COSTA FLW SERIES HEADED TO SANTEE COOPER
SUMMERTON, S.C. (March 27, 2018) – More than 340 pros and co-anglers are set to compete next week, April 5-7, at the Costa FLW Series at Santee Cooper Lakes presented by Bass Pro Shops. The tournament is the third and final regular-season tournament scheduled in the FLW Series Southeastern Division. Hosted by the Clarendon County Chamber of Commerce, the event will feature anglers competing for a top award of up to $89,000, including a brand new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
“This is going to be a really good tournament, and it could be absolutely phenomenal,” said FLW Tour pro Bryan Thrift, who won when the FLW Series last visited Santee Cooper in 2016. “With the way the weather is warming up, and the full moon next week, it could be a perfect storm. It’s setting up to be an absolute slugfest.”
When the FLW Series anglers competed at Santee Cooper in 2016, 16 five-bass limits were weighed in excess of 25 pounds, with three limits weighing more than 30 pounds. Thrift said that he expects the same thing this time around.
“The best thing about the Santee Cooper lakes is that you can catch giants anywhere,” Thrift said. “We’re definitely going to see multiple 30-pound bags. It’s not like one lake is better than the other, or one end of the lake is better. There are big fish to be caught everywhere, on the whole system.”
Thrift predicted that the bass would be in their prespawn and spawning patterns, with a large majority of the largemouth on beds. He suggested that Rat-L-Traps, spinnerbaits, ChatterBaits and soft stickworms, like a Damiki Stinger, would all play a big role for tournament anglers.
“I think the key is going to be finding fresh fish that are just coming up – staging to move shallow,” Thrift said. “I would say that a three-day total of 78 to 84 pounds will win.”
Anglers will take off from the John C. Land III Landing, located at 4404 Greenall Road., in Summerton, at 7 a.m. EST each day of competition. Weigh-ins will also be held at the landing and will begin at 3 p.m. each day. All takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.
In Costa FLW Series regular-season competition, payouts are based on the number of participants competing in the event. At Santee Cooper pros will fish for a top prize of $89,000, including a brand new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard if Ranger Cup qualified. Co-anglers will cast for a brand new Ranger Z175 boat with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard, and $5,000 if Ranger Cup qualified.
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.
Black Velvet Named B.A.S.S. Elite Partner And Presenting Sponsor Of St. Lawrence Event
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - From BASS Communications
April 4, 2018
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Black Velvet Canadian Whisky has signed on as an Elite Partner of the 2018 Bassmaster Elite Series.
The Elite Partner agreement provides for promoting Black Velvet at Bassmaster Elite Series events this year with special activities planned for four of the Elite tournaments. They are to be held at Lake Oahe at Pierre, S.D., June 29-July 2; Upper Chesapeake Bay at Harford County, Md., July 26-29; St. Lawrence River at Waddington, N.Y., Aug. 23-26; and the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship at Lake Chatuge at Young Harris, Ga., Sept. 20-23.
It also includes a presenting sponsorship for the brand in the New York Elite, which will be entitled, “Bassmaster Elite at St. Lawrence River presented by Black Velvet Canadian Whisky,” and advertising in B.A.S.S.’s print and digital media, including Bassmaster Magazine and Bassmaster.com.
“Waddington, N.Y., has always been one of our most enthusiastic host communities, and it holds the all-time attendance record for a Bassmaster Elite Series event after 34,100 fans attended in 2013,” said B.A.S.S. CEO Bruce Akin. “This will be a great venue for promoting Black Velvet Canadian Whisky.”
“Black Velvet has long been loved by outdoorsmen. We are thrilled to be partnering with Bassmaster and to be a part of these extraordinary events,” said Carl Evans, Vice President, Marketing, Spirits.
Black Velvet is a blended whisky that has been available since 1951. It is part of the family of brands from Constellation Brands, a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Victor, N.Y.
“We welcome Black Velvet as an Elite Partner and presenting sponsor,” Akin added. “Constellation Brands has earned a reputation for integrity and is one of world’s most admired companies, according to Fortune Magazine, and we are proud that they recognize the importance of the Bassmaster Elite Series in exposing their brands.”
Sam Rayburn Produces 13.06 Legacy Class Texas ShareLunker!
AUSTIN – Sam Rayburn Reservoir produced the final Toyota ShareLunker Legacy Class largemouth bass entry with just hours left in the 2018 donation season March 31. Angler Stacy Spriggs of Huntsville caught the 13.06 pound, 27 inch Legacy Class lunker during the Second Annual Stanley Burgay Memorial Bass Tournament on a Carolina rig in 8 feet of water.
“When I set the hook I knew it was a big fish – but I didn’t know how big,” Spriggs said. “It never crossed my mind that it was a ShareLunker until we got to the [tournament] scale. When they put her on the scale and she weighed over 13 pounds I was shocked. This is way bigger than anything I’ve ever caught before.”
An avid tournament angler, Spriggs said her previous biggest fish was a 9.71 pound bass caught in another tournament the weekend before. Spriggs said ShareLunker 576 meets a goal she set since she began fishing nearly 8 years ago – to catch a double digit bass at her home lake.
“We have a lakehouse on Sam Rayburn and fish the lake 90 percent of the time,” Spriggs said. “Neither my boyfriend or I had ever caught a double digit on Sam Rayburn. I did it by three pounds – it was pretty crazy.”
Once Toyota ShareLunker program coordinator Kyle Brookshear arrived at the Sam Rayburn Lakeview marina to inspect the fish, he decided it was in the best interest of the fish’s health to return it to the lake instead of bringing it back to the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens to attempt spawning. Although she will not be a part of the selective breeding program, the fish is classified as a Legacy Class entry and now bears the title ShareLunker 576.
ShareLunker 576 is the sixth and final Legacy Class entry of the season. The five other Legacy Class entries of the season include: Toyota ShareLunker 575, a 13.34 pound largemouth bass caught by angler Pablo Torres Jr. from Kurth Reservoir March 25; Toyota ShareLunker 574, a 13.40 pound largemouth bass caught by angler Austin Terry from Twin Buttes Reservoir March 14; Toyota ShareLunker 573, a 13.06 pound largemouth bass caught by angler Alex Finch from Lake Fork March 11; Toyota ShareLunker 572, a 13.00 pound largemouth bass caught by angler Michael Terrebonne from Lake Fork March 8; and Toyota ShareLunker 571, a 15.48 pound largemouth bass caught by angler John LaBove from Lake Fork March 2.
Every angler who loaned a 13 pound or larger Legacy Class bass to the Toyota ShareLunker program during the spawning period Jan. 1 to March 31 will receive a Toyota ShareLunker Catch Kit containing branded merchandise and fishing tackle items, a 13lb+ Legacy decal, VIP access to awards programming at the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest, a replica of their fish, and an entry into the year-end ShareLunker Prize Drawing to win a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license. These anglers will also be entered into the Legacy Class Prize Drawing for a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license at the end of the spawning period. TPWD will officially announce the drawing winner at the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest during the ShareLunker awards ceremony on May 19th.
Although the Legacy Class donation season has ended, anglers can still enter their 8 pound or larger largemouth bass catches into the Toyota ShareLunker program through Dec. 31. Entries can be made online or through a free app available to download from the Apple App Store and Google Play.
Each angler who enters an 8 pound or 24 inches and larger lunker bass on the mobile app or website will receive a Toyota ShareLunker Catch Kit containing branded merchandise and fishing tackle items and an entry into the year-end ShareLunker Prize Drawing for a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license. Anglers will also receive a vehicle decal to display their recognition category – Lunker Class for bass at least 8 pounds or 24 inches, Lunker Elite Class for bass 10 to 12.99 pounds, and Lunker Legend Class for bass at least 13 pounds.
The Toyota ShareLunker Program is made possible by a grant to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation from Gulf States Toyota. Toyota is a longtime supporter of the Foundation and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, providing major funding for a wide variety of education, fish, parks and wildlife projects.
For updates on the Toyota ShareLunker program and to view photos of all of the 13-pound-plus largemouth bass caught this season, visit https://www.facebook.com/ShareLunkerprogram or https://texassharelunker.com/.
AnglersChannel Insider Podcast Episode #8 Featuring Bassmaster Classic Champ Jordan Lee & FLW Tour Pro Carl Jocumsen!!
On this weeks Episode Chris & Jason break down the 2018 Bassmasters Classic with Jordan Lee and how he won back-to-back Classics at only 26 years old. What this has done for his career on many levels and how it feels to be in the same company as Rick Clunn and KVD. The Boys also Talk with FLW Tour Pro Carl Jocumsen and how his career started in Australia to the Bass/Camping life on the road here in the states! They also talk boating safety and remember fallen fisherman Wayne Cox. All of this and more on this weeks AnglersChannel Insider Podcast!
MADISON SOUTHERN HIGH SCHOOL WINS TBF/FLW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING KENTUCKY STATE CHAMPIONSHIP ON LAKE CUMBERLAND
BURNSIDE, Ky. (Apr. 2, 2018) – The Madison Southern High School fishing duo of Blake Harold of Berea, Kentucky, and Cameron Cochran of Mount Vernon, Kentucky, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Saturday weighing 17 pounds, 7 ounces to win the 2018 TBF/FLW High School Fishing Kentucky State Championship on Lake Cumberland.
A field of 243 teams competed in the no-entry fee tournament, which launched from the Burnside Island State Park in Burnside. In FLW/TBF High School Fishing competition, the top 10-percent of teams competing advance to the High School Fishing National Championship.
The top 10 teams on Lake Cumberland were:
1st: Madison Southern High School, Berea, Ky. – Blake Harold, Berea, Ky., and Cameron Cochran, Mt. Vernon, Ky., five bass, 17-7
2nd: Rockcastle High School, Mt. Vernon, Ky. – Jordan Nicely and Cameron Cornelius, both of Mt. Vernon, Ky., five bass, 12-12
3rd: Jessamine County High School, Nicholasville, Ky. – Luke Lamb, Nicholasville, Ky., and Carson Mitchell, Lexington, Ky., five bass, 12-8
4th: Spencer County Bass Club – Clayton Rountree and Dillin Stallings, both of Taylorsville, Ky., five bass 12-6
4th: Lake Cumberland High School Bass Club – Ragan Burton and Blake Stringer, both of Somerset, Ky., five bass, 12-6
6th: Jessamine County High School, Nicholasville, Ky. – Nathan Marshall and Braxton Lamb, both of Nicholasville, Ky., five bass 12-5
7th: Casey County High School, Liberty, Ky. – Britt Pendleton, Liberty, Ky., and Ethan Lee, Dunnville, Ky., five bass, 11-13
8th: Thomas Nelson High School, Barstown, Ky. – John Mattingle, New Hope, Ky., and Stephen Bradley, Hodgenville, Ky., five bass, 11-4
9th: Jessamine County High School, Nicholasville, Ky. – Levi Keith and Casey Shearer, both of Nicholasville, Ky., five bass, 11-2
10th: George Rogers Clark High School, Winchester, Ky. – Robert Powe and Allen Powe, both of Winchester, Ky., four bass, 11-0
The rest of the 24 High School teams that advanced to the 2018 High School Fishing National Championship and complete results for the remaining field can be found at HighSchoolFishing.org.
The 2018 TBF/FLW High School Fishing Kentucky State Championship was a two-person (team) event for students in grades 7-12, open to any Student Angler Federation (SAF) affiliated high school club in the United States. The top 10 percent of each Challenge, Open, and state championship field will advance to the High School Fishing National Championship on Pickwick Lake, in Florence, Alabama, June 26-29. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.
In addition to the High School Fishing National Championship, all High School Fishing anglers nationwide automatically qualify for the world’s largest high school bass tournament, the 2018 High School Fishing World Finals, held in conjunction with the National Championship on Pickwick Lake. At the 2017 World Finals more than $60,000 in scholarships and prizes were awarded.
Full schedules and the latest announcements are available at HighSchoolFishing.org and FLWFishing.com.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW" television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros. For more information visit FLWFishing.com and follow FLW at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.
2018 Ray Scott Championship Field to Take on the Red River April 5-8, 2018
Athens, AL. – In the June of 1967, Ray Scott held the first modern-day bass tournament, which he called the All-American. Fifty-one years later the best anglers from across the US are gathering to compete for the championship named after him, the Ray Scott Championship. It’s only fitting that at the same time the best in golf are playing at the Masters that the best weekend anglers will be competing for the Ray Scott Championship title. The 2018 Ray Scott Championship is being held on the Red River out of Shreveport-Bossier, LA April 5-8.
The Red River will test the anglers, but championships are intended to test competitors. They are forced to be both mentally and physically prepared for a four-day battle and find ways to score and win. In the world of bass fishing, this means consistently weighing in a limit of bass each day of the event.
The Red River has been the site of Bassmaster Classics as well as many weekend angler championships. The Red River is made up of pools, and our anglers will fish pools 3, 4 and 5. The anglers will launch each day on pool 5 about 12 miles north of the pool 5 lock and dam. Pool 5 is considered the most stable dealing with inflowing water. Anglers will fish Pool 4 which is more like a river than pool 5 and is loaded with Oxbows. These Oxbows fish well with higher water, but the anglers will have to navigate the lock to get there. Locks on the Red River can take thirty minutes to an hour to navigate.
A real gambler might shoot for Pool 3, but that means a two-hour run each way, navigating locks and still have enough time to turn in a good limit. Anglers that makes a pool 3 run better have a game plan that works.
The last few big events held on the Red River proves that plastics and bladed swim jigs are very productive. However, other baits that produce big bags are square bill crankbaits, jigs and spinnerbaits. Thank goodness there is a Bass Pro Shop right in Shreveport. Once the anglers in this championship figure out what is the hot bait(s), they will sell out fast.
A good example would come from a veteran of the Red River Homer Humphreys Jr. In April of 2008, Humphreys placed second in a BASS Open making only a 12-minute run from the launch. He caught his fish by swimming a BassGitter jig and a chatter bait. That week Humphreys and his partners brought in 90 pounds of bass.
Alternatively, in 2014 Stephen Browning won a BASS Open. He used a 1/2-ounce chartreuse-and-white spinnerbait when the wind was blowing on day one. However, his money bait was a square-bill crankbait.
In an interview on bassmaster.com Browning said, “Every day the fish are going to be on a specific piece of cover,” he said. “It requires keen observation and brain recall of what the fish are relating to on that given day.”
Based on Browning’s comments about the tournament it may come down to the anglers that can catch a limit then find one or two kickers each day. His final weight was 44 pounds 3 ounces or 14.66 pounds a day. His three days weights were 14 pounds 15 ounces, 13 pounds 9 ounces and the final day 15 pounds 11 ounces.
The 2018 Ray Scott Championship may come down to who can be the most consistent angler that brings in 15 pounds per day average.
The Boater Ray Scott Champion will win $50,000 and a new Triton 21 TRX Bass Boat powered by a Mercury 250ProXS. The Co-Angler Ray Scott Champion will win $25,000 a new Triton 19 TRX Bass Boat powered by a Mercury 200ProXS. Both Triton Bass Boats are rigged with ABA Sponsor Products. Garmin Marine Electronics, T-H Marine Accessories and powered with Optima Batteries.
The Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission is hosting the 2018 Ray Scott Championship. Not only does the Shreveport-Bossier City area provide a top-notch area to hold tournaments they have a lot to offer anglers when they are off the water. Shreveport-Bossier is also home to the famous Louisiana Boardwalk. Where there is a lot to discover from the Bass Pro Shop to Joe’s Crab Shack. The area offers entertainment for the whole. For a list of fun things to do visit https://www.shreveport-bossier.org/things-to-do/.
If that wasn’t enough, it is full on crawfish season! That means some the best Cajun food you could ever experience. Crawdaddy's Kitchen, LarryP’s Boiling Pot, Marilynn's Place and the Blind Tiger are just a few of the local Cajun cuisine hot spots to choose from.
The public is invited to attend the Ray Scott Championship daily weigh-ins at Red River Marina South starting Thursday, April 5th at 3 pm. The final weigh-in will be on Sunday, April 8th with the top 25 boater and co-anglers. Red River Marina South is located at 250 Red River South Marina Road, Bossier City, LA 71112, (318) 747-9545.
American Bass Anglers’ commitment is to provide low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler and at the same time offer each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression. For more information about American Bass Anglers and the American Fishing Tour, the ABA Open Series, the Triton 100% Plus Team Tour, or the American Couples Series, visit www.americanbassanglers.com
Boat Crash Kills 1, Passenger in Serious Condition
Content and Photo Courtesy of WALA News /Mobile
By Elizabeth Rodil
Published: March 31, 2018 at 2:38 PM CDT
Updated: March 31, 2018 at 9:28 PM CDT
STOCKTON, AL (WALA) -
One person was killed and another was seriously injured when two fishing boats collided during a fishing tournament near Live Oak Landing in Baldwin County Saturday, according to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.
This happened at about 10:50 a.m. near Stockton, where a Media Bass fishing tournament was happening on the Tensaw River.
One of the two fishing boats was involved in the tournament, an ALEA official on the scene said.
Alabama State Troopers from ALEA’s Marine Patrol Division responded to a two-vessel collision in north Baldwin County near the confluence of Miflin Lake and the Tensaw River.
Troopers said a bass boat operated by Wesley Scott Feely of Atmore collided with the driver’s side of a bass boat operated by Jackie Dewayne Cox of Pace, Fla.
Troopers provided the following information:
The occupants of both boats were ejected into the water but were wearing personal flotation devices. Several boaters who heard the boat crash rushed to assist the victims. They pulled Cox and his passenger, Lee Grandquest, of Semmes from the water, rendered first-aid and stopped one of the boats that was still circling without an operator.
Cox was deceased at the scene. Grandquest was flown to USA Medical Center in Mobile, where he is still hospitalized Saturday night. Feely was treated at North Baldwin Infirmary Emergency Room and released.
Acting Baldwin County EMA Director Jessie Peacock and his son Hayden were also fishing nearby and helped provide treatment and coordinated with Crossroads VFD and a Medstar EMS crew to guide them to the scene.
The cause of the accident is still under investigation by the Marine Patrol Division.
Twenty-five boat teams were listed online by Media Bass for Saturday's tournament.
UPDATE: Elite Series on the Sabine River Officially Postponed Due To Unsafe Water Conditions
UPDATED 8:00pm March 30th
March 30, 2018
B.A.S.S. Postpones Sabine River Elite Due To Unsafe Boating Conditions
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Citing recent heavy rains and high water in the Sabine River watershed, B.A.S.S. has decided to postpone the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Elite presented by Econo Lodge that had been scheduled to begin in Orange, Texas, next week.
“The safety of our anglers and others on the waters of the Sabine River system are our primary concern,” said B.A.S.S. Tournament Director Trip Weldon. “Weather and water conditions are expected to create potentially hazardous boating conditions, and we feel compelled to postpone the event until conditions are more favorable.”
The tournament originally was to begin Friday, April 6, and conclude Monday, April 9. As conditions began to deteriorate, Weldon told Elite Series anglers Thursday the tournament would be delayed at least one day. “We became convinced today that conditions would not improve in time for the tournament to be held in the coming days.”
The tournament will be rescheduled for another time during the 2018 Elite Series season, which concludes with the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship in September. Officials from B.A.S.S. and local host organizations in Orange will be meeting in the coming days to select a suitable date to reschedule the event.
B.A.S.S. has conducted Elite Series tournament at Orange twice before, in 2013 and 2015. Both generated tremendous crowds of spectators, including some of the best attendance figures in tournament history.
Local organizers were hoping to set new records next week and had planned concerts following the afternoon weigh-ins to further entertain bass fishing fans.
The Greater Orange Area Chamber of Commerce (GOACC) said in a statement it has been made aware of B.A.S.S.’s decision to postpone the Bassmaster Elite Tournament on the Sabine River, based on the safety of the anglers. “As a result of this decision the Orange County River Festival will also be cancelled,” it said.
Tad McKee, Chairman of the GOACC Board, stated, “This was a hard decision, but we support B.A.S.S.’s commitment to the safety of the anglers and participants. We look forward to a rescheduled tournament in the near future."
Posted March 29th
Due to weather conditions in and around Orange, Texas, B.A.S.S. has decided to delay the start of the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Elite at Sabine River presented by Econo Lodge. "We have conferred with authorities there to get the best information and forecasts we can," Tournament Director Trip Weldon said in a note to Elite Anglers Thursday. "River levels are predicted to crest along the Sabine and Neches sometime tomorrow or Saturday, depending on the location."
Weldon said B.A.S.S. will continue to monitor the situation and talk to authorities prior to making a decision Monday whether to hold the event next week. He said "safety is the utmost consideration" and may require postponing the event until sometime further into the future.
If the tournament begins next week, practice days will be Wednesday-Friday and competition will be held on Saturday-Tuesday. Competition was originally scheduled to begin Friday.
COLLEGE ANGLERS SET TO COMPETE AT YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING AT LAKE TEXOMA
DENISON, Texas (March 27, 2018) – YETI FLW College Fishing will continue the 2018 fishing season with an event April 7 on Lake Texoma. The tournament, hosted by the Denison Area Chamber of Commerce, is the second of three regular-season events for anglers in the Southern Conference, and will feature a top prize of a $2,000 club scholarship and an invitation to compete in the 2019 College Fishing National Championship.
“They’re going to catch them pretty good at Texoma and it should be a really fun tournament,” said FLW Tour pro and former College Fishing standout Andrew Upshaw, who has three top-12 finishes on Lake Texoma in Costa FLW Series competition. “The majority of the largemouth should be spawning, or just about to spawn. The smallmouth will likely already have spawned, so the chances of catching a 3½ to 4 pound smallmouth are pretty good. I think the winning team will probably have a mixed bag – a few big largemouth and a few big smallmouth.”
Upshaw said that the majority of the big fish live on the south end of the lake – within six miles of the dam – and he expects that a big grouping of college competitors will likely be found in that area.
“Sight fishing is going to be the deal for most of the teams,” Upshaw said. “You can’t beat a (Gene Larew) Biffle Bug – it’s my number one bait when sight fishing. I’d also have something compact tied on, like a (Gene Larew Jacob Wheeler) Hammer Craw.
“I’d recommend doing a little homework and looking at what past winners have done this time of year,” Upshaw continued. “If I wasn’t sight fishing, I’d be cranking a (Bill Lewis) Echo 1.75 squarebill around rocks. (Ray) Hanselman won a couple of years ago throwing a frog around spawning areas. A big 6- to 8-inch swimbait in the clear water around docks could catch some big ones that are staging.
“My biggest recommendation if you’re looking to win is to pick up baits that you know are going to catch big ones,” Upshaw went on to say. “Between a frog, a big swimbait and a Biffle Bug, I don’t think you can beat those three options.”
Upshaw predicted that the winning team would bring a five-bass limit nearing 22 pounds to the scale.
Competitors will take off from the Highport Marina, located at 120 Texoma Harbor in Pottsboro, at 7 a.m. CST Saturday. Weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. Takeoff and weigh-in are free and open to the public.
Schools are allowed to register up until the morning of the tournament. Entries may be made either by phone or at CollegeFishing.com.
Schools registered to compete in the Lake Texoma tournament include:
Abilene Christian University – Tanner Sanderson, El Paso, Texas, and Corbin Craft, Fort Worth, Texas
Colorado State University-Pueblo – Austin Miles, Durango, Colo., and Cooper Brown, Pueblo West, Colo.
Harding University – Ethan Flowers, Dexter, Mo., and Cole Swede, Little Rock, Ark.
Louisiana Tech University – Huff McIntosh and Jacob Mitcham, both of Ruston, La.
Northeast Texas Community College – Austin King, Hughes Spring, Texas, and Danny Boyd, Winnsboro, Texas
Northeastern State University – Caleb Gibson and Tyler Winn, both of Tahlequah, Okla.
Oklahoma State University – Bates Enmeier, Enid, Okla., and Dexter Flick, Olathe, Colo.
Oklahoma State University – Garrett Brown, Broken Arrow, Okla., and Jake Swanson, Eufaula, Okla.
Sam Houston State University – Jackson Carrell, Anderson, Texas, and Kyle Pasket, Tomball, Texas
Stephen F. Austin State University – Kyle Dragulski, Mansfield, Texas, and Will Hughes, Tyler, Texas
Texas A&M University – Grant Adams, Midlothian, Texas, and Shane Stafford, Belton, Texas
Texas A&M-Commerce – Jacob Galindo, Commerce, Texas, and William Fitzgerald, Quinlan, Texas
Texas A&M-Commerce – Michael Wallace, Plano, Texas, and Jolten Andree, Commerce, Texas
Texas A&M-Commerce – Remy Schenk, Bogata, Texas, and Mason Ray, Plano, Texas
Texas A&M-Galveston – Aaron Batten, Houston, Texas, and Mathew Dove, Deer Park, Texas
Tyler Junior College – Hudson Daille, Tyler, Texas, and Tyler Davis, Whitehouse, Texas
University of Oklahoma – Peyton Berkley, Norman, Okla., and Colton Risley, Yukon, Okla.
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. The 2019 FLW College Fishing National Championship will take place May 30-June 1 on the Red River in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission & Red River Waterway Commission.
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.
New Record Largemouth Caught on the Sabine River
Courtesy of Lakerecord.net
Justin Royal has turned a lot of heads this week with an absolute giant bass he caught on the Sabine River. Royal was fishing on the Louisiana side of the Sabine in the Burton’s Ditch area of the river during the Resilience Outdoors Tx/La River Shootout tournament on Sunday with partner Hunter Marshall. Royal says he was was flipping a Stanley Original Casting jig in black blue using a green pumpkin rage craw as a trailer. He boat flipped (WOW!) the giant largemouth using a Power Tackle Pow R Point series 970 rod, paired with a Shimano Chronarch MGL Reel. Their 5 bass limit weighed 18.26Lb, but Royal’s big bass stole the show weighing an amazing 9.73Lb. The Sabine doesn’t boast a reputation as a big bass factory so Royals near double digit bass truly is a anomaly. Congratulations Justin! For more records in Louisiana check out thislink. For Texas records check here.
Super Pro or No?- Who Do You Want to Be?
Story Courtesy of Luke Estel / Strike King Pro
You cannot win a bass tournament unless you have at least a 20ft boat with a 250 hp motor on back.
You cannot win a tournament unless you have two power poles on the back of your boat.
You cannot win a tournament unless you have 4 12 inch touch screen units on your boat.
You cannot win a tournament unless you have a new truck that is jacked up with two rod storages on top of your camper shell.
You cannot win a tournament without a gps locking trolling motor.
You cannot win a tournament unless you have your own you tube channel. And so on and so on.
In today’s bass fishing tournament world, there are many anglers that believe this. This is especially true with the youth. It has become a status thing and the more stuff you have, the cooler you look, the better you are.
I myself have fallen into this fake reality from time to time.
I say this because our youth see how we veterans act and try to follow suit. I help coach a college fishing team and the first thing I tell them is time on the water means more than all that stuff. Practice at becoming a good angler first. Learn how to read water and make quick decisions when things aren’t working out. From there things will start to fall in place.
I started fishing big tournaments out of a 16ft tri hull Stryker bass boat with an 85 hp Mercury. I believe it was a 1974 model. It was ugly. There was no graph and it couldn’t run faster than 40 miles per hour. My cousin and I would drive down to Kentucky Lake in the spring to fish these big 300 to 400 boat tournaments. We would be intimidated because our boat was a piece of junk compared to everyone else’s. They had us beat before we even took off. But something happened not long after we started fishing down there. We started cashing checks. And a lot of them. From then on I realized that a person didn’t need the best equipment to do well.
25 years later and I still feel the same way. Granted I have upgraded into a better boat and better equipment but I try to let my ability do the talking instead of my physical appearance like I am some super pro fisherman.
The youth of our sport try to mimic the pros but tend to forget that good old fashioned hard work will prevail. They see all these fancy rigs and think if they don’t have that, they can’t compete. Although the fishing industry pushes new product on a daily basis with social media and never ending advertisements, little is said about hard work and just going fishing.
If you want to become a better tournament fisherman then all you have to do is fish and fish a lot. Spend time on the water. Practice casting, setting the hook, fighting the fish, learning new techniques. Worry less about what boat you are fishing out of, how many rods you have, and how cool you think you look because that will get you nowhere in this game. Trust me, you want to be the guy in that 74 Stryker that beat 300 of the best fishermen on the lake. You want those fishermen to start taking notice of your abilities and talking about how in the heck you caught them. Not how cool your truck is.
Us tournament veterans need to help our youth become better fishermen by teaching them how to fish and sharing our secrets, not trying to sell them a $3000 graph because if they don’t have it, they won’t do well.
As I get older I want to be known not as the best fishermen on the water but the guy that helps young anglers become better as fishermen.
I hope you all follow and mentor our youth the same.
Costa® Adds Cape and Montauk Styles for Anglers
Manufactured from biodegradable resins sourced from reclaimed castor oil, Costa’s newest frames withstand the elements of adventure while also providing comfort and wearability. Featuring Costa’s new innovative sweat management system, the new styles have ventilation ducting allowing air to flow through the end piece of the frame, which reduces lens fogging and works in conjunction with the sweat management temple channels. These channels enable airflow from the vents to cool, wick away and drain sweat and moisture through the openings on the temple tips. In addition, a thinned out inner bottom eyewire tucks closely into the back surface of the lens, which allows sweat and moisture to drain down the back surface of the lens and off the bottom of the frame.
The Montauk, named after the iconic fishing village at “the end” of Long Island, is a large full-wrap, highly ventilated frame designed to block peripheral light and manage sweat. The Hydrolite nose and temple pads ensure a secure fit, and are keeper-ready—making it practically impossible to lose them when the sun goes down. The Montauk frames are available in matte black ultra, steel gray metallic and bowfin, with 580 glass or polycarbonate lenses in all seven lens colors, and are also available with prescription lenses.
The new frames feature Costa’s patented 580 lens technology, providing 100 percent UV protection and polarization to give anglers the clearest lenses on the planet. The Costa 580® color-enhancing lens technology selectively filters out harsh yellow light for superior contrast and definition and absorbs high-energy blue light to cut haze and enhance sharpness. In addition, Costa’s lens technology reduces glare and eye fatigue. Costa’s lenses are available in both polycarbonate and scratch-resistant Lightwave® glass, which are 20 percent thinner and 22 percent lighter than average polarized glass.
“As we began designing our new frames for anglers, we focused on the Costa mission to stand up to every adventure on and off the water,” said John Sanchez, vice president of product design for Costa. “Helping our customers explore and perform at their very best while protecting their eyes is what inspires us. We added features to help anglers find more fish by standing up to the toughest elements, and still made them ultra-lightweight with anti-fogging and sweat-management capabilities.”
The new styles range in price from $179 to $259, based on lens selection. For more information on the new frames and Costa’s full line of performance sunglasses, visit www.costadelmar.com.
AC Insider Podcast Episode #7 Featuring Graph Glass Founder John Hunter, Strike King's Mark Copley & More!
On this weeks AnglersChannel Insider Podcast, Chris & Jason catch up with FLW Tour Pro and Founder of Graph Glass John Hunter as well as they talk with
Mark Copley, Marketing Manager for Strike King Lure Company and Lews Rods and Reels about life after a merger and what its like to be the
all time leading bait manufacturer in Classic Wins. Chris interviews the winners of the Alabama Bass Trail Lake Martin event and the boys welcome
back Vance McCullough to the program after a long two week hiatus..... All this and more only on the AnglersChannel Insider Podcast!
Strike King Pro Mark Davis Takes Medical Hardship to Have Hip Replaced
Story Courtesy of Jim Sexton/BASS
When the Bassmaster Elite Series resumes at the Sabine River in Orange, Texas, Mark Davis won’t be fishing. He’s taking a medical hardship to have his hip replaced.
“It started hurting me last summer,” said Davis. “Champlain was the first tournament it started bothering my fishing. Over the winter it went downhill fast. The x-rays showed it was bone on bone.
“I had hoped to limp through the year. But it’s very evident I can’t do that. At the Classic I nearly fell out of the boat getting my fish out of the livewell.”
Davis, who is 54, will have hip replacement surgery this spring. He plans to come back stronger for the 2019 season.
“I might be able to make it a while longer, but fishing these multi-day events, standing on your feet the whole time, I just can’t do it,” said Davis. “If I didn’t fish for a living I could probably put it off for a while.”
Davis said he hoped to combat the pain by fishing sitting down more this year. “I even bought one of those high dollar seats,” he said. “I just can’t fish sitting down. I’ve been doing it standing up for 32 years.”
Davis finished 105th at Lake Martin, the first Elite Series tournament of 2018. He finished 24th at the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods. Davis is a three-time Toyota
Bassmaster Angler of the Year and the 1995 Classic champion. He lives in Mt. Ida, Arkansas.
Beginning with the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Elite at Sabine River presented by Econo Lodge the Elite field will drop down to 109 anglers. The Day 2 cut will remain at 51 anglers.
Boater Killed in Boat Crash on Lake Tuscaloosa
Courtesy of TuscaloosaNews.com
A boater participating in a bass fishing tournament was killed early Saturday morning after crashing into the Tierce Patton bridge over Lake Tuscaloosa.
Danny James Pate, 63, of Coker, was pronounced dead at the scene, Tuscaloosa Police spokeswoman Lt. Teena Richardson said.
TPD’s lake patrol division officers were called to the crash site at 6:30 a.m. Saturday. Pate was participating in the Bass Waterworks Bass Tournament, and had been traveling south on the lake when he struck a rocky bank, became airborne and hit the underside of the bridge.
The bridge remains open, Richardson said.
Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s Office deputies and Carroll’s Creek volunteer firefighters also responded to the accident.
#CancerSucks - A Conversation with ABT Husband & Wife Team Steven & Pam Martin Wells
The Majority of us in our lifetime are either dealing with a loved one who has Cancer, Have dealt with it or will deal with it. Its almost inevitable.
Pam Martin Wells and Her Husband Steven are currently dealing with as Steven battles this terrible disease.
Pam's Jersey says it best, #CancerSucks. Say a Prayer, Send a text, lift up someone you know who is dealing with Cancer and help brighten their day.
Photo Courtesy Dan O'Sullivan/ABT
Kurth Reservoir Produces Latest Texas ShareLunker Largemouth
AUSTIN – For the first time in the 32 year history of the program, Kurth Reservoir in Lufkin has produced a Toyota ShareLunker entry. Angler Pablo Torres Jr. of Lufkin caught the 13.34 pound, 26 inch Legacy Class lunker in less than 8 feet of water while fishing with his son-in-law at the lake March 25.
“At first I didn’t even know it was a fish – it thought I was hung up,” Torres said. “I tightened up and it started swimming, and when it started pulling the line I thought ‘this might be a good fish.’”
“Catching a ShareLunker from Kurth was the farthest from my dreams until I saw it in the net,” Torres added. “When we got it to the boat and it turned to the side my jaw dropped and I thought ‘Oh my gosh.”
Although he has seen and heard of larger fish being caught from Kurth, Torres said being the first angler to enter a Toyota ShareLunker from the lake was a great feeling. He decided to loan the fish to the Toyota ShareLunker program for spawning to contribute to the number of Florida largemouth bass being stocked in his area.
“Kurth is a fantastic lake with a lot of lunkers in it,” Torres said. “[Texas Parks and Wildlife Department] stocks a lot of the ‘Floridas’ in Sam Rayburn Reservoir and other surrounding lakes so this is a good way for me to help contribute to the area. And this fish will be released back to Kurth when they are done with it.”
Todd Driscoll, the TPWD Inland Fisheries District Supervisor for the Jasper district, said he was not surprised at all to hear that the East Texas lake had produced a Toyota Sharelunker entry.
“This lake has everything it needs to produce big fish – including ample amounts of aquatic vegetation like hydrilla, which covers 30-40 percent of the reservoir,” Driscoll said. “That produces really strong year classes of fish. In addition to a 16 inch maximum limit, we have also been stocking it for years with frequent stockings of pure Florida largemouth bass to increase trophy potential of lake.”
ShareLunker 575 is the fifth Legacy Class entry of the season with the previous entries coming from Twin Buttes Reservoir and Lake Fork.
ShareLunker 575 was transported to the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens where hatchery staff will monitor and care for her in preparation for spawning. Also in the “Lunker Bunker” are the four other Legacy Class entries of the season: Toyota ShareLunker 574, a 13.40 pound largemouth bass caught by angler Austin Terry from Twin Buttes Reservoir March 14; Toyota ShareLunker 573, a 13.06 pound largemouth bass caught by angler Alex Finch from Lake Fork March 11; Toyota ShareLunker 572, a 13.00 pound largemouth bass caught by angler Michael Terrebonne from Lake Fork March 8; and Toyota ShareLunker 571, a 15.48 pound largemouth bass caught by angler John LaBove from Lake Fork March 2.
Texas anglers who catch a 13 pound or larger largemouth bass can loan the fish to the Toyota ShareLunker program for spawning through March 31.
Every angler who loans a 13 pound or larger Legacy Class bass to the Toyota ShareLunker program during the spawning period Jan. 1 to March 31 will receive a Toyota ShareLunker Catch Kit containing branded merchandise and fishing tackle items, a 13lb+ Legacy decal, VIP access to awards programming at the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest, a replica of their fish, and an entry into the year-end ShareLunker Prize Drawing to win a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license. These anglers will also be entered into the Legacy Class Prize Drawing for a $5,000 shopping spree and an annual fishing license at the end of the spawning period March 31.
The Toyota ShareLunker Program is made possible by a grant to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation from Gulf States Toyota. Toyota is a longtime supporter of the Foundation and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, providing major funding for a wide variety of education, fish, parks and wildlife projects.
For updates on the Toyota ShareLunker program and to view photos of all of the 13-pound-plus largemouth bass caught this season, visit https://www.facebook.com/ShareLunkerprogram or https://texassharelunker.com/.
B.A.S.S. Urges Louisiana Legislators To Restore Angler Access To Public Waterways
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ROCK HILL’S JENNINGS WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL SOUTH CAROLINA DIVISION EVENT ON LAKE MURRAY PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS
Cerv Claims Co-angler Title
COLUMBIA, S.C. (March 26, 2018) – Boater Jeff Jennings of Rock Hill, South Carolina, caught a five-bass limit weighing 22 pounds, 15 ounces, Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) South Carolina Division event on Lake Murray presented by Navionics. For his win, Jennings earned $7,115.
According to post-tournament reports, Jennings used a creature-style bait to catch fish near docks and wood in the mid- and lower sections of the lake.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Jeff Jennings, Rock Hill, S.C., five bass, 22-15, $5,115 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Cody Hoyle, Rutherfordton, N.C., five bass, 22-5, $2,458
3rd: Adam Waters, Denver, N.C., five bass, 19-7, $1,640
4th: Scott Allgood, Fair Play, S.C., five bass, 18-12, $1,147
5th: Steve Thornhill, Pineville, S.C., five bass, 18-11, $1,083
6th: Randy Childers, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 18-1, $901
7th: David Williams, Maiden, N.C., five bass, 17-11, $819
8th: Craig Rexford, Grand Isle, Vt., five bass, 17-10, $737
9th: John Allen, Concord, N.C., five bass, 17-8, $655
10th: Chris Marshall, Forest City, N.C., three bass, 16-15, $1,323
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Marshall brought a 7-pound, 10-ounce bass to the scale – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $750.
Joel Cerv of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, won the Co-angler Division and $2,469 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 14 pounds, 14 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Joel Cerv, North Wilkesboro, N.C., five bass, 14-14, $2,469
2nd: Tyler Dover, Blacksburg, S.C., five bass, 13-5, $1,235
3rd: Tyler Ward, Grover, N.C., five bass, 12-15, $1,023
4th: Travis Ruff, Connelly Springs, N.C., five bass, 12-4, $576
5th: Blake Whittaker, Monterey, Tenn., four bass, 12-2, $494
6th: Bryce Tumberg, Moore, S.C., four bass, 12-1, $432
6th: Bill Hawkins, Piedmont, S.C., five bass, 12-1, $482
8th: Terry Coleman, Sumter, S.C., three bass, 11-15, $370
9th: Greg Atkinson, Ridgeway, S.C., four bass, 10-10, $329
10th: Stewart Uldrick, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 10-9, $288
Rodney Tapp of North Augusta, South Carolina, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 6 pounds, 13 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $372.
The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) South Carolina Division event on Lake Murray was hosted by Capital City Lake Murray Country Regional Tourism.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 18-20 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Norman in Huntersville, North Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
NORTH CAROLINA’S CHANDLER WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL PIEDMONT DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE
Shawsville’s Jones Wins Co-angler Title
HUDDLESTON, Va. (March 26, 2018) – Boater Kevin Chandler of New London, North Carolina, won the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Piedmont Division tournament on Smith Mountain Lake Saturday with five bass weighing 20 pounds, 12 ounces. For his efforts, Chandler pocketed $7,327.
Chandler caught the majority of his fish targeting rocks in the west arm of Smith Mountain Lake. He said he used green-pumpkin- and black and blue-colored custom jigs with Zoom Super Chunk Jr. trailers.
“I just dragged the jig along the bottom. All of the fish I weighed in except for one came from rocks – the fifth came from a pier pole,” said Chandler, who earned his sixth win in BFL competition. “Most were in 3 to 8 feet of water and I was able to put 12 keepers in the boat.”
Chandler credited his 7-foot, 2-inch Medium Heavy Level Rod and Abu Garcia REVO STX Gen 4 Casting Reel as being crucial to his success.
“In my opinion, that rod has the perfect tip. You can make soft presentations and it has the backbone you need to get the hook in and catch them,” said Chandler.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Kevin Chandler, New London, N.C., five bass, 20-12, $5,327 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: David Perdue, Wirtz, Va., five bass, 19-13, $2,164
3rd: Ben Reynolds, Callands, Va., five bass, 18-6, $1,377
4th: Brian Calloway, Danville, Va., five bass, 17-13, $963
5th: Scott Hamrick, Denver, N.C., four bass, 16-11, $825
6th: Chris Lewis, Dublin, Va., five bass, 15-15, $757
7th: Justin Hicks, Roanoke, Va., five bass, 15-14, $688
8th: Bradley Staley, Pleasant Garden, N.C., five bass, 15-11, $619
9th: Eric Bailey, Lexington, N.C., five bass, 15-7, $550
10th: Chris Brummett, Lynch Station, Va., five bass, 15-6, $482
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Gary D’Angelo of Woodbine, Maryland, weighed a 7-pound, 6-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $575.
Isaac Jones of Shawsville, Virginia, won the Co-angler Division and $2,059 Saturday after catching three bass weighing 14 pounds, 1 ounce.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Isaac Jones, Shawsville, Va., three bass, 14-1, $2,059
2nd: Kurt Moser, Max Meadows, Va., five bass, 12-11, $1,030
3rd: Jason Hinger, Timberlake, N.C., three bass, 12-3, $787
4th: Craig Wheeler, King George, Va., five bass, 10-8, $480
5th: David DeCiucis, Chester, Va., four bass, 10-5, $412
6th: Pat Kendrick, Bumpass, Va., three bass, 10-3, $378
7th: Josea Goble, Newton, N.C., three bass, 10-2, $343
8th: Shane Robbins, Raleigh, N.C., three bass, 9-11, $309
9th: Jamie Newton, Falls Church, Va., four bass, 9-8, $275
10th: Tony Laaper, Pittsboro, N.C., two bass, 9-4, $290
Steve Mazingo of Bedford, Virginia, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 6 pounds, 1 ounce. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $282.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 18-20 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Norman in Huntersville, North Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
STANLEY, TROBAUGH TIE FOR WIN AT T-H MARINE FLW BFL MOUNTAIN DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON DALE HOLLOW LAKE PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS
Kentucky’s Bennington Takes Co-angler Title
BYRDSTOWN, Tenn. (March 26, 2018) – Boaters Matt Stanley of Alexandria, Tennessee, and Greg Trobaugh of Rickman, Tennessee, each caught five bass weighing 20 pounds, 3 ounces, Saturday to tie for the win at the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Mountain Division event on Dale Hollow Lake presented by Navionics. For their efforts, each boater took home $3,573.
Stanley said that he fished mid-lake grass edges with a Picasso School-E-Rig Bait Ball umbrella rig rigged with Xcite Baits Shadnasty Swimbaits in 8 to 12 feet of water. He used a 7-foot 10-inch iRod Genesis II Bama Rig Special Rod and caught around 15 keepers.
“I got a couple good ones early and that keyed me in on what they were doing,” said Stanley, who claimed his third career win in BFL competition. “There’s a lot of grass on Dale Hollow, but once I found the specific spots they were in I could pull up and fish it. Everywhere I stopped I used my Lowrance units to see if there was grass on the bottom and if there was a flat bank. After that it was pretty much game on.”
Trobaugh caught the bulk of his fish mid-lake as well, and used an umbrella rig with Keitech and Reaction Innovations swimbaits. He said his morning was slow, but the bite picked up as the day went on.
“I hit transition spots and caught 11 or 12 keepers. Some of them were relating to points, and a few of them were relating to staging areas,” said Trobaugh, who earned his first BFL win as a boater on Dale Hollow Lake. “I fished a local tournament on Dale Hollow last week and more fish seemed to be pulled up and catchable this time around. I think that helped me.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Matt Stanley, Alexandria, Tenn., five bass, 20-3, $3,573
1st: Greg Trobaugh, Rickman, Tenn., five bass, 20-3, $3,573
3rd: Todd Beaty, Rickman, Tenn., five bass 19-7, $1,498
4th: Jimmy Gayhart, Sadieville, Ky., five bass, 18-11, $1,050
5th: Joe Rucker, Nicholasville, Ky., five bass, 17-8, $1,000
6th: Mike Casada, Stearns, Ky., five bass, 17-7, $825
7th: Keith Monson, Burgin, Ky., five bass, 16-10, $750
8th: Freddy Adkins, East Bernstadt, Ky., five bass, 16-9, $637
8th: Brian Wilson, Somerset, Ky., five bass, 16-9, $937
10th: Rusty Smith, Somerset, Ky., five bass, 16-8, $525
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Matt Salmons of Somerset, Kentucky, weighed a 6-pound, 10-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $645.
Ed Bennington of Scottsville, Kentucky, won the Co-angler Division and $2,249 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 18 pounds, 2 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Ed Bennington, Scottsville, Ky., five bass, 18-2, $2,249
2nd: Jeremiah Williams, Livingston, Tenn., four bass, 14-13, $1,125
3rd: Joshua Jernigan, Rocky Top, Tenn., five bass, 13-7, $752
4th: Ben Stacy, Cincinnati, Ohio, five bass, 12-15, $525
5th: Cole Sowards, Salt Rock, W. Va., four bass, 12-11, $450
6th: Brent Clark, Bowling Green, Ky., three bass, 11-12, $412
7th: Shane Sparks, Allardt, Tenn., five bass, 11-1, $575
8th: Justin Davis, Cookeville, Tenn., five bass, 10-15, $318
8th: Alex Straubing, Mason, Ohio, four bass, 10-15, $368
10th: Billy Gardner, Livingston, Tenn., four bass, 10-12, $262
Gary Wallace of Albany, Kentucky, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 5 pounds, 14 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $322.
The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Mountain Division event on Dale Hollow Lake was hosted by Star Point Resort.
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 Chickamauga in Dayton, Tennessee. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
THOMAS WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL MISSISSIPPI DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON ROSS BARNETT RESERVOIR
Diberville’s Petras Grabs Co-angler Title
BRANDON, Miss. (March 26, 2018) – Boater Anthony Thomas of Jackson, Mississippi, caught a five-bass limit weighing 22 pounds, 9 ounces, Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Mississippi Division event on Ross Barnett Reservoir. For his win, Thomas earned $5,475.
“I fished heavy grass patches in Pelahatchie Bay that had the coontail moss up under them,” said Thomas, who notched his first career win in FLW competition. “I had two areas, but one was more productive because there were bream bedding near the bass. Every year the bream seem to bed in the same area as the bass and they mess with them.”
Thomas said a natural-colored Spro Dean Rojas Bronzeye Poppin’ Frog produced his best bites.
“I caught one fish chasing a bream in practice on a frog and it was cloudy, so I knew I’d do the same thing if it was cloudy during the tournament,” said Thomas. “I only had eight bites all day – four in the morning and then four more throughout the day with my biggest coming around 2 (p.m.).
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Anthony Thomas, Jackson, Miss., five bass, 22-9, $5,475
2nd: Terry Whittington, Laurel, Miss., five bass, 19-5, $2,737
3rd: Michael Savell, Brandon, Miss., five bass, 18-9, $2,697
4th: Ramey Harrell, Brandon, Miss., five bass, 16-5, $1,277
5th: Dave Woodfin, Kosciusko, Miss., five bass, 15-10, $1,095
6th: Marty Torrence, Crystal Springs, Miss., five bass, 14-6, $1,004
7th: Kenny Churchill, Jackson, Miss., five bass, 14-3, $912
8th: Jason Hannah, Forest, Miss., four bass, 13-5, $821
9th: Brent Anderson, Kingston Springs, Tenn., five bass, 12-13, $930
10th: Shannon Denson, Brandon, Miss., five bass, 12-9, $639
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Savell weighed a 7-pound, 13-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $870.
Michael Petras of Diberville, Mississippi, won the Co-angler Division and $2,668 Saturday after catching four bass weighing 12 pounds, 10 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Michael Petras, Diberville, Miss., four bass, 12-10, $2,668
2nd: Josh Taylor, Nesbit, Miss., three bass, 10-1, $1,334
3rd: Ken Pecanty, Vicksburg, Miss., four bass, 9-7, $988
4th: Justin Thomas, Braxton, Miss., three bass, 9-3, $673
5th: Marian Hall, Hattiesburg, Miss., two bass, 9-0, $954
6th: Leland Brown, Fulton, Miss., two bass, 7-10, $489
7th: Brent Ladnier, Wiggins, Miss., three bass, 7-1, $445
8th: Adam Horn, Madison, Miss., two bass, 7-0, $400
9th: Ray Higginbotham, Brooksville, Miss., three bass, 6-15, $356
10th: Tim Callahan, Houston, Miss., three bass, 6-10, $311
Hall caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 5 pounds, 14 ounces. The catch earned her the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $420.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 18-20 BFL Regional Championship on Kentucky Lake in Gilbertsville, Kentucky. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
KNEPP WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL HOOSIER DIVISION EVENT ON PATOKA LAKE PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS
Kentucky’s Bays Wins Co-angler Title
BIRDSEYE, Ind. (March 26, 2018) – Boater Jeremy Knepp of Montgomery, Indiana, caught three bass weighing 8 pounds, 15 ounces, Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Hoosier Division event on Patoka Lake presented by Navionics. For his win, Knepp pocketed $4,741.
Knepp stayed on the main lake to catch his fish, targeting points at the mouths of feeder creeks. He said he caught two on a Clown-colored Strike King KVD Deep Jerkbait and one on a homemade spinnerbait with a Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper trailer.
“I caught one in the morning around 10:45 (a.m.) and the other two at about 3 (p.m.),” said Knepp, who earned his first career victory in FLW competition. “It was tough fishing conditions out there. It rained and was windy the entire day and the temperature only reached 35 degrees.”
Knepp said he worked along 15 to 20 points throughout the day.
“Technique-wise I gave the jerkbait a five or 10 second pause before bringing it in,” said Knepp.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Jeremy Knepp, Montgomery, Ind., three bass, 8-15, $4,741
2nd: Marty Sisk, Evansville, Ind., two bass, 8-5, $2,370
3rd: Paul Mendez, Fort Wayne, Ind., two bass, 7-14, $1,514
4th: Matt McCoy, Indianapolis, Ind., two bass, 7-6, $1,060
5th: Thomas Foster, Terre Haute, Ind., two bass, 6-15, $908
6th: Nick Teeters, Martinsville, Ind., two bass, 6-9, $795
6th: Brody Campbell, Oxford, Ohio, one bass, 6-9, $1,455
8th: Mark Nies, Cannelton, Ind., one bass, 6-4, $681
9th: Doug Ruster, New Palestine, Ind., one bass, 6-1, $605
10th: Bryan Jenkins, Indianapolis, Ind., one bass, 5-13, $530
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Campbell weighed a 6-pound, 9-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $660.
Lenny Bays of Dayton, Kentucky, won the Co-angler Division and $2,270 Saturday after catching two bass weighing 8 pounds, 8 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Lenny Bays, Dayton, Ky., two bass, 8-8, $2,270
2nd: Leroy Miller, Napoleon, Ohio, one bass, 6-4, $1,465
3rd: Lawrence Spicher, Boonville, Ind., two bass, 6-0, $757
4th: Garron Sneed, Charlestown, Ind., one bass, 5-12, $530
5th: Justin Kivett, Indianapolis, Ind., one bass, 5-11, $454
6th: Nick Horton, Trafalgar, Ind., one bass, 5-9, $416
7th: James Mayle, Newark, Ohio, one bass, 5-6, $378
8th: Greg Roberts, Columbus, Ind., two bass, 4-10, $341
9th: Nicole Foor, Greens Fork, Ind., one bass, 4-0, $503
10th: Dan Pardue, Morgantown, Ind., one bass, 3-13, $265
Miller caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 6 pounds, 4 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $330.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 18-20 BFL Regional Championship on Kentucky Lake in Gilbertsville, Kentucky. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
WAYNE DIXON WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL ARKIE DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON LAKE MILLWOOD
Mountain Home’s Johnson Wins Co-angler Title
ASHDOWN, Ark. (March 26, 2018) – Boater Wayne Dixon of Morrilton, Arkansas, weighed a 19-pound, 10-ounce, limit of bass Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Arkie Division event on Lake Millwood presented by GEARED. For his win, Dixon pocketed $5,866.
Dixon spent his day upriver, above the White Cliffs area, targeting prespawn bass near cypress trees, coontail and milfoil. He said he used a Texas-rigged Right Bite Baits stickbait in 4½ to 5 feet of water.
“I originally had two areas – one where I’d caught a big one in practice and another that had a lot more fish,” said Dixon, who logged his first career win in FLW competition. “The night before the tournament my wife told me to go to the area with more fish and just sit down and catch them, so that’s what I did.
“The area was about 10 acres and I shared it with four other boats,” Dixon continued. “I used a 7-foot 2-inch Denali (KOVERT Lite) Heavy Casting Rod and caught 35 to 40 keepers.”
Dixon said that the bite was the best between 9 a.m. and noon, and that four of the five fish he weighed came in during that three-hour stretch.
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Wayne Dixon, Morrilton, Ark., five bass, 19-10, $5,866
2nd: Chip Hawkins, Little Rock, Ark., five bass, 19-6, $2,336
3rd: Jeffery Conway, Mineral Springs, Ark., five bass, 19-0, $1,424
4th: Josh Ray, Alexander, Ark., five bass, 18-5, $1,097
5th: Steve Bowman, Little Rock, Ark., five bass, 18-4, $854
6th: Justin Swayze, Gurdon, Ark., five bass, 16-1, $783
7th: Chad Parks, Edgemont, Ark., five bass, 15-15, $712
8th: John Andrews Jr., Cherry Valley, Ark., five bass, 15-11, $641
9th: Harold Bennett, Hope, Ark., five bass, 15-6, $569
10th: Jerry Tabler, Mineral Springs, Ark., five bass, 15-1, $498
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Dixon weighed a 7-pound, 9-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and also earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $595.
Kenyon Johnson of Mountain Home, Arkansas, won the Co-angler Division and $2,236 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 15 pounds, 13 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Kenyon Johnson, Mountain Home, Ark., five bass, 15-13, $2,236
2nd: Jacob Sloan, Paola, Kan., four bass, 14-13, $1,118
3rd: Steve Belew, Beebe, Ark., five bass, 13-11, $712
4th: John Vinakalns, Farmersville, Texas, five bass, 13-9, $498
5th: Larry Dugger, Pottsville, Ark., five bass, 13-3, $427
6th: Bo Mitchell, Malvern, Ark., five bass, 12-6, $392
7th: Patrick Massey, Texarkana, Ark., five bass, 12-4, $338
7th: Don Billiot, Bryant, Ark., five bass, 12-4, $338
9th: Doug Bishop, Bono, Ark., five bass, 12-3, $285
10th: Eddie Brown, Texarkana, Ark., five bass, 12-2, $249
Travis Harley of Sherwood, Arkansas, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 9 pounds, 9 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $297.
The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 25-27 BFL Regional Championship on Lake of the Ozarks in Osage Beach, Missouri. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
SALZMAN WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL CHOO CHOO DIVISION EVENT ON WHEELER LAKE WITH OVER 25 POUNDS!
Decatur’s Peyton Wins Co-angler Title
ROGERSVILLE, Ala. (March 26, 2018) – Boater Ryan Salzman of Huntsville, Alabama, caught a five-bass limit weighing 25 pounds, 9 ounces, Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Choo Choo Division event on Wheeler Lake. Salzman earned $5,810 for his win.
Salzman made a 72-mile run up the Tennessee River to fish the Guntersville Dam tailrace. He said his day started slow, but eventually got rolling around 9 a.m. From there, he caught the majority of his weight within 20 minutes.
“I didn’t get a lot of time to practice and it was the only thing I felt comfortable doing,” said Salzman, who earned his third career win in BFL competition. “I figured I’d be one of the only ones to make the long run, especially with the wind blowing.”
Salzman said he used his Lowrance HDS-12 Carbon units with C-Map Insight Charts to locate isolated rock piles in the current. He targeted smallmouth using 4½-inch Green Bean- and 99 Problems-colored True Bass Little Head Swimbaits with ½-ounce True Lock Swimbait Heads.
By 11 a.m., Salzman said his cranking battery began to die, so he made the decision to return to the ramp early. Fortunately, with the long run, he said his battery recharged to the point to where he could fish the final two hours of the day.
“I flipped marina slips with a ½-ounce Pickwick Special-colored Tight Line Mussel Crawler jig and (Strike King) Rage Craw trailer,” said Salzman. “I ended up culling twice with 4- and 5-pound largemouth.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Ryan Salzman, Huntsville, Ala., five bass, 25-9, $5,810
2nd: Mitch Mitchell, Muscle Shoals, Ala., five bass, 21-12, $2,405
3rd: Cameron Trousdale, Rogersville, Ala., five bass, 18-0, $1,536
4th: Michael Hood, Winchester, Tenn., five bass, 16-10, $1,076
5th: Greg Lamb, Harrison, Tenn., five bass, 16-1, $1,257
6th: Daniel Whitaker, Phil Campbell, Ala., five bass, 15-12, $845
7th: Gavin Ainslie, Harrison, Tenn., five bass, 15-5, $768
8th: Eddie Jewell, Lawrenceburg, Tenn., five bass, 15-4, $1,026
9th: Kenny Everette, Villa Rica, Ga., five bass, 15-1, $615
10th: Mike Ary, Dalton, Ga., five bass, 14-11, $838
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Lamb weighed a 7-pound bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $335.
Harry Peyton of Decatur, Alabama, won the Co-angler Division and $2,370 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 17 pounds, 2 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Harry Peyton, Decatur, Ala., five bass, 17-2, $2,370
2nd: Chris Harcrow, Dawson, Al a., five bass, 13-14, $1,185
3rd: Chris Keel, Hampton Cove, Ala.., five bass, 12-14, $757
4th: Rich Frey, Owens Cross Roads, Ala., three bass, 11-12, $822
4th: Brian Warfel, Woodbridge, Va., five bass, 11-12, $492
6th: Aaron Bishop, Hamilton, Al a., three bass, 10-14, $416
7th: Bruce Stanley, Jasper, Ala., four bass, 10-13, $378
8th: Steven Jacques, Addison, Ala., five bass, 10-12, $341
9th: Daniel Kendrick, Chatsworth, Ga., five bass, 10-9, $303
10th: Daniel Douglas, Meridianville, Ala., five bass, 10-8, $265
Frey caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 8 pounds even. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $330.
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 Chickamauga in Dayton, Tennessee. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
23.70 Limit Wins the ABA Texas East Open Event on Palestine for Todd Pierce!
ATHENS, Ala. – Todd Pierce of Tyler, TX won the American Bass Anglers Open Series Texas East Division, held March 24th at Lake Palestine.
Running out of Flint, TX, the 70-boat field left at 7:00 AM. For the boaters, 14 places were paid out and it took 11.06 pounds to make the cut.
Pirce caught a five-fish limit weighing 23.70 lbs with a healthy 6.04-pound kicker. For the boater division victory, he took home a check for $5000.
“I started out North of here in a little ditch and was able to get 4 to start the day. I left there and came a little south and my next bite came around 9 AM. That finished my limit. I caught the next one on a bed, turned back around, and caught 6 more. I knew where one of the beds was but the rest of them I had to guess on because I couldn’t see them. I culled every fish I caught earlier that morning and had a great day today.” Said Pierce.
In second for the boaters, Kenneth Moore of Red Oak, TX landed a five-bass limit weighing 19.32 lbs held up by a beautiful 8.51 lb kicker. He collected a check for $1400.
“It was a rough day for me. I started at the dam and nothing happened for us. I put a bit of a pattern together just running around and trying to figure them out. Later in the afternoon it came together with some better bites and I was able to get them in the boat to come in with what I had. It was a grind, but it worked out. I was just a little shy today.” Said Moore.
Trent Menees of Saginaw, TX took third for the boaters with a limit of five bass weighing 17.07 lbs and took home a check for $950.00
“I found most of my fish on beds. 6 or 7 of them. I found them during practice and I knew that some of the guys would have done the same. With the wind blowing the way it was on Friday I tried to find fish in protected water where it was still calm. I knew it was going to be breezy today out of the south again and the plan worked. I fished in some grass today but mainly just sight fished.” Said Trent.
In fourth, Albert White of Crosby, TX had a solid bag for 16.61 lbs, and Darrell Lyons of Hemphill, TX came in with a solid bag of 14.68 lbs to take the fifth-place honors.
In the Co-Angler Division, Chris Pearson of Marthaville, LA blew past the field with a monster 3 fish limit at 14.22 lbs, anchored by his 6.32 lb bass. His performance filled his pocket with a check for $1600 on the win.
“I started out the day the wrong way. I lost my first bite and she was probably 4 lbs. We left that area and went north where I landed my first keeper about 15 minutes later. I had my limit around 1:30. All my fish were caught on a Senko. If I had landed everything that bit I may have had 2 lbs more than I did bu4 14 is not too bad with 3 fish.” Said Chris.
Taking second for the co-anglers was Tom Brouillette of Garland, TX weighing a 3-fish limit for 11.75 lbs. His placement earned him a check for $600. Tom had a very nice anchor weight in his bag earning top honors for the co-angler big bass with a 7.88 lb kicker, earning another check for $290.00.
“We went up to Kickapoo and roughly 20 minutes in to the day the big one blew up on a frog. I caught her in the grass and it was so wadded up we thought she had gotten off. I dragged it all up to the side of the boat and my boater started pulling it all apart and there she was. He picked her up, I took her and put her in the livewell and never really got a good look at her. I didn’t realize she was that big until we got back to the dock and pulled her out to bring her to the scales. My other 2 keepers came off a trick worm.” Stated Tom.
Robbie Carson of Carrollton, TX placed third among the co-anglers. He had three fish weighing in at 9.73 lbs to earn a check for $450.
“I caught my fish on frogs from 2 or 3 spots on the lake. I had a limit and did manage to cull once but I fished clean and didn’t lose any bites.” Stated Robbie.
In fourth place among the co-anglers, Thomas Helsley of Duncanville, TX brought in two fish for 8.56 lbs. Thomas was the first co-angler of the day to scale a big bass at 7.06 lbs and held the bar high for most of the afternoon. Joe Embry of Tyler, TX landed a limit of 3 bass for 8.53 lbs and finished in fifth place.
The biggest bass for the boaters was caught by Blake Whatley of Harlton, TX. Weighing in at 8.81 lbs for $710. “I caught her on a beaver. She was on a bed on the back side of a log. Of course she wrapped up and I didn’t think I was going to get her out but she finally did and by then she was worn out and I just dragged her to the net,” said Whatley.
Slated for June 30th, the next divisional tournament will be held on Lake of the Pines launching from Johnson Creek. At the end of the season, the best anglers from across the nation advance to the 2019 Ray Scott Championship, slated for the first week of April, 2019 on Lake Eufaula, AL.
For more information on this tournament, call Chris Wayand, tournament manager, at 256-230-5627 or ABA at 256-232-0406.
About American Bass Anglers: American Bass Anglers is committed to providing low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler and at the same time offer each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression. For more information about American Bass Anglers, the ABA Open Series, the American Fishing Tour or the American Couples Series, visit www.americanbassanglers.com.
Brian Carper Takes ABA Tennessee Central Open Win at Percy Priest with over 20 Pounds!
Brian Carper of Murfreesboro, Tennessee won the second event of the Tennessee Central Open Series. Running out of Fate Sanders Marina, Carper won the tournament with five bass that weighed 20.07 pounds and took home the $5000 prize for his win.
“I come out here a lot and a lot of days don’t go this well. We had almost a limit in an hour and a half. We didn’t smash them all day but we got the right bites. I didn’t lose and fish and didn’t miss any really.” stated Carper.
Second place for the boaters was Ben Ballou from Lafayette, Tennessee. He landed five fish weighing in at 19.02 pounds. Weaver was awarded $1,250 for his catch.
“It was a grind all day, I only had three fish by 1:30. I probably had the fish on to win it but they just came off. Live with a crankbait, die with a crankbait.” said Ballou
Mickey Beck from Lebanon, Tennessee took third place with a five-fish limit that weighed 17.36 pounds. Beck took home a check for $900 for his fish.
“Got to the first spot and jerk, jerk, jerk, and nothing happened so I picked up Hoppy’s half ounce shell cracker and we started smoking them. A little later I picked up a Hoppy’s ¾ ounce spinner bait and no lie, started catching them there as well. I had about three and a half limits today. It was an awesome day to be out there.” said Beck.
In fourth place for the boaters, Noel Smith from Portland, Tennessee weighed in five bass for 17.33 pounds including a nice 6.31 pound largemouth. Rounding out the top five was John Hopkins from Hendersonville, Tennessee. Hopkins had five fish that weighed 16.78 pounds.
Big Bass among the Boaters was brought in by Ryan Haykal of Mount Juliet, Tennessee. Haykal finished the tournament in eighth place with four fish that weighed 14.85 pounds but his6.52 pound bass won him the Big Bass honors and a check for $670.
In the Co-Angler division, Monte Escue of Murfreesboro, Tennessee took the win with a three-fish tournament limit that weighed 14.73 pounds with a 6.72 pound kicker. Escue earned $1,200 for the win along with an additional $190 for Co-angler Big Bass.
“It was a grind today. Threw a crankbait and fished shallow aboutmid lake all day. Didn’t lose any. Five bites, five fish.” said Escue.
Taking second place among the co-anglers was Daniel Brown of Smyrna, Tennessee. Brown brought three bass to the stage that weighed 10.85 pounds. His three fish earned him a check for $400.
“I just tried to stay off the bank and not hung up all day. Lucky enough to fish with a great guy and enjoyed every minute of it. Can’t wait to do another one.” said Brown.
Dane Gamble of Nashville, Tennesee came in third with threebass weighing 10.75 pounds. Gamble took home a check for $350 for his fish.
“We fished the whole lake today. I just stuck with a jig and kept my line wet. The bite kind of slowed down around ten o’clock. I caught my biggest fish around two o’clock.” said Gamble.
In fourth place among the co-anglers, Tom Skelton of Mount Juliet, Tennessee had threebass that weighed 9.64 pounds. Rounding out the top five was Ben Smith of Levern, Tennessee who had a three-fish bag weighing 6.69 pounds.
The third Tennessee Central Division tournament of the season is scheduled for May 5th at Old Hickory. We will fish out of Sanders Ferry Park in Hendersonville, Tennessee.
About American Bass Anglers: American Bass Anglers is committed to providing low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler and at the same time offer each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression. For more information about American Bass Anglers, the Open Series, the American Fishing Tour or the American Couples Series, visit www.americanbassanglers.com.
Leonard & Bronder Surge Ahead to Dominate Bass Champs Amistad Event
| By: Patty Lenderman |
| The weather conditions on Amistad were more than alluring as Bass Champs hosted the South Regions third event of the season on March 24, 2018. Nearly $53,000 was up for grabs for 175 participating teams in this 103% payback tournament. Lee Leonard and Scott Bronder dominated the win, with plans on sharing their winnings with the family of a fallen comrad.
Lake Amistad is brimming with big bass set to spawn with the air and water temperatures prime. The wind was nil for the field of anglers rushing over this deep clear water lake to find the bites that would pay off at the scales. In a lake like this it is easy to see clearly with the naked eye depths to twenty feet. Such was the case on this day with the surface water like glass and sunny skies. As beautiful as that sounds, for anglers it makes it tough. The bass can see them too! As the weigh in commenced, it was evident that conditions were tough to catch a bite. Brandan Kenncil and Zach Bibb established the initial tournament lead. “We were fishing in a pocket, and found the fish biting,” Brandan began. “Zach caught our first fish, a small keeper.” Using a craw worm, they were fishing shallow water when Brandan got their next bite. “As soon as I set the hook, I knew it was a good one!” Brandan landed the fish, weighing in at 11.16 pounds! “We wrapped up a limit with small fish, and spent the rest of the day culling by mere ounces.” All total, their five fish weighed 17.64 pounds and stayed on top of the pack until nearly the end of the day. Ultimately they won Big Bass and $500 plus 2nd place for an additional $3,500 check. Lee Leonard and Scott Bronder had gotten a late draw to start their day. “We weren’t real happy with the late start, our fish were biting early during practice,” Lee explained. Lee and Scott are each police officers in San Marcos. “Last December, a friend and fellow police officer, Ken Copeland, was killed in the line of duty. He left behind his wife and two sets of twins, 9 and 12 years old. We agreed that if we managed to win the tournament, we would each give his wife $1,000.” With that they embarked on their day, targeting points with deep water nearby. “We boated our first fish fairly quick, and its size was ok, then we caught another. The bite was slow, but we had six spots picked out to hit. When the sun came out, the water was so clear that it hurt us, making the bite that much tougher to find.” One by one they put keepers in their livewell, but it took until noon to wrap up their initial limit. “Our better fish came off of two of our spots, and we were able to cull up one or two pounds before the end of the day.” Upon arriving at the scales, their final five fish weighed 21.17 pounds, dominating the win. Bass Champs presented the duo with the guaranteed 1st place $20,000 purse and they also won the Lowrance and Sure-Life bonuses. “We really didn’t think we would have enough weight to win the tournament. We are going to give Mrs. Copeland part of our winnings, but not only that we intend to get the kids out fishing with us.” The team would like to thank Triton boats, Texas Boat World, Tire Factory Outlet, Wood Bros. Custom Rods and San Marcos Police Officers Association for their help and support. 3rd place was won by Tyler Wilson and Melody Dixon. Melody reported targeting deep water initially, 18’-25’ deep with grass. “I was using a Lake Fork Creature bait and Tyler used swim baits and drop shots,” Melody stated. Right off the bat, Melody christened their livewell with a good sized bass. “After that, we just caught dinks throughout the day.” As the hours passed, then down to mere minutes left to fish, Tyler landed their second biggest fish. “We had started in deep water, then tried shallow for a while, then headed back out to deep water to wrap up our day. It was just a real good day to fish.” When they arrived at the weigh in, transferring their fish into a bag, they checked their smallest fish one last time. “It was close on the measuring board. Tyler checked it and just wasn’t absolutely sure, and just about released it. I stopped him and checked the measurement, and it was hitting right at 14”. The weights were so tight that if he threw that fish back, we would have lost a pound and that would have made a LOT of difference in the line up!” They had 17.47 lbs for a $2,500 payday. “We know a lot of work goes on behind the scenes to put these tournaments on, so I would like to speak on behalf of all of us fishermen – THANK YOU!” Rounding out the top five includes 4th place winners Josh Pasco and Ryan Dupriest with 17.40 lbs, winning $2,000. 5th place had 17.16 lbs, and were the highest finishing team in a qualified Skeeter boat. Mike Coon and Wesley Graham doubled their $1,700 check to a $3,200 payday, and won the Sportsmans Auto Bonus as well, with a $5,000 value! Bass Champs paid the top 23 teams, and the last $600 check went to Joseph Lane and Nathaniel Ashley with 11.31 lbs. |
For Complete Results, Check them out Here!
Carson Wins ABA Florida South Event on Lake Okeechobeen with over 26 pounds!
ATHENS, Ala. – Keith Carson won the American Bass Anglers Open Series Florida South tournament, held March 24th on Lake Okeechobee.
Running out of Scott Driver Park in Okeechobee, FL the Palm Harbor, FL angler caught five bass weighing 26.44 pounds including a 6.85-pound kicker. For the Boater Division victory, Keith took home a check for $5000.
“I was sight-fishing in the monkey-box. I was casting at isolated reeds that I fished a month ago when the water was up. Since the water has dropped some, I noticed that I could see beds in the holes in the eel grass.
I caught my fish on flukes and senkos and I lost a few fish that would have helped me bust 30-pounds today.” Carson said.
In second for the boaters, Gary Milicevic of Labelle, FL landed a five-bass tournament limit going 21.43 pounds. He collected $1250 for the effort.
“I caught my fish on the north end of the lake on a frog. Yesterday during practice, I had a couple of good bites on the frog so I threw it all day today. I was able to cull two fish but I missed three on that frog.” Milicevic said.
Buck Durrance of Okeechobee, FL took third for the boaters with five bass going 20.70 pounds. He earned $900 for his catch.
“I caught my fish on a Carolina-rig today on the north end of the lake. I probably caught 50-fish throughout the day today.” Durrance said.
Finishing fourth, Greg Jones of Sarasota, FL landed a five-bass limit for 19.24 pounds. Gary Niemi of Lake Placid, FL rounded out the top five boaters with five-bass limit for 18.63 pounds topped by a 9.47-pound kicker that won the big bass award of $640.
“I caught that fish on a Zara Spook around 3:00 pm today. “Niemi said.
In the Co-Angler Division, Eric Andrews of Davenport, FL won with three bass going 14.29 pounds including a 6.67-pound kicker. He pocketed a check for $1500 for his win.
“I was fishing a speed-worm all day. I caught about fifteen fish today but the bigger fish were about five hours apart. I am happy that I finally won an event after placing third several times.” Andrews said.
Taking second for the co-anglers, John Smith of Orlando, FL brought in a three-bass division limit weighing 12.53 pounds. He collected $500 for the effort.
“I caught my fish today on a frog and a speed-worm. I lost one about six pounds on a frog that would have helped me win this event. I had a lot of bites but only caught seven fish today.” Smith said.
Irving Mercado of Davenport, FL placed third among the co-anglers with three-bassgoing 10.78 pounds. He earned $400 for his catch.
“I was fishing in the open water dragging a speed-worm,” Mercado said.
In fourth place among the co-anglers, Kyle Wieczorek of Nokomis, FL brought in three-bass for 10.59 pounds. Bobby Poncev of Boca Raton, FL rounded out the top five co-anglers with three bass at 10.42 pounds.
Finishing sixth for the co-anglers was Tomas Gomez of Kissimmee, Fl that brought in three-bass for 10.22 including a big bass that weighed 7.44 pounds. Gomez pocketed a check for $200 for his finish and an additional $255 for that big bass
“I caught that big bass on a chatter-bait about fifteen minutes after our first stop this morning," Gomez said.
Slated for May 12th, the next tournament will be held on Lake Okeechobee out of Roland Martin Marina & Resort in Clewiston, FL. At the end of the season, the best anglers from across the nation advance the 2019 Ray Scott Championship to be held at Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Alabama, April 2019.
For more information on this tournament, call Billy Benedetti, tournament manager, at 256-230-5632 or ABA at 256-232-0406. On line, see www.abaopenseries.com .
About American Bass Anglers: American Bass Anglers is committed to providing low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler and at the same time offer each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression. For more information about American Bass Anglers, the ABA Open Series, the American Fishing Tour or the American Couples Series, visit www.americanbassanglers.com.
Clint Wade & Stacy Springs Win TTZ Rayburn Event with over 37 pounds!!!
| 1 | CLINT WADE | STACY SPRIGGS | 5 | 9.71 | 37.80 | $10,000 + $440 Big Bass + $500 BIOBOR Bonus |
| 2 | CORY RAMBO | RUSTY CLARK | 5 | 4.99 | 21.87 | $750 |
| 3 | KEVIN WOLFORD | MICHAEL DORSEY | 5 | 6.36 | 18.76 | $400 |
| 4 | TED PATE | VINCENT NEAL | 5 | 17.77 | $300 | |
| 5 | PHILIP CRELIA | TJ GOODWYN | 5 | 6.81 | 17.19 | $250 |
| 6 | CHRIS TREST | JUSTIN FESCO | 5 | 6.69 | 16.95 | |
| 7 | TYLER NETTERVILLE | TERRY POOLE | 5 | 16.89 | ||
| 8 | JUSTIN MORTON | RANDY TURNER | 5 | 16.75 | ||
| 9 | GREGG GRAY | GREG BASS | 5 | 16.40 | ||
| 10 | TODD HUGHES | SIMON HUGHES(Y) | 5 | 14.87 | ||
| 11 | SEAN TROTTER | ALLEN SEIGL | 5 | 3.92 | 14.22 | Pre-Registration Drawing Winner! Two pairs of Costa Sunglasses |
| 12 | HAROLD MOORE | SCOTT DAVID | 5 | 6.20 | 14.21 | |
| 13 | WYATT FRANKENS | ALEC CASTONGUAY | 5 | 13.65 | ||
| 14 | WARREN KEPKE | CODY MORRISON | 5 | 13.18 | ||
| 15 | BEN MATSUBU | AARON FREEMAN | 5 | 5.29 | 13.15 | |
| 16 | BRIAN ADAMS | KEITH CARLILE | 5 | 12.80 | ||
| 17 | CLAYTON GODFREY | JAY KENDRICK | 5 | 12.18 | ||
| 18 | RICKY EXUM | STEVE RAETTIG | 5 | 11.58 | ||
| 19 | DUSTY ATKINSON | HUGH KILMAN | 5 | 11.12 | ||
| 20 | STEVEN NIETO | LARRY PASKET | 5 | 10.60 | Pre-Registration Drawing Winner! Curado Rod | |
| 21 | JUSTIN CHILDRESS | ROY LOVE | 5 | 10.35 | Pete Jorgensen Marine Angler Appreciation Costa Giveaway-two pairs of Costa Sunglasses | |
| 22 | JEFF ROOD | GROVER MANSFIELD | 5 | 10.06 | Pre-Registration Drawing Winner! Curado 200K HG Reel | |
| 23 | MILES PRCIN | DARRELL PRCIN | 4 | 9.43 | ||
| 24 | BILLY WALDSCHMIDT | JAY DAVIS | 5 | 9.20 | Pre-Registration Drawing Winner-Curado Rod | |
| 25 | SEAN GOODSON | BILL SWEETEN | 5 | 8.92 | ||
| 26 | DAVID MILLER | KEANU BRADY | 5 | 8.49 | ||
| 27 | JASON TRUITT | JOHNNY RAY | 5 | 7.54 | Pete Jorgensen Marine Angler Appreciation Giveaway-Shimano Rod | |
| 28 | JOSHUA PRICE | ASHER PRICE(Y) | 3 | 4.38 | ||
| 29 | DALLAS COPELAND(Y) | DAVID COPELAND | 2 | 3.41 | ||
| 30 | ANDREW MCCLUSKY | JOSH STOTT | ||||
| 30 | BOBBY VICE | RICKY GUY | ||||
| 30 | SHAINE CAMPBELL | STEVE PHILLIPS | ||||
| 30 | BILL PERMENTER | MAVIS MOORE JR | ||||
| 30 | CHRIS BAILEY | KELLY GOAD | ||||
| 30 | MIKE GARRETT | |||||
| 30 | PHIL MARKS | DIXIE PRICE | ||||
| 30 | TYLER ROANE | SKYLAR LONG | ||||
| 30 | TREY BERRYMAN | BRADEN BERRYMAN(Y) | ||||
| 30 | FRANK CANIZARO | WAYLON PALMER | ||||
| 30 | LEE YOWELL | KERRY SLAUGHTER | ||||
| 30 | KENNETH CATES | DELIN DOGNAN | ||||
| 30 | JASON BONDS | KYLE NITSCHKE | ||||
| 30 | MICHAEL NUGENT | TYLER NUGENT | ||||
| 30 | CLINT WEST | BUDDY DAY |
7.55 Big Fish Wins Chad Coulter the KVD Big Bass Classic Title on Table Rock Lake!!
Chad Coulter takes the win on Table Rock at the KVD Big Bass Classic! Chad’s 7.55lb big bass earned him the win and the keys to the Nitro Boats Z19 powered by Mercury Marine
James Moore of Cullman Wins the Sealy Outdoors Big Bass Splash Event on Lake Guntersville with a 10.81!
James Moore of Cullman, AL takes over the lead on Day 3 of the Big Bass Splash on Lake Guntersville, AL with a 10.81.
Gardendale Team Wins Bassmaster High School Event On Alabama's Lay Lake
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Rob Lee and Steve Winslett win 2018 Alabama Bass Trail Lake Martin
by Dan O’Sullivan
March 24, 2018 – Alexander City, Ala. – One thing Alabama Bass Trail anglers can count on from a stop at Lake Martin is consistency. The Central Alabama, Tallapoosa River impoundment is going to produce ample limits of respectable bass. In two previous stops in ABT competition, Lake Martin produced winning weights in the 15 to 26-pound class and it took 10 pounds to get the last paycheck in 40th place.
Not this year.
Thanks to warm conditions that saw Lake Martin on the verge of full scale spawn, the weights increased throughout the 225 boat field during the second stop of the 2018 Alabama Bass Trail’s Southern Division schedule.
Leading that charge were the team of Rob Lee and Steve Winlett, local anglers who banked on isolated bedding fish as their strategy. The plan worked to the tune of a 20.38-pound limit of Lake Martin largemouth bass that earned them the victory and the $10,000 winner’s purse, along with a slot in this year’s Alabama Bass Trail Championship in October.
The pair said they committed to the program despite the fact that finding spawners wasn’t easy. “These fish were not easy to locate, and they were single fish in isolated pockets,” they said. “We found seven or eight fish that we felt would help us, we never thought that we would catch most of them.”
Armed with the location of their prey, Lee and Winslett ran to the first fish following takeoff, and caught it on the first cast. They ran six miles to the next one; which they caught on their second cast to that particular fish. They made another six to seven mile run, and caught the third fish on their next cast. “We made four casts and had nearly 12 pounds in the boat,” they said. “We tried for three hours before getting two small spotted bass to fill our limit, which we culled out later with more bed fish.” They reported catching their fish on a homemade floating minnow plug, a wacky rigged Crème Scoundrel floating worm in Natural color and a tube.”
The second place team of Charlie Williams and Michael Smith spent their morning fishing a shaky head to get a limit of spotted bass, then spent the afternoon culling those fish out by throwing wacky and Flick Shake rigged green pumpkin Yamamoto Senkos around boat docks. “We had a great day, and caught a lot of fish,” they said. “We did enough to win on most any other day here, and got beat by a really big day; we are really happy with our finish.” The pair weighed 16.83 pounds and earned $5,000 for their day. They also earned the $500 Mountain Dew Big Bass of the Day bonus for their 6.45-pound kicker largemouth.
The team of Myles Palmer and B.J. Barnett finished third with 15.59-pounds, good for 44,000 in tournament payout. However, their total haul for the day was bolstered by a $125 AFTCO clothing bonus, a $250 Alabama Bass Trail gear bonus and a $1000 America’s First Credit Union bonus for financing the purchase of their boat through America’s First Federal Credit Union. The additional ABT bonus programs brought their total earnings to nearly $6,000.
The Top 10 Standings for Lake Martin are below, for complete standings visit: http://www.alabamabasstrail.org/tournament-series/lm-results/
| Place | Anglers | Weight | Big Fish | Winnings |
| 1 | Rob Lee / Steve Winslett | 20.38 | 5.15 | $10,000 |
| 2 | Charlie Williams / Michael Smith | 16.83 | 6.45 | $5,000 |
| 3 | Myles Palmer / B.J. Barnett | 15.59 | $4,000 | |
| 4 | Chris Rutland / Coby Carden | 14.48 | 5.96 | $3,000 |
| 5 | David Sherrill / Dennis Sherrill | 14.46 | $2,000 | |
| 6 | Marty Giddens / Josh Stracner | 14.24 | $1,500 | |
| 7 | Warren Hoffman / Ben Weldon | 14.1 | $1,100 | |
| 8 | Joey Aderhold / Jonathan Collins | 14.01 | $1,100 | |
| 9 | Nicholas Turner / Joe Lay | 13.79 | $1,100 | |
| 10 | Deandrae Kimbrough / Verneille (Bo) Quinney | 13.77 | $1,100 |
Jones Wins Final Day Tie Breaker to Claim FLW Costa Series SW event om Grand Lake!
March 24, 2018
Given the countless variables tournament fishing presents, consistency stands essential for success in a multi-day event. Just ask Christopher Jones, who edged Jeff Sprague in a tiebreaker victory at the Costa FLW Series Southwestern Division event on Grand Lake. The tournament was presented by Ranger Boats and hosted by the City of Grove.
According to FLW tournament rules, ties on day three will be resolved by day-two standings. Both anglers finished with 47 pounds, 3 ounces, but Jones and Sprague placed fourth and fifth, respectively, on the tournament’s second day. Jones was declared the winner.
Fishing the mid-lake area, Jones mostly targeted secondary pockets inside large creeks. He caught his fish on a 1/2-ounce chartreuse and white BOOYAH spinnerbait with a No. 5 gold Colorado blade and a 3 1/2-inch YUM Pulse Swimbait trailer.
“I was slow-rolling the bait behind the docks,” Jones says. “A lot of them were suspended under the dock cables and on the corners of the docks. I didn’t even waste my time on the fronts of the docks. I’d kick the trolling motor on high and go around to another dock. I burned my trolling motor batteries to the ground every day.”
While it took several dozen docks to amass his winning weight, Jones says one particular structure played a key role.
“I had a place where years ago I caught a 5-pounder, and about four years ago, in a BFL, I had four fish that weighed 13 pounds [off that dock],” he says. “Yesterday, I caught my big one [a 6-pounder] on it, and today I laughed and told my co-angler, ‘I can’t go by this dock without fishing it.’
“So, we ran over there, and the wind was blowing on it from the north. The wind was blowing on it from the south yesterday, so I fished the other side today and caught a 3-pounder. The next cast, I caught a 6-pounder. So on that special dock I caught three of my keepers this week. It’s just one of those special places.”
Jones says he spent a little time each day on a stretch of main-lake riprap where he caught a couple of keepers on an umbrella rig. He used a YUM YUMbrella Flash Mob Jr. with 3 1/2-inch YUM Pulse Swimbaits.
This week presented a mix of weather conditions that followed a significant cold spell a couple of weeks before the tournament. Day one started cold and relatively calm, with a strong warming trend coinciding with big southwest winds on day two. The final round brought more warmth, but a little less wind from the north.
“It was basically the perfect storm because the changing conditions and all the cold weather we had kept them from starting to bite and kept a bunch of guys from catching them,” Jones says. “That kept a lot of non-locals from figuring them out.
“The fish are there, and they’re set up [for their spawning movement]. The water temperature hit 60 today about 1 o’clock, and they started biting.”
Jones’s daily weights were 12-1, 17-8 and 17-10. He caught limits the latter two days, but started with a deficit by falling a fish short of his day-one limit.
“I thought I’d totally lost it on Thursday when I caught four fish,” Jones says. “But those were the four bites I had. I caught everything that bit this week, except for today; I lost one that was 4 1/2 or 5 pounds over a dock cable. It was just one of those weeks when everything went right.”
TOP 10 PROS
1. Christopher Jones – Bokoshe, Okla. – 47-3 (14) – $88,700
2. Jeff Sprague – Point, Texas – 47-3 (12) – $16,600
3. Troy O'Rourke – Natchitoches, La. – 44-15 (14) – $12,500
4. Toby Hartsell – Afton, Okla. – 36-1 (13) – $10,800
5. Blaine Covington – Fort Worth, Texas – 36-1 (10) – $9,500
6. Sheldon Collings – Grove, Okla. – 34-5 (11) – $8,550
7. Kevin Ledoux – Choctaw, Okla. – 33-6 (11) – $7,200
8. Curt Warren – Rose, Okla. – 33-5 (10) – $6,200
9. Colby Miller – Elmer, La. – 32-15 (9) – $5,200
10. Jeff Reynolds – Calera, Okla. – 28-7 (8) – $4,100
Warren Makes a Move to the Lead at Grand Lake Costa
March 23, 2018
Grand Lake was not easy today, but it’s starting to show signs of stabilizing, as evidenced by the 20-pound, 6-ounce bag that moved Curt Warren up from 15th place to first with a two-day total of 33-5. He’ll lead the pack on Saturday’s final day at the Costa FLW Series Southwestern Division event on Grand Lake, which is presented by Ranger and hosted by the City of Grove.
“The fish are just moving. I had to follow them and just go fishing today,” Warren says. “I went back to a spot where I caught one of my fish yesterday and caught my biggest fish [5-11] and kind of adjusted from there.”
Morning temperatures that were about 10 degrees higher than Thursday’s bespoke greater potential than the super-tough day one, while windy conditions suggested a good reaction bite. Those factors did seem to spur things along for some anglers, but the day’s overcast skies countered some of that benefit by allowing fish to roam, rather than hold tight to cover as they would in bright sunshine.
Warren opted to keep his details thin, but he noted that the type of habitat he’s fishing holds the key to his success. When prespawners first move up, they can be very particular about their initial staging areas, and the key spots held the right cover in 10 feet or less.
Warren’s ability to identify what that was enabled him to get his baits in front of a group of new arrivals. He says the deduction process took about an hour and a half.
“They started biting around 9:30 this morning,” Warren says. “It took a little while; we had to run around a little before we got rolling with it. After that, they bit all day long. My co-angler caught his biggest fish 20 minutes before we checked in.”
Warren caught his fish flipping a 1/2-ounce Bass-X jig. He says he had to run all over the lake to catch his weight.
“I kind of got on that pattern in practice, and I added to it a little bit today,” Warren says. “That’s just something you have to do up here when it gets tough.”
PHOTO GALLERIES
Day 2 OTW gallery
Day 2 takeoff gallery
TOP 10 PROS
1. Curt Warren – Rose, Okla. – 33-5 (10)
2. Sheldon Collings – Grove, Okla. – 31-8 (10)
3. Colby Miller – Elmer, La. – 30-0 (8)
4. Christopher Jones – Bokoshe, Okla. – 29-9 (9)
5. Jeff Sprague – Point, Texas – 29-1 (7)
6. Troy O'Rourke – Natchitoches, La. – 28-11 (9)
7. Toby Hartsell – Afton, Okla. – 27-15 (10)
8. Blaine Covington – Fort Worth, Texas – 25-3 (7)
9. Kevin Ledoux – Choctaw, Okla. – 24-14 (8)
10. Jeff Reynolds – Calera, Okla. – 24-13 (7)
CONSISTENT MEADOR TAKES OVER CO-ANGLER LEAD
When you get the green light, you have to step on the gas, and that’s what Steven Meador did en route to taking over the co-angler division lead with a total of 24-15. Meador, who leads his nearest competitor by 7-9, placed second on day one with 12-15 and added another dozen pounds today thanks to his preferred technique delivering the goods.
“I hadn’t been getting a jig bite, but I finally got it,” Meador says. “I grinded on it all day and got six keepers. I feel like I made a lot of casts, but apparently I only made five good ones.”
Meador ended up fishing classic prespawn banks with larger rock transitioning into gravel, all near a deep-water drop-off. He surmises that he caught mostly males, but he had one 4-pound kicker that was almost certainly an egg-laden female.
“I threw a 1/2-ounce jig, and, depending on how much wind was blowing, I’d rotate between Zoom Chunk trailers and Zoom Baby Brush Hogs,” Meador says. “I threaded my Chunk trailers [as opposed to hanging them] on the hook for a compact profile. Painfully slow was the key. I was counting rocks.”
TOP 10 CO-ANGLERS
1. Steven Meador – Bentonville, Ark. – 24-15 (10)
2. Frank Divis Sr. – Farmington, Ark. – 17-6 (5)
3. James Callaghan – De Berry, Texas – 16-5 (5)
4. Alan Bernicky – Joliet, Ill. – 15-15 (5)
5. Rick Blosser – Tulsa, Okla. – 15-11 (6)
6. Ben Wickham – Ponca City, Okla. – 15-2 (3)
7. Kennith George – Edmond, Okla. – 13-12 (3)
8. Jim Opetaia-Williamson – Dunnellon, Fla. – 12-12 (3)
9. Rich Dalbey – Greenville, Texas – 12-0 (4)
10. Jordan Burks – Joplin, Mo. – 11-4 (6)
Ranger Pro James Niggemeyer - Enjoying Life on the FLW Tour
The FLW Season has gotten off to a great start and I wanted to take some time to update everyone. It is my hope to spend more time blogging this season and sharing what’s happening and from time to time give some updates and tips on the fishing.
On Valentine’s day I drove from my home in Texas to the Ranger plant and picked up my new Ranger Z520L powered by Mercury OptiMax loaded out with my 10ft power poles, Gator Guard Keelshield and Raymarine electronics. I then started driving to Georgia where I was going take a loop around Lake Lanier when I got to a campground at lake Lanier I put in my Cabela’s x900 batteries and loaded those all in and spent some time making sure everything was working. The next day, I began my drive down to the Harris Chain to begin practice for the 2nd FLW event out of Leesburg, FL. This year has started like it normally does its been go go go. It was completely pouring raining at home a lot before the FL event and we got like 5 inches of rain. In FL the weather was beautiful with temps in the 80’s. So, it was nice to get some good weather.
I feel like I have really started to settle in to the FLW Tour which is really nice. I am enjoying the extra time on Wednesday during registration day to be off the water and getting the boat ready instead of staying up till 0’dark 30 working on tackle. That helps me to have lots of time to make sure I have everything the way I like it for the tournament. In the evening we have the registration meeting. I really like the extra time not only to get tackle ready, but it gives me time to respond to emails can catch up with any sponsor correspondence and go to the grocery get food for the week. It really just gives everyone a lot more time instead of a rushed pace.
I have also really enjoyed the Meet The Pros events. We had a great attendance of over 400 people at the event at First Baptist Church Umatilla FL where Greg Bohannon, Chase Brooks, Tim Frederick (who won the first FLW Tour Stop), Bill McDonald, Glenn Chappelear were all there. It was great to see everyone and their passion for the outdoors. During this event 53 people made a first-time salvation decision and 56 rededicated their lives to Christ. It was really exciting and that was over ¼ of the people in attendance making a decision. If you have the opportunity to visit one of the Meet the Pros stops at a future event, please come out and join us. I share on my Facebook page where these events are on the week prior to the event.
I love how the FLW Starts in January and I can get a jump on my bass fishing fix a little earlier than most of the country. I live in a great state where I can fish year-round. However just like everyone else, I get the fishing bug and I am thankful this year get to an early start fishing on the FLW Tour. Prespawn is about to make its way across the country. That is always exciting to me. Fish are starting to act like themselves and not the lethargic things that make us go what in the world are they doing, which is nothing much during the winter.
I just finished the 3rd FLW Stop at Lake Lanier with a top with a top 20 finish. In my next blog I will share a little more about that tournament.
"In the Boat with B-Hite," Lets Get Fishing!!!
The 2018 Bassmaster Elite Season has gotten off to a good start. The biggest difference for me this season is I was more prepared at the beginning of this season. I got my boat a lot earlier this year. This allowed for plenty of time to get the boat, truck and camper all wrapped well before Christmas. So, after Christmas this allowed me to really concentrate on fishing prior the season staring. Pretty much all of January I was fishing 3-5 days a week. I spent a lot of time getting tackle ready and getting myself into that fishing mode. It just allowed me time to settle in and get ready for the season.
Going into the first event and never having been on the lake before, I just kind of showed up there and looked at maps did some studying. I was thinking it would take 12-13lbs to have a good stringer. A big stringer would probably be 18lbs or so. Lake Martin is a lot like some of our western reservoirs or northern California reservoirs that have spots and large mouth in them like Lake Oroville or lake Shasta
The first day I picked a giant creek about half way down the lake that looked like it had a little bit of everything; good deep water, a creek in the back that had some mud too it and some other structure. I just fished the whole first day in that creek trying to figure out the pattern. After I figured out the pattern, I started to run that pattern to the rest of the lake. I fished deep the whole time. I told myself I was going to fish deep. I caught them between 30-50 feet using a couple different baits; Ned Rig with Yamamoto Fat Senko on it, a drop shot with a Roboworm and Neko Rig with a Senko on it. I just used a few baits and fished deep and ended up 11th. That was a good start to the year and I got that ball rolling in the right direction
Having this break big break in between the first and the second tournament is tough. The second tournament is not until a month and half. It is on the Sabine river. Obviously we have been there before and it’s going be a tough venue. Of course, we have the Bassmaster Classic that unfortunately I am not fishing this year. It’s always exciting and yes, I would like to be fishing it. It is the biggest sports show in our sport with the biggest prized too. Everybody who is anybody is at the classic. There are lots of new products coming out at the classic. One of the ones I’ve been working on is the 3/4 oz. Jackhammer. It will be introduced at the Classic. I am just looking forward to being there and see what the buzz is and what other new products are going to be there. Yamamoto has another new product coming out at the classic called The Cowboy it is a flip bait it’s going to be really cool. There will be lots of other neat stuff to look at and see. If you get a chance to come to the Classic be sure to check out the expo.
I am just really excited the 2018 season is getting started off to the right way and I am really looking forward to it. I will have another update after the Classic.
Hartsell Leads Day 1 of SW Costa on Grand Lake
March 22, 2018 by David A. Brown
Blissfully unaware is a fitting description of Toby Hartsell’s impression of Grand Lake — the currently difficult body of water on which the Oklahoma pro’s first-day limit of 19 pounds, 4 ounces leads the Costa FLW Series Southwestern Division event hosted by the City of Grove and presented by Ranger.
Edging second-place pro Kevin Ledoux by 5 ounces, Hartsell says a physical limitation became his advantage on this Grand River impoundment, where recent fluctuations in water level and temperature have stalled the prespawn movement. Personally untainted by the reality of Grand’s conditions, he simply went fishing
“I didn’t get any practice because I’ve been having some back problems,” Hartsell says. “I think that was a good thing, really, because I’ve heard everyone saying it’s been bad the past couple of weeks. I think that gave me an edge by not thinking it was going to be that bad. I caught a big one [a 6-14 that took Big Bass honors] and really didn’t expect to have 19, but I’ll take it.”
Hartsell says he fished all over the lake. He started near the Pensacola Dam, ran up to the Elk River and fished several spots in between.
“There wasn’t any rhyme or reason to any of it,” he says. “I caught them on four different baits. There wasn’t any pattern; it was just fishing.”
Targeting traditional prespawn staging areas, Hartsell says his fish were on the outer edge of this seasonal zone, which kept them in a replicable target area.
“I know the fish are close to moving up, but I don’t want them to move up all the way; halfway up is when I can catch them really good,” he says.
On the river end, Hartsell mostly targeted flats. He switched to channel swings and bluff ends down the lake.
He caught his fish on a mix of spinnerbaits, crankbaits, bladed jigs and 5/16-ounce flipping jigs. To the latter, he added an old-school Zoom Chunk.
“Fast-moving baits are what I caught the majority of my fish on, but I love throwing a jig, so I have to keep them honest,” Hartsell says.
While most of his river work took place in typical shallow habitat, Hartsell says that getting bit on the lower end was a more precise deal.
“It seemed like you had to have some deep water really close, especially down toward the dam,” he says. “Because it was a little cloudy this morning, I thought I’d take a chance and run down there by the dam, because that’s where the better quality fish are.”
Clearly indicative of the lake’s current instability, Hartsell says his bites were noticeably non-aggressive.
“There wasn’t hardly a bite,” he says. “Even on a spinnerbait, they don’t really knock it; they just load up.”
TOP 10 PROS
1. Toby Hartsell – Afton, Okla. – 19-4 (5)
2. Kevin Ledoux – Choctaw, Okla. – 18-15 (5)
3. Colby Miller – Elmer, La. – 18-10 (5)
4. Jeff Reynolds – Calera, Okla. – 16-8 (5)
5. Nick Lebrun – Bossier City, La. – 16-3 (5)
6. Darrel Robertson – Jay, Okla. – 15-3 (4)
7. John Pilcher – Kansas, Okla. – 15-2 (5)
8. Jordan Osborne – Longview, Texas – 14-0 (5)
9. Troy O’Rourke – Natchitoches, La. – 13-15 (5)
10. Chad Warren – Sand Springs, Okla. – 13-13 (5)
Complete results
STEALTH MODE GIVES GEORGE CO-ANGLER LEAD
Doing something different is the inherent mandate for co-anglers, but Kennith George took that beyond the relationship between front and back deck. It was his focus on outthinking his fellow co-anglers that landed him atop his division with 13 pounds, 12 ounces.
“Being a co-angler forces you to fish a different way, and that played into my hand,” George says. “By doing something that was different than my boater, that lead me to the fish I found.”
George opted to keep the details thin, but he says he fished slower baits and targeted “less obvious” spots in 10 to 15 feet of water.
“Most of the quality fish I caught were on targets people normally wouldn’t hit,” he says. “I definitely slowed down my retrieves.”
Notably, George had only three keepers today, so he was around quality fish. He had four bites and lost one big fish.
TOP 10 CO-ANGLERS
1. Kennith George – Edmond, Okla. – 13-12 (3)
2. Steven Meador – Bentonville, Ark. – 12-15 (5)
3. Rick Blosser – Tulsa, Okla. – 12-9 (5)
4. Frank Divis Sr. – Farmington, Ark. – 11-10 (3)
5. James Callaghan – De Berry, Texas – 11-5 (3)
6. Shane Patrick – Springdale, Ark. – 10-9 (2)
7. Ben Wickham – Ponca City, Okla. – 10-4 (2)
8. Jordan Burks – Joplin, Mo. – 9-4 (5)
9. Jason Clark – Bixby, Okla. – 7-10 (2)
9. Rich Dalbey – Greenville, Texas – 7-10 (2
AnglersChannel Insider Podcast Episode #6 with Chris Brown, Jason Duran & Anglers Choice Classic Champ Luke Estel! Check it out!
On this Weeks AnglersChannel Insider Podcast Chris and Jason talk Classic Hangover, They talk with AnglersChoice Classic Champ Luke Estel and talk about his partner "Chopper" then they talk 42 pound stringers and whats ahead in the Anglerschannel Insider Podcast!
AnglersChannel.com's John Byrne and Pro Staffer Robbie Digh Talk about the Classic and whats ahead on this weeks Costa Countdown to Blastoff
AnglersChannel.com's John Byrne and Pro Staffer Robbie Digh Talk about the Classic and whats ahead on this weeks Costa Countdown to Blastoff. Check it out!!!
Scouting With Navionics - Using Navionics Mapping To Increase Your Fishing Success
By Stephen Trull
As a bass angler, I find that locating the perfect fishing spots are both an art and a science. The definition of art is a skill at doing a specified thing, typically one acquired through practice. Science is just as much a part by its definition as the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experimentation.
One of the most difficult questions to get a straight answer to and most asked question of any professional angler is how do you find fish on a body of water? Most answers are usually vague at best, if you get an answer at all. Fishing can be an extremely competitive sport that is full of secrets and social clicks. Although competition is fierce, fishing pressure is even more fierce. This is were good scouting an knowledge comes into play.
If I want to make quick work in finding productive fish, I start with a full study of topographic maps. Navionics has detailed maps that give me down to one foot contours. When you are looking for underwater structure, such as saddles, flats and humps, it is invaluable I know where to start. I view these maps on several sources to include your web browser on the Navionics web site Chart Viewer on my computer. I also study using their app on my tablet and phone not to mention my favorite Lowrance HDS Carbon. There are many marine electronics manufactures that support Navionics mapping cards. Pick your favorite.
The Chart Viewer site gives me several basic options to include satellite and terrain overlay as well as safety depth shading up to 60 feet. For bass fishing, safety depth is not as big of an issue as it would be for some larger boat configurations. That said, it is invaluable if you need it. Other settings display units in various measurements and the notable “Community Edits”. These are all available on Navionics mobile apps as well.
Navionics mobile apps, on the other hand, give me many added features in my scouting quest. It gives me the advantage of scouting on the go, anywhere, on my time. No water needed and the app itself is free. With a Navionics+ subscription, it includes downloads of Nautical Chart, SonarChart™, and Community Edits that stays on the phone or tablet even if the subscription expires. There is also the ability to get daily chart updates, Dock-to-dock Autorouting, Navigation Module, Advanced Map Options, Plotter Sync, Weather & Tides. One nice feature, unfortunately only on iPhone/iPad, is Timeline.
When planning to pre-fish for a tournament, I like to know all the details about the elements. With the Navionics app, I can get detailed weather forecasts and weather buoy data. I can see hourly and daily forecasts, wind conditions, tides, currents, temperature, air pressure, visibility, precipitation and sun/moon cycles. Depending on the particular lake and time of year, this can very well be a life saver.
With such a vast list of features, the two I use most are the daily updates and plotter sync while out scouting. There is no substitute for time on the water. You need time to perfect your use and knowledge of using your electronics with your Navionics maps. You also need time on the water to practice locating fish utilizing your knowledge of structure and cover. All the reading and studying of maps can not substitute for hard work and persistence.
Daily updates allow me to get the latest community edits showing me where other fish have been located. With this detail, I can look at my Navionics app and determine what structure fish may be holding on at a particular time of year and what depth range to start with. Fishing a new lake can be frustrating without some historical knowledge. Community edits provide some sense of where to begin.
Once I determine some of the best places to start my search, utilizing my tablet and phone, I can engage Plotter Sync with my Navionics+ card in my Lowrance unit that has WiFi enabled, as my source for mapping. This frees my Lowrance HDS units for other uses such as sonar, downscan, sidescan or 3D. As I scan over an area I have chosen to scout from my previous map study, I can mark my waypoints on any structure or fish on my app for further even review. Information is power and logging your information gives the power to you. When I am on the water, I mark everything and look for patterns and uncharted structure or cover.
Unfortunately for me but great for many, only available on the iPhone or iPad, the Navionics app has a feature called Timeline. With Timeline, you can look back at your trips in the tracks and see photos taken while tracking as well as Navionics panoramic images. I hope they have it for Android in the near future. For now I have to use my Lowrance HDS unit and that is much less portable.
I must say, I am quite impressed with the Navionics line-up of mapping options. I know you will find the right one to meet your way of fishing, boating or recreation.
The Cold Front Advantage - How Luke Estel & "Chopper" Won the Anglers Choice Tournament Trail Classic on Guntersville
Story & Photos Courtesy of Luke Estel
You always hear fishermen talk of how their fish moved on them due to a cold front moving in before a tournament. During the Anglers Choice Classic held on Guntersville Lake this year, it proved just the opposite for my partner and me.
Josh Jackson (Chopper) and I made our way down to beautiful Lake Guntersville for the Anglers Choice Classic last week. We would get five days of practice in before the tournament started.
We made it on the lake Friday evening and started searching. We were looking for tall grass on the back side of the river bank near spawning areas. At our second stop Chopper lost a stud on a spinnerbait and I followed it up with a chunky four pound fish on a Strike King Red Eye Shad Tungsten 2-Tap. We left that spot and idled down another hundred yards where we put a couple more nice keepers in the boat. One day of practice down, one good spot.
Saturday the rain came in and there was an ABT tournament with 200 over boats and three other smaller events going out of Goose Pond. The lake was crowded but we kept hunting. We flipped some boat docks catching a few small keepers but realized we needed to locate some bigger fish. We headed back out toward the main lake where we immediately caught three big fish including one over six out of some tall grass. Day two down, another good spot.
Sunday, the weather stayed about the same with the water temp holding between fifty one and fifty two degrees. We caught a few random fish throughout the day. We located another small stretch of tall grass at the end of the day and they were stacked in there. We could literally catch them every cast, and they were good ones. It was incredible how many fish were in such a small area. Day three over, another good spot.
Monday the sun came out but the wind was bad. We checked another spot just south of the loaded up area we had found the day before just to see if we could get an early bite. It didn’t take long as we caught four nice fish in a matter of minutes. The wind picked up so we opted to stay back in pockets the rest of the day looking for some shallow fish. We never found the right ones. Day four and we added to our eventual milk run.
Tuesday the cold front had come in and the water temps hit near fifty. The sun was out and a nice breeze blew down the lake. We found a small stretch with some deeper grass and began to catch them good. I had switched to the new Strike King 4.0 square bill because it was able to reach the deeper grass and it was working. Day five and things were looking good. The water temp was staying the same and it seemed like the fish weren’t going anywhere.
Wednesday was half day practice and we again found some more fish in the same type of spots so we knew the five areas we had found should hold up in the event.
Day One – We were boat number fourteen and blasted out to our first spot. I ran right to my first way point and shut the boat down. Chopper picked up his rod and took a cast. As I was taking my life jacket off, he boat flipped the first keeper of the day into the boat. In five minutes we had a nice limit in the boat. I was throwing the 2-Tap in Royal Purple and Chopper was throwing the 2-Tap in Royal Red. We stayed there about an hour culling up our weight to around fifteen pounds. We ran to our second spot where I caught a four pound fish off the 4.0 and one other nice keeper. After an hour there we decided to head to our best spot to see if we could upgrade. It didn’t take long before we started hammering on them. Within a half an hour we caught thirty bass including a seven, and I don’t know how many fours. It was incredible. We backed off of it trying to save it for the next day. We had time to run one more of our areas and I quickly boated another giant six. At the weigh in I knew we had over twenty but I wasn’t prepared for Rick Byrnes to call out, “ 25.27 pounds!” As happy as we were sitting in ninth place, I knew we had our work cut out for us the next day. We were going to have to keep our foot on the gas if we were to have a chance at winning.
After a restless night of not much sleep we decided to live and die at our best area. We were one of the last boats out of the 283 boat field and were kind of worried that we would even get on our number one spot. As luck would have it, there was no one there when we arrived. The water temp was still around fifty one but the water had cleared up. I tied on a Strike King 1.5 in Orange Bream and went to work. The bite was slower and by 9:30 we only had one five pounder and two small keepers. We decided to give it a rest and ran south a couple of hundred yards to our other spot where Chopper quickly caught a six with myself following up with a five. Now we knew that we were two big bites away from having a chance. We fished our way back down towards our spot and along the way I picked up another nice three. But Chopper wasn’t satisfied. He kept saying, “ I want a Big One!” Around noon we had quite the company as we guarded our area. Finally one boat decided to leave and idled right over where we were casting. Chopper cast into the prop wash and said, “ I don’t know what I got, but its big!” The giant broke the surface and I could see he only had one hook in him. He fought him around the boat and the fish surged and headed back toward the grass. He jumped and thrashed trying to throw the Red Eye. I sat there thinking there was no way we were landing this fish, especially because we had no net in the boat. He brought the fish in for a second chance and the giant finally opened his mouth and I grabbed him. After several high fives and jumping up and down the boat we went back to work. Four hours later resulted in nothing, not one more keeper bite.
At weigh in I had a good feeling we would make it into the top five but I wasn’t prepared for what was about to happen. Our five fish limit hit the scales at 27 pounds even! We sat and watched as the final team weighed in wondering if we were going to actually pull out the win. And we did it! We took home 1st place and a brand new Basscat Pantera 2 bass boat powered by a 200 Mercury. Our two day total was 52.27 pounds.
It is not only rare but very hard to win an event of this caliber. My hats off to all of the teams that competed. I am very humbled and thankful to pull out a win like this.
To sum it up, the key to our success was this. We located four key areas with taller grass in three to four foot of water that were holding big fish. The weather kept those fish from leaving and heading towards the banks. We capitalized by not losing one fish not only throughout the week but also during the tournament. We stuck to our pattern and ground it out until the end. Our tackle consisted of Tigerodz(all glass crankbait rods), Ardent Reels, Vicious 12 and 15 pound 100% fluorocarbon, Strike King Red Eye Shad Tungsten 2-Tap, Strike King 1.5, and 4.0 crankbaits, and Mustad Triple grip treble hooks.
Thank you to all that have supported Josh and me throughout this incredible week. I also
Bassmasters Classic Photo Gallery - AnglersChannel Insider Style
Now that we have recovered from the Jet Lag/Hangover known as Classic Week, We wanted to share with you the fans our Classic Gallery from Media Day all the way to hoisting of the Trophy.
These Images were shot by our Team at AnglersChannel.com & Silo Creative. Check it out!
COSTA FLW SERIES READIES GRAND LAKE FOR SECOND SOUTHWESTERN EVENT OF SEASON
GROVE, Okla. (March 13, 2018) – More than 280 pros and co-anglers are set to compete next week, March 22-24, at the Costa FLW Series at Grand Lake presented by Ranger Boats. The tournament is the second of three regular-season events scheduled in the FLW Series Southwestern Division. Hosted by the City of Grove, the event will feature anglers competing for a top award of up to $85,000, including a brand new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
“The lake has been fishing great and I think that we’re going to see Grand Lake show its true colors in this tournament,” said FLW Tour rookie Sheldon Collings of Grove, who has three career top-10 finishes in the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) competition on Grand Lake. “It’s been taking 24 to 25 pounds to win one-day tournaments on the lake the past few weekends and the potential is there right now to weigh in a 30-pound limit.
“The key to this event will be adapting to the cold front that is supposed to be coming in,” Collings continued. “It’s warm right now and they’re saying that it could get up to 80 degrees this weekend. But, next week a cold front is coming through and we could be back down to 30 degrees. A guy is going to have to have a couple of different patterns and areas to deal with the weather.”
Collings said that he expects anglers to be catching fish both deep and shallow and that anglers would be able to catch fish “however they want to.”
“Guys are catching them good right now 20 to 25 deep on umbrella rigs and on Wiggle Warts and jerkbaits in 8 to 10 feet,” Collings said. “I think a lot of guys will catch them flipping jigs behind docks, as well, but the majority of fish will be caught on reaction baits.
“I think someone is going to come in the first day of the tournament and weigh in at least 25 pounds,” Collings went on to say. “They’ll back it up with another 18 to 20 pounds the next two days and I think the winner will need to have a weight in at least the mid- to high-60-pound range.”
Anglers will take off from Wolf Creek Park, located at 963 N. 16th St., in Grove, at 7:30 a.m. CDT each day of competition. Weigh-in will be held at Wolf Creek Park on Thursday and Friday beginning at 3:30 p.m. Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at the Cabela’s in Rogers, Arkansas, located at 2300 Promenade Boulevard, and will begin at 4:30 p.m. All takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.
In Costa FLW Series regular-season competition, payouts are based on the number of participants competing in the event. At Grand Lake pros will fish for a top prize of $85,000, including a brand new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard if Ranger Cup qualified. Co-anglers will cast for a brand new Ranger Z175 boat with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard, and $5,000 if Ranger Cup qualified.
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.
Fritts & Adams Win PBC Academy Sports Qualifier on Jordan Lake with over 34 pounds!!!
The 2018 PBC Academy Sports & Outdoors $10,000 Spring Team Bass Trail Qualifier #2 at Jordan Lake started pretty
good. That morning the air temp was 35 degrees then warmed up to 59 in the pm. Water temps averaged about 50
degrees. Winds were light at the 7:15 blastoff and then picked up to 15 to 20 for the afternoon! All 86 teams agreed it
was a very tough fishing day. As soon as these cold fronts stop coming thru the water temps should be warming and the
Spring fishing will become wide open!! It won't be long'
Brian Fritts & Bo Adams just demolished the field weighing in 5 bass at 34.54 lbs. and also caught the 2nd place Big Fish
(9.10 lbs.) plus won the 1st Place TWT for a total of $3,670 in winnings. The team found the fish in 4' to 10' of water
using spinnerbaits, swim baits & crankbaits!!! They had 2 really big fish that helped weigh down the sack!!
Todd Massey & Brandon Gray took 2nd place with 5 fish (one at 7.30 lbs.) weighing 25.44 lbs. and 2nd Place TWT to
take home $1,595 in winnings. 3rd Place Team, Steve Upchurch & Johnny Howard, had 5 nice fish weighing 23.51 lbs.
and took home $688!! The 1st Place Big Fish Award went to the team of James Sutton & Travis Priest (subbing for
Sutton's regular partner, Michael McLamb). They took home a whopping $1,190 for the 9.34 lb. bass!!!
The prize money got spread around pretty good today!
Only 124 fish were weighed in for a total of 452 pounds for an average of 3.56 lbs. each. Most of the fish were caught on
Swimbaits baits, chatterbaits, spinnerbaits and shallow running crankbaits in anywhere from 2 to 10 feet of water. Water
temps are very important now and they need to warm up a little to get that hot bite we all want! Going to Falls next week
and hopefully it will warm up a bit! Falls is always a great lake just about any time of year!!
I want to thank all the anglers that participated and all our sponsors that support this trail. Our next tournament is
Saturday March 24th, the PBC Cashion Fishing Rods Spring Trail Q#3 at Falls Lake out of Ledge Rock Wildlife Ramp.
All the info can be found at this link:
http://piedmontbassclassics.com/2018CashionSpringTrailMainPage.html
Following that will be the PBC Academy Sports & Outdoors $10,000 Spring Team Bass Trail Qualifier #3, Saturday
March 31st also at Falls Lake.
All the information on our tournaments can be found http://piedmontbassclassics.com/
Now here are the full results:
1st Place: Brian Fritts & Bo Adams of Raleigh & Pittsboro...5 bass...34.54 lbs...$1,445
2nd Place: Todd Massey & Brandon Gray of Chapel Hill & Bullock...5 bass...25.44 lbs...$860
3rd Place: Steve Upchurch & Johnny Howard of Raleigh & Carrboro...5 bass...23.51 lbs...$688
4th Place: Jared Thaxton & Brad Craptree...5 bass...21.44 lbs...$619
5th Place: Matt Dean & Stanton McDuffie of Clayton & Raleigh...4 bass...20.83 lbs...$550
6th Place: Billy Bledsoe & Brian McDonald of Gray's Creek & Hope Mills....5 bass...19.11 lbs...$481
7th Place: Stephen Lasher & Chad Fara of Bahama & Durham...4 bass...16.82 lbs...$413
8th Place: Raeford Faircloth & Joe Smith...4 bass...15.86 lbs...$344
9th Place: Stump Bledsoe & Glenn Elliott of Hope Mills & Fayetteville...5 bass...14.99 lbs...$275
10th Place Tyler Faggart & Paul Owens of Raleigh...5 bass...14.92 lbs...$241
11th Place: Thomas Sheffer & Ken McNeill of Cary & Raleigh...4 bass..14.48 lbs...$206
12th Place: Vernon Fleming & Mike Dinterman of Raleigh & Oxford...5 bass...13.44 lbs...$172
13th Place: Jaime Fajardo & Josh Hooks of Fuquay Varina & Apex...3 bass...11.65 lbs...$151
14th Place: Rick Ohlson & Randy Parker of Garner...2 bass...11.41 lbs...$131...Tie
14th Place: Vinston Nettles & Mike Cole of Pittsboro & Siler City...3 bass...11.41 lbs...$131...Tie
16th Place: Todd Sumner & Rich Sczcerbala of Southern Pines & Apex...3 bass...10.96 lbs...$103
17th Place: Chase Owens & Mitchell Lance of Snow Camp & Raleigh...5 bass...10.47 lbs...$100
1st Place Big Fish..James Sutton & Michael McLamb of Roseboro & White Oak...9.34 lbs...$1,190
2nd Place Big Fish..1st Place Team above...9.10 lbs...$510
1st Place TWT..1st Place Team above...34.54 lbs...$1,715
2nd Place TWT..2nd Place Team above: 25.44 lbs...$735
FRANKLINTON’S BIRR WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL NORTH CAROLINA DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON KERR LAKE
Mooresville’s Luther Wins Co-angler Title
HENDERSON, N.C. (March 19, 2018) – Boater Michael Birr of Franklinton, North Carolina, weighed a 18-pound, 15-ounce, limit of bass Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) North Carolina Division event on Kerr Lake. For his win, Birr pocketed $4,313.
“I started out in Nutbush Creek but they weren’t biting, so I made a long run and caught all of my fish within three hours near Clarksville,” said Birr, who logged his second win on Kerr Lake in BFL competition. “I cranked shallow right in front of bushes where fish were staging. Normally they’d be spawning in the bushes, but the water wasn’t high enough.”
Birr used an unnamed custom-colored crankbait to catch his fish, and that he rotated through a few different spots in a specific creek.
“A recent local tournament on Kerr Lake was won in Nutbush Creek, so knowing when to make the move out of there was key for me,” said Birr. “I lost a 5-pounder first thing in the morning which I thought would cost me the tournament, but I was able to get five more of the right bites.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Michael Birr, Franklinton, N.C., five bass, 18-15, $4,313
2nd: Andy Nix, Thomasville, N.C., five bass, 17-8, $1,657
3rd: Rodney Bell, Salisbury, N.C., five bass, 13-14, $1,037
4th: James Wall, Greensboro, N.C., five bass, 13-0, $726
5th: Jason Houchins, Clarksville, Va., three bass, 12-12, $988
6th: Ryan Deal, Indian Trail, N.C., four bass, 12-8, $571
7th: Matt Stoupa, Colonial Heights, Va., four bass, 12-3, $519
8th: Travis Young, Rock Hill, S.C., five bass, 11-6, $467
9th: James Stowers, Narrows, Va., four bass, 11-1, $415
10th: Chad Poteat, Mount Airy, N.C., four bass, 10-9, $363
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Houchins weighed a 6-pound, 5-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $365.
Bowe Luther of Mooresville, North Carolina, won the Co-angler Division and $1,757 Saturday after catching four bass weighing 12 pounds, 10 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Bowe Luther, Mooresville, N.C., four bass, 12-10, $1,757
2nd: Brian Bird, Huntersville, N.C., three bass, 8-10, $960
3rd: Tony Laaper, Pittsboro, N.C., four bass, 7-11, $571
4th: Paul Foley, Mooresville, N.C., four bass, 7-9, $363
5th: Jeff Scism, Shelby, N.C., two bass, 7-6, $298
5th: Mark Whitman, Elon, N.C., three bass, 7-6, $298
7th: Dalton Marlow, Maiden, N.C., four bass, 7-2, $259
8th: Barry Burford, Charlotte, N.C., two bass, 6-15, $233
9th: Jeff White, Rhoadesville, Va., two bass, 5-13, $208
10th: Tristen Trull, Mount Holly, N.C., one bass, 5-0, $172
10th: Ian Dubee, Chapel Hill, N.C., one bass, 5-0, $172
Bird caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 5 pounds, 8 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $182.
The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) North Carolina Division event on Kerr Lake was hosted by the Vance County Department of Tourism.
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 Chesapeake Bay in North East, Tennessee. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
INDIANA’S HACKEMACK WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL LBL DIVISION OPENER ON KENTUCKY/BARKLEY LAKES
Tennessee’s Henry Wins Co-angler Title
GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (March 19, 2018) – Boater Kane Hackemack of Georgetown, Indiana, caught a five-bass limit Saturday weighing 29 pounds, 8 ounces, to take top honors at the 2018 T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) LBL Division opener on Kentucky and Barkley lakes. Hackemack earned $4,915 for his win.
Hackemack said he focused on deep points with current breaks, and caught his first two keepers within 20 minutes at his first area, on the north end of Kentucky Lake,.
“The current breaks had a lot of shad and bass were feeding on them,” said Hackemack, who notched his first career win in FLW competition. “I hooked my first two on a ¾-ounce Strike King Red Eye Shad and stuck with the lure the rest of the day.”
Hackemack said he caught nine keepers from the area, averaging one every 20 to 30 minutes. He said his last good fish – a 7½-pounder – came at 11:30 a.m. From there, he said the bite slowed down.
“I’ve caught many 20- to 25-pound limits on Kentucky Lake, but to get almost 30 is awesome,” said Hackemack. “It truly is one of the best fisheries in the country.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Kane Hackemack, Georgetown, Ind., five bass, 29-8, $4,915
2nd: Cole Floyd, Leesburg, Ohio, five bass, 27-1, $3,408
3rd: Rick Shannon, Woodlawn, Tenn., five bass, 18-3, $1,640
4th: Matt Robertson, Kuttawa, Ky., three bass, 16-3, $1,147
5th: Tommy Williams, Shepherdsville, Ky., five bass, 16-12, $983
6th: Stuart Eversole, Middletown, Ohio, five bass, 16-1, $901
7th: Drew Boggs, Lebanon, Tenn., five bass, 15-11, $819
8th: Austin Brown, Benton, Ky., four bass, 15-9, $837
9th: Ray Barga, Benton, Ky., four bass, 14-14, $955
10th: Chris Beaudrie, Princeton, Ky., four bass, 14-7, $573
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Floyd weighed a 9-pound, 9-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $750.
Greg Henry of Hixson, Tennessee, won the Co-angler Division and $2,458 Saturday after catching three bass weighing 12 pounds, 8 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Greg Henry, Hixson, Tenn., three bass, 12-8, $2,458
2nd: Ryan Kirkpatrick, Benton, Ky., three bass, 12-4, $1,329
3rd: Roger Kirby, Owensboro, Ky., three bass, 10-7, $817
4th: John Lovin, Fayetteville, Ohio, two bass, 10-5, $573
5th: Craig Middleton, Harrodsburg, Ky., two bass, 9-10, $492
6th: Chuck Rounds, Benton, Ky., two bass, 9-6, $826
7th: Kevin Webb, Clayton, Ohio, two bass, 8-15, $410
8th: Claude Cobb, Lexington, Ky., two bass, 8-13, $369
9th: Roger Richardson, Saint Louis, Mo., three bass, 8-12, $328
10th: Luke Lamb, Nicholasville, Ky., two bass, 8-8, $287
Rounds caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 6 pounds, 13 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $375.
The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) LBL Division event on Kentucky and Barkley lakes was hosted by the Kentucky Lake Convention & 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 Chickamauga in Dayton, Tennessee. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
COSTA FLW HIGH SCHOOL FISHING SUMMER CAMP OFFERS STUDENTS, COACHES AND PARENTS CAMP EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME ON KENTUCKY LAKE
FLW Partners with Costa to Introduce All-Inclusive Summer Camp For Serious High School Anglers
BENTON, Ky. (March 15, 2018) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) in partnership with Costa Sunglasses, announced today the inaugural Costa FLW High School Fishing Summer Camp, scheduled for July 18-21, 2018 on the Murray State University campus, with daily activities on the South’s Great Lake – Kentucky Lake. The three-day all-inclusive camp is designed for serious high school anglers, parents and coaches who want to gain an edge on the competition by getting hands-on bass fishing experience alongside the biggest names in the industry.
For three action-packed days, attendees will be immersed in instruction from top professionals and industry executives. Students will learn the tools they need to take their fishing and fishing-career readiness to the next level, while parents and coaches will learn what they can do to support them. FLW Tour headliners including Forrest Wood Cup champions Scott Martin and Justin Atkins, reigning Pennzoil Marine Anglers of the Year (AOY) Bryan Thrift and Andy Morgan, Costa pro Casey Ashley and many others will be on-site to provide personal instruction on an array of topics for students and parents/coaches.
"The high school fishing camp is our way of contributing to the future of the sport through education and networking opportunities for the students," said Melinda Hays, Costa Bass Community Leader. "The skills offered during camp will help build leadership qualities for these youth both on and off the water."
Sessions offered at the camp include boating safety, seasonal techniques, electronics, lure and rod building, equipment basics, fish care and off-the-water necessities like building a social media following, career exploration and resume building for the outdoors industry. Courses offered for parents/coaches will include best practices for sanctioned teams, optimizing individual and team performance, career readiness and fish care at weigh-ins.
“The Costa FLW High School Fishing Summer Camp has got to be the coolest summer camp experience that I have ever heard of,” said reigning Forrest Wood Cup champion Justin Atkins, who competed in TBF/FLW High School Fishing and FLW College Fishing tournaments before turning professional. “The knowledge and experience that these young anglers are going to receive in three-days is priceless. I wish that I had the opportunity to attend a summer camp like this when I was starting out. It’s going to be a very fun week on Kentucky Lake.”
Following the week’s activities, campers are invited to put their skills to the test at the FLW Foundation #MarshallStrong Tournament, benefiting victims of the Jan.23 school shooting at Marshall County High School in Benton, Kentucky. The tournament, held Saturday, July 21, on Kentucky Lake, will feature two divisions – a boat division and a kayak division – and one lucky camper will be selected to fish the tournament with FLW Tour pro Scott Martin. Participants will be eligible for thousands of dollars in cash prizes, with the winner taking home the Costa FLW High School Fishing Cup. The tournament entry fee is $200 per boat/kayak.
Registration for the Costa FLW High School Fishing Camp will open soon, and will close on Saturday, June 30. Cost for the camp is $250 per person, which includes all housing, meals and accommodations at Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky. To sign up for the camp mailing list and receive registration notification and complete details, including more information on the #MarshallStrong tournament, visit bit.ly/CostaHSFishingCamp.
NORTH PORT’S KEYSO WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL GATOR DIVISION EVENT ON LAKE OKEECHOBEE
Perry’s Wiles Grabs Co-angler Title
OKEECHOBEE, Fla. (March 19, 2018) – Boater Mikey Keyso Jr. of North Port, Florida, caught a five-bass limit Saturday weighing 24 pounds, 12 ounces, to take top honors at the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Gator Division tournament on Lake Okeechobee. For his efforts, Keyso earned $7,663.
Keyso spent his day fishing south of the Monkey Box targeting postspawn bass in dollarweed pads. He said he rotated between two areas, and used a Texas-rigged Junebug-colored Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper with 3/8- and ¼-ounce weights to catch his fish.
“There was a new moon and most people focused on spawning bass,” said Keyso, who earned his second career win on Lake Okeechobee in BFL competition. “A wave of bluegill were also spawning, so I Power-Poled down and just slow-rolled my bait through the pads.”
The Florida angler said he used a Fitzgerald Fishing Bryan Thrift Series Frog Rod with 50-pound-test braid line, and estimated that he caught 45 keepers throughout the tournament.
“The water had to be a little dirty. The big ones committed to the bait in dirty water,” said Keyso. “And when they committed, they just destroyed it. It was a fun bite.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Mikey Keyso Jr., North Port, Fla., five bass, 24-12, $5,663 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus
2nd: Matthew Jerdan, Cape Coral, Fla., five bass, 22-13, $2,232
3rd: Jesus Villegas, Virginia Gardens, Fla., five bass, 20-10, $1,489
4th: Chris Crow, Lake Placid, Fla., five bass, 19-14, $1,041
5th: Mark Blevins, Palatka, Fla., five bass, 19-7, $1,633
6th: Nathan Thomas, Weirsdale, Fla., five bass, 18-15, $818
7th: Fred Chivington Jr., Welaka, Fla., five bass, 18-13, $744
8th: Greg Harp, Vero Beach, Fla., five bass, 17-11, $669
9th: Kyle Giella, Parrish, Fla., five bass, 17-5, $595
10th: George Kapiton, Inverness, Fla., five bass, 16-12, $521
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Blevins weighed a 7-pound, 14-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $640.
Michael Wiles of Perry, Florida, won the Co-angler Division and $2,432 Saturday after catching a five-bass limit weighing 19 pounds, 13 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Michael Wiles, Perry, Fla., five bass, 19-13, $2,432
2nd: Justin Brown, Frostproof, Fla., five bass, 17-7, $1,166
3rd: Delfin Pernas, Miami, Fla., five bass, 16-8, $743
4th: Jeffrey Shaffer, Orlando, Fla., five bass, 15-14, $521
5th: Junior Iriban, Lantana, Fla., five bass, 15-11, $446
6th: Tom Jessup, Sarasota, Fla., five bass, 14-8, $409
7th: Shannon Bryson, Merritt Island, Fla., five bass, 14-5, $372
8th: Bruce Greer, Lake Worth, Fla., five bass, 14-2, $335
9th: Timothy Hibbs, Bradenton, Fla., five bass, 13-13, $298
10th: Jackie Barber, Cocoa, Fla., two bass, 13-9, $580
Barber caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division weighing in at 9 pounds, 10 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $320.
The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Gator Division event on Lake Okeechobee was hosted by the Okeechobee County Tourist Development 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 St. Johns River in Palatka, Florida. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.
The 2018 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. The 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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.
