Ranger Boats Pro Jason Christie Conquers St. Clair Elite Event

Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., won the 2017 Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair held out of Macomb County, Mich., Sunday, with a four-day total weight of 88 pounds, 8 ounces.

Photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.

August 27, 2017

Christie Uses Drum To Fire Up Smallmouth And Win Lake St. Clair Elite Series Event

MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. — Catching a drum isn’t usually much of a reason for a bass fisherman to get excited. They don’t count in a bass tournament, and they can waste valuable fishing time while the angler fights and lands them.

But it certainly excited Jason Christie this week — mostly because every time he’d catch one, the smallmouth bass in the area would get excited, too.

Christie caught five smallmouth that weighed 22 pounds on Championship Sunday to push his four-day weight to 88 pounds, 8 ounces. It was enough to win the Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair and keep the Oklahoma angler in contention for the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title.

The drum were one of the keys to his week.

“Everything is lying on the bottom, and they were all eating crawdads,” said Christie, who is now a five-time B.A.S.S. winner. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve caught a drum here this week — and as the drum was coming up, it would be spitting out crawdads. There would be smallmouth out there below them, just eating everything they could get their mouths on.”

That commotion seemed to set the bass on fire.

“It’s just something that gets the bottom moving,” he said. “It may sound stupid, but I honestly believe that. I would take a drum off as fast as I could and throw my tube right back in there. I caught a lot of bass doing that.

“I don’t think I caught a drum under 6 pounds. It takes a lot of time fighting them because you don’t want to mess up your bait, and you don’t want to straighten your hook. But it definitely had something to do with it.”

Christie caught most of his bass with a Yum 4-inch tube in green pumpkin on a 3/4-ounce tube head. He used a Lew’s Custom Pro reel with a 7.5:1 gear ratio spooled with 10-pound Sunline Sniper fluorocarbon. His rod of choice was a 7-3 Falcon Cara Amistad Casting Rod.

“I chose a baitcaster for one reason,” he said. “I would rather use a spinning rod. But the grass is just thick enough that I couldn’t keep the bait clean on a spinning rod, and they wouldn’t eat it with grass on it.” The stiffer baitcast rod enabled Christie to rip the lure and shed any weeds clinging to it.

Garmin Panoptix helped Christie identify the smallmouth that were tagging along behind the drum in 15 to 20 feet of water. He said there seemed to be one solid window each day when the fish were really biting.

“Every day, there was an hour to hour-and-a-half spurt,” he said. “The first two days, it was the first hour. Saturday, it was 9 to 10, and today it was about the same time.

“I don’t know what makes them do that. I don’t know if you get a school fired up and you catch them real quick or what.”

Another important factor for Christie was fishing clean.

Smallmouth are notorious for their high-flying acrobatics, and they’ll often throw a bait when they jump. But Christie said he was pleased with his execution during the landing process.

“I lost a few,” he said. “But in a four-day event, you’re not going to catch every smallmouth that bites. I’m proud of myself, I really am. I found an area. I expanded on it during the tournament, and I narrowed it down to three basketball-sized sweet spots.”

Mississippi angler Brock Mosley finished in second place for the second time in the past three Elite Series events with 86-5. Rookie Mark Daniels Jr. of Alabama earned his highest finish ever in an Elite Series event — third — with 85-7.

Besides winning the $100,000 first-place prize, Christie held onto to his second-place spot in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings. With 796 points, Christie is just 15 points behind Brandon Palaniuk (811).

Jordan Lee finished fourth in the St. Clair event with 82-3 — a catch that was anchored by a 6-13 smallmouth that earned him $1,500 as the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the week.

Now that the final regular-season tournament is done, the Top 50 anglers in the AOY standings will advance to the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship on Minnesota’s Mille Lacs Lake next month.

For retaining his lead in the AOY race, Palaniuk was awarded $1,000.

Mosley won the Livingston Lures Day 2 Leader Award of $500 for leading the tournament on Saturday’s second day of competition.

Christie was awarded the Toyota Bonus Bucks Award of $3,000 for being the highest-placing eligible entrant in the program. He also earned the Power-Pole Captain’s Cash Award of $1,000 for being the highest-placing angler who is registered and eligible and uses a client-approved product on his boat.

Lee also received $2,000 for being the second-highest-placing eligible entrant in the Toyota Bonus Bucks program.

The Detroit Sports Commission, Sterling Heights Regional Chamber of Commerce and Macomb County hosted the event.

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Minn Kota, Power-Pole, Shell Rotella, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha, Berkley, Huk, Humminbird, Nitro Boats, Mercury

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: Shimano, Advance Auto Parts, Livingston Lures, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Carhartt, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels, Lowrance, Phoenix Boats, T-H Marine

About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 500,000-member organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), television show (The Bassmasters on ESPN2), radio show (Bassmaster Radio), social media programs and events. For more than 45 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series, Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation Series presented by Magellan Outdoors, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Costa Bassmaster High School Series presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.

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Media Contact: JamieDay Matthews, 205-313-0945, jmatthews@bassmaster.com or Dave Precht, 205-313-0931, dprecht@bassmaster.com

2017 Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair 8/24-8/27
Lake St. Clair, Macomb County MI.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 4

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

1. Jason Christie Park Hill, OK 20 88-08 110 $101,000.00
Day 1: 5 21-12 Day 2: 5 21-01 Day 3: 5 23-11 Day 4: 5 22-00
2. Brock Mosley Collinsville, MS 20 86-05 109 $25,500.00
Day 1: 5 20-05 Day 2: 5 25-08 Day 3: 5 20-08 Day 4: 5 20-00
3. Mark Daniels Jr. Tuskegee, AL 20 85-07 108 $20,000.00
Day 1: 5 21-11 Day 2: 5 20-05 Day 3: 5 24-01 Day 4: 5 19-06
4. Jordan Lee Grant, AL 18 82-03 107 $16,500.00
Day 1: 5 19-09 Day 2: 5 24-11 Day 3: 5 25-09 Day 4: 3 12-06
5. Matt Lee Guntersville, AL 20 81-14 106 $14,000.00
Day 1: 5 21-13 Day 2: 5 23-03 Day 3: 5 18-08 Day 4: 5 18-06
6. Jamie Hartman Newport, NY 20 81-07 105 $13,500.00
Day 1: 5 19-11 Day 2: 5 22-09 Day 3: 5 18-14 Day 4: 5 20-05
7. Gerald Spohrer Gonzales, LA 20 80-01 104 $13,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 22-15 Day 3: 5 22-10 Day 4: 5 18-11
8. Bobby Lane Jr. Lakeland, FL 20 78-06 103 $12,500.00
Day 1: 5 19-00 Day 2: 5 20-12 Day 3: 5 20-13 Day 4: 5 17-13
9. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 20 75-11 102 $12,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 22-12 Day 3: 5 19-13 Day 4: 5 13-12
10. Paul Mueller Naugatuck, CT 19 75-07 101 $11,500.00
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 23-11 Day 3: 5 22-07 Day 4: 4 14-04
11. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 20 74-05 100 $11,000.00
Day 1: 5 23-03 Day 2: 5 21-09 Day 3: 5 15-09 Day 4: 5 14-00
12. Micah Frazier Newnan, GA 17 69-00 99 $10,500.00
Day 1: 5 20-06 Day 2: 5 21-04 Day 3: 5 19-04 Day 4: 2 08-02
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
Jordan Lee Grant, AL 06-13 $1,500.00

by AnglersChannel

Lee Becomes Third Leader In Three Days At Bassmaster Elite At St. Clair

Jordan Lee of Guntersville, Ala., takes the lead on the third day of the 2017 Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair, bringing 25 pounds, 9 ounces to the scales on Saturday for a three-day total weight of 69-13.

Photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.

August 26, 2017

MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. — The only certainty after three days of the Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair is that no lead is safe.

Jordan Lee, the reigning champion of the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods, caught five bass that weighed 25 pounds, 9 ounces, Saturday to push his three-day total to 69-13. That moved him from fifth to first place and made him the third leader in as many days.

“I’m not really figuring anything out,” said Lee, who qualified for his third Top 12 cut on the Bassmaster Elite Series this season. “I’ve really fished the same water every day. I don’t know when I’m getting my next bite.

“I don’t really understand it. You just have to keep fishing and be ready for them.”

Lee said there have been times when he’s gone more than three hours without a bite. But the good news is, when a bite comes, it’s usually a bass that will help his cause.

On Friday, he caught two 5-pounders off one spot. Then Saturday, on the same spot, he caught a 6-13 that gave him the lead in the race for Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the week and another bass that topped the 6-pound mark.

With so much downtime between strikes, the key, he said, is being focused enough to execute when they finally do bite.

“You’ve really got to fish and just be calm and say, ‘I don’t know how many bites I’m going to get, but it may not be many,’” he said. “You just have to know that going in and keep fishing.

“I missed one fish today. But besides that one, I’ve caught them all this week.”

Though the fishing has been slow in his area, Lee said he has no plans to change for Championship Sunday.

“Literally, if I only have one bite there tomorrow, I will have no shame,” he said. “I’ve caught two huge bags there. You have to fish there all day and wait on one to bite.”

Oklahoma angler Jason Christie, who has been hanging around the Top 10 all week, caught 23-11 — his biggest bag of the event — to jump from sixth into second with 66-8.

“I’m sight fishing in 20 feet of water, using Garmin Panoptix,” Christie said. “I caught a 5-10 today, and that’s the biggest fish I’ve seen all week. Most of the fish I’ve been seeing have been in the 4- to 4 1/2-pound range.”

Christie said boat traffic was heavy Saturday, and that makes him wonder if his fish will still be there when he returns to his best area Sunday.

“It worries me because I’ve just got one area,” he said. “You can be around them one day and then they’re just not there the next.

“I don’t know what the weather is supposed to be like (Sunday). But I hope we get just a little bit of wind to push the boat, so I don’t have to be on the trolling motor.”

Day 2 leader Brock Mosley of Collinsville, Miss., caught 20-8 Saturday and dropped two places into third with 66-5. But another big jump was made by Mark Daniels Jr.

Daniels, an Elite Series rookie from Tuskegee, Ala., caught 24-1 and made his first career Top 12 cut in fourth place with 66-1.

“Today, I didn’t have a lot of bites,” Daniels said. “I was fortunate to catch the ones I caught, and obviously they were the right ones — and that’s the biggest thing.”

Idaho angler Brandon Palaniuk caught 17-4 and finished 29th with 57-7, but he maintained his lead in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year race with 811 points. Christie, with his solid performance on Day 3, maintained possession of second place with 795.

The Top 12 remaining anglers will leave Lake St. Clair Metropark at 6:30 a.m. ET Sunday, with a $100,000 first-place prize on the line. The final weigh-in will be held back at the park at 3:15 p.m.

When the tournament is done, the Top 50 anglers in the AOY standings will advance to the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship on Minnesota’s Mille Lacs Lake next month.

The event is hosted by the Detroit Sports Commission, Sterling Heights Regional Chamber of Commerce and Macomb County.

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Mercury, Minn Kota, Power-Pole, Shell Rotella, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha, Berkley, Huk, Humminbird, Nitro Boats

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: T-H Marine, Shimano, Advance Auto Parts, Livingston Lures, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Carhartt, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels, Lowrance, Phoenix Boats

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Media Contact: JamieDay Matthews, 205-313-0945, jmatthews@bassmaster.com or Dave Precht, 205-313-0931, dprecht@bassmaster.com

2017 Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair 8/24-8/27
Lake St. Clair, Macomb County MI.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 3

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

1. Jordan Lee Grant, AL 15 69-13 110
Day 1: 5 19-09 Day 2: 5 24-11 Day 3: 5 25-09
2. Jason Christie Park Hill, OK 15 66-08 109
Day 1: 5 21-12 Day 2: 5 21-01 Day 3: 5 23-11
3. Brock Mosley Collinsville, MS 15 66-05 108 $500.00
Day 1: 5 20-05 Day 2: 5 25-08 Day 3: 5 20-08
4. Mark Daniels Jr. Tuskegee, AL 15 66-01 107
Day 1: 5 21-11 Day 2: 5 20-05 Day 3: 5 24-01
5. Matt Lee Guntersville, AL 15 63-08 106
Day 1: 5 21-13 Day 2: 5 23-03 Day 3: 5 18-08
6. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 15 61-15 105
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 22-12 Day 3: 5 19-13
7. Gerald Spohrer Gonzales, LA 15 61-06 104
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 22-15 Day 3: 5 22-10
8. Paul Mueller Naugatuck, CT 15 61-03 103
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 23-11 Day 3: 5 22-07
9. Jamie Hartman Newport, NY 15 61-02 102
Day 1: 5 19-11 Day 2: 5 22-09 Day 3: 5 18-14
10. Micah Frazier Newnan, GA 15 60-14 101
Day 1: 5 20-06 Day 2: 5 21-04 Day 3: 5 19-04
11. Bobby Lane Jr. Lakeland, FL 15 60-09 100
Day 1: 5 19-00 Day 2: 5 20-12 Day 3: 5 20-13
12. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 15 60-05 99
Day 1: 5 23-03 Day 2: 5 21-09 Day 3: 5 15-09
13. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 15 60-05 98 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-15 Day 2: 5 20-11 Day 3: 5 19-11
14. Brandon Coulter Knoxville, TN 15 60-04 97 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-09 Day 2: 5 22-01 Day 3: 5 19-10
15. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 15 59-12 96 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-12 Day 2: 5 21-11 Day 3: 5 17-05
16. Luke Clausen Otis Orchards, WA 15 59-06 95 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 24-15 Day 3: 5 15-02
17. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 15 59-05 94 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 18-12 Day 3: 5 19-09
18. Brett Preuett Monroe, LA 15 59-03 93 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-04 Day 2: 5 21-09 Day 3: 5 17-06
19. John Murray Spring City, TN 15 58-08 92 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-00 Day 2: 5 22-02 Day 3: 5 20-06
20. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 15 58-08 91 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-14 Day 2: 5 20-08 Day 3: 5 17-02
21. Ott DeFoe Blaine, TN 15 58-08 90 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-00 Day 2: 5 20-00 Day 3: 5 20-08
22. Jacob Wheeler Harrison, TN 15 58-03 89 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 21-09 Day 2: 5 19-10 Day 3: 5 17-00
23. John Hunter Jr Shelbyville, KY 15 58-01 88 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-01 Day 2: 5 17-01 Day 3: 5 21-15
24. Brandon Lester Fayetteville, TN 15 58-01 87 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-02 Day 2: 5 19-09 Day 3: 5 18-06
25. Clifford Pirch Payson, AZ 15 58-00 86 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-14 Day 2: 5 20-09 Day 3: 5 19-09
26. Seth Feider Isle, MN 15 57-11 85 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 21-15 Day 3: 5 17-04
27. Brent Ehrler Redlands, CA 15 57-10 84 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-15 Day 2: 5 17-08 Day 3: 5 21-03
28. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 15 57-09 83 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-11 Day 2: 5 21-10 Day 3: 5 15-04
29. Brandon Palaniuk Hayden, ID 15 57-07 82 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-13 Day 2: 5 22-06 Day 3: 5 17-04
30. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 15 56-12 81 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 18-15 Day 3: 5 18-08
31. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 15 56-11 80 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-07 Day 2: 5 18-00 Day 3: 5 19-04
32. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 15 56-03 79 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 17-06 Day 3: 5 19-07
33. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 15 56-01 78 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-03 Day 2: 5 19-02 Day 3: 5 20-12
34. Chris Zaldain Laughlin, NV 15 55-15 77 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 22-03 Day 3: 5 18-05
35. John Crews Jr Salem, VA 15 55-11 76 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 20-12 Day 2: 5 17-05 Day 3: 5 17-10
36. Shane Lineberger Lincolnton, NC 15 55-08 75 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-13 Day 2: 5 18-03 Day 3: 5 18-08
37. Josh Bertrand San Tan Valley, AZ 15 55-03 74 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-12 Day 2: 5 19-02 Day 3: 5 18-05
38. Stetson Blaylock Benton, AR 15 55-01 73 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 22-15 Day 3: 5 19-03
39. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 15 54-07 72 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 5 17-07 Day 3: 5 18-05
40. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 15 53-14 71 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 17-07 Day 3: 5 17-01
41. Jacob Powroznik North Prince George, VA 15 53-12 70 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-06 Day 2: 5 19-09 Day 3: 5 17-13
42. Chad Pipkens Lansing, MI 15 53-01 69 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-02 Day 2: 5 17-07 Day 3: 5 17-08
43. Fred Roumbanis London, AR 15 52-12 68 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-12 Day 2: 5 16-07 Day 3: 5 17-09
44. Koby Kreiger Bokeelia, FL 15 52-11 67 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-08 Day 2: 5 15-13 Day 3: 5 17-06
45. Kelley Jaye Dadeville, AL 15 51-13 66 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-11 Day 2: 5 20-04 Day 3: 5 14-14
46. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 15 51-02 65 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-10 Day 2: 5 16-12 Day 3: 5 15-12
47. Randy Howell Guntersville, AL 13 50-15 64 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 20-14 Day 3: 3 10-11
48. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 14 50-10 63 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-13 Day 2: 5 18-08 Day 3: 4 13-05
49. Dustin Connell Clanton, AL 14 49-08 62 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-05 Day 2: 5 17-11 Day 3: 4 13-08
50. Chad Morgenthaler Reeds Spring, MO 13 44-02 61 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 22-03 Day 2: 5 16-05 Day 3: 3 05-10

by AnglersChannel

Mosley Pulls Ahead At Lake St. Clair; Palaniuk Regains Lead In AOY race

Brock Mosley of Collinsville, Miss., takes the lead on the second day of the 2017 Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair out of Macomb County, Mich., with a two-day total weight of 45 pounds, 13 ounces.

Photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.

August 25, 2017

MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. — Brock Mosley caught five bass Friday that weighed 25 pounds, 8 ounces, pushing his two-day total to 45-13 and taking the lead in the Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair.

A near miss earlier this season seems to have been just the motivation he needed.

“I finished second to Kevin VanDam at the St. Lawrence River (in July),” said Mosley, a second-year Elite Series pro from Collinsville, Miss. “When you beat everybody except Kevin, that’s pretty good. But coming so close really did motivate me for the rest of the season.”

After placing second at St. Lawrence, Mosley placed 42nd and earned a $10,000 check in the next Elite Series event on Lake Champlain. During Thursday’s opening round, he caught 20-5 and landed in 13th place at Lake St. Clair.

Then on Friday, everything went right.

“It was a slow day, but every bite I got was a good one,” Mosley said. “Everything just went my way, and I was blessed to have what I have.”

Mosley said he caught a good limit early and then just went “goofing around” to avoid putting too much pressure on fish he knows he’ll need the rest of the week. While goofing around, he got a nice surprise.

“I was still fishing the same way I had been, but I was really out there just wasting time,” he said. “I caught another 5 1/2-pounder while I was doing that. That was a surprise. I really wasn’t expecting to cull a 4-pounder, but that’s the kind of day it was.”

After catching 21-13 in the first round, Alabama angler Matt Lee had another great Friday, landing five bass that weighed 23-3. With a two-day total of 45-0, he’s well within striking distance of his first victory in his 50th career B.A.S.S. event.

Things happened quickly for Lee after takeoff.

“I started in a different place that I didn’t get to fish (Thursday), and I had 20 pounds by 8:30,” Lee said. “I only got one bite on my best spot from (Thursday), and I lost that fish. I never caught a fish there in two hours and 15 minutes.”

Lee finally gave up on his first-round spot and managed to cull a couple of fish in other places. Then he went back to the place where he started Friday morning.

“At 3 o’clock, I caught a 4 3/4-pounder right back in that spot where I started,” Lee said. “That culled out a 3 1/4.”

Opening-round leader Bradley Roy caught 21-9 Friday and fell two spots to third place with 44-12.

“Things started earlier for me today,” Roy said. “The first day, it took me a long time to get a bite. Today, right off the bat, I started catching them.”

Then he had what he described as a “bad lull” between 9 a.m. and noon. But he managed to figure the fish out for the afternoon.

“I readjusted, got on some new areas and started catching them again,” he said. “I’m hoping if those fish have left or I’ve caught them all out of that area from the first day that I’ve expanded a little bit. Maybe I can keep pushing on out to some new areas to catch 21 or 22 pounds a day to win this thing.”

Idaho pro Brandon Palaniuk caught 22-6 and moved into 20th place with 40-3. That helped him regain the lead in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year race with 820 points. Oklahoma’s Jason Christie is second with 791, followed by Tennessee’s Jacob Wheeler with 785.

After catching only 17-13 Thursday, Palaniuk said he has no intention of playing it safe to protect his AOY lead.

“If you let up, these guys will pass you in a heartbeat,” he said. “I still don’t even know what the point gap is. I know I’m leading because you guys keep telling me. But I haven’t looked at the standings in three years.”

Palaniuk held the lead for Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the week after Day 1 with a 6-8 smallmouth. But North Carolina angler Shane Lineberger passed him Friday with a 6-10.

The Top 50 remaining anglers will advance to Saturday’s semifinal round — and after Saturday, only the Top 12 will advance to Championship Sunday.

Daily takeoffs will begin at 6:30 a.m. ET at Lake St. Clair Metropark. Weigh-ins will be held back at the park at 3:15 p.m.

When the tournament is done, the Top 50 anglers in the AOY standings will advance to the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship on Minnesota’s Mille Lacs Lake next month.

The event is hosted by Macomb County, Sterling Heights Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Detroit Sports Commission.

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Premier Sponsors: Nitro Boats, Mercury, Minn Kota, Power-Pole, Shell Rotella, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Yamaha, Berkley, Huk, Humminbird

2017 Bassmaster Elite Series Supporting Sponsors: Phoenix Boats, T-H Marine, Shimano, Advance Auto Parts, Livingston Lures, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Carhartt, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels, Lowrance

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Media Contact: JamieDay Matthews, 205-313-0945, jmatthews@bassmaster.com or Dave Precht, 205-313-0931, dprecht@bassmaster.com

2017 Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair 8/24-8/27
Lake St. Clair, Macomb County MI.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2

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

1. Brock Mosley Collinsville, MS 10 45-13 110 $500.00
Day 1: 5 20-05 Day 2: 5 25-08
2. Matt Lee Guntersville, AL 10 45-00 109
Day 1: 5 21-13 Day 2: 5 23-03
3. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 10 44-12 108
Day 1: 5 23-03 Day 2: 5 21-09
4. Luke Clausen Otis Orchards, WA 10 44-04 107
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 24-15
5. Jordan Lee Grant, AL 10 44-04 106
Day 1: 5 19-09 Day 2: 5 24-11
6. Jason Christie Park Hill, OK 10 42-13 105
Day 1: 5 21-12 Day 2: 5 21-01
7. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 10 42-07 104
Day 1: 5 20-12 Day 2: 5 21-11
8. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 10 42-05 103
Day 1: 5 20-11 Day 2: 5 21-10
9. Jamie Hartman Newport, NY 10 42-04 102
Day 1: 5 19-11 Day 2: 5 22-09
10. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 10 42-02 101
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 22-12
11. Mark Daniels Jr. Tuskegee, AL 10 42-00 100
Day 1: 5 21-11 Day 2: 5 20-05
12. Brett Preuett Monroe, LA 10 41-13 99
Day 1: 5 20-04 Day 2: 5 21-09
13. Micah Frazier Newnan, GA 10 41-10 98
Day 1: 5 20-06 Day 2: 5 21-04
14. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 10 41-06 97
Day 1: 5 20-14 Day 2: 5 20-08
15. Jacob Wheeler Harrison, TN 10 41-03 96
Day 1: 5 21-09 Day 2: 5 19-10
16. Brandon Coulter Knoxville, TN 10 40-10 95
Day 1: 5 18-09 Day 2: 5 22-01
17. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 40-10 94
Day 1: 5 19-15 Day 2: 5 20-11
18. Seth Feider Isle, MN 10 40-07 93
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 21-15
19. Randy Howell Guntersville, AL 10 40-04 92
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 20-14
20. Brandon Palaniuk Hayden, ID 10 40-03 91
Day 1: 5 17-13 Day 2: 5 22-06
21. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 10 39-12 90
Day 1: 5 21-00 Day 2: 5 18-12
22. Bobby Lane Jr. Lakeland, FL 10 39-12 89
Day 1: 5 19-00 Day 2: 5 20-12
23. Brandon Lester Fayetteville, TN 10 39-11 88
Day 1: 5 20-02 Day 2: 5 19-09
24. Paul Mueller Naugatuck, CT 10 38-12 87
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 23-11
25. Gerald Spohrer Gonzales, LA 10 38-12 86
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 22-15
26. Chad Morgenthaler Reeds Spring, MO 10 38-08 85
Day 1: 5 22-03 Day 2: 5 16-05
27. Clifford Pirch Payson, AZ 10 38-07 84
Day 1: 5 17-14 Day 2: 5 20-09
28. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 10 38-04 83
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 18-15
29. John Murray Spring City, TN 10 38-02 82
Day 1: 5 16-00 Day 2: 5 22-02
30. John Crews Jr Salem, VA 10 38-01 81
Day 1: 5 20-12 Day 2: 5 17-05
31. Ott DeFoe Blaine, TN 10 38-00 80
Day 1: 5 18-00 Day 2: 5 20-00
32. Chris Zaldain Laughlin, NV 10 37-10 79
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 22-03
33. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 10 37-07 78
Day 1: 5 19-07 Day 2: 5 18-00
34. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 10 37-05 77
Day 1: 5 18-13 Day 2: 5 18-08
35. Shane Lineberger Lincolnton, NC 10 37-00 76
Day 1: 5 18-13 Day 2: 5 18-03
36. Kelley Jaye Dadeville, AL 10 36-15 75
Day 1: 5 16-11 Day 2: 5 20-04
37. Josh Bertrand San Tan Valley, AZ 10 36-14 74
Day 1: 5 17-12 Day 2: 5 19-02
38. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 10 36-13 73
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 17-07
39. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 10 36-12 72
Day 1: 5 19-06 Day 2: 5 17-06
40. Brent Ehrler Redlands, CA 10 36-07 71
Day 1: 5 18-15 Day 2: 5 17-08
41. John Hunter Jr Shelbyville, KY 10 36-02 70
Day 1: 5 19-01 Day 2: 5 17-01
42. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 10 36-02 69
Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 5 17-07
43. Dustin Connell Clanton, AL 10 36-00 68
Day 1: 5 18-05 Day 2: 5 17-11
44. Jacob Powroznik North Prince George, VA 10 35-15 67
Day 1: 5 16-06 Day 2: 5 19-09
45. Stetson Blaylock Benton, AR 10 35-14 66
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 22-15
46. Chad Pipkens Lansing, MI 10 35-09 65
Day 1: 5 18-02 Day 2: 5 17-07
47. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 35-06 64
Day 1: 5 18-10 Day 2: 5 16-12
48. Koby Kreiger Bokeelia, FL 10 35-05 63
Day 1: 5 19-08 Day 2: 5 15-13
49. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 10 35-05 62
Day 1: 5 16-03 Day 2: 5 19-02
50. Fred Roumbanis London, AR 10 35-03 61
Day 1: 5 18-12 Day 2: 5 16-07
51. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 10 34-15 60
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 18-10
52. Cliff Prince Palatka, FL 10 34-14 59
Day 1: 5 15-05 Day 2: 5 19-09
53. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 10 34-10 58
Day 1: 5 18-14 Day 2: 5 15-12
54. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 10 34-10 57
Day 1: 5 17-12 Day 2: 5 16-14
55. Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 10 34-07 56
Day 1: 5 16-11 Day 2: 5 17-12
56. Jesse Wiggins Cullman, AL 10 34-06 55
Day 1: 5 17-09 Day 2: 5 16-13
57. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 10 34-05 54
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 16-15
58. Jesse Tacoronte Orlando, FL 10 34-04 53
Day 1: 5 18-01 Day 2: 5 16-03
59. Adrian Avena Vineland, NJ 10 34-04 52
Day 1: 5 16-04 Day 2: 5 18-00
60. David Williams Newton, NC 10 34-01 51
Day 1: 5 19-03 Day 2: 5 14-14
61. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 10 34-01 50
Day 1: 5 17-09 Day 2: 5 16-08
62. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 10 34-00 49
Day 1: 5 16-03 Day 2: 5 17-13
63. David Mullins Mt Carmel, TN 10 33-13 48
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 18-11
64. Randall Tharp Port St. Joe, FL 10 33-13 47
Day 1: 5 17-13 Day 2: 5 16-00
65. Gerald Swindle Guntersville, AL 10 33-11 46
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 5 21-08
66. Justin Lucas Guntersville, AL 10 33-08 45
Day 1: 5 14-09 Day 2: 5 18-15
67. Tyler Carriere Youngsville, LA 10 33-06 44
Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 5 14-11
68. Dave Lefebre Erie, PA 10 33-04 43
Day 1: 5 15-12 Day 2: 5 17-08
69. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 10 33-03 42
Day 1: 5 14-06 Day 2: 5 18-13
70. Jason Williamson Wagener, SC 10 33-03 41
Day 1: 5 17-06 Day 2: 5 15-13
71. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 10 33-02 40
Day 1: 5 18-00 Day 2: 5 15-02
72. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 32-15 39
Day 1: 5 14-09 Day 2: 5 18-06
73. Gary Klein Mingus, TX 10 32-15 38
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 18-05
74. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 10 32-04 37
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 5 17-05
75. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 10 32-04 36
Day 1: 5 15-11 Day 2: 5 16-09
76. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 10 32-03 35
Day 1: 5 14-13 Day 2: 5 17-06
77. Morizo Shimizu Suita, Osaka JAPAN 10 32-02 34
Day 1: 5 14-05 Day 2: 5 17-13
78. Andy Montgomery Blacksburg, SC 10 32-01 33
Day 1: 5 18-09 Day 2: 5 13-08
79. Hank Cherry Jr Lincolnton, NC 10 31-13 32
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 18-00
80. Tim Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 9 31-13 31
Day 1: 5 17-12 Day 2: 4 14-01
81. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 10 31-10 30
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 18-00
82. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 10 30-06 29
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 14-01
83. Alton Jones Lorena, TX 10 30-03 28
Day 1: 5 15-11 Day 2: 5 14-08
84. Keith Poche Pike Road, AL 9 30-00 27
Day 1: 4 17-05 Day 2: 5 12-11
85. Cliff Crochet Pierre Part, LA 10 30-00 26
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 15-06
86. Alton Jones Jr. Lorena, TX 10 29-12 25
Day 1: 5 10-12 Day 2: 5 19-00
87. Drew Benton Panama City, FL 10 29-12 24
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 17-06
88. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 10 29-07 23
Day 1: 5 13-06 Day 2: 5 16-01
89. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 10 29-06 22
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 5 13-04
90. David Walker Sevierville, TN 8 28-13 21
Day 1: 3 10-13 Day 2: 5 18-00
91. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 8 28-00 20
Day 1: 3 09-04 Day 2: 5 18-12
92. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 8 27-05 19
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 3 11-03
93. Clent Davis Montevallo, AL 7 27-04 18
Day 1: 2 05-04 Day 2: 5 22-00
94. Fletcher Shryock New Philadelphia, OH 9 27-03 17
Day 1: 4 10-03 Day 2: 5 17-00
95. Matt Herren Ashville, AL 9 27-03 16
Day 1: 5 16-07 Day 2: 4 10-12
96. Brandon Card Knoxville, TN 9 26-09 15
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 4 12-07
97. James Elam Tulsa, OK 7 24-13 14
Day 1: 2 06-06 Day 2: 5 18-07
98. Boyd Duckett Guntersville, AL 9 23-05 13
Day 1: 4 09-01 Day 2: 5 14-04
99. Darrell Ocamica New Plymouth, ID 7 21-01 12
Day 1: 5 17-00 Day 2: 2 04-01
100. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 7 21-01 11
Day 1: 3 09-01 Day 2: 4 12-00
101. Skylar Hamilton Dandridge, TN 9 20-09 10
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 4 08-05
102. Kelly Jordon Flint, TX 8 19-05 9
Day 1: 5 12-11 Day 2: 3 06-10
103. Shaw Grigsby Jr. Gainesville, FL 7 18-11 8
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 2 07-01
104. Brett Hite Phoenix, AZ 7 18-06 7
Day 1: 2 04-00 Day 2: 5 14-06
105. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 5 15-10 6
Day 1: 5 15-10 Day 2: 0 00-00
106. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 5 12-14 5
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 0 00-00
107. David Fritts Lexington, NC 4 12-06 4
Day 1: 3 07-05 Day 2: 1 05-01
108. Robbie Latuso Gonzales, LA 3 09-12 3
Day 1: 3 09-12 Day 2: 0 00-00

by AnglersChannel

TH MARINES JEFF HUNTLEY TO RECEIVE “LEGENDS OF THE OUTDOORS” NATIONAL HALL OF FAME LEGACY AWARD

Springville, TN – August 25, 2017 – Founder of the “Legends of the Outdoors” National Hall of Fame, Garry Mason, has released the recipient of the 2017 Legacy Award. T-H Marine President and CEO, Jeff Huntley will be presented this prestigious award at this year's Annual Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Banquet.

Also at this event, the 2017 American Outdoor Sportsman of the Year Award will be presented to John Miles, a nationally known rod builder of over 50 years and outdoor radio and television personality, Joey Monteleone will receive The Tennessee Outdoorsman of the Year Award.

In honor of Hall of Fame member Wade Bourne, the "Legends of the Outdoors" team has announced a brand new award for the Wade Bourne Outdoor Communicator of the Year. This award will be received by Larry Rea, editor of Mid-South Hunting and Fishing News and longtime outdoor sports writer for the Memphis Commercial Appeal.

This year’s event will once again be held aboard one of the largest paddlewheel showboats in the country - the General Jackson Showboat/Music City Queen in Nashville, TN on Saturday, August 26th dockside along the Cumberland River. Boarding begins at 9:00am and will be followed by the banquet and induction/award ceremony at 10:00am.

The 2017 “Legends of the Outdoors” Inductees are as follows: Dave Precht – outdoor writer and editor of Bassmaster Magazine; Morris Sheehan – President, American Bass Anglers, Inc.; Lisa Snuggs - SEOPA Executive Director, & OJEFA CEO; Walter Parrott – champion turkey caller & hunter; Guy Eaker Sr. – professional angler; Jerry Antley – founder of Cedar Hill game calls; Bob Foulkrod – renowned sportsman, writer and television personality; and Steve Price – outdoor writer and photographer, and our Guest Speaker this year will be Jimmy Sites, contributor to the “Sportsmen’s Bible”, outdoors advocate, and host of “Spiritual Outdoor Adventures”.

Other awards and recipients this year are: The American Outdoor Organization of the Year – National Wild Turkey Federation; The Ray Scott American Trailblazer Award to Harold Knight and David Hale for their “trailblazing” of game calls, the Outdoor Manufacturing Excellence Award – Fishing – to Strike King Lures due to their longevity and consistency in the fishing field, the Outdoor Manufacturing Excellence Award – Hunting – to O.F. Mossberg and Sons, Inc., manufacturer of quality firearm products.

The event is open to the public. Sponsorship information and individual ticket reservations may be obtained through the “Legends of the Outdoors” website at www.legendsoftheoutdoors.com, or by calling 731-693-7770.

by AnglersChannel

Casey Is Catching On To Smallmouth, But He Still Don't Like em'

Story & Photo from Alan McGuckin ~ Dynamic Sponsorships

Casey Ashley has been saying for years that he doesn’t like smallmouth.

But given the fact the 2015 Bassmaster Classic Champ sits soundly inside the Top 5 of a Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year points race that’s tighter than the dry storage lids of his Triton, well, it’s fair to say, the soft spoken South Carolina pro is learning to live with the infamously ghost like bronze bombers that have dominated the summer portion of the Elite Series schedule.

Fact is, he’s more than just tolerating smallmouth, he’s figuring them out – mostly by taking his own approach with a plan that involves a lot of treble hooks, fairly shallow water, and perhaps most importantly – a mindset of finally accepting the fact that smallmouth are not largemouth.

“I still don’t like ‘em,” grinned the likeable Ashley minutes after dropping 18 pounds of smallmouth on the scales at Day 1 of the Advanced Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite Series on Lake St. Clair. “They’re still way too fickle to my liking. I found two spots late in practice Wednesday that were loaded with smallmouth, and today I never caught a single fish from either of those areas.”

“A southern largemouth fisherman like myself is programmed to finding and catching fish from targets like a brushpile, a laydown tree, stumps, docks, whatever – but with smallmouth, you can forget about all that,” says Ashley. “I’ve learned that you stand just as good a chance by tossing the lure behind your shoulder at smallmouth -- especially on a massive, flat-bottomed lake like St. Clair, because they roam areas, instead of staying locked on targets,” explains Ashley.

Jerks, Cranks, and Less than 10-feet Deep

To explore expansive ‘areas’ Ashley has learned to lean heavily on faster moving lures like jerkbaits and crankbaits versus mega-popular drop shots and tube jigs.

“It seems like I catch bigger smallmouth on jerkbaits and crankbaits than I do a drop shot, and those horizontal moving baits give me a better chance to cover more water too,” explains Ashley.

“I’ve also learned to accept the fact that I’m way better at catching ‘em in less than 10-feet of water when at all possible. You force me to fish deeper than about 10-feet, and I feel like I’m out of my league,” admits Ashley.

Tackle

Ashley has no strict allegiance to a crankbait sponsor, so the ‘free agent’ mixes a blend of brands that often include Lucky Craft Staysee jerkbaits, and Strike King 5XD crankbaits, but one shared constant is the mid-range gear ratio of the reels he throws them on.

“I use the 6.6:1 Quantum Smoke HD for cranking because it’s got a big spool with a lot of line capacity, and for the jerkbait, I use the brand new Smoke S3 in a 6.1:1, because it casts so far and smooth,” he explains.

Ashley uses 10-pound Hi-Seas fluorocarbon line with his jerkbaits, but cranks with 12-pound Hi-Seas.

Surprised by his success?

When asked if he was surprised to be sitting so high in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year points after a bevy of smallmouth tournaments, Ashley replied, “Maybe just a little surprised, but at the St. Lawrence River I was able to find fish in the current around structure, which makes me feel more comfortable, and at Champlain, I was able to blend a few largemouth into the mix.”

As for St. Clair, he caught every fish he weighed-in during the Elite Series event of 2015 on a jerkbait, and finished 13^th. So don’t expect him to change much. It’s a shallow-water plan he’s comfortable with, and it gets great results … even though he still doesn’t like smallmouth.

by AnglersChannel

Roy Takes First-Round Lead, AOY Race Heats Up At Bassmaster Elite At St. Clair

Bradley Roy of Lancaster, Ky., took the lead on the first day of the 2017 Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair, bringing 23 pounds, 3 ounces to the scales on Thursday. Photo by Seigo Saito

MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. — On a day when all eyes were on the most experienced anglers in the sport, a 26-year-old pro from Kentucky stole the show.

Bradley Roy, who has never finished higher than third in a Bassmaster Elite Series event, caught five bass that weighed 23 pounds, 3 ounces, during Thursday's first round. It was good enough to take the lead in the Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair.

Missouri angler Chad Morgenthaler is just 1 pound behind in second with 22-3, and Alabamian Matt Lee is third with 21-13.

"I had a good practice," said Roy, who finished seventh at this year's GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK'S Sporting Goods. "I was seeing a lot of quality fish in a lot of different areas. But this morning, I don't know if they just didn't bite or if they moved out of some of those areas.

"I fished several places and just didn't get bit."

Lake St. Clair smallmouth bass have a reputation for roaming — and Roy decided to roam in search of them.

"I just kept moving around, cycling through them, and about 9 o'clock they started to bite pretty good," he said. "After that, it was just steady. You'd catch some small ones, and then you'd catch a good one."

Morgenthaler's day was the opposite of Roy's, as he put a good limit in his livewell on the first place he stopped.

"It all happened really quick this morning," Morgenthaler said. "I'm on one spot, and it's just a place where they can get stacked up on. It's not a very big spot, and there was another angler in there with me this morning — but we worked really well together."

Lee followed Roy's path, landing most of his larger fish beyond the morning hours.

"Later in the day, I just made a decision to go out to this one area where I had gotten bit in practice," Lee said. "I rolled up out there, and they were all big ones.

"I caught 10 fish there — four were little, one was a 3-pounder and I jumped one off," Lee said. "Then I weighed in three from there, and they were all hammers."

Roy, Morgenthaler and Lee generated a lot of buzz as the leaders of the race for the $100,000 first-place tournament prize. But many were also interested in the hotly contested race for Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year — and the competition couldn't be much tighter.

Tennessee angler Jacob Wheeler came into the day tied for second place in the AOY race, but moved into the lead with 794 points after landing 21-9 and finishing the first day of the St. Clair event in sixth place. Idaho pro Brandon Palaniuk, who came into the tournament as the AOY leader, caught just 17-13 and finished in 47th place on Day 1.

"Moving forward, this is a three-day deal," Wheeler said. "I could go out there tomorrow and catch 17 pounds, or 16 pounds or even 12 pounds. You've got to catch them every day. Day 1 just doesn't matter.

"At the end of the tournament, where you finish is what matters."

Palaniuk is now in second place in the AOY race with 793 points, tied with Oklahoma pro Jason Christie. South Carolina pro Casey Ashley is also well within striking distance in fourth with 769 points.

"My biggest fish (a 6-8 smallmouth) was my second fish of the morning, and after that I thought I was going to smash them," said Palaniuk, who took the lead for Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the week with his lunker. "But after that, I just caught small ones. I also lost one 4-pounder."

Christie said he thinks he's on the fish to win the tournament.

"It could happen if everything goes right," he said. "But how often does everything go right?"

After Friday's weigh-in, only the Top 50 remaining anglers will advance to Saturday's semifinal round. Daily takeoffs will begin at 6:30 a.m. ET at Lake St. Clair Metropark. Weigh-ins will be held back at the park at 3:15 p.m.

When the tournament is done, the Top 50 anglers in the AOY standings will advance to the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship on Minnesota's Mille Lacs Lake next month.

The event is hosted by the Detroit Sports Commission, Sterling Heights Regional Chamber of Commerce and Macomb County.

1	Bradley Roy	5 / 23- 3	5 / 23- 3
2	Chad Morgenthaler	5 / 22- 3	5 / 22- 3
3	Matt Lee	5 / 21-13	5 / 21-13
4	Jason Christie	5 / 21-12	5 / 21-12
5	Mark Daniels Jr.	5 / 21-11	5 / 21-11
6	Jacob Wheeler	5 / 21- 9	5 / 21- 9
7	Mark Menendez	5 / 21- 0	5 / 21- 0
8	Skeet Reese	5 / 20-14	5 / 20-14
9	John Crews Jr	5 / 20-12	5 / 20-12
9	Aaron Martens	5 / 20-12	5 / 20-12
11	Steve Kennedy	5 / 20-11	5 / 20-11
12	Micah Frazier	5 / 20- 6	5 / 20- 6
13	Brock Mosley	5 / 20- 5	5 / 20- 5
14	Brett Preuett	5 / 20- 4	5 / 20- 4
15	Brandon Lester	5 / 20- 2	5 / 20- 2
16	Jonathon VanDam	5 / 19-15	5 / 19-15
17	Jamie Hartman	5 / 19-11	5 / 19-11
18	Jordan Lee	5 / 19- 9	5 / 19- 9
19	Koby Kreiger	5 / 19- 8	5 / 19- 8
20	Michael Iaconelli	5 / 19- 7	5 / 19- 7
21	Keith Combs	5 / 19- 6	5 / 19- 6
21	Edwin Evers	5 / 19- 6	5 / 19- 6
21	Randy Howell	5 / 19- 6	5 / 19- 6
21	Takahiro Omori	5 / 19- 6	5 / 19- 6
25	Luke Clausen	5 / 19- 5	5 / 19- 5
25	Bernie Schultz	5 / 19- 5	5 / 19- 5
27	David Williams	5 / 19- 3	5 / 19- 3
28	John Hunter Jr	5 / 19- 1	5 / 19- 1
29	Bobby Lane Jr.	5 / 19- 0	5 / 19- 0
30	Brent Ehrler	5 / 18-15	5 / 18-15
31	Casey Ashley	5 / 18-14	5 / 18-14
32	Shane Lineberger	5 / 18-13	5 / 18-13
32	Marty Robinson	5 / 18-13	5 / 18-13
34	Fred Roumbanis	5 / 18-12	5 / 18-12
35	Tyler Carriere	5 / 18-11	5 / 18-11
35	Paul Elias	5 / 18-11	5 / 18-11
37	Greg Hackney	5 / 18-10	5 / 18-10
38	Brandon Coulter	5 / 18- 9	5 / 18- 9
38	Andy Montgomery	5 / 18- 9	5 / 18- 9
40	Seth Feider	5 / 18- 8	5 / 18- 8
41	Dustin Connell	5 / 18- 5	5 / 18- 5
42	Chad Pipkens	5 / 18- 2	5 / 18- 2
43	Jesse Tacoronte	5 / 18- 1	5 / 18- 1
44	Ott DeFoe	5 / 18- 0	5 / 18- 0
45	Bill Lowen	5 / 18- 0	5 / 18- 0
46	Clifford Pirch	5 / 17-14	5 / 17-14
47	Brandon Palaniuk	5 / 17-13	5 / 17-13
47	Randall Tharp	5 / 17-13	5 / 17-13
49	Tim Horton	5 / 17-12	5 / 17-12
49	Brian Snowden	5 / 17-12	5 / 17-12
51	Josh Bertrand	5 / 17-12	5 / 17-12
52	Stephen Browning	5 / 17- 9	5 / 17- 9
52	Jesse Wiggins	5 / 17- 9	5 / 17- 9
54	Scott Rook	5 / 17- 6	5 / 17- 6
54	Jason Williamson	5 / 17- 6	5 / 17- 6
56	Keith Poche	4 / 17- 5	4 / 17- 5
57	Darrell Ocamica	5 / 17- 0	5 / 17- 0
58	Kelley Jaye	5 / 16-11	5 / 16-11
58	Chris Lane	5 / 16-11	5 / 16-11
60	Matt Herren	5 / 16- 7	5 / 16- 7
61	Jacob Powroznik	5 / 16- 6	5 / 16- 6
62	Jared Lintner	5 / 16- 5	5 / 16- 5
62	Ish Monroe	5 / 16- 5	5 / 16- 5
64	Adrian Avena	5 / 16- 4	5 / 16- 4
65	Brent Chapman	5 / 16- 3	5 / 16- 3
65	Mark Davis	5 / 16- 3	5 / 16- 3
67	Tommy Biffle	5 / 16- 2	5 / 16- 2
67	James Niggemeyer	5 / 16- 2	5 / 16- 2
69	John Murray	5 / 16- 0	5 / 16- 0
70	Gerald Spohrer	5 / 15-13	5 / 15-13
71	Dave Lefebre	5 / 15-12	5 / 15-12
72	Alton Jones	5 / 15-11	5 / 15-11
72	Mike McClelland	5 / 15-11	5 / 15-11
74	Rick Clunn	5 / 15-10	5 / 15-10
75	Chris Zaldain	5 / 15- 7	5 / 15- 7
76	Cliff Prince	5 / 15- 5	5 / 15- 5
77	David Mullins	5 / 15- 2	5 / 15- 2
78	Paul Mueller	5 / 15- 1	5 / 15- 1
79	Cliff Pace	5 / 14-15	5 / 14-15
80	Britt Myers	5 / 14-13	5 / 14-13
81	Cliff Crochet	5 / 14-10	5 / 14-10
81	Gary Klein	5 / 14-10	5 / 14-10
83	Kevin VanDam	5 / 14- 9	5 / 14- 9
84	Justin Lucas	5 / 14- 9	5 / 14- 9
85	Todd Faircloth	5 / 14- 6	5 / 14- 6
86	Morizo Shimizu	5 / 14- 5	5 / 14- 5
87	Brandon Card	5 / 14- 2	5 / 14- 2
88	Hank Cherry Jr	5 / 13-13	5 / 13-13
89	Greg Vinson	5 / 13-10	5 / 13-10
90	Jeff Kriet	5 / 13- 6	5 / 13- 6
91	Stetson Blaylock	5 / 12-15	5 / 12-15
92	Dean Rojas	5 / 12-14	5 / 12-14
93	Kelly Jordon	5 / 12-11	5 / 12-11
94	Drew Benton	5 / 12- 6	5 / 12- 6
95	Skylar Hamilton	5 / 12- 4	5 / 12- 4
96	Gerald Swindle	5 / 12- 3	5 / 12- 3
97	Shaw Grigsby Jr.	5 / 11-10	5 / 11-10
98	David Walker	3 / 10-13	3 / 10-13
99	Alton Jones Jr.	5 / 10-12	5 / 10-12
100	Fletcher Shryock	4 / 10- 3	4 / 10- 3
101	Robbie Latuso	3 / 9-12	3 / 9-12
102	Russ Lane	3 / 9- 4	3 / 9- 4
103	Boyd Duckett	4 / 9- 1	4 / 9- 1
104	Terry Scroggins	3 / 9- 1	3 / 9- 1
105	David Fritts	3 / 7- 5	3 / 7- 5
106	James Elam	2 / 6- 6	2 / 6- 6
107	Clent Davis	2 / 5- 4	2 / 5- 4
108	Brett Hite	2 / 4- 0	2 / 4- 0

by AnglersChannel

WILDER IN FRONT ON THE POTOMAC AS DAY 2 STARTS

August 24, 2017 by Jody White

Despite tougher fishing than a few weeks ago, day one of the Costa FLW Series presented by Plano on the Potomac River still showed off a very healthy fishery. In first, Gregory Wilder of Millersville, Md., started strong with 19 pounds even. About a half pound back, Jason Kervin of Auburn, Maine, is in hot pursuit with 18-7.

Complete results

Top five patterns

Wilder put up a pair of finishes below 150^th to start the Northern Division season at Champlain and the 1000 Islands. Now, after a good start on his home waters, the Maryland anglers is looking for his third Costa FLW Series top 10 on the Potomac and perhaps his first FLW win.

Unlike many of the other leaders, the early morning bite wasn’t the key to the day for Wilder.

“I didn’t really start catching them good until 9:30, and I just plucked at them one at a time, it wasn’t fast,” says Wilder. “Today I was lucky to get the good bites.”

Wilder says he was throwing a popper and a Senko, and caught nine keepers on the day.

“Pre-fishing was terrible, so I’m happy,” says Wilder. “It was probably the cooler weather that helped, they were there, we just couldn’t stand it.”

The weather for day two looks to be pretty similar to day one, but with perhaps a little more sun. If Wilder can put together the right few bites again, he might be looking really good into the weekend.

Top 10 pros

1. Gregory Wilder – Millersville, Md. – 19-0 (5)

2. Jason Kervin – Auburn, Maine – 18-7 (5)

3. Mike Hicks – Goochland, Va. – 17-14 (5)

4. Scott Wiley – Bay Minette, Ala. – 17-11 (5)

5. William Kramer – Montgomery Village, Md. – 16-9 (5)

6. Bob Izumi – Milton, Ont. – 16-5 (5)

7. Tim Dube – Nashua, N.H. – 16-3 (5)

8. Bryan Schmitt – Deale, Md. – 16-2 (5)

9. Travis Manson – Conshohocken, Pa. – 15-14 (5)

10. Cory Johnston – Cavan, Ont. – 15-4 (5)

Complete results

Perez leads the co-anglers

Richard Perez of Naples, Fla., walloped them on the co-angler side on day one, putting 15 pounds, 4 ounces in the boat and securing a lead of more than a pound over John Schultz.

Perez fished with Terry Olinger on day one, and the duo mined one spot for much of the morning.

“We had a great day, between us we probably caught close to 30 fish, and we culled quite a few times,” says Perez. “It slowed down a little bit after lunch, but we still caught a couple fish in the afternoon.”

Perez says he caught most of his fish on soft plastics and topwaters.

Complete results

by AnglersChannel

Carhartt Countdown to Blastoff - Hackney Knows He Has to Spin to Win

Story & Photo Courtesy of Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

Lake St. Clair is one of America’s all time greatest smallmouth fisheries. But when the Bassmaster Elite Series visited the Detroit area fishery in 2013, Greg Hackney chose to fish for largemouth based on the fact smallmouth looked more like retired Pistons point guard Isaiah Thomas than current Lions left tackle Greg Robinson.

“I don’t know what the deal was on St. Clair four years ago, but the smallmouth looked sickly, like they were starving. You’d catch a fish that should have weighed 4-pounds and he’d only weigh 3-pounds,” remembers Hackney.

“After a couple days of practice, I finally stumbled into some healthy largemouth and decided I had a better chance to do well catching those than skinny smallmouth, so I pitched a Strike King Menace around on a ¾ ounce Texas rig and caught enough largemouth to finish 18th,” he recalls.

“But that ain’t the case this week – these Smallmouth are healthy right now – and I’ll be fishing for them exclusively with spinning tackle,” confirmed Hackney before Day 1 launch at the Advanced Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite on Lake St. Clair.

While he may be fishing finesse techniques this week, it won’t be with undersized spinning reels. Hackney is religious about his love of larger spinning reels – and for good reason.

“A lot of people buy size 25 and 30 spinning reels for bass fishing, but I use a size 40 Speed Freak from Quantum because it holds more line, and leads to far less twists and tangles than a smaller spinning reel – especially if I’m using straight fluorocarbon line with no braided line,” explains Hackney.

“Like most guys, more times than not, I’ll use braid with a 7 to 8 foot long fluorocarbon leader on my spinning reels, because braid doesn’t twist nearly as bad, especially when you’re fishing a nose-hooked drop shot bait that’s spinning downward with each vertical drop you make,” he explains.

“But no matter what line you use, a bigger spinning reel just offers you better line management, and faster line pick-up. With that 6.2:1 gear ratio, you’re picking up about 39-inches of line with every turn of the handle,” he explains.

Known as a gritty shallow water stick, the Louisiana pro admits his favorite two ways to catch a bass are top water froggin’ and pitching to heavy cover, but what you love, verses what pays the bills are two very different things.

“That’s the life of an Elite Series pro, if you’re not willing and able to be versatile out here, this bunch of anglers will eat you alive. And if you can’t fish all the different techniques, you’ll starve,” concludes the highly accomplished Hackney.

by AnglersChannel

Scroggins and the Lee Brothers preview Lake St. Clair Elite

The Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair begins Thursday near Carhartt’s longtime headquarters in the Detroit metro.

The 128-year-old manufacturer of quality clothing for hard working people graciously hosted the Wednesday Elite Series angler meeting, and fed all pros and ride-along Marshals a great dinner.

Between bites of BBQ chicken, we caught up with Terry “Big Show” Scroggins, along with Jordan and Matt Lee, to learn what to expect from the fabulous fishery this week.

What will be the toughest challenge of this week’s tournament on Lake St. Clair?
Jordan Lee: Staying in productive areas, because the smallmouth don’t seem to be as grouped-up as I wish they were.
Matt Lee: Getting around schools versus single fish here and there.
Scroggins: The wind. It’s been big time rough water out there in practice.

What do you love most about Lake St. Clair?
Jordan Lee: The weather up here is awesome compared to the Deep South in late August.
Matt Lee: The number of fish per surface acre is as good or better than anywhere I’ve ever competed. It’s a pretty awesome fishery.
Scroggins: The number of fish in this lake is pretty phenomenal.

Name three lures fans at home can expect to see pros use the most this week.
Jordan Lee: Drop shot, tube, and a Strike King 5XD
Matt Lee: Tube, drop shot, and a 5XD
Scroggins: Drop shot, tube, and a jerkbait

How much weight will a pro need to average each day in order to make the final Top 12 cut?
Jordan Lee: 18 pounds
Matt Lee: 18 pounds
Scroggins: 20 pounds

We’re in Carhartt’s backyard this week. Name one piece of Carhartt clothing you never leave home without.
Jordan Lee: Carhartt Force Extremes Shoreline Angler rainsuit
Matt Lee: Carhartt Force Extremes Shoreline Angler rainsuit
Scroggins: Carhartt Force Extremes pocket t-shirts

by AnglersChannel

T-H MARINE ADDS GENE EISENMANN AS MARKETING DIRECTOR

Huntsville, AL – August 23, 2017 – T-H Marine Supplies, Inc., of Huntsville, Alabama, announces that Gene Eisenmann has joined the company as Marketing Director. Gene will lead the company's marketing efforts, including event sponsorships, pro staff management, product promotions, advertising strategy, and more.

T-H Marine’s President and CEO, Jeff Huntley, said, “Gene is an accomplished business owner, a savvy marketer, and an experienced angler. As HydroWave's original managing partner and someone who has shown commitment to crafting the vision for our company, we are very excited to have him on board."

Before joining T-H Marine full-time, Gene owned several businesses and even fished the big tournament trails. This included the Bassmaster Opens and FLW, where the idea for HydroWave really came to fruition.

"After selling HydroWave to T-H Marine I learned a lot about how dynamic and successful a company they really are. Marketing has always been my passion and I am eager to take on such a challenging role."

“Gene continued to provide valuable insight for T-H Marine after we acquired HydroWave from him two years ago," Huntley continued, "and we have seen how he has more to contribute to marketing our full line of products. We look forward to expanding our presence in the fishing and boating industry with him at the helm of our growing marketing team."

"Get ready to see a whole lot more from our brands, including products like our AquaBlaze™ LEDs, our expanding line of HydroWave™ units, our KVD KONG™ mounts, the Tackle Titan™, and Z-launch™. And, of course, we will continue to promote our industry standards like the ATLAS™ Hydraulic Jack Plate, our G-Force™ products, G-Juice™, the Hot-Foot™, and the Oxygenator™.”

T-H Marine is celebrating its 42nd anniversary of business and has grown to be one of the largest manufacturers of boating and fishing accessories in the U.S. T-H Marine provides parts to every boat manufacturer in the country and distributes them through virtually every major distributor and retailer of boating and fishing products. To learn more about T-H Marine, please visit http://thmarine.com/about-us.

# # # # #

If you would like more information about T-H Marine and our growing team, please use the contact information provided above.

by AnglersChannel

Have Contingency Questions? Contingense.com & Bonusloop.com Answer Those Questions for You!

Our own Chris Brown talks with Contigense Founder Jason Baggett on his new website Bonusloop and answers the question, How do you know? Check out www.contingense.com and www.bonusloop.com

by AnglersChannel

Lake St. Clair’s All Time Classic Lure

Photo & Story by Alan McGuckin - Dynamic Sponsorships

There are two things you can count on at Lake St. Clair - the wind will eventually blow hard enough to stir its 430 square miles of water into ocean like proportions -- and the smallmouth will usually bite a 4.5” tube jig.

The second day of practice for the 2017 Advanced Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite Series on St. Clair was no exception. “A man could use a Motrin after a day like this,” said Kevin VanDam upon finally reaching calm waters near the protected harbor of a Harrison Township boat ramp.

VanDam had been riding the spine-jarring waves for more than twelve hours through gusting winds, stormy rains, and at times, a blend of blue skies. And riding with him was what he, and most veteran anglers, consider St. Clair’s All Time Greatest lure – a 4.5” soft plastic tube.

“I haven’t been on St. Clair since the Elite Series came here in 2015. But I’ve been fishing here for 32 years, since back when I was in high school competing in B.A.S.S. Federation tournaments with the Kal Valley Bass Club,” says Van Dam.

“I caught ‘em really well in the first tournament I ever fished here using a double willow leaf spinnerbait with gold blades. But if you had to choose one lure that’s dominated this lake for the past 40 years, you’d have to choose a tube,” says the 7-time Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year, who lives three hours west of St. Clair.

Even though a drop shot has become highly popular and effective the past 10 years, dragging or snapping a plastic tube across St. Clair’s notoriously shallow lake bottom still wins the vote for all time most popular smallmouth lure on St. Clair from hard core anglers. Including VanDam’s close friend, smallmouth nut, and fishing show host Mark Zona, who also lives about three hours west of St. Clair.

“The tube is 100% the most all time classic lure on St. Clair – and let me warn ya’ – it still has MUCH power,” Zona typed in a text response when asked about the plastic tube’s historic effectiveness on St. Clair.

The tube’s decades of smallmouth catching dominance is simple – it resembles so many of the things smallmouth love to eat -- including, gobies, perch and crawfish. When asked to name three colors of the 4.5” soft plastic tube that no angler should be without on St. Clair, VanDam said, “Green pumpkin, melon gold, and smoke purple.”

Rigging

“Most days a 3/8-ounce jig head is pretty ideal, and I fish it on 8-pound fluorocarbon line with no braid, just straight 8-pound fluorocarbon spooled to a Quantum size 40 Smoke spinning reel and 7’ 4” Tour KVD rod,” says the Kalamazoo resident.

Even though St. Clair is a big body of water, and connects the Great Lakes of Huron and Erie, it’s very shallow with an average depth of just 11-feet. So it stirs easy into big waves when the wind inevitably blows here.

And while shallow lures like willowleaf spinnerbaits and lipless crankbaits catch their share of smallmouth - no lure stakes claim to the unofficial title of St. Clair’s All Time Best Lure like the simple plastic tube.

by AnglersChannel

Navionics adds 26 New Lakes and Updates 4 More in Pennsylvania

As part of our ongoing product enhancement efforts, hundreds of new and updated lakes within the United States are now available. Today we released new mapping on 26 lakes and 4 were updated in Pennsylvania.

The NEW lakes are in Nautical Charts only. If Sonar Charts exists it is from prior tracks, not new data.

List and locations include: Canoe Lake, Chapman Lake, Cowans Gap Lake, Doubling Gap Lake, Foster Joseph Sayers Lake, Frances Slocum Lake, George B Stevenson Reservoir, Hills Creek Lake, Holman Lake, Kettle Creek Reservoir, Keystone Lake, Kooser Lake, Lake Arthur, Lake Frances, Lake Jean, Lake Wilhelm, Laurel Hill Lake, Laurel Lake, Little Pine Lake, Lyman Run Lake, Memorial Lake, Lake Nockamixon, Pinchot Lake, Peo Lake, Promised Land Lake and Lower Lake, Raccoon Lake, Shawnee Lake, Tobyhanna Lake, Whipple Lake, Yellow Creek Lake.

See the improvements now....
Compare your current charts on our Chart Viewer on our web site www.navionics.com

Boat Safer and Fish Smarter with the most detailed charts and SonarChartTM – our 1 ft HD bathymetry map! And always have the most up-to-date information with daily chart updates!

Try our mobile device app for FREE for 14 days. Get the same charts with our free Boating app, that provides a 2-week trial! If you already have any of our apps, keep your charts up to date

with Menu > Update All. To learn more, go to www.navionics.com We start where the road ends.

by AnglersChannel

FLW Announces 2018 Costa Schedule

Lake Guntersville to host 2018 Costa FLW Series Championship in November

MINNEAPOLIS (Aug. 22, 2017) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW), the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, announced today the 2018 Costa FLW Series schedule, which will consist of three events in each of the five divisions – Central, Northern, Southeastern, Southwestern and Western – along with the no-entry-fee Costa FLW Series Championship to be held on Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Alabama.

The top 40 pros and co-anglers in the final point standings in each division after three qualifying tournaments will advance to the 2018 Costa FLW Series Championship, provided they fished all three qualifiers in a division.

The highest finishing pro from each of the five Costa FLW Series divisions based on final results at the 2018 Costa FLW Series Championship qualify for the Forrest Wood Cup, along with the highest finishing pro from the championship’s international division. A total of six Costa FLW Series pros will advance to the 2019 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing.

Complete rules and entry dates will be announced soon.

2018 Costa FLW Series Season Schedule:

Central Division Fishery City Local Host

April 19-21 Table Rock Lake Branson, Mo. ExploreBranson.com
June 7-9 Lake Barkley Cadiz, Ky. Cadiz-Trigg County Tourism
Oct. 11-13 Lake of the Ozarks Osage Beach, Mo. Tri-County Lodging Association

Northern Division

June 21-23 Lake Champlain Plattsburgh, N.Y. City of Plattsburgh
July 26-28 Lake Erie Buffalo, N.Y. Buffalo Niagara Sports Commission
Sept. 6-8 1000 Islands Clayton, N.Y. Clayton Chamber of Commerce

Southeastern Division

Jan. 4-6 Lake Okeechobee Okeechobee, Fla. Okeechobee County Tourism Development Council
March 1-3 Lake Seminole Bainbridge, Ga. Bainbridge Convention and Visitors Bureau
April 5-7 Santee Cooper Summerton, S.C. Clarendon County Chamber of Commerce

Southwestern Division

Feb. 15-17 Sam Rayburn Reservoir Jasper, Texas Jasper-Lake Sam Rayburn Area Chamber of Commerce
March 22-24 Grand Lake Grove, Okla. City of Grove
Oct. 4-6 Fort Gibson Lake Wagoner, Okla. Wagoner Area Chamber of Commerce

Western Division

Feb. 8-10 Lake Havasu Lake Havasu City, Ariz. Lake Havasu City Convention and Visitors Bureau
May 10-12 Clear Lake Lakeport, Calif. Konocti Vista Casino Resort and Marina
Sept. 27-29 California Delta Bethel Island, Calif. Russo's Marina

Costa FLW Series Championship

Nov. 1-3 Lake Guntersville Guntersville, Ala. Marshall County Convention and Visitors Bureau

The full schedule and details for each fishery can be found at FLWFishing.com.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the Costa FLW Series on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.

by AnglersChannel

MULL WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL ILLINI DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON LAKE SHELBYVILLE PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS

MULL WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL ILLINI DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON LAKE SHELBYVILLE PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS

Walnut Hill’s Arning Claims Co-angler Title

SHELBYVILLE, Ill. (Aug. 21, 2017) – Jeremy Mull of Chatham, Illinois, caught a five-bass limit weighing 22 pounds, 1 ounce, Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Illini Division tournament on Lake Shelbyville presented by Navionics. Mull took home $5,745 for his victory.

Mull said he began his day flipping isolated trees and stumps on the main lake and in coves using a green-pumpkin-colored Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver with a 3/8-ounce weight.

“I caught a 5-pounder first thing in the morning from an isolated tree,” said Mull, who logged his second career-win – both on Lake Shelbyville – in BFL competition. “After that I kept moving and came across a stump that produced six to eight keepers. I flipped to it, headed down the bank and then would return. I did that several times and ended up weighing two bass off of it.”

At 10 a.m. Mull said he moved out deep to a brush pile, in 16 to 18 feet of water, on a small main-lake point. He said he switched to a Red Bug-colored Zoom Trick Worm with a 5/16-ounce Spot Remover jig head.

“I caught the last two that I weighed within a few minutes of each other and then the bite died off,” said Mull. “I didn’t really do anything special out there – I got the bites needed and I was able to get them in the boat. It was one of those days you dream about having.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st: Jeremy Mull, Chatham, Ill., five bass, 22-1, $3,745 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus

2^nd: Brad Porter, Bluford, Ill., five bass, 16-10, $1,873

3^rd: Marion Cordes, Sullivan, Ill., five bass, 16-4, $1,181

4^th: Robert Neff, Roodhouse, Ill., five bass, 14-4, $827

5^th: Patrick O’Dell, Windsor, Ill., five bass, 14-0, $709

6^th: Paul Leonard, Chatham, Ill., five bass, 13-6, $1,095

7^th: Haldon Burgener, Moweaqua, Ill., five bass, 13-2, $591

8^th: Mike Barnes, Mackinaw, Ill., five bass, 12-15, $832

9^th: Chris Johnson, Griggsville, Ill., three bass, 12-12, $443

9^th: Greg Mullins, Mount Vernon, Ill., five bass, 12-12, $443

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Leonard caught a bass weighing 5 pounds, 3 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division. The catch earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $445.

Aaron Arning of Walnut Hill, Illinois, caught five bass weighing 13 pounds, 2 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $1,793.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st: Aaron Arning, Walnut Hill, Ill., five bass, 13-2, $1,793

2^nd: Archie Eslinger, Paris, Ill., four bass, 10-11, $846

3^rd: Brandon Depew, Odin, Ill., five bass, 9-5, $564

4^th: Anthony Macon, Greenville, Ill., four bass, 8-4, $367

4^th: Jimmy Null, Bethalto, Ill., three bass, 8-4, $367

6^th: Edward Helf, Alto Pass, Ill., four bass, 8-0, $310

7^th: Ryan Fancher, Olney, Ill., four bass, 7-7, $332

8^th: Steven Yeun, Elgin, Ill., four bass, 6-13, $254

9^th: Dillon Saffle, Ballwin, Mo., three bass, 6-10, $226

10^th: Richard Snodgrass, Bluffs, Ill., two bass, 6-6, $198

Lyle Lehman of Blue Mound, Illinois, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 5 pounds, 6 ounces – and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $212.

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. 5-7 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 2017 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the BFL on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.

by AnglersChannel

Timing Might Be Perfect For Bassmaster Elite Series Event On Lake St. Clair

Bassmaster Elite Series pro Brandon Palaniuk will be one of 108 competitors vying for the $100,000 first-place prize at the Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair out of Macomb County, Mich., Aug. 24-27. This is the final regular-season stop of the 2017 Bassmaster Elite Series and last chance to qualify for the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship, which Palaniuk is currently leading with 729 points.

Photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.

August 17, 2017MACOMB COUNTY, Mich. — Lake St. Clair is one of the premiere smallmouth bass fishing destinations in the world.

But as with most lakes, timing is crucial.

If the bass are in transition from the spawning areas to their summer haunts, they can be tough to pin down. If the weather is nasty, certain areas can be virtually inaccessible.

A lot can change in a few weeks. But for the moment, it looks like the 108 anglers taking part in next week’s Advance Auto Parts Bassmaster Elite at Lake St. Clair might be hitting the lake at just the right time.

That’s good news for Brandon Palaniuk of Idaho, who loves smallmouth fishing and certainly hopes they will help him widen his lead for Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year. Palaniuk has a 40-point advantage over 2015 Bassmaster Classic Champion Casey Ashley and Elite newcomer Jacob Wheeler, who are tied for second, and 43 points over Jason Christie of Oklahoma.

Unless one or more of those three challengers closes the gap in this, the final regular-season Elite event of the year, Palaniuk will be virtually impossible to overtake in the postseason Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Championship on Mille Lacs Lake, Minn.

The Lake St. Clair tournament is scheduled for Aug. 24-27, with daily take offs at 6:30 a.m. ET from Lake St. Clair Metropark. Weigh-ins will be held back at the park each day at 3:15 p.m.

“There have been a lot of big fish caught this year,” said Gerry Gostenik, a former regular on the Bassmaster Tournament Trail and owner of Great Lakes Fishing Guide Service. “I had one that was over 6 pounds Monday (Aug. 14). One of my partners did as well.

“I would say if the conditions are ideal, you’ll probably see a 23- to 24-pound limit come in. I don’t think anybody can do that three or four days in a row. But if a guy can stay in the vicinity of that 20-pound mark and have one day when he clobbers them, that’s probably what it’s going to take to win.”

Gostenik said he wouldn’t be surprised if it takes a four-day total of 80 to 85 pounds to claim the $100,000 first-place prize. He’s been catching 50-plus fish a day on his guide trips for more than six weeks — and much of that is because the weather in the region has been ideal this spring and summer.

“Sometimes when you get toward late August, the fish are in transition and it can be tougher,” Gostenik said. “But we’ve had a funky spring and a cooler-than-normal year, so it seems like the fish are behind a little bit — which is a good thing.

“That puts them right where a lot of these guys are going to want to catch them on drop-shot rigs, deep-diving crankbaits and deep-diving jerkbaits — baits that will catch not as many, but bigger fish.”

The bass have been relating heavily to baitfish, Gostenik said, including perch and tiny threadfin shad that measure barely 2 inches in length. He said giant bait balls have been obvious on his electronics, and the winning angler will likely find one general area with several spots that are holding that kind of bait.

The biggest X-factor could be the wind.

“It would be perfect if we could have about a 1-foot chop where you can actually hold your boat in place when you find some fish in a clump,” he said. “When there’s 3- to 4-foot waves out there, it makes it really difficult to do that, if not impossible.

“We’re having really good summertime weather right now, and I hope that holds up for this event.”

Besides a coveted Elite Series trophy and large cash prizes, anglers will be vying for points that could lead to the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title and a berth in the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.

Palaniuk, who currently leads the AOY standings with 729 points, said he’s trying not to think about the possibility of winning what some say is bass fishing’s highest honor.

“I don’t even want to look at the standings,” said Palaniuk, who has six Top 12 finishes this season, including a win on Sam Rayburn Reservoir in May. “That’s something I don’t want to think about until it’s all over.”

Ashley said his main focus is making the Classic, which is scheduled for Lake Hartwell — a lake in his home state of South Carolina where he claimed a Classic title in 2015.

“Making that Classic is all I’m worried about,” Ashley said. “I want to get all of the points I can — and if that happens to mean I get enough points to win Angler of the Year, that’ll be great.”

A special festival will be held at Lake St. Clair Metropark on Aug. 25-27 in conjunction with the tournament and Bassmaster Elite Series Outdoors Expo, featuring music, vendors, food and more. The festival will be free and open to the public from 1 to 6 p.m. Aug. 25-26 and from 1 to 5 p.m. Aug. 27.

Macomb County and the Detroit Sports Commission will host the event.

by AnglersChannel

KELLEY WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL MICHIGAN DIVISION EVENT ON DETROIT RIVER PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS

Indiana’s Raber Takes Co-angler Title

TRENTON, Mich. (Aug. 21, 2017) – Cody Kelley of Portage, Michigan, caught a five-bass limit weighing 23 pounds, 9 ounces, Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Michigan Division tournament on the Detroit River presented by Navionics. Kelley pocketed $4,316 for his win.

Kelley said he spent his day in the middle of Lake Erie focusing on a 100- by 50-foot length of scattered chunk rock in 25 feet of water. He said he used one lure to catch his limit – a green-pumpkin-colored V&M Smallie Tube.

“I found the area last Sunday during practice and weighed around 23 pounds of bass on a hand scale,” said Kelley, who earned his first career-victory as a boater in BFL competition. “During the event, the school was about 30 yards from where I caught them Sunday. It was one of those magical days where everything came together.”

Kelley said he caught his first bass around 8:30 a.m., and the heaviest fish of the event – a 6-pound, 9-ouncer – at 11:15 a.m.

“My Denali rods were really what did it for me,” said Kelley. “I was able to feel the bites. I tried to use a custom-made rod at one point, but it didn’t help. The guides on the Denali worked the best.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st: Cody Kelley, Portage, Mich., five bass, 23-9, $4,316

2^nd: Michael Sitko, Pinckney, Mich., five bass, 22-0, $1,920

3^rd: Terry McWilliams, Greenfield, Ind., five bass, 21-12, $1,214

4^th: Steve Clapper, Lima, Ohio, five bass, 21-3, $850

5^th: Pat Upthagrove, Monroe, Mich., five bass, 20-7, $728

6^th: Joseph Nega, Chicago, Ill., five bass, 20-1, $637

6^th: Joshua Barr, Stow, Ohio, five bass, 20-1, $637

8^th: John Devries, Fishers, Ind., five bass, 19-14, $546

9^th: Aaron Limber, Millbury, Ohio, five bass, 19-9, $485

10^th: Tom Cooley, Waterford, Mich., five bass, 19-8, $425

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Kelley’s 6-pound, 9-ounce bass also earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $475.

Mike Raber of Wolcottville, Indiana, caught a five-bass limit weighing 22 pounds, 8 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $1,820.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st: Mike Raber, Wolcottville, Ind., five bass, 22-8, $1,820

2^nd: Chris Fraser, Canton, Mich., five bass, 19-12, $910

3^rd: John Black, Monclova, Ohio, five bass, 18-13, $607

4^th: Tony Grubb, Ann Arbor, Mich., five bass, 18-1, $425

5^th: David Michaelis, Commerce, Mich., five bass, 17-14, $364

6^th: Alex Newman, Wapakoneta, Ohio, five bass, 17-6, $334

7^th: Jason Roberts, Bargersville, Ind., five bass, 17-3, $303

8^th: Jeff Cox, Saline, Mich., five bass, 17-1, $373

9^th: Christopher Majerle, Trenton, Mich., five bass, 16-15, $243

10^th: Aaron Stahley, Batavia, Ohio, five bass, 16-10, $262

Brian Kich of Berea, Ohio, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 5 pounds, 7 ounces – and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $237.

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. 12-14 BFL Regional Championship on the Barren River in Scottsville, 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.

For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the BFL on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.

by AnglersChannel

Ranger Boats Continues Partnership with the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series for the 2018 Season

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (August 21, 2017) – Ranger Boats and the Association of Collegiate Anglers have renewed their long-standing partnership of the 2018 Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series. As part of the relationship Ranger Boats will continue to reach collegiate anglers throughout the nation through the series with the one of a kind Ranger Cup University program.

“The partnership with the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series is special for us,” said Ranger Boats Marketing Director Matt Raynor. “It’s an opportunity to connect with the next generation of anglers and continue to help grow the sport. We’re particularly excited about the upcoming season, which happens to coincide with Ranger’s 50^th Anniversary, and highlighting a heritage that was built on the support of tournament fishing.”

Modeled after the most lucrative contingency reward program in the fishing industry, Ranger Cup University is the only program of its kind designed exclusively for collegiate anglers and is open to those competing in Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series events throughout 2018. Regardless of which boat brand they own, collegiate anglers in compliance with the guidelines and free registration can earn merchandise, prizes, as well as a once-in-a-lifetime fishing opportunity by qualifying for the Ranger Cup University Team Challenge held each Fall. Collegiate Anglers need to register for the program each year, regardless of past participation. Registration is completely free of charge and includes payout opportunities at each of the 2018 Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series events.

“Ranger Boats’ support of bass fishing has always been legendary when you look at the history of our sport. It only goes without saying that their legacy in college fishing is also historical as they’re one of only a handful of companies that were involved in the early growth of college bass fishing. It continues to be an honor to call them our partners in the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series and the Ranger Cup University is one the top prize programs in all of college fishing,” said Wade Middleton, President of CarecoTV, and Director of the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series.

For more information on Ranger Cup University, including program guidelines, go online to Ranger Cup University. Registration for the 2018 season should be available December 1, 2017. For more information on Ranger Boats, visit www.RangerBoats.com.

About Ranger Boats

Headquartered in Flippin, Ark., Ranger Boats is the nation’s premier manufacturer of legendary fiberglass and aluminum fishing boats, which include series of bass, multi-species, fish ‘n play, waterfowl utility and saltwater boats. Founded in 1968 by Forrest L. Wood, Ranger Boats continues its commitment to building the highest-quality, strongest-performing boats on the water.

by AnglersChannel

Ish Monroe Talks About Some New Simms Gear You Need to Check Out!

Elite Series and Simms Pro Ish Monroe talks about some new Simms gear that you need to include in your fishing arsenal to keep you cool and comfortable on the water.

by AnglersChannel

2017 Brandon Card College & High School Bass Open

The second annual Brandon Card College & High School Bass Open will take place on Norris Lake, just 50 miles north of Knoxville, Tenn. on Dec. 2, 2017. The event has a unique format, as it will be two tournaments in one.

The college anglers only compete against other college anglers and high school against high school. The two divisions will be competing for separate trophies, payouts, and prizes, where the first place collegiate team will win $2,500, and the top high school team will walk away with $1,500. I have high expectations for this year’s event, as we are shooting for over 100 boats!

“Last year was a huge success for the first year. We had a great turnout and we were able to hook the anglers up! My primary goal for the event was to give as much back to the college and high school anglers as we could. I think we achieved that goal by giving out over $15,000 in cash and prizes!” said Card.

The presenting sponsors that make this event possible are Campbell County Chamber of Commerce and Suzuki Marine. Associate sponsors include Yo-Zuri, Fishsens Technology, Bass Cat Boats, Abu Garcia, Lowrance, Empire Covers, Gary Yamamoto, Bob's Machine Shop, Ab Card Construction, Twin Cove Marine, Coal Creek Smokehouse BBQ, Bass Pro Shops, Fish Head, and Dixie Roofing.

For more information visit the Brandon Card Facebook page or email cardbassopen@yahoo.com.

by AnglersChannel

Chris Zaldain Talks Seaguar Fluorocarbon Resin and How and Why its the Best!

by AnglersChannel

HOT SPRINGS, LAKE OUACHITA TO HOST 2018 FORREST WOOD CUP

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (Aug. 12, 2017) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW), in conjunction with Visit Hot Springs and the State of Arkansas, announced Saturday that Hot Springs, Arkansas, has been named the location and host of the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing, Aug. 10-12, 2018, on Lake Ouachita.

Hot Springs has previously hosted four Forrest Wood Cup championships – one on Lake Hamilton (2005) and three on Lake Ouachita (2007, 2011 and 2015). The 2018 Forrest Wood Cup will again feature the most successful anglers from the FLW Tour, the Costa FLW Series, the T-H Marine Bass Fishing League, YETI FLW College Fishing and The Bass Federation.

“Our whole city is excited by the fact that FLW has chosen Hot Springs for the fifth time as the host for the Forrest Wood Cup,” said Steve Arrison, CEO of Visit Hot Springs. “Hot Springs has established a wonderful relationship with FLW and our audiences for the Cup and other FLW events have been large and enthusiastic. I know the 2018 Cup will find the same level of enthusiasm and warm hospitality that FLW has come to associate with the great fishing in Hot Springs.”

When the Forrest Wood Cup last visited Lake Ouachita and Hot Springs in 2015, seven-year Tour veteran Brad Knight of Lancing, Tennessee, outlasted the competition to earn the first victory of his career and claim the sport’s most coveted trophy. Hometown favorites George Cochran of Hot Springs, and Scott Suggs of Alexander, Arkansas, have also claimed Forrest Wood Cup victories in Hot Springs along with Scott Martin of Clewiston, Florida.

“After another fantastic Forrest Wood Cup experience in 2015, we knew it wouldn’t be long before we returned to Hot Springs and Lake Ouachita,” said Kathy Fennel, FLW President of Operations. “The Hot Springs community is extremely passionate about bass fishing and the great attendance makes it the perfect destination for an exciting and memorable championship event. We expect the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup to be our best yet.”

In addition to the tournament and the international media coverage it will receive, the FLW Expo, which will feature hundreds of exhibitors and activities, will be held at the Hot Springs Convention Center and the live weigh-ins will be held at the Bank of the Ozarks Arena. Visitors from around the globe will not only catch the world's best bass-fishing action, they'll also receive great deals on everything from crankbaits to bass boats at the outdoor show.

The tournament will be featured on the “FLW” television show. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show airs on NBC Sports Network, the Pursuit Channel and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.

For the latest Forrest Wood Cup updates, visit 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 2017 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 258 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico, South Africa and South Korea. 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.

by AnglersChannel

Big Show’s Baits ~ Ditto Gator Tail Worm

Story & Photos Courtesy of Luke Stoner / Dynamic Sponsorships

Backstory:

Bassmaster Elite Series pro Terry “Big Show” Scroggins is well known for tinkering with his bass fishing lures. What many people may not know, however, is that Scroggins pours many of the soft plastics he uses throughout the year on the Elite Series in his garage.

Scroggins has accumulated dozens of molds over the years, several of which are old, out of production soft plastics that have a special place in the folklore of bass fishing. One such soft plastic is the Ditto Gator Tail worm.

History:

The Gator Tail was one of several influential bass fishing lures created by San Mateo, Florida’s Bobby Ditto of Ditto Manufacturing. Ditto Manufacturing originally began producing the Gator Tail around 1980. The Gator Tail was offered in two sizes, a 5 ½-inch and a 7-inch worm, and was a regional favorite in Florida where Ditto lived.

The fishing world really took notice of the Gator Tail when bass fishing legend Larry Nixon credited the Gator Tail Jr. in helping him win the 1983 Bassmaster Classic on the Ohio River. Faced with muddy water and tough fishing conditions, Nixon swam a black and blue version of the 5 ½-inch worm around shallow cover, catching enough bass to hoist bass fishing’s greatest prize.

Only one year later, the Gator Tail was one of several lures employed by Rick Clunn to help him win the Bassmaster Classic on the Arkansas River. Even though the Gator Tail worm went out of production in the early 2000s, it has factored into several big time bass fishing wins in the years that followed. Most recently the Gator Tail helped Rick Morris claim the victory in the 2017 Bass Pro Shops Northern Open #2 on the James River.

As Ditto’s lures continued to grow in popularity, Ditto Manufacturing was purchased by Peter Allen in the early 1990s. Allen went on to open Allen Lures and continued to sell some great soft plastics until around 2003 when his business closed down. Many Florida anglers were saddened to learn one of their favorite worms would no longer be in production, including Scroggins, who used the Gator Tail to win a pile of money on the St Johns River. That changed a few years ago for Scroggins when he made a fortuitous discovery at a local San Mateo, Florida auction.

“The Gator Tail was another mold I came across several years ago at an auction,” Scroggins recalled. “I was able to get a bunch of the original Ditto Manufacturing and Allen Lures molds for a reasonable price. I had no intentions of buying them at the time, but when I saw what lures the molds made, I filled the bed of my Tundra full! I did some research on pouring soft plastics and now I am able to make some of my all-time favorite baits in the comfort of my garage.”

Why the Gator Tail is special:

Since the Gator Tail came onto the bass fishing scene there has been countless soft plastic worms produced that are proven bass-catchers. So what makes the Gator Tail so unique that anglers are still using the original to win big top tier tournaments? According to Scroggins it is all about the tail.

“The real secret behind a Gator Tail is how much action it produces,” Scroggins explained. “The tail was designed in such a way by Bobby Ditto that it displaces an incredible amount of water, even though it’s a relatively little worm. The big tail and small body cause the bait to have a slow, tantalizing fall. Bass just don’t see a small worm with that much movement very often, making it hard for a bass to resist.”

Two other factors contribute to making this lure stand above many others for Scroggins. One is simply that the original Gator Tail is no longer in production; therefore bass aren’t conditioned to seeing them. Lastly, a Gator Tail is a staple for Scroggins because of its versatility.

“There are several different ways to successfully fish a Gator Tail,” Scroggins said. “You can Texas-rig it and flip bushes, docks, and other shoreline cover. You can use a light Texas-rigged weight and swim the worm around grass or the same cover you’d flip. The 5 1/2 –inch version makes for a great swim jig trailer, and the 7-inch version can be paired with a heavy sinker and fished for deep, offshore schools of bass. You’ve got plenty of options with a Gator Tail.”

How Scroggins fishes the Gator Tail:

While there is a plethora of ways to fish a Gator Tail, Scroggins most often finds himself fishing the old school worm in two different ways.

“I typically fish the smaller, 5 ½-inch version Texas-rigged with a 1/8-ounce sinker or 3/8-ounce sinker,” Scroggins said. “The 1/8-ounce rig is for swimming the worm around shallow cover, especially shallow vegetation like lily pads or eel grass. The 3/8-ounce rig is simply for flipping and pitching shallow cover like docks, bushes, laydown trees, or any other shallow cover. The Gator Tail’s action and the fact that few anglers can get them make it a great choice for either of these applications.”

Because of its aggressive swimming action Scroggins generally only uses the Gator Tail when the water is warm. Which explains why the Gator Tail has been a factor in several summertime tournaments and is a regional staple in the Florida area.

Scroggins is giving away two Plano tackle boxes full of his home-poured Gator Tails on his Facebook page. Follow the link below and enter the giveaway:

https://www.facebook.com/bigshowscroggins/

by AnglersChannel

Mossy Oak Joins the ACA and Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series as the Official Pattern Sponsor

WEST POINT, MS – Mossy Oak has partnered with Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing to become the official pattern of its sanctioned tournaments and televised episodes of the Series. Mossy Oak is also the supporting sponsor of Cabela’s School of the Year program managed by the Association of College Anglers (ACA).

The Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Tournament Series is the largest participatory collegiate tournament circuit in the country. It is owned by ACA, which provides support to dozens of school-operated regional events nationwide.

“As Mossy Oak expands into the fishing market with our new Elements pattern and product partnerships, we recognized an opportunity with the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series to support both the sport of fishing and these young adults as they compete,” said Ben Maki, Chief Marketing Officer of Mossy Oak. “Pursuing a passion can be costly and the Tournament Series provides incentives to aid these young people in their pursuit and future success in the sport of bass fishing.”

As the supporting sponsor of the Cabela’s School of the Year Race, Mossy Oak is helping reward and recognize teams that compete in eligible national level trails. Prize money and gifts are rewarded to the first and second place finishers.

“We’re excited to welcome Mossy Oak to Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series and the Association of Collegiate Anglers,” said Wade Middleton, President of CarecoTV and Direction of the Association of Collegiate Anglers. “Mossy Oak is a legendary brand and their new initiatives to reach the fishing crowd fits right in with our longstanding efforts to help grow participation in the outdoors. Mossy Oak will be seen at all of our major events, as well as on all our collegiate assets. In addition, college anglers will have a chance to add the new Mossy Oak fishing pattern to their jerseys thanks to a great program we’ll be jointly rolling out, along with other ties that we’ll be announcing soon.”

For more information on the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series and School of the Year Race, visit www.collegiatebasschampionship.com.

Haas Outdoors Inc. is headquartered in West Point, Miss., was established in 1986 and is home of Mossy Oak. For more than 30 years, Mossy Oak has been a leading outdoors lifestyle brand that specializes in developing and marketing modern camouflage designs for hunters and outdoors enthusiasts. The Mossy Oak Brand and patterns can be found on a multitude of products worldwide. Haas Outdoors Inc. is the parent company of Mossy Oak, BioLogic, Mossy Oak Productions, MOOSE Media, Nativ Nurseries, Nativ Living, GameKeepers, GameKeepers Kennels and Mossy Oak Properties. Mossy Oak is the official camouflage of the National Wild Turkey Federation and Ducks Unlimited.

Follow Mossy Oak on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, Pinterest and YouTube.

MEDIA CONTACT: Joedee Robinson

Public Relations Content Manager
662-494-8859 x2234
jrobinson@mossyoak.com

About the ACA

The Association of Collegiate Anglers, a division of Careco TV and The Bass Federation, is a sanctioning body developed to facilitate growth, development, and structure within competitive collegiate bass fishing. The ACA provides support to dozens of school operated regional events nationwide and owns the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, the largest participatory collegiate tournament circuit in the country. With dedicated collegiate fishing programming on several television networks, three nationally televised collegiate bass fishing events, and thousands of members, the ACA is the leader in competitive collegiate bass fishing. For more information on the ACA, or the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, visit www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com. For more information on Cabela’s visit Cabelas.com, for more information on CarecoTV, visit www.carecotv.com. For more information on The Bass Federation, visit www.bassfederation.com.

by AnglersChannel

Power Pole Charge & Power Pole Vision - ICAST 2017

Power Pole Pro Chris Lane talks about the New Power Pole Charge and Power Pole Vision, Taking the boating industry to a whole new level! Check it out!

by AnglersChannel

POTOMAC RIVER SET FOR COSTA FLW SERIES NORTHERN DIVISION FINALE PRESENTED BY PLANO

MARBURY, Md. (Aug. 15, 2017) – As many as 350 pros and co-anglers are ready to compete Aug. 24-26 in the Costa FLW Series Northern Division finale on the Potomac River. The tournament, presented by Plano, is the third and final regular-season event of 2017 scheduled in the Northern Division. Pros will be casting for a top award of up to $40,000 cash and a new Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.

“This event is going to be all about grass fishing,” said FLW Tour pro Bryan Schmitt of Deale, Maryland, who has three career-victories on the Potomac River in FLW Series competition. “The grass is a lot thicker and way more developed than it was for June’s (FLW Tour) event. I think anglers are going to be surprised at the amount of grass out there.

“As for techniques, it’s going to be a pretty standard deal,” Schmitt continued. “We’ll see anglers throwing frogs, flipping jigs, using swimjigs, ChatterBaits, and (Yamamoto) Senko-style baits. It’s all going to come down to who can find those key spots where fish are congregating within popular areas.”

Schmitt said he expects Pomonkey, Piscataway and Occoquan Creeks to receive of a lot of attention from competitors.

“Anglers will definitely be watching the water clarity as well,” said Schmitt. “We’ve had a lot of rain this week and the river has been running high. If we get more, the river will still be fishable, but things will obviously be different. I’m hoping the water level stables out and it stays clear.”

Schmitt said he predicts it will take a three-day cumulative total between 51 and 53 pounds to win the event.

“Teams in recent tournaments on the river have consistently needed 19 or 20 pounds to win one-day events, so I think that’s a safe bet,” said Schmitt.

Anglers will take off from the Smallwood State Park, located at 2750 Sweden Point Road in Marbury at 6:30 a.m. EDT each day. Weigh-ins will be held at the State Park beginning at 2:30 p.m. each day. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public. The event is hosted by the Charles County Board of Commissioners.

In Costa FLW Series regular-season competition, payouts are based on the number of participants competing in the event. At the Potomac River, pros will fish for as much as $40,000 and a Ranger Z518C boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard if Ranger Cup qualified. Co-anglers will cast for a Ranger Z175 boat with a 90-horsepower Evinrude outboard and an additional $5000 if Ranger Cup qualified.

The Costa FLW Series consists of five U.S. divisions – Central, Northern, Southeastern, Southwestern and Western. Each division consists of three tournaments with competitors vying for valuable points that could earn them the opportunity to fish in the Costa FLW Series Championship. The 2017 Costa FLW Series Championship is being held Nov. 2-4 on Kentucky Lake in Paris, Tennessee.

by AnglersChannel

College Freshman Qualifies For The 2018 Bassmaster Classic

Jacob Foutz of Bryan College won the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops earning a berth in the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods to be held on Lake Hartwell out of Greenville/Anderson, S.C.

Photo by Ronnie Moore/B.A.S.S.

August 16, 2017
DEERWOOD, Minn. — All season long, as teammates on Bryan College’s bass fishing team, Jacob Foutz and Jake Lee worked well together. The college freshmen finished ninth in the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Eastern Regional presented by Bass Pro Shops at Cherokee Lake, Tennessee.

Last week they really clicked, claiming the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji in Minnesota. And this week, when the teammates were split up and battled their way through separate sides of the College Series Bracket on Serpent Lake, each dominated their matchups to make it to today’s finals.

There, it was each young man for himself as they competed for a single invitation to the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods on Lake Hartwell, South Carolina.

Foutz turned in the top performance of the bracket week, putting together a limit of 16 pounds, 5 ounces and easily defeating his teammate, Lee, who had 10-12.

Foutz showed his versatile fishing skills beginning with the National Championship on Lake Bemidji, where he and Lee fished shallow for largemouth bass. In the bracket competition on Serpent Lake, however, he focused his attention strictly on smallmouth. That decision proved to be a wise choice as he stayed consistent over three days of action. He defeated Bethel University’s Brian Pahl in the first round of competition with 14-1 and then Chico State’s Chad Sweitzer with 13-6. He saved his best for last as his 16-5 pushed him over teammate Lee, and now he is the newest angler to notch a berth in the 2018 Bassmaster Classic.

“It’s an unbelievable feeling, one that is hard to describe unless you live it,” Foutz said. “I’ve been fishing ever since I could crawl, and as long as I can remember I wanted to fish the Bassmaster Classic. I’m fortunate enough to have fulfilled a lifelong dream.”

The 19-year-old freshman (he turns 20 on June 9, 2018) just completed his first year of college and will now compete against the best anglers in the world, including his favorite angler Greg Hackney, in the Super Bowl of Bass Fishing.

“There are a bunch of unbelievable anglers at Bryan College,” Foutz said. “They push Jake (Lee) and myself to be the best we can be. I look forward to representing college fishing this next year.”

A turning point in the final day of competition happened when Foutz caught a 4-pound smallmouth, which tied for the biggest bass of the bracketed competition. He started slow, but after catching a 3-15 and then a 4-0, Foutz began to see the writing on the wall.

“When I caught that 4-0 I felt like I gave myself a shot to win,” Foutz said. “I kept culling up throughout the day and when I hit the 16-pound mark I was pretty certain I won.”

Foutz concentrated on smallmouth by drop shotting a Gary Yamamoto Shad Shape worm on offshore humps that varied in depth. The shallower humps were in 12- to 15-feet of water, but his best areas were deeper than 20 feet.

He is the first National Championship winner to also take home the College Classic Bracket championship since this format was created in 2012. He and partner Lee are the third set of teammates to make it through the entire bracket and face off in the finals. Auburn University teammates Matt Lee and his brother Jordan did so in 2012 with Matt winning and punching his ticket to the 2013 Classic. The next year Jordan Lee was matched against his teammate, Shane Powell. Lee won and made it to the 2014 Classic at Lake Guntersville.

“My great-grandma is my biggest fan, she sends me a text every night before a tournament,” Foutz said. “This is something I wanted to do for her.”

With his win, Foutz will be given the use of a fully rigged and wrapped Toyota Tundra and Nitro Z20 bass boat with a 225 Mercury Pro XS equipped with Power-Pole shallow-water anchors, Humminbird electronics and a Minn Kota trolling motor. Carhartt awarded him with $7,500 in prize money to help with travel as he also gained entry into not only the 2018 Classic, but also all nine Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens in 2018.

Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops
8/14/2017 - 8/16/2017
Serpent Lake - Crosby Park - Deerwood, MN
STANDINGS BOATER DAY 3

Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz
1 Jacob Foutz - Bryan College 5 5 16-5
2 Jake Lee - Bryan College - 5 5 10-12

TOTALS
Day # Fish # Live Lbs-Oz # Limits
1 40 40 87-13 8
2 20 20 50-10 4
3 10 10 27-1 2

by AnglersChannel

Bryan College Teammates To Face Each Other In Bassmaster College Classic Bracket Finals

Jacob Foutz (left) and Jake Lee, both of Bryan College, will move on to the final day of the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops. At stake is a berth in the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods to be held on Lake Hartwell out of Greenville/Anderson, S.C.

Photo by Ronnie Moore/B.A.S.S.

August 15, 2017

DEERWOOD, Minn. — Since the 2017 season started on January 26, thousands of college anglers began battling for a chance at a single berth in the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods. The dust settled today, two anglers stand atop the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series and will compete for seven final hours to determine a bracket champion.

And those two anglers are teammates on the Bryan College bass fishing team: Jacob Foutz and Jake Lee. The two Tennessee anglers survived through opposite sides of the bracket to face each other in Wednesday’s finale.

Foutz outfought Chad Sweitzer of Chico State University during the semi-final round. After a good start for both anglers that had them close at halftime, Foutz prevailed with 13 pounds, 6 ounces by the end of the day. Most of his weight came because of a trio of important 3-pounders.

“I went through a flurry and put three good fish in the boat at the same spot,” Foutz said. “I’ve stayed with a drop shot in my hand and stuck it out with that technique.”

Sweitzer’s limit wasn’t enough to eclipse Foutz’ original weight. His main technique included flipping docks with a jig, which he relied on for quality bites.

Foutz has been consistent with his technique of drop shotting in deep water. His Round 1 total of 14-1 put him into the semifinals. No matter the weather that hits Serpent Lake on Wednesday, Foutz thinks his strategy will pay off.

“I’m not sure how the weather might impact my pattern, but I’m only going to worry about the things I can control,” Foutz said. “I’m just going fishing like every day at this lake, if I need to adjust with the conditions, I’ll try my best to do so.”

Although they seem to be catching good weight from Serpent Lake, these anglers are still learning this fishery day by day. On the other side of the bracket was Foutz’ teammate Jake Lee and Bethel University’s Cole Floyd.

Floyd led the entire field in weight Monday as he caught 16-1, but the second day of competition offered different conditions. The clouds and wind disappeared and blue bird skies with slick conditions hurt his pattern. He did his best to prolong the topwater bite he had found as he caught two quick keepers, but Jake Lee overtook him soon afterward and put together a solid 12-pound plus limit.

Floyd finally filled his limit at the midday break and was within striking distance. He fell short and Lee took that matchup with 13-4 to Floyd’s 12-0.

A freshman at Bryan College, Lee was a member of the inaugural Bassmaster High School All-American Fishing Team in 2015, and now he is one day away from college bass fishing’s biggest championship.

“We said from the beginning that if we had to lose to someone we would want it to be one of us,” Lee said. “We both want to win it bad, but neither one of us is going to be too sad since one of us will win. We will still be partners next year if Coach lets us.”

For the first time since the Bracket’s creation, a college freshman will qualify for a Bassmaster Classic. Although they won’t compete until the middle of their sophomore year, it is unprecedented for two freshmen to be in this position.

They are also the third set of teammates to make it through the eight-angler bracket and meet in the championship round. Matt Lee and Jordan Lee of Auburn did so in the 2012 bracket, while Jordan Lee and Shane Powell followed it up again in 2013. The Lee brothers currently are Bassmaster Elite Series pros, and Jordan is the reigning Bassmaster Classic champion.

Another first for the bracket format is that a member of a National Championship winning duo will take home the individual bracket honor. Andrew Upshaw did so in 2011, but that was before the 8-person bracket was implemented.

In addition to the Classic berth, also at stake in Wednesday’s final matchup is paid entry into all nine Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens next year. Foutz and Lee will fish from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. CT before stopping at midday for an hour. Then they will compete from noon to 3 p.m., after which one will be awarded the honor of representing the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series for the 2018 season.

Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops
8/14/2017 - 8/16/2017
Serpent Lake - Crosby Park - Deerwood, MN
STANDINGS BOATER DAY 2

Match 1
Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz
WINNER: Jacob Foutz - Bryan College 5 5 13-6
Chad Sweitzer - Chico State 5 5 12-0

Match 2
Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz
WINNER: Jake Lee - Bryan College 5 5 13-4
Cole Floyd - Bethel University 5 5 12-0

by AnglersChannel

New for 2018: Ranger Z521L ICON Edition - Limited Edition Dream Rig Celebrates 50 years for Legendary Boat Maker

FLIPPIN, Ark. (Aug. 14, 2017) - For the past half century, Ranger Boats has continually exceeded the expectations of anglers across the country. The longtime manufacturer is steeped with tradition and recognized by generations of fishermen as the world's premier boat brand.

In celebration of their 50^th Anniversary, Ranger highlights an already strong group of new models launching this month with a one-of-a-kind, limited edition dream rig designers have coined the "ICON Edition." The custom boat will be produced in limited quantity and is packed with exclusive features designed for competitive anglers and Ranger enthusiasts.

"The Z521L ICON represents the absolute pinnacle of modern bass boat design and technology," said Ranger Sales Manager Ryan Patterson. "This is a one-of-a-kind dream rig that takes the all-new Z521L and adds aggressive styling and extra features to create a completely unique platform. The result is a fitting tribute to Ranger's reputation for driving design and innovation over the past fifty years."

The Z521L ICON features new styling and bold graphics with a distinct look that highlights the superior fit and finish for which Ranger is known. The boat features a custom, two-tone color package with raised, molded style lines and color-matched interior. The new look is further accentuated with L.E.D. lighting throughout the cockpit, emphasizing the custom 50^th anniversary floor traction pad. Combined with even more accent lighting infused into the redesigned consoles, recessed rear grab handles, trailer step-ins and recessed trolling motor foot well, the Z521L ICON delivers an individual and unmatched aesthetic.

"When designing this boat, we looked at every opportunity to improve each detail to advance the looks, feel and function," said Ranger Design Engineer David Stoner. "Small details such as the enhanced light package, a custom steering wheel, innovative trailer upgrades and fully integrated boat controls through the in-dash electronics are just a few examples that set this boat apart."

At the helm, the Z521L ICON comes standard with a Lowrance HDS 16-inch Carbon, which features a special engine integration, giving the ability to monitor nearly every boat function from the in-dash unit, including the installed Lowrance 3D Structure Scan transducer. The redesigned bow station offers improved function and houses a 12-inch Lowrance HDS 12-inch Carbon unit. A Minn Kota Ultrex 112 trolling motor is affixed to the bow and controlled via a recessed foot pedal.

The padded front deck features three rod lockers with the center rod locker accommodating rods up to nine feet in length. A fiberglass cooler and additional dry storage also sits underneath the spacious front deck. Ranger's patented Power Ventilation Rod Storage™ system circulates air within these compartments to keep rods and gear dry. The gel-coated storage compartments seal with compression locks and are lined with custom rubber mats for quicker drying times. The rear deck offers additional storage and segregated livewells with dual lids, Venturi Air aeration and automatic pump out.

The Z521L ICON comes standard with dual consoles. Both driver and passenger seats have been widened and utilize Ranger's SRS suspension for comfort during long runs. Both seats are adjustable front-to-back to accommodate just about any angler. The new seating is fitted with premium marine upholstery in a rich color package unique to the ICON Edition. A custom tilt steering wheel, touchpad controls and a full complement of gauges flesh out the driver's console.

Measuring 21 feet, 7 inches, with a 97-foot beam, the Z521L ICON is rated for a 250 horsepower outboard, which will feature custom cowling with embossed logos on select engines. A custom vented boat cover with engine hood helps provide maximum protection and will feature a unique fabric exclusive to the one-of-a-kind ICON edition.

The upgrades continue with a new gloss black hydraulic jack plate, dual eight-foot Power-Pole shallow water anchors, and a custom Ranger Trail^® trailer. The trailer, sporting more ICON-exclusive features sure to grab the attention of competitive anglers, includes an innovative L.E.D. light package that automatically switches on when submerged to help launching and loading the boat in low-light conditions.

Black chrome wheels, matching brake caliper covers and lighted decals round out the remaining trailer upgrades. For high-res photography and a complete list of standard equipment, as well as the numerous installed options that make the Z521L ICON unique, go online to rangerboats.com or visit your nearest Ranger dealer today.

2018 RANGER 521L ICON Comanche

Overall Hull Length: 21 feet, 7 inches

Beam: 97 inches

Maximum HP: 250

Inside Depth: 21 inches

Fuel Capacity: 53 gallons

Total Persons/Motor/Gear: 1,700 lbs.

Approx. Boat Weight: 2,025 lbs.

Trailer GVWR: CF5400

About Ranger Boats

Headquartered in Flippin, Ark., Ranger Boats is the nation's premier manufacturer of legendary fiberglass and aluminum fishing boats, with acclaimed models and series in the bass, multi-species, fish 'n play, saltwater, waterfowl utility and pontoon boat segments. Founded in 1968 by Forrest L. Wood, Ranger Boats continues its commitment to building the highest-quality, strongest-performing boats on the water. For more information, go to RangerBoats.com, RangerAluminum.com or RangerPontoons.com.

by AnglersChannel

Round 1 Complete At College Classic Bracket

The Top 4 college anglers move on to the second day of the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops. From left to right: Jacob Foutz of Bryan College, Chad Sweitzer of Chico State University, Jake Lee of Bryan College and Cole Floyd of Bethel University.

Photo by Ronnie Moore/B.A.S.S.

August 14, 2017DEERWOOD, Minn. — Just two days ago the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops concluded and Bryan College was crowned team champion. On Monday, the Top 4 teams were split into eight individual anglers and battled head-to-head in the first leg of the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops.

Cole Floyd was the third overall seed, but rose to the top of the leaderboard during the first few hours of competition as he boasted a limit worth 16 pounds, 1 ounce; taking the lead in overall weight. The Bethel University angler started slow in the first hour of the day, but began to catch quality smallmouth and largemouth and figured out a pattern he could work with.

“I was still in practice mode to start today,” Floyd said. “I didn’t really know where I was going to start, but I went to one place I thought was best from my four-hour practice session, and I didn’t catch a fish.”

Floyd was initially worried when his first spot didn’t pay off, but he didn’t get in a hurry. He covered enough different areas to piece together the puzzle. He later caught the biggest bass of the day at 4-0.

“I went to a few more spots where I got some bites, and I found out real quick that there were a lot more fish there than I had previously thought,” Floyd said.

After loading the boat in the first four-hour session, he found out he had a substantial lead on his opponent Tyler Firebaugh of Chico State University.

Jacob Foutz of Bryan College jumped on top of the leaderboard and capitalized with an excellent morning bite. He boated three of the first four fish of the event and eclipsed 10 pounds easily in the first hour of the day. His matchup pitted him against Bethel’s Brian Pahl, who fished in the 2016 College Classic Bracket as well.

Pahl didn’t get a limit in the first four hours of action and knew he needed a big comeback after the scoreboard revealed a 12 to 6 margin at halftime. Pahl made a valiant comeback and ended with 9-10, but it wasn’t enough as Foutz made two important culls late in the day to get to his 14-1 total.

“I knew there was a good school of smallmouth on one of my spots,” Foutz said. “I caught a 3-pounder there in practice and my (sonar) graph lit up with fish.”

Foutz’ fast start settled him down and allowed him to fish conservatively, but it also gave him the patience to upgrade late in the day to ensure that he would advance. His five-bass limit consisted of smallmouth exclusively.

Foutz’ teammate Jake Lee was matched against the reigning College Bracket Champion John Garrett of Bethel University, and the matchup was exciting all the way to the end. Lee started fast and had the first limit of the day, which was 10-11. After two hours, Garrett was in a significant hole, but climbed out with 8-1 at the halftime mark. Garrett went on to improve his limit to 9-9, while Lee couldn’t add any weight in the final three hours of action. Lee ended his day with four largemouth and one smallmouth in his five-bass limit.

In the final matchup, Chad Sweitzer of Chico State faced Carter McNeil of Bethel. It was a back and forth contest between the anglers as Sweitzer had a limit worth 10-9 by halftime while McNeil only had four fish for 7-15. The last three hours gave McNeil hope as he finished his limit with 9-6, but Sweitzer’s final upgrade put the match out of reach.

The eight anglers were cut to the final four for Tuesday’s semi-final matchup. Foutz of Bryan College will face Sweitzer of Chico State and on the other side of the bracket, Lee of Bryan College will fish against Floyd of Bethel University.

First cast on Serpent Lake will take place at 7 a.m. CT and anglers will compete until 11 a.m. when they have a halftime intermission. They will resume from 12 p.m. until 3 p.m. where the field will be cut to the final two competitors. The champion will be crowned at the conclusion of the head-to-head battle Wednesday.

Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops
8/14/2017 - 8/16/2017
Serpent Lake - Crosby Park - Deerwood, MN
STANDINGS BOATER DAY 1

Match 1
Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz
WINNER: Cole Floyd - Bethel University 5 5 16- 1 5 5 16- 1
Tyler Firebaugh - Chico State 5 5 7- 4 5 5 7- 4

Match 2
Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz
WINNER: Jacob Foutz - Bryan College 5 5 14- 1 5 5 14- 1
Brian Pahl - Bethel University 5 5 9-10 5 5 9-10

Match 3
Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz
WINNER: Jake Lee - Bryan College 5 5 10-11 5 5 10-11
John Garrett - Bethel University 5 5 9- 9 5 5 9- 9

Match 4
Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz
WINNER: Chad Sweitzer - Chico State 5 5 11- 3 5 5 11- 3
Carter McNeil - Bethel University 5 5 9- 6 5 5 9- 6

by AnglersChannel

Third Place Finisher Brandon Cobb Talks About His Final Day

Day 2 Leader and eventual third place finisher Brandon Cobb speaks to our own Vance McCullough about how his final day of competition went during the 2017 FLW Forrest Wood Cup.

by AnglersChannel

FLW Cup Runner Up Travis Fox - Interview

FLW Cup Runner up Travis Fox talks with our own Vance McCullough on how he made a run at the Forrest Wood Cup!

by AnglersChannel

ATKINS WINS PROFESSIONAL BASS FISHING'S FORREST WOOD CUP

Alabama Rookie Justin Atkins Weighs Second-Largest Limit in Forrest Wood Cup History to Clinch Victory

Link to HD video of Atkins’ Winning Moment

COLUMBIA, S.C. (Aug. 13, 2017) – FLW Tour rookie Justin Atkins of Florence, Alabama, brought a five-bass limit to the scale Sunday weighing 22 pounds, 1 ounce – the second-heaviest limit ever weighed in the 22-year history of the Forrest Wood Cup – to earn the win at the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Murray. Over three days, Atkins weighed in 15 fish totaling 59 pounds, 4 ounces to edge out second-place pro Travis Fox of Rogers, Arkansas, by 2 pounds, 9 ounces and win the $300,000 top cash prize. The tournament featured 53 of the top bass-fishing anglers in the world competing for professional bass-fishing’s world championship.

“When I say I feel like this is what I’m meant to do I don’t mean that in any kind of arrogant way,” said Atkins, who became just the third angler to win the Forrest Wood Cup in their rookie season. “I just went out on a limb of faith this year. I didn’t have the money to fish the full Tour when I started. I had enough money to fish about four events, and I was hoping I would make it. I felt like God had a plan, and that’s what I was supposed to be doing. I just went out there and fished, and today signed off that I was supposed to be there.”

Atkins targeted cane piles throughout the week and the fat blueback herring-eating largemouths that hung around them. He estimated that he had about 60 to 80 waypoints on cane piles he liked, and most of the piles topped out about 8 to 10 feet below the surface, rising up from about 20 or 22 feet deep. The fresher and “bushier” the pile was, the more fish were in it.

“I caught every fish that I weighed in this week on an Ima Little Stick 135 in chrome,” Atkins said. “I fished them on a 7:1 gear ratio Abu Garcia reel with 30-pound-test braid and a 7-foot, 5-inch medium-heavy composite rod. I think the key was being consistent and sticking with the topwater bait. My Humminbird electronics really played a role helping me find the brush and the cane piles. Other guys weren’t able to graph them, but my Humminbird could.

“I still feel like I’m in a dream and going to wake up soon,” Atkins went on to say. “To come out on top and win this tournament really just solidifies that I can fish at this level and I’m supposed to be here. I’m already excited to get the season started next year on Lake Okeechobee.”

The top 10 pros at the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Murray finished:

1st: Justin Atkins, Florence, Ala., 15 bass, 59-4, $300,000

2nd: Travis Fox, Rogers, Ark., 15 bass, 56-11, $60,000

3rd: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., 14 bass, 54-10, $50,000

4th: Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 15 bass, 51-15, $37,500

5th: Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., 15 bass, 51-3, $30,000

6th: Michael Neal, Dayton, Tenn., 15 bass, 46-11, $24,000

7th: Scott Suggs, Alexander, Ark., 15 bass, 43-3, $23,000

8th: Scott Martin, Clewiston, Fla., 14 bass, 41-4, $22,000

9th: Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., 12 bass, 34-2, $21,000

10th: Aaron Britt, Yuba City, Calif., 11 bass, 31-9, $20,000

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

Overall there were 41 bass weighing 140 pounds, 5 ounces caught by pros Sunday. Six of the final 10 anglers weighed in five-bass limits.

The 2017 Forrest Wood Cup at Lake Murray in Columbia, South Carolina, was hosted by the Capital City Lake Murray Country Regional Tourism Board. Total attendance for the three-day event was 68,315 fishing fans.

FLW and Visit Hot Springs announced Saturday that Hot Springs, Arkansas, will be hosting the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of bass fishing, Aug. 10-12, 2018, on Lake Ouachita. This event marks the fourth time that the Forrest Wood Cup, the sport’s richest prize, has visited Lake Ouachita.

Television coverage of the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) Sept. 27 from Noon -1 p.m. EDT. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show airs on NBCSN, the Pursuit Channel and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world.

For a full schedule of events, complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.

by AnglersChannel

FLW Rookie Justin Atkins Wins the 2017 FLW CUP!!

“These fish must think about blueback herring like I think about strawberry shortcake." ~Scott Suggs

Herring, not shad were the key bait on Lake Murray this week. They swam along deep points that dropped from about 20 feet in depth to perhaps a hundred or more nearby.

“Usually the herring out over that 100 foot water this time of year,” said Brandon Cobb. The pattern carried the top pros so well this week doesn’t usually materialize until late September.

And Cobb worked it for nearly all it was worth. Nearly. “I only have 4 fish,” he revealed moments before taking the stage for the final weigh in of the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup in Columbia, SC.

That revelation set the stage for a suspenseful ending to the tourney because the 4 fish Cobb had were the right size – about 4 pounds apiece.

Anthony Gagliardi caught enough herring-eaters to make a run at a 2^nd Cup title on his home lake. His effort fell short.

“I will not be the first repeat Forrest Wood Cup Champion this week,” said Gags. “I only have about 14 pounds. I caught everything that I will weigh-in during the last hour of the day.”

As the field of 10 was whittled down it became apparent that FLW Tour rookie Justin Atkins was the favorite. He faced fierce competition from Travis Fox.

Fox dropped 21 pounds, 11 ounces on the scale. He had one small fish in his bag. He was thankful even for it. “I just did catch 5 fish. This was the last one. Five fish weigh more than four do.”

Fox’s weight was impressive, but Atkins drew a roar from the packed house in the Colonial Life Arena when he weighed-in 22-1.

With a 3-day total weight of 59-4 Atkins was crowned champion.

Cobb lost a fish that may have put him over the top. He will never know. He’s not beating himself up over it. Such near misses are a part of the topwater game.

Fox further explained about missed fish, “It’s not like you get 6 bites to catch 6 fish. You may get 20 bites and catch 6 fish and not have done anything wrong. What do you do about it? You thank the Lord for chance and move on to the next one. I don’t feel bad about it. I did the best I could.”

Fox is right to be satisfied with a great effort and a runner-up finish.

For the technical details of how Atkins won, see our video on AnglersChannel.com. The short version is that he pulled quality bass to the surface with large topwater lures. “I stayed with the big plugs instead of using a fluke. I wanted to catch bigger fish even though I got fewer bites.”

https://youtu.be/hY0FHCuFdAE

His fish were relating to cane piles planted in deep, open water. The bass in Lake Murray suspend around the tops of the cane and ambush blueback herring.

A young pro, Atkins has already earned the respect of the fishing community.

“Justin will be a great champion,” said 2015 Cup Champ Brad Knight.

by AnglersChannel

Bryan College Wins Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship

Jake Lee (left) and Jacob Foutz of Bryan College won the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji out of Bemidji, Minn., with a three-day total weight of 49 pounds, 15 ounces.
Photo by Ronnie Moore/B.A.S.S.

August 12, 2017

BEMIDJI, Minn. — The Bryan College duo of Jacob Foutz and Jake Lee led the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji wire-to-wire to take the title with a three-day total of 49 pounds, 15 ounces.

A big storyline of the week was the fishing pressure that Stump Lake was receiving from over 75 percent of the field. Most wondered if it would hold up over three days of competition, but Lee and Foutz didn’t test it, sticking to their game plan in Lake Irving just south of Lake Bemidji.

The Bryan College teammates had a two-prong approach to catch their winning weight as they threw a frog early in the morning and flipped a Texas rig for the remainder of the day. It didn’t seem to matter what type of cover they fished, but rather the bait they were flipping. They used a 4 1/2-inch black and blue Strike King Flipping Tube with a 3/8-ounce tungsten weight and a 5/0 Trokar hook.

“In the morning we had a frog bite going on and we caught a couple key fish every morning,” Foutz said. “As soon as the sun came up that bite faded and we would start flipping docks and shoreline cover.”

Today’s conditions were slightly different as the algae on Lake Irving began to die off and it produced a film on the top of the water.

“Today we managed to get a frog bite later in the day because of some overhanging trees and the shade they produced,” Lee said.

Throughout the week the duo executed to perfection as they hooked and landed all nine bass that contributed to their leading weight, but today they lost some important bites that stalled their progress on sealing this event. Saturday’s action reverted to how their Thursday went as it took all day to catch their final weight tally. Lee and Foutz didn’t cull a single fish the entire week of competition. The fish that went in their livewell stayed until 2 p.m. every day when they were weighed on the B.A.S.S. stage.

Both Lee and Foutz are products of high school fishing. Lee was in the inaugural Bassmaster High School All-American class and both anglers carried their high school experiences into their freshman year of college where they are now crowned the 2017 National Champions.

“This week was amazing, it showed us that we can come here and compete with the best college anglers in the country,” Foutz and Lee said. “The goal is to always win a national championship, but now our sights are focused on the bracket. Hopefully, we can carry this momentum there.”

Lee and Foutz outlasted a hard-charging Top 12 group of anglers as they had their toughest day of the week and brought 15-5 to the scales. It was enough to top second place Cole Floyd and Carter McNeil of Bethel University who weighed 45-4 over three days. With their Day 2 weight of 18-4, Lee and Foutz claimed the big bag of the event.

Floyd and McNeil’s weight got better every day as they went from 14-12 to 15-1 and settled out at 15-7 on Championship Saturday. As the week progressed their pattern and target location slowly developed, which is a key reason for their increase in weight each day.

The duo flipped grass and reeds in both Stump Lake and Lake Irving. Their best lure ended up being a 1/2-ounce Texas-rigged Berkley Havoc Pit Boss, which they pitched to both sparse and thick cover.

“We started the week fishing in Stump Lake where most of the field fished,” McNeil said. “We caught four and at the end of the day (and) stopped in Lake Irving and caught two key fish.”

That set the tone for the rest of their event as they dedicated Friday morning to Lake Irving before going to Stump Lake and then today they never left sight of the mouth of Irving as they camped out and managed 15-7.

“To increase our weight every day is hard to do, especially in a multiday event,” Floyd said. “I can’t complain with how it went this week.”

Tyler Firebaugh and Chad Sweitzer of Chico State University placed third overall and punched their ticket to the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops with a three-day weight of 40 pounds, 8 ounces. They focused their efforts in Stump Lake and fished extremely slow on Championship Saturday to catch their weight.

“I pitched a weightless Gary Yamamoto Flappin’ Hog and let it sit for as long as 60 seconds per cast today,” Sweitzer said.

Slower was better for the California duo because of the immense pressure on the Stump Lake region.

Brian Pahl and John Garrett of Bethel University managed to sneak into the fourth-place spot, claiming the final bracket positions as they edged out teammates Garrett Enders and Cody Huff by just 2 ounces.

The Top 4 teams will now split into eight individual anglers and compete in the College Classic Bracket where they will fish head-to-head starting on Monday, August 14, on Serpent Lake, Minnesota.

Lee and Foutz took home additional rewards along with their winning prize as they also won the Livingston Lures Day 2 Leader Award of $500 in merchandise. Logan Laprarie and Aaron Belgard of Northwestern State University won the big bass of the event because of their 6-6 largemouth on Thursday.

Bemidji State University and Visit Bemidji hosted the event.

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Title Sponsor: Carhartt

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Presenting Sponsor: Bass Pro Shops

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Premier Sponsors: Yamaha, Berkley, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Huk, Skeeter Boats, Humminbird, Mercury, Shell Rotella, Triton Boats

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Supporting Sponsors: Phoenix Boats, Livingston Lures, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels, Lowrance, Costa, Shimano, St. Croix Rods, ABU Garcia, Advance Auto Parts

About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 500,000-member organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), television show (The Bassmasters on ESPN2), radio show (Bassmaster Radio), social media programs and events. For more than 45 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series, Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation presented by Magellan Outdoors, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Costa Bassmaster High School Series presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.
-30-

Media Contact: JamieDay Matthews, 205-313-0945, jmatthews@bassmaster.com or Dave Precht, 205-313-0931, dprecht@bassmaster.com

Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops

8/10/2017 - 8/12/2017

Bemidji Chain of Lakes - Paul Bunyan Park - Bemidji, MN

STANDINGS BOATER DAY 3

Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz

1 Jacob Foutz - Jake Lee Bryan College 5 5 15- 5 14 14 49-15

2 Cole Floyd - Carter McNeil Bethel University 5 5 15- 7 15 15 45- 4

3 Tyler Firebaugh - Chad Sweitzer Chico State 5 5 15- 3 14 14 40- 8

4 Brian Pahl - John Garrett Bethel University 5 5 15- 8 14 14 39- 7

5 Garrett Enders - Cody Huff Bethel University 5 5 13-13 15 15 39- 5

6 Josh Worth - Colorado Mesa University 4 4 13-13 13 12 38- 7

7 Hunter McCarty - Sloan Pennington U. of North Alabama 5 5 12- 2 15 14 36- 6

8 John Duarte - Chesley Alford Coastal Carolina University 5 5 12- 5 13 13 35- 9

9 Thor Swanson - Mitch Swanson Bemidji State University 2 2 5-14 12 12 33- 5

10 Patrick Walters - Tyler All University of South Carolina 3 3 5-13 13 13 29- 9

11 Sam Carris - John Berry Tennessee Tech University 3 3 6- 1 13 13 29- 3

12 Tyler Craig - Spencer Lambert University of Louisiana at Monroe 1 1 1- 8 10 10 23-15

13 Daniel Kennedy - Cody Stahl SCAD 6 6 22- 5

14 Nick Ratliff - Luke Patterson Campbellsville University 10 9 22- 4

15 Tyler Rivet - Cameron Naquin Nicholls State University 8 8 22- 4

16 Brody McWilliams - Tristan Gold Indiana University 8 8 21-13

17 Cole Sands - Nathan Bell Bryan College 9 9 21-13

18 Brady Bowden - Tyler Pennington Faulkner University 6 6 19- 6

19 Trent Newman - Zackery Hines Dallas Baptist University 9 9 19- 2

20 Stetson Overton - Cason Kelley Tarleton State University 9 9 17-13

21 Chase Chastain - Andrew Fisher Jacksonville State University 5 5 17- 4

22 Noah Pescitelli - Sean Hall SCAD 9 9 17- 2

23 Corey Neece - Nick Hatfield Tusculum College 4 4 15-10

24 Jake Dorony - Hunter Scharphorn Lake Superior State University 7 7 15- 3

25 Austin Handley - Caleb Wozniak Auburn University 7 7 15- 0

26 Sheldon Rogge - Travis Blenn Kansas State University 6 6 14- 9

27 Rick Couch Jr - John Kaufman U. of Central Florida 6 6 14- 8

28 J T Russell - Chase Grubbs University of Montevallo 5 5 14- 5

29 John Jay - Grant Pietsch Texas A&M University 7 7 14- 3

30 Justin Seeton - Dakota Ebare Tarleton State University 7 7 14- 0

31 TJ Tucker - Bennett Pierce Arkansas Tech University 5 5 13-14

32 JP Kimbrough - Jared Rascoe LSU Shreveport 5 5 13-12

33 Travis McGuire - Layne Bynum Texas Tech University 5 5 13- 7

34 Austin Carr - Justin Carr Heartland Community College 5 5 13- 6

35 Luke Gillund - Robby Troje Bemidji State University 6 6 13- 2

36 Justin St Onge - Ryan McLaughlin Haywood Community College 6 6 12-13

37 Anderson Aldag - Lee Mattox University of Alabama 3 3 12-10

38 Lawrence Kuznik - Dakota Moore University of Louisiana at LaFayette 3 3 12- 3

39 Hunter Ward - Stewart Ward Central Alabama Comm College 6 6 12- 3

40 Matt Brown - DJ Barber Bryan College 4 4 11-11

41 Keegan Russell - Lake Superior State University 5 5 11- 5

42 Collin Cropp - Louie Dazzo U. of Wisconsin Whitewater 4 4 10- 7

43 Tanner Ward - Kent State 5 5 10- 5

44 Nolan Minor - Casey Lanier West Virginia University 5 5 9-15

45 Aaron Belgard - Logan Laprarie Northwestern State University 2 2 9- 7

46 Ben Stone - Collin Smith Lander University 4 4 9- 4

47 Dawson Cranford - Charles Norris University of Louisiana at LaFayette 4 4 9- 4

48 Jacob Louis - JT Russell McKendree University 3 3 9- 2

49 Michael Rollert - Corbin Davis Texas A&M University 3 3 9- 2

50 Jacob Wall - University of Oregon 4 4 9- 1

51 Zane Loveday - Denver Satterlee Calhoun Community College 4 4 8- 3

52 Austin Mize - Parker Davis U. of North Alabama 3 3 7-11

53 Benjamin Hager - Noah Shaver UNC Charlotte 4 4 7-11

54 Andrew Warbington - Brant Lewis University of West Alabama 4 4 7- 7

55 Jonathan Kelley - Max McQuaide Coastal Carolina University 4 4 7- 4

56 John Moore - Clark Mannas Texas A&M University 4 4 7- 2

57 Jesse Erb - Gavin Oswalt University of Pittsburgh 3 2 6-10

58 Luke Parlow - Brad Burton Missouri State University 4 4 6- 8

59 Baylor Ronemus - Cole Tinsley Clemson University 2 2 6- 8

60 Jacob Harris - Tyler Smith Southeast Missouri State University 2 2 6- 7

61 Ryan Winchester - Tyler Black Bethel University 2 2 6- 6

62 Reed Foster - Colt Benedict Dallas Baptist University 5 5 6- 6

63 Dillon Harrell - Dustin Moreno Sam Houston State University 2 2 6- 6

64 Hunter Freeman - Thomas Soileau University of Louisiana at Monroe 5 5 6- 2

65 Nicholas Moore - Sean Solomon Southeast Missouri State University 2 2 6- 1

66 Joshua Butts - Reid Conner Wallace State Hanceville 2 2 6- 0

67 Brandon Black - Chase Christie University of West Georgia 1 1 5-14

68 Brandon Bland - Spencer DeFoor U. of South Alabama 2 2 5-10

69 Matthew Bowden - Barton Courtney Texas Tech University 2 2 5- 9

70 Brandon Simoneaux - Colby Ogden Lamar University 2 2 4-13

71 Lance Freeman - Cameron Brooks Murray State University 1 1 4- 4

72 Evan Owrey - KJ Queen Bethel University 2 2 4- 2

73 Max Gresham - Zack Blake Valdosta State University 2 2 3-15

74 Michael Fisher - Brandon Padilla Jacksonville State University 1 1 3-13

75 Dylan Kear - Dalton Price Bryan College 1 1 3-12

76 Connor Chapman - Jaron Deal Kennesaw State University 1 1 3-10

77 Chandler Robertson - Austin Culbertson University of Missouri 1 1 3- 7

78 Crosley Welch - Matt Fielder Missouri State University 2 2 3- 4

79 Gregory Green - Dustin Nash Northwestern State University 1 1 2-14

80 Tristan Thomas - Ty Johnston U. of North Georgia 2 2 2-11

81 Austin Butler - Will Gentry Murray State University 1 1 2-11

82 Paul Davis - Shane Parker Missouri State University 1 1 2-10

83 Dalton Childers - Auburn University 1 1 2- 7

84 Justin Guarnaccio - Michael Tesch University of Wisconsin Stout 2 2 2- 7

85 Zachary Ramsey - Joshua Rockefeller Augusta University 1 1 1-11

86 Gavyn Bridges - Dylan Anderson UT Chattanooga 0 0 0- 0

86 Qiurun Chen - Johns Hopkins University 0 0 0- 0

86 Hunter Louden - Cully Scroggins Bethel University 0 0 0- 0

86 Hunter Mills - Hunter McKinley Murray State University 0 0 0- 0

86 Brock Wilke - Brady Faust McKendree University 0 0 0- 0

BIG BASS

Day Name City,State Lbs-Oz

1 Aaron Belgard - Logan Laprarie Deville, LA 6- 6

2 Sheldon Rogge - Travis Blenn St George, KS 4-14

3 Tyler Craig - Spencer Lambert Frierson, LA 1- 8

by AnglersChannel

Ranger Pro Brandon Cobb takes the Lead into Championship Sunday at the FLW Cup

Day 2 at the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup is usually a day change up and down the leader board. Indeed, there was movement today but the guys who climbed to the top yesterday are still there.

‘The top’ is usually defined by some number of places, such as ‘Top 5’ or ‘Top 10’. For this writer, this week the ‘top’ of the field is those who have separated themselves from the rest of the field. That would pretty much narrow it down to Justin Atkins, Anthony Gagliardi and Brandon Cobb.

The trio finished in that respective order on Day 1 and backed it up with strong efforts today.

Now the order is Cobb with 39 pounds, Atkins 1-13 behind and Gagliardi 2-15 behind.

After that, the field continues to spread out with at least a pound separating every one of the top 9 pros.

Travis Fox, in 4th with 35 pounds, is 4 pounds out. He can overcome that, but it would be a big story if he did.

Bryan Thrift, 5th with 33-13 admits, “I have a deep hole to climb out of.” He said he is also fishing deep but fishing more slowly than the guys who are tossing big plugs over deep structure. Unexpected tactic from the man known as ‘Smoke On the Water’.

The Cup is a 3-day shootout this year instead of the 4-day grind we usually see in August. How much difference does that extra day make? Scott Canterbury nearly closed the gap on Gagliardi when the Cup was last contested on Lake Murray. Gagliardi’s bite had all but played out before the end of Day 4.

But Gags rode the deep bite to a 1-ounce winning margin in 2014. Somebody will ride it to victory this year.

And the shallow bite hasn’t played role this year.

At least 4 pros shared with us back stage that the skinny water deal did not work out for them. “I caught them good in practice around the ends of the docks,” said Brandon McMillan. “But today my fish were up in extremely shallow water. It makes no sense. They have been dropping the water level for a month.”

McMillan did catch a 4-pounder from around a bream bed on a buzz bait after making an estimated 20 casts. “I hope it’s not my last fish of the year, but if it is, it was a good one to end with,” he said, alluding to the fact that he may not make the cut to fish in Sunday’s final round.

Terry Bolton said past experience pushed him shallow. “I’ve tried to fish deep on herring lakes before and I got killed. In 2008 I did well fishing shallow in August so I decided to stick with it this year. But most of the quality fish are out there.”

So what are the guys fishing out there?

With remarkable consistency, the top performers are throwing big top water lures, mostly pencil poppers, over sunken cane piles on short, steep main lake points in 10-to-15 feet of water, maybe as deep as 30.

What’s a cane pile? Take a bucket of cement and plant a bunch of tall bamboo canes in it so they stand up and reach toward the lake’s surface. It gives suspended bass something to hold in and relate to. From there, they can launch to the surface to pin baitfish. In the case of Lake Murray those baitfish would be blueback herring.

Fresh green piles produce better results according to a couple of the tournament front runners.

We’re told that with today’s sunshine, the bass actually loosened up and suspended further from the canes, instead of burying into it as many would expect them to do. Perhaps the algae rose through the water column as often happens under sunny skies (algae contains chlorophyll and will therefore seek out solar radiation). Pelagic baitfish such as herring often feed on algae. Since the bass are following the bait, they too roamed out from the cover.

The bass on the cane piles are fat and healthy. They don’t have to chase bait all over the lake. They just lie in wait and then eat the high-quality feed that swims by. Or a big pencil popper.

Cobb and Atkins are sharing a lot of waypoints. While spectators have been polite - not fished the spots and stayed way back while watching - the flotillas still disturb the spots after anglers blast off to fish the next one.

This happens a lot as the pros make just a few casts to very precise targets and then move on to the next. The bass are either biting or they’re not. There are often 20-to-30 bass in any given pile, but once one is reeled to the boat the rest pull up and off the cover with the hooked fish. They may take hours to reposition in the canes.

This is why rotation is so important. Cobb explains, “Yesterday I felt like I hit everything at the right time. Today it felt like somebody had fished in front of me on a lot of the spots.”

Cobb is competing with his good friend and roommate Atkins tomorrow for $300,000, a big trophy and a title that will last forever.

by AnglersChannel

Bryan College Lions Extend Lead In Bassmaster College National Championship

Jake Lee (left) and Jacob Foutz of Bryan College maintain their lead on the second day of the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji out of Bemidji, Minn., with a two-day total weight of 34 pounds, 10 ounces.

Photo by Bri Douglas/B.A.S.S.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 11, 2017

BEMIDJI, Minn. — Jake Lee and Jacob Foutz of Bryan College not only held the top spot, but extended their lead at the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji. They caught a two-day total of 34 pounds, 10 ounces of bass and hold a 4-13 lead over their nearest pursuer.

After coming to the scales on Thursday with only four fish, Lee and Foutz knew if they managed to get five bites that they would have the quality to back up their performance on the first day. Instead of coming up one fish short of their five-bass limit, they filled it and managed to accumulate their daily total of 18-4 before 10:45 a.m.

“We knew yesterday that today would be a better day because of the conditions,” Lee said. “Our area was blown out as soon as the day started on Thursday, so with hardly any wind today, we knew it would be fine.”

Lee and Foutz managed to find an area away from crowds of other anglers and where bass were willing to cooperate. They are the only team in the Top 12 that isn’t fishing the Stump Lake region of this fishery.

“The first two hours of practice we fished this area and caught three 4-pounders,” Foutz said. “We never caught another bass after that. We knew we were going to live or die in this area so that’s what we’ve done.”

The duo played it safe after catching 18 pounds by returning to the ramp at 11 a.m. and never moving until they weighed their fish at 2:30 p.m. It may be an unorthodox approach to preventing a disaster, but with a limit like that they knew there was no reason to risk it.

Chasing the Bryan College teammates are Cole Floyd and Carter McNeil of Bethel University. They moved from third place into the runner-up position and did so by staying consistent. With 14-12 on Thursday and 15-1 today, they are in the hunt.

“We opted to start on a spot we found later in the day on Thursday,” Floyd said. “We had four big ones within the first 45 minutes. We left and went to Stump Lake to fill our limit.”

They have relied on numerous tactics to catch their 10 bass this week and they chalked up their pattern as strictly “junk fishing.” The strategy propelled them to second place.

The local favorites from Bemidji State University, brothers Thor and Mitch Swanson dropped to third place, and they felt fortunate to have filled their limit. At 11:30 a.m. they only had two bass in their livewell and weren’t sure if it would be enough to make the Top 12. Instead they are in the thick of the battle and are 7-3 behind the leaders.

Bethel University boasts another team in the Top 4 with Garrett Enders and Cody Huff moving from 12th into fourth. Tyler Firebaugh and Chad Sweitzer of Chico State sit in fifth, Josh Worth of Colorado Mesa University is in sixth, Hunter McCarty and Sloan Pennington of the University of North Alabama are in seventh, Brian Pahl and John Garrett of Bethel University are in eighth, Patrick Walters and Tyler All of the University of South Carolina are in ninth, John Duarte and Chesley Alford of Coastal Carolina University are 10th, Sam Carris and John Berry of Tennessee Tech University are 11th and Tyler Craig and Spencer Lambert of the University of Louisiana-Monroe took the final spot and will leave the dock in 12th on Saturday.

Not only are these 12 teams battling for a National Championship title on Saturday, but the Top 4 teams will advance to a bracketed competition for a single spot in the 2018 GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods as well as entry into all nine Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens next year.

Lee and Foutz of Bryan College brought the big bag of the tournament to the scales on Friday with their five-bass limit weighing 18-4.

Logan Laprarie and Aaron Belgard still hold the top spot for the big bass of the event because of their 6-6 giant from Thursday.

The Top 12 will take off from Paul Bunyan Park at 6 a.m. CT. Weigh-in will take place at the park at 2:30 p.m.

The event is hosted by Bemidji State University and Visit Bemidji.

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Title Sponsor: Carhartt

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Presenting Sponsor: Bass Pro Shops

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Premier Sponsors: Triton Boats, Yamaha, Berkley, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Huk, Skeeter Boats, Humminbird, Mercury, Shell Rotella

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Supporting Sponsors: Advance Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, Livingston Lures, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels, Lowrance, Costa, Shimano, St. Croix Rods, ABU Garcia

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series, Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation presented by Magellan Outdoors, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Costa Bassmaster High School Series presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.

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Media Contact: JamieDay Matthews, 205-313-0945, jmatthews@bassmaster.com or Dave Precht, 205-313-0931, dprecht@bassmaster.com

Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops

8/10/2017 - 8/12/2017

Lake Bemidji - Paul Bunyan Park - Bemidji, MN

STANDINGS BOATER DAY 2

Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz

1 Jacob Foutz - Jake Lee Bryan College 5 5 18- 4 9 9 34-10

2 Cole Floyd - Carter McNeil Bethel University 5 5 15- 1 10 10 29-13

3 Thor Swanson - Mitch Swanson Bemidji State University 5 5 11-11 10 10 27- 7

4 Garrett Enders - Cody Huff Bethel University 5 5 13- 2 10 10 25- 8

5 Tyler Firebaugh - Chad Sweitzer Chico State 4 4 11- 4 9 9 25- 5

6 Josh Worth - Colorado Mesa University 5 5 13- 7 9 8 24-10

7 Hunter McCarty - Sloan Pennington U. of North Alabama 5 4 13-12 10 9 24- 4

8 Brian Pahl - John Garrett Bethel University 4 4 9- 4 9 9 23-15

9 Patrick Walters - Tyler All University of South Carolina 5 5 16- 2 10 10 23-12

10 John Duarte - Chesley Alford Coastal Carolina University 3 3 11- 0 8 8 23- 4

11 Sam Carris - John Berry Tennessee Tech University 5 5 10- 5 10 10 23- 2

12 Tyler Craig - Spencer Lambert University of Louisiana at Monroe 4 4 11- 2 9 9 22- 7

13 Daniel Kennedy - Cody Stahl SCAD 3 3 9-13 6 6 22- 5

14 Nick Ratliff - Luke Patterson Campbellsville University 5 4 13-10 10 9 22- 4

15 Tyler Rivet - Cameron Naquin Nicholls State University 4 4 10-10 8 8 22- 4

16 Brody McWilliams - Tristan Gold Indiana University 3 3 7- 5 8 8 21-13

17 Cole Sands - Nathan Bell Bryan College 5 5 13-14 9 9 21-13

18 Brady Bowden - Tyler Pennington Faulkner University 5 5 16- 5 6 6 19- 6

19 Trent Newman - Zackery Hines Dallas Baptist University 4 4 12- 4 9 9 19- 2

20 Stetson Overton - Cason Kelley Tarleton State University 4 4 8- 2 9 9 17-13

21 Chase Chastain - Andrew Fisher Jacksonville State University 2 2 6- 8 5 5 17- 4

22 Noah Pescitelli - Sean Hall SCAD 4 4 7-13 9 9 17- 2

23 Corey Neece - Nick Hatfield Tusculum College 3 3 12-10 4 4 15-10

24 Jake Dorony - Hunter Scharphorn Lake Superior State University 3 3 4- 9 7 7 15- 3

25 Austin Handley - Caleb Wozniak Auburn University 2 2 5-12 7 7 15- 0

26 Sheldon Rogge - Travis Blenn Kansas State University 3 3 9- 7 6 6 14- 9

27 Rick Couch Jr - John Kaufman U. of Central Florida 1 1 2- 7 6 6 14- 8

28 J T Russell - Chase Grubbs University of Montevallo 1 1 3- 4 5 5 14- 5

29 John Jay - Grant Pietsch Texas A&M University 4 4 9- 2 7 7 14- 3

30 Justin Seeton - Dakota Ebare Tarleton State University 3 3 7-15 7 7 14- 0

31 TJ Tucker - Bennett Pierce Arkansas Tech University 0 0 0- 0 5 5 13-14

32 JP Kimbrough - Jared Rascoe LSU Shreveport 2 2 6- 3 5 5 13-12

33 Travis McGuire - Layne Bynum Texas Tech University 4 4 11- 3 5 5 13- 7

34 Austin Carr - Justin Carr Heartland Community College 0 0 0- 0 5 5 13- 6

35 Luke Gillund - Robby Troje Bemidji State University 3 3 7- 1 6 6 13- 2

36 Justin St Onge - Ryan McLaughlin Haywood Community College 1 1 3- 1 6 6 12-13

37 Anderson Aldag - Lee Mattox University of Alabama 0 0 0- 0 3 3 12-10

38 Lawrence Kuznik - Dakota Moore University of Louisiana at LaFayette 0 0 0- 0 3 3 12- 3

39 Hunter Ward - Stewart Ward Central Alabama Comm College 2 2 2-13 6 6 12- 3

40 Matt Brown - DJ Barber Bryan College 2 2 3-12 4 4 11-11

41 Keegan Russell - Lake Superior State University 3 3 7- 5 5 5 11- 5

42 Collin Cropp - Louie Dazzo U. of Wisconsin Whitewater 0 0 0- 0 4 4 10- 7

43 Tanner Ward - Kent State 0 0 0- 0 5 5 10- 5

44 Nolan Minor - Casey Lanier West Virginia University 2 2 4- 9 5 5 9-15

45 Aaron Belgard - Logan Laprarie Northwestern State University 1 1 3- 1 2 2 9- 7

46 Ben Stone - Collin Smith Lander University 0 0 0- 0 4 4 9- 4

47 Dawson Cranford - Charles Norris University of Louisiana at LaFayette 1 1 1-13 4 4 9- 4

48 Jacob Louis - JT Russell McKendree University 2 2 6- 2 3 3 9- 2

49 Michael Rollert - Corbin Davis Texas A&M University 1 1 3- 5 3 3 9- 2

50 Jacob Wall - University of Oregon 1 1 3- 1 4 4 9- 1

51 Zane Loveday - Denver Satterlee Calhoun Community College 2 2 3- 4 4 4 8- 3

52 Austin Mize - Parker Davis U. of North Alabama 0 0 0- 0 3 3 7-11

53 Benjamin Hager - Noah Shaver UNC Charlotte 2 2 4-12 4 4 7-11

54 Andrew Warbington - Brant Lewis University of West Alabama 4 4 7- 7 4 4 7- 7

55 Jonathan Kelley - Max McQuaide Coastal Carolina University 1 1 1- 2 4 4 7- 4

56 John Moore - Clark Mannas Texas A&M University 0 0 0- 0 4 4 7- 2

57 Jesse Erb - Gavin Oswalt University of Pittsburgh 0 0 0- 0 3 2 6-10

58 Luke Parlow - Brad Burton Missouri State University 0 0 0- 0 4 4 6- 8

59 Baylor Ronemus - Cole Tinsley Clemson University 2 2 6- 8 2 2 6- 8

60 Jacob Harris - Tyler Smith Southeast Missouri State University 0 0 0- 0 2 2 6- 7

61 Ryan Winchester - Tyler Black Bethel University 0 0 0- 0 2 2 6- 6

62 Reed Foster - Colt Benedict Dallas Baptist University 4 4 4-14 5 5 6- 6

63 Dillon Harrell - Dustin Moreno Sam Houston State University 1 1 2-12 2 2 6- 6

64 Hunter Freeman - Thomas Soileau University of Louisiana at Monroe 3 3 3-13 5 5 6- 2

65 Nicholas Moore - Sean Solomon Southeast Missouri State University 0 0 0- 0 2 2 6- 1

66 Joshua Butts - Reid Conner Wallace State Hanceville 2 2 6- 0 2 2 6- 0

67 Brandon Black - Chase Christie University of West Georgia 0 0 0- 0 1 1 5-14

68 Brandon Bland - Spencer DeFoor U. of South Alabama 0 0 0- 0 2 2 5-10

69 Matthew Bowden - Barton Courtney Texas Tech University 1 1 1- 3 2 2 5- 9

70 Brandon Simoneaux - Colby Ogden Lamar University 0 0 0- 0 2 2 4-13

71 Lance Freeman - Cameron Brooks Murray State University 0 0 0- 0 1 1 4- 4

72 Evan Owrey - KJ Queen Bethel University 0 0 0- 0 2 2 4- 2

73 Max Gresham - Zack Blake Valdosta State University 2 2 3-15 2 2 3-15

74 Michael Fisher - Brandon Padilla Jacksonville State University 0 0 0- 0 1 1 3-13

75 Dylan Kear - Dalton Price Bryan College 0 0 0- 0 1 1 3-12

76 Connor Chapman - Jaron Deal Kennesaw State University 1 1 3-10 1 1 3-10

77 Chandler Robertson - Austin Culbertson University of Missouri 0 0 0- 0 1 1 3- 7

78 Crosley Welch - Matt Fielder Missouri State University 0 0 0- 0 2 2 3- 4

79 Gregory Green - Dustin Nash Northwestern State University 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2-14

80 Tristan Thomas - Ty Johnston U. of North Georgia 1 1 0- 0 2 2 2-11

81 Austin Butler - Will Gentry Murray State University 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2-11

82 Paul Davis - Shane Parker Missouri State University 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2-10

83 Dalton Childers - Auburn University 0 0 0- 0 1 1 2- 7

84 Justin Guarnaccio - Michael Tesch University of Wisconsin Stout 1 1 1- 6 2 2 2- 7

85 Zachary Ramsey - Joshua Rockefeller Augusta University 0 0 0- 0 1 1 1-11

86 Gavyn Bridges - Dylan Anderson UT Chattanooga 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

86 Qiurun Chen - Johns Hopkins University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

86 Hunter Louden - Cully Scroggins Bethel University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

86 Hunter Mills - Hunter McKinley Murray State University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

86 Brock Wilke - Brady Faust McKendree University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

BIG BASS

Day Name City,State Lbs-Oz

1 Aaron Belgard - Logan Laprarie Deville, LA 6- 6

2 Sheldon Rogge - Travis Blenn St George, KS 4-14

by AnglersChannel

ALABAMA ROOKIE ATKINS GRABS LEAD AFTER DAY ONE OF PROFESSIONAL BASS FISHING’S FORREST WOOD CUP

Local Favorite Anthony Gagliardi just 4 Ounces Behind in Second Place

Link to HD video of Atkins Weighing in On-stage

COLUMBIA, S.C. (Aug. 11, 2017) – The world’s best bass anglers convened on Lake Murray in Columbia, South Carolina, Thursday to kick off the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing. The three-day event, which awards a $300,000 top prize to the victor, featured a full field of 53 anglers competing today and Saturday before being cut to the final 10 on championship Sunday.

FLW Tour rookie Justin Atkins of Florence, Alabama, secured the early lead after weighing in a five-bass limit totaling 21 pounds, 5 ounces – the largest limit ever weighed on Lake Murray in Forrest Wood Cup competition. Atkins’ limit was enough to edge local favorite Anthony Gagliardi of Prosperity, South Carolina, by just four ounces, who caught five bass weighing 21-1, good for second place.

“Today was really good,” said Atkins, who finished runner-up in the 2017 FLW Tour Rookie of the Year race. “I caught two real quick this morning, then finished out my limit by 7:40 (a.m.). Then I just started running areas from practice that looked like they would be productive and managed to catch a couple of good ones. Around 10:30 I caught a 5-pounder at a spot that I had saved, then I went to another place that I had found that was a little off of the wall and caught a 6-pounder on my first cast there.

“I didn’t want to burn through a bunch of 3½-pounders that could help me later, so I spent the afternoon graphing and looking for more areas, just getting ready for tomorrow.”

Atkins said that he fished just one bait throughout the entire day. Although he withheld specifics, he did say that it was a topwater bait and that he caught 20 to 25 fish throughout the day.

“I’m comfortable catching them on a worm or a few other baits here if I need to, but it was one bait all day, today,” Atkins said. “I’m fishing more of a pattern rather than certain areas or spots.

“I thought I’d catch around 17 pounds, which would have been a good Day One goal,” Atkins continued. “I definitely didn’t think I’d catch more than 20. The lake is fishing a lot better than it has in years past. I’m not planning on doing anything different tomorrow, I’m going to do the same thing and hopefully will have similar results.”

The top 20 pros after Day One on Lake Murray are:

1^st: Justin Atkins, Florence, Ala., five bass, 21-5

2^nd: Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., five bass, 21-1

3^rd: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., five bass, 19-12

4^th: Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., five bass, 19-4

5^th: Travis Fox, Rogers, Ark., five bass, 18-3

6^th: Yamamoto Baits pro Larry Nixon, Bee Branch, Ark., five bass, 17-13

7^th: Michael Neal, Dayton, Tenn., five bass, 16-0

8^th: Scott Martin, Clewiston, Fla., five bass, 15-14

9^th: Aaron Britt, Yuba City, Calif., five bass, 15-9

10^th: Shane LeHew, Catawba, N.C., five bass, 15-7

11^th: Scott Suggs, Alexander, Ark., five bass, 14-13

12^th: Allen Boyd, Salem, Ind., five bass, 14-6

12^th: Wesley Strader, Spring City, Tenn., five bass, 14-6

14^th: Darrel Robertson, Jay, Okla., five bass, 13-5

15^th: Jeff Sprague, Point, Texas, five bass, 12-13

16^th: Quaker State pro Matt Arey, Shelby, N.C., five bass, 12-3

17^th: Cody Bird, Granbury, Texas, five bass, 11-4

18^th: Joel Richardson, Kernersville, N.C., five bass, 10-15

19^th: Lowrance pro Austin Felix, Eden Prairie, Minn., five bass, 10-14

20^th: Quaker State pro Scott Canterbury, Odenville, Ala., five bass, 10-9

20^th: Mud Hole Custom Tackle pro John Cox, DeBary, Fla., five bass, 10-9

For a full list of results visit FLWFishing.com.

Anglers will take off from Dreher Island State Park located at 3677 State Park Road in Prosperity, at 7 a.m. EDT each morning at the Folger’s Morning Takeoff. Each day’s weigh-in will be held at the Colonial Life Arena located at 801 Lincoln St., in Columbia, beginning at 5 p.m. Backpacks and other large bags are prohibited at Colonial Life Arena, so fishing fans are encouraged to leave their belongings in their vehicle.

Fans will be treated to the FLW Expo at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center located at 1101 Lincoln St. in Columbia, each day from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. prior to the weigh-ins. The Expo includes games, activities and giveaways provided by more than 40 FLW sponsors, the opportunity to shop the latest tackle and outdoor gear from more than 100 exhibitors, Ranger boat simulators, a casting pond and a trout pond for children, as well as the opportunity to meet and interact with top professional anglers, including Hank Parker, Jimmy Houston and Byron Velvick. FLW’s namesake Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, will also be greeting fans.

On Saturday and Sunday the first 500 children 14 and under in attendance at the Expo each day who are accompanied by an adult will receive a voucher to redeem for a free Kid Caster’s no-tangle, rod-and-reel combo courtesy of WLTX 19 after the evening’s weigh-in. Also on Sunday one lucky fishing fan will win a brand new Ranger Z521C bass boat with a 250-horsepower Evinrude outboard motor courtesy of 97.5 WCOS radio. The Ranger Boat giveaway is free to enter but the winner must be present at the conclusion of Sunday’s final weigh-in to win.

Also on Saturday and Sunday, FLW fans will be treated to the Bass & BBQ Festival in conjunction with the FLW Expo. FLW and the South Carolina BBQ Association have partnered to feature award-winning BBQ teams offering delicious fare to visitors at the Forrest Wood Cup Expo. A portion of all proceeds will be donated to local South Carolina charities.

Country music superstar Easton Corbin will perform a free concert on the weigh-in stage at Colonial Life Arena on Sunday starting at 4 p.m., prior to the final weigh-in. The concert is presented by 97.5 WCOS radio. With two No. 1 singles, multiple awards and nominations, plus performances on some of the biggest stages in the world, Mercury Nashville’s Corbin has made a lasting impression on the country music landscape. He is lauded for his traditional country sound, authentic lyrics and mastery of understatement. American Songwriter says, "Easton Corbin has one of those rare, glorious voices that was made – just made – for singing country music.”

The Folger’s Morning Takeoff, FLW Expo, Bass & BBQ event, live concert and weigh-ins are all free and open to the public. The event is hosted by the Capital City Lake Murray Country Regional Tourism Board.

by AnglersChannel

John Garrett Positioned to Repeat at Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship.

Story & Photo by Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships

The goal of every student angler competing in the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship on Lake Bemidji, is to win the one berth being offered to the 2018 Bassmaster Classic. And Bethel University’s John Garrett knows exactly how that feels.

Garrett, a 21-year-old business management major, won this event last year, and competed at the 2017 Bassmaster Classic five months ago on Lake Conroe near Houston.

However, prior to 1:00 p.m. during Day 1 of competition Thursday here on Lake Bemidji, things looked bleak for Garrett and partner Brian Pahl, before they finally caught 14 pounds late in the day, to keep chances very much alive for an appearance in the Bassmaster Classic.

As competition began Friday, they sit near the top of the leaderboard in 4^th place.

“We’ve fished together for three years, and we don’t let our egos get in the way of each other. We have a lot of mutual respect for one another’s ideas. So with just one keeper in the livewell at lunchtime yesterday, we kept trying new patterns in the same area where we were struggling, and it paid off,” explains Pahl, a senior business management major at Bethel in West Tennessee.

Garrett knew fishing would be tough on Bemidji. Practice was super tough on the soft-spoken youngster known for his deep-water structure fishing abilities, but Bemidji is a shallow water game, where pitching soft plastics and topwater frogs often shine best this time of year.

“I feel a lot better going out today, than I did before the start of the tournament, but I’d still say it’s 50/50 on whether I can make it back to the Bassmaster Classic,” says Garrett in his typical humble fashion.

If he does win here, it will require beating his buddy Pawl in a rare bracket elimination format that eventually pits team anglers against one another for the final round of the event.

And as for the feelings a college kid can expect if he makes the Bassmaster Classic, well, the memories are still fresh for Garrett.

“Just being at the Classic is a big deal. Simply being in the presence of the best anglers in the world makes you better. And catching that first keeper on a tough Lake Conroe -- knowing I’d get to cross the stage at Minute Maid Park with a bass in my hands -- is still my greatest memory of the past year.”

by AnglersChannel

A well used hat, and an old big bass

Story & Photo by Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships

For a while Thursday at the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji, MN, it looked as though the 5 pound 14 ounce green beast West Georgia University’s Chase Christie caught would win ‘big bass of the day’ honors.

However, eventually it was outpaced by 6 pound 6 ounce largemouth the team from Northwestern State University weighed-in.

Amazingly, it takes 12 to 14 years for a largemouth bass to grow to those proportions in Northern Minnesota according to B.A.S.S. Director of Conservation, Gene Gilliland. And a fast glance at the Carhartt hat Christie’s partner Brandon Black was wearing appeared to be at least that old as well.

“I actually got this hat in early March at the Southern Conference Regional tournament on Winyah Bay, SC, and I’ve worn it to work and fishing nearly every day since,” grinned Black, a senior geology major at West Georgia.

“That’s one of the reasons I love fishing these tournaments – Carhartt’s a big sponsor of college fishing, so we get to take advantage of the clothing and discounts they give us – which helps a ton in the landscape job I work hard at with my uncle,” says Black.

“In the summer, I work for ResLawn Landscaping about 50 hours a week, and during the school year, I work for them about 10 hours a week. We do everything from lawn mowing, to burying drainage pipes, and setting fences, and I’m wearing Carhartt for all of it. That’s why this hat is so sun-faded and worn-out,” Black proudly explains.

His partner Chase Christie isn’t afraid of hard work either. He may have wrangled the 5 pound 14 ounce beast today on 65-pound braided line Thursday, but during the summer, he’s wrestling hot asphalt back at his Uncle John’s business, Illinois Paving Company.

“I’m always wearing Carhartt because it’s tough, it doesn’t tear, and it holds up, no matter how hot or dirty the job is we’re doing in the paving business,” says Christie, a business management major at West Georgia.

These college anglers work hard in and out of the classroom, and they know how to catch big bass. Indeed, there’s a lot to love and admire about the breed of young men building lifelong friendships and taking their shot at a berth to the 2018 Bassmaster Classic while in Bimidji this week.

by AnglersChannel

RANGER BOATS EXTENDS PARTNERSHIP WITH FLW

MINNEAPOLIS (Aug. 10, 2017) – Fishing League Worldwide (FLW), the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, and Ranger Boats, America’s most iconic boat brand, announced Thursday that Ranger has signed an extension of its exclusive boat sponsorship of FLW and its premier tournament trails, highlighting a lengthy relationship that continues to emphasize the rewards of fishing while opening doors of opportunity for all anglers.

FLW and Ranger have enjoyed the longest-running boat sponsor relationship in the sport, with a history that dates back to FLW's formative years in the early 1980s as Operation Bass. Operation Bass was purchased in 1996 by Minneapolis businessman Irwin Jacobs and renamed FLW in honor of Ranger Boats founder Forrest L. Wood.

“FLW and Ranger Boats have been together since the beginning, and we have enjoyed growing together and building the sport of professional bass fishing into the exciting and marketable products they are today,” said Trish Blake, FLW President of Marketing. “They have been an extremely valued partner of FLW, and we look forward to building upon our past successes.

"Ranger Boats' innovations are the perfect vehicle for today's tournament anglers and offer unmatched safety and design features for recreational anglers, while being tough enough to stand up to the rigors of life on the FLW Tour," Blake added. "We are thrilled to announce that Ranger Boats has chosen to extend this partnership."

Per terms of the agreement, Ranger Boats will receive exposure at more than 258 FLW-sanctioned bass fishing tournaments and Expos, and through multiple FLW media channels, which include FLWFishing.com and FLW Bass Fishing magazine. Ranger Boats will continue its lucrative Ranger Cup program, offering Ranger owners valuable contingency awards in FLW tournaments. For detailed information regarding Ranger Cup contingency payouts in FLW competition, visit RangerCup.com.

"We are very excited to continue our partnership with FLW," said White River Marine Group President Les Crawford. "The Ranger name has long been synonymous with competitive fishing. We are very proud to be aligned with the competition, camaraderie and sportsmanship brought to the sport by FLW."

Ranger Boats is the exclusive boat sponsor across all of FLW's media platforms, including tournaments and Expos, websites, social media, FLW Bass Fishing magazine and the "FLW" television show. For more information about FLW, their tournaments and sponsors, visit FLWFishing.com. To learn more about Ranger Boats visit RangerBoats.com.

About FLW

About Ranger Boats

Headquartered in Flippin, Ark., Ranger Boats is the nation's premier manufacturer of legendary fiberglass and aluminum fishing boats, with acclaimed models and series in the

by AnglersChannel

Bryan College Lions Take Lead At Bassmaster College National Championship

Jake Lee (left) and Jacob Foutz of Bryan College take the lead on the first day of the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji with 16 pounds, 6 ounces.

Photo by Ronnie Moore/B.A.S.S.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 10, 2017

BEMIDJI, Minn. — The first day of the 2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops on Lake Bemidji started under gloomy conditions as storms pushed through the region, but it didn't seem to hurt the fishing.

Jake Lee and Jacob Foutz of Bryan College lead after Thursday’s action with 16 pounds, 6 ounces. Their field-topping weight consisted of only four fish, one short of their five-bass limit.

Storylines for the event consisted of tough and crowded fishing, but Thursday shined light on the quality bass that live in the Minnesota fishery. While 21 teams brought limits to the scales, several other teams stayed in contention by bringing three or four quality fish to the Bassmaster stage.

As for the crowded fishing on Lake Bemidji, Lee and Foutz were able to find an area all to themselves, and it paid dividends for the first round of this three-day event.

“The caliber of fish in our area is just unreal,” Lee said. “There actually aren’t many boats around us. If we can get five more bites, they will be like the fish we weighed in today.”

Their impressive first-place weight wasn’t anchored by a giant largemouth, as one might expect, but rather by four good-sized bass. And those didn’t come as easy as it may seem because of the weather change. Stabilizing weather may help the duo, according to Foutz.

“The winds really blew out our areas and made it harder, but we should be able to duplicate the quality if it settles down some,” Foutz said.

“The bites were about as slow as anything I’ve experienced in my life,” Lee said. “Today was slow and painful, but it worked out.”

Bryan College carries a 10-ounce lead going into Friday’s competition day over their nearest pursuer, which happens to be one of the local Bemidji State University teams.

Brothers Thor and Mitch Swanson took the lead early in the weigh-in and held it right until the end, when Lee and Foutz dethroned them. The Swansons are in good position and well within contention to make the final day cut, as long as they can survive Day 2.

With numerous teams in their area, they aren’t sure they can match their first-day weight of 15-12 again, but the good start is extremely crucial to staying within the projected cut line after Friday’s weigh-in.

“We went out today just hoping not to lose this event on Day 1,” Thor said.

“Any fish tomorrow will be key if we want to stay in the hunt. During the middle of the day we were thankful not to be scratching around still with just one or two fish; having a limit was huge,” Mitch said.

Logan Laprarie and Aaron Belgard of Northwestern State University brought the big bass on Day 1 to the scales, and it topped out at 6-6.

Friday’s take off will happen at Paul Bunyan Park at 6 a.m. CT, and weigh-ins will begin at 2:30 at the same location.

The event is hosted by Bemidji State University and Visit Bemidji.

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Title Sponsor: Carhartt

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Presenting Sponsor: Bass Pro Shops

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Platinum Sponsor: Toyota

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Premier Sponsors: Shell Rotella, Triton Boats, Yamaha, Berkley, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Huk, Skeeter Boats, Humminbird, Mercury

2017 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Supporting Sponsors: ABU Garcia, Advance Auto Parts, Phoenix Boats, Livingston Lures, Dick Cepek Tires & Wheels, Lowrance, Costa, Shimano, St. Croix Rods

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open Series, Academy Sports + Outdoors B.A.S.S. Nation presented by Magellan Outdoors, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Costa Bassmaster High School Series presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods.

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Media Contact: JamieDay Matthews, 205-313-0945, jmatthews@bassmaster.com or Dave Precht, 205-313-0931, dprecht@bassmaster.com

Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops

8/10/2017 - 8/12/2017

Lake Bemidji - Paul Bunyan Park - Bemidji, MN

STANDINGS BOATER DAY 1

Name # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz # Fish # Live Lbs - Oz

1 Jacob Foutz - Jake Lee Bryan College 4 4 16- 6 4 4 16- 6

2 Thor Swanson - Mitch Swanson Bemidji State University 5 5 15-12 5 5 15-12

3 Cole Floyd - Carter McNeil Bethel University 5 5 14-12 5 5 14-12

4 Brian Pahl - John Garrett Bethel University 5 5 14-11 5 5 14-11

5 Brody McWilliams - Tristan Gold Indiana University 5 5 14- 8 5 5 14- 8

6 Tyler Firebaugh - Chad Sweitzer Chico State 5 5 14- 1 5 5 14- 1

7 TJ Tucker - Bennett Pierce Arkansas Tech University 5 5 13-14 5 5 13-14

8 Austin Carr - Justin Carr Heartland Community College 5 5 13- 6 5 5 13- 6

9 Sam Carris - John Berry Tennessee Tech University 5 5 12-13 5 5 12-13

10 Anderson Aldag - Lee Mattox University of Alabama 3 3 12-10 3 3 12-10

11 Daniel Kennedy - Cody Stahl SCAD 3 3 12- 8 3 3 12- 8

12 Garrett Enders - Cody Huff Bethel University 5 5 12- 6 5 5 12- 6

13 John Duarte - Chesley Alford Coastal Carolina University 5 5 12- 4 5 5 12- 4

14 Lawrence Kuznik - Dakota Moore University of Louisiana at LaFayette 3 3 12- 3 3 3 12- 3

15 Rick Couch Jr - John Kaufman U. of Central Florida 5 5 12- 1 5 5 12- 1

16 Tyler Rivet - Cameron Naquin Nicholls State University 4 4 11-10 4 4 11-10

17 Tyler Craig - Spencer Lambert University of Louisiana at Monroe 5 5 11- 5 5 5 11- 5

18 Josh Worth - Colorado Mesa University 4 3 11- 3 4 3 11- 3

19 J T Russell - Chase Grubbs University of Montevallo 4 4 11- 1 4 4 11- 1

20 Chase Chastain - Andrew Fisher Jacksonville State University 3 3 10-12 3 3 10-12

21 Jake Dorony - Hunter Scharphorn Lake Superior State University 4 4 10-10 4 4 10-10

22 Hunter McCarty - Sloan Pennington U. of North Alabama 5 5 10- 8 5 5 10- 8

23 Collin Cropp - Louie Dazzo U. of Wisconsin Whitewater 4 4 10- 7 4 4 10- 7

24 Tanner Ward - Kent State 5 5 10- 5 5 5 10- 5

25 Justin St Onge - Ryan McLaughlin Haywood Community College 5 5 9-12 5 5 9-12

26 Stetson Overton - Cason Kelley Tarleton State University 5 5 9-11 5 5 9-11

27 Hunter Ward - Stewart Ward Central Alabama Comm College 4 4 9- 6 4 4 9- 6

28 Noah Pescitelli - Sean Hall SCAD 5 5 9- 5 5 5 9- 5

29 Austin Handley - Caleb Wozniak Auburn University 5 5 9- 4 5 5 9- 4

30 Ben Stone - Collin Smith Lander University 4 4 9- 4 4 4 9- 4

31 Nick Ratliff - Luke Patterson Campbellsville University 5 5 8-10 5 5 8-10

32 Cole Sands - Nathan Bell Bryan College 4 4 7-15 4 4 7-15

33 Matt Brown - DJ Barber Bryan College 2 2 7-15 2 2 7-15

34 Austin Mize - Parker Davis U. of North Alabama 3 3 7-11 3 3 7-11

35 Patrick Walters - Tyler All University of South Carolina 5 5 7-10 5 5 7-10

36 JP Kimbrough - Jared Rascoe LSU Shreveport 3 3 7- 9 3 3 7- 9

37 Dawson Cranford - Charles Norris University of Louisiana at LaFayette 3 3 7- 7 3 3 7- 7

38 John Moore - Clark Mannas Texas A&M University 4 4 7- 2 4 4 7- 2

39 Trent Newman - Zackery Hines Dallas Baptist University 5 5 6-14 5 5 6-14

40 Jesse Erb - Gavin Oswalt University of Pittsburgh 3 2 6-10 3 2 6-10

41 Luke Parlow - Brad Burton Missouri State University 4 4 6- 8 4 4 6- 8

42 Jacob Harris - Tyler Smith Southeast Missouri State University 2 2 6- 7 2 2 6- 7

43 Ryan Winchester - Tyler Black Bethel University 2 2 6- 6 2 2 6- 6

44 Aaron Belgard - Logan Laprarie Northwestern State University 1 1 6- 6 1 1 6- 6

45 Jonathan Kelley - Max McQuaide Coastal Carolina University 3 3 6- 2 3 3 6- 2

46 Justin Seeton - Dakota Ebare Tarleton State University 4 4 6- 1 4 4 6- 1

47 Luke Gillund - Robby Troje Bemidji State University 3 3 6- 1 3 3 6- 1

48 Nicholas Moore - Sean Solomon Southeast Missouri State University 2 2 6- 1 2 2 6- 1

49 Jacob Wall - University of Oregon 3 3 6- 0 3 3 6- 0

50 Brandon Black - Chase Christie University of West Georgia 1 1 5-14 1 1 5-14

51 Michael Rollert - Corbin Davis Texas A&M University 2 2 5-13 2 2 5-13

52 Brandon Bland - Spencer DeFoor U. of South Alabama 2 2 5-10 2 2 5-10

53 Nolan Minor - Casey Lanier West Virginia University 3 3 5- 6 3 3 5- 6

54 Sheldon Rogge - Travis Blenn Kansas State University 3 3 5- 2 3 3 5- 2

55 John Jay - Grant Pietsch Texas A&M University 3 3 5- 1 3 3 5- 1

56 Zane Loveday - Denver Satterlee Calhoun Community College 2 2 4-15 2 2 4-15

57 Brandon Simoneaux - Colby Ogden Lamar University 2 2 4-13 2 2 4-13

58 Matthew Bowden - Barton Courtney Texas Tech University 1 1 4- 6 1 1 4- 6

59 Lance Freeman - Cameron Brooks Murray State University 1 1 4- 4 1 1 4- 4

60 Evan Owrey - KJ Queen Bethel University 2 2 4- 2 2 2 4- 2

61 Keegan Russell - Lake Superior State University 2 2 4- 0 2 2 4- 0

62 Michael Fisher - Brandon Padilla Jacksonville State University 1 1 3-13 1 1 3-13

63 Dylan Kear - Dalton Price Bryan College 1 1 3-12 1 1 3-12

64 Dillon Harrell - Dustin Moreno Sam Houston State University 1 1 3-10 1 1 3-10

65 Chandler Robertson - Austin Culbertson University of Missouri 1 1 3- 7 1 1 3- 7

66 Crosley Welch - Matt Fielder Missouri State University 2 2 3- 4 2 2 3- 4

67 Brady Bowden - Tyler Pennington Faulkner University 1 1 3- 1 1 1 3- 1

68 Jacob Louis - JT Russell McKendree University 1 1 3- 0 1 1 3- 0

68 Corey Neece - Nick Hatfield Tusculum College 1 1 3- 0 1 1 3- 0

70 Benjamin Hager - Noah Shaver UNC Charlotte 2 2 2-15 2 2 2-15

71 Gregory Green - Dustin Nash Northwestern State University 1 1 2-14 1 1 2-14

72 Austin Butler - Will Gentry Murray State University 1 1 2-11 1 1 2-11

72 Tristan Thomas - Ty Johnston U. of North Georgia 1 1 2-11 1 1 2-11

74 Paul Davis - Shane Parker Missouri State University 1 1 2-10 1 1 2-10

75 Dalton Childers - Auburn University 1 1 2- 7 1 1 2- 7

76 Hunter Freeman - Thomas Soileau University of Louisiana at Monroe 2 2 2- 5 2 2 2- 5

77 Travis McGuire - Layne Bynum Texas Tech University 1 1 2- 4 1 1 2- 4

78 Zachary Ramsey - Joshua Rockefeller Augusta University 1 1 1-11 1 1 1-11

79 Reed Foster - Colt Benedict Dallas Baptist University 1 1 1- 8 1 1 1- 8

80 Justin Guarnaccio - Michael Tesch University of Wisconsin Stout 1 1 1- 1 1 1 1- 1

81 Gavyn Bridges - Dylan Anderson UT Chattanooga 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

81 Joshua Butts - Reid Conner Wallace State Hanceville 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

81 Connor Chapman - Jaron Deal Kennesaw State University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

81 Max Gresham - Zack Blake Valdosta State University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

81 Hunter Louden - Cully Scroggins Bethel University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

81 Hunter Mills - Hunter McKinley Murray State University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

81 Baylor Ronemus - Cole Tinsley Clemson University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

81 Andrew Warbington - Brant Lewis University of West Alabama 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

81 Brock Wilke - Brady Faust McKendree University 0 0 0- 0 0 0 0- 0

BIG BASS

Day Name City,State Lbs-Oz

1 Aaron Belgard - Logan Laprarie Deville, LA 6- 6

by AnglersChannel

New for 2018: Ranger Z520L Comanche and Z521L Comanche

High-performance combines with state-of-the-art fishing features

FLIPPIN, Ark. (Aug. 10, 2017) - For 50 years, Ranger has led the way for tournament fishing design and innovation. That legacy continues with the latest extension of the esteemed Z500 Comanche line. This tournament-proven line of boats now includes the L Series with the all-new Z520L Comanche and Z521L Comanche and is built upon a celebrated hull design that delivers unmatched quality and fishability. The boats are packed with fresh features and sport new style lines and trade dress to create the unmatched fit and finish Ranger owners have come to expect.

"Ranger consistently strives to improve, but on many levels, I didn't think that was possible with the current Z boat," said Hank Parker, legendary television host and tournament angler. "But the new L Series, from the console and style lines to the new seats and LED lighting, has unquestionably raised the bar. This is the absolute Cadillac of tournament fishing rigs."

Each boat retains Ranger's legendary running surface, providing an extremely smooth and dry ride. New and more distinctive molded style lines paired with an exclusive L.E.D. light package highlight the boats' sharp fit and finish. Enlarged, wrap-around SRS cockpit seating is covered in custom-fitted premium marine upholstery and, combined with molded-in footrests, give all-day comfort and protection for anglers in rough waters.

"The new wrap-around seats are going to be a big hit with both tournament anglers and weekend fishermen alike," said Ranger Design Engineer David Stoner. "With a wider seat and SRS suspension, the L Series gives a superior and more comfortable ride. Combine this wider space with the adjustable front-to-back seat track, both the cockpit and passenger seats will fit anglers of just about any size."

The Z520L officially measures 20 feet, 9 inches, with a 95-inch beam and comes standard with a Minn Kota Fortrex trolling motor. The Z521L measures 21 feet, 7 inches, with a 97-inch beam and is fitted with a Minn Kota Fortrex trolling motor as well. Both boats are rated for up to a 250 horsepower outboard.

The bow of each boat features a redesigned workstation, replete with tool holders, integrated drink holder and accepts electronics up to 12 inches. The expansive, padded front deck is easily large enough for multiple anglers to fish together. Underneath the casting deck, the patented Power Ventilation Rod Storage™ system keeps rods and gear dry. All storage compartments are gel-coated and lined with custom rubber mats for quicker drying times, while the rear deck offers additional storage and dual, aerated livewells with removable divider and automatic pump out.

An all-new console accepts electronics up to 16 inches and is outfitted with redesigned digital switching keypads and keyless ignition. Both boats are offered in single- or dual-console configurations and come standard with Lowrance HDS electronics at the console and bow.

"Boating electronics continue to evolve with bigger and better equipment," said Ranger Design Engineer Brad Garringer. "We have worked hand-in-hand with our partner companies to build a boat that can accommodate these new products as soon as they come to market. We want to be on the forefront of innovation and you see that with the new L Series, from integrated 15- and 16-inch screens with engine data incorporation, to extra USB ports and automated light functionality to keep anglers Coast Guard compliant at night."

Ranger also differentiates itself in the market by focusing on the smaller details that make for a more enjoyable day on the water. Features such as a running rod rack with retractable straps, adjustable driver and passenger seats, integrated fish ruler, and recessed trolling motor pedal ease the stress of competition. The two new boats also come loaded with features Ranger owners demand out of their bass fishing rig: gas spring lid assists, lockable storage compartments, upright level flotation, integrated bow navigation lights, pultruded fiberglass transom and fiberglass stringer system.

The Z520L and Z521L are both paired with a new trailer design with updated fenders and wheels. The custom-built, tandem-axle Ranger Trail® trailer perfectly matches each individual boat for smooth, easy towing and maneuvering. The Ranger Trail trailer is also equipped with a Road Armor finish, L.E.D. lights, aluminum wheels and a COOL Hub® lubrication system as standard equipment. Further equipped with torsion axle suspension, swing away tongue, full-size spare and matching fiberglass fenders, the Ranger Trail trailer delivers remarkable peace of mind when trailering and complements the striking good looks of the boat.

2018 RANGER Z520L Comanche

Overall Hull Length: 20 feet, 9 inches

Beam: 95 inches

Maximum HP: 250

Inside Depth: 22 inches

Fuel Capacity: 53 gallons

Total Persons/Motor/Gear: 1,650 lbs.

Approx. Boat Weight: 1,850 lbs.

Trailer GVWR: CF5400

2018 RANGER Z521L Comanche

Overall Hull Length: 21 feet, 7 inches

Beam: 97 inches

Maximum HP: 250

Inside Depth: 21 inches

Fuel Capacity: 53 gallons

Total Persons/Motor/Gear: 1,700 lbs.

Approx. Boat Weight: 1,925 lbs.

Trailer GVWR: CF5400

by AnglersChannel

With Practice Done, a Few Anglers Share the Good & Bad

As the 2017 Forrest Wood Cup approaches and the official practice period draws to a close, one thing is certain – the pros are struggling to put together plans that will carry them through three days of competition during the slowest month of the year on a lake that has become stingy with its ample population of bass.
David Dudley has taken to social media to laugh at his feeble efforts. We’ve shared some of that with you on our AnglersChannel Instagram page.
Zack Birge seems less amused with his difficulty in locating fish. He says he found one little deal late today that may pan out during the tournament. That’s when you want to see results anyway – when it counts. And how many times have we heard a winner look back and talk about how poorly practice went for them?
Look out for Birge.
Jeff Sprague was upbeat. “I’m actually surprised about the weather. It’s a lot cooler here this year than it has been in previous years we have had the Cup, so I’m kind of wondering what that’s going to do to the fish, but that’s been the biggest factor so far.”
What’s Sprague’s target weight? “I think it’s going to take somewhere between 14 and 16 ½ pounds a day to win this tournament. It’s fishing a little better than it did last time we were here so I think we’re going to see a little bit heavier bags than we did in previous years.”
This year’s Cup is 3-day race, not a 4-day affair as in years past. How does this affect angler strategies?
Says Sprague, “I absolutely think it’s going to be a different strategy this year with the shorter time span of 3 days. In a 4-day tournament you can take a risk by holding out on your spots, but with 3 days, you just have to pull on everything that bites. It’s the Forrest Wood Cup. No one is going to be fishing safe.”
Sprague isn’t playing it safe with his answers either. He has already revealed a lure choice that he expects to be a big player for him this week. “Tattletail Worm by Gene Larew. For sure.”
A special thanks to The Pro Agency for help in compiling this report.

by AnglersChannel

Soggy and Froggy at Lake Bemidji

Story & Photo from Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships

As competition began Thursday morning at the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship, parents and girlfriends walked gently on wet sand where college anglers beached their bass boats prior to takeoff. Umbrellas went up. And puddles formed on the lawn surrounding sponsor exhibit tents at Paul Bunyan Park on the shores of Lake Bemidji.

After three tough days of practice, marked by light winds and mostly sunny skies, anglers grumbled about crowded fishing, an over abundance of northern pike, and the struggle to catch a 5-bass limit.

Change is good, so these best-of-the-best college anglers are welcoming the chilly 59-degree air, rain, and steady cool north wind.

Spencer Lambert, a junior majoring in agriculture business at the University of Louisiana Monroe. -- “I’m hoping the rain and clouds will make the topwater bite last a lot longer today. Our first day of practice was our best day of practice, but that area is really crowded, so we’re not going start there. Today is kind of a new day to try to figure things out.”

Hunter McKinley, a senior majoring in advertising at Murray State in Kentucky. –- “Yesterday was better with the cloud cover, so I’m really, really, hoping this change in weather is only going to make things better. As long as this north wind doesn’t blow too crazy, we might have a better day today.”

Luke Parlow, a junior majoring in economics at Missouri State. – “I’m kind of welcoming this rain and wind because our practice was so tough that I’m counting on this major weather change to hopefully makes things better.”

Tyler Rivet, a senior majoring in petroleum technology at Nicholls State in Louisiana. – “This rain and wind can’t hurt us because we never really figured things out in practice. But my three favorite lures are a frog, a frog, and a frog – and this is frog fishing kind of weather. If I ever make it to the Bassmaster Elite Series – it’ll be a frog that helps get me there.”

Rivet is right; frogs should feel at home on this soggy first day of competition. And hopefully the largemouth will be better energized by the wind and rainy skies too.

by AnglersChannel

College Anglers Preview Lake Bemidji at Carhartt Bassmaster Championship

Story & Photo by Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships

Ryan McLaughlin and Justin St. Onge of Haywood Community College in North Carolina, along with Tyler Rivet and Cameron Naquin of Nicholls State in Louisiana, took time to offer their opinions on what to expect at the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship that begins Thursday morning on Lake Bemidji in Northern Minnesota.

What will be the biggest challenge this week?

McLaughlin & St. Ogne: Trying to find a place to fish that’s not crowded with other anglers.

Rivet & Naquin: Dealing with fishing pressure from other college anglers in certain areas of the lake.

What’s your favorite thing about Bemidji?

McLaughlin & St. Ogne: The scenery and the diversity of fishable habitat.

Rivet & Naquin: The northern pike fishing is pretty awesome.

Name four lures you think will get used most by the tournament competitors?

McLaughlin & St. Ogne: A punch rig for thick vegetation, a frog, a spinnerbait, and a Senko.

Rivet & Naquin: A frog, a beaver-style punch bait, a topwater plug, and a jerkbait.

How much weight do you think it’ll take to make the Top 10 at the end of Thursday’s competition?

McLaughlin & St. Ogne: 13 ½ pounds

Rivet & Naquin: 12 ½ pounds

by AnglersChannel

Carhartt Countdown to Blastoff - Carhartt Bassmaster College National Championship

Alan McGuckin speaks with Cody Huff and Garrett Enders with Bethel University as they finish up practice for the College National Championship on Bemidiji Lake in Minnesota.

by AnglersChannel

Heart trumps fiberglass and horsepower at Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship

Story & photo by Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships

Louie Dazzo doesn’t mind that the faded black mesh Carhartt hat he’s wearing at this week’s Bassmaster College Series National Championship shows a salty sweat ring -- or that his red boat is slower, and made of aluminum, instead of faster fiberglass.

“I’ve had this Carhartt hat for three years, I wear it almost everyday, and I always wear it when I’m fishing, I’m kinda superstitious about it,” grinned the communications major from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

And as for the red 17-foot aluminum Tracker boat with the 60-horse engine -- well, Louie loves it. As well he should. His grandma bought it for him when he turned 18, and its carried he and fishing partner Collin Crop, a hockey goalie and human resources manager, all the way to the biggest tournament in college bass fishing.

“I realize it’s one of the less fancy boats out here, but it was good enough for us to finish second at the Lake of the Ozarks regional, and I’ve got about eight Top 10 finishes in this boat,” says the good humored Dazzo, a native of Naperville, IL, who leaned on Spro Rock Crawler crankbaits, and a Vision 110 jerkbait at the regional competition.

Certainly, on a college kid’s budget, not all the vessels here on Lake Bimidji are fancy new fiberglass models. There are other aluminum boats like Louie’s, as well as fiberglass vessels that are twenty years old.

“I sort of see the versatility, toughness, and how high the front end of my boat sits out of the water as an advantage,” says Dazzo. “I can beat the heck out of it, run it up into a foot of water, and have a higher vantage point when looking for spawning beds, or smallmouth on shallow flats, than what I could in a bigger fiberglass boat.”

“It’s a great starter boat, that’s for sure, and ultimately, the success you have as a tournament angler is more about your ability to find and catch fish than what your boat is made of,” says Dazzo in humble fashion.

While most anglers complained of Lake Bemidji fishing super tough, and sporting a stronger than desired northern pike population, Dazzo and his hockey playing fishing partner had a solid practice day Tuesday.

"Our top end speed is only 30 mph with this little 60 horsepower engine, so it takes us one hour to get to our fish, but we caught a 12-pound limit yesterday, and one of those fish was a 3 ¾ pound largemouth,” says Dazzo.

With a red aluminum boat, and a heart made of passion, look for the guy in the sun-bleached black Carhartt hat to be one of the last anglers standing during Saturday’s final day of competition.

by AnglersChannel

Alabama, Missouri State, and Tusculum College talk Carhartt Bassmaster National Championship

Story & Photo from Alan McGuckin / Dynamic Sponsorships

Teams representing 61 colleges and universities are at Lake Bemidji in Northern Minnesota this week for the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship.

Lee Mattox, a chemical engineering major from the University of Alabama, Nick Hatfield a business major from Tusculum in East Tennessee, and Shane Parker a media major from Missouri State, are just three of the dozens of college anglers dreaming of a chance to qualify for the 2018 Bassmaster Classic in South Carolina through a win in Minnesota this week.

All three anglers were gracious enough to share their thoughts on college fishing, as well as the specifics of this week.

Ten years from now, what will you remember most about your time spent as a college bass fishing competitor?

Mattox, University of Alabama: All the friendships I’ve made.

Hatfield, Tusculum College: Getting to travel from Tusculum in East Tennessee to this championship in Minnesota.

Parker, Missouri State: A combination of great times on the water, as well as getting to know all the guys on the team, and learning from one another.

What’s your favorite bass fishery anywhere in America?

Mattox: Lake Champlain, throwing a drop shot for Smallmouth.

Hatfield: Lake Guntersville, throwing a crankbait in June.

Parker: Lake of the Ozarks, pitching a jig in early summer.

What’s your favorite thing about Lake Bemidji so far?

Mattox: It’s got an abundance of Northern Pike.

Hatfield: The pike fishing is really good.

Parker: It’s got aquatic vegetation, and we don’t get to fish much of that in Missouri.

So the pike fishing is great, but you can’t weigh those in. Will this tournament be won with Smallmouth of Largemouth Bass?

Mattox: Largemouth

Hatfield: Largemouth

Parker: Largemouth

by AnglersChannel

Alone or with a teammate, College fishing is deep in camaraderie

The Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship begins as a team format, before funneling down to a one-on-one elimination bracket that sends one skilled angler to compete in bass fishing’s biggest event – the Bassmaster Classic.

While 61 different colleges and universities have sent their most qualified ‘sticks’ to beautiful Bemidji, Minnesota this week, where most will fish as a team, a handful of students are forced to fish alone for a variety of reasons.

Some of the solo anglers simply qualified by fishing alone all year during the regular season. And heck, one guy is expecting the birth of a child, providing ample reason to stay home.

Josh Worth is one of those who will take a page from Henry David Thoreau’s literary classic “Walden” as the 23-year-old Environmental Science major from Colorado Mesa University will lean heavily on self-reliance while competing without a team partner on Lake Bemidji.

“The main reason I’m fishing alone is because none of my partners could make it to the Wild Card event at Lay Lake. One had a wedding, and the other wasn’t eligible for that event, so I had to qualify for this tournament alone,” explains Worth.

“It really doesn’t bother me that I’m competing by myself because Lake Bemidji offers plenty of shallow water patterns to exploit for a guy fishing alone,” he says.

“Now, if it was mostly an offshore pattern, at a place like Kentucky Lake, I’d probably be at a big disadvantage, because two guys can keep a deep water school fired up way better than a guy fishing solo can,” adds the upbeat Worth.

Asked to choose two lures for the rest of his life, Worth rattled off a shallow water pitching jig from Pepper’s Custom Lures in a color called “Delta Magic”, as well as a topwater frog, to fast reflect his confidence in the shallow water scene.

At least his long drive to Bemidji wasn’t a solo trip. His wife Brandy accompanied him on the 1,200-mile trek that took 18 hours to this lake he’s never fished before.

Brandy will spend the week hanging out with family they have in the area, and enjoying the many natural attractions in the region, while Josh tries to crack the code on Bemidji’s bass.

“I have an uncle that lives near here, and when I’d come to visit he’d take me to his cabin at Lake of the Woods, but I’ve never fished Bemidji until yesterday,” he admits.

“Whether you’re here with a teammate or fishing alone, there’s still a ton of camaraderie among all the students that are a part of Carhartt College fishing,” says Worth.

“There’s not the dislike or rivalry that you might find in other sports. Everybody here shares a common respect for one another, because we all have the same passion – and that’s bass fishing.”

by AnglersChannel

GORRELL WINS T-H MARINE FLW BFL NORTHEAST DIVISION EVENT ON LAKE CHAMPLAIN

New Jersey’s Tracy Earns Co-angler Title

TICONDEROGA, N.Y. (Aug. 7, 2017) – Dale Gorrell of Hatfield, Pennsylvania, caught a five-bass limit weighing 21 pounds, 4 ounces, Saturday to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Northeast Division tournament on Lake Champlain. Gorrell pocketed $6,852 for his catch.

Gorrell said he spent his day fishing a region of Lake Champlain known as The Narrows.

“I ran some patterns early in the day that I had found in practice, but couldn’t really get anything going,” said Gorrell, who earned his second-career victory in BFL competition. “I switched to a smaller lure in black and blue and really started catching them. The water was a bit muddier than it was in practice, so I think that was the key adjustment.”

Gorrell said he caught everything he brought to the weigh-in scale using a Black and Blue Flake-colored Z-Man Finesse T.R.D. on a Ned rig.

“I worked through a 200-yard stretch of backwater that had a cliff and a 10 to 12 foot hole,” said Gorrell. “There was also a grass flat between where I was fishing and the main-river channel. The bigger fish related to a couple trees that had fallen from the cliff into the water, while the smaller fish were up next to the cliff in chunk rock.”

Around 11 a.m., Gorrell said he caught the largest bass of the event – a 6-pound, 10-ouncer – as well as two 5-pounders on a single pass through the stretch.

“When the water is changing color, it was best to hit the brakes and slow down,” said Gorrell. “It’s hard to do sometimes, but it paid off for me.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st: Dale Gorrell, Hatfield, Pa., five bass, 21-4, $4,852 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus

2^nd: John Paul Pelletier, Nassau, N.Y., five bass, 19-8, $1,921

3^rd: Michael Grabo, Burnt Hills, N.Y., five bass, 19-2, $1,282

4^th: Bryan Labelle, Hinesburg, Vt., five bass, 18-13, $896

5^th: Michael Marini, Slingerlands, N.Y., five bass, 17-13, $736

5^th: Joe Labarbera, Montrose, Pa., five bass, 17-13, $736

7^th: Tom Callahan, Moriah Center, N.Y., five bass, 17-9, $640

8^th: Shaun Kucharski, Pittston, Pa., five bass, 17-7, $676

9^th: Andrew Kartesz, Ludlow, Pa., five bass, 17-5, $480

9^th: Anthony Lorefice, Johnson City, N.Y., five bass, 17-5, $480

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Gorrell’s 6-pound, 10-ounce bass also earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $510.

Ronald Tracy of Marlton, New Jersey, caught a five-bass limit weighing 17 pounds, 4 ounces, to win the Co-angler Division and $2,083.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st: Ronald Tracy, Marlton, N.J., five bass, 17-4, $2,083

2^nd: Nelson Hares, Millville, N.J., five bass, 16-13, $942

3^rd: David Sokolowski, Brewerton, N.Y., five bass, 15-14, $627

4^th: Sal Messina, Wolcott, Conn., five bass, 15-8, $439

5^th: Steve Cram, Williamstown, N.J., five bass, 15-3, $377

6^th: Travis Gilberti, La Grange, N.Y., five bass, 15-0, $345

7^th: Mark Gebbia, Fair Lawn, N.J., five bass, 14-15, $314

8^th: Jason Pierson, Gaithersburg, Md., five bass, 14-14, $282

9^th: Neil Thomas, Scarborough, Maine, five bass, 14-8, $251

10^th: Kenneth Martin Dixon, Newcastle, Del., five bass, 13-13, $459

10^th: William Allie, Wynantskill, N.Y., five bass, 13-13, $209

Dixon caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a fish weighing 5 pounds, 1 ounce – and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $250.

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. 12-14 BFL Regional Championship on the James River in Williamsburg, Virginia. 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.

For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the BFL on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.

by AnglersChannel

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