31
81 Bryant Smith Castro Valley CA   8.23
82 Gabe Thomas Tuscon AZ   8.22
83 Clifford Pirch Payson AZ   8.14
84 Rod Wynn Inglewood CA   8.12
85 Tim Rath Lake Havasu City AZ   8.11
86 Matt Shura Gilbert AZ   8.10
87 Greg Espinoza Henderson NV 2.52 8.09
88 Tom Ormsby Parowan UT   8.02
88 Rodney Reed Chelan WA   8.02
90 John Morrow Brea CA   8.01
91 Justin Hanold Poway CA   7.98
92 Danny Clark San Tan Valley AZ   7.97
93 Scott Helleson Whittier CA   7.96
93 Trait Zaldain Fort Worth TX 3.56 7.96
95 Greg Miser La Mesa CA   7.95
95 Wade Strelic El Cajon CA   7.95
97 Kevin Finley Phoenix AZ   7.93
97 Kevin Wiggins Las Vegas NV   7.93
99 Rusty Salewske Alpine CA   7.90
100 Andrew Napoleon Mesa AZ   7.85
101 Todd Herman Gilbert AZ   7.84
102 Onelio J. Silva Las Vegas NV   7.83
103 Luke Clausen Oakdale CA   7.80
103 Jim Moynagh Carver MN   7.80
105 Kyle Richins Washington UT   7.79
106 Vern Ridgway Chandler AZ   7.78
107 Mike Powell Lake Havasu City AZ   7.70
108 Jeff Martineau Phoenix AZ   7.69
109 Bill O'Shinn Bakersfield CA   7.65
110 Jim Wells New Plymouth ID   7.58
111 Joe Patz Surprise AZ   7.54
111 Ryan Yamagata Las Vegas NV   7.54
113 Anthony Salazar Pahrunp NV   7.51
114 Jason Swim Peoria AZ   7.40
115 Keegan Graves Meridian ID   7.39
116 Andy Manahl Mesa AZ   7.36
117 Cliff King Ione CA   7.34
118 Scott Frazier El Cajon CA   7.32
119 Matt Raynor Henderson NV 1.80 7.29
120 Mike Rennie Pioche NV 2.05 7.27
121 Tyler Bailey Logandale NV   7.20
121 Jim McLaughlin Bakersfield CA   7.20
123 Sheldon Collings Grove OK   7.17
123 Jeremy Fasuga Peoria AZ   7.17
123 Patrick Whitaker Gilbert AZ   7.17
126 Billy Hines Vacaville CA   7.16
126 Pete Marino Moreno Valley CA   7.16
128 James Broughton Henderson NV   7.14
129 David Davis Big Piney WY   7.13
130 Adam Hinkle San Diego CA   7.12
131 Mark Dotterer Phoenix AZ   7.11
132 Travis Jewell Sandy UT   7.10
133 Jay Guterding Redding CA   7.09
134 John Mackey Boulder City NV   7.07
135 Dick Watson Alta Loma CA   7.02
136 Louis Fernandes Santa Maria CA   7.01
137 Jeff Hudson Las Vegas NV   7.00
138 Joe Uribe, Jr. Surprise AZ   6.99
139 Vince Gennaro Henderson NV   6.97
140 Benjamin Green Pasadena CA   6.92
141 Douglas Jones North Las vegas NV   6.87
141 Matt Massey Littleton CO   6.87
143 Derek Spetz Menifee CA   6.86
144 Bobby Lanham Cave Creek AZ   6.85
145 Sean Coffey Mesa AZ   6.83
146 Nathan Foreman Queen Creek AZ   6.82
147 Cy Floyd Spokane WA   6.81
147 Tony Lain Lake Havasu City AZ   6.81
149 Brent James St George UT   6.78
149 Jamie Shaw Coolidge AZ   6.78
151 Tai Au Glendale AZ   6.77
152 Hobby Nelson Peoria AZ   6.76
153 Ryan Chambers Chandler AZ   6.75
154 Gary Freeman Sun City AZ   6.74
154 Justin Patti Phoenix AZ   6.74
156 Zack Holwerda Maricopa AZ   6.72
157 Mike Peterson Valley Center CA   6.71
158 Kirk McKinney Phoenix AZ   6.66
159 Trace Myers Santaquin CA   6.57
160 Brett Hite Phoenix AZ 2.35 6.55
161 Gary Robbins Burbank CA   6.52
162 Jason Haley Medford OR   6.47
162 Tom Nokes Riverton UT   6.47
164 Elliott Holsbo Lakeside CA   6.36
165 Raymond Archer Greeley CO   6.34
165 Jiggs Benn Myrtle Creek OR   6.34
165 Jonathan Schuyler Henderson NV   6.34
168 Eddie Lero Bryan TX   6.31
169 Mark Rauenzahn San Diego CA   6.25
170 Chad Randles Elkhorn NE   6.23
171 John Zeolla Oak Park CA   6.20
172 Paul Tassie Lake Havasu City AZ 2.38 6.13
173 Mike Walsh El Cajon CA   6.12
174 Mark Williams Lake Havasu City AZ   6.10
175 Joey Letsinger Wilton CA   6.06
175 Steve Molinari Waddell AZ   6.06
177 Randy Estrada, M.D. Corona CA   5.99
178 Jim Elliott Redding CA   5.97
179 Russ Barger Boise ID   5.88
180 George Kramer Lake Elsinore CA   5.83
181 Shane Edgar Glendale AZ   5.77
182 Brian Tressen Corona CA   5.72
183 Eddie Rodriguez Lakewood CO   5.66
184 Vince Borges Salida CA   5.51
185 Mitch Southern Yucaipa CA   5.44
186 Andrew Upshaw Tulsa OK   5.38
187 Ron Hammett La Mesa CA   5.31
188 Steve Gibson Las Vegas NV   5.27
189 Mike Williams Mesa AZ   5.20
190 Paul Hodges Glendale AZ   5.13
191 Steve Lund Glendale AZ   4.99
192 Gary Moore Hemet CA   4.96
193 Dusty Kahler Paso Robles CA   4.94
194 Robert Sedillo, Jr. Chino CA   4.88
195 Morizo Shimizu Osaka JP 1.91 4.78
196 Jeff Van Nimwegen Menifee CA   4.74
197 Ray Arbesu Henderson NV   4.73
198 Scott Davis Preston ID   4.45
199 Jay Wright Seal Beach CA   4.35
200 Dustin Remy Lake Havasu City AZ   4.32
201 Mike Simon Henderson NV   4.30
202 Tim Klinger Boulder City NV   4.16
203 David Baca Prescott Valley AZ   4.15
204 Miles Howe San Juan Capistrano CA   4.13
205 Tyler Brinks Spokane WA   4.04
206 Greg Garcia Cibola AZ   3.94
207 Jimmy Reese Ukiah CA   3.93
208 Delaney Dwyer Scottsdale AZ   3.80
209 Sam Rosefsky Morris IL   3.78
210 Murray White Glendale AZ   3.72
211 Ken Whalen Lompoc CA   3.70
212 Keith Diffey Elk Grove CA   3.55
213 Kenneth Cates Suncity West AZ   3.42
214 Allen Clark Florence AZ   3.30
214 Kyle Coppinger Pheonix AZ   3.30
216 Daniel Devries Page AZ   3.25
217 Shane Spinning Canyon Lake CA   2.72
218 Brett Leber Dixon CA   2.68
219 Justin Ramsay Peoria AZ   2.59
220 Mike Crothers Chandler AZ   2.34
221 Aaron Britt Yuba City CA   2.33
222 John Basmadjian Fullerton CA   2.04
223 Ed Webb Stanwood WA   1.31
224 Robert Ostercamp Chandler AZ   0.00

 

2018 WON Bass U.S. Open Day One AAA Standings

Place Name Hometown Big Fish Total Weight
1 Robert Schneider Temecula CA   13.84
2 Thor Dusenberry Pheonix CA 4.42 13.20
3 Brian Eslick Gilroy CA 3.77 12.85
4 Ian Hastie Cambridge ID 3.03 12.75
5 Randall Bruce Las Vegas NV 3.09 12.44
6 Ryan Borba Atascadero CA 3.37 12.24
7 Bobby Hamner Phenix AZ 3.30 11.84
8 David Peltier Henderson NV 2.79 11.74
9 Chuck Kavros Grass Valley CA   11.61
10 Terry Stark Georgetown TX 2.51 11.47
11 Matt Pangrac Broken Arrow OK 3.50 11.41
12 Joshua Rojas Fontana CA 2.47 11.21
13 Cody Steckel Las Vegas NV 2.22 10.81
14 Shawn Cooley Qual Valley CA   10.79
15 Kevin McBean Shafter CA   10.72
16 Randy Droll Apache Junction AZ 5.23 10.68
17 Rick Melead Yorba Linda CA 3.04 10.50
18 Hermie Romero Las Vegas NV 2.85 10.47
19 Josh Kimmel Colorado Springs CO   10.39
20 John Browning Surprise AZ   10.37
21 Cameron Rodriguez San Diego CA   10.19
22 Nathan Cummings Peoria AZ   10.17
23 Austin Melville Gilbert AZ 2.77 10.11
24 Gabriel Jones Henderson NV 2.61 10.07
25 Rick Cofield Las Vegas NV 2.87 10.04
26 John Tubbs Oxnard CA   10.03
27 Daniel Partida II Las Vegas NV   9.99
28 David Swendseid Bend OR 2.79 9.96
29 Patrick McLaren Las Vegas NV 2.79 9.76
30 Russell Leise Beaverton OR 2.86 9.70
31 Rick Grover Trabucco Canyon CA 2.45 9.67
32 Cole Wright Alpine CA 1.68 9.62
33 Coy Mott Fruitland ID   9.59
34 Ray Caldwell Quartz Hill CA   9.58
35 Jake Back Mesa AZ 4.26 9.50
36 Wade Goodwin Wilson CA   9.48
37 Kevin Gross Claremont CA   9.39
38 Cody Stentz East Wenatchee WA   9.26
39 John Bitting Westminster CA 3.16 9.23
39 Shawn Plunkett Tucson AZ   9.23
41 Rachel Uribe Long Beach CA   9.21
42 Ted Romero Lakewood CA 2.90 9.19
43 Joe Uribe, Sr. Lake Havasu City AZ 2.21 9.17
44 James Ochs Scottsdale AZ   9.16
45 Jason Okamoto Glendale AZ 1.83 9.13
45 Scott Robertson Norco CA   9.13
47 Nicholas Guerrero Castaic CA   9.11
47 Tony Neal Australia   9.11
49 Donnie Scroggins Kingman AZ   9.10
50 Ron Chambers Tonto Basin AZ   9.08
51 Mike McCrossen Bakersfield CA 1.95 9.04
52 Dave Davis Mesa AZ 2.55 9.00
53 Zach Holt Las Vegas NV   8.98
54 Jordan Schwartzkopf Peoria AZ 2.35 8.93
55 Doug Slaton Salinas CA   8.90
56 Preston Smith Cave Creek AZ   8.87
57 Szu Nien Yeh Las Vegas NV   8.86
58 Steve Amata Norco CA   8.83
59 Michael Renteria El Mirage AZ   8.80
60 William McAninch CARSON CA   8.78
61 Keith Bridges Mission Viejo CA   8.72
61 Larry White Sun City AZ 2.72 8.72
63 Brian Reaves Covina CA   8.67
64 Geoff Peterson Huntington Beach CA   8.63
65 Steve Watson Phoenix AZ   8.59
66 Jeff Mabry Phoenix AZ 2.27 8.58
67 Anthony Souza Turlock CA   8.54
67 Joshua Taylor Winslow AR   8.54
69 Jason Caine Las Vegas NV   8.52
69 Robert Lee Record, Jr. Lake Elsinore CA   8.52
71 Yasuhiro Okada Los Angeles CA   8.49
72 Dave Gerhardt Durango CO 2.23 8.45
73 Joe Ramos Arvada CO   8.44
74 Bryan Coy Clovis CA   8.43
75 Keith Gunsauls El Cajon CA   8.39
76 David Burrows Placentia CA   8.38
76 Craig Hammett Eagle ID   8.38
78 Kyle Greenlaw Morro Bay CA 1.76 8.37
78 Sam Piacenza Las Vegas NV   8.37
80 Ron Ratlief Lake Havasu City AZ   8.31
81 Paul Reutlinger Mineola TX   8.23
82 Mike Gowey Snowflake AZ   8.22
83 Brian P. Day Rancho SM CA   8.14
84 Mark Torrez Camarillo CA 2.26 8.12
85 Todd Tobiasson Las Vegas NV   8.11
86 Kelly Burns Avondale AZ 1.82 8.10
87 Eric Hammer Peoria AZ   8.09
88 Troy Dennis Apple Valley CA   8.02
88 Brett Posladek Valley Center CA   8.02
90 Jake Anderegg Henderson NV   8.01
91 George Fedor Yucaipa CA   7.98
92 Shawn Carnahan Gilbert AZ   7.97
93 David Bebawy Chandler AZ   7.96
93 Matt Frazier Delhi CA   7.96
95 Aaron Manning Mesa AZ   7.95
95 Brian Mills Phoenix AZ   7.95
97 John D. Helm Tempe AZ   7.93
97 Brad Smith Riverside CA   7.93
99 Brian Kemp Perris CA   7.90
100 Rusty Rath Page AZ   7.85
101 Jacob Shull Willcox AZ   7.84
102 Hector Gracia Poway CA 2.30 7.83
103 Broc Lindauer Honeyville UT   7.80
103 Chad Roorda Beaumont CA   7.80
105 Todd Barnes Murrietta CA   7.79
106 Colby King Ione CA 2.77 7.78
107 Tom Karavites Payson AZ   7.70
108 Kenny Myers Lakeside AZ   7.69
109 Ken Hromada Chandler AZ   7.65
110 Ryan Wischnack Valencia CA   7.58
111 Bryan Klem San Diego CA   7.54
111 Terrence Rath Lake Havasu City AZ   7.54
113 Chris Teixeira El Mirage AZ   7.51
114 Todd Belzner Scottsdale AZ   7.40
115 Javier Franco Sun Valley CA   7.39
116 Dwayne Stiles Oxnard CA   7.36
117 Yoshikazu Komada Japan   7.34
118 Robert Nicholson Grand Terrace CA   7.32
119 Tom Cilluffo Napa CA 1.71 7.29
120 Aaron Bartelt Grand Junction CO   7.27
121 Adam Buchholz Elk Grove CA   7.20
121 Steve Pectol Las Vegas NV 2.38 7.20
123 Steve Larsen Henderson NV   7.17
123 Brant List Huntington Beach CA   7.17
123 Michael Powell Fort Mohave AZ   7.17
126 Nathan Hill Las Vegas NV   7.16
126 Bo McNeely Rancho Cucamunga CA   7.16
128 Mario Saucedo Hollister CA 1.94 7.14
129 Byron Steed Downey ID   7.13
130 Rich Henson Redding CA   7.12
131 Bryan Hunt Santee CA   7.11
132 Niko Romero Prescott AZ   7.10
133 Mike Contreras Ontario CA 2.78 7.09
134 Dante Ray Fernley NV   7.07
135 Jonathan Green San Pablo CA   7.02
136 Larry Warren Laverkin UT 1.93 7.01
137 Robert A. Morris Colorado Springs CO   7.00
138 Dan Frazier Arroyo Grande CA   6.99
139 Levi Samz Green River WY   6.97
140 Brian Senter Tucson AZ   6.92
141 Ralph Wells Lake Havasu City AZ   6.87
141 Glenn Wyatt Fremont CA   6.87
143 Kota Hamai Konocti V 232   6.86
144 Ian Boehm Desrt Hills AZ   6.85
145 Jeff Przybylek Canyon Lake CA   6.83
146 Steve Jenkins Mesa AZ   6.82
147 Gale Fox Jr. Shelton WA   6.81
147 Ryan Gutierrez Weiser ID   6.81
149 Joe Ahrens San Diego CA   6.78
149 Michael Fisher Santee CA   6.78
151 John Bryson Las Vegas NV 1.49 6.77
152 Christopher Owens Las Vegas NV   6.76
153 Teddy Snyder Redding CA   6.75
154 Chris Allen Grand Junction CO   6.74
154 Kevin H Duncan Brea CA 2.18 6.74
156 Brandon Smith Indio CA   6.72
157 Jesstin McNett Escondido CA   6.71
158 Mona Dunlap Cottage Grove OR   6.66
159 Bernie Villalobos Las Vegas NV   6.57
160 Bryan Partak Marseilles IL   6.55
161 Joseph George, Jr. El Dorado Hils CA 2.31 6.52
162 Sonny Gibson Las Vegas NV   6.47
162 Carol Martens West Hills CA   6.47
164 Todd Anderson Surprise AZ   6.36
165 Jason Akins Apple Valley CA   6.34
165 Dallas Braun Eagar AZ   6.34
165 Dave Kiesgen Peorea AZ   6.34
168 Ron Christensen Las Vegas NV   6.31
169 Kevin A. Smith Phoenix AZ   6.25
170 Robert Chor San Pedro CA 3.77 6.23
171 Conrad Demecs Phoenix AZ   6.20
172 Jack Roorda Beaumont CA   6.13
173 Jeremy Burns Santa Margarita CA   6.12
174 Thomas D. White, Jr. Costa Mesa CA   6.10
175 Marvin Finley Peoria AZ   6.06
175 Len Scinto Valencia CA   6.06
177 Rufus Cassadas Thousand Palms CA   5.99
178 Bret Nagelhout Red Rock AZ   5.97
179 William Penrod Salome AZ   5.88
180 Brent Benish San Diego CA   5.83
181 Jim Poff Apple Vally CA   5.77
182 Lindsee Jonovich Phoenix AZ   5.72
183 Chris Martens Lancaster CA   5.66
184 Stephen Pike Las Vegas NV   5.51
185 Robert Zumwalt Las Vegas NV   5.44
186 Tim Roden Queen Creek AZ   5.38
187 Mark Snitow Lake Havasu City AZ   5.31
188 Kenneth Helms Newman CA 2.88 5.27
189 Jimmy Pinkerman Fleming Island FL   5.20
190 Ed Shaver Lake Havasu City AZ   5.13
191 Tyler Hogan Newport Beach CA   4.99
192 Chris Rains Soledad CA   4.96
193 Marty Martinez Colorado CA   4.94
194 Akiko Totsuka Japan   4.88
195 Randy Austin Cedar City UT 1.84 4.78
196 Dink Mendez Campbell CA   4.74
197 Taj White Glendale AZ   4.73
198 Victor Azevedo Filer ID   4.45
199 Douglas Mulford Henderson NV   4.35
200 Bill Hart Lincoln CA   4.32
201 Bret Felter Malad ID   4.30
202 Bill Lansford Needles CA 2.91 4.16
203 Erik Tuenge Henderson NV   4.15
204 Mark Chadeayne Pomona CA   4.13
205 Lyle Valador Boulder City AZ   4.04
206 Lynn Irwin Las Vegas   3.94
207 Liz Jones Conoga Park CA   3.93
208 Dan Zehring Gilbert AZ   3.80
209 Geroge Azevedo Desert Hot Springs CA   3.78
210 Evan Roorda Redlands CA   3.72
211 Jay Cranney Sandy UT   3.70
212 Eric Toms Las Vegas NV   3.55
213 Matt Gene Menifee CA 3.42 3.42
214 Jim Sanders Gifford WA   3.30
214 Scott Stanard Solana Beach CA   3.30
216 Kenny Johnson Eager AZ   3.25
217 Robby Rogers Redondo Beach CA   2.72
218 Tim Domingues San Jose CA 2.68 2.68
219 Steve Mawson Mesa AZ   2.59
220 Tracy Purtee Payson AZ   2.34
221 Daniel Trejo Covina CA   2.33
222 Larry Upshaw Hemphill TX   2.04
223 Richard Hanning Tucson AZ   1.31
224 Ryan Furno Aloha OR   0.00

 


Costa’s, Dave Bulthuis, Honored with Lifetime Achievement Award

(L to R) Glenn Hughes (ASA President), Dave Bulthuis, Chris Megan (ASA Chairman of the Board and publisher, On the Water, LLC)
Photo courtesy of the American Sportfishing Association.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Costa’s, Dave Bulthuis, Honored with
Lifetime Achievement Award

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – October 15, 2018 – Dave Bulthuis, Vice President of Industry Relations and Government Affairs for Costa Sunglasses, received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) during the organization’s annual summit on October 11.

“I am blessed to work with great people and for a great company,” said Bulthuis. “The entire team at Costa Sunglasses shares my passion and commitment to our industry and our sport.”

Bulthuis was honored with the ASA’s most prestigious award, recognizing his extraordinary leadership and lifelong commitment to recreational fishing and the sportfishing industry. Throughout his career, Bulthuis has always been devoted to the sportfishing industry, serving on ASA’s board of directors for eight years, including as Chairman of the Board from 2015 through 2016.

Bulthuis has been with Costa since 2003, where he began his career with the organization as Vice President of Sales. Prior to joining Costa, Bulthuis served as Director of Sales for several brands in the outdoor industry, including Cape Fear Rod Company, Jones and Company and various independent rep groups.

“We are so proud of Dave and how he has served our industry, our sport and our company for more than 15 years,” said Holly Rush, CEO of Costa Sunglasses. “He is truly an icon and has devoted his career and his time to passionately advocating for recreational fishing. We are thrilled he’s been recognized for his dedication and passion—no one deserves it more.”

About Costa
As the leading manufacturer of the world's clearest polarized performance sunglasses, Costa offers superior lens technology and unparalleled fit and durability. Still handcrafted today in Florida, Costa has created the highest quality, best performing sunglasses and prescription sunglasses (Rx) for outdoor enthusiasts since 1983. Born on the water, Costa works hard to protect the waters it calls home. Through programs like its Kick Plastic campaign, where the brand seeks to raise awareness about the growing plastic pollution problem threatening oceans worldwide, to serving as a long-term partner to shark research organization OCEARCH, Costa encourages people to help protect the Earth’s natural resources in any way they can. Find out more on Costa’s website and join the conversation on FacebookInstagram or Twitter at @CostaSunglasses.


PENNSYLVANIA’S THOMPSON WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ON THE CHESAPEAKE BAY PRESENTED BY LOWRANCE

NORTH EAST, Md. (Oct. 15, 2018) – Boater Joseph Thompson of Coatesville, Pennsylvania, caught a two-day cumulative total of 10 bass weighing 29 pounds, 9 ounces, to win the weather-shortened T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Regional championship on the Chesapeake Bay presented by Lowrance. Thompson pocketed $66,000 for his efforts, including a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and automatic entry into the 2019 BFL All-American Championship.

Originally scheduled for Oct. 11-13, competition Friday, Oct. 12, was cancelled by FLW officials due to high winds. As a result, the winner was determined by combining Thursday and Saturday’s weights.

“I really struggled on the first day until about noon,” said Thompson, who earned his second career win in BFL competition. “Every piece of structure in the North East River was covered with two or three boats because the fishing was so tough out on the flats.

“I went up into the North East Creek and found a little spot where there was just enough room for one more boat on a small piece of structure – a tree laydown. I fished it with a (green-pumpkin-colored) Zoom Finesse Worm on a drop-shot rig, and managed to catch a limit just before the end of the day.”

With just over 10 pounds of bass on Day One, Thompson knew he needed a big catch on Day Two to break into the top six – his ultimate goal.

“On the final morning I got a water temperature reading and found it had dropped 8 or 9 degrees,” said Thompson. “I was happy with how cold it got. With some history in mind, I knew people would have a hard time with the cold front, but also felt that I would excel.”

Thompson said he re-rigged a couple of rods for the conditions and proceeded to work through three big-fish areas.

“These are my home waters and there are three areas that I feel hold the big fish,” said Thompson. “In the morning, I targeted a dock in the North East River. I fished an Avocado-colored grub, very slowly, on a light, plain ball-headed jig and had two fish at noon. When the tide started to fall, I moved out into about 13 feet of water and fished a (green-pumpkin) Yamamoto Senko with a 1/16th-ounce (Picasso) tungsten bullet weight. I let the current move it along the bottom and got three bites.”

Thompson went on to give Susquehanna Fishing Tackle in Columbia, Pennsylvania, a special thanks for delivering all of the necessary tackle and credited his Minn Kota Ultrex trolling motor as his key piece of equipment at the event.

“This is the biggest win I’ve ever had and my Ultrex played a big role in it,” said Thompson. “The wind was really blowing on Day Two, but I was able to use the Spot Lock feature and focus on the fishing. The bites were subtle and I had to pay attention.”

The top six boaters that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Joseph Thompson, Coatesville, Pa., 10 bass, 29-9, $66,000

2nd:         Ronnie Baker, Providence Forge, Va., nine bass, 27-1, $10,200

3rd:          Moo Bae, West Friendship, Md., nine bass, 26-2, $5,100

4th:          Ryan Bauman, Fleetwood, Pa., 10 bass, 25-13, $3,000

5th:          Chris Martinkovic, Hamilton, Ohio, 10 bass, 25-12, $2,000

6th:          Steven Wiseman, Bryans Road, Md., 10 bass, 25-6, $1,800

Rounding out the top-10 boaters were:

7th:          Dave Lauer, McConnelsville, Ohio, nine bass, 25-3, $1,600

8th:          Jon Werner, Nazareth, Pa., 10 bass, 24-10, $1,400

9th:          Otis Darnell, Linden, Va., 10 bass, 24-9, $1,200

10th:        Ryan Powroznik, Hopewell, Va., 10 bass, 24-8, $1,000

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Michael Bahnweg of Union Dale, Pennsylvania, won the Co-angler Division and a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard with a two-day cumulative catch of nine bass weighing 22 pounds, 6 ounces.

The top six co-anglers that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Michael Bahnweg, Union Dale, Pa., nine bass, 22-6, $45,000

2nd:         William Allie, Wynantskill, N.Y., eight bass, 21-9, $5,200

3rd:          Henry McKee, Haddon Heights, N.J., 10 bass, 18-8, $2,550

4th:          Michael Nelms, Hartwood, Va., eight bass, 17-15, $1,500

5th:          Howard Smith, Hamilton, Ohio, six bass, 17-11, $1,000

6th:          David Williams, Fredericksburg, Va., five bass, 17-6, $900

Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers were:

7th:          Matthew Cozad, Okeana, Ohio, seven bass, 17-4, $800

8th:          Mike Geisler, Oxford, Ohio, eight bass, 16-12, $700

9th:          Cort Gardner, Jessup, Md., eight bass, 16-10, $600

10th:        Michael Duarte, Baltimore, Md., seven bass, 16-1, $500

The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on the Chesapeake Bay presented by Lowrance was hosted by Cecil County Tourism.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.

About FLW

FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


SPRING HILL HIGH SCHOOL WINS BASS PRO SHOPS FLW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING LAKE MURRAY OPEN PRESENTED BY BERKLEY

PROSPERITY, S.C. (Oct. 15, 2018) – The Spring Hill High School duo of Aaron Weed and Robert Wise, both of Columbia, South Carolina, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 15 pounds, 13 ounces to win the 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Lake Murray Open presented by Berkley.

According to post-tournament reports, the duo caught their fish targeting points and humps near the dam with a white Zoom Fluke.

A field of 73 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from Dreher Island State Park. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship. Due to a tie between 7th and 8th place teams, both teams will advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.

The top eight teams on Lake Murray that advanced to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship were:

1st:     Spring Hill High School, Richland County, S.C. – Aaron Weed and Robert Wise, both of Columbia, S.C., five bass, 15-13

2nd:    Woodruff High School, Woodruff, S.C. – Austin Lanford, Greer, S.C., and Clayton Caldwell, Woodruff, S.C., five bass, 15-5

3rd:     North Augusta High School, North Augusta, S.C. – Landon Williamson and Brycen Williamson, both of Wagener, S.C., five bass, 14-7

4th:     Greenbrier High School, Evans, Ga. – Henry Garrett and Joshua Ortt, both of Evans, Ga., five bass, 12-14

5th:     Morgan County High School, Madison, Ga. – Cole Holloway and Landon Huff, both of Madison, Ga., five bass, 11-13

6th:     Union County High School, Union, S.C. – Hunter Enlow and Tanner Duncan, both of Union, S.C., four bass, 10-7

7th:     Clarks Hill Youth Fishing Team – Corey Yaden, Evans, Ga., and Brayden Batchelor, Greensboro, Ga., five bass, 9-15

8th:     Greenbrier High School, Evans, Ga. – Tanner Hadden and Cy Casey, both of Evans, Ga., five bass, 9-15

Rounding out the top 10 teams were:

9th:     North Augusta High School, North Augusta, S.C. – Maddux Sutton, North Augusta, S.C., and Logan Geisler, Warrenville, S.C., three bass, 9-10

10th:   Travelers Rest High School, Travelers Rest, S.C. – David Ackerman and Bobby Long, both of Greenville, S.C., four bass, 9-9

Complete results from the event can be found at FLWFishing.com.

The 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Lake Murray Open presented by Berkley was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12, open to any Student Angler Federation (SAF) affiliated high school club in the United States. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship on a body of water that has yet to be revealed. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.

In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest open high school bass tournament, the 2019 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship. At the 2018 World Finals more than $150,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded.

Full schedules and the latest announcements are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com.

About FLW

FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.

About The Bass Federation

The Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is a member of the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. TBF is owned by those we serve and dedicated to the sport of fishing. The Federation is the largest and oldest, organized grassroots fishing, youth and conservation organization there is. TBF, our affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 events each year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for more than 45 years. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing program in 2008 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.


Day One of the 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open Cancelled Due to Unsafe Conditions

Day One of the 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open Cancelled Due to Unsafe Conditions
Extreme Winds Force Event Officials to Shorten Tournament

by Dan O'Sullivan

Las Vegas, Nev. - September 15, 2018 – Due to extreme winds out of the north buffeting the surface of Lake Mead, WON Bass Tournament officials have been forced to cancel the first day of the 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open due to unsafe conditions.  Sustained winds of 25 to 35 miles per hour, with projected gusts to 50, created a situation where participant safety became paramount.

The event will commence tomorrow with takeoff from Calville Bay Marina and the event will now become a two-day tournament, as opposed to the standard three-day format.

The 224 boat field gathered for takeoff on day one, and tournament officials conducted boat checks, but staged the field in the parking lot to allow officials to decide what the best option for the day was.  After safe light, Tournament Director Bill Egan took a ride into the main basin outside of Calville Bay, and returned to make the announcement that the event was cancelled.

Egan said the situation on the water was uncomfortable at best.  “Once we got outside of the marina, it became obvious that safety was a concern,” said Egan.  “It was a really tough decision, but our anglers and friends are the most important part of what we do, so the decision was made to cancel the first day of the event.  We will resume tomorrow with the same boat order as was planned for today.”

Rick Pierce, president of Bass Cat Boats said agreed with the decision.  “Our customers are our friends, and we want to make sure everyone is safe,” said Pierce.  “This is a unique event, and when you factor in the AAA anglers who have to go along for the ride, we are wholeheartedly in support of the decision.”

The 2018 WON Bass U.S. Open will commence tomorrow, and the full field of anglers will compete for two days to crown a champion.  As for the past six years, the Costa Live broadcasts will begin at 9:00AM Pacific Time on day two.

The Sponsors of the 2018 U.S. Open are: Bass Cat Boats, Mercury, Costa, Daiwa, St. Croix, Lowrance, Yo-Zuri, Bridgford, Seaguar Fluorcarbon, Rapala, Hayabusa, Plano, Frabill, MotorGuide, Phenix Rods, Lew's, Kuiu, Sure Life, Sportsman’s Warehouse, Storm, Anglers Marine, Century Marine, Boatmasters, Last Chance Performance Marine, Strike King, BG Insurance, Chevy Montebello and Boulder Station Casino.


Morrow Wins T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on the St. Johns River Presented by Ranger

PALATKA, Fla. (Oct. 15, 2018) – FLW Tour pro Troy Morrow of Eastanollee, Georgia, caught a three-day cumulative total of 15 bass weighing 57 pounds, 10 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Regional championship on the St. Johns River presented by Ranger. Morrow earned $65,000 for his efforts, including a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and automatic entry into the 2019 BFL All-American Championship.

“I had a rough start to practice. I got in late and had issues with my boat, so I missed some time,” said Morrow, who logged his fourth career victory in BFL competition. “I elected to stay close to where I was staying and learn as much as I could about the area, which was from the north end of Lake George to Little Lake George. I ended up fishing there all three days.

“As practice progressed, I found two shell beds they were schooled up on, so I started there on Day One,” Morrow continued. “I had a limit by the time I got to the second one, but they weren’t as big as they were in practice. After the second shell bed, I ran to some docks. I didn’t want to burn too many docks from my main area, so at about 12:30 (p.m.) I focused on a row of new docks and caught another big one.”

Morrow said that in addition to his keeper on Day One, those particular docks produced a 7-pound, 12-ouncer, on Day Three.

On Day Two, Morrow said he made the same milk run, but the fishing was slower. He said it took him longer to put together a limit and leave his main area.

“Day Three was even slower – I only had five keeper bites and thought I blew it,” said Morrow. “I stayed close to takeoff for the first 20 minutes and caught a keeper. The outgoing tide was later each day, and by Day Three it was approximately 11 (a.m.) before I felt comfortable fishing my key stuff. I went to the shoals, but didn’t get anything. At my main docks, I did get one that was close to 4 pounds at slack tide, which was a bonus. Once the tide got moving I caught the 7-pound, 12-ouncer.”

Morrow finished out the day by catching two keepers at the shoals.

For lures, Morrow said he used a Texas-rigged, Black Grape-colored Zoom Ol’ Monster Worm on a 5/0-sized Gamakatsu round bend hook with a ¼-ounce tungsten weight for both the shoals and the docks. His rig was attached to 20-pound-test Sunline fluorocarbon line and a 7-foot, 6-inch heavy-action Duckett Fishing rod. He also worked in a chrome-colored topwater bait at the shoals.

The top six boaters that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Troy Morrow, Eastanollee, Ga., 15 bass, 57-10, $65,000

2nd:         Matt Kinney, Bunnell, Fla., 15 bass, 51-0, $10,200

3rd:          Grant Kelly, Milledgeville, Ga., 13 bass, 49-11, $5,100

4th:          Jason Reed, Hollister, Fla., 15 bass, 49-10, $3,000

5th:          Nicholas Hoinig, Port St. Lucie, Fla., 15 bass, 49-6, $2,000

6th:          Kip Carter, Mansfield, Ga., 15 bass, 48-11, $2,800

Rounding out the top-10 boaters were:

7th:          George Kapiton, Inverness, Fla., 15 bass, 47-5, $1,600

8th:          Dylan Peppers, Good Hope, Ga., 15 bass, 47-4, $1,400

9th:          Kevin Dees, Montgomery, Ala., 14 bass, 42-5, $1,200

10th:        Stacy Adams, Hazlehurst, Ga., 15 bass, 41-8, $1,000

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Randy Paquette of Sarasota, Florida, won the Co-angler Division and a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard with a three-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 34 pounds, 10 ounces.

The top six co-anglers that qualified for the 2019 BFL All-American were:

1st:           Randy Paquette, Sarasota, Fla., 10 bass, 34-10, $45,200

2nd:         Gary Murphy, Homer, Ga., 10 bass, 30-13, $5,050

3rd:          Donnie Davis, Greer, S.C., 11 bass, 26-7, $2,500

4th:          Ernie Thompson, Anthony, Fla., 13 bass, 24-2, $1,500

5th:          Frank Godwin Jr., Bainbridge, Ga., 13 bass, 23-13, $1,000

6th:          Levi Crossway, Jacksonville, Fla., 11 bass, 23-7, $900

Rounding out the top-10 co-anglers were:

7th:          Kenneth Hunnicutt, Jacksonville, Fla., 13 bass, 23-3, $800

8th:          Donald Dills, Mineral Bluff, Ga., 10 bass, 23-0, $700

9th:          Christian Greico, Tampa, Fla., 10 bass, 22-2, $600

10th:        Spencer Sato, Warner Robins, Ga., nine bass, 21-6, $500

The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League Regional Championship on the St. Johns River presented by Ranger was hosted by the Putnam County Tourist Development Council.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.

About FLW

FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


Blue Mountain College Freshmen Come from Outside the Top 10 to Best Talented Field

The more time an angler spends on the water, the more knowledge they gain, and in turn the greater chances one has for success.  That is the common model used for anglers to be successful at any level.  At Lake Dardanelle this week, freshmen anglers dominated the field.  The AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open saw two teams of freshmen finish 1st and 2nd once the scales closed Saturday afternoon.

Finishing in the top spot is the all freshmen pairing of Rudy Worley and John David Nowlin.  Representing Blue Mountain College, the young anglers weighed in 15.12 lbs on day two to amass a total weight of 27.62 lbs. Entering this event as the 52nd ranked school in the Cabela’s School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia, Worley and Nowlin had lofty expectations for their first ever college tournament.  “We wanted to do good.  Mainly our goal was top 20,” said Worley.  They managed to exceed expectations by topping a field of nearly 200 boats.  The field this week at Lake Dardanelle was comprised of close to 400 of the best talent in the country.  Both of the Blue Mountain College freshmen realize the significance of this major victory.  “It’s incredible, especially since it’s my first.  Since we just started our team, it’s big for our team and our school,” added Nowlin.

The pair spent the past two days on Lake Dardanelle targeting shad.  Using a one-two punch of several specific baits, Worley and Nowlin loaded the boat with fish.  “We caught most of our fish on a rattle trap, but a lot of our bigger fish came off of a spook,” noted Worley.  Around 12:30 PM a strong storm system settled over the Russellville area.  Heavy rain pelted the anglers and air temperatures dropped ever so slightly.  This sudden change in conditions had an instant impact on the bite.  “I would say it helped.  Water temp dropping a little bit more, getting them fish fired up.  For the way we fished, yes it helped I would say a lot,” said Nowlin.  With the change in the weather, both Blue Mountain College freshmen capitalized on their opportunity to land the winning fish.

Weights at the top of the leaderboard were extremely close.  The top three teams were separated by only 0.28 lbs.  Finishing just 0.13 lbs behind first were Eric Lampkin and Garrett Warren from Snead State Community College.  They flipped heavy mats to total 27.49 lbs of bass.  “We’re flipping a flipping stick obviously, 65 lb test braid.  We rotate a little bit between a 1 &1/4 oz weight and a 1 & 1/2 oz weight.  Flipping a beaver style bait or a craw.  Just flip it in there, they’ll hit it as soon as it comes through the mat,” said Lampkin.  Flipping matted grass was not a common pattern we heard on Lake Dardanelle this week, so it is likely this duo was fishing for less pressured fish.  Given that roughly 200 boats competed in this tournament, low pressured areas were very key.

2nd place Snead State Community College: Garrett Warren & Eric Lampkin

By having a pattern dialed in, Snead State Community College, currently ranked 130th, was around the fish all week.  When the foul weather blew in, they too were near the fish when they decided to bite.  “Today it was a tough morning. Real slow morning, only had two fish at 11 o’clock.  Right before that front blew in we just started catching them.  Caught a four pounder, and that really changed the momentum for us,” said Lampkin.  Like the 1st place team in front of them, Lampkin and Warren are both freshmen.  Being new to the college fishing scene they traveled to Lake Dardanelle both excited and confident.  “We were really looking forward to it.  We thought we had just as good as odds as anybody else.  We work just as hard.  We fish just as much, and we put in our time,” explained Warren.  It’s easy to get dejected when you come so close to winning but come up just short in the end.  Warren went on to state that they don’t plan on letting this one loss effect the rest of their season, “It’s going to happen eventually. We’ll get a win here in the next couple.”

Representing East Texas Baptist University, Chad Poulsen and Dustin Pearcy claimed 3rd place.  The duo weighed in 14.85 lbs of Lake Dardanelle bass on this rainy Saturday.  Combined with yesterday’s weight, the Texas based anglers tallied 27.34 lbs for two days.  Bites came early and often for Poulsen and Pearcy today.  “We started out throwing reaction baits.  It was on a shad kind of deal.  We had our limit by about 8:30,” explained Poulsen.  Once they managed a decent limit, the gameplan was to move towards the bank and target shallow wood with jigs.  This proved to be a critical decision.  “Once we just started hitting those laydowns, I mean, we knocked out I want to say a 4.5 yesterday, and a 3.5 today,” said Pearcy. Finding ways to catch four plus pound fish was an instant path to success this week.  Numerous limits of 10 pounds came to the scales.  Catching one difference maker proved to be enough to separate a team from the rest of the pack.

3rd place East Texas Baptist University: Chad Poulsen & Dustin Pearcy

Lake Dardanelle provided a true challenge the past two days.  Leading up to this event many anglers warned of the potential for these fish to be there one day and gone the next.  One look at the leaderboard shows this to be true for this tournament.  All three of the top teams from day one dropped out of the top 10.  In turn, each of the final top three moved up from 14th, 9th, and 15th respectively.  Combined with the flip flop in the leaderboard, the teams were also separated by a narrow margin.  This made for quite a suspenseful weigh-in today.

For a look at the complete results, click HERE.

This has been a great week in Russellville, AR at Lake Dardanelle.  A great turnout of close to 400 anglers helped to make the first fall event in the history of the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series a great success.  Throughout the next week we will take a closer look at the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open, as well as break down the impact of this event on the Cabela’s School of the Year Presented by Abu Garcia. Continue to stay up to date with the latest in college bass fishing by following our various social media channels.

For more information about the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, please visit www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com.


Opens Pro Clouse, de-commits from MLF and accepts BASS Elite Invitation

Courtesy Gary Clouse/Phoenix Boats

Oct. 13, 2018 – Winchester, Tenn. — Gary Clouse has had a passion for bass fishing since he was a boy. Any of us that tournament fish or bass fish can probably trace back to the spark that launched our love of fishing. Maybe it was a first fish; maybe it was a first tournament. For Clouse, it was picking up his first issue of Bassmaster magazine. Since that first magazine, which he still carries with him decades later to remind him of what he’s chasing in this sport, all he has envisioned is standing on the Bassmaster Classic stage and fulfilling a lifelong dream.

The professional bass fishing world has been shaken to its roots in the last several weeks with the announcement of the Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour. A great group of professional anglers from both FLW and BASS made the change to continue chasing their own dreams on this new tour.

“I was so honored to be invited to fish the Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour in 2019,” Clouse said. “But in my heart, I felt I had unfinished business with qualifying for the Bassmaster Elite Series and making my first Classic. That dream and promise I’ve had to myself to make it and qualify for the Classic has fueled my passion in tournament fishing for a lot of years.”

Clouse has been fishing the BASS Opens the last several years and has missed qualifying for the Elite Series by just a few points several times. When he realized he was going to get an invite to fish the Bass Pro Tour, he reached out to BASS and asked if there would be more opportunities for Open anglers at the top of the standings to fish the Elite Series next year. At that point in the process, that was not an option, so he accepted his invite from the Major League Fishing Bass Pro Tour.

Fast forward to last week, and the call came for the top 15 BASS Open anglers to come fish the Elite Series, and the chance to realize a childhood dream was now a reality.

“I have accepted my invite to fish the Bassmaster Elite Series in 2019. This decision has weighed heavily on me for the last week. I have nothing but respect for Major League Fishing, the people running it and the anglers that chose to fish it. But I follow my heart, and my heart has been chasing the dream of the Bassmaster Classic for a long time.

“I can’t just walk away from the opportunity now. I have been so close to qualifying for the Elite Series, it was hard to just let go of that pursuit. I may be the only angler in professional fishing that doesn’t care about payouts or entry fees or any of that. All I care about is making it onto that stage and realizing this dream I am so passionate about.

“I have talked to Boyd Duckett, and he understood where my heart was and was fully supportive of my decision. He and many of those anglers have already realized a lot of their  own childhood dreams at BASS, and making this change was a logical next step in their process. For me, the next part of my process in this sport I love so dearly is trying to qualify for the Bassmaster Classic and fishing next season as an Elite Series pro.

“I know this is the right decision for me, and I am as passionate as I have ever been about the sport of bass fishing.”


B.A.S.S. Nation Releases Full Four-Tournament Schedule For 2019

daho angler Chris Harvey shows off a nice largemouth during the 2018 B.A.S.S. Nation Western Regional on Clear Lake. The 2019 B.A.S.S. Nation schedule, which was released today, includes another stop in California — this time at Lake Shasta. B.A.S.S. Nation events will also be held on Alabama's Lake Guntersville, Sebago Lake in Maine and South Carolina's Lake Hartwell.

Photo by Brian Sak
Oct. 10, 2018

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — B.A.S.S. officials announced Thursday that the B.A.S.S. Nation, the popular grass-roots organization with affiliated clubs in 47 states and 10 nations worldwide, will once again hold three regional events and a year-end championship in 2019.

The Nation will visit Alabama’s Lake Guntersville for the Central Regional on April 17-19, California’s Lake Shasta for the Western Regional on May 8-10 and Sebago Lake in Maine for the Eastern Regional on Sept. 11-13.

The season will then culminate with the B.A.S.S. Nation Championship, which will be held on South Carolina’s Lake Hartwell at a date to be determined — most likely in October.

“We’re excited to have a schedule that includes well-known bass-fishing havens like Lake Guntersville, Lake Shasta and Lake Hartwell,” said B.A.S.S. Nation Director Jon Stewart. “Obviously, the tradition that B.A.S.S. has with those three lakes speaks for itself.

“But we’re also really excited about holding a B.A.S.S. Nation Regional event at a great site like Sebago Lake. It’s a place that we’ve visited for smaller divisional tournaments before, but a place that maybe a lot of people aren’t as familiar with as some of the others.”

The timing of the Guntersville event — right in heart of spring — should make for good weather and excellent fishing on a 69,000-acre Tennessee River fishery that is known for producing giant largemouth. The tournament will feature a field of 190 boats with 418 anglers, including alternates.

Guntersville has hosted 22 major B.A.S.S. tournaments, including the 1976 and 2014 Bassmaster Classics and Bassmaster Megabucks events in 1990 and 1992.

“All you have to say is ‘Guntersville,’ and bass fishermen perk up,” Stewart said. “Bass anglers of all skill levels understand what an opportunity it is to fish a lake like Guntersville, especially during the spring.”

The Lake Shasta tournament, which will be held in Redding, Calif., will have a field of 110 boats with 242 anglers — and history says it could be a spotted bass slugfest.

“When we were out there for the Nation Regional in 2017, anglers were saying you could pull up to any place you wanted to, throw any bait you wanted to throw and expect to catch fish,” Stewart said. “We had some incredible fish weighed in, mostly big spots. We hit it just right — and hopefully we will again.”

The final regional of the year, on Sebago Lake, will feature 180 boats with 396 anglers leaving from Point Sebago, Maine. The 30,000-acre fishery, which is the state’s second-deepest lake at 316 feet, has excellent populations of largemouth and smallmouth bass as well as landlocked salmon and lake trout.

Unlike 2018, when the site of the Nation Championship was announced well after the regional lineup, Lake Hartwell has already been identified as the site of the 2019 year-end event. The 56,000-acre fishery on the Georgia/South Carolina border has hosted three Bassmaster Classics, including the 2018 event that drew a record total attendance of 143,323.

The event will be hosted by Visit Anderson.

“Our team at Anderson county could not be more excited about hosting the 2019 B.A.S.S. Nation Championship again at Green Pond Landing and Lake Hartwell,” said Neil Paul, executive director of Visit Anderson. “Our community enjoys a tremendous amount of success whenever we’re hosting the great folks at B.A.S.S. We owe a great deal of credit to B.A.S.S. for their part in helping to make Lake Hartwell a championship fishery and Green Pond Landing one of the top facilities in the nation.

“We look forward to welcoming the anglers, their families and the entire B.A.S.S. Nation in 2019.”

The Top 3 finishers from the 2019 Nation Championship will earn a spot in the 2020 Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK'S Sporting Goods, and the overall Championship winner will receive an invitation to fish the 2020 Bassmaster Elite Series.

“When we refer to the B.A.S.S. Nation as a grass-roots organization, we mean exactly that,” said B.A.S.S. CEO Bruce Akin. “It’s an organization that gives anglers from all walks of life an opportunity to fish at the highest level of professional bass fishing.

“That’s what makes it truly special — and that’s why it’s still growing after 50 years.”


JEREMY LAWYER WINS COSTA FLW SERIES CENTRAL DIVISION FINALE ON LAKE OF THE OZARKS

Sarcoxie’s Lawyer wraps up 2018 Costa FLW Series Central Division season with win, earns $88,500

OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (Oct. 13, 2018) – FLW Tour pro Jeremy Lawyer of Sarcoxie, Missouri, brought a five-bass limit weighing 13 pounds, 12 ounces, to the scale Saturday to win the Costa FLW Series Central Division finale on Lake of the Ozarks presented by Evinrude. Lawyer’s three-day total of 15 bass totaling 46 pounds, 3 ounces, was enough to earn the win by a 3-pound, 3-ounce margin and the top prize of $88,500, including a brand new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.

“I spent the first two days of the tournament fishing between the Toll Bridge and the Gravois Arm,” said Lawyer, who earned his first career victory on Lake of the Ozarks after 10 prior top-10 finishes on the lake in FLW competition. “I tried to not fish any waypoints or history and just rely on my fishing instinct. If there’s one thing on the Tour that I have learned that has really helped me, it’s visiting a bunch of new lakes and not having waypoints. I feel more confident and comfortable fishing like that, and that is something that I really tried to do this week.

“I started out on the same stretch this morning and ran back into some creeks that I hadn’t been to yet,” Lawyer continued. “I had a limit in the first 45 to 50 minutes – including a 4½-pounder – and that settled me down a bit. I pulled the plug around 10:30 and went to the Hurricane Deck area and ended up culling up three more times.”

Lawyer credited a Zoom Magnum Trick worm and a Freedom Tackle Swing Buzz buzzbait as being his key baits throughout the week that, “helped me get five each day.” Saturday he caught one good one on the Magnum Trick worm and the rest came on a River2Sea Whopper Plopper, custom-painted by Fall Creek Lures.

“They’ve got a color – midnight shad – that I’ve got a lot of confidence in,” Lawyer said. “I also threw the original bone color this week as well.

“So many guys had the opportunity to do well this week with that Plopper and they just lost them,” Lawyer continued. “I was fortunate enough to not lose them when they bit. I really credit my Lew’s Heavy Cover Carbon Pro rod for that. It’s a heavy-duty rod, but still parabolic. It takes a little bit of the shock out of them when you initially set the hook.”

Lawyer bested a stacked final-day field that included some of the top Lake of the Ozarks anglers of all-time. He was extremely humbled and proud of his accomplishment Saturday.

“I still can’t believe it happened for me today,” he went on to say. “I grew up watching Stacey (King) fishing on television and he has been the man here for many years. Dennis Berhorst wins everything. I told my wife back when I started that if I could compete with Dennis, Roger (Fitzpatrick) and Marcus Sykora that I could survive anywhere. And that was back in 2005. I have so much respect for all of those guys. It feels good to be on top this week, but next week I’m sure one of those guys will be on top again.”

The top 10 pros on Lake of the Ozarks finished:

1st:          Jeremy Lawyer, Sarcoxie, Mo., 15 bass, 46-3, $88,500

2nd:         Garrett Paquette, Canton, Mich., 14 bass, 43-6, $16,500

3rd:         Dennis Berhorst, Holts Summit, Mo., 15 bass, 43-5, $12,700

4th:         Stacey King, Reeds Spring, Mo., 13 bass, 43-3, $10,800

5th:         Austin Brown, Benton, Ky., 12 bass, 40-14, $9,600

6th:         Jason Vance, Battle Ground, Ind., 15 bass, 40-11, $8,250

7th:         Arnold Payne Jr., Kokomo, Ind., 14 bass, 39-11, $7,200

8th:         James Watson, Lampe, Mo., 14 bass, 39-8, $6,200

9th:         Shawn Kowal, Linn Creek, Mo., 14 bass, 39-7, $5,200

10th:       David Ryan, Levasy, Mo., 11 bass, 36-13, $4,100

Complete results for the remaining field can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Will Yelverton of Hazel Green, Alabama, caught a 7-pound, 1-ounce fish on Thursday that earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $300. King won the Boater Big Bass award on Friday with a 6-pound, 13-ounce bass worth $300.

Steve Freeman of Eddyville, Kentucky, won the Co-angler Division and a Ranger Z175 with a 90-horsepower outboard motor plus a $5,000 Ranger Cup bonus with a three-day total catch of 13 bass weighing 33 pounds, 12 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers on Lake of the Ozarks finished:

1st:          Steve Freeman, Eddyville, Ky., 13 bass, 33-12, $27,350 + Ranger Cup ($5,000)

2nd:         J.P. Sims, Cookeville, Tenn., 13 bass, 30-15, $5,250

3rd:         Phil Williams Jr., Jamestown, Ky., nine bass, 28-14, $4,250

4th:         Scott Parsons, Rogers, Ark., 11 bass, 28-14, $3,600

5th:         Max Wilson, Everton, Mo., 11 bass, 28-0, $3,100

6th:         Mike Youngblood, St. Louis, Mo., 11 bass, 25-9, $2,600

7th:         Brad Hostetler Jr., Franklin, Ind., nine bass, 24-6, $2,100

8th:         Jason Sandidge, Centerton, Ark., 10 bass, 23-7, $1,800

9th:         Joshua Dyrland, Imperial, Mo., eight bass, 22-2, $1,520

10th:       Tyrone Phillips, Little Rock, Ark., 10 bass, 20-1, $1,270

Ray Larson of Springfield, Illinois, caught a 6-pound, 1-ounce bass on Thursday that won the day one Co-angler Big Bass award worth $200. Rick Parker of Kaufman, Texas, won the Co-angler Big Bass award on day two with a 5-pound, 9-ounce fish worth $200.

The Costa FLW Series on Lake of the Ozarks was presented by Evinrude and hosted by the Tri-County Lodging Association. It was the third and final FLW Series Central Division tournament of the 2018 regular season. The next Costa FLW Series tournament will be the the season-ending Costa FLW Series Championship, held Nov. 1-3 on Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Alabama, and hosted by the Marshall County Convention and Visitors Bureau. For a complete schedule, visit FLWFishing.com.

The Costa FLW Series consists of five U.S. divisions – Central, Northern, Southeastern, Southwestern and Western – along with the International division. Each U.S. division consists of three regular-season tournaments with competitors vying for valuable points that could earn them the opportunity to compete in the season-ending Costa FLW Series Championship.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the Costa FLW Series on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


Bassmaster Opens Championship Will Decide Classic Berths At Table Rock Lake

October 12, 2018

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A year-long tournament circuit that included eight events in eight states and thousands of anglers from across the country will reach its conclusion next week with the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens Championship on Table Rock Lake.

The Top 28 pro and co-anglers from the regular-season standings will fish Oct. 18-20, with daily takeoffs at 7:15 a.m. CT from Long Creek Marina. Weigh-ins the first two days will be back at the marina at 3:15 p.m., with the final-day weigh-in shifting to the Bass Pro Shops in Springfield, Mo., at 4:30 p.m.

All three bass species — largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass — could play a role in deciding the seven berths that are at stake for the Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.

“The lake is full of fish, but it’s like fall fishing anywhere else,” said Brock Mosley, a Bassmaster Elite Series pro from Collinsville, Miss. “You can expect a lot of bites. But with the 15-inch minimum size limit, it can be hard to find keepers.

“You’ll catch a mixture of all three species — and I wouldn’t be surprised to see some 15-pound bags that have at least one of each.”

That diversity in the bass population will force competitors to make difficult choices, and no one can say for sure which anglers’ strengths will play best.

If smallmouth and spots are the dominant species, deep-water specialists could locate big schools of offshore fish and grab center stage. But shallow-water anglers might also dial in a largemouth bite that gives them an advantage.

Another wild card could be the weather. Fall is trying to take hold in the area with temperatures expected to be in the low 30s Monday night, but then back into the mid-60s by Saturday.

“This is not going to be a straight, down-the-line, this-is-what-will-happen kind of tournament,” said Carl Jocumsen, an Australian-born angler who now lives in Texas. “The lake is going to change every day at this time of year. Keeping an open mind and keeping an eye on the conditions is going to be a massive part of this tournament.”

The regular-season Opens circuit included four tournaments each in the Central and Eastern divisions. The Top 10 from the season points standings in each division qualified for the championship, along with the winners of all eight events.

When the dust settles at Table Rock, the overall winner of the Opens Championship will receive a Classic berth, plus $10,000 cash and a Triton 19 TrX with Mercury 200 Pro XS package worth $45,000. The Top co-angler receives a Nitro Z18 with a Mercury 150 Pro XS outboard.

The Top 3 pro anglers in points from each division following the championship will also be invited to the Classic.

Frank Talley, Brad Whatley and Toby Hartsell currently occupy the Top 3 spots in the Central Division standings, while Bobby Lane, Brandon Lester and Garrett Paquette lead the Eastern Division.

John Cox, a Florida pro who finished the regular season fourth in the Eastern standings, said a Classic berth is his main objective — and he doesn’t believe it’ll happen unless he hoists the Opens Championship trophy.

“The way the standings line up, there’s no way I’m going to make it into the Top 3 in points,” Cox said. “So really, the only way I’m going to make it into the Classic is if one of the guys in front of me wins or if I win.

“So, it would be nice to take some of the mystery out of it and just win.”

Jocumsen said he’ll be working from a similar game plan.

“This is the best tournament I’m ever going to fish because it’s win or nothing,” he said. “I have to win to get that Classic berth. There’s no other option. There’s no risk in doing that. I have to do that.

“That makes it fun.”


Rogers State University Takes the Lead After Day 1 in the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open

San Antonio, TX (October 12, 2018) – The scales are closed as competition for day one of the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open has come to an end.  Lake Dardanelle provided a difficult test for nearly 400 of the best college anglers in the nation.  Mother Nature played a part in today’s outcome as well.  A steady rain pestered the anglers for most of the morning, and increased cloud cover provided a different setting than the past two days leading up to competition.  None the less, this field of collegiate anglers found a way to catch them and fill their livewells with fish.

The team that figured out Lake Dardanelle the best today by bringing 15.99 lbs of bass to the scales is Ty Crutchfield and Alec Murphy from Rogers State University.  The Oklahoma anglers feel very comfortable at this body of water.  The Arkansas River runs just miles away from their campus in Claremore, OK.  Crutchfield and Murphy are very familiar with this river system.  They used this knowledge to their advantage by flipping shallow cover.  Unlike many teams in the field who caught their fish in quick flurries throughout the day, the pair from Rogers State maintained a solid bite all day long.  With a total weight of 15.99 lbs, Crutchfield and Murphy lead 2nd place by just 0.79 lbs.

Sitting in that 2nd place spot, less than a pound out of first, are Cole Lamb and Tristan Weaver.  Representing Arkansas Tech University, the Arkansas natives wrangled up 15.20 lbs.  “The day went pretty much as planned.  We just stuck to our gameplan, and we caught fish pretty much all day long,” says Lamb.  Lake Dardanelle is known for having a variety of cover.  That includes rock, flooded timber, and shoreline vegetation.  Lamb & Weaver fished all types of water focusing solely on shad and baitfish.

Being located here in Russellville, AR, one would assume that local knowledge played a key today.  For these underclassmen, that was not the case.  “We actually fished a spot we’ve never fished before.  It helped a little, but we did some stuff today, places we’ve never fished, something we’ve never done,” adds Lamb.  Going into tomorrow the team sounds fairly confident.  They believe that if they can catch 15 lbs again that they will have a solid chance of claiming the title here at the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open.

Completing the top three are Griffin Heffington and Mason Cizek with 15.10 lbs. Fishing for Bryan College, this duo was just one of four teams to break the 15 lb mark.  Currently ranked outside of the top 20 for the Cabela’s School of the Year Presented by Abu Garcia, Bryan College is looking to regain their recent success.  The team from Tennessee claimed the SOY title in 2017, a first for their university.  With valuable points on the line this week, Heffington and Cizek will be looking to help their team by finishing high up on the leaderboard tomorrow.

For a complete look at the day one standings, click here.

Focusing on the current race for Cabela’s School of the Year Presented Abu Garcia, Grand Valley State University is the lone team in the top three of the SOY standings to have a strong showing today.  Lucas Murphy and Bill Mathews weighed in 12.83 lbs to claim 10th place overall going into day two of the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open.  This is a double points event, and with GVSU only sending one team to Russellville, AR, they will only be able to earn points for one team.  Bethel University, on the other hand, sent a total of 11 boats to compete this week.  The reigning SOY champions are set up well to cash in on the double points format.  Bethel has two teams inside the top 13 following today’s action.  This gives them a good opportunity to end Saturday much higher up in the standings for Cabela’s School of the Year Presented by Abu Garcia.  Entering the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open, Bethel is 8th overall in the SOY race.

To see the current SOY standings, click here.

Day two is shaping up to be an exciting final day of competition.  Weather will once again play a key role in tournament action.  There is a 100% chance of rain forecasted for Saturday.  The chance of rain is at its highest during the afternoon.  With the top 10 separated by less than 3.5 lbs, there is a good chance to see change near the top of the leaderboard.  Be sure to stay up to date through our live blog and social media channels tomorrow as we prepare to crown a winner for the 2018 AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open.


Martin Truex Jr. Foundation Sweepstakes offers chance to win a Toyota Tundra and Bass Tracker Boat

Time is running out for fishing and racing fans to take a chance at winning a Toyota Tundra and a TRACKER Heritage Edition Boat, simply by making a $25 donation to a very good cause.

 

NASCAR Cup Series Champion and avid angler Martin Truex Jr., and The Martin Truex Jr. Foundation, have created a sweepstakes where one lucky winner will receive a 2018 Toyota Tundra and Bass TRACKER® Heritage Edition Boat.

 

A portion of the proceeds will help in the construction of the Martin Truex Jr. Pediatric Emergency Department at Novant Health in Charlotte, N.C., and help raise awareness, boost advocacy, and generate financial support for initiatives specific to ovarian and childhood cancers.

 

In May, Truex, the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series Champion, and long-time partner Sherry Pollex presented a check for $1.2 million from the foundation to Novant Health for these projects during the foundation’s ninth annual Catwalk for a Cause charity event.

 

“It’s great to have two of my long-time sponsors, Bass Pro Shops and Toyota, come together to support the long-term efforts of the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation and SherryStrong.org,” said Truex, “Novant Health has been such an important part of our lives the past few years so it’s an honor to give back to them for all they’ve done for Sherry and me. This program also allows us to continue other ongoing programs in the fight against ovarian and childhood cancers.”

 

“I can’t thank you enough for supporting Martin Truex Jr. Foundation and Sherry Strong,” said Pollex. “You are helping us by providing financial support for underfunded cancer research initiatives specific to ovarian and childhood cancers. You truly are a part of our family by donating $25.00 to help improve lives, inspire smiles and realize dreams. Who knows, you may win an awesome Toyota Tundra and Bass Boat as well. Martin and I appreciate your donation very much!”

 

The Toyota truck is a 2018 Tundra Crew Max SR5 4x4. Factory Options include the TRD Off Road Package, Entune Premium Audio, SR5 Upgrade Package. The exterior color is Super White 040 and the interior is Black FB20.

 

The Bass TRACKER 40th Anniversary Heritage Edition boat pays homage to the fishing boat TRACKER founder Johnny Morris first introduced in the late 1970s that revolutionized the boating industry. The classically-styled design features chocolate brown carpet, rich tan marine-grade upholstery, white wheels and moon-style chrome hubcaps. Each Heritage Edition boat carries the original Bass TRACKER logo and is equipped with a Mercury


AC Insider Podcast - What the Pro's are saying about the "Goat Farm" - AKA, The MLF Bass Pro Tour

With Jason in Africa, Chris spent a few days at the Strike King/Lews Media event before he left for vacation and interviewed a couple of Veterans and a couple of young guns and talked about why they chose to make the move to MLF. Some of the answers might surprise you, guess you'd better listen to find out! #GoatFarm


BASS PRO SHOPS FLW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING OPEN TOURNAMENT PRESENTED BY YETI SET FOR GRAND LAKE

Advisory for Tuesday, October 9, 2018

 

WHAT:  Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) High School Fishing will continue the 2018 fishing season with the upcoming Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Grand Lake Open bass-fishing tournament presented by YETI. The no-entry fee event is open to High School Fishing teams from across the country, and the top 10-percent of finishers will automatically advance to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship.

 

WHEN:                Saturday, October 20, 2018

 

WHERE:              Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Grand Lake Open presented by YETI

Grove City Ramp at Wolf Creek Park

1007 N. 16th St. W.

Grove, Okla.

 

NOTES: The Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Grand Lake Open is a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12. Registration for anglers and their coach, who will provide the boat they compete in, is online at FLWFishing.com. Takeoff will be at Grove City Ramp at Wolf Creek Park at 7:30 a.m. CDT and the weigh-in will also be held at the ramp, beginning at 3:30 p.m. High School Fishing takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public. For more information about this event contact the FLW High School Fishing National Youth Director Scott Ellison at (270)-205-6864.

 

A preliminary list of schools participating will not be available as teams can still register up until the morning of the event. Complete event details can be found here.

 

All FLW and TBF High School Fishing tournaments are free to enter. The tournaments are two-person (team) events for students in grades 7-12 and open to any Student Angler Federation-affiliated high school club. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship on a body of water that has yet to be revealed. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.

About FLW

FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


KENTUCKY LAKE SET FOR T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE REGIONAL TOURNAMENT PRESENTED BY EVINRUDE

GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (Oct. 9, 2018) – The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) is heading to Kentucky and Barkley lakes Oct. 18-20 for one of six BFL Regional Championship Tournaments. The three-day event, presented by Evinrude, will feature the highest-ranked 45 boaters and 45 co-anglers from each of the Hoosier, Ozark, Michigan and Mississippi BFL divisions, along with the five individual qualifying event winners.

The winning boater will receive a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Evinrude outboard and a check for $20,000, while the winning co-angler will receive a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Evinrude outboard. The top six boaters and co-anglers at each regional will advance to one of the longest-running championships in bass fishing – the 2019 BFL All-American, which will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland.

“It’s going to be tough out there. It’s been abnormally warm for October – the water temperature is still around 80 degrees,” said 23-year FLW Tour veteran Terry Bolton of Paducah, Kentucky. “I think the fish have been on early morning, late evening and overnight feeding patterns. I know there’s some cooler weather on the way, which should drop water temperatures. Hopefully that will make them more active during the day.”

Bolton said that both Kentucky and Barkley lakes will be utilized by the field.

“If a competitor wants shallow, off-color water, it’ll be in Barkley. If he or she wants more open, cleaner water, it’ll be Kentucky Lake,” said Bolton. “Shallow flats will always be the key piece of the equation. But which lake will it be on? Will it be on the main lake, or in the mouth or back of a creek? Those will be key decisions.”

Bolton went on to say that he expects a variety of lures to make an appearance.

“Topwater baits will always play a major role this time of year. I also think we’ll see someone do well using a shallow-running, lipless crankbait in the back of a shallow creek,” said Bolton. “Spinnerbaits are a big producer here in the fall. Anything that mimics a shad – like swimbaits – are also good. Going against the norm will be key, just based on the way the lakes have been fishing.”

Anglers will take off from Moors Resort & Marina, located at 570 Moors Road in Gilbertsville, at 7 a.m. CDT each day. Weigh-ins will be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

The T-H Marine BFL Regional Tournament on Kentucky and Barkley lakes is hosted by the Kentucky Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


Down but not Out, How BASS Plans to Become ELITE again -AC Insider Podcast

This week the boys talk with Dave Precht, VP & Director of Communications for BASS about the impact the loss of 68 anglers made when they moved to Major League Fishing's new tournament trail. They also discuss field size and how they plan to market each Elite Series Angler in 2019 & Beyond. They boys also welcome in 2014 Classic Champ and recent addition to the MLF Tour, Randy Howell. Check it out, one you wont want to miss!


NOBLESVILLE HIGH SCHOOL WINS BASS PRO SHOPS FLW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING LAKE MONROE OPEN

Courtesy of FLW Outdoors

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Oct. 8, 2018) – The Noblesville High School duo of Jackson Baltz and Carter Bell, both of Noblesville, Indiana, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 13 pounds, 4 ounces to win the 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Lake Monroe Open.

According to post-tournament reports, the duo caught their limit targeting grass with topwaters, buzz frogs and a Texas-rigged Yamamoto Senko worm.

A field of 33 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from the Cutright Boat Ramp. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.

The top three teams on Lake Monroe that advanced to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship were:

1st:     Noblesville High School, Noblesville, Ind. – Jackson Baltz and Carter Bell, both of Noblesville, Ind., five bass, 13-4

2nd:    Mount Vernon High School, Fortville, Ind. – Casey Cornelius, Indianapolis, Ind., and Devan Skaggs, Fortville, Ind., four bass, 10-5

3rd:     Bloomington South High School, Bloomington, Ind. – Colby Reed and Jenna Albertson, both of Bloomington, Ind., four bass, 9-1

Rounding out the top 10 teams were:

4th:     Trinity High School, Louisville, Ky. – Justin Risk, Louisville, Ky., and Hayden Bailey, Goshen, Ky., three bass, 7-9

5th:     Spencer County High School, Taylorsville, Ky. – Dillon Stallings and Max Sullivan, Taylorsville, Ky., four bass, 6-15

6th:     Owen Valley Community High School, Spencer, Ind. – Nathan Phelps and Aiden Clark, both of Spencer, Ind., three bass, 6-15

7th:     Westfield High School, Westfield, Ind. – William Dobbs and Keyden Effinger, both of Westfield, Ind., one bass, 6-13

8th:     Scottsburg High School, Scottsburg, Ind. – Hunter Breedman, Underwood, Ind., and Wyatt Harmon, Scottsburg, Ind., two bass, 6-2

9th:     Crothersville High School, Crothersville, Ind. – Taylor Tatlock and Joeseph Tatlock, both of Crothersville, Ind., three bass, 5-1

10th:   Bloomington South High School, Bloomington, Ind. – Gregory Dobbs and Dillan White, both of Bloomington, Ind., two bass, 4-3

Complete results from the event can be found at FLWFishing.com.

The 2018 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Lake Monroe Open was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12, open to any Student Angler Federation (SAF) affiliated high school club in the United States. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship on a body of water that has yet to be revealed. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.

In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest open high school bass tournament, the 2019 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship. At the 2018 World Finals more than $150,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded.

Full schedules and the latest announcements are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com.


Simms wins Mobile Delta ABA AFT D41 Event

Courtesy of ABA

Jimmy Sims of Mobile, Alabama won the American Fishing Tour District 41 tournament presented by American Bass Anglers.  Running out of Live Oak Landing near Stockton, Alabama, Sims brought back five-fish that locked in the scales at 9.71 pounds anchored by a 3.37-pound kicker.  For the victory, Sims took home a check for $522.

Second place was claimed by Chip Lindy with five-fish and a total weight of 9.44-pounds.  For his efforts, Lindy took home $308 in prize money.

Jackson Hamil took third with five-fish and a total weight of 9.42-pounds and took home $101 in prize money.

The Biggest Bass of the tournament was caught by Jimmy Sims.  His fish locked in the scales at 3.37-pounds earning him $95.

Top five finishers:

1.       Jimmy Sims 9.71 pounds
2.       Chip Lindy 9.44 pounds
3.       Jackson Hamil 9.42 pounds
4.       Larry Foshee 6.24 pounds
5.       Scott Wiley Jr 5.03 pounds

The next tournament in this division will take place on November 17 launching from Live Oak Landing.

For more information on this event or division please contact local director Barry Woodward at 251-423-0753 or visit www.americanbassanglers.com

These anglers earn valuable points toward the divisional angler of the year title. The points champion from each division will compete in the annual American Bass Anglers AFT Angler of The Year Final Round at the AFT Championship. In addition, the top 500 anglers from the various divisions will earn the right to compete in the three-day ABA, AFT National Championship tournament.

The American Fishing Tour offers low cost, close to home bass tournaments that are designed for the weekend angler. All anglers fish for money and points. The points advance the angler to their divisional championship and the top 500 anglers in the US are invited to the American Fishing Tour National Championship.


Sportsmans Warehouse Product Spotlight - October 8, 2018

AC's John Byrne and Sportsman's Warehouse Fishing Manager Sam Johnson talk about fall fishing and what you need to put more fish in the boat.


Jeffrey & Clay Ross Win Anglers Choice Marine Championship on Smith Mountain Lake

The team of Jeff and Clay Ross were the big winners at the Angler’s Choice Team Tournament Classic event held at Smith Mountain Lake.

Their 2 Day total of 39.84 lbs won them a 2018 Ranger Z518 with a Mercury motor valued just over $42,000

2018 Classic Final

 

 


TEXAN DICKERSON WINS COSTA FLW SERIES SOUTHWESTERN DIVISION FINALE ON FORT GIBSON LAKE PRESENTED BY MERCURY

Courtesy of FLW Outdoors

Tommy Dickerson wraps up 2018 Costa FLW Series Southwestern Division season with win, earns $80,503

WAGONER, Okla. (Oct. 6, 2018) – Pro Tommy Dickerson of Orange, Texas, brought three bass weighing 5 pounds, 13 ounces, to the scale Saturday to win the Costa FLW Series Southwestern Division finale on Fort Gibson Lake presented by Mercury. Dickerson’s three-day total of 13 bass weighing 32 pounds, 6 ounces, was enough to earn him the top prize of $80,503, including a brand new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.

Dickerson actually finished with the same three-day total weight as Coweta, Oklahoma, pro Kyle Cortiana. However, according to tournament rules, ties on day three are resolved by day two standings. Dickerson was in first place after day two, and Cortiana in fourth, so Dickerson was declared the champion.

The Texas pro caught his fish using a Santone spinnerbait in the back of a creek far up the Grand River. Accessing the creek required him to pull and grind his way over a shallow shoal with his trolling motor – a perfect scenario to avoid the heavy fishing pressure from other competitors on the main lake. On day one, accessing the creek went smooth and easy. On day two, getting in and out was a much bigger challenge due to falling water.

“I got stuck several times and began to think I wasn’t going to get back out,” Dickerson recalls.

By the final morning, the water had dropped enough that, despite 30 minutes of work, Dickerson couldn’t get in. He spent a couple hours fishing secondary areas on the main river, where he noticed a clue that eventually led to his winning move.

“The current was running in the river, and the water was coming back up,” he says. “I’ve heard this lake can come up a foot in a couple of hours, so I decided to fish out on the river for a while, bide my time and try it [getting into the smaller creek] again later.”

When Dickerson returned, he skated easily over the shoal and into the deeper water beyond it. Dickerson slow-rolled his spinnerbait in waters that were about 4 feet deep, intentionally making contact with rocky areas and boulders that were about 2 feet down.

“The water was too stained to see the rocks, so I just fluttered the spinnerbait down there until I felt the rock,” he says. “If I could get that spinnerbait to deflect off a rock, one would eat it.”

With his time cut short due to the falling water, Dickerson wasn’t able to work the creek over as thoroughly as he’d have liked, but with three keepers he weighed in just enough to get his third FLW victory.

“Yeah, you might say it’s been a week of ounces and inches,” Dickerson adds. “That just shows you how hard it is to win one of these things. The last one I won was 12 years ago at Lake Texoma. And trust me, the older you get, the more you appreciate these wins because you just don’t know how many more chances you’re going to get.”

The top 10 pros on Fort Gibson Lake finished:

1st:          Tommy Dickerson, Orange, Texas, 13 bass, 32-6, $80,503

2nd:         Kyle Cortiana, Coweta, Okla., 13 bass, 32-6, $13,199

3rd:         Brady Winans, Caddo Mills, Texas, 9 bass, 32-0, $10,371

4th:         Cody Bird, Granbury, Texas, 14 bass, 29-14, $8,451

5th:         Tommy Biffle, Wagoner, Okla., 9 bass, 29-14, $7,606

6th:         Mitchell Webb, Skiatook, Okla., 13 bass, 27-11, $6,761

7th:         Brandon Mosley, Choctaw, Okla., 11 bass, 27-9, $5,916

8th:         Ryan Wilbanks, Wagoner, Okla., 10 bass, 23-6, $5,070

9th:         Joel Baker, Talala, Okla., 9 bass, 23-5, $4,225

10th:       Darrel Robertson, Jay, Okla., 7 bass, 22-15, $3,380

A complete list of results will be posted at FLWFishing.com.

Randy Despino of Colfax, Louisiana, caught a 6-pound, 7-ounce fish on Thursday that earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $230. Brady Winans of Caddo Mills, Texas, won the Boater Big Bass award on Friday with a 4-pound, 10-ounce bass worth $230.

Johnny Burke of Bristow, Oklahoma, won the Co-angler Division and a Ranger Z175 with a 90-horsepower outboard motor plus a $5,000 Ranger Cup bonus with a three-day total catch of 7 bass weighing 17 pounds, 2 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers on Fort Gibson Lake finished:

1st:          Johnny Burke, Bristow, Okla., 7 bass, 17-2, $27,100 + Ranger Cup ($5,000)

2nd:         Mason Roach, Willis, Texas, 5 bass, 11-0, $4,309

3rd:         Tate Brumnett, Wagoner, Okla., 4 bass, 10-5, $3,407

4th:         David See, Beggs, Okla., 4 bass, 10-1, $2,982

5th:         Charles Parker, Broken Arrow, Okla., 4 bass, 9-14, $2,556

6th:         Robin Babb, Tulsa, Okla., 3 bass, 9-14, $2,130

7th:         Johnny Horton, Collinsville, Okla., 3 bass, 9-5, $1,857

8th:         Phillip McBrien, Fairland, Okla., 4 bass, 9-5, $1,491

9th:         Toby Wallace, Tolar, Texas, 3 bass, 8-14, $1,431

10th:       Ronnie Kane, Gravois Mills, Mo., 3 bass, 7-14, $1,065

Toby Wallace of Tolar, Texas, caught a 4-pound, 13-ounce bass on Thursday that won the day one Co-angler Big Bass award worth $153. Johnny Horton of Collinsville, Oklahoma, won the Co-angler Big Bass award on day two with a 4-pound, 6-ounce fish worth $153.

The Costa FLW Series on Fort Gibson Lake was presented by Mercury and hosted by the Wagoner Area Chamber of Commerce. It was the third and final FLW Series Southwestern Division tournament of the 2018 regular season. The next Costa FLW Series tournament will be the Central Division finale, held Oct. 10-12 on Lake of the Ozarks in Osage Beach, Missouri, and is presented by Evinrude. For a complete schedule, visit FLWFishing.com.

The Costa FLW Series consists of five U.S. divisions – Central, Northern, Southeastern, Southwestern and Western – along with the International division. Each U.S. division consists of three regular-season tournaments with competitors vying for valuable points that could earn them the opportunity to compete in the season-ending Costa FLW Series Championship. The 2018 Costa FLW Series Championship is being held Nov. 1-3 on Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Alabama, and is hosted by the Marshall County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the Costa FLW Series on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


FLW TAPS HUNT AS NEW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING DIRECTOR, ANNOUNCES SCHEDULE, RULES AND ENTRY DATES FOR 2019 YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING, BASS PRO SHOPS FLW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING

Both Members of Winning Team at YETI FLW College Fishing National Championship Advance to the Forrest Wood Cup, Second, Third and Fourth-place Teams Advance to the T-H Marine BFL All-American to Compete as Boaters.

MINNEAPOLIS (Oct. 4, 2018) – FLW announced Thursday the schedule, rules and entry dates for the 2019 YETI FLW College Fishing and Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing seasons, highlighted by expanded FLW Live on-the-water coverage at the 2019 FLW College Fishing National Championship on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, new advancement opportunities for young anglers to compete in the T-H Marine BFL All-American, Costa FLW Series Championship and the FLW Cup, and implementation of a new National School of the Year title, as well as titles in each individual conference.

Among the changes for FLW College Fishing in 2019 is the elimination of the National Championship Fish-Off. Now both members of the winning team at the YETI FLW College Fishing National Championship will advance to the FLW Cup where they are each guaranteed $10,000 plus a shot at winning $300,000. Both members of the second, third, and fourth-place teams at the 2020 National Championship will advance to the T-H Marine BFL All-American to compete as boaters where they are guaranteed $1,500 plus a shot at winning $120,000. Both members of the fifth and sixth-place teams at the 2020 National Championship advance to the All-American to compete as co-anglers where they are guaranteed $750 plus a shot at winning $60,000. Additionally, each angler finishing in the top 10 at the 2020 National Championship receives priority entry into the 2021 FLW Series.

Each FLW College Fishing angler competing in the All-American has a chance to qualify for the FLW Series Championship plus a second shot at qualifying for the FLW Cup.

“I am excited for the 2019 season and am confident that it will be the biggest and best College Fishing season yet,” said Kevin Hunt, Director of Tournament Operations, College and High School Fishing. “The fact that both anglers from the National Championship winning team will now advance to the FLW Cup, along with multiple qualifiers to the BFL All-American, is a fantastic opportunity for the teams and something that no other circuit can offer. I expect that these improvements will be very well received by college anglers, and I’m looking forward to getting the season kicked off in early February on Lake Seminole in Bainbridge, Georgia.”

In addition to FLW Live on-the-water coverage at the FLW College Fishing National Championship, each regular-season tournament and the Open will feature FLW Live weigh-in coverage.

 

Other improvements to the program include new YETI FLW College Fishing School of the Year titles, awarded to the top overall school of the season as well as the top school from each of the five conferences. Schools earn points based on their top two teams in each tournament. The school with the most points in each conference and overall at the end of the season win.

 

All FLW College Fishing anglers are now eligible for FREE Bass Pro Shops FLW Tournament Incentives at basspro.com/flwincentives. FLW College Fishing anglers receive a VIP discount card for 25 percent off Bass Pro Shops branded merchandise all year plus tournament bonuses. A nominal entry fee of $75 per team will be implemented for each event. Entries will be accepted starting Dec. 10 2018. Teams can register at FLWFishing.com or by calling 270.252.1000.

 

FLW College Fishing teams compete in three regular-season qualifying tournaments in one of five conferences – Central, Northern, Southern, Southeastern and Western. The top ten teams from each division’s three regular-season tournaments and the top 20 teams from the annual FLW College Fishing Open advance to the following year’s FLW College Fishing National Championship. Additional teams qualify for the National Championship if the field size in regular-season events exceeds 100 boats or 200 boats in the Open. The 2019 YETI FLW College Fishing National Championship is on the Potomac River, June 4-6, and hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism.

For 2019 FLW College Fishing tournaments in the Central, Northern, Southern and Southeastern conferences will be held on Fridays. Western conference tournaments will continue to be held on Saturdays.

2019 FLW College Fishing Schedule:

FLW College Fishing Open

  • March 12-13                       Kentucky Lake                    Gilbertsville, Ky.

 

Central Conference

  • April 12                               Lake Cumberland               Burnside, Ky.
  • July 19                               Mississippi River                Wabasha, Minn.
  • Oct. 18                                Lake of the Ozarks             Osage Beach, Mo.

 

Northern Conference

  • April 26                              Smith Mountain Lake         Huddleston, Va.
  • May 31                               Chesapeake Bay                Edgewood, Md.
  • Sept. 6                               Lake Erie                            Sandusky, Ohio

 

Southeastern Conference

  • Feb. 8                                 Lake Seminole                   Bainbridge, Ga.
  • March 1                              Lake Guntersville               Guntersville, Ala.
  • Nov. 1                                Lake Hartwell                     Hartwell, Ga.

 

Southern Conference

  • Feb. 22                               Sam Rayburn Reservoir     Zavalla, Texas
  • April 5                                 Lake Texoma                     Pottsboro, Texas
  • Sept. 20                             Arkansas River                   North Little Rock, Ark.

 

Western Conference

  • March 2                              Lake Mead                         Las Vegas, Nev.
  • May 18                               Clear Lake                          Lakeport, Calif.
  • Sept. 28                             California Delta                   Bethel Island, Calif.

 

FLW College Fishing National Championship

  • June 4-6                             Potomac River                    Marbury, Md.

 

 

2019 FLW College Fishing Payouts:

YETI FLW College Fishing Open

Place                                 Club                            

1                                  $30,000 Ranger Z175 with a 115-horsepower outboard

Top 20 teams advance to the 2020 National Championship. One additional team advances for every 10 teams over 200 competing.

 

Qualifiers

Place                                 Club                            

1                                    $2,000

2                                      1,000

3                                          500

4                                          500

5                                         500                                                                

Top 10 teams advance to the 2020 National Championship. One additional team advances for every 10 teams over 100 competing.

 

2019 National Championship – No Entry Fee

Place                                 Club

1               $30,000 Ranger Z175 with a 115-horsepower outboard + 2019 FLW Cup entry

2                                       5,000

3                                       4,000

4                                       3,000

5                                       2,000

 

Both members of the winning team advance to the 2019 FLW Cup where they are guaranteed $10,000 and can win as much as $300,000.

Complete rules for the 2019 YETI FLW College Fishing program can be found online at FLWFishing.com.

In addition to his FLW College Fishing duties, Hunt has been tapped to lead FLW’s High School Fishing tournaments. He succeeds tournament director Dave Maxfield, who will lead two BFL divisions as tournament director.

Hunt has served as an FLW tournament director since 2004 and overseen the implementation and growth of the FLW College Fishing circuit since its implementation in 2008.

“I’m thrilled for the opportunity to continue to work with college anglers and look forward to helping cultivate the next generation of anglers through the FLW High School Fishing program,” Hunt said. “I expect the transition will be near seamless, and I am excited to introduce myself to and work with the hundreds of high school fishing teams and coaches along with the tens of thousands of young anglers participating in High School Fishing.”

To foster mentoring opportunities between college and high school teams and introduce High School Fishing anglers to college opportunities awaiting them as they continue their education, all Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens will be held on Saturdays following a YETI FLW College Fishing tournament. This will allow students and parents to network with prospective college teams and coaches during Friday’s registration immediately following the college weigh-ins. California and Nevada tournaments will be held on Sundays with registration on Saturdays following college weigh-ins.

FLW also unveiled an unprecedented new opportunity for high school anglers participating in the Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens and The Bass Federation/Student Angler Federation State Championships and Challenge tournaments to advance to the BFL All-American as co-anglers. In addition to receiving a $10,000 scholarship ($5,000 per student), both members of the winning team at the 2019 High School Fishing National Championship qualify to compete as co-anglers in the 2020 All-American, where they are each guaranteed $750 and can win as much as $60,000. Students must be at least 16 years old as of the 2020 All-American or the next highest finishing student who meets age requirements will advance.

All FLW High School Fishing anglers are eligible for FREE Bass Pro Shops FLW Tournament Incentives, including valuable tournament bonuses. Sign up at basspro.com/flwincentives.

 

2019 Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens Schedule:

  • Feb. 9                                 Lake Seminole                   Bainbridge, Ga.
  • Feb. 23                               Sam Rayburn Reservoir     Zavalla, Texas
  • March 2                              Lake Guntersville               Guntersville, Ala.
  • March 3                              Lake Mead                         Las Vegas, Nev.
  • April 6                                 Lake Texoma                     Pottsboro, Texas
  • April 13                               Lake Cumberland               Burnside, Ky.
  • April 27                               Smith Mountain Lake         Huddleston, Va.
  • May 19                               Clear Lake                          Lakeport, Calif.
  • June 1                                Chesapeake Bay                Edgewood, Md.
  • July 20                                Mississippi River                Wabasha, Minn.
  • Sept. 7                                Lake Erie                            Sandusky, Ohio
  • Sept. 21                              Arkansas River                   North Little Rock, Ark.
  • Sept. 29                              California Delta                   Bethel Island, Calif.
  • Oct. 19                                Lake of the Ozarks             Osage Beach, Mo.
  • Nov. 2                                 Lake Hartwell                     Hartwell, Ga.

 

2019 High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship

All FLW and TBF High School Fishing tournaments are free to enter. The tournaments are two-person (team) events for students in grades 7-12 and open to any Student Angler Federation-affiliated high school club. The top 10 percent of teams in each tournament advance to the High School Fishing National Championship. Tournaments held before June 9, 2019, advance teams to the 2019 National Championship. Tournaments held after June 9, 2019, advance teams to the 2020 National Championship. All participating teams automatically qualify to compete in the High School Fishing World Finals for more than $150,000 in scholarships and prizes. Visit FLWFishing.com and HighSchoolFishing.org for schedules.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow YETI FLW College Fishing and the Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, TwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.

 


CORTIANA LEADS THE PACK AT FORT GIBSON

Courtesy FLW Fishing - Rob Newell

Given the stingy state of fishing affairs at Oklahoma’s Fort Gibson Lake, many pros fishing the Costa FLW Series Southwestern Division event presented by Mercury this week predicted local anglers would be hard to beat. In fact, Kyle Cortiana of nearby Coweta, Okla., was one pro who was pretty candid in offering his opinion that the home court advantage would go a long way in such a challenging Fort Gibson event.

After day one, Cortiana is looking like a prophet. Not only did he take the early lead with five fish for 15 pounds, 8 ounces, but the top five also includes Fort Gibson legend Tommy Biffle and Ryan Wilbanks, both from Wagoner.

Complete results

“When the water is up and the current is flowing and the fish are biting here, it’s anyone’s game,” Cortiana says. “But the lake is fishing pretty stingy right now. Whenever that happens, the local guys shine.”

A small line of showers rolled through Fort Gibson this morning during takeoff, which Cortiana saw as bonus.

“Anytime you have some kind of change like that, it helps,” he says. “I had my limit this morning by 8:50. It happened pretty quickly. After that I left the area and just starting running new water and caught two more keepers, one of which helped me.”

Before the event began, Cortiana mentioned that finding something out of the norm and off the beaten path would be key in this tournament. That’s what he looked for in practice.

“Where I fished this morning is pretty standard stuff here, but I’m fishing for those fish in a unique way,” he explains. “I had some special things happen to me this morning. Things went my way for sure. After that I ran some water that includes something that’s somewhat new to this lake. I have one place where I caught two 4-pounders in practice, and I have not been back to that yet. I’m trying to save it for later.”

Cortiana enters day two with a 1-pound, 1-ounce lead. He has an early boat number tomorrow, which he hopes might help his cause even more.

 

Top 10 pros

1. Kyle Cortiana – Coweta, Okla. – 15-8 (5)

2. Tommy Dickerson – Orange, Texas – 14-7 (5)

3. Tommy Biffle – Wagoner, Okla. – 12-15 (4)

4. Ryan Wilbanks – Wagoner, Okla. – 12-5 (5)

5. Casey Scanlon – Lake Ozark, Mo. – 12-1 (5)

6. Randy Despino – Colfax, La. – 11-8 (4)

7. Justin Wojcik – Bulverde, Texas – 11-7 (4)

8. Mitchell Webb – Skiatook, Okla. – 11-1 (5)

9. Joel Baker – Talala, Okla. – 10-6 (4)

10. Cody Bird – Granbury, Texas – 10-4 (5)

 

Babb leads co-anglers

Robin Babb of Tulsa, Okla., leads the co-angler division after day one with two bass weighing 8 pounds, 7 ounces. Babb spent the day fishing behind pro Derek Fulps of Broken Arrow, Okla., who won the Fort Gibson Costa FLW Series event in 2016.

“I had a good ride today,” Babb says. “Derek was a great boater. He is very considerate and obviously had me around some good fish.”

 

Top 10 co-anglers

1. Robin Babb – Tulsa, Okla. – 8-7 (2)

2. David See – Beggs, Okla. – 8-3 (3)

3. Charles Parker – Broken Arrow, Okla. – 7-3 (3)

4. Toby Wallace – Tolar, Texas – 6-11 (2)

5. Mason Roach – Willis, Texas – 6-10 (3)

6. Randy Baskins – Owasso, Okla. – 6-6 (3)

6. Johnny Burke – Bristow, Okla. – 6-6 (3)

8. Cameron Foster – Wagoner, Okla. – 6-3 (2)

9. Alan Bernicky – Joliet, Ill. – 6-0 (2)

10. John Moon – Brookeland, Texas – 5-13 (3)


FLW ANNOUNCES OLD HICKORY LAKE AS 2018 BFL WILD CARD VENUE

MINNEAPOLIS (Oct. 4, 2018) – FLW announced today that the 2018 T-H Marine BFL Wild Card tournament will take place on Old Hickory Lake in Gallatin, Tennessee, Nov. 9-10. The two-day event, hosted by the Sumner County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, will launch from the Bulls Creek Access at Flipper’s Bait and Tackle, located at 200 Odoms Bend Road in Gallatin, Tennessee.

In order to be eligible to fish the no-entry-fee BFL Wild Card tournament, anglers must have entered all five events within a BFL division during the 2018 season and fished at least two of them. In addition, anglers who have already qualified for a BFL regional are ineligible.

During the BFL Wild Card tournament, the full field competes both days, with winners determined by the heaviest two-day catch. The top six boaters and top six co-anglers will advance to the 2019 T-H Marine BFL All-American, held on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, May 30-June 1, hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners and the Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism.

An optional pot is available to anglers who elect to participate at the BFL Wild Card tournament. Entry fees for the optional pot will be $250 for boaters and $125 for co-anglers, with the top 20 percent of anglers who elect to participate in the optional pot receiving checks. There will be no official practice period or off-limits period prior to the pretournament meeting for the Wild Card. No contestant may be on tournament waters for the purpose of locating bass or potential fishing waters after the start of the pretournament meeting except during tournament hours.

Entry for the BFL Wild Card is now open and runs through Thursday, November 8, 2018, at 6 p.m. CDT. You may enter by phone on or before Wednesday, November 7, at 270.252.1000. Entries on November 8 will be taken onsite at the pretournament meeting at the Bulls Creek Access.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.


AC Insider PRO-Files Featuring 2019 FLW Tour Rookie Joel Willert

On this episode of the AC Insider PRO-Files Chris and Jason catch up with former FLW Co-Angler Joel Willert and talk about his move to the front of the boat and starting his rookie campaign on the 2019 FLW Tour. Great angler you will want to learn more about!


Major League Fishing Announces 80 Anglers Set for New Bass Pro Tour 

Several Major League Fishing anglers were present during league planning activities held this week at Big Cedar Lodge in Missouri, at which the 80-angler field for the new MLF Bass Pro Tour was announced. (Back row, left to right) Dean Rojas, James Watson, Wesley  Strader, Scott Suggs, Fred Roumbanis, Mark Davis, Gary Klein, Skeet Reese, Kevin VanDam and Boyd Duckett. (Front) Mark Rose, Mike McClelland, Jeff Kriet, Shaw Grigsby, Keith Poche, Kelly Jordon and Tim Horton.

RIDGEDALE, Mo. (October 3, 2018) - Major League Fishing (MLF) leadership today announced the official roster of the 80 anglers who have committed to compete in the new-for-2019 Bass Pro Tour and MLF Cup events. The final list was made public during an MLF meeting held this week at Big Cedar Lodge with several of its sponsors and anglers present to discuss plans in follow up to the league's recent announcement of significant expansion for the purpose of growing the sport.

"We understand how difficult this decision was for pro anglers ... everyone who has faced a potential career-changing move can relate to it, but the deadline has passed for the invitees and we now proudly have 80 individuals who have committed to a dream that goes beyond just a tournament payday," said MLF co-founder and PBTAA Vice President Boyd Duckett. "Sure, higher payouts are part of it, but for us this is not a competition we're in against other trails. It doesn't matter what B.A.S.S. or FLW does; our goal is different. These anglers know that and we're ecstatic to have them on board with the new MLF plans."
The full 80-man field includes Bassmaster Classic champions, FLW Forrest Wood Cup winners, Anglers of the Year and top tour performers from throughout the world of competitive bass fishing.
The 2019 MLF anglers are: Casey Ashley, Justin Atkins, Adrian Avena, Josh Bertrand, Tommy Biffle, Zack Birge, Stephen Browning, Brent Chapman, Jason Christie, Luke Clausen, Gary Clouse, Dustin Connell, Brandon Coulter, Cliff Crochet, Mark Daniels Jr., Mark Davis, Ott DeFoe, Boyd Duckett, Brent Ehrler, James Elam, Paul Elias, Edwin Evers, Todd Faircloth, Shinichi Fukae, Shaw Grigsby, Greg Hackney, Roy Hawk, Brett Hite, Tim Horton, Randy Howell, Mike Iaconelli, Alton Jones, Alton Jones Jr., Kelly Jordon, JT Kenney, Gary Klein, Jeff Kriet, Jason Lambert, Bobby Lane, Chris Lane, Russ Lane, Jordan Lee, Matt Lee, Dave Lefebre, Jared Litner, Justin Lucas, Aaron Martens, Mike McClelland, Cody Meyer, Ish Monroe, Andy Montgomery, Andy Morgan, John Murray, Britt Myers, Michael Neal, Takahiro Omori, Cliff Pace, Brandon Palaniuk, Keith Poche, Jacob Powroznik, Skeet Reese, Marty Robinson, Dean Rojas, Mark Rose, Fred Roumbanis, Bradley Roy, Terry Scroggins, Fletcher Shryock, Gerald Spohrer, Wesley Strader, Scott Suggs, Gerald Swindle, Randall Tharp, Jonathan VanDam, Kevin VanDam, Greg Vinson, David Walker, James Watson, Jacob Wheeler and Jesse Wiggins.
"This is a new day in professional bass fishing, with MLF and its team of anglers and partners now on a fast track to elevate the sport to a level comparable to that of other major league sporting events," MLF Commissioner Don Rucks said. "Our game is played on a 'field," and we have celebrities, fast action, rules, officials, penalties and a clock. Our participants like being role models and giving autographs, and we're going to make it easier for anglers and fans to share the passion of fishing going forward."
"I, we, are going into this new MLF venture with a different mentality," said Kevin VanDam, holder of many bass fishing titles. "To me, looking at this list is a very powerful statement about the future of the league. This group of anglers accepted the opportunity because they all believe in the vision and that we have the chance to do something very special for the sport of fishing. With all the anglers working hard for the same end goal, the future is going to be very exciting."

MLF will continue its popular Cup events and World Championship, airing on Outdoor Channel and CBS, respectively. New are the Bass Pro Tour competitions and championship, and eventually tour qualifiers, all of which will use the same entertaining and conservation-friendly catch, weigh and immediate-release format.

"It might seem like this expansion roll out happened in a hurry, but in reality it's been six years in development. Ever since Gary Klein and Boyd first had the MLF concept, we've had a great team of people working diligently on the bigger picture," MLF President and CEO Jim Wilburn said. "The extensive strategic planning will become much more obvious over the next few weeks as we reveal more and more of the elements. The new MLF is fulfilling the dream of so many to grow this great sport."

The expansions have been made possible through enthusiastic support from Bass Pro Shops, Outdoor Sportsman Group (OSG) and several other fishing industry and non-endemic sponsors who have been involved since MLF's first TV show in 2012.
Today MLF airs on Outdoor Channel, World Fishing Network, CBS, CBS Sports Network and Discovery Channel, and is available on-demand on My Outdoor TV (MOTV).
For current MLF schedules, rules and sponsors, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com.

CAL POLY WINS YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALE ON CALIFORNIA DELTA PRESENTED BY COSTA

BETHEL ISLAND, Calif. (Oct. 1, 2018) – The California Polytechnic State University duo of Sam Morita of Sebastopol, California, and Aren Abrahamian of Glendale, California, won the YETI FLW College Fishing event on the California Delta presented by CostaSaturday with five bass weighing 20 pounds, 1 ounce. The victory earned the Mustang’s bass club $2,650 and a slot in the 2019 FLW College Fishing National Championship, scheduled for June 4-6, 2019 at the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland.

“We started our day fishing on the south-southeast side, near Mandeville Island,” said Abrahamian, a senior majoring in environmental science. “We were fishing riprap banks with squarebill crankbaits. We had figured out the squarebill deal in practice and we knew we could put together a quick 6- or 7-pound limit and then go looking for upgrades, so that’s what we did.”

The duo threw unnamed craw-pattern, light red squarebill crankbaits to put together an estimated 7-pound limit by 10 a.m., then moved to another pattern, fishing old dock pilings with Yamamoto Senkos.

“We moved to another spot that had a bunch of pilings – probably around 100 – and caught three big ones flipping Senkos,” Abrahamian said. “Sam was fishing a green-pumpkin and red flake color, Texas-rigged; I was fishing just a green Senko and had mine wacky-rigged. We only had three bites doing that, but they were 4-, 5- and 6-pounders.”

The Mustangs estimated that they caught around 20 keeper fish throughout the day – 40 total. They said that 95% of their bass came on the squarebill.

“We got lucky with the Senkos, but if we wouldn’t have thrown the squarebills early than we wouldn’t have had a limit,” Abrahamian went on to say. “We usually don’t throw that here, but it was a random call that Sam made in practice and it ended up working out – even better than we thought it would.”

The top 10 teams that advanced to the 2019 College Fishing National Championship are:

1st:           California Polytechnic State University – Sam Morita, Sebastopol, Calif., and Aren Abrahamian, Glendale, Calif., five bass, 20-1, $2,650

2nd:          Oregon State University – Biagio Capp, Discovery Bay, Calif., and Brandon Peeler, Lake Oswego, Ore., five bass, 14-7, $1,210

3rd:          California State University-Chico – Jack Geist, Davis, Calif., and Austin Crane, Oroville, Calif., five bass, 13-4, $500

4th:           Sonoma State University – Josh Hanna, Danville, Calif., and Tyler Owens, Santa Rosa, Calif., five bass, 11-9, $510

5th:           University of California-Merced – Herbie LeBlanc and Tshu Xiong, both of Merced, Calif., five bass, 10-12, $500

6th:           California State University-Chico – Matthew Pusateri, Grand Terrace, Calif., and Chad Sweitzer, Chico, Calif., five bass, 10-12

7th:           Arizona State University – Ryan Slivkoff, Tempe, Ariz., and Hayden Frey, San Tan Valley, Ariz., five bass, 9-15

8th:           Utah Valley University – Nick Forbush, Heber City, Utah, and Ben Levie, Salem, Utah, five bass, 9-15

9th:           Sonoma State University – B.J. Kendrick, Morgan Hill, Calif., and Brock Trudeau, Lancaster, Calif., five bass, 9-5

10th:        California State University-Chico – Frank Tomasello and Jakob Conlan, both of Chico, Calif., five bass, 8-10

Complete results for the entire field can be found at FLWFishing.com.

The YETI FLW College Fishing event on the California Delta presented by Costa was hosted by Russo’s Marina & Sugar Barge RV Resort. It was the third and final regular-season qualifying tournament for Western Conference anglers in 2018. The next YETI FLW College Fishing event takes place Nov. 3, when Southern Conference anglers compete at the final YETI FLW College Fishing event of the season on Toledo Bend Reservoir presented by Bass Pro Shops, in Many, Louisiana.

YETI FLW College Fishing teams compete in three regular-season qualifying tournaments in one of five conferences – Central, Northern, Southern, Southeastern and Western. The top ten teams from each division’s three regular-season tournaments and the top 20 teams from the annual FLW College Fishing Open will advance to the 2019 FLW College Fishing National Championship, June 4-6 at the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland. Additional teams will qualify for the National Championship if the field size in regular-season events exceeds 100 boats.

YETI FLW College Fishing is free to enter. All participants must be registered, full-time students at a college, university or community college and members of a college fishing club that is recognized by their school.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow YETI FLW College Fishing on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.

About FLW


LEBANON’S ECKLER WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE MUSIC CITY DIVISION FINALE ON OLD HICKORY LAKE

Cookeville’s Sims Grabs Co-angler Title

GALLATIN, Tenn. (Oct. 1, 2018) – Boater Tony Eckler of Lebanon, Tennessee, won the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Music City Division tournament on Old Hickory Lake Sunday with a two-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 28 pounds even. For his win, Eckler took home $4,749.

Eckler primarily flipped green-pumpkin-colored creature baits in 1- to 3-feet of water to catch his fish Saturday. He said he flipped wood and trash piles, fishing both the main-lake and in the creeks in the mid-section of Old Hickory Lake.

“On Sunday I caught a couple of keepers on a (Blue Chrome-colored) Heddon Super Spook at a spot with schooling fish, which was a main-river ledge near the mouth of a creek,” said Eckler. “I also lost a 2-pounder on a Keitech swimbait and a 3-pounder on the Spook – all in the first 15 minutes. I was pretty frustrated.

“After a few slow hours, I caught a 4-pounder on a Texas-rigged (Plum-colored) Zoom Ol’ Monster Worm off of a drop at the same spot they’d been schooling,” said Eckler. “My instincts told me to try dragging something and it worked.”

Eckler said he entered the final hour of the tournament with four fish totaling about 10 pounds. He said he went flipping and switched from green-pumpkin-colored baits to watermelon colors because of the clearer water.

“I caught my fifth fish and culled three times in the last hour and that’s what won me the tournament,” said Eckler. “Even though I’d lost the 2- and 3- pounders early, I didn’t give up.”

Eckler noted that his recently-purchased Nitro Z21 boat and Mercury outboard helped him stay focused on fishing.

“The Nitro and Mercury are a dependable combo. It eases my mind to know that I have good equipment after fishing out of a used boat for several years. I had some issues, but now I don’t have to worry as much and I have a good sense of security.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1st:           Tony Eckler, Lebanon, Tenn., 10 bass, 28-0, $4,749

2nd:         Adam Wagner, Cookeville, Tenn., nine bass, 23-4, $2,465

3rd:          Jason Dies, Lebanon, Tenn., nine bass, 21-10, $1,350

4th:          Joel Trevino, Mt. Juliet, Tenn., nine bass, 19-10, $875

5th:          Rocco Simeri, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 10 bass, 18-12, $1,050

6th:          Lance Oligschlaeger, Gallatin, Tenn., eight bass, 17-12, $687

7th:          Hunter Bouldin, McMinnville, Tenn., seven bass, 16-7, $625

8th:          Josh Tramel, Smithville, Tenn., seven bass, 13-0, $562

9th:          Alex Hester, Crossville, Tenn., six bass, 12-8, $500

10th:        Chris Holland, Winchester, Tenn., seven bass, 11-11, $437

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Wagner caught a bass weighing 3 pounds, 15 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division. The catch earned him the Boater Big Bass award of $390.

J.P. Sims of Cookeville, Tennessee, caught a two-day total of seven bass weighing 11 pounds, 6 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $1,875.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1st:           J.P. Sims, Cookeville, Tenn., seven bass, 11-6, $1,875

2nd:         Robert Russell, Smyrna, Tenn., five bass, 9-13, $1,037

3rd:          Chris O'Bryan, Harned, Ky., four bass, 7-10, $625

4th:          Brian Reed, Cookeville, Tenn., four bass, 7-2, $437

5th:          Brandon Davis, Canton, Ga., four bass, 6-14, $375

6th:          James Davis, Springfield, Tenn., four bass, 5-15, $344

7th:          Darren Kelly, Wartburg, Tenn., two bass, 5-12, $557

8th:          Austin Mitchell, Antioch, Tenn., three bass, 4-14, $281

9th:          Charles Olson, Byrdstown, Tenn., three bass, 4-4, $250

10th:        Chad Hill, Marion, Ill., two bass, 3-12, $219

Kelly caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 4 pounds, 8 ounces – and earned the Co-angler Big Bass award of $195.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 18-20 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Norman in Huntersville, North Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


EVANSVILLE’S SISK WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE HOOSIER DIVISION FINALE ON ROUGH RIVER LAKE

Co-angler Title Goes To Tennyson’s Schmitt

FALLS OF ROUGH, Ky. (Oct. 1, 2018) – Boater Aaron Sisk of Evansville, Indiana, won the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Hoosier Division tournament on Rough River Lake Sunday with a two-day cumulative catch of eight bass weighing 22 pounds, 7 ounces. Sisk took home $4,457 for his catch.

Sisk said he mainly fished in the North Fork area of Rough River Lake, focusing on docks.

“I mainly fished docks on the inside of pockets – close to the main lake – and mixed it up between a ChatterBait and a buzzbait,” said Sisk, who notched his first win BFL competition. “The only areas I focused on were ones that had shade. If I pulled up and it was sunny, I wouldn’t even fish it. I had to plan my day around the sun.

“I probably fished 60 docks a day. I didn’t really sit in one area – I was running and gunning,” Sisk continued. “The biggest key was timing out my day to work with the sun. When the sun was out, I’m sure the fish were suspended out deeper, and once the bank got shady, the fish would move up to feed.”

Sisk said he caught six keepers total Saturday, following it up with another three on Sunday. He used a Green Shad-colored Z-Man/Evergreen Jack Hammer ChatterBait with a White Ice- or Smoking Shad-colored Zoom Super Fluke Jr. For the buzzbait, he preferred a black ½-ounce R&S Baits/Bass Alarm Chatterbuzz with a trailer hook.

“First I’d throw the buzzbait for fish that were likely right near the docks, and then then I’d turn and come back with the ChatterBait for the fish that were suspended 3 or 4 feet down.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1st:           Aaron Sisk, Evansville, Ind., eight bass, 22-7, $4,457

2nd:         Sean Gillenwater, Bloomington, Ind., nine bass, 18-14, $2,228

3rd:          Luke Foli, Fishers, Ind., eight bass, 15-9, $1,420

4th:          Chris Martinkovic, Hamilton, Ohio, 10 bass, 14-5, $993

5th:          Michael Bays, Bellevue, Ky., seven bass, 13-7, $851

6th:          Joshua Brown, Corydon, Ind., six bass, 12-10, $780

7th:          Thomas Foster, Terre Haute, Ind., five bass, 12-9, $709

8th:          Jimmy Shepherd, Indianapolis, Ind., six bass, 12-7, $639

9th:          Jay Ellis, Celina, Ohio, seven bass, 10-9, $568

10th:        Trevor Windgassen, Alexandria, Ky., five bass, 10-0, $969

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Windgassen caught a bass weighing 5 pounds, 6 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division. The catch earned him the Boater Big Bass award of $472.

Robert Schmitt of Tennyson, Indiana, caught a two-day total of eight bass weighing 13 pounds, 5 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $2,329.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1st:           Robert Schmitt, Tennyson, Ind., eight bass, 13-5, $2,329

2nd:         Jeff Hale, New Castle, Ind., nine bass, 11-7, $1,064

3rd:          Dustin Burk, Brookville, Ind., six bass, 9-13, $709

4th:          Chad Ellis, Brownsburg, Ind., four bass, 8-2, $783

5th:          Derek Buchanan, Madison, Ind., six bass, 7-14, $426

6th:          Jeff Turner, Plainfield, Ill., five bass, 7-12, $390

7th:          Tim Knight, Bargersville, Ind., four bass, 5-14, $355

8th:          Nicole Foor, Greens Fork, Ind., four bass, 5-12, $319

9th:          James Rockhill, Anderson, Ind., three bass, 5-1, $284

10th:        Chad Sims, Brownsburg, Ind., four bass, 4-15, $248

Ellis caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 3 pounds, 12 ounces – and earned the Co-angler Big Bass award of $236.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 18-20 BFL Regional Championship on Kentucky Lake in Gilbertsville, Kentucky. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


TEXAN BEEBEE WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE COWBOY DIVISION FINALE ON TOLEDO BEND LAKE

Pineville’s Lewis Grabs Co-angler Title

MANY, La. (Oct. 1, 2018) – Boater Joe Beebee of The Woodlands, Texas, won the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Cowboy Division tournament on Toledo Bend Lake Sunday with a two-day cumulative catch of 10 bass weighing 27 pounds, 14 ounces. For his win, Beebee netted $5,632.

Beebee spent the event fishing in Housen Bayou, focusing on a mile-long stretch of hydrilla, pepper grass and lily pads where they all mixed together.

“I fished in 2 feet of water or less, but there was deep water nearby – that was key,” said Beebee, who earned his first win in BFL competition. “I primarily caught them on two lures – frogs and Texas rigs.”

Beebee used a Black Shadow-colored Strike King KVD Popping Perch to catch the majority of his fish Saturday. He also caught one keeper on a Texas-rigged, green-pumpkin Xcite Baits Hawgalicious.

“On Sunday there were some shad flickering, so I used the same Strike King frog in white and caught a 3½-pounder right off of the bat,” said Beebee. “Soon after that I picked up a (Green Tree-colored Spro Dean Rojas Bronzeye 65) frog and caught a 6-pounder – my biggest of the tournament.”

Beebee said the frog bite subsided following the big catch, so he slowed down and started fishing hydrilla off of the bank. He used the same Texas-rigged Xcite Baits Hawgalicious and finished out his limit, culling once in the process.

“I used a 7-foot, 4-inch extra-heavy Impulse Original Series rod and a Shimano Curado (200XG) reel and they were key for me, especially getting that 6-pounder out of the lily pads.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1st:           Joe Beebee, The Woodlands, Texas, 10 bass, 27-14, $5,632

2nd:         Travis Kelehan, Lafayette, La., 10 bass, 27-1, $2,816

3rd:          Glen Freeman, Zwolle, La., 10 bass, 27-0, $2,077

4th:          Darold Gleason, Many, La., 10 bass, 26-15, $1,414

5th:          Thomas McMillan, Choudrant, La., 10 bass, 25-15, $1,126

6th:          Stephen Reitzell, Colfax, La., 10 bass, 25-5, $1,033

7th:          Kevin Lasyone, Dry Prong, La., seven bass, 24-1, $939

8th:          Derrick Fontenot, Krotz Springs, La., 10 bass, 23-15, $845

9th:          Jame Dubroc, Bunkie, La., nine bass, 23-2, $751

10th:        Nick LeBrun, Bossier City, La., 10 bass, 22-11, $657

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Dwight Abshire of Santa Fe, Texas, caught a bass weighing 6 pounds, 12 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division. The catch earned him the Boater Big Bass award of $735.

Russell Lewis of Pineville, Louisiana, caught a two-day total of seven bass weighing 20 pounds, 3 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $3,183.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1st:           Russell Lewis, Pineville, La., seven bass, 20-3, $3,183

2nd:         Craig Strickland, Lumberton, Texas, eight bass, 18-10, $1,408

3rd:          Randy Pewthers, Pearland, Texas, seven bass, 18-1, $1,141

4th:          Fred Martin, North Little Rock, Ark., eight bass, 17-12, $707

5th:          Bobbie Moore, Temple, Texas, five bass, 16-8, $563

6th:          Lindy Hadley, Sam Rayburn, Texas, six bass  , 16-3, $516

7th:          Douglas Littleton, New Caney, Texas, seven bass, 16-0, $469

8th:          Ben Faucheaux, Natchitoches, La., eight bass, 15-15, $422

9th:          Elbia Ebert, Porter, Texas, five bass  , 14-8, $375

10th:        James Callaghan, De Berry, Texas, seven bass, 13-7, $329

Lewis also caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 6 pounds, 12 ounces – and earned the Co-angler Big Bass award of $367.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 25-27 BFL Regional Championship on Lake of the Ozarks in Osage Beach, Missouri. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.

The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2019 BFL All-American will take place May 30-June 1 on the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at FacebookTwitterInstagramYouTube and Snapchat.


AC Insider Episode 37 - Featuring BASS AOY Champ Justin Lucas and Elite Series Pro Bill Lowen

This week Chris & Jason catch up with 2018 BASS Angler of the Year Justin Lucas and talk about his AOY Victory and his recent announcement to move to Major League Fishing. The boys also welcome Elite Series Pro Bill Lowen to the show to discuss why he chose to forgo the MLF Invitation and remain at BASS moving forward. Both conversation you will not want to miss! Check it out!


 James “Worldwide” Watson Joins Cashion Rods

SANFORD, North Carolina – Cashion Rods is proud to announce their partnership with US Army Veteran, US Bass Team angler and FLW, Major League Fishing professional angler, James Watson.

Cashion Fishing Rods was founded by Dr. Matthew Cashion who received a Ph.D. in chemistry with a concentration in advanced materials from Virginia Tech. Upon graduation his ambition was to combine his knowledge of material science with his passion for fishing. With that combination came the birth of Cashion Fishing Rods. Each rod is designed to be the best fishing rod for each type of fishing. Matthew and his team have an undeniable obsession for fishing and it shows.

 

“Adding James Watson to the Cashion Family from the angler side is a no
brainer but we are most proud to have him represent us with the manner in
which he conducts himself as a veteran and in the benevolence side of his
charity and community service contributions. James is a giver and does not
take for granted his public position as a professional angler.” Dr. Matthew Cashion. President and Founder.

“We are really excited to bring James on board for 2019. His energy and enthusiasm stand out and we feel his ability to connect to anglers on all levels will be key. James takes pride in what he does on and off the water and we feel he will add a lot to the family atmosphere we have created here at Cashion Fishing Rods.  We look forward to his new ideas and input with products will we be introducing early next year!” Paul Benson. Vice President.

Having known James for a while, the first thing we noticed is that he offers all his sponsors is his unbelievable work ethic. James is the first one in and last one out at almost every show we have worked together.  He finds a way to make time for all the folks he represents and even some for companies he just considers friends.  His knowledge base of the business side of the industry is invaluable and he truly understands what it takes to help a company grow and increase sales year over year. James is always a team player and his positivity and leadership style lends to help others in our organization grow and become a better tighter knit family.

 

Cashion Fishing Rods are American made and they stand behind each and every every fishing rod they build.

 

James says, “I had the pleasure of drawing Paul Benson when I won the BASS Open three years ago. We've been friends ever since. Matthew and Paul are great people. Cashion's business model is one that I believe in and want to be involved with. As a professional angler my future direction must be with companies that I have influence and input with.”

 

James Watson, also known as JMFW Worldwide, began his fishing career in 2009 at the back of the boat earning himself a trip to the Forrest Wood Cup. The following year Watson made the move to the front of the boat. Residing in Lampe, Missouri Watson has had a successful journey thus far. As an exceptional leader in the U.S. Army, he quickly established himself and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant First Class. Upon being honorably discharged from the U.S. Army Watson began a real estate career with Realty Executives quickly climbing to the top with over $100 million in residential homes sales. Watson has qualified to fish the Bassmaster Classic, Forrest Wood Cup, PAA Events and the Texas Toyota Bass Classic. Watson was this year’s winner of the FLW Sportsman and Community Leadership Award winner for his philanthropy efforts and support of Shriners Hospital for Children. As a Shriner himself he will continue to support Shriners throughout his fishing career.

 

Watson adds, “I am pumped to join the Cashion Rods team and work closely with some of my aristocrats like Fat Cat Newton.  His two Classic victories in June of 1987 are still unprecedented. I hope that I get his autograph and possibly get some schooling from he and Bobby soon!”