Bassmaster Elite Series pros know St. Lawrence is full of footballs
Courtesy of Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships
As a tight end for the Dixie Hornets in rural South Carolina, 2015 Bassmaster Classic Champ Casey Ashley didn’t get to touch the ball much.
“We ran the wishbone all the time, so my job was to block,” says Ashley. “Every team in the county knew what play we were gonna run next, but the tough part was stopping us.”
After two full days of practice at the 2018 Huk Bassmaster Elite on the St. Lawrence River separating New York and Canada, Casey has already had his hand on several footballs -- big, fat, bronze colored footballs with fins, better known as smallmouth bass.
“I ain’t gonna lie, I’ve already touched a handful of smallies over 4-pounds, and I think a whole bunch of other pros probably have too,” grinned Ashley. “I actually think the fish have gotten bigger on the St. Lawrence since we competed here last summer.”
The Quantum pro had no problem putting his guitar picking paws around a Wilson football on the shores of the Chippewa Bay boat ramp, however, getting ahold of the St. Lawrence’s beefy smallmouth has been far more challenging.
“I’ll put it to you this way, there were a few fish I tried to grab here in practice that were way too strong, and way too thick to get a handle on. You may not catch tons of fish here, but I’ll promise you, when you get a bite, there’s a real good chance it’ll be a ‘football’.”
In much the same way the Dixie Hornets didn’t disguise their offensive tendencies, Ashley doesn’t hide his love of the St. Lawrence River.
“I love this place, because even though I consider here and Lake St. Clair to be the two greatest smallmouth fisheries we compete on, this place also offers some pretty strong largemouth fishing too,” says Ashley.
Last year, Ashley notched a Top 12 here with a mixed bag of smallmouth and largemouth. Now, with four Quantum size 30 spinning reels and nine baitcasting reels on the front deck, it’s obvious he’s sampling a wide range of the diverse habit offerings on this primary shipping channel connecting the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean.
And as for Ashley’s favorite high school football memory from back in 2002… well, that’s pretty clear too. “We beat a team nobody thought we could. They were our archrival, Calhoun Falls, and they had a running quarterback we nicknamed ‘White Shoes’ – man, that sucker was fast,” grinned Ashley, still shaking his head with admiration 16 years later.
Maybe even faster than a 5-pound St. Lawrence “football” screaming drag from a spinning reel on 7-pound test, perhaps.
AC Insider - August 21, 2018 Featuring the 2018 FLW CUP Champ Clent Davis!!
This week the boys are talking with your 2018 FLW Cup Champion Clent Davis from Montevallo, Alabama!
Clent gives us the details on his comeback to the Pro Tour this season and he breaks down how he jumped from 10th to first with authority on the final day to win the 2018 FLW Cup! The Boys also talk derbies, rumor mills and much more! Check it out!
Bonus Bucks Owners tourney returned “Izzy” to his Toyota roots
Courtesy of Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships
Israel “Izzy” Mills grew up near Beckley, WV sensing there might be a better quality of life beyond the coal mines of his home state. So when a job opportunity with the Army Corps of Engineers developed 13 hours away at Lake Ouachita, Arkansas, he set the hook, and now works proudly as a hydroelectrician, helping supply power to many portions of the Southwest.
He also sensed there might be a better brand of truck than what he currently owned after attending his first Toyota Bonus Bucks Owners event at Lake Norman in 2012 as a guest of his fishing buddy Joel, who was already a registered Bonus Bucks member.
“My dad has owned Toyotas since 1982, but I strayed for a number of years and drove other brands,” admits the 41-year-old.
“After a handful of failed transmissions and leaky rear seals, I got mad and started thinking Toyota might be a better option. And right about that same time, I went to that Bonus Bucks event at Lake Norman and saw how incredible Toyota treated all of us anglers, so I traded for a Tundra a few weeks later,” explains Mills, who served America for four years of active service in the U.S. Air Force, and three more years in the Army National Guard.
His satisfaction with his first Tundra was so immediate, he went out and bought a second Tundra for his wife Frankie Jo, and has since traded for a newer 2017 Tundra for himself, and a 2018 Camry for her.
“I love Toyota’s dependability, and I love their towing power. It’s as though a Tundra was born to tow a bass boat,” says Mills, who cashed a number of Toyota Bonus Bucks checks by doing well in the Arkie division of the BFL league, as well as the Arkansas Bass Team Trail.
Not only has the Mills family returned to Izzy’s dad’s longtime loyal roots to Toyota, but they’ve also become consistent competitors in the annual Toyota Bonus Bucks Owners event, ever since “Izzy” first competed as a guest at Lake Norman six years ago.
“This year, I’m bringing my 13-year-old son Jacob to the Bonus Bucks Owners Event at Table Rock in October. He’s just getting into bass fishing, and it will provide him a chance to meet all the Toyota pros he watches on TV, as well as to see how the bigger tournaments I compete in work,” says Mills.
While “Izzy” says many of his favorite days of bass fishing take place in the winter, throwing a heavy jig to deep brushpiles on Lake Ouachita, his son Jacob is pretty fond of a Rat-L-Trap.
On October 28th, the father and son team hopes to do well on Table Rock at the 7thAnnual Toyota Bonus Bucks Owners event, but one thing’s for certain, their loyalty to Toyota is sure to continue running deeper than a West Virginia coal mine.
To register or learn more about Toyota Bonus Bucks and the 7th Annual Toyota Bonus Bucks Owners Tournament on Table Rock Lake in October, visit Toyotafishing.com; call Kendell at (918) 742-6424, or send her an email to [email protected]
ASHLAND’S HATFIELD WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL BUCKEYE DIVISION EVENT AT MOSQUITO LAKE
Bryan’s Vetter Wins Co-angler Title
CORTLAND, Ohio (Aug. 20, 2018) – Boater Steve Hatfield of Ashland, Ohio, brought a five-bass limit to the scale weighing 16 pounds, 15 ounces Saturday to win the 2018 T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Buckeye Division event at Mosquito Lake. Hatfield earned $3,426 for his victory.
According to post-tournament reports, Hatfield caught his fish near the dam, targeting grass lines in 4 to 8 feet of water with a green-pumpkin-colored Rat-L-Trap.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Steve Hatfield, Ashland, Ohio, five bass, 16-15, $3,426
2nd: Sean Wieda, Florence, Ky., five bass, 15-10, $1,713
3rd: Mark Dove, North Vernon, Ind., five bass, 15-4, $1,141
4th: Craig Burwell, North Baltimore, Ohio, five bass, 14-13, $799
5th: Brock Spencer, Waynesfield, Ohio, five bass, 14-7, $685
6th: Mervin Miller, Sugarcreek, Ohio, five bass, 14-2, $1,258
7th: Butch Dobransky, Canton, Ohio, five bass, 13-8, $671
8th: Mike Lockhart, Belpre, Ohio, five bass, 12-13, $514
9th: Kyle Weisenburger, Ottawa, Ohio, five bass, 12-10, $428
9th: Art Bailey, Twinsburg, Ohio, five bass, 12-10, $428
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Miller caught a bass weighing 4 pounds, 12 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – to earn the Boater’s Big Bass award of $430.
Hans Vetter of Bryan, Ohio, won the Co-angler Division Saturday after catching a five-bass limit weighing 14 pounds, 10 ounces. Vetter earned $1,713 for his victory.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Hans Vetter, Bryan, Ohio, five bass, 14-10, $1,713
2nd: Brian Short, Oxford, Ohio, five bass, 11-13, $1,056
3rd: Frank Aldridge, Wheelersburg, Ohio, five bass, 11-10, $621
4th: Brett Warrick, Westerville, Ohio, five bass, 11-9, $400
5th: Jordan Scales, Russells Point, Ohio, five bass, 10-13, $343
6th: Ryan Sykes, Hamilton, Ohio, five bass, 10-9, $314
7th: John Garrett, Orient, Ohio, five bass, 10-6, $271
7th: Darrell Carroll, Independence, Ky., five bass, 10-6, $271
9th: Hunter Fillmore, Waynesville, Ohio, five bass, 10-2, $228
10th: Bill Langille, Kent, Ohio, five bass, 9-14, $200
Billy French of Hamilton, Ohio, earned the Co-Angler Big Bass Award of $107 after bringing a bass weighing 3 pounds, 12 ounces to the scale.
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. 11-13 BFL Regional Championship on the Chesapeake Bay in North East, Maryland. 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. 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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
About FLW
IOWA’S MOHN EARNS WIN AT RESCHEDULED T-H MARINE FLW BFL GREAT LAKES DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON MISSISSIPPI RIVER AT PRAIRIE DU CHIEN
Illinois’ Schultz Earns Co-angler Title in Second Event of BFL Double-Header
PRAIRIE DU CHIEN, Wis. (Aug. 20, 2018) – Boater Dan Mohn of Lansing, Iowa, brought a five-bass limit to the scale weighing 16 pounds, 4 ounces Sunday to win the rescheduled T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Great Lakes Division event on the Mississippi River at Prairie du Chien. The event, originally scheduled for June 23 in Wabasha, Minnesota, was rescheduled to Prairie du Chien due to high water levels and flooding conditions. For the victory, Mohn earned the top prize of $4,235.
“We started off the morning with a 2-hour fog delay, and I really wasn’t sure if that was going to hurt me or not,” said Mohn, who earned his first career victory in FLW competition. “Once we got out on the water I ran to the north end of Pool 10 and caught a couple, then I locked to Pool 9 and ended up filling out my limit.
“I was burning a lot of gas and just covering a lot of water, targeting any sort of cover that created a current break – rocks, eel grass, shells. I’d start out throwing a topwater, walking-type bait, then follow it up with a homemade jig with a Big Bite Baits Yo-Mama Craw.”
Mohn said that he caught 8 to 10 smallmouth bass throughout the day with the topwater and the jig each producing about half of his catch. He said that the color pattern of his jig and craw was crucial to his win, but declined to divulge his secrets with a few tournaments left on the river this season. He credited his equipment setup as being the key to his win.
“I was power-fishing and having to make extremely long casts, so the Denali rods spooled with Sunline line that I was using was the absolute right set up for me,” Mohn said. “I also changed out the hooks on my topwater with Gamakatsu treble hooks and once they bit I was able to keep them buttoned up much better.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Dan Mohn, Lansing, Iowa, five bass, 16-4, $4,235
2nd: Jeff Ritter, Prairie du Chien, Wis., five bass, 15-10, $2,318
3rd: Tom Howland, Riceville, Iowa, five bass, 15-6, $1,413
4th: Jim Caulum, Bangor, Wis., five bass, 15-4, $988
5th: Travis Ellefson, Luck, Wis., five bass, 14-10, $1,437
6th: Caleb Kuphall, Mukwonago, Wis., five bass, 14-4, $876
7th: Glenn Walker, Savage, Minn., five bass, 13-14, $670
7th: Mike Brueggen, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 13-14, $670
9th: Jerry Robackouski, Joliet, Ill., five bass, 13-5, $565
10th: Kyler Chelminiak, Franklin, Wis., five bass, 13-2, $794
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Ellefson caught a bass weighing 5 pounds, 13 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – to earn the Boater’s Big Bass award of $590.
Chad Schultz of Rockton, Illinois, won the Co-angler Division Sunday after catching a five-bass limit weighing 12 pounds even. Schultz earned $2,118 for his victory.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Chad Schultz, Rockton, Ill., five bass, 12-0, $2,118
2nd: Ovidiu Marginean, Des Plaines, Ill., five bass, 11-8, $1,059
3rd: Cody Hackett, Stoddard, Wis., five bass, 11-3, $906
4th: Alexandru Spiac, Chicago, Ill., five bass, 10-7, $494
5th: Greg Tacheny, Harris, Minn., five bass, 10-0, $424
6th: Kevin Anderson, Ettrick, Wis., four bass, 8-14, $353
6th: Brad Juen, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 8-14, $403
6th: Richard Conrad, Burnsville, Minn., five bass, 8-14, $353
9th: Alan Bernicky, Joliet, Ill., four bass, 8-13, $282
10th: Arne Young, Shorewood, Ill., four bass, 8-12, $247
Tom Lyskawka of Arlington Heights, Illinois, earned the Co-Angler Big Bass Award of $295 after bringing a bass weighing 4 pounds, 6 ounces to the scale.
The rescheduled T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Great Lakes Division event on the Mississippi River at Prairie du Chien was hosted by the Prairie du Chien Tourism Council.
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. 11-13 BFL Regional Championship on the Chesapeake Bay in North East, Maryland. 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. 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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
ONALASKA’S RUH WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL GREAT LAKES DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON MISSISSIPPI RIVER AT PRAIRIE DU CHIEN
Illinois’ Duffy Earns Co-angler Title
PRAIRIE DU CHIEN, Wis. (Aug. 20, 2018) – Boater Kevin Ruh of Onalaska, Wisconsin, brought a five-bass limit to the scale weighing 16 pounds, 2 ounces Saturday to win the 2018 T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Great Lakes Division event on the Mississippi River at Prairie du Chien. For the win, Ruh earned the top prize of $5,594.
“I was fishing sand bars, looking specifically for areas that had the right current,” said Ruh, who earned his first career win in FLW competition. “I started out fishing in Pool 9, but locked up to Pool 10. The majority of my weight came from one spot there.”
Ruh said his key bait Saturday was a swing head jig with a green-pumpkin-colored Zoom Brush Hog, but he also caught some keepers dragging a Carolina rig. He estimated that he caught nine keepers throughout the day.
“The fish were grouped up and once I got the school fired up they started biting. Within 20 minutes I had done my damage,” Ruh said. “The fish had been moving throughout the week chasing baitfish, so I knew where they would end up.
“Another big key for me on Saturday was the wind setting up right,” Ruh continued. “The water level was dropping and the current wasn’t flowing as hard, so the wind helped to fire those fish up.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Kevin Ruh, Onalaska, Wis., five bass, 16-2, $5,594
2nd: Mike Brueggen, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 15-6, $2,197
3rd: Dan Mohn, Lansing, Iowa, five bass, 15-4, $1,244
3rd: Yamamoto Baits pro Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 15-4, $1,344
5th: Tom Howland, Riceville, Iowa, five bass, 14-14, $879
6th: Jim Caulum, Bangor, Wis., five bass, 14-13, $805
7th: Jeremiah Shaver, Holmen, Wis., five bass, 14-12, $732
8th: Rick Miller, Eastman, Wis., five bass, 14-8, $659
9th: Mark Myers, Cedar Falls, Iowa, five bass, 14-5, $586
10th: Jeff Ritter, Prairie du Chien, Wis., five bass, 14-4, $513
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Jim Tomsovic of Sparta, Wisconsin, caught a bass weighing 4 pounds, 6 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – to earn the Boater’s Big Bass award of $315.
Dennis Duffy of Westmont, Illinois, won the Co-angler Division Saturday after catching a five-bass limit weighing 12 pounds, 8 ounces. Duffy earned $2,297 for his victory.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Dennis Duffy, Westmont, Ill., five bass, 12-8, $2,297
2nd: Edward Elkins, Pacific, Mo., five bass, 12-6, $1,148
3rd: Michael Taylor, Tipton, Iowa, five bass, 12-1, $733
4th: Zuteus Sevenants, Holmen, Wis., five bass, 11-12, $513
5th: Kevin Reardon, Peoria, Ill., five bass, 11-9, $439
6th: Hector Garcia, Elgin, Ill., five bass, 11-6, $403
7th: Rick Beck, Roscoe, Ill., five bass, 11-3, $366
8th: Jason Swanson, Waterloo, Iowa, five bass, 11-2, $330
9th: K.C. Shaible, Machesney Park, Ill., five bass, 11-1, $274
9th: Ben Rockey, West Bend, Wis., five bass, 11-1, $274
Ron Check of Prairie du Chien earned the Co-Angler Big Bass Award of $315 after bringing a bass weighing 4 pounds, 15 ounces to the scale.
The 2018 T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Great Lakes Division event on the Mississippi River at Prairie du Chien was hosted by the Prairie du Chien Tourism Council.
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. 11-13 BFL Regional Championship on the Chesapeake Bay in North East, Maryland. 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. 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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
Tom Dupuis wins ABA Division 6 Two Day, Rick Holmberg takes AOY
ATHENS, Ala. – Tom Dupuis won the American Fishing Tour presented by American Bass Anglers, Connecticut Division 6 final two-day tournament of the year, held on lakes Zoar and Lillinonah.
Tom caught his limit of bass on both days for a total weight of 22.82 pounds. He led the field on day one and caught the big fish on both days with smallmouth bass. Tom caught all his fish on topwater making the most of the early morning bite. For the victory, he took home $952.00 in cash.
Placing second was Rick Holmberg with a final two-day weight of 21.74-lbs sealing the Anger of Year title. Rick caught his fish on a number of different baits and presentations on both days. He pocketed cash for $400.00.
Taking third was previous Division 6 Director Leon Dykas with a combined two-day weight of 16.01 pounds. Leon caught all his fish by flipping plastics in the deep weed lines and left the ramp $158.00 richer.
This concluded Division 6 tournaments for 2018. For more information about this Division and future events visit www.americanbassanglers.com or contact the local Director for Connecticut, Tom Dupuis at 860-987-7371 or Assistant Director Gary McClarran at 203-578-5012.
These anglers are earning 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 American Fishing Tour National Championship.
The American Fishing Tour offers low cost, close to home bass tournaments that are designed for the weekend angler. All ABA 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. For more information on American Bass Anglers please visit www.americanbassanglers.com or call (256)232-0406.
Bassmaster Elite Series To Return To St. Lawrence River For Smallmouth Slugfest
|
|||
|
Campbellsville’s Ratliff Wins College Bass Shootout With Last-Minute Heroics
|
|||||
|
Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest Tournament To Be Held On Lake Fork
|
|||
|
AC Insider with "Gman" Gerald Swindle
In a new monthly segment brought to you by TH Marine, The boys sit down with "GMan" Gerald Swindle to discuss his 2018 Season, Vacations, Speedo's, Bikini's and Hunting Season.
Ratliff And Minor Will Face Off In College Bracket Battle For Bassmaster Classic Berth
|
|||||
|
College Anglers Go Head-To-Head In Battle For Bassmaster Classic Berth
|
|||||
|
AC Insider Podcast - August 14, 2018 - FLW Cup Recap
The boys are back and recovering from the weekends activities in Arkansas at the FLW Cup.
This week Cup Runner up James Niggemeyer joins the show and talks about his 2nd place finish.
They boys also talk about their Cup experience, a few gripes, a few praises and Jason gets a promotion! Check it out!
The Clent Davis Story - Your 2018 FLW Cup Champ!
Vance McCullough
In a tournament where many of the top performers buzzed the bank with topwaters, Clent Davis went straight to his strengths – deep brush; big worms.
The decision paid off to the tune of $300,000 and a huge, shiny Forrest Wood Cup trophy.
His total 3-day weight was 36 pounds, 13 ounces.
The 2018 Cup played out on a stingy Lake Ouachita during August’s dreaded dog days. Under such circumstances, patience and confidence come into play. As does decision-making.
“We all have our strengths. I have one strength. I’m a really good brush pile fisherman.
“I knew the only way I was going to beat these guys was to fish brush. That was the only thing I was going to do from Day 1.”
Davis had a great teacher early in his angling career. “My first-ever FLW Tour event as a co-angler was on Lake Ouachita. The first day, I drew the man himself, Scott Suggs”.
Suggs, off course won a Cup on Ouachita fishing deep timber during a slow summer bite.
“I got a pretty good lesson. I netted his fish all day and got a pretty good idea of how he did things. I have no clue where we fished. Never will because he ran me in a million circles around this lake, but I understood that Scott Suggs threw a big worm, a swimbait and a topwater and he caught the fire out of ‘em.”
Davis capitalized on his education this week, targeting brush in 22-to-30 feet of water. “Seemed like the deeper the better. I kind of figured that out today.”
“All my big fish were on Mister Twister Mag Worms, plum apple color.” Daivs fished the worm on a half-ounce Nichols Lures swing head weight and 16-lb Yo-Zuri Top Knot fluorocarbon line. He used a 7’7” heavy action rod and a Shimano Currado reel.
If the wind blew, which it seldom did this week, Davis caught fish on a swimbait.
“I had a terrible practice, terrible. First day of practice I caught 2 good ones. That area is where I won the tournament.”
The best decision Davis made occurred long before the first cast of the season. It was simply the decision to fish the 2018 Tour.
“I was done with bass fishing,” said Clent Davis. “I sold everything I had – my boat, all my fishing lures, all the rods I had – everything.”
Why?
“I had taken all the fun out of it. My whole life all I’d done was fish 24/7. That’s fine when you’re a kid but when you do it for a living you’re gone away from your wife year-round, non-stop. When I would get done with my season I would continue to fish in pot tournaments and everything else.
“You just lose the drive."
“You’ve got to have a certain fire to compete against these guys. It’s like anything, going through the motions is a bad deal. You’ve got to take a break every now and then and I never had, my whole life.
That happened in November. By the time he rang-in the new year, a fire had built inside of Davis. When FLW Tour tournament director Bill Taylor called to ask what his intentions were, Davis decided to go fishing.
“Honestly, all year I’ve been excited. No matter how tough, how bad, I’ve had fun.”
His new attitude carried him into a Cup tourney that, mentally, beat down many of his peers.
“I just went out and had fun. I think everybody did. This is the Cup.
“There’s no pressure unless you put the pressure on yourself.
“There is none. I fish to make a living to feed my family and I knew I was getting paid today. I was just going to have fun.”
ALABAMA’S CLENT DAVIS WINS PROFESSIONAL BASS FISHING’S 2018 FORREST WOOD CUP
2012 FLW Rookie of the Year Weighs Largest Limit in Forrest Wood Cup to Clinch First FLW Tour Victory
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (Aug. 12, 2018) – FLW Tour pro Clent Davis of Montevallo, Alabama, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Sunday weighing 17 pounds, 13 ounces – the heaviest limit weighed in the three-day event – to earn the win at the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Ouachita. Over three days, Davis amassed 15 fish totaling 36 pounds, 13 ounces to edge out second-place angler Cabela’s/Bass Pro Shops pro James Niggemeyer of Van, Texas, by 7 pounds, 4 ounces and win the $300,000 top cash prize. The tournament featured 56 of the top bass-fishing anglers in the world competing for professional bass-fishing’s world championship.
“I don’t believe that I just won this,” said Davis, a former FLW College Fishing standout for the University of Montevallo. “I almost walked away from professional bass fishing last year. I was burned out on fishing. I sold all of my gear – my boat, all of my rods, my reels, every piece of equipment that I had. It wasn’t from failure, it was because I was burned out.
“(FLW Tour Senior Tournament Director) Bill Taylor called me in November and asked me if I was interested in rejoining the Tour,” Davis continued. “I decided to pay my deposits, but I was still on the fence. I decided that if I wasn’t fired up to go fishing by the time the season started, I would forfeit my deposits and go to work at the power company. But, I started getting the itch back around Christmas time and I decided I was going to get back out and just have fun, again. That’s what fishing is all about, it’s supposed to be fun.”
Davis’ decision to rejoin the Tour was definitely the correct one, as the Montevallo-native went on to finish the season ranked No. 25 in the Angler of the Year race – his best finish on Tour since his rookie season. He cashed checks totaling more than $62,000 in seven events and qualified for his third Forrest Wood Cup appearance.
“I knew that the only way that I was going to win this week was fishing brush piles,” Davis said. “There are so many ways to catch fish on this lake, but if it was going to happen for me it was going to be offshore, fishing out of the brush.
“My key bait that I caught all of my big ones on was a 12-inch, plum-colored Mister Twister Mag Buzz Worm. I was fishing anywhere from 22 to 30 feet deep throughout the week. The best anglers in the world were in this tournament and I knew that my only shot was fishing my strengths.
“I fished awful all week, losing fish, but I caught enough to squeak into the top-10 by 1 ounce,” Davis said. “I’m not supposed to win coming out in 10th place, so I went out today and just had fun. I had an incredible day on the water today and finally got lucky, catching my 5-pound kicker. I guess it was just my time.”
The top 10 pros at the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Ouachita finished:
1st: Clent Davis, Montevallo, Ala., 15 bass, 36-13, $300,000
2nd: Cabela’s/Bass Pro Shops pro James Niggemeyer, Van, Texas, 14 bass, 29-9, $60,000
3rd: Berkley pro Justin Atkins, Florence, Ala., 15 bass, 28-12, $50,000
4th: Nick LeBrun, Bossier City, La., 12 bass, 28-6, $37,500
5th: Jason Lambert, Michie, Tenn., 15 bass, 27-15, $30,000
6th: Zack Birge, Blanchard, Okla., 15 bass, 26-13, $24,000
7th: Wes Logan, Springville, Ala., 11 bass, 25-9, $23,000
8th: John Cox, DeBary, Fla., 13 bass, 24-7, $22,000
9th: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., 12 bass, 23-1, $21,000
10th: Bradford Beavers, Summerville, S.C., nine bass, 20-8, $20,000
Full results for the entire field can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Overall there were 36 bass weighing 67 pounds, 9 ounces caught by pros Sunday. Five of the final 10 anglers weighed in five-bass limits.
The 2018 Forrest Wood Cup at Lake Ouachita in Hot Springs, Arkansas, was hosted by the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism and Visit Hot Springs. Total attendance for the three-day event was 66,293 fishing fans. The Bank OZK Arena was at 100-percent capacity, Sunday, and an overflow of fans watched the Justin Moore concert and final weigh-ins on a big screen at the Hot Springs Convention Center.
FLW, in conjunction with Visit Hot Springs and the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, announced Saturday that for the first time in the 24-year history of the FLW Tour, Lake Ouachita and Hot Springs, Arkansas, will also be hosting the 2019 FLW Cup, the world championship of bass fishing – Aug. 11-13, 2019 – for the second consecutive year. This event will mark the fifth time that the FLW Cup, the sport’s richest prize, has visited Lake Ouachita.
Television coverage of the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) Sept. 27 from Noon -1 p.m. EDT. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show airs on NBCSN and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.
For a full schedule of events, complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.
FLW Cup Day 2 Report - "Always Listen to the Voices in your head"
Vance McCullough
Always listen to the voice in your head.
It’s there, just below the surface. And it is seldom wrong.
“Something just told me to get in the rod box, get my frog rod out, cut the frog off and tie on a Whopper Plopper,” said Nick LeBrun. “I’m like ‘why did I do that?’. I kept fishing for a minute or two and then that five-pounder came up chasing. I fired over there and she smoked it.
“That was just a sign from God.
“He wanted me to be ready when that fish came up and I was ready. It was one of the most amazing moments of my career.
“It’s all about decisions.”
That decision moved LeBrun into 2ndplace, a pound and two ounces behind the new leader, Wes Logan, heading into Championship Sunday. All this even though LeBrun only weighed 3 of a possible 5 fish today. He had only 4 bites.
That’s how tough the bite is on Lake Ouachita whose beauty is exceeded only by her stinginess this week.
With one life-changing day left to fish, Logan has figured out the bite better than anybody else. He has cobbled together a 2-day total weight of 23 pounds, 13 ounces.
“I had a pretty good day, caught about 10 or 12 fish and, like yesterday, the bite turned on about 1 o’clock,” noted Logan. “I just made my little milk run, got a few bites here and a few bites there. I’m fishing offshore, not necessarily brush – some of them are drops, some of them are hard spots, there’s a little brush involved, but it’s mainly just offshore.”
Spectator crowd management is always a concern at big tournaments. The young pro understand how to compensate. “I had a crowd follow me today and I realized I had to stop really short of where I wanted to go and idle in to fish.
“I’m going to go fishing tomorrow and see what happens.”
The first competition day brought fog and low clouds that hung in for hours. The shallow bite dominated. Day 2 gave way to clearing skies and bright sunshine early in the morning. Consequently, the guys who were dialed into the deep bite made up some valuable ground. The bank-beaters reported that their topwater fish were often less enthusiastic. And the topwater bite is a major component of most shallow game plans this week.
James Niggemeyer made the most of the shallow bite. With just 4 fish today he placed 3rdon the current leaderboard with a total weight of 20-14. “You make the championship, you’ve got to do something that you’re confident doing. There was a deep bite and a shallow bite. I went for the shallow bite because when you’re pushing through hours of not getting a bite you need to be doing something you can stay confident in, even though you’re not catching any fish, so shallow is where I needed to go. I’m power fishing real shallow.
“Tomorrow I will hit them as hard as I can with both barrels because there’s only tomorrow. I’ll hit them as hard as I can.”
Zack Birge caught half his first day weight. It was enough to secure a berth into Sunday’s championship round. He’s 4thwith 20-6. “It was a grind all day. My schooling fish didn’t school this morning.”
When his secondary pattern failed to produce, Birge made a move. “I ran all the way across the lake to another area where I knew there was a bunch of keepers. I stayed in there an hour-and-a-half and I never got a bite.
“As I was running back down the lake I thought ‘I need to go hit new water – new stuff that looks good to me’. I hit like, 15 new pockets and the first 4 I pulled into I caught a keeper.”
Birge says he will fish all new water again on Sunday.
Jason lambert is 5thwith back-to-back limits of bass that weigh a combined 20-3.
John Cox was another pro who made the cut without a pair of limits. His 4-fish, 8 pound, 11 ounce effort today pushed his total weight to 19-14, good for 6thplace.
Cox is a dangerous man because he is on bigger than average bass. He knows, because he sees them wolf-packing in the shallows. “The first day, a lot of the bigger fish would hit, even though they’d come off, but today the smaller fish would get it.
“I’m just taking the Crestliner down the bank at 100 miles per hour and I’m throwing all the new Berkley topwaters. I’ve been throwing the J-Walker and covering tons of water.
“You lose confidence in something because you go hours without a bite and then you run into some and then you catch them.”
Stay tuned because, as Cox summed up, “anybody in the Top 10 can win tomorrow!”
ROOKIE LOGAN TAKES LEAD ON DAY TWO OF PROFESSIONAL BASS FISHING’S FORREST WOOD CUP
Day One leader Nick LeBrun Just 1 Pound Back
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (Aug. 11, 2018) – Fifty-six of the best professional bass anglers in the world continued their three-day competition for a top cash award of $300,000 at the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of bass fishing, at Lake Ouachita in Hot Springs, Arkansas on Saturday.
After the last fish had been brought to the scale, FLW Tour rookie Wes Logan of Springville, Alabama, grabbed the lead by weighing in a five-bass limit totaling 12 pounds, 4 ounces – the heaviest limit of the day. Logan’s two-day total of 10 bass weighing 23-13 give him a 1-pound, 2-ounce lead heading into the third and final day, with the 2018 BFL All-American Champion Nick LeBrun of Bossier City, Louisiana, right behind him in second place with eight bass weighing 22-11.
“I hit probably 50 spots today running around, and I burned a lot of gas,” said Logan, whose previous best finish on the FLW Tour was a 12th-place showing on Lake St. Clair this past June. “I’ve got two places that I caught multiple fish off of, but I’m just hitting a bunch of stuff and covering water. I got one good bite yesterday – a 4¼-pounder – that gave me most of my weight yesterday, but today I had one 3-pounder and the rest were just solid fish. I’ve caught around 10 keepers both days.”
Although he declined to divulge his baits of choice, Logan did mention that he was catching fish on four different baits. He joked that he is fishing very similarly to how he did at Lake St. Clair, saying that he is using the exact same rod and reel setup.
“I thought that the brush piles would be more in play due to the weather, but it’s not really playing out like I thought it would,” Logan said. “The fish are setting up more in like drops and hard ledges – the kind of off-the-wall places that get overlooked.
“I’m extremely excited to be leading this thing, but obviously you want to be leading after the third day and not Day Two. I’m going to just go fish tomorrow and pretend like I’m in 10th place and try really hard not to think about it. After takeoff tomorrow I’m going to run north and whatever I run by first that says stop, I’m going to fish it. Hopefully I’ll have a premonition or something. That’s how I’ve been fishing all week – listening to my gut.”
The top 10 pros that advanced to the final day of competition on Lake Ouachita are:
1st: Wes Logan, Springville, Ala., 10 bass, 23-13
2nd: Nick LeBrun, Bossier City, La., eight bass, 22-11
3rd: Cabela’s/Bass Pro Shops pro James Niggemeyer, Van, Texas, nine bass, 20-14
4th: Zack Birge, Blanchard, Okla., 10 bass, 20-6
5th: Jason Lambert, Michie, Tenn., 10 bass, 20-3
6th: John Cox, DeBary, Fla., nine bass, 19-14
7th: Bradford Beavers, Summerville, S.C., eight bass, 19-5
8th: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., 10 bass, 19-2
9th: Berkley pro Justin Atkins, Florence, Ala., 10 bass, 19-0
10th: Clent Davis, Montevallo, Ala., 10 bass, 19-0
Full results for the entire field can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Anglers will take off from Brady Mountain Resort & Marina, located at 4120 Brady Mountain Road in Royal, Arkansas, at 7 a.m. CDT each morning. Each day’s weigh-in will be held at the Bank OZK Arena located at 134 Convention Blvd., in Hot Springs, beginning at 5 p.m.
Fans will be treated to the FLW Expo at the Hot Springs Convention Center located at 134 Convention Blvd., in Hot Springs, Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. prior to the final weigh-in. The Expo includes games, activities and giveaways provided by more than 40 FLW sponsors, the opportunity to shop the latest tackle and outdoor gear from more than 100 exhibitors, Ranger boat simulators, a casting pond and a trout pond for children, as well as the opportunity to meet and interact with top professional anglers, including Hank Parker, Jimmy Houston, and Larry Nixon. FLW’s namesake Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, will also be greeting fans.
On Sunday the first 250 children 14 and under each day who are accompanied by an adult will receive a voucher to redeem for a free rod-and-reel combo after the evening’s weigh-in from Shakespeare rods. Also on Sunday, one lucky fishing fan will win a brand new Ranger Z521L bass boat with a 250-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard motor. The Ranger Boat giveaway is free to enter but the winner must be present at the conclusion of Sunday’s final weigh-in to win.
Also on Sunday, FLW fans will be treated to the Bass & BBQ Festival in conjunction with the FLW Expo. FLW has partnered with local BBQ vendors to feature award-winning BBQ teams offering delicious fare to visitors at the Forrest Wood Cup Expo. A portion of all proceeds will be donated to local Arkansas charities.
Country music superstar Justin Moore will perform a free concert on the weigh-in stage at the Bank OZK Arena on Sunday, Aug. 12, starting at 4 p.m., prior to the final weigh-in. The concert is presented by Realtree and KSSN 96. Moore will be performing songs from his latest album, Kinda Don’t Care, to fishing fans in Arkansas as well as live-streamed to fans around the globe at FLWFishing.com.
The Morning Takeoff, FLW Expo, Bass & BBQ event, live concert and weigh-ins are all free and open to the public.
Television coverage of the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) Sept. 27 from Noon -1 p.m. EDT. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show airs on NBCSNvand the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.
For a full schedule of events, complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.
2019 FORREST WOOD CUP TO RETURN TO LAKE OUACHITA, HOT SPRINGS
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (Aug. 11, 2018) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW), in conjunction with Visit Hot Springs and the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, announced Saturday that the 2019 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing, will return to Hot Springs and Lake Ouachita Aug. 9-11, 2019. Hot Springs and Lake Ouachita, currently hosting the 2018 FLW Cup, will become the first venue to host back-to-back Cups in the 24-year history of the FLW Tour.
The 2019 FLW Cup will mark the sixth time the central Arkansas area has hosted the sport’s most prestigious championship – one on Lake Hamilton (2005) and four on Lake Ouachita (2007, 2011, 2015 and 2018). The 2019 FLW Cup will feature the most decorated anglers from across five tournament circuits – the FLW Tour, Costa FLW Series, T-H Marine Bass Fishing League, YETI FLW College Fishing and The Bass Federation.
“Hot Springs and FLW have established a great relationship in the 20 years that we have hosted their great events, and we are thrilled and grateful that the FLW Cup is returning to our city,” said Steve Arrison, CEO of Visit Hot Springs. “FLW not only does the best job in the world at putting on a family-friendly event that literally has something for everyone, but it also does a tremendous job of highlighting the great fishing, great attractions and great facilities we have here in Hot Springs. Our entire community always benefits when FLW comes to town — not only economically and publicity-wise, but also from a great, wholesome time for our residents and visitors alike. We can’t wait to welcome them back again.”
In addition to international media coverage, the FLW Cup will again bring the three-day FLW Expo to the Hot Springs Convention Center. Hundreds of exhibitors will be on-site to showcase the latest and greatest gear and products along with games and giveaways for the entire family. Following the Expo, fans are only steps away from Bank OZK Arena where the top anglers from around the world will show off Lake Ouachita largemouth bass.
“The FLW Cup is an incredibly special event where we celebrate our anglers’ achievements both on and off the water alongside the biggest names in the outdoor industry. It requires the right kind of facilities and a community dedicated to the outdoors, and Hot Springs offers up both and more,” said Kathy Fennel, FLW President of Operations. “The central Arkansas region has a storied bass-fishing history and has long been a destination for outdoor enthusiasts. We’re excited to continue showcasing it on the international stage.”
Television coverage of the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) Sept. 27 from Noon -1 p.m. EDT. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show airs on NBCSN and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.
For the latest FLW Cup news, visit FLWFishing.com.
FLW Day 1 Report - Davis "In Shock"
Vance McCullough / Photos: Chris Brown-AnglersChannel
“It’s kind of a shock,” said Alex Davis as the Day 1 weigh wound down and he realized he held the lead at the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup.
“I thought I had 11 pounds. I had 13 and I’m in the lead so it was a shocker to me. I’m feeling pretty good right now.”
Given that the cup is a 3-day affair instead of the 4-day grind that it was last time the Cup was contested on Ouachita, Davis should feel good. An early lead could go a long way toward the $300,000 paycheck and huge trophy someone will claim, along with the title of world champion Sunday afternoon.
Then again, his lead is a slim one as he has13 pounds, 10 ounces to Nick Lebrun’s 13-5.
Zack Birge is close behind with 13-1. Cory Johnston holds down 4thplace with 12-8 and James Niggemeyer is 5thwith 12-2.
Davis says, “I winged it. At 11:45 I had one, so I just started running new stuff; running new areas and new techniques.” Davis is mixing shallow and deep spots into the rotation and will adjust as need be tomorrow, depending on weather and other factors.
Davis will do what it takes to win. “The way I’m fishing is the way I hate to fish. I’m comfortable enough doing it, I just don’t want to do what I’m going to have to do again tomorrow.”
Zack Birge “got lucky” today. “Initial plan went right, got 5 keepers out of the schooling fish and I got a bonus fish, two-and-half-pounds, off the bank adjacent to my schooling area this morning because it was so foggy.
“I finished my limit there by 9:30-ish. I spent the rest of the day in my better fish area. I saw 15 pounds of fish come up and attempt to eat it, but they didn’t.
“Tomorrow’s a new day. Maybe those fish will eat.”
Birge is hoping they’ll eat a small lure that he says matches the baitfish perfectly. Precision casting is important and Birge is dialed into the quality bite. “You have to hit them on the head or they won’t eat it.
“There are balls of bait coming up but the fish that are eating the balls of bait aren’t really the better fish. I’m looking for ones that are chasing the individual shad. If you pay attention, if you’re looking at them you’ll see them come out and they’ll jump two or three times. I like to call it leading them like I’m leading a bird if I’m trying to shoot it. If you cast out in front of them just a few feet and then work your bait real fast, chances are, you’ll get them to eat.
“If you throw to where you see that shad, that fish is already going to be gone by the time your bait hits the water.”
Admittedly, the technique yields few opportunities but Birge believes he can wring 5 bites per day out of a stingy Lake Ouachita in this fashion.
Niggemeyer made something out of practically nothing. “Very tough practice. I only got a couple of bites
around the lake. An area where I caught just 2 fish in practice ended up being the primary area for me.”
Not that the area turned out to be a fish factory, but Niggemeyer executed at a high level. “I got 6 bites. I boated them all.
“Obviously, the big fish today was a big part of my 12-2. I had a 4-plus-pounder. That was a gift from the Lord. I was actually not even looking, I was looking where I was going to make my next cast, and all of a sudden he just ate it and I managed to get him in the boat. That was a huge blessing.”
If anything became clear at the Day 1 weigh in it is that the deep bite is inconsistent at best and it has provided mostly anorexic fish. This tournament will require consistency along with a big bite or two along the way.
For that reason, the shallow guys fared well during the opening round.
Justin Atkins holds 10thplace with exactly 10 pounds. The weights drop by tiny increments as we move down the leaderboard. Most anybody can catch up fast on Day 2, especially if they find a couple of big fish.
Then again, that’s been much easier to say than actually do so far.
ALABAMA’S DAVIS GRABS LEAD ON DAY ONE OF PROFESSIONAL BASS FISHING’S FORREST WOOD CUP
BFL All-American Champion LeBrun just 5 Ounces Behind in Second Place
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (Aug. 10, 2018) – The world’s best bass anglers launched on Lake Ouachita in Hot Springs, Arkansas, Friday to kick off the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing. The three-day event, which awards a $300,000 top prize to the winner, featured a full field of 56 anglers competing today and Saturday before being cut to the final 10 on Championship Sunday.
Six-year FLW Tour veteran Alex Davis of Albertville, Alabama, who is fishing in his first career Forrest Wood Cup Championship, jumped out to the early lead after weighing in a five-bass limit totaling 13 pounds, 10 ounces. Davis’ limit was enough to narrowly edge the 2018 BFL All-American Champion Nick LeBrun of Bossier City, Louisiana (13-5), and pretournament pundit favorite Zack Birge of Blanchard, Oklahoma (13-1) for the early lead.
“Today was one of, if not the, most challenging day mentally that I’ve ever had in my career,” said Davis, who has four previous top-10 finishes in FLW Tour competition. “At noon today I had one fish in the livewell that weighed 1 pound. I had missed seven blowups on my topwater bait and I lost three bites fishing a worm. My best place that I thought I had I only caught one fish. Luckily, things turned around for me this afternoon.
“I moved out of my ‘best’ area and fished some new water and managed to catch three, which put me at four fish. On the way back to check in I decided to stop at the one brush pile that I knew of that was close to the ramp. I literally pulled up, made one cast, hooked my last keeper, got him in the boat and said ‘let’s go’. It was either my biggest or second-biggest fish of the day.”
Davis said he caught his fish Friday on three different baits, specifically mentioning a drop-shot rig and a Zara Spook, but declining to mention his third bait that he said was ‘different’.
“I thought I had 11 pounds, so when Chris Jones said I was the new leader I was blown away,” Davis said. “This lake is not a specific spot or specific cast kind of deal. It’s about being in the right place at the right time and hoping the stars line up.
“I was nervous this morning due to the Cup atmosphere, but I settled down once I got out fishing,” Davis went on to say. “I’m going to try my best to not think about being in the lead. I know it’s crazy to say, but if I think about it I’ll drive myself crazy. Tomorrow I’m going fishing, just like I did today. If I can catch one or two good ones, it will really go a long way.”
The top 20 pros after Day One on Lake Ouachita are:
1st: Alex Davis, Albertville, Ala., five bass, 13-10
2nd: Nick LeBrun, Bossier City, La., five bass, 13-5
3rd: Zack Birge, Blanchard, Okla., five bass, 13-1
4th: Power-Pole pro Cory Johnston, Cavan, Ontario, Canada, five bass, 12-8
5th: Cabela’s/Bass Pro Shops pro James Niggemeyer, Van, Texas, five bass, 12-2
6th: Wes Logan, Springville, Ala., five bass, 11-9
7th: Bradford Beavers, Summerville, S.C., three bass, 11-6
8th: John Cox, DeBary, Fla., five bass, 11-3
9th: Jason Lambert, Michie, Tenn., five bass, 10-0
10th: Berkley pro Justin Atkins, Florence, Ala., five bass, 9-14
11th: Sheldon Collings, Grove, Okla., five bass, 9-10
12th: Austin Wilson, Citrus Heights, Calif., five bass, 9-8
12th: Clent Davis, Montevallo, Ala., five bass, 9-8
14th: Polaris pro David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., five bass, 9-3
15th: Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., five bass, 9-0
16th: Scott Martin, Clewiston, Fla., five bass, 8-12
17th: Matt Becker, Finleyville, Pa., five bass, 8-7
17th: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., five bass, 8-7
19th: Cody Hahner, Wausau, Wis., two bass, 8-4
20th: Chad Foster, Pequot Lakes, Minn., five bass, 8-2
For a full list of results visit FLWFishing.com.
Anglers will take off from Brady Mountain Resort & Marina, located at 4120 Brady Mountain Road in Royal, Arkansas, at 7 a.m. CDT each morning. Each day’s weigh-in will be held at the Bank OZK Arena located at 134 Convention Blvd., in Hot Springs, beginning at 5 p.m.
Fans will be treated to the FLW Expo at the Hot Springs Convention Center located at 134 Convention Blvd., in Hot Springs, each day from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. prior to the weigh-ins. The Expo includes games, activities and giveaways provided by more than 40 FLW sponsors, the opportunity to shop the latest tackle and outdoor gear from more than 100 exhibitors, Ranger boat simulators, a casting pond and a trout pond for children, as well as the opportunity to meet and interact with top professional anglers, including Hank Parker, Jimmy Houston, and Larry Nixon. FLW’s namesake Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, will also be greeting fans.
On Saturday and Sunday the first 250 children 14 and under each day who are accompanied by an adult will receive a voucher to redeem for a free rod-and-reel combo after the evening’s weigh-in from Shakespeare rods. Also on Sunday, one lucky fishing fan will win a brand new Ranger Z521L bass boat with a 250-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard motor. The Ranger Boat giveaway is free to enter but the winner must be present at the conclusion of Sunday’s final weigh-in to win.
Also on Saturday and Sunday, FLW fans will be treated to the Bass & BBQ Festival in conjunction with the FLW Expo. FLW has partnered with local BBQ vendors to feature award-winning BBQ teams offering delicious fare to visitors at the Forrest Wood Cup Expo. A portion of all proceeds will be donated to local Arkansas charities.
Country music superstar Justin Moore will perform a free concert on the weigh-in stage at the Bank OZK Arena on Sunday, Aug. 12, starting at 4 p.m., prior to the final weigh-in. The concert is presented by Realtree and KSSN 96. Moore will be performing songs from his latest album, Kinda Don’t Care, to fishing fans in Arkansas as well as live-streamed to fans around the globe at FLWFishing.com.
The Morning Takeoff, FLW Expo, Bass & BBQ event, live concert and weigh-ins are all free and open to the public.
Television coverage of the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) Sept. 27 from Noon -1 p.m. EDT. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show airs on NBCSN, the Pursuit Channel and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.
For a full schedule of events, complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.
FLW Cup Day 1 - Morning Blog
Vance McCullough
Just got in off the water here on gorgeous Lake Ouachita near Hot Springs, AR, site of the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup.
Ouachita was also the site of the 2015 Cup which Brad Knight won. Unfortunately, Knight did not qualify for the Cup this year. The good news is, GREAT news for you and me, is he has agreed to be a special guest host for AnglersChannel.com and the Progressive Bass Wrap Up TV Show. It’s like having a Super Bowl Champion as a sideline commentator at the big game.
A wealth of knowledge and insight, Knight said, “There are three patterns that are going to dominate here this week. Deep brush piles are one option. Or, a guy can go down the bank with something like a topwater and catch a fish every now and then, hoping one of them will weigh 4 pounds.”
The third option looks like bass fishing’s version of Whack-a-Mole. “These guys are waiting for schoolers to blow up here where this creek narrows down and the current funnels bait through here,” said Knight, pointing out a few boats stacked along the shadow of a steep hill that ran up to greet the morning sun as it finally baked away a heavy fog that had hung over the lake the first couple of hours of the day.
“It’s hard to just stand there and not cast,” said Knight, “but you can’t afford to have your lure way over there when a fish breaks the surface on the other side of the boat. You have to put it on their head right now before they go back down. So you have to be patient and wait them out.”
The school-chasers soon dispersed as the sun climbed higher. As they left the creek, Knight idled further in to do a postmortem on the scene of his greatest heist. “That’s a $500,000 tree right there,” noted Knight.
The long pine lay in 4 feet of semi-clear water. The branches at its top formed a wooden labyrinth that could hide a week’s worth of 5-fish limits. But just beneath the surface 20 yards away was the key. “See that root ball? That’s what the fish were using when I won it here. I fished behind guys who didn’t know there were 4 or 5 bass in some of these root wads, using them like a little brush pile in shallow water.”
As we idled back out Knight nodded to a barren bank. “I flat put it on them there along that ugly stretch. Sixteen pounds worth.”
The return to Ouachita has brought back strong memories for Knight. “I just had no idea when I came down these roads, backed my boat in, how my life was about to change.”
Stay with us this week we watch another angler’s life change forever.
FLW Cup Preview - Who's Catching & Who's Sandbagging....
Vance McCullough
The 2018 Forrest Wood Cup may be remembered as a war of attrition.
“Whoever said ‘the grass is back’ told a lie,” says Bryan Thrift.
Despite rumors that ‘the grass is back’ on Lake Ouachita, anglers are mostly unimpressed with the vegetation and even less impressed with the fish, or lack thereof, in it.
Brandon Cobb notes, “Everybody talks about there being more grass than last time. I caught a lot of my fish out of grass last time, either schooling or running the bank around the grass, and I see less grass, or at least less quality grass. There might be more grass in more areas, but it just doesn’t look as good. To me. It’s irrelevant.”
Andy Morgan concurs, “I don’t think the grass is that big of a factor. Me and Thrift were talking and I think the grass is worse than it’s ever been. I heard it was back and I was looking forward to that – come out here and have a grass tournament, but that ain’t happening.”
Practice was slow enough to be practically worthless to some pros.
Thrift says, “It’s been a lot tougher than what I’m used to here. I was kind of surprised at that, a little frustrated, but we’ve had a weather change. I’m going to go out there and act like it’s the first day I’ve been on Ouachita this year, throw practice out the window and see what happens.”
The biggest problem says Thrift, is finding any type of consistency. “It’s very scattered. The bites are random. They’re few and far between. Seems to be no pattern. You catch one on the bank, one out in timber, one schooling, one out of a brush pile. It’s summertime fishing 101.”
Thrift continues, “I usually have an idea what to do to catch 5 keepers and I know what to do to catch a big one, but this time I don’t have that limit spot so I’m just going to be hoping, flailing for a bite.”
Mark Rose hasn’t spent much time in the greenery. “There’s some grass – some pretty grass. I just, personally, haven’t caught a lot of fish out of the grass. That is going to be the X-factor of a guy weighing in some big bags every day. It’s his for taking if he does because I don’t think there will be but one guy fishing it, if it happens at all. I look forward to it being a typical tough Ouachita tournament.”
Rose spent a day trying to find fish stacked up on the deep edge where grass quits growing, about 17 feet deep. “That’s what I concentrated on one day of practice – tried to fish the edges – and couldn’t get it going.”
Brandon McMillan is a noted grass specialist. He is not counting on the salad to feed the bulldog this week. “I found just a few patches of grass and they were no good. They looked nice on the graph, but when I dropped a jig on them it came back clean. The grass is sparse.”
Morgan says a guy may not even need a limit each day. “You’re going to see people make the cut the with 3 and 4 fish a day. They’re going to be good ones, but I think you’re going to see that. It’s kind of a crap shoot.”
Morgan says to look for worms and topwaters of all kinds to play heavy roles this week.
“You’re going to have to put it together hodge podge and hope it works out. You don’t have to have a limit to do well here,” reminds Morgan.
According to Brandon Cobb, the biggest problem is simply that the fish aren’t actively feeding. “There’s a severe lack of schooling fish. The fish are not schooling at all. And I think a lot of the weights we saw last time (the Cup was contested on Ouachita) were schooling fish. I know half the fish I caught were schooling fish.”
Cobb notes that schooling activity can turn on overnight. “We had a bunch of rain today which probably cooled the water down, so they could start schooling, but I think it’s tougher than last time.”
Of course, such conditions are to be expected at the Cup, a late summer test of the best. “At a tough tournament, the best anglers in the world will shine,” notes Rose. “Any time you’re fishing in August it’s going to be tough, especially in the central part of the United States. Maybe up north it would be all right. Ouachita is a great lake, like most lakes though, in the middle of the summer time it’s going to be a little bit tough. Weights will be down. A lot of these fish suspend out in the middle of this timber all throughout the summer and get down where the water is just a little bit cooler. In the fall it will turn back on again and it’s a good lake in the spring. We’re just catching it at a tough time.”
The consensus among top pros on the eve of the first competition round is that the deep bite might delver the win. Cobb says, “I think more fish will be caught deep this time. Unless they start schooling, which could happen off shore, but I’ll probably spend a lot of my time up shallow but that’s because I feel like if I, personally, have a chance to win it will be up shallow. But I feel like there are more fish deep.”
Weight predictions: Rose thinks it will take about 13 pounds per day. “There’ll be some 14, to maybe 17 or 18-pound bags weighed in, but it will be tough to duplicate. A guy that consistently brings in that 12-to-14 pounds every day, he’ll be right there at the end, I feel like.”
Cobb is looking for even less. “I would be happy with an 11-to-12-pound bag. I mean that would be, real good. That would keep you in contention to win, not make the cut – I think.”
McMillan is in the 12-pounds-per-day camp.
Bryan Thrift, “I’m thinking it’s going to be 13 or 14 pounds per day like it always is down here. It seems to be fishing a little tougher than the other 3 times I’ve fished the Cup on Ouachita.”
Andy Morgan agrees, “I think if you catch 13 pounds a day you’re going to scare it to death.”
Simms Introduces New River Camo!
Courtesy Simms / FTR
Bozeman, Mont. – Simms Fishing Products draws a line in the sand to reinforce their position as the leading authority in technical fishing gear and apparel.
Fishing Products draws a line in the sand to reinforce their position as the leading authority in technical fishing gear and apparel.
Partnering with expert camo developers at Veil Camo, Simms created a camo that fish can’t see, allowing anglers to get one step closer to that perfect casting moment.
Established in 2012, Veil Camo™ operates under a simple mission objective: To make meaningfully better camo for outdoor enthusiasts. At their core, Veil goes far beyond creating aesthetically pleasing patterns. By using a scientific, research driven approach, Veil strives to implement technological advances in the way camouflage is designed and functions.
To inform the River Camo design process, Veil dug into research and data surrounding various species of fish as well as their ability to see and interpret the spectrum of color, contrast, shape recognition, movement, and the effect that water and weather conditions have on all of these variables.
Simms® River Camo pattern uses Mother Nature’s own mathematical signature in every step, layer, nook and cranny of the design process. Using theories like fractal math, chaos math, and The Golden Mean, Simms River Camo succeeds in the original goal – to distort the fish’s ability to detect shape and movement.
“With the influx of fishing patterns in to the market, our partnership with Simms gave us the opportunity to really push the standard for dedicated anglers way out ahead of what has been available with one of the most respected brands in the industry.” Says Veil Camo™ Founder/Designer, Joseph Skinner. “River Camo truly represents two leaders in their respective fields working hard together to bring something far better to market for those who rely only on the best.”
Anglers who believe that sneaking up on fish gives them advantage will be excited to learn that Simms’ new River Camo pattern has found its way into multiple categories.
The multi-award winning G3 Guide™ Stockingfoot wader became even more decorated after this year’s IFTD New Product Showcase awards ceremony. Taking top honors in the Men’s wader category, the G3 Guide™ Stockingfoot Wader – River Camo features super breathable, durable and water-proof 4-layer GORE-TEX® in the legs and 3-layer GORE-TEX® in the upper. Equipped with Simms patented front and back leg seam, a reach through micro-fleece lined handwarmer pocket, an oversized chest pocket and a removable tippet tender, this wader also features ergonomically engineered stockingfeet with integrated gravel guards. In addition, the G3 Guide Wader – River Camo is now offered in a bootfoot model available with either a 12mm felt or Virbram® Idrogrip rubber outsole.
Built with a 2-layer GORE-TEX® outer shell and lined with PrimaLoft® Silver High-Loft insulation, anglers can fish through the elements and remain undetected in the new Bulkley Jacket in River Camo. Also featuring River Camo are other Simms’ fan favorites including the Kinetic Jacket and the Rogue Fleece Hoody.
Frogs, Toads, Ribbits, Kermits & More! The Frogs of ICAST 2018
Vance McCullough
Every year the big ICAST show gives us a look at what we can expect to see on store shelves and, consequently, in tackle boxes and on the water.
If this year’s show is a dependable indicator, we may be in for a plague of frogs.
From anatomically correct to borderline bizarre the spectrum of lures marketed as ‘frogs’ is wider than it has ever been.
Westin introduced Freddy the Frog, a hard bodied, multi-jointed lure that greatly resembles a full-grown bull frog. The big bait is, literally, a handful. Given its steeply-angled bill and pair of treble hooks, Freddy is a wake bait intended for open water use, not the typical hollow, weedless lures we’ve come to know as ‘frogs’. Never the less, it’s one frog you may want to pick up.
And before you write it off as simply a pike lure, remember what the Whopper Plopper was designed for - until bass fishermen started throwing it on the California Delta.
One of the cleverest new lures at ICAST was the Stanford Baits Boom Boom Frog, designed in conjunction with Bassmaster Elite Series Pro Fred ‘Boom Boom’ Roumbanis. Media members puzzled over the patch of Velcro on top of the frog’s head. According to the maker, “Frogfur ™ vastly improves hook up ratio. This double loop nylon catches the bass’s crushers making throwing the frog nearly impossible.”
Also, if you put tiny gold chains on the Boom Boom Frog, it looks like Mr. T and Kermit had a baby together.
Or, if you drag it upside down over an algae mat, it will accumulate a really cool Joe Dirt style mullet hairdo.
You can have hours of fun with your Boom Boom Frog even if you never catch a bass.
Alright Fred – you know I’m just kidding!
It is a fun design though, complete with snarling faces on the frogs.
On a serious note, the Boom Boom Frog is all about fixing a major shortcoming associated with froggin’ – missed strikes. Frogfur ™ is just the beginning. Stanford Baits tells us, “The newly designed weight allows for a complete collapse of the ultra-soft body for great hook penetration.”
Strike King’s Hack Attack Pad Perch is a new all-terrain lure that will haul the biggest bass from the thickest cover with its 4/0 VMC Frog Hook. If it says ‘Hack Attack’ you know it was made for fishing heavy vegetation, but Hackney is proud of the way it acts even in open water. “It easier to walk on the surface than any other bait I’ve ever thrown. It’s really, truly – I’m just telling you – it’s incredible, the action on it.”
Frog aficionados often alter their lures. One of the most common ‘fixes’ is to trim the legs shorter. Hackney says you don’t want to do that with his Pad Perch. “They are made this way specifically to keep the nose of the bait level with the surface so it glides side-to-side a lot better,” he said, holding up a Pad Perch to show the long, flat tail.
Last year Teckle made waves with their Sprinker Frog. So much so that there are a few manufacturers introducing their own frogs designed to be cast out and wound steadily back in while creating a bubble trail on the surface and, hopefully, provoking high speed, full bore attacks from big fish.
It’s safe to say the ‘chunk-and-wind’ frog is now its own category.
For instance, Molix rolled out its Supernato Frog. A current FLW Tour Pro with Bassmaster Elite Series experience Carl Jocumsen helped design it. The Supernato incorporates a soft, durable twin tail affixed to the body by a screw which can be backed out to allow for the use of any soft plastic trailer. Molix says of the stock trailer, “The inward-facing appendages can move water during the retrieval phases like a true propeller.”
Given the flat keel beneath the bait, the Supernato looks as if it will sit well on thick mats without rolling and getting hooked on the cover excessively. Overall, it looks like a well-built lure that will be just as effective over the slop as out in open water which is helpful, as most frog fishing involves a combination of both.
While the Sprinker spawned its own lure category, Teckle hopes to start a new trend with what they believe is the noisiest hollow bodied lure on the market – the new Maracker. It totes a polished nickel teardrop and super loud rattle that bass can hear through heavy cover and at a great distance.
Not sure when or where the Maracker will first be available in the US. We may be in for another eBay bidding war to get the latest hottest frog bait this year.
As frogs keep adding new dance moves to the list of available actions, a couple of companies are trying to tap into the magic of a classic topwater, the Jitterbug.
DUO Realis offers one with a hard lip and paddle tail feet.
Lunker Hunt offers an entire line of hollow bodies built to resemble various critters, including frogs. The Yappa series features a soft scooper on the front end. This allows their lures, such as the Yappa Bug, to come through dense, hard, vertical cover better than a lure with a scooped or winged face that won’t collapse. 
While testing the Yappa Frog during ICAST on the Water, this writer found there is a rhythm at which it runs best without blowing out of the water or tumbling over itself. At this speed it produced a loud gurgling sound and erratic action.
Sometimes smaller is bigger. Steel Shad is known for their metal blade baits but they now offer traditional topwater plugs. And a frog. Their frog is a tad smaller than most on the market. It also has a subtle wedge shape to the nose.
The size and shape help the lure settle to the water’s surface in thick stands of emergent grasses such as Kissimmee grass and bulrush (or ‘tules’ to our friends out West). Those same attributes help the frog slide through the cover and back to the boat, maybe with a giant bass attached.
LIVETARGET has a track record of innovation. They didn’t disappoint this year. Their new Commotion Shad will be a big hit with frog fishing fanatics. Bassmaster Elite Series veteran Stephen Browning shares, “I built a bait like this years ago. I’m excited to share it with the public now. It’s great in open water as well as in pads and heavy cover.”
The hollow Commotion Shad body sits between the two prongs of a traditional frog hook. A Colorado blade is attached, via a swivel, to its back end.
Intended for use with a steady retrieve, the Commotion Shad can be paused in place indefinitely to tempt moody fish and trigger a violent strike with the next nod of the rod tip.
As the array of frog-themed and hollow body lures continues to widen, we’re all going to need bigger tackle boxes. A good problem to have?
Ranger Boats RT Aluminum Series Boasts New Look and Features in 2019
|
Flagship RT198P receives significant feature upgrades
FLIPPIN, Ark. (August 8, 2018) - Since the initial venture into the aluminum boat market in 2013, Ranger Boats quickly became the industry's fastest growing aluminum boat brand. Value-packed and feature-laden, the lineup of the 2019 RT Aluminum Series brings a fresh, new look along with additional features built specifically for bass and multi species anglers. "We have received an overwhelmingly positive response to our RT Aluminum series boats since they hit the market," said Ranger Boats Sales Manager Mark Zwicker. "Staying consistent with our tradition of maintaining the leading-edge in design and features, we're excited to unveil the new changes to the 2019 RT Series lineup. Our aluminum designs continue to deliver an affordable, durable product paired with the Ranger name and the long list of Five Star advantages that come with it."
Featuring an all-new, fully enclosed console that can house up to a 12-inch graph, the RT Series sports a fresh look with redesigned hullside graphics, chrome badging, and chrome foil model designators. Each RT Series model is also available in three new color packages - Carbon Metallic, Midnight Blue Metallic and Fusion, which features lime green accents. Along with the new look, Ranger also brings added comfort in the form of new premium color-matched, side-bolstering seating with enhanced knee room under the console.
The flagship of the series - the RT198P - not only carries the new look and styling, but has been upgraded with added features such as enlarged rear storage boxes and an Aqualon custom boat cover. Also new for 2019, the RT198P includes the option to mount twin Power Pole anchors for even greater versatility in shallow water.
The acclaimed Ranger RT Series is built with performance, function and utility in mind. The wood-free, all-welded construction along with foam-filled hull provides upright, level floatation that exceeds standards set by the United States Coast Guard and reduces hull slap for a smoother, quieter ride.
The complete 2019 RT Series lineup features a total of five models built with the same Ranger DNA that's crafted a 50-year legacy for making the industry's best fiberglass fishing boats. The RT178 sports a 17-foot, 8-inch bass configuration, while the RT178C features a similar platform (17' 8") focused more on crappie and multispecies angling - complete with multiple seat locations and livewells. Likewise, the RT188 features an 18-foot, 8-inch bass design rated for 115 horsepower and is available as a RT188C crappie configuration as well. Finally, the flagship RT198P delivers a 19-foot, 4-inch platform rated for 150 horsepower and completes a lineup built to exceed the needs of boat buyers in search of a durable, feature-laden, mod-V aluminum boat.
|
HUDSON’S CULLER WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE HOOSIER DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON MICHIGAN’S MUSKEGON LAKE
Metamora’s Joyner Grabs Co-angler Title
MUSKEGON, Mich. (Aug. 6, 2018) – Boater Eric Culler of Hudson, Indiana, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 17 pounds, 1 ounce, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Michigan Division tournament on Muskegon Lake. For his efforts, Culler pocketed $3,641.
Culler said he headed north to White Lake to catch his fish Saturday. He said his primary lure was a Texas-rigged 7-inch Watermelon Red-colored Zoom Trick Worm on a split-shot rig. He also used a wacky-rigged Watermelon Red Yamamoto Senko.
“I caught most of my fish in 13 to 15 feet of water,” said Culler, who earned his first win in FLW competition. “The area had a slight inside turn and then it came back out to a small little point. There was wood and grass on the point and it seemed like the bigger ones were keying in on the wood more than anything. You could catch smaller fish around it, but that’s where the bigger ones were.”
Culler said he used a 7-foot, 1-inch medium-heavy G. Loomis rod with a Daiwa reel and 10-pound-test Seaguar InvizX fluorocarbon line. He credited the side scanning feature on his Humminbird Helix electronics unit with helping him get dialed in to his area as well.
“I caught around 10 keepers. It was a slow presentation – they didn’t want the bait moving that much,” said Culler. “I’d just let it lay there and then they’d pick it up and swim off. It was a late bite, too. They started biting around 10 or 10:30 (a.m.) and then I caught them regularly until 1 p.m.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Eric Culler, Hudson, Ind., five bass, 17-1, $3,641
2nd: Clayton Reitz, Morton, Ill., five bass, 15-15, $1,820
3rd: Jeff Napier, Martinsville, Ind., five bass, 15-8, $1,414
4th: Joshua Barr, Stow, Ohio, five bass, 15-3, $950
5th: Brett Haake, Shorewood, Ill., five bass, 15-1, $728
6th: Trevor Bethke, Spring Lake, Mich., five bass, 15-0, $668
7th: Ronald Nutter, Saint Louisville, Ohio, five bass, 14-12, $607
8th: Jeremy Antrup, Fremont, Ind., five bass, 14-0, $546
9th: Kenny Dials, Creston, Ohio, five bass, 13-15, $960
10th: Jerry Smith, Sparta, Mich., five bass, 13-14, $425
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Dials brought a 5-pound, 4-ounce bass to the scale – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $475.
Clint Joyner of Metamora, Michigan, won the Co-angler Division and $2,057 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 18 pounds, 13 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Clint Joyner, Metamora, Mich., five bass, 18-13, $2,057
2nd: Brian Somrek, Calvert City, Ky., five bass, 14-2, $1,110
3rd: Darwin Griva, Hamilton, Ind., five bass, 12-9, $607
4th: Ross Parsons, Haslett, Mich., five bass, 12-1, $475
5th: Tony Mitchell, Plainwell, Mich., five bass, 11-5, $364
6th: Eric Polenz, Maybee, Mich., five bass, 11-4, $334
7th: Stefan Marginean, Glenview, Ill., four bass, 11-2, $303
8th: Jack Cahn, Davisburg, Mich., five bass, 10-10, $273
9th: Tony Grubb, Ann Arbor, Mich., five bass, 10-4, $227
9th: Jeremy Pinkowski, Oak Forest, Ill., four bass, 10-4, $227
Joyner also caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 4 pounds, 13 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $237.
The T-H Marine BFL Michigan Division event on Muskegon Lake was hosted by Visit Muskegon.
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. 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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
LECLERE WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE HOOSIER DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON OHIO RIVER AT ROCKY POINT
Co-angler Title Goes to Fort Wayne’s Bennett
CANNELTON, Ind. (Aug. 6, 2018) – Local angler Chris LeClere of Cannelton caught five bass Saturday weighing 10 pounds, 3 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Hoosier Division tournament on the Ohio River at Rocky Point. LeClere took home $5,632 for his win.
“The day started off slow. After practicing on both the main river and in creeks, my strategy was to make a couple of stops on the river as I made my way to my main creek,” said LeClere, who logged his first win in FLW competition. “The water level was up on the river Saturday and it was dirtier and had more current. I made one stop but couldn’t get anything going.
“I moved on to my main creek, which was north of takeoff, and had four places I’d caught fish in practice,” continued LeClere. “I stopped at my first spot and fished for about 45 minutes and never got a bite. I went to my second, which I felt would be my best, and fished for 45 minutes, but couldn’t get anything there, either. Finally, I went to my third and caught my first keeper about 10 (a.m.).”
LeClere’s third spot ended up producing every fish he weighed, specifically between 10 and 11:30 a.m. He described it as a 100-yard stretch of shallow wood cover that included stumps and laydowns.
“I had caught five fish at this spot in practice Thursday, but they were just keepers. I had six bites there Saturday, including one that I lost,” said LeClere. “I flipped soft-plastics – they didn’t want any moving baits. Two came from a green-pumpkin-colored bait, and three came from another bait.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Chris LeClere, Cannelton, Ind., five bass, 10-3, $3,632 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Jeremy Knepp, Montgomery, Ind., four bass, 7-7, $1,513
2nd: Larry Sisk, Evansville, Ind., five bass, 7-7, $1,713
4th: Jimmy Shepherd, Indianapolis, Ind., three bass, 6-9, $1,312
5th: Scott Bateman, Jasper, Ind., three bass, 6-3, $726
6th: Todd Hensley, New Albany, Ind., five bass, 5-14, $766
7th: Danny Abrams, Greensfork, Ind., five bass, 5-10, $605
8th: George Brown, Camby, Ind., five bass, 5-8, $545
9th: Brody Campbell, Oxford, Ohio, two bass, 5-2, $484
10th: Chris Myers, Madison, Ind., four bass, 4-14, $424
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Shepherd brought a 4-pound, 8-ounce, bass to the scale – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $465.
Brandon Bennett of Fort Wayne, Indiana, won the Co-angler Division and $1,816 Saturday after catching four bass weighing 6 pounds, 11 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Brandon Bennett, Fort Wayne, Ind., four bass, 6-11, $1,816
2nd: Michael Pruitt, Martinsville, Ind., five bass, 5-4, $908
3rd: Gary Owens, Columbus, Ind., three bass, 4-14, $606
4th: Ronnie Gill, Indianapolis, Ind., two bass, 4-6, $424
5th: Brian Liming, Dilsboro, Ind., two bass, 4-1, $363
6th: Mark Wedan, Freetown, Ind., two bass, 3-12, $333
7th: Dakota Ball, Connersville, Ind., one bass, 3-7, $519
7th: Trenton Wilson, Martinsville, Ind., three bass, 3-7, $287
9th: Holly Blandford, Cannelton, Ind., two bass, 3-0, $242
10th: Derek Buchanan, Madison, Ind., two bass, 2-15, $301
10th: Nick Horton, Trafalgar, Ind., three bass, 2-15, $201
Tom Lindsay of Glenview, Illinois, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 4 pounds even. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $365.
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. 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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
AC Insider Podcast Featuring Elite Series AOY Leader Bradley Roy
This week Chris & Jason talk to current BASS AOY Points Leader Bradley Roy on the cancellation of the Chesapeake, the upcoming St. Lawrence River Event and How he sleeps as AOY Leader. The boys also talk FLW CUP Week along with News & Notes, Back to School and more on this weeks AnglersChannel Insider Podcast. Hosted by AnglersChannel President Chris Brown and AC Content Creator Jason Duran.
Alabama Anglers Play It Cool To Win Bassmaster High School National Championship On Kentucky Lake
|
|
|
Labelle Edges Cippoletti By Ounces To Claim Bassmaster Open Victory On Champlain
|
|
|
Labelle Leapfrogs Lane With Back-To-Back 21-Plus Limits
|
|
|
Natchitoches High Tandem Takes Lead At Bassmaster High School National Championship
|
|
|
FORREST WOOD CUP SET FOR RETURN TO LAKE OUACHITA IN HOT SPRINGS, ARKANSAS
World’s Best Anglers Eye $300,000 Title in Historic 23rd-Annual Championship
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (July 26, 2018) – The Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing, will return to Lake Ouachita, Aug. 10-12, to crown bass fishing’s top angler of 2018. Hosted by the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism and Visit Hot Springs, the tournament will feature 56 of the world’s best bass-fishing professionals casting for the sport’s biggest award – $300,000 cash.
The Forrest Wood Cup has been held at Lake Ouachita three times in the 23-year history of the FLW Tour – 2007, 2011 and 2014. In the three Forrest Wood Cups that have been held on Lake Ouachita, both shallow and deep patterns were applied by top-10 competitors. Tennessee pro Brad Knight, who won the 2015 Cup, surprised many people by camping in one area in the back of a creek for four days and catching the winning fish shallow. The prior two Cups at Lake Ouachita – won by Scott Martin in 2011 and Scott Suggs in 2007 – were won out deep around standing timber, brush piles and other areas where balls of shad had congregated.
Lake Ouachita will still offer up its usual mix of deep and shallow patterns, but no matter what patterns emerge, the weights are always close at Lake Ouachita in August. Expect several anglers to average 12 to 14 pounds a day and to be in the hunt for the win on Championship Sunday.
“Ouachita is a really good fishery and is a perfect venue to host the Forrest Wood Cup,” said Justin Atkins, the reigning Forrest Wood Cup champion who won last year on Lake Murray in Columbia, South Carolina. “I’ve been there twice and caught quite a few big fish. This event should be a little tougher, but it’s during the dog-days of summer. Fishing is tough right now all over the country. I love a good slugfest, but I really enjoy the tough tournaments for our championship event.”
Atkins won the FLW Cup in his rookie season on Tour and is now looking to become the first angler in history to ever win the Cup twice.
“The most exciting thing for me about the 2018 Cup is the unknown – I know what happens when you win and it truly is a life-changing tournament. The possibility that it could happen to me again is just so exciting,” Atkins said. “I’m still learning my way through this sport, but winning the Cup last year gave me the financial support, the sponsor support, and the self-confidence that I do belong here and I can make my way in this sport.”
Atkins went on to predict that the winner this year would need to average about 14 pounds a day to be in contention for the win, and the winner would have right around 42 pounds after the three-day competition.
“The key is going to be your ability to think on the fly and ability to change patterns each day as the fish and conditions change.”
Anglers will take off from Brady Mountain Resort & Marina, located at 4120 Brady Mountain Road in Royal, Arkansas, at 7 a.m. CDT each morning. Each day’s weigh-in will be held at the Bank OZK Arena located at 134 Convention Blvd., in Hot Springs, beginning at 5 p.m.
Fans will be treated to the FLW Expo at the Hot Springs Convention Center located at 134 Convention Blvd., in Hot Springs, each day from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. prior to the weigh-ins. The Expo includes games, activities and giveaways provided by more than 40 FLW sponsors, the opportunity to shop the latest tackle and outdoor gear from more than 100 exhibitors, Ranger boat simulators, a casting pond and a trout pond for children, as well as the opportunity to meet and interact with top professional anglers, including Hank Parker, Jimmy Houston, and Larry Nixon. FLW’s namesake Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, will also be greeting fans.
On Saturday and Sunday the first 250 children 14 and under each day who are accompanied by an adult will receive a voucher to redeem for a free rod-and-reel combo after the evening’s weigh-in from Shakespeare rods. Also on Sunday, one lucky fishing fan will win a brand new Ranger Z521L bass boat with a 250-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard motor. The Ranger Boat giveaway is free to enter but the winner must be present at the conclusion of Sunday’s final weigh-in to win.
Also on Saturday and Sunday, FLW fans will be treated to the Bass & BBQ Festival in conjunction with the FLW Expo. FLW has partnered with local BBQ vendors to feature award-winning BBQ teams offering delicious fare to visitors at the Forrest Wood Cup Expo. A portion of all proceeds will be donated to local Arkansas charities.
Country music superstar Justin Moore will perform a free concert on the weigh-in stage at the Bank OZK Arena on Sunday, Aug. 12, starting at 4 p.m., prior to the final weigh-in. The concert is presented by Realtree and KSSN 96. Moore will be performing songs from his latest album, Kinda Don’t Care, to fishing fans in Arkansas as well as live-streamed to fans around the globe at FLWFishing.com.
The Morning Takeoff, FLW Expo, Bass & BBQ event, live concert and weigh-ins are all free and open to the public.
Television coverage of the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) Sept. 27 from Noon -1 p.m. EDT. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show airs on NBCSN, the Pursuit Channel and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.
For a full schedule of events, complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.
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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
Bobby Lane Grabs Lead At Bassmaster Eastern Open On Lake Champlain
|
|
|
Bluegrass Junior Anglers Take Bassmaster Junior National Championship
|
|
|
B.A.S.S. Will Not Reschedule 2018 Bassmaster Elite At Upper Chesapeake Bay
|
|||
|
Florida Team Leads Bassmaster Junior Bass Fishing Championship
|
|
|
Cal Coast Fishing Adds Ish Monroe and Caleb Sumrall National Team Elite Series Pros Join Growing Cal Coast Fishing Family
Courtesy of Cal Coast Fishing
Carpentaria, Calif. – July 27, 2018 – Cal Coast Fishing, a fishing accessories manufacturer from Carpentaria, Calif., has signed Elite Series pros Ish Monroe and Caleb Sumrall to their national pro staff. The addition adds to a staff that includes FLW pros James Watson, Jimmy Reese, Jeff Dobson and Kyle Cortiana, as well as kayak fishing stalwarts Ron Champion and Jay Wallen.
Cal Coast Fishing specializes in producing products designed to make it easier and more efficient for anglers to pursue their passions. Founder Dave Romanus said that having more perspectives helps in a variety of ways. “We are constantly looking for ways to expand our product line in a way that allows anglers to enjoy their days on the water,” said Romanus. “Adding Ish (Monroe) and Caleb (Sumrall) bring more experience to the table, and they help expand our visibility in the marketplace; adding them is a great addition to our company.”
Romanus said it was his personal interaction with them that made them the choice to add from the Elite Series field. “Ish is obviously a great angler, but what has always impressed me most about him is his genuine nature and work ethic,” said Romanus. “Caleb is younger in his career, but he has seen some success, and he invested the time to get to know us, so it was an easy choice to bring him aboard as well; I couldn’t be happier to have these two flying our flag and helping us move ahead.”
Monroe, who claimed his fifth Bassmaster victory earlier this year at the Mississippi River Elite Series event in LaCrosse, Wisc., said that he loves the way Cal Coast Fishing does things. “Dave is an innovator who still listens to others and takes ideas from those around him,” he said. “Cal Coast Fishing makes products that help me stay organized, be more efficient on the water, and that helps me catch more fish, which is the name of this game. I am excited to join the team, and to being a part of helping develop more products to help myself and other anglers in the future.”
Sumrall also is proud to partner with Cal Coast Fishing. “I had enjoyed talking to Dave for quite some time, and met him face to face at the Classic this year, and really hit it off with him,” said Sumrall. “The product line has helped me on the water this year, and being able to be a part of this team is really something I’m proud of.”
About Cal Coast Fishing – Established in 2015 and based out of Carpentaria, Calif., Cal Coast Fishing began by offering their original Bait Sack Premium Lure protectors and has since grown to include rod storage and transportation, Conservation minded fish culling system, and other problem solving and fishing efficiency products. The company prides itself on producing products that help anglers be more efficient and enjoy their time on the water more thoroughly. View their products online at https://calcoastfishing.com/, on social media or one of their hundreds of dealers nationwide.
AC Insider Podcast Featuring Sportsmans Warehouse Pro Bryan Thrift & College Champs Garrett Enders & Cody Huff
Jason returns from his 8-day Caribbean cruise as the boys talk tournaments, tournaments canceled,
FLW CUP with Bryan Thrift and Carhartt College Championship with Bethel University's Garrett Enders & Cody Huff.
All of this and more on this weeks AC Insider Podcast!
Anatomy of a Win(ner) - Hobie Kayak PRO-File
Vance McCullough / Photos Courtesy of Jay Wallen Facebook Page
With 3 big wins under his belt in recent years, Jay Wallen is no stranger to success in major kayak bass tournaments but with a runner-up finish at the KBF Open on South Carolina’s Santee Cooper Reservoir in May and an outright victory at the KBF Open on the Upper Mississippi River July 22nd, Wallen is on a heck of a roll, even by his standards.
And it could have been better.
“I fished two Opens this year,” says the veteran kayak tournament angler. “The first was at Santee. I got 2ndthere. Just missed – had a bite at the end there that I think would have done it, but I just didn’t make it happen.”
Wallen won the Hobie Bass Open last year. “The payout wasn’t quite that high, but that was a very big tournament, like 120 anglers, I think. I won the first Open 3 years ago on Kentucky Lake. So I’ve won some but as far as payday goes, this is by far the biggest.”
For his performance in Wisconsin Wallen won $10,000. Did he imagine, just a few short years ago, after his first big win, that he would ever cash a check for ten-grand at a kayaktournament? “No way, man. No way.
“I started fishing with a local club here in Lexington. Thirty-five-dollar entry fees and somebody would win a few hundred bucks. We thought that was great. And it was! But then KBF comes along and offers us an opportunity to win, not just ten-thousand dollars but $100,000 at the National Championship.
“But I never would have imagined fishing out of a plastic boat for this kind of money, at this kind of level. It’s a crazy deal.”
Among Wallen’s favorite aspects of kayak fishing are the low barriers to entry which allow for massive participation in the game of kayak fishing, as well as the sport of fishing in general. “It’s the easiest way to get into it. You don’t need anybody to take you. It’s cheap when compared to the cost of owning a bass boat. There are so many great things about it that make it very accessible for a beginner. It’s a great venue to get people started.”
What’s the process that has worked so well for Wallen? Frankly, it boils down to common sense, sustained effort, and a good decision or two at the right time.
The drive from Kentucky to Wisconsin took over 10 hours. Wallen was left with one day to practice on water he had never seen. Pre-scouting was critical. “I had been doing my homework, been looking at maps and, of course I always go through all the old Bassmaster and FLW results, read all the articles through the years and look at all the historical data I possibly can. The Internet has been such a big help. There’s no replacement for pre-fishing but I can’t get up there and pre-fish ahead of time so I do a lot of pre-fishing at home, so to speak, watching the U.S. flood gauge, watching the river come up and down, just trying to keep up with it.
“I scouted out a handful of spots that I would want to fish,” said Wallen who runs a Hobie Pro Angler 14 and used the Mirage Drive to pedal over 15 miles throughout the course of practice and two tournament days. “I knew I only had a day to do it so I went up there and kind of made my run. I went spot-to-spot and just started systematically checking them. I happened to find a weed bed that was about 75 yards long and they were just laid up thick in it. They weren’t everywhere. Within that weed bed there were two or three little sweet spots. On my practice day I wasn’t trying to hook them. I was using a frog and they were blowing up on it so I could tell they were bass because they were coming all the way out of the water.”
Wallen drilled down on his loaded weed bed on day 1 of the tournament to catch a quick limit on a Spro Dean Rojas Bronzeye Frog in the 65 size and Rainforest Black color. 65-lb Power Pro was his braided line of choice.
He then rested his best area for Day 2. “I had a couple other areas that were similar. They weren’t producing as well. I pretty much had one primary spot.”
An overnight weather change and a drop in the river level dictated a corresponding change in tactics during the 2ndcompetition round. “A little cold front moved through toward the end of Day 1 and we had bluebird skies for Day 2. I thought that might actually help the frog bite; might push them further up under the mat and once I got them going, they’d eat once the sun came out. That just didn’t happen. I had a couple of blow ups on the frog but they were not committed to it. It just wasn’t happening.
“I backed out of the thick matted stuff. Right out in front of it was some scattered clumps of lily pads and hydrilla and duck weed. It was all just kind of scattered. It wasn’t clumped up so I started throwing a Chatterbait. Typically, I throw the Picasso Shock Blade but I didn’t have the right color. That water was pretty dark and they wanted that black and blue color. I couldn’t get them on anything else so I threw the black and blue Jack Hammer in there and, man, they loaded up on it. That happened pretty quick once I figured that out.
“The river came down about 6 inches overnight and I think that pulled some of those bass out of that cover I had been fishing the first day.
“It was a reaction bite. Rip that thing by a little isolated clump of pads and see them shake. I was just calling the bass right out of the weeds.”
Wallen used a 3/8 oz Jack Hammer on 16-lb Sun Line Shooter fluorocarbon to put him in striking distance of another win.
Still, he felt he needed another cull. He found one.
“It’s probably the coolest fish catch I’ve ever had in my life.
“I went to my other area. I gave myself an hour – that’s about all I had left. I go in there and there’s a little commotion on top of the water around some grass. I start looking and there’s a bass tailing, his fins sticking up out of the water. He looks like a redfish. Craziest thing I’ve ever seen. So I flipped a (Strike King) Caffeine Shad right in front of that bass and he rolled and just choked it. Dude, that one was 16-and-a-half inches and it culled out a 14-incher. That pretty much did it for me.”
“Frog, Chatterbait and a Caffeine Shad. That was the one, two, three,” said Wallen who keeps his Hobie organized, in part, by using a Bait Sack, made by Cal Coast Fishing. “It’s just a little sleeve that keeps your hooks protected and keeps you from hooking and tangling things up. In a kayak, I’ve got so many rods with me, that Bait Sack makes a huge difference, saves time and keeps me organized.”
Wallen tossed the trio on Shimano reels and G. Loomis rods. “Those things saved my butt several times, getting good hooksets on those frogs. For my frogs I’m using the IMX Pro Frog Rod, 7’3”. It’s a pretty stout rod.”
An eternal student of the game, Wallen is still refining his techniques, evaluating his performance even in the afterglow of victory. “Just a mistake that I noticed on my part that I kind of got away with – and I put some time in with a frog, but I don’t throw it a whole lot – so the reel I was throwing my frog on is a bulldog. It’s an old Chronarch. It’s like a 12-year-old reel, one of my favorite reels, but it’s a really slow reel. There were a couple of instances where I set the hook on a fish and I couldn’t get it out of that grass because my reel was too slow and the fish would burry down in that grass and before you know it, it was just heavy weight and all I got back was a big wad of grass and no bass. Something I learned was that, with my frog setup I need to be throwing a high-speed reel. At least a 7.1-1 ratio, maybe an 8.
“Just something I learned that I can pass along. A learning experience that, luckily, didn’t cost me but definitely something I learned from.”
Wallen is a proven winner. He knows how to close the deal. You can learn a lot from him and engage with him personally at:
Youtube.com/jaywallenfishing
Facebook.com/jaywallenfishing
Instagram.com/jaywallenfishing
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE UNIVERSITY WINS YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING CENTRAL CONFERENCE EVENT ON MISSISSIPPI RIVER AT WABASHA PRESENTED BY COSTA
WABASHA, Minn. (July 30, 2018) – The Southeast Missouri State University duo of Jacob Harris of Bonne Terre, Missouri, and Nick Moore of De Soto, Missouri, won the YETI FLW College Fishing event on the Mississippi River presented by Costa Saturday with five bass weighing 18 pounds, 2 ounces. The victory earned the Redhawks’ bass club $2,400 and a slot in the 2019 FLW College Fishing National Championship.
Moore said that he and Harris, a junior majoring in business, spent their day fishing a 100-yard stretch on the lower end of Pool No. 4 between the main-river channel and Peterson Lake.
“We found the spot within the last hour of practice,” said Moore, a junior majoring in agribusiness and plant and soil science. “I had made a cast on the stretch and missed a fish, but when Jake fired out there, he hooked one. As he brought it to the boat, there were nine or 10 bass with it and they were all quality-sized largemouth.
“Saturday morning started off slow. We probably caught around a half-dozen short fish and a few pike before getting our first keeper bass around 8 (a.m.),” Moore continued. “From there, we figured out our cadence and everything kind of came together. Our first five fish had us up to 16 or 17 pounds, and we culled twice. We had everything we weighed by 10 (a.m.) – it was a crazy two hours.”
Moore said that a couple of 4-pound bites were likely what sealed the deal for the team.
“The area had duckweed mixed with some hydrilla and there were lilypads spread throughout it,” said Moore. “It wasn’t a lilypad field, but there were little groups here and there. The matted duckweed rerouted the current, which was definitely the reason there was more bait there. We could see bait around the edges of the duckweed and the groups of pads seemed to hold the better quality fish.”
The duo used Spro Dean Rojas Bronzeye 65 frogs in green-pumpkin and Rainforest Black colors on PowerPro 65-pound-test braided line. Moore used a high-speed Abu Garcia REVO ALX reel and a 7-foot, 4-inch heavy Duckett Triad Series rod, while Harris used a Lew’s Tournament Speed Spool LFS Series reel and a 7-foot heavy Denali Lithium Series rod. Moore noted that their Minn Kota Fortrex was also crucial in helping them handle the vegetation.
“It was our first win as a college club in a major event. We were quick to be congratulated by our teammates, alumni and even anglers from other schools. It was an awesome experience,” Moore went on to say.
The top 10 teams that advanced to the 2019 College Fishing National Championship are:
1st: Southeast Missouri State University – Jacob Harris, Bonne Terre, Mo., and Nick Moore, De Soto, Mo., five bass, 18-2, $2,400
2nd: McKendree University – Shane Campbell, Highland, Ill., and Ethan Jones, Worden, Ill., five bass, 16-10, $1,000
3rd: Missouri State University – Reece Crabtree, Holden, Mo., and Crosley Welch, Branson, Mo., five bass, 15-2, $500
4th: Iowa State University – Pat Morrison, Omaha, Neb., and Matt Blair, Ames, Iowa, five bass, 15-1, $500
5th: University of Wisconsin-Whitewater – Mitch Van Ert and Steven Sellnow, both of Watertown, Wis., five bass, 15-1, $500
6th: Bemidji State University – Lincoln Horsman, Wabasha, Minn., and Travis Rotzien, Bemidji, Minn., five bass, 14-15
7th: Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne – Reiley Pugh, Auburn, Ind., and Blake Spurgeon, Fort Wayne, Ind., five bass, 14-15
8th: Bemidji State University – Benjamin Saba, Ramsey, Minn., and Robert Troje, Hastings, Minn., five bass, 14-14
9th: University of Minnesota-Duluth – Dylan Sande, Long Lake, Minn., and Justin Sande, Orono, Minn., five bass, 14-11
10th: University of Wisconsin – Andrew Wolfe, Wausau, Wis., and Colin Steck, Waunakee, Wis., five bass, 14-7, $200
Complete results for the entire field can be found at FLWFishing.com.
The YETI FLW College Fishing event on the Mississippi River at Wabasha was presented by Costa and was hosted by the Wabasha-Kellogg Chamber of Commerce & Convention and Visitors Bureau. It was the second of three regular-season qualifying tournaments for Central Conference anglers in 2018. The next YETI FLW College Fishing event takes place Sept. 8, when Northern Conference anglers compete at the YETI FLW College Fishing event on Lake Erie presented by Berkley, in Sandusky, Ohio.
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. 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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
TRIM WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL GREAT LAKES DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON MISSISSIPPI RIVER AT LA CROSSE
Whitehall’s Pollard Grabs Co-angler Title
LA CROSSE, Wis. (July 30, 2018) – Boater Nick Trim of Galesville, Wisconsin, brought a three-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 12 pounds, 3 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Great Lakes Division tournament on the Mississippi River at La Crosse. For his efforts, Trim pocketed $6,105.
Trim worked through backwaters in Pool No. 7 to catch his fish Saturday. He said he weighed his three largemouth off of one bait – a Spro Dean Rojas Bronzeye 65 frog, in Barney and Red Ear colors.
“My areas had really thick weed mats with sandy bottoms, which provided some nice cover for the fish,” said Trim, who tallied his first career win in FLW competition. “I didn’t get a bite at my first spot, but I have some history with those fish, so I decided to move 500 yards away and caught a 3-14 as well as a couple of smaller ones.”
At a third area, Trim wasn’t able to get one in the boat. Around 9:30 a.m., he decided to return to where he caught the 3-14 and reeled in another 4-pounder with his frog – his biggest of the day.
“I also lost a big one that rolled on my frog twice,” said Trim. “I switched to a (Missile Baits) D Bomb with a 1½-ounce tungsten weight with a Trokar flipping hook and got it halfway back to the boat, but it came unbuttoned. It was close to 5 pounds, which is a giant for the Mississippi River.”
From there, Trim returned to his first area and caught a 2-15, also on the D Bomb.
“I figured I needed one more big one, so I kept working that weed mat,” said Trim. “I got 60 yards north of where I caught the 2-15 and set the hook on a 4-pounder with the frog. I had just finished telling my co-angler that I could really use a 4-pound bite, and then it happened.”
Trim noted that his 7-foot, 3-inch Fitzgerald Stunner HD heavy rod was crucial to his success.
“The power that rod has to get bass out of heavy cover is phenomenal – it really helped me out.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Nick Trim, Galesville, Wis., three bass, 12-3, $6,105
2nd: Kevin Ruh, Onalaska, Wis., three bass, 10-10, $2,144
2nd: Jeff Krisher, Madison, Wis., three bass, 10-10, $2,044
4th: Nathan Huss, Elkhart Lake, Wis., three bass, 10-6, $1,515
5th: Yamamoto Baits pro Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., three bass, 10-3, $981
6th: Josh Ystenes, La Crosse, Wis., three bass, 9-15, $899
7th: Jeff Ritter, Prairie du Chien, Wis., three bass, 9-14, $818
8th: Nick O’Keefe, La Crosse, Wis., three bass, 9-13, $736
9th: Rick Bosshard, Hartland, Wis., three bass, 9-12, $654
10th: Brandon Gann, Sparta, Wis., three bass, 9-11, $572
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Jerry Robackouski of Joliet, Illinois, brought a 4-pound, 4-ounce, bass to the scale – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $370.
Jessie Pollard of Whitehall, Wisconsin, won the Co-angler Division and $2,419 Saturday after catching three bass weighing 9 pounds, 5 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Jessie Pollard, Whitehall, Wis., three bass, 9-5, $2,419
2nd: Kristian Dus, Chicago, Ill., three bass, 9-4, $1,210
3rd: Chad Schultz, Rockton, Ill., three bass, 9-0, $686
3rd: Kevin Waeyaert, Coal Valley, Ill., three bass, 9-0, $686
5th: Jordan Hirt, Glenwood, Iowa, three bass, 8-15, $484
6th: Kevin Andera, Calmar, Iowa, three bass, 8-12, $444
7th: Ronald Syverson, Holmen, Wis., three bass, 8-9, $403
8th: Greg Oppegard, W. St. Paul, Minn., three bass, 8-7, $363
9th: Ed Remian, Schiller Park, Ill., three bass, 8-1, $323
10th: Spencer Clark, Maryland Heights, Mo., three bass, 8-0, $282
Tom Lindsay of Glenview, Illinois, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 4 pounds even. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $365.
The T-H Marine BFL event on the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin was hosted by the La Crosse County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
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. 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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
Spellicy Wins ABA OPEN on 1,000 Islands with over 23 pound limit!
Jesse Spellicy of Gouverneur, NY won the American Bass Anglers Open Series NE NY division tournament, held July 21, 2018. Running out of French Creek Marina, in the town of Clayton, NY Jesse caught five-bass weighing 23.33-pounds. He anchored his bag with a 5.66-pound kicker For the Boater Division victory, Spellicy took home a check for $5000.
“I was drop shotting with a GaJo spirit shad, any of the natural colors were working, in the river in 25-35 feet of water. “ Spellicy said.
In second for the boaters, Christophe Ullrich of Picture Rocks, PA landed a five-bass tournament limit going 22.78-pounds with a 5.29-pound kicker. He collected $1250. for the effort.
“I fished the river in the Canadian narrows between two islands. I was fishing current in 10-25 ft of water, I used a green pumpkin ned bait all day,” Ullrich said.
Brian Bylotas of Scott Township, PA took third for the boaters with five bass going 21.43-pounds. He anchored his catch with a 5.27-pound kicker to earn $900.
“I went to the lake in the morning and ended up coming up the river. I was drop shotting in 20-30 ft of water using a Berkley Power fry in green pumpkin,” Bylotas said.
Finishing fourth, Jonathan Robla of Norwood, NY landed a five-bass limit for 21.67-pounds including a 4.44-pound kicker. Henry Fristik of Chester, MA rounded out the top five boaters with five bass at 19.92-pounds topped by a 4.07-pound kicker.
The biggest bass for the boaters was caught by Dennis Carnahan of Cazenovia, NY that weighed 6.86-pounds and Dennis pocketed $660.
In the Co-Angler Division, John Brzozowski of Dallas, PA won with three-bass going 13.49 pounds. He sealed his victory with a 5.73-pound kicker to pocket a check for $1200..
Brzozowski was not available for comment.
Taking second for the co-anglers, Michael Orris of Harrisburg, PA brought in a three-bass division limit weighing 12.93-pounds including a 4.73-pound kicker. He collected $500 for the effort.
“I was drop shotting in 10-30 ft of water in the river using a blackish brown 4 inch worm,” Orris said.
Chris Sullivan Voorheesville, NY placed third among the co-anglers with three-bass going 12.59-pounds. He anchored his catch with a 4.99-pound kicker to earn $350.
“I was drop shotting out on the lake in 10-30 ft of water using an Area 51 bait,” Sullivan said.
In fourth place among the co-anglers, James Perez Jr of Rensselear, NY brought in three-bass for 12.25-pounds including a 4.51-pound kicker. John M. Ciavaglia of Pittsford, NY finished in fifth place with three-bass at 10.87-pounds topped by a 4.08-pound kicker.
The biggest bass for the co-anglers was caught by John J. Brzozowski of Dallas, PA that weighed 5.73 and John pocketed $200.
Slated for August 17, 2018 the next divisional tournament will be held on Lake Champlain out of Dock Street Landing, in Plattsburgh, NY.
At the end of the season, the best anglers from across the nation advance the 2018 Ray Scott Championship, slated for the first week of April 2019 on Lake Eufaula, AL.
For more information on this tournament, call Jeff Randall, tournament manager, at 256-777-6152 or ABA at 256-232-0406. On line, see www.abaopenseries.com .
CANADA’S FARLOW DECLARED WINNER AT WEATHER-SHORTENED COSTA FLW SERIES NORTHERN DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON LAKE ERIE PRESENTED BY POLARIS
Neil Farlow Wins $87k including New Ranger Boat
BUFFALO, N.Y. (July 28, 2018) – Pro Neil Farlow of St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, won the Costa FLW Series Northern Division event on Lake Erie presented by Polaris with a single-day catch of five bass weighing 24 pounds, 4 ounces, after high winds forced tournament officials to shorten the three-day event to one day of competition. Farlow’s weight was caught on Thursday and was enough to earn him the top prize of $87,500 including a new Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower outboard engine.
“It feels awesome to win one of these tournaments,” said Farlow, who earned his first career win in FLW competition. “I’ve been thinking about this tournament since the schedule was released and I put in a lot of time preparing for it. I was ready for three days out there but the wind had a different plan.”
Farlow said he fished his way from Point Abino on the Canadian side of Lake Erie, to Myers Reef on the U.S. side, and then back in toward Buffalo. He said of the six areas he worked through, four of them produced his biggest fish.
“I fished old spots and anywhere I could get to where there weren’t any boats around,” said Farlow. “I was boat No.156, so I had to keep running until I found something that didn’t have anyone around. I think that’s what made the difference.”
Farlow said bottoms that were a mix of rock and gravel or gravel and sand produced best for him.
“I fished in 20 to 40 feet of water, but most of the fish were 20 to 30 feet down,” said Farlow. “I fished basically anywhere there was something different – a depth change, hump or a boulder.”
Farlow said he caught around eight bass throughout the day, including the largest of the event – a 6-pound, 6-ouncer – around 9 a.m. He weighed his fish all from one lure – a green-pumpkin-colored Reaction Innovations Flirt Worm on a drop-shot rig.
“I did what pretty much everyone else was doing, which was using drop shots and tubes,” said Farlow. “I didn’t catch many fish because some of the crowded spots were the ones that had more fish in them, so I ended up going after more individual fish that were bigger. I had less bites and it was stressful, but I knew that if I did get a bite it would be the right size.”
The top 10 pros on Lake Erie finished:
1st: Neil Farlow, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, five bass, 24-4, $87,500
2nd: Ben Wright, Peru, N.Y., five bass, 24-3, $16,600
3rd: Charles Sim, Nepean, Ontario, Canada, five bass, 23-3, $12,500
4th: J.T. Kenney, Palm Bay, Fla., five bass, 23-2, $10,500
5th: J. Todd Tucker, Moultrie, Ga., five bass, 22-15, $9,500
6th: Lowrance pro Austin Felix, Eden Prairie, Minn., five bass, 22-12, $8,250
7th: Moo Bae, West Friendship, Md., five bass, 22-8, $7,200
8th: Travis Manson, Conshohocken, Pa., five bass, 22-6, $6,200
9th: Philip Jarabeck, Spout Spring, Va., five bass, 22-5, $5,200
10th: T.J. Lacey, Selwyn, Ontario, Canada, five bass, 22-3, $4,100
A complete list of results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Farlow’s 6-pound, 6-ounce bass – the biggest bass of the tournament in the Pro Division – also earned him Thursday’s Boater Big Bass award of $300.
Sakae Ushio of Tonawanda, New York, won the Co-angler Division and a Ranger Z175 with a 90-horsepower outboard motor. Ushio earned his win with a one-day catch of five bass weighing 23 pounds, 7 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers on Lake Erie finished:
1st: Sakae Ushio, Tonawanda, N.Y., five bass, 23-7, $27,250
2nd: Chris Benninger, Grand Island, N.Y., five bass, 23-6, $5,350
3rd: Colton Sowers, Venetia, Pa., five bass, 23-4, $4,400
4th: Will Rogers, Grand Island, N.Y., five bass, 22-2, $3,650
5th: John Stoughtenger, Waterloo, N.Y., five bass, 21-7, $3,100
6th: Joseph Stois Sr., Fairview Park, Ohio, five bass, 21-3, $2,600
7th: Will Litchfield, London, Ontario, Canada, five bass, 20-6, $2,100
8th: Justin Lonchar, Industry, Pa., five bass, 20-5, $1,800
9th: David Williams, Fredericksburg, Va., five bass, 20-3, $1,520
10th: Wataru Iwahori, Palestine, Texas, five bass, 19-15, $1,270
Sowers caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Co-angler Division Thursday, a fish weighing 6 pounds, 6 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $200.
The Costa FLW Series on Lake Erie presented by Polaris was hosted by the Buffalo Niagara Sports Commission. It was the second of three Costa FLW Series Northern Division tournaments of the 2018 regular season. The next Costa FLW Series tournament will be the final Northern Division event of the year, held Sept. 6-8 on 1000 Islands in Clayton, New York, and is presented by Navionics. 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 Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
Multifaceted Fishery Awaits Anglers For Bassmaster Eastern Open On Lake Champlain
|
|
One and Done - Lake Erie Costa Day 3 Canceled - Day 1 Leader Farrow Winner
July 28, 2018
Courtesy of Colin Moore/FLW Fishing
A stubborn weather front packing westerly winds lingered overnight in the eastern basin of Lake Erie near Buffalo and forced the cancellation of the final day of the Costa FLW Series Northern Division tournament presented by Polaris. Ron Lappin, Costa FLW Series tournament director, made the call at about 4 a.m. after boating out to the mouth of the protected harbor where the tournament was headquartered.
In effect, it was a one-day tournament, as Lappin called off the second day of the event Friday because of dangerous boating conditions on Erie’s open waters.
“As soon as I got out to the opening, I saw 5-footers washing up,” said Lappin. “The front that was supposed to go through yesterday evening [Friday] apparently didn’t. The weather report showed gusts to about 22 mph coming in until about 10 a.m., then letting up some, then picking up again in the afternoon. So even if we had waited an hour or two, it wouldn’t have made much difference.
“There’s no sense in taking chances. This is the type of waterway that can get really dangerous in a hurry,” Lappin said. “Going out in even marginal conditions is asking for trouble, so for the best interests of everyone involved we ended the tournament with the standings as they are.”
Ontario pro Neil Farrow was declared the winner on the strength of his 24-pound, 4-ounce limit of smallmouths in the event’s opening round Thursday. Ben Wright of Peru, N.Y., was runner-up with 24-3, Charles Sim of Nepean, Ont., was third with 23-3, JT Kenney of Palm Bay, Fla., was fourth with 23-2 and J. Todd Tucker of Moultrie, Ga., was fifth with 22-15.
In Thursday’s opening round, 44 pros had limits that each weighed 20 pounds or more, while nine co-anglers accounted for 20-pounds-plus sacks. Sakae Ushio of nearby Tonawanda, N.Y., won the co-angler division with 23-7.
Lappin said that the top 43 places each on the boater and co-angler sides would receive checks. The payout begins at 9 at the weigh-in trailer at Safe Harbor. The next Costa FLW Series Northern Division matchup is set for Sept. 6-8 out of Clayton, N.Y. That event will decide the final divisional standings.
Johnson & Johnson Lead Fishers of Men Legacy Championship after Day 1!
2018 Legacy Series Championship - Courtesy of Fishers Of Men
The 2018 Shakespeare Legacy Series Championship hosted by Decatur Morgan County
Tourism is under way.
The event started with our Thursday night meeting held at First Baptist Church of Decatur who again
shared their facility with us for the evening. We were served a great meal catered by Alfonso’s Italian
restaurant in Decatur which was topped off with ice cream and all the toppings.
After the meal the current FLW Angler of the Year, Mark Rose spent time with us talking about
fishing and life. Mark spoke about his rise in the fishing world and the importance of preparing and
being open to the things around you. Even though a lot of things can impact our fishing and our life
Mark said the most important thing is to follow Jesus and his will for us. Thanks Mark for your great
testimony.
After the message we held a short meeting to talk about the first day’s tournament rules and
launch procedure. We then handed out prizes including baits, fishing tackle, boating accessories,
and fishing rods. We then released the fisherman and women for the evening so they could get a
good night rest for the next day to rise early and head for the ramp on Friday.
Friday morning came early as we started to launch boats around 5:00 a.m. The weather for this
time of year was cooler than in the past with temperatures in the 60’s along with slightly overcast
skies. At 6:00 a.m. we began our launch. Seventy seven boats left the Ingalls Harbor boat ramp on
Lake Wheeler. Check in time for the first flight was 1:00 p.m. and after a quick breakfast the
Fishers of Men staff returned to the Tournament site to set up for the weigh-in.
For fish preservation and to help protect the resource we set a three fish limit for this event.
At 1:00 the first flight returned and the teams started bringing the fish to the scales.
There were a total of thirty eight, three fish limits brought in with most of the teams catching fish.
Our day one leaders were the team of Lake and Allen Johnson with three fish weighing 11.23 lbs.
Lake was very tight lipped about how the fish were caught. In second place, were Greg and
Wyatt Tomlin who also caught the first day’s one big bass caught by the junior angler.
Wyatt’s big bass weighed 3.85 lbs and their total weight was 8.51 lbs. In third, were
Donny and Colby Beck wit three fish with a weight of 8.29 lbs. Not trailing far behind in third,
were Nathan and James Lively with a limit weighing 8.24 lbs followed by Greg and Ethan
Franklin with 8.10 lbs.
Stay tuned tomorrow is a new day.
Fishers of Men would like to thank all of our fine sponsors; BassCat Boats, Mercury, Berkley, Abu Garcia,
Spiderwire, Shakespeare, Strike King Lure Company, Kings Home, Power-Pole, Raymarine, Duckett Fishing,
BassBoat Technologies, ORCA Coolers, Buckeye Lures, T&H Maine, Gator Guards, ,Kistler Rods, HydroWave,
Costa, Jacobs Glass, Rayjus Sportswear,
Shakespeare Legacy Series Championship-Day 1 - 07/27/18
| Place | Team | Members | # Fish | Big Fish | Gross | Penalty | Net Wt | Points | |
| 1 | 22770 | Allen Johnson Lake Johnson |
3 | 0 | 11.23 | 0 | 11.23 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 2 | 15503 | Greg Tomlin Wyatt Tomlin |
3 | 3.85 | 8.51 | 0 | 8.51 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 3 | 15319 | Donny Beck Colby Beck |
3 | 0 | 8.29 | 0 | 8.29 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 4 | 23327 | Nathan Lively James Lively |
3 | 0 | 8.24 | 0 | 8.24 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 5 | 21543 | Greg Franklin Ethan Franklin |
3 | 3.15 | 8.1 | 0 | 8.1 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 6 | 21638 | Mitch Willoughby James Willoughby |
3 | 0 | 7.84 | 0 | 7.84 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 7 | 21326 | Jimmy Mitchell Brody Mitchell |
3 | 0 | 7.44 | 0 | 7.44 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 8 | 23221 | William Davis Sawyer Davis |
3 | 0 | 7.13 | 0 | 7.13 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 9 | 19639 | Brad Gambrell Sawyer Redmond |
3 | 3.2 | 7.11 | 0 | 7.11 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 10 | 21902 | Jake Roberson Miller Hunt |
3 | 0 | 6.59 | 0 | 6.59 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 11 | 15470 | Fred Lynn Gabrial Lynn |
3 | 0 | 6.17 | 0 | 6.17 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 12 | 18093 | Eric Weeks Tyler Weeks |
2 | 0 | 6.16 | 0 | 6.16 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 13 | 23236 | Roger Motes Joe Hardy |
3 | 2.23 | 6.13 | 0 | 6.13 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 14 | 22047 | Joe Garrie Chesney Garrie |
3 | 0 | 5.92 | 0 | 5.92 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 15 | 22045 | Jim Barnette Peyton Steele |
3 | 0 | 5.9 | 0 | 5.9 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 16 | 21651 | Randy Thrash Tucker Thrash |
3 | 2.99 | 5.84 | 0 | 5.84 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 17 | 22041 | Anthony McBay Carson Heard |
3 | 0 | 5.93 | 0.25 | 5.68 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 18 | 22743 | Cameron McEarchern Richard McEarchern |
3 | 0 | 5.68 | 0 | 5.68 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 19 | 19536 | Russell Nixon Wyatt Bigham |
3 | 0 | 5.46 | 0 | 5.46 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 20 | 23085 | Kevin Beasley Jacob Neff |
3 | 0 | 5.44 | 0 | 5.44 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 21 | 23195 | Hayden Smith Jason Smith |
3 | 3.52 | 5.36 | 0 | 5.36 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 22 | 19601 | James Williams Andrew Williams |
3 | 2.22 | 5.35 | 0 | 5.35 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 23 | 22769 | Bill Benford Rhett Benford |
3 | 0 | 5.31 | 0 | 5.31 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 24 | 23363 | Darin Witherup Michael Witherup |
2 | 0 | 5.22 | 0 | 5.22 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 25 | 16804 | Tim Van Polen Jaron Brooks |
3 | 0 | 5.04 | 0.25 | 4.79 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 26 | 23455 | Billy Brooks NOAH BROOKS |
3 | 0 | 4.79 | 0 | 4.79 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 27 | 21324 | Chris Cooper Logan Cooper |
3 | 0 | 4.7 | 0 | 4.7 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 28 | 21539 | Shane Bryson Britlyn Bryson |
3 | 0 | 4.69 | 0 | 4.69 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 29 | 23470 | Victor Holt Sara Holt |
3 | 0 | 4.48 | 0 | 4.48 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 30 | 15341 | Hunter Haymond Todd Haymond |
2 | 0 | 4.47 | 0 | 4.47 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 31 | 17998 | Kent Ware Emily Ware |
3 | 0 | 4.47 | 0 | 4.47 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 32 | 23425 | Frank Morton Zac Williams |
2 | 0 | 4.3 | 0 | 4.3 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 33 | 22771 | Jimmy Garrie Kate McMillian |
3 | 0 | 4.22 | 0 | 4.22 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 34 | 23396 | Tim Rivest Brayden Rivest |
3 | 0 | 4.2 | 0 | 4.2 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 35 | 23454 | JAMES CALLAHAN CHRISTIAN CALLAHAN |
2 | 0 | 4.15 | 0 | 4.15 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 36 | 21234 | Brad Osborn Kaden Osborn |
3 | 0 | 4.13 | 0 | 4.13 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 37 | 23481 | David Godwin Jacob Godwin |
3 | 0 | 4.02 | 0 | 4.02 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 38 | 23508 | Julious Lively Natalie Lively |
2 | 2.49 | 3.95 | 0 | 3.95 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 39 | 23472 | Brandt Sjuts Ty Coon |
3 | 0 | 3.92 | 0 | 3.92 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 40 | 23463 | Tony Tidwell Konner Tidwell |
3 | 0 | 3.91 | 0 | 3.91 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 41 | 23510 | Dennis Defoor Tanner Hayes |
3 | 0 | 3.91 | 0 | 3.91 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 42 | 9721 | Jack Jr. Napier Ross Napier |
3 | 0 | 3.81 | 0 | 3.81 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 43 | 23216 | Luke Linley Andrew Hamilton |
3 | 0 | 3.8 | 0 | 3.8 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 44 | 18693 | Tripp Fryar Reagan Fryar |
2 | 2.35 | 3.59 | 0 | 3.59 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 45 | 21897 | Walter Gurgacz Jonathan Gurgacz |
2 | 0 | 3.55 | 0 | 3.55 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 46 | 16132 | Chris Hunt Mason Hunt |
2 | 0 | 3.52 | 0 | 3.52 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 47 | 23495 | Robbie Austin Noah Austin |
2 | 0 | 3.44 | 0 | 3.44 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 48 | 22391 | Brian Nelson Alison Nelson |
2 | 0 | 3.32 | 0 | 3.32 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 49 | 18120 | Steve Wilson Jessie Franklin |
2 | 0 | 3.29 | 0 | 3.29 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 50 | 21901 | Stan Riley Harrison Riley |
1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 51 | 23309 | Wayne Dorman Joey Dorman |
3 | 0 | 2.95 | 0 | 2.95 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 52 | 23509 | Bradley Cross Alexandra Tate |
2 | 1.84 | 2.9 | 0 | 2.9 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 53 | 23437 | Larry Melvin Leslie Terrell |
3 | 0 | 2.85 | 0 | 2.85 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 54 | 22839 | Steve Pierce Lain McCollough |
1 | 2.75 | 2.75 | 0 | 2.75 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 55 | 18036 | David Hanson Samuel Hanson |
1 | 2.61 | 2.61 | 0 | 2.61 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 56 | 23418 | Jerry Sandretto RYAN OLSEN |
1 | 2.52 | 2.52 | 0 | 2.52 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 57 | 23295 | Travis Clemen Kevick Clemen |
2 | 0 | 2.37 | 0 | 2.37 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 58 | 22775 | Walt Denny Jimbo Deaton |
2 | 0 | 2.19 | 0 | 2.19 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 59 | 22947 | Richard Nearhoof James Walters |
1 | 1.8 | 1.8 | 0 | 1.8 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 60 | 23217 | Chris Newell Seth Hall |
2 | 0 | 1.76 | 0 | 1.76 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 61 | 19308 | David Martin Conner Martin |
1 | 1.67 | 1.67 | 0 | 1.67 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 62 | 23465 | Tim DeFoor Kannen DeFoor |
1 | 1.57 | 1.57 | 0 | 1.57 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 63 | 23317 | Maurice Parent Tyler Seaman |
2 | 0 | 1.62 | 0.25 | 1.37 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 64 | 23023 | Darren Keith Joshua Keith |
1 | 1.35 | 1.35 | 0 | 1.35 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 65 | 21649 | Bryan Ryals Braden Ryals |
1 | 1.25 | 1.25 | 0 | 1.25 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 66 | 22952 | Chris Tinsley Ryan Tinsley |
1 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 0 | 1.2 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 67 | 23462 | Joel Franks Jonathan Franks |
1 | 1.18 | 1.18 | 0 | 1.18 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 68 | 18496 | Bob Austin Jonathan Connor |
1 | 1.15 | 1.15 | 0 | 1.15 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 69 | 16578 | Ken Harris Hunter Harris |
1 | 1.08 | 1.08 | 0 | 1.08 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 70 | 23333 | Lucas Trotter Colton Trotter |
1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 71 | 22969 | Bryan Stewart Sam Meeks |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 72 | 21554 | Edward Looper Jr Lauren Kate Looper |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 73 | 18003 | Edmond Brown Garrett Brown |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 74 | 11488 | Steve Neal Dawson Busenbark |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 75 | 17817 | Mike Sutherland Zachary Sutherland |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
|
|||||||||
| 76 | 22517 | Keith Walley austin gunn |
3 | 0 | 3.25 | 3.25 | 0 | 0 | |
Costa Northern - Day 2 on Lake Erie Cancelled
July 27, 2018 by Colin Moore
Dangerous winds force tournament officials to call off second round for safety’s sake.
High winds that churned up the eastern basin of Lake Erie overnight and prompted a small craft advisory also forced cancellation of day two of the Costa FLW Series Northern Division tournament presented by Polaris. Sustained southwesterly winds of 14 mph and gusts up to 26 mph were forecast for Friday, making boating conditions untenable.
Tournament director Ron Lappin said current plans call for the tournament to continue Saturday morning with all of the 169 boatloads of pros and co-anglers fishing. That presumes the weather forecast will be better, and the heavy waters now topping five feet will subside.
“The forecast for Saturday isn’t much better,” says Lappin, “so we’ll have to wait and see. We can’t take chances. If we can fish – and we’re planning to fish now – the pairings will remain the same.”
On day one, Canadian angler Neil Farlow topped the field with five smallmouths that totaled 24 pounds, 4 ounces. Ben Wright of Peru, N.Y., was close behind with 24-3 and Charles Sim of Nepean, Ont., was third with 23-3. JT Kenney, 23-2 and J. Todd Tucker, 22-15, rounded out the top five. Forty-four limits weighing 20 pounds or more were caught in the opening round.
As it now stands, Saturday’s round will determine the final standings. Lappin said competitors would be notified later Friday regarding Saturday’s plans.
Farlow Leads Costa Northern Day 1 on Erie with over 24 pounds!
Courtesy of FLW Fishing
July 26, 2018
Lake Erie’s exceptional fishing was on full display in the opening round of the Costa FLW Series Northern Division tournament presented by Polaris and hosted by Buffalo Niagara Sports Commission. Forty-four limits weighing at least 20 pounds each were caught. Even co-anglers got in on the smallmouth bonanza, as nine of them brought back limits that totaled 20 pounds or better.
Though Neil Farlow of St. Catherines, Ontario, leads the 169 pros fishing the event with 24-4, there’s not much daylight between him and the rest of the top 50. Farlow is an ounce ahead of Ben Wright of Peru, N.Y., and a difference of 4 pounds, 4 ounces separates the Canadian from Bill Chapman of Salt Rock, W.Va., who’s in 44th place with 20 pounds.
Farlow didn’t provide many details about his day, except to say that he fished spots in Canada and the U.S. and culled a couple of times.
“I used drop-shot rigs and tubes, and tubes seemed to work better when the wind got up in the afternoon,” says Farlow, whose 6-6 smallmouth was the big fish of the day. “I’m running a Ranger 522D deep-V, so the wind wasn’t that big a problem for me. Tomorrow [Friday] I’m going to do what the wind let’s me do. Either I’m going to run my spots or stay longer on some and really fish them out.”
Farlow says mixed bottoms of rock and gravel or gravel and sand produced best for him. Perhaps even more critical is the timing of the bite. Many of the anglers with the 20-pound-plus sacks were in the first few flights and reported that the smallmouths started eating as soon as the anglers reached their first destinations. As the day progressed, however, the bite got slower.
Though the wind was manageable Thursday morning, it built during the day, and by late afternoon 6-foot waves could be seen crashing over the seawall that shelters the harbor from the wind’s main force. Stronger winds ranging to about 15 mph are predicted for Friday morning, which means some contestants with lengthy milk runs might have to shorten their daily itineraries.
Friday’s weigh-in at Safe Harbor Marina starts at 2 p.m. and involves all competitors. Saturday, the top 10 pros and co-anglers advance to the championship weigh-in at Cabela’s in Cheektowaga beginning at 3 p.m.
TOP 10 PROS
1. Neil Farlow – St. Catherines, Ontario – 24-4 (5)
2. Ben Wright – Peru, N.Y. – 24-3 (5)
3. Charles Sim – Nepean, Ontario – 23-3 (5)
4. JT Kenney – Palm Bay, Fla. – 23-2 (5)
5. J Todd Tucker – Moultrie, Ga. – 22-15 (5)
6. Austin Felix – Eden Prairie, Minn. – 22-12 (5)
7. Moo Bae – West Friendship, Md. – 22-8 (5)
8. Travis Manson – Conshohocken, Pa. – 22-6 (5)
9. Philip Jarabeck – Spout Spring, Va. – 22-5 (5)
10. Jason Kervin – Auburn, Maine – 22-3 (5)
10. TJ Lacey – Selwyn, Ontario – 22-3 (5)
