Rodgers Hoping To Solve Beaver Lake's Clear Water Mystery In Flw Tournament
Dearal Rodgers will be fishing as a co-angler in the Walmart FLW Tour Major this week on Beaver Lake
When you are fishing from the back of the boat it helps to draw a pro angler who is on fish. So far this FLW Tour season, the highest finishing pro Dearal Rodgers has drawn finished 58th.
“Hopefully, whoever I fish with will be on them,” said Rodgers of the Walmart FLW Tour Major this week on Beaver Lake.
“It is not my favorite lake, but over the years I have learned some things to try there,” said Rodgers who highest finish on Beaver Lake in six tournaments was 21st in May 2009 as a co-angler.
Besides hopping he draws a pro who has a shot at winning the tournament, Rodgers is also hoping the fish are finally out of their winter doldrums and ready to eat.
“From what I have heard they have had a real cold winter there like we have had,” said Rodgers, who hails from Camden, S.C. “A couple of weeks ago I heard the water temperature was in the 40s, but they have had some warmer days like we have had, so the bite should be getting better. I'm hoping we will be looking at some pre-spawn fish.”
Beaver Lake has both largemouth bass and spotted bass, Rodgers noted. Figuring whoever he draws as a pro partner will be targeting the largemouths, which are bigger, he plans to concentrate on the spotted bass which may be easier to catch.
“We can weigh in 12-inch spots, but the largemouths have to be 14 or 15 inches. While the pro is fishing for largemouths, I could target the spots and get a limit that way,” he said.
“I will be using light line, either 6-pound-test or 8-pound-test. Those clear water lakes have always been tough for me, but over the years I've learned to lighten my line up. On Lake Wateree we catch fish on the bottom, but there in that clear water you have to make the fish come up to the bait,” he said.
Rodgers said he probably will fish a little 4-inch worm on a Shakey head and a drop-shot for the spotted bass.
“I could also see the Bombers, like the Long-A, coming into play. A weight bait is real good on the pre-spawn spots, along with a jerkbait. In those Ozark Mountain lakes they really like a jerkbait.”
Following a work-place accident, Rodgers had intended to spend this year recovering fully from his injuries, but when the 2014 season was announced, he felt he had to get back in the game this year with one goal in mind – to qualify for the Forrest Wood Cup which will be held on Lake Murray less than an hour from his home.
After a disastrous start in the first tournament of the season when he finished 120th on Lake Okeechobee in February, Rodgers has begun to work his way back up the standings with a 15th place finish on Lake Hartwell in early March and a 58th place on Sam Rayburn Reservoir in late March.
“I was in the money, but I would have liked to have finished higher. I'm 48th in points so I need to be in the top 35 in the last three tournaments,” he said. “But, I feel good about it – if I can just get past Beaver Lake.”
Walmart FLW Tour Major
Apr 10-13, 2014
Beaver Lake
Prairie Creek Park
Weather Pretty And Fish Biting Just In Time For Claire Whaley Foundation Tournament On Lake Russell
It takes dedication and a lot of effort to keep a small charitable foundation going, but all Trad Whaley has to do is look at the list of families the Claire Whaley Foundation has helped and he knows he has to keep going with the effort named for his daughter.
The 6th annual Claire Whaley Foundation Bass Tournament will be held Saturday on Lake Russell with a $200 entry fee, plus an optional $10 for Big Fish, and a guaranteed first place prize of $5,000. Most of the money raised by the tournament comes through donations, said Whaley, a tournament angler himself, as 85 percent of the entry fees is paid back to the fishermen.
The theme of the tournament is: “Helping families with special needs children one cast at a time.”
Whaley's daughter, Claire, was diagnosed with Ischemic Hypoxic Encephalopathy which means that parts of her brain were deprived of oxygen when she stopped breathing right after birth. She has not been able to develop normally, has the most trouble with her vision, and also demonstrates characteristics of cerebral palsy.
Whaley and his wife Angie created the Claire Whaley Foundation when they were denied participation in some state and federal programs because their family income exceeded eligible limits. The foundation exists to provide support for middle class working families who have children with special needs.
“We've been doing it for six years and in that time we have raised right at $30,000 and every cent of that except for our costs went to the families. We try to help at last three or four families each year as much as we can. We've been lucky the last few years – we've been able to buy medical equipment for some of the kids and sometimes we just donate cash for the families to use as they need.”
Whaley pointed out that the foundation is a 501c charity.
“It was hard getting the paperwork done at first, but it was worth it,” he said. “We are doing everything the right way. We are 100 percent for the families.”
And, he added, the tournament is lucky this year, falling right on the spawn for the bass in Lake Russell.
“I think the fish will be coming to the bank and they are finally biting good. Hopefully, everyone will know that and come out and fish with us Saturday,” he said. “It's been taking 15 to 16 pounds down there in weekend tournaments. It's looking to be a pretty day weather-wise, so it should be a really enjoyable tournament.”
Claire Whaley Foundation Bass Tournament
Sat, Apr 12, 2014
Lake Russell
72 Ramp
Call Trad Whaley at 864-378-0952
Another Field Of More Than 200 Teams Expected For Texas Team Trail Tournament On Lake Texoma
Parker Smelley and Branden Hollingshead won the most recent Texas Team Trail tournament on Ray Roberts with 28.06 lbs
In the two tournaments held so far in 2014, the Texas Team Trail has averaged 234 boats – 251 teams at Sam Rayburn Reservoir Feb. 15 and 217 at Lake Ray Roberts March 15 – and more than 200 teams are expected for the third tournament of the season Saturday at Lake Texoma.
And, said tournament director Mike Hastings, the fishing should be “really good” for both largemouth and smallmouth bass.
“With the largemouth there will definitely be some bass on the bed spawning. In fact, the largemouths will be in all phases of the spawn. Guys will be catching them pre-spawn, post-spawn and sight fishing for spawning fish on the beds,” he said.
As for the smallmouth, Hastings said the Alabama Rig will play a major role.
“The smallmouth bite is expected to be really good, too. We don't have any restrictions on the Alabama Rig, so this is one of those deals where you had better be throwing it,” he said.
While the fishing is expected to be very good, Hastings said anglers on Texoma sometimes have a hard time getting to their fish.
“The wild card on Lake Texoma is the wind. That lake can get so rough that the wind conditions can dictate what areas of the lake are accessible for some of the guys and also how they fish. But if we have halfway decent conditions I expect a really good catch Saturday.”
The Texas Team Trail draws a big entry, in part because all the tournaments are nationally televised, with the programs also airing on a lot of local networks, so there is a tremendous amount of exposure.
“It's all made possible by the sponsors and you can go to the website to see the complete list,” he said. “They are all important to us. Cabelas is our title sponsor and we also have tremendous support from Ranger, Triton and Stratos. Evinrude is also a major sponsor.”
To fish the series each angler must pay a $30 membership fee, then each team pays a $250 entry fee to fish each tournament. The Texas Team Trail Anglers Advantage Program also allows each team, for an additional $100 entry, to compete in an additional payout bracket, with a $100 percent payback.
“A fully-rigged boat is guaranteed for first place at every tournament,” Hastings said. “That is a boat, motor, trailer and electronics, ready to fish. At the championship, two fully-rigged boats are guaranteed, one for first place and one for second place.”
The winning anglers at Lake Texoma will walk away with a brand-new Triton 18XS powered by an Evinrude 150 HO, valued at $27,500.
Anglers who pre-register online get an additional bonus – practice time. If they are registered online before midnight Thursday they are allowed to pre-fish on Friday. Anglers who register online or via phone prior to midnight Thursday will also be entered into a drawing for a Power Pole Shallow Water Anchor. In addition, anglers that opt to register online at www.texasteamtrail.com will be entered into a drawing for a Mustang Survival inflatable PFD.
Following the Lake Texoma tournament, the anglers will move on to Lake Livingston May 3 for the final qualifier of the years before the Championship June 7-8 on Toledo Bend Lake.
Texas Team Trail
Sat, Apr 12, 2014
Lake Texoma
Call Mike Hastings (Tournament Director) - 512-773-7401
Eddie and Maggie McKinnis 17+ takes the win for the Texas Bass Couples on Lake Dunlap
First I would like to welcome Paul and Denise Krause to the Texas Bass Couples. The weather was beautiful for our day of fishing. We had 9 teams and Eddie and Maggie came in with a 5 fish limit of 17.01 lbs. plus big bass of 5.07 lbs. This is how it turned out for the rest of us.
1. Eddie/Maggie 17.01 lbs. BB 5.07 lbs 100 pts.
2. Mike/Noel Buck 16.12 lbs 99 pts.
3. David Jara/Amy Krause 14.08 lbs 98 pts.
4. Leonard/Jan Phillipp 13.14 lbs. 97 pts.
5. John/Ginger Wells 9.13 lbs 96 pts.
6. Brett Smith/Sarah Barry 9.12 lbs 95 pts.
Chris Scott, Kenneth Staats, Paul Krause tied for 7th place none of them weighed in any fish but they all get 25 points.
The standings after 3 tournaments are as follows:
1. David Jara/Amy Krause 296 pts.
2. (Tie) Leonard/Jan Phillipp, Eddie/Maggie McKinnis 293 pts.
3. Mike/Noel Buck 292 pts.
4. Brett Smith/Sarah Barry 290 pts.
5. Steve/Joann Lopez 194 pts.
6. John/Ginger Wells 190 pts.
7. Kenneth Staats/ Dawn Frederiksen 119 pts.
8. Chris/Sallie Scott 50 pts.
9. Paul/Denise Krause 25 pts.
Lineberger threw buzzbait, crankbait super shallow to win BFL on Wylie
Shane Lineberger of Lincolnton, N.C., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 18 pounds, 11 ounces Saturday to win the second Walmart Bass Fishing League North Carolina Division tournament of 2014 on Lake Wylie. For his victory, Lineberger earned $4,235.
Pitts plumbs 16-foot depths to win BFL on Russell
Butch Pitts of Watkinsville, Ga., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 17 pounds, 1 ounce Saturday to win the third Walmart Bass Fishing League Savannah River Division tournament of 2014 on Lake Russell. For his victory, Pitts earned $4,082.
CATT Lake Wateree Still Putting Out Big Bags!
Remember the days when 20 lbs would get you some big money on Lake Wateree? Well those days for now are long gone as a 20 lb bag won’t even get a sniff when it comes to a paycheck these days on Lake Wateree. I always ask the guys on the dock how did they do…a lot said they struggled and they still weigh in 18 to 19 lbs…I sure would like to “struggle”!
Wateree has really set the bar high the past 2 years….this year the average winning weight for the CATT Spring trail with the 1 CBC Qualifier included was over 26 lbs!
The only struggle David F. Canupp & David L. Canupp encountered Saturday, was toting their fat bag of HAWGS to the weigh in trough! The father & son team weighed in 5 fat and sassy Lake Wateree largemouth at 29.41 lbs taking 1st place and the BONUS $. All total they collected $3,680.00!
If you think 29 lbs blew everybody else out of the water you would be incorrect! Barry Holloman & Joey Bramlett laid the smack down on 5 bass that tipped the scales at 27.03 lbs! They also weighed in a 7.72 lb bass good enough for the LEW’S BIG BASS of the tournament. Joey was the lucky angler and took home a brand spanking new LEW”S Baitcast reel on top the BF cash. All total Barry & Joey received $1,915.00
Shawn Knight & Dustin Horne claimed 3rd with another big bass of bass weighing 25.95 lbs. They took home $1,000.00.
4th went to Wayne King & Jay Keith with 5 bass weighing 24.09 lbs and they took home $565.00.
Danny Johnson & Alan Fletcher took 5th with a limit weighing 23.17 lbs and collected $400.00.
Donald Hinson & Jeff Hatfield brought in another sack at 23.02 lbs and received $300.00 for their 6th place finish.
7th place went to Kyle McElveen and Cleve Yarborough with 5 weighing 22.42 lbs and they earned $250.00.
Donald & Paul Wells took 8th with 5 bass weighing 21.46 lbs and collected $200.00.
9ht Place went to Tracy Pope & Greg Sigmon with 5 bass weighing 21.17 lbs and they took home $200.00.
The last money place went to Bryan Holmes and Mike Ware with 5 bass weighing 21.07 lbs and they earned $150.00.
This has been a great Spring and more is on the way! Check out the remaining TOM CATT schedule on the CATT site plus the Catawba Clash is April 26 at Clearwater Cove Marina. May 31st is the CATT SC Championship also at Clearwater Cove Marina and if you entered 1 CATT Qualifying this past Spring or the Fall of 2013 your team is eligible to enter. The qualifying lakes are also listed on the CATT site.
Brett Collins
Carolina Anglers Team Trail LLC
Jay Emert of UT-Knoxville wins Cabella's Collegiate Big Bass Bash with an 8.85-pounder!
Day 2 of the Cabela's Collegiate Big Bass Bash at Kentucky Lake, Paris, TN, started off cool with clear, bluebird skies as 189 collegiate anglers went through take-off, all excited to bring in the biggest bass they could catch for a chance to win tons of prizes. Early reports were given that the fish were biting extremely well from most accounts. Though as the day went on, they had to do some adjusting from their morning strategy as the weather turned cloudy and bass were moving up shallow in the afternoon.
Anglers reported a lot of morning catches using the A-rig and later afternoon bites tended to be either a jerk bait or square bill crank bait, and then the occasional favorite black and blue jig. They seemed to be catching them better on day 2 and this may have been contributed to the front moving in.
Midway into Session 1, Jay Emmert from University of Tennessee-Knoxville came to the scales and weighed in an 8.85 pound bass that he caught on an A-rig and became that session's leader, as well as overall tournament leader. And that 8.85 pounds held all day with the next closest bass on day 2 being a 6.72 pound bass brought in by Austin Keeton from Calhoun Community College.
The Top 5 of the event were:
1st - Jay Emmert, University of Tennessee-Knoxville - 8.85 pounds
2nd - Ty Dyer, Bethel University - 7.42 pounds
3rd - Cody Santel, Murray State - 6.84 pounds
4th - Austin Keeton, Calhoun Community College - 6.72 pounds
5th - Zach Parker, Bethel University - 6.62 pounds
For full results from each session, please click here.
Throughout day 2, anglers brought 126 big bass to the scales; and at the end of the day nearly 80 prizes were awarded, totally $20,000. Many thanks to all our sponsors who support these collegiate anglers -- Cabela's, Ranger Boats, Yamaha, Garmin, Abu Garcia, Costa, BoatUS, BoatUS ANGLER, Lazer TroKar, HydroWave, Big Bite Baits, Sunline, Spro, frogg toggs, Sebile, Temple Fork, Berkley, Sebile, Power Pole, Gemini, Valley Fashions, RAM, Arctic Ice, Mustang, Henry County-Paris, TN, Fish Dayton, and Florence, AL Tourism.
CollegiateBassChampionship.com
Mcclelland Hangs On To Win Bassmaster Elite Series Tournament On Table Rock
They call him “McStick.” As of Sunday, they can call him “McRock” too.
Mike McClelland of Bella Vista, Ark., added a seventh Bassmaster title by a nail-biting 13 ounces over Mark Davis in Sunday’s final round of the A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite at Table Rock Lake.
“This is where I cut my teeth fishing,” said McClelland, now with four victories in his Bassmaster Elite Series career. “I’ve never had the opportunity to win a big one here before.”
To do it, McClelland sacked 61 pounds, 15 ounces of bass. His prize was $100,000 and an instant-in for the 2015 Bassmaster Classic, his 10th qualification for the world championship.
McClelland broke a six-year winner’s drought. His most recent victory before Sunday was in March 2008 on Florida’s Harris Chain of Lakes, when he added a sixth Bassmaster event title to his record. That was the end of a streak he had going from 2005 to 2008, with a win in each of those seasons.
“I seem to go in these spurts where I win a few, then I go years without winning one, and it really can get under your skin,” he said. “To win at Table Rock in front of all my friends and family and people who have supported me through the years is a phenomenal feeling.”
“And I just realized I’ve got a berth for the Bassmaster Classic. That’s an awesome feeling,” said McClelland, who missed out on the 2014 event last February.
McClelland said that “fishing by the seat of my pants” was one key to winning.
“I didn’t try to slow down and finesse fish into biting. I chased the wind,” he said. “On this clear lake, you always have to look for at least a little ripple.”
McClelland said he’s been fishing Table Rock since he was 8 years old. What he learned over the years helped him considerably in the Elite event. He knows the lake so well, he was able run his primary pattern through areas he had not tried out during the three-day practice.
And that pattern was fishing windy, rocky banks close to channel swings in creeks or main-lake pockets.
“This time of year, these fish want to be on the biggest, gnarliest rocks,” he said. “Some people get frustrated trying to fish that stuff, but it was key for me.”
He used his HeHsignature series stickbaits made by Spro, a McStick 110, mostly in a natural herring color, and a McStick 115 in clear chartreuse for shallower presentations.
When the water surface became slick because the wind died, he turned to a 4-inch paddletail swimbait near docks or over brush.
And the original Storm Wiggle Wart, which he’s had in his tackle war chest for years, played a role, too. The wide-wobbling crankbait clued him into one significant move he made on the second day. After the Wart was getting bites in shallower water, McClelland decided to run to a brushpile he knew of and use the McStick 115. The result was a 3 1/2-pound bass.
“You look at little keys like that over the course of the week, and they add up,” McClelland said.
Davis, whose four-day total was 61-2 for second place, made a heroic effort to make up the 4-6 McClelland had on him. Starting the final day in fourth place, Davis not only had to try to overtake McClelland, but also Aaron Martens and Kevin VanDam. While Davis’ 15-11 weight on Sunday was close to being enough, it couldn’t make up for Saturday’s stumble, when he weighed 11-12.
“I knew I blew it yesterday,” said Davis, who had led the 108-man field on Friday. “Did I do anything wrong? No. I caught lots of fish; I stayed on fish all four days. When it comes down to less than a pound like that, it just wasn’t meant to be.”
Davis spoke longingly of a few good-sized bass he hooked on a crankbait Sunday, but they threw it.
His consolation prize for a loss by 13 ounces was retaining the early lead in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year race. After Table Rock, Davis had 35 AOY points on Jared Lintner of Arroyo Grande, Calif.
An early lead is nice, he said but no guarantee.
“I know how AOY goes. You can have one bad day, one bad event. It’s not three strikes you’re out; it’s one strike you’re out,” Davis said. “Happy to lead? Yes. But I know what can happen.”
The AOY title in 2014 would be Davis’ fourth. His first was in 1995, the same year he took his sole Bassmaster Classic win. He followed with AOY crowns in 1998 and 2001.
Finishing in third place with a 60-15 total — just 1 pound behind McClelland — was Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La. Fourth place was claimed by first-day leader and the reigning AOY, Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala., who tallied 60-1. Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., finished fifth at 59-15.
The Rookie of the Year Award leader after Table Rock, the third of eight regular-season events, was Jacob Powroznik of Port Haywood, Va. He has 227 points over the 222 earned by Chad Morgenthaler of Coulterville, Ill.
Bonuses that Elite pros earned at the Table Rock event were:
* Toyota Bonus Bucks award of $3,000 to the highest eligible finisher: Mike McClelland
* Toyota Bonus Bucks award of $2,000 to the second-highest eligible finisher: Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., who finished at Table Rock in sixth place.
* Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Bonus of $1,000 to the leader in the Elite Series points race: Mark Davis.
* A.R.E. Truck Caps Top Angler Award of $2,500 to the highest eligible finisher: McClelland
* Berkley Heavyweight Award of $500 for the best five-fish limit: Cliff Prince of Palatka, Fla., for his 19-10 of Day 2.
* Carhartt Big Bass of the tournament worth $1,000 plus another $500 for wearing Carhartt apparel: Aaron Martens for his 8-0 of Day 1.
* Power-Pole Captain’s Cash award of $1,000 to the highest finisher equipped with a Power-Pole anchoring system : Greg Hackney.
* Livingston Lures Leader Award of $500 for heading up the leaderboard on the second day: Davis.
* The Rigid Industries Jackpot was not claimed at the Table Rock event. A daily prize of $250 is offered for a 25-pound or heavier bag. The accumulated jackpot is now $1,500; that amount rolls over into the next tournament day of the Elite Series.
ESPN2 will air coverage of the Table Rock event on The Bassmasters TV show Sunday, April 20 at 8 a.m. ET.
The next stop for the Bassmaster Elite Series is the May 1-4 Evan Williams Bourbon Bassmaster Elite on Toledo Bend Reservoir out of Many, La., the fourth of eight regular-season events.
2014 A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite at Table Rock Lake 4/3-4/6
Table Rock Lake, Branson MO.
Standings Day 4
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 20 61-15 100 $102,500.00
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 16-14 Day 3: 5 17-09 Day 4: 5 12-02
2. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 20 61-02 99 $26,500.00
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 15-03 Day 3: 5 11-12 Day 4: 5 15-11
3. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 20 60-15 98 $21,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-00 Day 2: 5 14-10 Day 3: 5 13-14 Day 4: 5 16-07
4. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 20 60-01 97 $16,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 5 14-05 Day 3: 5 12-14 Day 4: 5 14-03
5. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 20 59-15 96 $14,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-00 Day 2: 5 12-00 Day 3: 5 19-07 Day 4: 5 14-08
6. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 20 59-11 95 $13,500.00
Day 1: 5 17-04 Day 2: 5 13-09 Day 3: 5 13-01 Day 4: 5 15-13
7. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 20 59-05 94 $13,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 14-04 Day 3: 5 15-13 Day 4: 5 14-10
8. Brandon Palaniuk Hayden, ID 20 59-01 93 $12,500.00
Day 1: 5 16-13 Day 2: 5 13-10 Day 3: 5 12-10 Day 4: 5 16-00
9. Cliff Prince Palatka, FL 20 57-15 92 $12,500.00
Day 1: 5 09-06 Day 2: 5 19-10 Day 3: 5 12-15 Day 4: 5 16-00
10. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 20 55-13 91 $11,500.00
Day 1: 5 11-06 Day 2: 5 14-02 Day 3: 5 18-13 Day 4: 5 11-08
11. Kevin Hawk Guntersville, AL 20 54-11 90 $11,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-06 Day 2: 5 16-03 Day 3: 5 15-11 Day 4: 5 12-07
12. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 20 54-02 89 $10,500.00
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 17-15 Day 3: 5 11-02 Day 4: 5 12-11
CARHARTT BIG BASS
Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 08-00 $1,000.00
BERKLEY HEAVYWEIGHT
Cliff Prince Palatka, FL 19-10 $500.00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 96 521 1285-14
2 98 521 1330-14
3 38 227 556-00
4 12 60 172-00
----------------------------------
244 1329 3344-12
Caudill and Loyd win the Tom's Marine TT on Douglas with 23.60 Lbs-full results and pic here!
Big Day on Douglas for Caudill and Lloyd
Douglas Lake was host to the second Toms Marine Team Trail event of 2014 on April 5th and the fish were on! There were four bags of 20 pounds+ led by the team of Lowell Caudill and Teddy Lloyd with a whopping 23.6-pound limit.
This catch earned them $2,500 plus another $100 from MoterMate. Second place was 20.98-pounds belonging to Sam MCowan and Josh Richardson earning the a nice $1500 payday. Jimmy Taylor and Donnie Bittle finished a close third with 20.52-pounds and won $900. Another nice bag of 20-pounds even was brought in by Mark and Tony Ownby to claim the $650 fourth place prize. Rounding out the top 5 and winning $550 was the team of Cruz Cope and Mike Jessee with 19.92-pounds.
Complete results, standings and photos are now posted. We invite everyone to come out and join us for our next event on April 19 at Chereokee Dam. Click the attachment for full results!
McClelland Grabs lead in Elite Series tourney; Davis stregthens grip on AOY race at Table Rock
If fishing fans at the Bassmaster Elite Series weigh in show had dollars for everytime an angler said the words "Wiggle Wart", they would cash-in almost as well as the 50 pros who made it to Day 3 and cut a $10,000 check.
Of course, 12 of them will fish tomorrow for the big check. And a few of them are throwing something other than the out-of-production Storm Wiggle Wart that still fools Table Rock bass by the boatload.
Mike McClelland holds nearly a 4-pound lead over Aaron Martens (49-13 to 45-14). Mclelland is throwing his namesake McStick jerkbait.
No matter the lure choice, 10-lb. fuorocarbon line seems to be a huge key. In fact, along with 'Wiggle Wart' and 'jerkbait', '10-lb. fluoro' was heard repeatedly, again and again, over and over from the 50 pros who fished today.
Who can argue with success? Most anglers reported catches of 50-to-60 bass today. Many of those came before a bright sun rose over a mirror-smooth lake. After that, things slowed a bit.
"My marshal said 'that's number 50 right there' and that was at 9:30 A.M.," said Jacob Powroznik.
Of course, tournament fishing comes down to the big bite and Kevin VanDam had it. His 7-8 was the big fish of the day and she pushed his weight to 19-7. With a 3-day total of 45-7, KVD is currently in 3rd place.
Red hot Strike King pro Mark Davis continues to fish well. He is in 4th and has strengthened his grip on the Angler of the Year race. Davis has caught 45-7 which ties him for 3rd with VanDam, but KVD comes out ahead due to tie-breaker rules.
Jeff Kriet rounds out the Top 5. 'The Squirrel' has quietly found enough acorns to pile-up a total weight of 44-11.
Jared Lintner is last into the cut with 41-7, good for 12th place.
As for the jerkbait bite - Rick Clunn said he caught biggest few fish this week on his signature series Lucky Strike RC STX model. Gerald Swindle wasn't so fortunate, "I left $3,000 worth of Special 10 jerkbaits in the (submerged) trees in long Creek and when the water goes down y'all can go find them and have some fun with them."
All kidding aside, the jerkbait seems to be the ticket for quality fish this week. As does 10-lb. fluorocarbon line.
Here's your top 12 who will fish tomorrow:
| 1 | Mike McClelland | 5 | 15- 6 | 5 | 16-14 | 5 | 17- 9 | 15 | 49-13 |
| 2 | Aaron Martens | 5 | 18-11 | 5 | 14- 5 | 5 | 12-14 | 15 | 45-14 |
| 3 | Kevin VanDam | 5 | 14- 0 | 5 | 12- 0 | 5 | 19- 7 | 15 | 45- 7 |
| 4 | Mark Davis | 5 | 18- 8 | 5 | 15- 3 | 5 | 11-12 | 15 | 45- 7 |
| 5 | Jeff Kriet | 5 | 14-10 | 5 | 14- 4 | 5 | 15-13 | 15 | 44-11 |
| 6 | Greg Hackney | 5 | 16- 0 | 5 | 14-10 | 5 | 13-14 | 15 | 44- 8 |
| 7 | Bill Lowen | 5 | 11- 6 | 5 | 14- 2 | 5 | 18-13 | 15 | 44- 5 |
| 8 | Edwin Evers | 5 | 17- 4 | 5 | 13- 9 | 5 | 13- 1 | 15 | 43-14 |
| 9 | Brandon Palaniuk | 5 | 16-13 | 5 | 13-10 | 5 | 12-10 | 15 | 43- 1 |
| 10 | Kevin Hawk | 5 | 10- 6 | 5 | 16- 3 | 5 | 15-11 | 15 | 42- 4 |
| 11 | Cliff Prince | 5 | 9- 6 | 5 | 19-10 | 5 | 12-15 | 15 | 41-15 |
| 12 | Jared Lintner | 5 | 12- 6 | 5 | 17-15 | 5 | 11- 2 | 15 | 41- 7 |
Mark Davis Grabs the Lead on Table Rock
Everyone’s saying Mark Davis is on fire.
Indeed he is. Friday he fanned that flame by taking the lead on the second day of the April 3-6 A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite on Table Rock Lake.
Inferno, anyone?
Davis moved up from second place by adding another 15 pounds, 3 ounces to his first-day weight of 18-8. The Mount Ida, Ark., pro’s two-day tally was 33 pounds, 11 ounces.
If Davis, who already owns three Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year titles, goes on to win Sunday, he would cement his early lead in the race for the 2014 AOY title. He earned the AOY lead by finishing in third place in each of the first two Elite events of the season.
“It’s been really, really hard to keep it going, but so far, so good,” said Davis, who also owns a Bassmaster Classic title from 1995.
Several pros in the Bassmaster Elite Series field still have a lot of say about Davis taking the title at “The Rock.” Chris Lane is one. Winner of the St. Johns River Bassmaster Elite tournament two weeks ago, Lane moved from third place into second with 33-1, just 10 ounces behind Davis.
Aaron Martens, 2013 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year, is another. The first-day leader, Martens ended the second round in third place at 33-0, just 11 ounces in back of Davis.
The list of immediate threats to Davis is longer. Trailing Davis by 1-7 was an old hand on Table Rock, Mike McClelland of Bella Vista, Ark. McClelland moved up from 12th place into fourth with 32-4. Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., who was tied for fourth place after Day 1, slipped into fifth place on the second day with 30-13.
But Evers is only 2-14 behind first place. And only 9-0 separates Davis from the last man into Friday’s 50-cut, Yusuke Miyazaki at 24-11.
The Top 50 move into Saturday’s third round. Sunday, only the Top 12 will compete for the first prize of $100,000 and a win-you’re-in entry in the 2015 Bassmaster Classic.
Davis said the key to his success over the past two days has been a technique and the lure he’s using to execute that technique.
He’s also playing a numbers game. He said he’s increasing his odds of catching larger bass simply by catching a lot of fish.
“I’m getting 60, 70, 80 bites a day. The law of averages will carry you — even though you can start to doubt yourself on that at times. You get enough bites on a lake like this, you’ll come up with a little better grade of fish,” he said.
His five-bass limit of 15-3 contained four largemouth bass, including a 4-pounder, and one spotted bass. But Davis was hooking into smallmouth too.
“With the technique I’m using, you’ll catch a smallmouth one cast, a spot the next, and a largemouth on the next,” he said.
Lane took second place by producing a limit Friday of one spotted bass, three largemouth and one smallmouth. They weighed 14-12.
“I’m not going through the numbers like other people are,” said Lane, who is working banks, “just fishing.”
Lane said he is targeting larger bass by using a red colored crankbait. He boated just eight or nine keepers Friday, he said.
“I caught two bigger ones early, but it was a grind after that,” he said. “The cold didn’t seem to bother them.”
Martens said that unlike Thursday, he did not go after largemouth Friday. In his bag of 14-5 were two smallmouth and three spotted bass.
He also went to different water Friday. But an 8-pounder did not appear for him as one did on Thursday, which had helped him to the lead.
A rainy cold front Thursday evening followed Friday by lower temperatures, wind and near-bluebird skies didn’t affect the bite of the prespawn bass on Table Rock, said McClelland, who weighed five largemouth that went 16-14.
“The water warmed up so much earlier this week, it would have to get cold and stay cold for three or four days to slow these fish down again. Once these fish decide to go to the bank, it won’t get cold enough to send them back,” he said.
The largest bass of the day was 6-10 caught by Cliff Pirch of Payson, Ariz. But Martens’ 8-0 of Thursday held on as the top candidate for the Carhartt Big Bass award of up to $1,500.
Cliff Prince of Palatka, Fla., produced the largest sack of the day, a 19-10. He became the front-runner for the event’s Berkley Heavyweight Award of $500.
The 50 Elite pros who made the cut will return Saturday to Table Rock Lake for the third round. The takeoff will be at 6:30 a.m. at State Park Marina (300 State Park Marina Drive, Branson, MO 65616).
Saturday and Sunday the weigh-ins will be at the Bass Pro Shops location at Branson Landing in Branson. Weigh-ins are scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m. CT. At the same location, the Bassmaster Elite Series Expo will open at noon. Among the activities are free demo rides in Nitro, Triton and Skeeter boats powered by Yamaha and Mercury engines.
There’s no admission charge for any Bassmaster event.
ESPN2 will air coverage of the Table Rock event on The Bassmasters TV show Sunday, April 20 at 8 a.m. ET.
2014 A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite at Table Rock Lake 4/3-4/6
Table Rock Lake, Branson MO.
Standings Day 2
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 10 33-11 100 $500.00
Day 1: 5 18-08 Day 2: 5 15-03
2. Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 10 33-01 99
Day 1: 5 18-05 Day 2: 5 14-12
3. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 10 33-00 98
Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 5 14-05
4. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 10 32-04 97
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 16-14
5. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 10 30-13 96
Day 1: 5 17-04 Day 2: 5 13-09
6. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 30-10 95
Day 1: 5 16-00 Day 2: 5 14-10
7. Brandon Palaniuk Hayden, ID 10 30-07 94
Day 1: 5 16-13 Day 2: 5 13-10
8. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 10 30-05 93
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 17-15
9. Tim Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 10 29-13 92
Day 1: 5 11-07 Day 2: 5 18-06
10. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 10 29-08 91
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 14-06
11. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 10 29-07 90
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 5 14-15
12. Cliff Prince Palatka, FL 10 29-00 89
Day 1: 5 09-06 Day 2: 5 19-10
13. Morizo Shimizu Osaka JAPAN 10 28-15 88
Day 1: 5 12-09 Day 2: 5 16-06
14. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 10 28-14 87
Day 1: 5 16-00 Day 2: 5 12-14
15. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 10 28-14 86
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 14-04
16. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 10 28-10 85
Day 1: 5 13-02 Day 2: 5 15-08
17. Ott DeFoe Knoxville, TN 10 28-02 84
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 17-02
18. Kelley Jaye Dadeville, AL 10 27-14 83
Day 1: 5 15-09 Day 2: 5 12-05
19. Fletcher Shryock New Philadelphia, OH 10 27-13 82
Day 1: 5 16-08 Day 2: 5 11-05
20. David Mullins Mt Carmel, TN 10 27-13 81
Day 1: 5 13-00 Day 2: 5 14-13
21. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 10 27-10 80
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 5 13-02
22. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 10 27-08 79
Day 1: 5 12-05 Day 2: 5 15-03
23. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 10 27-04 78
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 13-02
24. Billy McCaghren Mayflower, AR 10 27-02 77
Day 1: 5 14-11 Day 2: 5 12-07
25. Jason Christie Park Hill, OK 10 26-13 76
Day 1: 5 11-12 Day 2: 5 15-01
26. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 10 26-12 75
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 14-08
27. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 10 26-10 74
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 14-09
28. Kurt Dove Del Rio, TX 10 26-10 73
Day 1: 5 13-14 Day 2: 5 12-12
29. Kevin Hawk Guntersville, AL 10 26-09 72
Day 1: 5 10-06 Day 2: 5 16-03
29. Chad Morgenthaler Coulterville, IL 10 26-09 72
Day 1: 5 10-06 Day 2: 5 16-03
31. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 10 26-08 70
Day 1: 5 12-05 Day 2: 5 14-03
32. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 10 26-06 69
Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 15-03
33. Keith Poche Pike Road, AL 10 26-03 68
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 15-02
34. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 10 26-03 67
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 11-09
35. Jacob Powroznik Port Haywood, VA 10 26-02 66
Day 1: 5 12-00 Day 2: 5 14-02
36. Casey Scanlon Lanexa, KS 10 26-01 65
Day 1: 5 13-14 Day 2: 5 12-03
37. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 26-00 64
Day 1: 5 14-00 Day 2: 5 12-00
38. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 10 26-00 63
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 13-10
39. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 10 25-15 62
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 11-12
40. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 9 25-09 61
Day 1: 4 10-13 Day 2: 5 14-12
41. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 10 25-08 60
Day 1: 5 11-06 Day 2: 5 14-02
42. Kelly Jordon Palestine, TX 10 25-03 59
Day 1: 5 10-05 Day 2: 5 14-14
43. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 10 25-02 58
Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 14-07
44. John Crews Jr Salem, VA 10 25-02 57
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 5 11-06
45. Randy Howell Springville, AL 10 25-02 56
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 12-12
46. Rick Morris Lake Gaston, VA 10 24-15 55
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 13-04
47. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 10 24-14 54
Day 1: 5 11-15 Day 2: 5 12-15
48. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 10 24-13 53
Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 11-09
49. Chad Pipkens Holt, MI 10 24-12 52
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 13-11
50. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 9 24-11 51
Day 1: 4 13-01 Day 2: 5 11-10
51. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 24-10 50
Day 1: 5 13-02 Day 2: 5 11-08
52. Glenn Browne Ocala, FL 10 24-09 49
Day 1: 5 11-12 Day 2: 5 12-13
53. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, OK 10 24-09 48
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 5 12-07
54. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 10 24-08 47
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 11-01
55. Jared Miller Norman, OK 9 24-06 46
Day 1: 5 16-00 Day 2: 4 08-06
56. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 10 24-06 45
Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 13-03
57. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 10 24-06 44
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 11-07
58. Randall Tharp Port Saint Joe, FL 10 24-04 43
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 10-11
59. James Elam Tulsa, OK 10 24-01 42
Day 1: 5 12-07 Day 2: 5 11-10
60. Hank Cherry Jr Maiden, NC 10 24-00 41
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 5 11-14
61. Jeremy Starks Scott Depot, WV 10 23-15 40
Day 1: 5 09-15 Day 2: 5 14-00
62. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 10 23-12 39
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 12-15
63. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 10 23-11 38
Day 1: 5 09-14 Day 2: 5 13-13
64. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 10 23-05 37
Day 1: 5 12-05 Day 2: 5 11-00
65. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 10 23-03 36
Day 1: 5 12-07 Day 2: 5 10-12
66. Boo Woods Oneida, KY 10 23-01 35
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 11-03
67. David Walker Sevierville, TN 10 23-01 34
Day 1: 5 11-04 Day 2: 5 11-13
68. Justin Lucas Guntersville, AL 10 22-14 33
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 09-15
69. Clifford Pirch Payson, AZ 8 22-13 32
Day 1: 3 05-14 Day 2: 5 16-15
70. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 10 22-12 31
Day 1: 5 10-10 Day 2: 5 12-02
71. Andy Montgomery Blacksburg, SC 10 22-12 30
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 10-14
72. Jamie Horton Centerville, AL 8 22-11 29
Day 1: 5 17-04 Day 2: 3 05-07
73. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 10 22-09 28
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 09-06
74. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 10 22-09 27
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 5 12-07
75. Brandon Card Caryville, TN 10 22-08 26
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 11-11
76. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 9 22-07 25
Day 1: 4 08-09 Day 2: 5 13-14
77. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 10 22-06 24
Day 1: 5 11-05 Day 2: 5 11-01
78. Cliff Crochet Pierre Part, LA 9 22-00 23
Day 1: 4 09-10 Day 2: 5 12-06
79. BJ Haseotes Centerville, MA 10 21-14 22
Day 1: 5 09-08 Day 2: 5 12-06
80. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 10 21-14 21
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 10-06
81. Dennis Tietje Roanoke, LA 10 21-13 20
Day 1: 5 10-07 Day 2: 5 11-06
82. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 10 21-11 19
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 10-11
83. Shaw Grigsby Jr. Gainesville, FL 10 21-10 18
Day 1: 5 10-07 Day 2: 5 11-03
84. Tracy Adams Wilkesboro, NC 10 21-10 17
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 10-09
85. Alton Jones Lorena, TX 9 21-09 16
Day 1: 4 08-00 Day 2: 5 13-09
86. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 10 21-09 15
Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 10-14
87. Scott Ashmore Broken Arrow, OK 10 21-05 14
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 5 09-12
88. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 10 21-05 13
Day 1: 5 10-15 Day 2: 5 10-06
89. Brandon Lester Fayetteville, TN 10 21-05 12
Day 1: 5 10-08 Day 2: 5 10-13
90. Zell Rowland Montgomery, TX 10 21-03 11
Day 1: 5 10-14 Day 2: 5 10-05
91. Brett Hite Phoenix, AZ 10 20-15 10
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 09-15
92. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 10 20-14 9
Day 1: 5 10-06 Day 2: 5 10-08
93. Joel Baker Talala, OK 9 20-10 8
Day 1: 5 09-11 Day 2: 4 10-15
94. Chris Zaldain San Jose, CA 10 20-10 7
Day 1: 5 10-01 Day 2: 5 10-09
95. Joseph Sancho New Windsor, NY 10 20-01 6
Day 1: 5 10-15 Day 2: 5 09-02
96. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 10 20-01 5
Day 1: 5 10-09 Day 2: 5 09-08
97. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 10 19-12 4
Day 1: 5 09-01 Day 2: 5 10-11
98. Boyd Duckett Guntersville, AL 10 19-08 3
Day 1: 5 10-06 Day 2: 5 09-02
99. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 9 18-15 2
Day 1: 4 07-14 Day 2: 5 11-01
100. Pete Ponds Madison, MS 7 17-02 1
Day 1: 4 07-13 Day 2: 3 09-05
101. Mike Kernan Wylie, TX 9 16-13 0
Day 1: 5 09-00 Day 2: 4 07-13
102. Michael Simonton Fremont, OH 7 16-02 0
Day 1: 2 03-13 Day 2: 5 12-05
103. Trevor Romans Plano, TX 8 16-00 0
Day 1: 5 10-10 Day 2: 3 05-06
104. Josh Bertrand Gilbert, AZ 6 15-14 0
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 1 02-07
105. David Smith Del City, OK 8 15-09 0
Day 1: 5 09-14 Day 2: 3 05-11
106. Nate Wellman Newaygo, MI 6 14-12 0
Day 1: 3 05-12 Day 2: 3 09-00
107. Grant Goldbeck Boerne, TX 6 14-10 0
Day 1: 3 06-14 Day 2: 3 07-12
108. Byron Velvick Boenre, TX 7 14-06 0
Day 1: 2 04-08 Day 2: 5 09-14
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 96 521 1285-14
2 98 521 1330-14
----------------------------------
194 1042 2616-12
Aaron Martens Grabs Early Lead in Elite Series Event on Table Rock
Aaron Martens called it a “picture-perfect day.” Mark Davis said he was “singing hymns all day.” Chris Lane landed inside his “comfort zone.”
And that’s how it was for three of the hottest pros in bass fishing on Thursday, the first day of the April 3-6 A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite on Table Rock Lake.
Martens, the 2013 Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year, took the Day 1 lead at Table Rock with 18 pounds, 11 ounces of largemouth bass. Davis, currently in the lead for the 2014 AOY prize, was second with 18 pounds, 8 ounces. Right behind them with 18-5 was Lane, who won the most recent Elite Series event less than two weeks ago.
The three leaders have lots of company. Weighing 17-4 to tie at fourth place were Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., and Jamie Horton of Centreville, Ala. They were 1 pound, 7 ounces, behind Martens.
Even the pro in 12th place trailed Martens by 3-5. That mark was set at 15-6 by Mike McClelland of Bella Vista, Ark.
Martens, a California native who relocated to Leeds, Ala., several years ago, anchored his 18-11 with an 8-0.
“I had a picture-perfect day,” Martens said. “I caught almost everything that bit, and I didn’t lose very many. I pulled that 8-pounder from between three or four trees on non-heavy line.”
Martens, who has fished Table Rock Lake many times, tried to find new areas during the three-day practice. In the end, he returned to spots on which he had success in the past — “fishing old stuff,” he called it.
A solid pattern helped, he said, but the only two lures he used Thursday were key.
“One bait I’m using is pretty phenomenal, but I bet half the guys are using it too,” he said, declining to name the lures.
Even if the weights were not tight, Martens expects Day 2 of the tournament to see changes in the leaderboard.
“This lake is notorious for having a leader one day, and then that guy blanks,” Martens said.
Davis, who is from Mount Ida, Ark., won a Bassmaster Tour on Table Rock in 2004. His history helped him get to work Thursday. And that work involved a lot of “hunting and pecking,” he said.
“That’s how you have to fish this lake,” he said.
Davis came into the Table Rock event leading the points race after finishing third in both of the first two tournaments of the season.
Lane, a Florida transplant to Guntersville, Ala., skipped over Table Rock’s clear, clear water. Instead, he went back to a favorite comfort zone of his: casting in shallow, stained water up into the backs of creeks.
He targeted big bass, selecting three baits to go after the larger bass. The strategy worked. One of his five largemouth bass was a 5-9 and another weighed 5-4.
Lane was trading size for numbers; he caught just seven fish all day.
That, on a day when many of the pros weeded through scores of bass less than 15 inches — the legal keeper size — to put together a five-bass limit in any combination of largemouth, spotted bass and smallmouth.
The event’s first prize is $100,000 and an instant qualification for the 2015 Bassmaster Classic. The Elite pros also are out to earn points that count toward a Classic qualification and the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year title.
Martens’ 8-0 was the largest bass of the day. He became the front-runner for the event’s Carhartt Big Bass award of up to $1,500.
The full field of 108 Elite pros will return to the Table Rock at 6:30 a.m. Friday at State Park Marina (300 State Park Marina Drive, Branson, MO 65616).
Friday’s weigh-in will be at State Park Marina. On Saturday and Sunday, the weigh-ins will move to the Bass Pro Shops location at Branson Landing. All weigh-ins are scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m. CT.
There’s no admission charge for any Bassmaster event.
College Anglers Competing For Biggest Fish In Cabela's Collegiate Big Bass Bash
In most collegiate bass fishing tournaments, college teams compete against other college teams, but in the Cabela's Collegiate Big Bass Bash this weekend on Kentucky Lake team members actually will be competing against each other.
It's kind of a unique format,” said Tournament Director Wade Middleton. “You'll see kids from different schools fishing together in the same boat, sometimes as many as three in a boat. The idea is to increase participation.”
Middleton explained that the anglers will fish eight hours Saturday and eight hours Sunday, with weigh-ins scheduled every two hours.
“You will see 2 pounds win prizes and sometimes 10 pounds will win. That means there is some strategy involved. These kids will sit out there and figure what it takes to get paid,” he said.
Prizes will be awarded for the five heaviest bass weighed during each session, plus a prize will be awarded for the overall heaviest bass weighed each tournament day and a grand prize will be awarded for the overall heaviest bass of the tournament.
“There is more than $20,000 in prizes, ranging from $1,000 Cabela's gift cards to Garmin Fish Finders, all the way down to rain gear from Frogg Toggs.”
Middleton said 180 college anglers have signed up for the tournament, representing more than 60 schools across the nation.
Collegiate fishing fans, family members, and friends of competitors can follow the action by visiting CollegiateBassChampionship.com and Facebook.com/CollegiateBassChampionship. Televised coverage will be seen on NBC Sports Outdoors and the Pursuit Channel and other networks during the year.
“The biggest event of the year in all of college fishing – the Boat-US Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship – will be held at the end of May on Pickwick Lake,” Middleton said.
Cabela’s Collegiate Big Bass Bash
Apr 4-6, 2014
Kentucky Lake
Paris Landing
www.collegiatebasschampionship.com
Bass Ready To Move Up In Time For Tom's Marine Tournament On Douglas Lake
Luke Boles and Donnie Absher won the first tournament of 2014 with 21.18 lbs on Cherokee
When Mother Nature calls, the bass have to get a move on, no matter what, said Richard McMaster, tournament director for the Tom's Marine Teal Trail which will hold its second tournament of the 2014 season Saturday on Douglas Lake.
“It's time for them to start moving up. They know it's late, but they know it's time,” McMaster said.
And that bodes well for the anglers in Saturday's tournament, he added.
“The water temperatures are starting to get up into the mid to upper 50s now. The bass are done hibernating. They are ready to eat and do their thing,” McMaster said.
The fishermen are apparently in the same frame of mind. At the first Tom's Marine tournament March 15, 137 boats showed up and Cherokee Lake was on fire. Seventy-seven boats weigh in double figures and it took a whopping 21.8 pounds to win. Luke Boles and Donnie Absher earned a check for $2,500 for those five fish. The top five teams all weighed in more than 19 pounds of fish.
“We are looking forward to having the same number of boats this weekend on Douglas Lake, maybe even better with the warm temperatures we're getting,” McMaster said. “Some guys who didn't make the first tournament can still fish the last six tournaments and make the Classic, so we are hoping for a good turnout.”
McMaster said the local forecast is calling for storms to move in Thursday night and Friday, with an 80 percent chance of ran on Friday, then clear skies and 68 to 70 degrees on Saturday for the tournament.
With the bass anxious to feed up and get on the beds, McMaster said the Alabama Rig could dominate Saturday.
“Last year about this time the PAA and Southern Open tournaments were held on Douglas and it was the Alabama Rig then, so I am expecting more of the same. I do expect a lot of fish will be caught on Rat-L-Traps, jerkbaits and small crankbaits, but the bigger fish will come on the Alabama Rig, just as they did on Cherokee in the last tournament.”
McMaster said anglers fishing the Tom's Marine Team Trail this year will have a chance to qualify for the 2015 Bassmaster Classic. Teams can qualify for a chance to fish for the Classic by paying a $10 per angler membership fee. Up to three teams, based on points, could qualify to fish the Bass Team Classic Championship, where the top three teams will break up into individual boats to fish for a berth in the Bassmaster Classic.
McMaster also announced that Tom's Marine is bringing back a summer nighttime tournament this year after a three-year absence. The night tournament will be held July 12 on Cherokee Lake with a three-fish limit.
The rest of the 2014 schedule includes: March 15, Cherokee Lake, 25E Bridge; April 5, Douglas Lake, Shady Grove; April 19, Cherokee Lake, the Dam; May 24, Cherokee Lake, 25E Bridge; June 7, Douglas Lake, Shady Grove; July 12, Cherokee Lake, 25E Bridge; Sept. 13, Douglas Lake, Shady Grove; and Oct. 25-25, Douglas Lake, Shady Grove and Cherokee Lake, 25E Bridge.
The entry fee per tournament is $100, plus a $10 lunker fee.
New incentives for the Tom's Marine Team Trail in 2014 include :
– Toms Marine will pay $250 to anyone who wins out a boat purchased new from Toms Marine since 20110.
– Glow Max will pay the winner of the night tournament $250 in cash and $250 merchandise if they use Glow Max black lights in their boat. In addition, Toms Marine will pay the winner an additional $100 if the Glow Max black lights were purchased from and installed by Toms Marine.
– Linex has teamed up with Toms Marine Team Trail to sponsor a drawing for a new spray-in Linex bed liner this season. Anyone making a purchase from Linex and letting them know you are a member of Toms Marine Team Trail will be entered into this drawing to be held at the end of the 2014 regular season.
Tom's Marine Team Trail
Sat, Apr 5, 2014
Douglas Lake
Shady Grove Access
Call Richard McMaster 423-748-3240
Low Water Could Force Anglers Upriver For Alabama Bass Trail Tournament On Neely Henry
The low water level could play a major role in the outcome of the third Alabama Bass Trail North Division tournament Saturday on Neely Henry Lake.
“The water is down about a foot and a half, nearly two feet,” said Kris Colley, winner of the second North Division tournament two weeks ago on Pickwick Lake. “I've got a feeling that if the water stays down fishing is going to be a lot tougher Saturday than what people expect.”
Colley, who hails from Ashville, Ala., just five minutes from the Neely Henry shore, said the problem with the low water is that most of the grass in Neely Henry is high and dry.
“Neely Henry is known for its grass this time of year,” Crolley said. “A lot of the grass is not even in the water.”
Unless the thundershowers predicted for late Thursday night and early Friday morning dump enough rain on the system to bring the water level up, the grass fishing will be very limited which means a lot of anglers will have to move up into the river area at the head of the lake, Crolley said.
“I think you will see more fishing upriver than downriver Saturday,” he said. “If the water level was normal, about three-fourths of the field would be fishing downriver, but with the level down it's going to take away a lot of fishing on the bottom end of the lake.”
If the level does come up the fish will move up with the water, he said, which will open up fishing with spinnerbaits, Rat-L-Traps and square-billed crankbaits. But, if anglers have to move upriver they will be fishing trees and rock. There is no grass upriver, he said.
“Fishing upriver it will be mostly flipping a jig, throwing a spinnerbait and maybe a crankbait here and there.”
Crolley, who normally teams with Adam Bain, had to fish solo with a non-fishing observer on Pickwick because Bain had a previously-scheduled engagement. He weighed in a limit at 25.11 pounds, anchored by a 6.59-pound largemouth, that he caught by flipping a green-pumpkin LC's Jig around wood structure on mud banks within sight of the launch ramp at McFarland Park.
Crolley, who won $10,000 which he will split with Bain, praised the Alabama Bass Trail which is in its inaugural season.
“For the first year they are doing a great job. They have got everything going in the right direction and I don't think they will have any problem filling up the Northern Division again next year,” he said.
Registration for the Alabama Bass Trail is available online at www.alabamabasstrail.org up to the Wednesday preceding each tournament. The entry fee per tournament is $250 per team.
The schedule includes: North Division – Feb. 1, Lake Guntersville; March 22, Pickwick Lake; April 5, Neely Henry Lake; May 31, Wheeler Lake; June 21, Logan Martin Lake. South Division – March 1, Mobile-Tensaw River Delta; March 15, Lake Eufaula; April 19, Lake Jordan; May 10, Alabama River (Millers Ferry); June 7, Lay Lake.
Each tournament has a guaranteed first prize of $10,000, plus $23,000 to the top 20 places and $500 to big fish. There are also numerous bonus packages available to winning and placing anglers.
The Top 50 teams for both the Northern and Southern Divisions will advance to the 2014 ABT Team Championship Oct. 10-11 at Smith Lake in Jasper. Plus, the top 25 student boats overall will be in the final event. To be eligible for the championship, teams must enter all five qualifying events in their respective division.
The grand prize for the no-entry fee championship is a fully-rigged Phoenix 619 Pro Bass Boat with a 150-horsepower Mercury Outboard, valued at $40,000. Adding to that excitement level is an opportunity to advance to the Bassmasters Team Championship and possibly earn a berth in the Bassmaster Classic.
“We are looking at an estimated $420,000 total in prizes for the series,” Program Director Kay Donaldson said. “We think the anglers are going to really enjoy it because they will have the opportunity to advance to our championship and from there the opportunity to go to the BASS Team Championship.”
Alabama Bass Trail - North Division
Sat, Apr 5, 2014
Neely Henry Lake
Coosa Landing
Call Kay Donaldson 855-934-7425
Cabela's Big Bass Bash Heads to Kentucky Lake and Paris, Tennessee
Kentucky Lake is rich in fishing and tournament history, and this weekend it'll serve as a crucial battleground for the Cabela's School of the Year race as several teams' duel for the most prestigious title in college bass fishing. With points on the line, anything can change the game as they hit the water in the second stop of the Association of Collegiate Anglers series.
The ACA Cabela's Big Bass Bash runs from April 4th to 6th and it's sure to have a big impact on the final standings of the rankings. Nine of the top ten schools in the country are represented in the field and it's expected that this event will be key in who will be in top position as the season heads into its final stops in May and June.
With fishing expected to be on fire this weekend at Kentucky Lake, for the college anglers fishing in this one of a kind event, it's anybody's guess as to what it will take to place in the top positions in this Big Bass event. An event that will feature over 180 of the top college bass anglers in the nation not only vying for points, but also for over $20,000.00 in prizes.
Competition takes place April 5th and 6th, with the onsite registration, dinner, and activities to be held Friday, April 4th, 2014. Daily weigh-ins will be held at Paris Landing at 9:00AM, 11:00AM, 1:00PM, and 3:00PM.
Event Schedule:
Friday, April 4th
Final Practice day Safe Light - 3 pm
*Must be off the water by 3pm*
~Registration Paris Landing State Park
16055 Hwy 79 N
Buchanan, Tennessee 38222
~Angler Registration & Dinner 5 - 7 pm
~Welcome from Sponsors 7-7:15pm ~Pre-tournament Meeting 7:15 pm
Saturday, April 5th
Day 1: Safe Light to 3:00 pm
3:00 PM Weigh-In Begins for final session of Day 1
Sunday, April 6th
Day 2: Safe Light to 3:00 pm
3:00PM Weigh-In Begins for final session of
Day 2
Awards Presentation Immediately Following Weigh-In
Collegiate fishing fans, family members, and friends of competitors can follow the action by visiting CollegiateBassChampionship.com and Facebook.com/CollegiateBassChampionship. Televised coverage will be seen on NBC Sports Outdoors and the Pursuit Channel and other networks during the year.
Collins Bass for Cash heads to Albemarle Sound for Event #2
Tournament event #2 for the Collins Inc. – Bass For Cash Series will take place this Saturday, April 5th, on the Albemarle Sound out of Pembroke Creek at Bayside Marina. You can visit the “Schedule” tab at our site for a map to the ramp location.
§ Morning registration is planned to begin on-site at 4:30 AM. Cash or check is the only form of payment accepted.
§ Every team must check in at our Yamaha registration tent the morning of each event. Even if you have pre-registered, we need to know that you are in attendance and provide you with important information.
§ A livewell check will be conducted as you are launching your boats near the ramp.
§ Blast Off Will Begin At Safe Light – Approximately 6:45 AM.
§ Please be checked in, have your livewells checked, and your boat in the water well in advance of the start of the event.
§ Return / Weigh-In – 3:00 PM (Be Sure To Check In With A Tournament Official). Depending on the number of total entries, we may create additional flights and return times. This information will be announced prior to blast off.
§ Five (5) fish limit per boat. Minimum size for this event will be 14” in length. Reminder, no courtesy measurements allowed.
§ Complimentary food items and door prizes will be available during afternoon weigh-in, so stick around if you can.
§ Bayside Marina will have their restaurant open for breakfast beginning at 4:30 AM.
§ There is a $5 per boat ramp fee that will be collected by the tournament staff as you check in at the registration tent.
We would like to remind everyone of the off-limits period as specified within the tournament rules. If you feel that you have violated this rule in any way, please contact us so that we may make arrangements to have your entry fee moved over to a future event.
Please take time to read over the complete 2014 BFCS rules as tournament rules may vary from tournament trail to tournament trail. We do not want to see anyone caught off guard.
Click on this link for 2014 BFCS rules: http://anglersites.com/collins/files/2014/01/Collins-Tournament-Trail-2014-Rules.pdf
Texas Team Trail heads to Texoma
NORMAN, Okla. (April 1, 2014) – The Texas Team Trail presented by Cabela’s will host its third event of the 2014 tournament season on Saturday, April 12, at Lake Texoma. This marks the first visit to Lake Texoma for the Texas Team Trail.
Registration for the event is already underway – anglers can secure an opportunity to pre-fish Friday, April 11, by completing their registration online or via phone prior to midnight on Thursday, April 10. All anglers that pre-register will also be entered into a drawing for a Power Pole Shallow Water Anchor. In addition, anglers that opt to register online at www.texasteamtrail.com will be entered into a drawing for a Mustang Survival inflatable PFD.
The Texoma event is the third of four 2014 qualifying events that guarantee a fully rigged, 18-foot boat, motor, trailer package as first-place prize. The winning anglers at Lake Texoma will walk away with a brand-new Triton 18XS powered by an Evinrude 150 HO, valued at $27,500.
In addition to the payout, the event offers anglers an unprecedented opportunity in terms of sponsor bonuses and television coverage. The budget-friendly $250 entry fee, plus multiple contingency programs and a guaranteed, over-100% payback at every event provides tremendous value to the weekend angler.
On-site registration is set for Friday, April 11, from 4-7 p.m. at Highport Marina (120 Texoma Harbor Dr., Pottsboro, TX 75076). At least one team member must attend, as boat numbers will be assigned during this time. The tournament will launch Saturday, April 12, at safe light from Highport Marina and the weigh-in will begin at the same location at 3 p.m. Only anglers that launch their boat at Highport Marina will be allowed to load their boats on trailers prior to weighing fish. A full map of the tournament’s off-limits areas, which includes the entire Highport Marina cove, can be found online at www.texasteamtrail.com/tournaments.
Anglers with questions or anyone interested in more details on the event are encouraged to visit www.texasteamtrail.com or call 210-281-1752 or 210-788-4143.
Along with title-sponsor Cabela’s, Texas Team Trail has also welcomed Lucas Oil®, Ranger Boats, Stratos Boats, Triton Boats, Evinrude®, Minn Kota®, Talon, RAM Trucks, Lowrance, Power-Pole, Amphibia, iON, Garmin, General Tire, SuperClean, Valley Fashion, Mustang Survival, Artic Ice and Protect the Harvest as official partners.
2014 TXTT scheduled events:
April 12 – Lake Texoma
May 3 – Lake Livingston
Championship – June 7-8 – Toledo Bend Lake
Boats Unlimited Nc Team Tournament Trail Qualifier #3 Results - Shearon Harris - Mar 29, 2014
Even with a forecast of rough weather coming in, the Boats Unlimited NC Team Tournament Bass Trail
qualifier #3 at Shearon Harris went off without a hitch with 69 teams competing!It was about 54 degrees that morning and around 68 that afternoon with very light winds. Water temps ranged from 50 to 55 depending on the area fished. We did have rain off an on but never a big downpour. The winds gusted a few times but were light for most of the day. In other words, we got lucky even with a little fog trying to hold things up! Actually a great day for fishing but evidently the front coming thru put a halt to a good bite!
Mark & Michael Cummings, of Pembroke, figured out enough strategy to catch 5 bass weighing 22.08 lbs.
The Cummings team won $1,280 for 1st, TWT 1st place of $1,155 and the Boats Unlimited NC 1st Place Bonus
of $750 for a grand total of $3,185.
The team of Chris & H.T. Eakins took 2nd with 5 bass weighing 20.59 lbs winning $775. Big fish for the day
was a huge 10.66 pounder caught by the team of Drew Johnson & Gill Young worth $966 and 2nd place big fish weighing 8.85 lbs. went to the team of Jesse & Josh Wise winning them $414.
110 fish were weighed in for a total of 352 pounds. Again the slot limit on bass at Harris took it's toll on guys that caught many fish but were not able to weigh them in. This slot limit is not fair to anglers that practice and spend time and money to fish and get better. People that control the rules should at least give waivers to
tournament trails that have a good 'Catch and Release' program. That's just my 2 cents. We had numerous fish over 7 lbs. and all the fish looked healthy. Hot baits for the day were shakey heads, crankbaits and jerk baits.
Big Fish Winners Drew Johnson & Gill Young - 10.66 lbs!I want to thank all the anglers that participated and all our sponsors that support this trail. The next Boats
Unlimited NC Team Tournament Bass Trail tournament will be at Falls Lake on April 12th, out of Ledge Rock
Wildlife Ramp. A Pig-Pickin' for all participating anglers is planned for this event sponsored by 'The Prop Doc' www.propdocnc.com in Zebulon (919-632-9928) one of our newest sponsors!
All the information on our tournaments can be found at www.piedmontbassclassics.com
Now here are the full results:
1st Place: Mark & Micheal Cummings of Pembroke...5 bass...22.08 lbs...$1,280
2nd Place: Chris & H.T. Eakins of Selma & Angier...5 bass...20.59 lbs...$775
3rd Place: Mike Dinterman & Timothy Snead of Oxford & Creedmoor...4 bass...18.77 lbs...$555
4th Place: Mike Stephenson & Chad Jones of Bahama & Durham...3 bass...13.80 lbs...$500
5th Place: Kevin Woodall & William Tobias of Angier...4 bass...12.63 lbs...$440
6th Place: Corey Linton & Mark Peck of Pikeville...3 bass...12.37 lbs...$388
7th Place: Michael & Chris Hinson of Creswell & Chadburn...5 bass...11.96 lbs...$331
8th Place: Jesse & Josh Wise of Erwin & Raleigh...2 bass...11.08 lbs...$270
9th Place: Drew Johnson & Gill Young of Clayton & Wendell...1 bass...10.66 lbs...$220
10th Place: Tony Fofi & Dave Murdock of Spring Lake & Sanford...3 bass...10.58 lbs...$220
11th Place: Alan Parker & Brandon McLeod of Linden & Spring Lake...3 bass...10.31 lbs...$163
12th Place: Chase & Gary Johnson of Four Oaks...2 bass...10.19 lbs...$163
12th Place: Dennis Reedy & Jeffrey Thomas of Siler City & Broadway...5 bass...10.16 lbs...$115
14th Place: Bryce McClenney & Michael Christie of Cary & Fuquay Varina...5 bass...10.01 lbs...$100
1st Place Big Fish..9th Place Team above...10.66 lbs...$966
2nd Place Big Fish..8th Place Team above...8.85 lbs...$414
1st Place TWT..1st Place Team above...22.08 lbs...$1,155
2nd Place TWT..3rd Place Team above: 18.77 lbs...$495
Boats Unlimited Skeeter Boat Owner Bonus: Dennis Reedy of Siler City...$250
Tow Boats US Award: Mike Stephenson of Bahama: $50
Boats Unlimited 1st Place Bonus: 1st Place Team Above...$750
Contact Information:
Phil McCarson...Tournament Director---922 Valetta Rd.---Durham, NC 27712
Home: 919-471-1571 Cell: 919-971-5042
email: philsflags@msn.com website: www.piedmontbassclassics.com
Kevin Ashley wins the Oakley Big Bass on Clarks Hill Lake-Top 10 results here!
Kevin Ashley won the Oakley Big Bass this past weekend on Clarks Hill Lake with a solid 8.99 Lb keeper that held on to help him wiin the $35,000 Boat/Motor/Trailer pkg from Oakly. These weights indicate one thing: Clarks Hill is BACK! After several off years, this lake is back up not only lake level wise but also quality wise. There is some grass here now-and these weights prove it!
Overall Leaders
| Rank | Angler | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | KEVIN ASHLEY | 8.99 |
| 2 | CHRIS RODWELL | 8.82 |
| 3 | WAYNE CULBRETH | 8.72 |
| 4 | COREY BROCK | 8.71 |
| 5 | DANNY COLLIER | 8.30 |
| 6 | CHRIS RODWELL | 8.29 |
| 7 | DANIEL MOORE | 8.14 |
| 8 | DAVID CARVER | 8.05 |
| 9 | CARLTON FULCHER | 7.98 |
| 10 | JASON SMITH | 7.97 |
Palmore & Crisman Take 1st CATT Gaston Mar 29
We’re off and running with the 2014 CATT Gaston/Kerr Trail with 36 teams entering Saturday blasting off out of Eaton Ferry/Morning Star. All the Gaston/Kerr Qualifiers tournaments fall under the CATT GOLD format and as you can see the payback is awesome! We split up the BONUS $ and spread it around so make plans and come on out to see us. CATT pays back 100% of your entry with a portion deducted from each Qualifier going into the Final Fund. You can see all the money totals at the bottom of the results. As you can see 1st place took home almost $2,000.00 with the BONUS $ added in with 36 teams. If we have 60 teams 1st with the BONUS $ would be in the $3,000.00.
Also CATT offers these contingency programs….Skeeter Real Money, Triton Gold, Stratos 2x, Phoenix First Flight, Bass Cat Quest and Legend Advantage Awards.
The next Gaston/Kerr is April 26 on Gaston with the 3rd Qualifier the next day. Both require an entry fee as they are separate events. Both will launch out of Eaton Ferry. Make plans and come on out!
If you would like to view more pictures from this and other CATT Trails around the Carolinas visit our Facebook page. C.A.T.T.
Remember guys you have to enter 2 Gaston/Kerr Qualifiers as a team (both partners) to be eligible to enter the Gaston/Kerr 2-day Final May 24th at Lake Gaston with a 1st Place GUARANTEE of $3,500.00 …and by only entering 1 2014 NC CATT event you will be eligible to enter the 2014 CATT NC Championship on Kerr June 21. Last year we had 115 teams enter the Kerr event so make plans to come out. 1st Place last year at Kerr took home over $13,500.00!
JT Palmore & Bobby Crimson are the big winners this past Saturday at Lake Gaston! They weighed in a limit of bass weighing 19.90 lbs taking 1st Place & 1st Place BONUS $. They also weighed a 6.08 lb largemouth good enough to take 2nd BF. All total they took home $1,955.00!
Keith Joyce & Mark Robertson finished in 2nd with another solid limit at 19.81 lbs. They also claimed the 2nd BONUS $ pushing their total winnings up to $910.00.
3rdPlace and 3rd Place BONUS $ went to Ryan Harrell and Marty Bunch with 5 bass weighing 18.91 lbs. They collected a total of $530.00.
Out Gaston Point Winners from this past year, Chuck Murray and Randy Groves finished 4th with 5 bass weighing 18.72 lbs and also claimed a share of 4th Place BONUS $. They received $300.00.
Billy Bledsoe & Brian McDonald also weighed 18.72 lbs and finished 4th plus they weighed the BF of the day at 6.69 lbs. They took home a total of $545.00.
Reggie Norfleet and Scott Dupree earned $155.00 for their 6th Place finish with 18.59 lbs.
Last money paying place worth $125.00 went to Tim Wiltfong and Phil Bain with 16.77 lbs.
8th Place team with 15.67 lbs was Ray Cooke and Gene Woodard and they received 2 - $20 Gift Cards from Drugco.
Next up on the Gaston/Kerr schedule is April 26th on Lake Gaston launching out of Eaton Ferry
Brett Collins
Carolina Anglers Team Trail LLC
Cannon works main lake cuts to win BFL on Martin
Logan wins co-angler title
Jeff Cannon of Douglasville, Ga., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 19 pounds, 1 ounce on Saturday to win the second Walmart Bass Fishing League Bama Division tournament of 2014 on Lake Martin. For his victory, Cannon earned $3,718.
Thrift Wins Flw Tour Event On Sam Rayburn Reservoir
Chevy pro Bryan Thrift of Shelby, N.C., brought a five-bass limit to the scale Sunday weighing 17 pounds even to overtake Walmart pro Mark Rose and win the Walmart FLW Tour at Sam Rayburn Reservoir presented by Chevy. Thrift’s four-day total of 20 bass weighing 73 pounds, 3 ounces earned him the top cash award of $125,000 in the event that featured 176 of the world’s best bass-fishing anglers competing in the four-day competition. The tournament will be nationally televised on NBC Sports Network in June.
Unofficial Record Weight of 34.32 Lbs wins the CBC on Lake Wateree-Pictures and full results here!
What an amazing Tournament on Wateree Yesterday. What we believe has to be an unoffical record weight at Watereee with 34.42 LBs, take a look at the smiles on the faces of Gary Michaud and Doc McDanial after not only catching 5 hogs, but taking home $11,000 for the day!!
CBC Lake Wateree Champs with their 34.32 Lbs....ALL SMILES!
CBC Wateree Champs before their $11,000 Check!
| 1 | Gary Michaud - Doc McDaniel | 500027 | CBC SC | 128 | 5 | 5 | 34.32 | 9.93 | 34.32 | 1 | 34.32 | $10,000 | 310 | $1000 Big Fish | ||
| 2 | Donald Hinson - Jay Keith | 500138 | CBC SC | 127 | 5 | 5 | 25.2 | 25.2 | 2 | 25.2 | 309 | |||||
| 3 | Beau Dixon - Andy Sease | 500052 | CBC SC | 97 | 5 | 5 | 23.26 | 23.26 | 3 | 23.26 | 308 | |||||
| 4 | Daniel howell - Russell Anderson | 500076 | CBC SC | 20 | 5 | 5 | 23.17 | 5.67 | 23.17 | 4 | 23.17 | 307 | ||||
| 5 | Chad Sinclair - Caleb Conner | 500028 | CBC SC | 101 | 5 | 5 | 22.7 | 22.7 | 5 | 22.7 | 306 | |||||
| 6 | Patrick Tierney - Todd Auten | 500108 | CBC SC | 124 | 5 | 5 | 22.69 | 22.69 | 6 | 22.69 | 305 | |||||
| 7 | Andy Wicker - Steve Wicker | 500140 | CBC SC | 39 | 5 | 5 | 21.87 | 21.87 | 7 | 21.87 | 304 | |||||
| 8 | Shane Cantley - DJ Mcearchern | 500125 | CBC SC | 94 | 5 | 5 | 21.44 | 21.44 | 8 | 21.44 | 303 | |||||
| 9 | Joey Outlaw - Ray Dowey | 500139 | CBC SC | 30 | 5 | 5 | 21.37 | 7 | 21.37 | 9 | 21.37 | 302 | ||||
| 10 | Ronald Farrow - Roger Farrow | 500002 | CBC SC | 143 | 5 | 5 | 21.21 | 21.21 | 10 | 21.21 | 301 | |||||
| 10 | Jerry Freezon - Jason Miles | 500134 | CBC SC | 111 | 5 | 5 | 21.21 | 21.21 | 10 | 21.21 | 300 | |||||
| 12 | Alan Fletcher - Danny Johnson | 500022 | CBC SC | 99 | 5 | 5 | 20.94 | 20.94 | 12 | 20.94 | 299 | |||||
| 13 | Jason Hadden - Norm Attaway | 500068 | CBC SC | 142 | 5 | 5 | 20.87 | 20.87 | 13 | 20.87 | 298 | |||||
| 14 | Mark Healon - Tony Truett | 500128 | CBC SC | 113 | 5 | 5 | 20.6 | 20.6 | 14 | 20.6 | 297 | |||||
| 15 | Ronnie McCoy - Jason McCoy | 500123 | CBC SC | 82 | 5 | 5 | 20.38 | 7.02 | 20.38 | 15 | 20.38 | 296 | ||||
| 16 | Eddie Smith - Michael Carson | 500001 | CBC SC | 132 | 5 | 5 | 20.25 | 20.25 | 16 | 20.25 | 295 | |||||
| 17 | Jeff Douglas - Bill Clowney | 500129 | CBC SC | 34 | 5 | 5 | 20.13 | 4.91 | 20.13 | 17 | 20.13 | 294 | ||||
| 18 | Thomas Vickers - Brian Huskins | 500017 | CBC SC | 15 | 5 | 5 | 19.67 | 19.67 | 18 | 19.67 | 293 | |||||
| 19 | Greg Atkinson - Ron Catoe | 500132 | CBC SC | 137 | 5 | 5 | 19.49 | 19.49 | 19 | 19.49 | 292 | |||||
| 20 | Barry Holloman - Joey Bramlet | 500045 | CBC SC | 32 | 5 | 5 | 19.37 | 19.37 | 20 | 19.37 | 291 | |||||
| 21 | Kenny Brice - Horace Morris | 500102 | CBC SC | 119 | 5 | 5 | 19.34 | 19.34 | 21 | 19.34 | 290 | |||||
| 22 | Daniel Hill - James Bond | 500075 | CBC SC | 80 | 5 | 5 | 19.33 | 19.33 | 22 | 19.33 | 289 | |||||
| 23 | Kevin Chandler - Terry James | 500101 | CBC SC | 144 | 5 | 5 | 19.32 | 19.32 | 23 | 19.32 | 288 | |||||
| 24 | Wayne King - Max Terry | 500008 | CBC SC | 27 | 5 | 5 | 19.05 | 19.05 | 24 | 19.05 | 287 | |||||
| 25 | Shane Lineberger - Anthony John | 500116 | CBC SC | 88 | 5 | 5 | 18.81 | 18.81 | 25 | 18.81 | 286 | |||||
| 26 | Eric Grigg - Marc Grigg | 500122 | CBC SC | 48 | 5 | 5 | 18.62 | 18.62 | 26 | 18.62 | 285 | |||||
| 27 | Gene Parker - Stanley Harkins | 500113 | CBC SC | 14 | 4 | 4 | 18.6 | 6.19 | 18.6 | 27 | 18.6 | 284 | ||||
| 28 | Ken McFarland - Darryl Watson | 500005 | CBC SC | 71 | 5 | 5 | 18.59 | 18.59 | 28 | 18.59 | 283 | |||||
| 29 | Mike King - Mike Traynum | 500036 | CBC SC | 117 | 5 | 5 | 18.42 | 18.42 | 29 | 18.42 | 282 | |||||
| 30 | Mike Stephens - Hunter Hicks | 500079 | CBC SC | 147 | 5 | 5 | 18.23 | 18.23 | 30 | 18.23 | 281 | |||||
| 31 | Kyle McElveen - Cleve Yarboroug | 500010 | CBC SC | 81 | 4 | 4 | 17.62 | 17.62 | 31 | 17.62 | 280 | |||||
| 32 | Ronnie Mueller - Wayne Frierson | 500100 | CBC SC | 58 | 5 | 5 | 17.59 | 17.59 | 32 | 17.59 | 279 | |||||
| 33 | Tony Jackson - Clint Jackson | 500136 | CBC SC | 56 | 5 | 5 | 17.5 | 17.5 | 33 | 17.5 | 278 | |||||
| 34 | Thad Driggers - Robert Carter | 500110 | CBC SC | 92 | 5 | 5 | 17.47 | 17.47 | 34 | 17.47 | 277 | |||||
| 35 | Josh McGregor - Randall Drigger | 500080 | CBC SC | 109 | 5 | 5 | 16.96 | 16.96 | 35 | 16.96 | 276 | |||||
| 36 | Reggie OBrien - Pat O'Brien | 500084 | CBC SC | 75 | 5 | 5 | 16.22 | 16.22 | 36 | 16.22 | 275 | |||||
| 37 | David F. Canupp - David L. Canu | 500006 | CBC SC | 55 | 3 | 3 | 16.12 | 5.99 | 16.12 | 37 | 16.12 | 274 | ||||
| 38 | Ed Matthews - Earl Purcell | 500020 | CBC SC | 140 | 4 | 4 | 16.09 | 16.09 | 38 | 16.09 | 273 | |||||
| 39 | Travis Parrish - Sean Hall | 500058 | CBC SC | 69 | 5 | 5 | 16.06 | 16.06 | 39 | 16.06 | 272 | |||||
| 40 | Andy Owens - | 500141 | CBC SC | 114 | 5 | 5 | 15.98 | 15.98 | 40 | 15.98 | 271 | |||||
| 41 | Roger Medlock - Todd Lawrence | 500054 | CBC SC | 1 | 5 | 5 | 15.96 | 5.11 | 15.96 | 41 | 15.96 | 270 | ||||
| 42 | Ferris Jennings - Larry Michale | 500004 | CBC SC | 10 | 5 | 5 | 15.95 | 6.22 | 15.95 | 42 | 15.95 | 269 | ||||
| 43 | Roger Pope - Michael Smith | 500025 | CBC SC | 24 | 5 | 5 | 15.77 | 15.77 | 43 | 15.77 | 268 | |||||
| 44 | Larry Avins - Joe Avin | 500051 | CBC SC | 108 | 5 | 5 | 15.69 | 15.69 | 44 | 15.69 | 267 | |||||
| 44 | John Sturkie - Calvin Hewitt | 500063 | CBC SC | 148 | 5 | 5 | 15.69 | 15.69 | 44 | 15.69 | 266 | |||||
| 46 | Chris Boehme - Tom Hucks | 500033 | CBC SC | 100 | 5 | 5 | 15.6 | 15.6 | 46 | 15.6 | 265 | |||||
| 47 | Nathan Burgess - Brent Riley | 500057 | CBC SC | 138 | 5 | 5 | 15.59 | 15.59 | 47 | 15.59 | 264 | |||||
| 48 | Jim Wagers - Pete Sherbert | 500146 | CBC SC | 134 | 4 | 4 | 15.54 | 15.54 | 48 | 15.54 | 263 | |||||
| 49 | David Williams - Gerald William | 500072 | CBC SC | 98 | 5 | 5 | 15.51 | 15.51 | 49 | 15.51 | 262 | |||||
| 50 | John Paul George - Eric Weir | 500130 | CBC SC | 54 | 5 | 5 | 15.41 | 15.41 | 50 | 15.41 | 261 | |||||
| 51 | Toby Keisler - Joel Watts | 500135 | CBC SC | 95 | 4 | 4 | 15.29 | 15.29 | 51 | 15.29 | 260 | |||||
| 52 | Gene Webster - Mike Seawright | 500106 | CBC SC | 51 | 5 | 5 | 15.23 | 15.23 | 52 | 15.23 | 259 | |||||
| 53 | Johnny Player - Robert Hall | 500009 | CBC SC | 74 | 5 | 5 | 15.22 | 15.22 | 53 | 15.22 | 258 | |||||
| 54 | Pat Clark - Dillon Price | 500131 | CBC SC | 5 | 3 | 3 | 15.21 | 5.81 | 15.21 | 54 | 15.21 | 257 | ||||
| 55 | Jimmy McFarland - | 500096 | CBC SC | 60 | 4 | 4 | 15.2 | 5.89 | 15.2 | 55 | 15.2 | 256 | ||||
| 56 | Brian Hall - Doug Stallings | 500062 | CBC SC | 123 | 4 | 4 | 15.2 | 15.2 | 56 | 15.2 | 255 | |||||
| 57 | Bobby Stanfill - Chip Grice | 500115 | CBC SC | 35 | 4 | 4 | 15.01 | 15.01 | 57 | 15.01 | 254 | |||||
| 58 | Johnny Houser - Deron Donohoo | 500069 | CBC SC | 122 | 5 | 5 | 14.95 | 14.95 | 58 | 14.95 | 253 | |||||
| 59 | David Kneece - Terry Thomas | 500120 | CBC SC | 139 | 4 | 4 | 14.94 | 14.94 | 59 | 14.94 | 252 | |||||
| 60 | Rob Thames - Daniel O'Brien | 500060 | CBC SC | 91 | 4 | 4 | 14.59 | 14.59 | 60 | 14.59 | 251 | |||||
| 61 | Mack Kitchens - Chad Gainey | 500029 | CBC SC | 61 | 4 | 4 | 14.54 | 14.54 | 61 | 14.54 | 250 | |||||
| 62 | Randy Hall - David Wray | 500065 | CBC SC | 129 | 4 | 4 | 14.53 | 14.53 | 62 | 14.53 | 249 | |||||
| 63 | Keith Gray - Shawn Gray | 500055 | CBC SC | 4 | 5 | 5 | 14.52 | 14.52 | 63 | 14.52 | 248 | |||||
| 64 | Thomas Richmond - Artie Phillip | 500037 | CBC SC | 93 | 4 | 4 | 13.86 | 13.86 | 64 | 13.86 | 247 | |||||
| 65 | Clark Gibbs - Freddie Gibbs | 500064 | CBC SC | 23 | 4 | 4 | 13.63 | 13.63 | 65 | 13.63 | 246 | |||||
| 66 | Charlie Sansbury - Kevin Banks | 500121 | CBC SC | 68 | 4 | 4 | 13.61 | 13.61 | 66 | 13.61 | 245 | |||||
| 67 | Jeff Reynolds - Lee Royson | 500015 | CBC SC | 59 | 4 | 4 | 13.38 | 13.38 | 67 | 13.38 | 244 | |||||
| 68 | Lyn Langston - Daniel Jordan | 500083 | CBC SC | 21 | 4 | 4 | 13.3 | 13.3 | 68 | 13.3 | 243 | |||||
| 69 | Tommy Williams - Thomas Hardwic | 500097 | CBC SC | 18 | 4 | 4 | 13.02 | 6.31 | 13.02 | 69 | 13.02 | 242 | ||||
| 70 | Stan Gunter - Will Smith | 500105 | CBC SC | 76 | 3 | 3 | 12.92 | 12.92 | 70 | 12.92 | 241 | |||||
| 71 | Ron Brown - Bobby Brown | 500042 | CBC SC | 116 | 5 | 5 | 12.77 | 12.77 | 71 | 12.77 | 240 | |||||
| 72 | Andrew Boykin - Chris Anderson | 500067 | CBC SC | 7 | 5 | 5 | 12.37 | 12.37 | 72 | 12.37 | 239 | |||||
| 73 | Tracy Hewitt - Pete Brantley | 500094 | CBC SC | 145 | 3 | 3 | 12.18 | 12.18 | 73 | 12.18 | 238 | |||||
| 74 | Neil Huffstetler - Ben Lee | 500050 | CBC SC | 38 | 4 | 4 | 11.71 | 11.71 | 74 | 11.71 | 237 | |||||
| 75 | Lee Sawyer - Cole Winn | 500073 | CBC SC | 8 | 3 | 3 | 11.6 | 11.6 | 75 | 11.6 | 236 | |||||
| 76 | Wesley Cashwell - Shane Doughti | 500114 | CBC SC | 87 | 4 | 4 | 11.45 | 11.45 | 76 | 11.45 | 235 | |||||
| 77 | Coy Watts - David Hutcherson | 500021 | CBC SC | 25 | 2 | 2 | 10.78 | 6.49 | 10.78 | 77 | 10.78 | 234 | ||||
| 78 | Chris Wells - Mike Hatfield | 500145 | CBC SC | 130 | 4 | 4 | 10.64 | 10.64 | 78 | 10.64 | 233 | |||||
| 79 | John Branstetter - Troy Buffing | 500074 | CBC SC | 103 | 2 | 2 | 10.45 | 7.48 | 10.45 | 79 | 10.45 | 232 | ||||
| 80 | Johnny Johnson - Ron Carson | 500091 | CBC SC | 73 | 2 | 2 | 9.9 | 9.9 | 80 | 9.9 | 231 | |||||
| 81 | Ryan West - Jeff Green | 500030 | CBC SC | 6 | 4 | 4 | 9.42 | 9.42 | 81 | 9.42 | 230 | |||||
| 82 | William Blanton - David Blanton | 500003 | CBC SC | 72 | 3 | 3 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 82 | 8.5 | 229 | |||||
| 83 | Philip Burns - Todd Burns | 500032 | CBC SC | 79 | 2 | 2 | 8.46 | 6.8 | 8.46 | 83 | 8.46 | 228 | ||||
| 84 | Russ Padgett - Meredith Havird | 500016 | CBC SC | 49 | 3 | 3 | 8.32 | 8.32 | 84 | 8.32 | 227 | |||||
| 85 | Austin Johnson - Andrew McClint | 500071 | CBC SC | 104 | 2 | 2 | 8.05 | 8.05 | 85 | 8.05 | 226 | |||||
| 86 | Frederick Clements - Dusty Rhoa | 500124 | CBC SC | 16 | 2 | 2 | 7.88 | 7.88 | 86 | 7.88 | 225 | |||||
| 87 | Todd Walters - Patrick Walters | 500035 | CBC SC | 118 | 3 | 3 | 7.48 | 7.48 | 87 | 7.48 | 224 | |||||
| 88 | Mack Cook - Patrick Cook | 500024 | CBC SC | 3 | 3 | 3 | 7.41 | 7.41 | 88 | 7.41 | 223 | |||||
| 89 | Michael Yochem - Charles Granth | 500117 | CBC SC | 45 | 2 | 2 | 7.34 | 7.34 | 89 | 7.34 | 222 | |||||
| 90 | Maurice Freeze - Ricky Poplin | 500142 | CBC SC | 22 | 3 | 3 | 7.33 | 7.33 | 90 | 7.33 | 221 | |||||
| 91 | John English - Victoria English | 500053 | CBC SC | 17 | 2 | 2 | 7.26 | 7.26 | 91 | 7.26 | 220 | |||||
| 92 | Kevin Fulmer - Mark Richardson | 500043 | CBC SC | 96 | 2 | 2 | 6.87 | 6.87 | 92 | 6.87 | 219 | |||||
| 93 | Glenn Altman - Larry Parker | 500066 | CBC SC | 115 | 3 | 3 | 6.57 | 6.57 | 93 | 6.57 | 218 | |||||
| 94 | Rick McLean - Robert Ross | 500014 | CBC SC | 28 | 2 | 2 | 6.25 | 6.25 | 94 | 6.25 | 217 | |||||
| 95 | Ryan Sprayberry - David Spraybe | 500095 | CBC SC | 84 | 2 | 2 | 6.22 | 6.22 | 95 | 6.22 | 216 | |||||
| 96 | William Young - James Mizell | 500034 | CBC SC | 106 | 2 | 2 | 5.45 | 5.45 | 96 | 5.45 | 215 | |||||
| 96 | Larry Moss - JB Wicker | 500041 | CBC SC | 44 | 3 | 3 | 5.45 | 5.45 | 96 | 5.45 | 214 | |||||
| 98 | Chuck Howard - Ken Ellis | 500086 | CBC SC | 62 | 2 | 2 | 4.96 | 4.96 | 98 | 4.96 | 213 | |||||
| 99 | Bradford Beavers - Dwight Beave | 500077 | CBC SC | 65 | 2 | 2 | 4.39 | 4.39 | 99 | 4.39 | 212 | |||||
| 100 | Keith Porter - Jason Threatt | 500040 | CBC SC | 63 | 1 | 1 | 4.31 | 4.31 | 4.31 | 100 | 4.31 | 211 | ||||
| 101 | Joseph Toth - Daniel Grassi | 500126 | CBC SC | 37 | 1 | 1 | 3.93 | 3.93 | 3.93 | 101 | 3.93 | 210 | ||||
| 102 | Brad Petway - Keith Hawley | 500104 | CBC SC | 105 | 1 | 1 | 3.31 | 3.31 | 3.31 | 102 | 3.31 | 209 | ||||
| 103 | Shane Suddeth - Fred Moore | 500107 | CBC SC | 57 | 1 | 1 | 3.05 | 3.05 | 3.05 | 103 | 3.05 | 208 | ||||
| 104 | Kevin Rake - Terry Morris | 500088 | CBC SC | 50 | 1 | 1 | 2.69 | 2.69 | 2.69 | 104 | 2.69 | 207 | ||||
| 105 | David Wiggins - Alex Zipperian | 500092 | CBC SC | 70 | 1 | 1 | 1.61 | 1.61 | 1.61 | 105 | 1.61 | 206 | ||||
| 106 | Rodney Cromer - | 500007 | CBC SC | 33 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Jay Adams - Bobby Carroll | 500011 | CBC SC | 47 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | David Few - Tracy Schiff | 500012 | CBC SC | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Michael Murphy - Kevin Sanders | 500013 | CBC SC | 52 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | John Gutierrez - Rodney Tapp | 500018 | CBC SC | 110 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Daniel Cook - Donnie Levister | 500019 | CBC SC | 146 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Bo Chappell - | 500023 | CBC SC | 85 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Darren Sigmon - Brian Huffman | 500026 | CBC SC | 102 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Glenn Gentry - Tommy Purvis | 500031 | CBC SC | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Carl Williams - Eddie Williams | 500038 | CBC SC | 135 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Jim Sims - Casey Logan | 500039 | CBC SC | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Derrick Compton - Dustin Compto | 500044 | CBC SC | 42 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Robert Guest - David Heatherly | 500046 | CBC SC | 131 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Thomas King - Clayton King | 500047 | CBC SC | 41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Clay Lowder - Clayton Lowder | 500048 | CBC SC | 141 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Chris Dover - Chad Lail | 500049 | CBC SC | 43 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Randy Mathis - Jody Jones | 500056 | CBC SC | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Robert Fowler - John Parker | 500059 | CBC SC | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Bernie Dreher - Les Westbury | 500061 | CBC SC | 107 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Greg Rikard - Eddie Herlong | 500070 | CBC SC | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Chris Langley - Greg Sigmon | 500078 | CBC SC | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Brent Waynick - Rodney Jordan | 500081 | CBC SC | 112 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Dan Daugherty - Mark Inman | 500082 | CBC SC | 133 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Mark Swez - Lamar Williamson | 500085 | CBC SC | 125 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Todd Garner - Shane Hartman | 500087 | CBC SC | 64 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Amin Jaber - Brian Nichols | 500089 | CBC SC | 89 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Charles Keith - Chase Menasco | 500090 | CBC SC | 66 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Jeremy Johnson - Harry Johnson | 500093 | CBC SC | 78 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Tracy pope - Jeff Segee | 500098 | CBC SC | 136 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Johnathan Crossland - Phillip M | 500099 | CBC SC | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Billy Martin - Brian Scruggs | 500103 | CBC SC | 46 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Mike Allman - | 500109 | CBC SC | 67 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Jimmy Stroud - Kirk Crump | 500111 | CBC SC | 121 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Jerry Montjoy - Brett Mitchell | 500112 | CBC SC | 90 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Perry Wycuff - Dan Lowe | 500118 | CBC SC | 77 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Joe Braxton - Robert Braxton | 500119 | CBC SC | 83 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Dane Odom - Ross Burns | 500127 | CBC SC | 86 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Miles Hair - Terry Tolar | 500133 | CBC SC | 126 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | David Etheridge - Butch William | 500137 | CBC SC | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | David Love - Corey Love | 500143 | CBC SC | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Carl Smith - Jonathan Dailey | 500144 | CBC SC | 53 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Craig Chambers - Kieth Ogden | 500147 | CBC SC | 120 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 | 205 | |||||
| 106 | Shannon Jordan - Shawn Jordan | 500148 | CBC SC | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 0 |
|
205 |
|
|||
University Of Wisconsin Teams Sweep Top Spots In Carhartt College Regional
The runner-up team of Cody Lincoln and Jason Hawksford, also of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, ended the tournament with a total of 27-4.
Although the Top 14 teams earned the right to move on to the Carhartt College Series National Championship, qualifying was never the focus for Hugus and Hahner.
“We came here to win,” said Hahner. “We finished second at our tournament last weekend, and that hurt.”
When Hugus and Hahner hit the water for practice at the Missouri lake, their main focus was finding big bass. The bigger bites were spaced out during practice so the duo searched for different fishing areas during the competition days, as well. They also concentrated on a few areas where they had previously caught multiple fish.
“We basically looked for transition banks in pockets,” said Hugus. These “transition banks” consisted of larger rock turning to chunk rock. There, Hugus and Hahner fished MegaBass 110 jerkbaits to trigger bites from prespawn bass that were moving toward more shallow water.
Their win can be credited to covering water and not letting lost fish demoralize them. On Friday, Hugus and Hahner lost a 3-pounder and another bass weighing more than 5 pounds early in the morning. Knowing that their main window of opportunity would come later in the day as the water warmed up, they were able to shake off the lost fish and focus on the next bite.
Day 2 began much the same way with Hugus losing the team’s second keeper bite of the morning, a solid 4-pounder.
“We just kept our heads down and kept fishing,” said Hugus.
That mindset paid off as Hugus and Hahner hit a flurry around noon when they boated most of their 13-3 catch on Saturday during a 30-minute span.
Lincoln and Hawksford, who finished in second, also held the second-place position on Day 1.
Kansas State University’s Quinn Fowler and Dylan McKee finished third with 26-3.
Ryan Gilbert and Jacob Cllisch of the University of Wisconsin-Plattville caught the Carhartt Big Bass for the event, a 7-1 largemouth that Gilbert weighed in on Friday. The prize was a $500 Carhartt gift card.
Hugus and Hahner took the Livingston Lures Leader Award of a $500 gift card with a two-day total of 32-13. The two also won the Bass Pro Nitro Big Bag award with their first-day catch of 19-10 and received a $250 Bass Pro Shops gift card.
The Top 14 teams advance to the Carhartt College Series National Championship to be held later this year.
2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Title Sponsor: Carhartt
2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Official Sponsors: Toyota, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Quantum, Yamaha
2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Supporting Partners: Booyah, Diet Mountain Dew, Livingston Lures, Lowrance, Motorguide, Plano, Power-Pole, Rigid Industries, Shimano
2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Proud Partner: Mustang Survival
About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport. 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), 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 presented by Allstate, B.A.S.S. Nation events, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series, Bassmaster High School Series, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by Diet Mountain Dew and GoPro.
-30-
Media Contact: Dave Precht, 205-313-0931, dprecht@bassmaster.com, or Helen Northcutt, 205-313-0944, hnorthcutt@bassmaster.com.
|
|
|
University Of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Takes Top Spot On Lake Of The Ozarks
After a long, cold day, the scales settled for Hugus and Hahner just shy of the 20-pound mark. Most anglers at takeoff predicted close to 20 pounds to be the bar to reach. With water temps in the lower 40s, the common consensus was a slow bite but a big bite.
The slow bite showed up with the most productive baits being a jerkbait and a jig. Anglers had to slow down because of the cold water and fish their jerkbaits with 5- to 10-second pauses in their cadence.
The big bite showed up for most of the field as well, but the numbers weren’t there. Most anglers only caught one or two fish while trying to fill their limits, but those fish averaged 4 to 5 pounds.
Hugus and Hahner were the only team that came close to putting together a limit of those 4- to 5-pounders.
“We had one little one around 2 1/2 (pounds), but other than that we had all solid fish,” Hahner said .
Like most of the anglers on Day 1, Hugus and Hahner caught their fish primarily on a jerkbait with the majority of their bites coming after 1 o’clock.
“At about 1 o’clock we had three fish in the boat,” Hahner said. “We knew we had to make something happen.”
After a gut instinct led to an adjustment, Hugus and Haher caught a 5-pounder and a 6-pounder propelling them into the Day 1 lead.
The team of Cody Lincoln and Jason Hawksford and the team of Matt Feiten and Brian Kirt, second and third place respectively, both also of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, round out the Top 3 after Day 1.
Ryan Gilbert and Jacob Cllisch of the University of Wisconsin-Plattville caught the Day 1 Carhartt Big Bass weighing 7-1.
Hugus’ and Hahner’s 19-10 bag took the Nitro Bass Pro Big Bag honors for Day 1.
The Top 14 teams after Day 2 will advance to the Carhartt College Series National Championship to be held later this year.
Anglers will takeoff from Lake of the Ozarks State Park at 7:30 a.m. for Day 2 of competition. Follow all the action at Bassmaster.com and tune in to watch the live weigh-in on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. CT.
2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Title Sponsor: Carhartt
2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Official Sponsors: Toyota, Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Skeeter Boats, Triton Boats, Quantum, Yamaha
2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Supporting Partners: Booyah, Diet Mountain Dew, Livingston Lures, Lowrance, Motorguide, Plano, Power-Pole, Rigid Industries, Shimano
2014 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Proud Partner: Mustang Survival
About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S. is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport. 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), 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 presented by Allstate, B.A.S.S. Nation events, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series, Bassmaster High School Series, Toyota Bonus Bucks Bassmaster Team Championship and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the GEICO Bassmaster Classic presented by Diet Mountain Dew and GoPro.
-30-
Media Contact: Dave Precht, 205-313-0931, dprecht@bassmaster.com, or Helen Northcutt, 205-313-0944, hnorthcutt@bassmaster.com.
|
|
|
Rose Grabs Lead At Flw Tour On Sam Rayburn
Seasoned veteran Walmart pro Mark Rose of West Memphis, Ark., brought a five-bass limit to the scale on Friday weighing 19 pounds, 2 ounces to snatch the lead after day two of the Walmart FLW Tour at Sam Rayburn Reservoir presented by Chevy. Anchored by a monster 9-pound Sam Rayburn largemouth, Rose now has a two-day total of 10 bass worth 43 pounds even. He will hold a narrow 1-pound, 9 ounce lead going into day three of the four-day event, presented by the Lufkin Convention and Visitors Bureau, that features 176 of the world’s best bass-fishing anglers competing for a top cash award of up to $125,000.
“I really struggled today,†said Rose, who has earned more than $1.75 million dollars in FLW competition. “Most of the 19 pounds that I weighed in was the big 9-pounder. I didn’t catch but seven fish all day today, and one was a little 12-inch spotted bass.
“I’m fishing the outside and inside edges of grass lines,†Rose continued. “When the weather is calm and sunny like today, they get buried up in the grass. I’m going to do the same thing tomorrow, but I’m going to pray for some clouds and wind.â€
Rose said that he was fishing around 15 different areas throwing a lot of plastics, crankbaits and a Strike King Red-Eye Shad. He said that most of the fish that he is catching are post-spawn.
“Most of my fish that I’m weighing in are post-spawn,†the Arkansas pro said. “But, it seems like every day I’m weighing in one big pre-spawner. Even in practice I would catch one big pre-spawn bass each day.
“I’m pretty committed to this pattern,†said Rose. “I may just have to adapt a little better and get in the grass and figure out how to catch them.â€
The top 20 pros that will fish Saturday on Sam Rayburn are:
1st: Walmart pro Mark Rose, West Memphis, Ark., 10 bass, 43-0
2nd: Jason Meninger, Gainesville, Ga., 10 bass, 41-7
3rd: Steve Kennedy, Auburn, Ala., 10 bass, 40-10
4th: Chevy pro Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., 10 bass, 39-10
5th: Rick Cotten, Guntersville, Ala., 10 bass, 37-14
6th: Greg Hackney, Gonzales, La., 10 bass, 36-11
7th: John Cox, Debary, Fla., 10 bass, 36-10
8th: Andy Montgomery, Blacksburg, S.C., 10 bass, 34-10
9th: Jonathan Newton, Rogersville, Ala., nine bass, 34-7
10th: Tony Davis, Williston, Fla., nine bass, 33-7
11th: Cheez-It pro Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas, five bass, 33-3
12th: Jayme Rampey, Liberty, S.C., 10 bass, 33-1
13th: Castrol pro Mike Surman, Boca Raton, Fla., 10 bass, 33-0
14th: Shad Schenck, Waynetown, Ind., 10 bass, 32-2
15th: Austin Terry, San Angelo, Texas, 10 bass, 31-11
16th: Rob Kilby, Hot Springs, Ark., 10 bass, 31-7
17th: Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 31-4
18th: Brad Knight, Wartburg, Tenn., 10 bass, 30-0
19th: Richard Peek, Centre, Ala., 10 bass, 29-15
20th: Gary Yamamoto, Palestine, Texas, 10 bass, 29-13
For a full list of results visit FLWOutdoors.com.
Rose also won the FLW Big Bass Award and $500 on Friday on the pro side with a brute weighing 9 pounds even.
Overall there were 741 bass weighing 1,744 pounds, 13 ounces caught by 173 pros Friday. The catch included 114 five-bass limits.
Pro Shawn Murphy of Nicholasville, Ky., was assessed a 2-pound penalty Friday for a violation of FLW Tour rule No. 8. Murphy finished the tournament in 35th place and earned $10,000.
Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the 2014 Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart, the world championship of bass fishing. The top 35 anglers in the point standings from the six events on the 2014 Walmart FLW Tour will qualify. The 2014 Forrest Wood Cup will be in Columbia, S.C., Aug. 14-17 on Lake Murray and is hosted by Capital City Lake Murray Country. Anglers could win as much as $500,000 – professional bass-fishing’s richest prize.
Stephen Crawley of Bush, La., leads the co-angler division with 10 bass weighing 26-6 followed by Eric Self of Lawndale, N.C., in second place with eight bass weighing 26-4.
The top 20 co-anglers fishing Saturday are:
1st: Stephen Crawley, Bush, La., 10 bass, 26-6
2nd: Eric Self, Lawndale, N.C., eight bass, 26-4
3rd: Nick Loeffelman Jr., Valles Mines, Mo., 10 bass, 25-11
4th: Billy Billeaud, Lafayette, La., eight bass, 25-2
5th: Bryan Partak, Marseilles, Ill., seven bass, 25-0
6th: Bryan New, Belmont, N.C., 10 bass, 23-13
7th: Glenn Day, Cumming, Ga., 10 bass, 23-1
8th: Gary Runyon, Decatur, Tenn., nine bass, 22-13
9th: Spiro Agouros, Ontario, Canada, 10 bass, 22-12
10th: Kerry Barnett, Waldron, Ark., 10 bass, 22-11
11th: Michael Stricklin, Vidalia, La., eight bass, 21-13
12th: Jason Johnson, Gainesville, Ga., nine bass, 21-1
13th: Kyle Monti, Okeechobee, Fla., nine bass, 20-14
14th: Billy Dehart, Burlingame, Calif., 10 bass, 20-12
15th: Rob Hicks, Lula, Ga., six bass, 20-9
16th: Dennis Cameron, Travelers Rest, S.C., eight bass, 20-8
17th: Forrest Smith, Pickerington, Ohio, eight bass, 20-7
18th: Perry Dawson, Spring City, Tenn., seven bass, 20-6
19th: J.R. Wright, Truckee, Calif., nine bass, 20-5
20th: Chuck Kavros, Grass Valley, Calif., 10 bass, 20-4
For a full list of results visit FLWOutdoors.com.
Partak caught Friday’s FLW Big Bass in the co-angler division weighing 10 pounds, 2 ounces to win $250.
Overall there were 520 bass weighing 1,076 pounds, 14 ounces caught by co-anglers Friday. The catch included 52 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $25,000 this week plus valuable points that could help them qualify for the 2014 Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart. The top 35 co-anglers in the point standings from the six events on the 2014 Walmart FLW Tour will qualify.
Anglers will take off from Cassels-Boykin County Park located at FM Road 3123 (off State Highway 147) in Zavalla, Texas, at 7 a.m. on Saturday. On Sunday the top 10 anglers will take off at 7:30 a.m. Saturday and Sunday’s final weigh-ins will be held at the Walmart located at 2500 Daniel McCall Drive in Lufkin beginning at 4 p.m.
Fans will also be treated to the FLW Expo at Walmart on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. prior to the final weigh-ins. The Expo includes Ranger boat simulators, the opportunity to interact with professional anglers, enjoy interactive games, activities and giveaways provided by sponsors, and fans can learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities. All activities are free and open to the public. Also on Sunday, country music star Michael Ray will perform a free live concert on the Walmart weigh-in stage at 3 p.m.
Coverage of the Sam Rayburn Reservoir tournament will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network when “FLW†airs June 7 from 11 a.m.-12 p.m. ET. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show is hosted by Jason Harper 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 complete details and updated information visit FLWOutdoors.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.
Montgomery Hoping Table Rock More Hospitable For Elite Tournament Than In The Past
Bassmaster Elite Series and FLW Tour Pro Andy Montgomery of Blacksburg, SC
Andy Montgomery was driving the 15 hours from Palatka, Fla., to Lufkin, Texas, Sunday, halfway through a six-tournament marathon that he hopes will land him in the Forrest Wood Cup on South Carolina's famed bass factory, Lake Murray, this August.
“I'm fishing six tournaments in six weeks. I just finished fishing three and am on my way to the next three,” Montgomery said.
He is also trying to fish his way into the 2015 Bassmaster Classic on South Carolina's Lake Hartwell next February, but the lure of fishing the FLW Championship just a couple of hours drive from his home in Blacksburg, S.C., was too much to turn down, Montgomery said.
Besides, he added, he kind of has a score to settle with the Forrest Wood Cup on Lake Murray.
“The last time the Cup was on Lake Murray in 2008 I finished 13th. I felt like I had a really good chance to win it, but I just did not get the big bites I needed the second day of the tournament,” he said. “I caught a lot of keepers, but just did not get that big bite. But my co-angler won the tournament and he got several big bites, so I know I was around the fish to win it.”
So he was headed to Sam Rayburn Lake in his quest for the Cup on Lake Murray and from there he will drive north this weekend to Table Rock Lake in Missouri to try to boost his chances for qualifying for the Lake Hartwell Bassmaster Classic next February. Montgomery, who is riding a wave of success in B.A.S.S. so far this year – 11th on Lake Seminole two weeks ago and 25th on the St. John's River last week – hopes Table Rock is more kind to him this time than it has been in the past.
“I have had some really good practices on Table Rock, but that lake has been a thorn in my side. I just could not get them in the boat in a tournament,” he said. “The lake changes from day to day. I'd have almost too good a practice and get locked in on certain ares or things and it would change, so I've got to have an open mind every day of the tournament this time.”
His best outing on Table Rock was in a PAA tournament last September when he placed 45th. His record in two FLW tournaments on the lake was forgettable.
“It's a clear lake and the wind means everything there. If the wind changes directions it will really mess you up. The fish move a lot, too. When they come up they move pretty fast and you just have to stay with them.”
Montgomery said the tournament probably will be won by cranking a Wiggle Wart or throwing a jerkbait.
“There is every type of rock there, so you are always fishing some type of rocky bank. You have to figure out what type of rock the fish are on.”
Adding to the mystery of the bass fishery in the lake is the exceptionally cold winter, he said.
“It's been cold and there was a lot snow, which means there is a lot of snow run-off that makes the lake really cold. Everything seems to be behind this year.”
Six tournaments in six weeks. “It's been rough,” Montgomery said, “but that's just part of the deal.”
A.R.E. Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite Series
Apr 3-6, 2014
Table Rock Lake
Rodgers On A Mission To Get To The Forrest Wood Cup In Flw Tournament On Sam Rayburn
Dearal Rodgers with a nice fish at Chickamauga
With a 15th place finish on Lake Hartwell two weeks ago, Dearal Rodgers took a big step towards his goal of qualifying for the 2014 Forrest Wood Cup on South Carolina's Lake Murray this August.He'd like to take another big step towards the Lake Murray championship this week on Texas' Lake Sam Rayburn in the third FLW Tour tournament of the year.
But, no matter how his season goes, whatever steps he makes in tournaments pale in comparison to the steps he has taken since a work-related 20-foot fall to a concrete floor six months ago. Rodgers, who owns an environmental business in Camden, S.C., with his wife, when he is not fishing bass tournaments, was doing an asbestos inspection in an old shop building in Spartanburg, S.C., on Friday, Sept. 13, when the roof caved in.
“To fall 20 feet to concrete and to be able to walk and not be paralyzed is a miracle,” said Rodgers who has worked hard to regain his strength and stamina. Knowing it would take a completely healthy angler to fish the pro side of the Tour, Rodgers decided to return to the Co-Angler side for 2014 while he worked on his recovery.
His goal is to get back to the Forrest Wood Cup, which he won as a Co-Angler in 2010 and make a much better showing on Lake Murray than he did in the Cup in 2008 when he placed a distant 73rd on the lake less than an hour from his home.
“It's a tough tournament, but somebody has got to win it,” he said. “It would be nice to fish for my home state and represent everyone in South Carolina.”
He and fellow co-angler Jeff Rikard of Leesville, S.C., made the 15-hour drive to Rayburn Sunday, leaving South Carolina at 4 a.m. after competing in the South Carolina Division BFL tournament on Saturday at Santee Cooper where Rodgers placed 31stas a boater and Rikard 32nd as a co-angler.
After practicing all day Monday on Rayburn with pro angler Brandon Coulter, Rodgers said he was feeling fine, although a little sleepy from the rigors of the long weekend.
“I've been taking a nap every now and then while Brandon was driving the boat,” he said. “But I feel I can make all the casts I want to. I don't feel handicapped in that regard anymore.”
In between catnaps, Rodgers said the fishing was a little tough following a cold snap Sunday night, but he had started to figure few things out on his first trip ever to Rayburn.
“There is a lot of grass in the lake, so I plan to throw two baits that I can cast a long way and cover a lot of water, probably a Rat-L-Trap and a Chatterbait. I'll also throw a little Speed Worm or a Little Craw,” he said.
“I think a lot of people will catch limits, so I am going to have to figure out how to get bigger bites fishing behind somebody who is doing well. I figure it's going to take 12 to 15 pounds a day on the co-angler side.”
Rodgers said there are a lot of small fish in the lake, but also some good-sized ones to go after.
“This is a legendary lake, so it's going to be fun.”
Rodgers, who won the FLW Tour Co-Angler of the Year Award in 2009 and the FLW Tour's Forrest Wood Cup as a Co-Angler in 2010 is fishing the FLW Tour as a co-angler in 2014. He is also available for guided bass fishing trips on Lake Wateree and other lakes in South Carolina. For information on the tournament fishing career of Dearal Rodgers or to inquire about a guided bass fishing trip on Lake Wateree or other South Carolina lakes, check out his website: www.dearalrodgers.com.
FLW Tour Major
Mar 27-30, 2014
Sam Rayburn Reservoir
Cassels-Boykin Park
Wicker Team Will Do 'basic Spring Fishing 101' In Cbc-Sc Tournament On Lake Wateree
It was a classic case of you can't be in two – or in this particular case, three – places at one time.
Andy Wicker and his dad, Steve, make a pretty formidable fishing team in local South Carolina bass tournaments, but so far this year they have had a hard time getting on track in the South Carolina Division of the Carolinas Bass Challenge.
They fished the first CBC-SC tournament in early February but did not weigh a fish, and then they missed the second tournament on Lake Wylie because of a conflict with a wedding.
They hoped to practice on Lake Wateree last weekend for the third CBC-SC tournament this Saturday, but that rule about being in more than one place at a time got in the way.
Steve fished the Walmart BFL on Santee Cooper last Saturday, placing 16th. Andy, who is leading the points in the Weekend Bass Series, finished third in the WBS tournament on Lake Russell – his second 3rd place in the two tournaments held so far this year.
So, because the Carolinas Bass Challenge puts tournament lakes off-limits for a week starting the Sunday before a tournament, they did not get to practice on Lake Wateree.
“I am no local expert on Wateree,” said Andy, who hails from Pomaria, S.C., halfway between Lake Murray and Lake Monticello and grew up bass fishing both lakes with his dad. “But, we have fished it before. I caught some decent fish there in a Weekend Series tournament last year.”
The Wicker Team, he said, will probably do Basic Spring Fishing 101 at Wateree Saturday.
“Wateree definitely sets up for shallow water fishing. You've got that grass to fish and it's an awesome dock lake, too,” he said.
“That's a spinnerbait lake and every spring some big fish are caught there on a spinnerbait. Grass, docks and spinnerbaits all go together,” he said. “We might also throw an Alabama Rig and try to catch a couple of big fish.”
Carolinas Bass Challenge - South Carolina Division
Sat, Mar 29, 2014
Lake Wateree
Clearwater Cove Marina
Call Brett Collins 803-413-7521
www.carolinasbasschallenge.com
Sportsmans Warehouse Pre Spawn Showcase!
With fishing action as good as its been in years, we had to grab some great pre-spawn lures to share with everyone at SPORTSMAN'S WAREHOUSE in Columbia, SC with fishing Manager Craig Baird!
Cotten Claims Lead At Flw Tour On Rayburn
This was a total surprise for me based on my practice,†said Cotten, a third-year pro who has one previous top-10 finish in FLW Tour competition. “I caught a lot of fish in practice but my best five were only going about 16 pounds. These are not the same fish that I was catching in practice. They just randomly moved in.â€
Cotten said that he spent the entire day in one area, which he described as a grass line that was a couple of acres long.
I had several different areas that I was ready to fish, but I didn’t run them today because of the weather,†Cotten said. “So I stayed in one spot and it paid off. Those fish aren’t holding to anything, so who knows if I’ll be able to catch them tomorrow. There is no hard structure there. The fish are just holding to the grass line.
Im going back to that same spot tomorrow and plan on camping out all day,†Cotten continued. “I’m working it very thoroughly and fishing very slow. I feel like these are pre-spawn fish.â€
Cotten said that he caught seven keepers throughout the entire day, and although he was not ready to divulge his baits of choice he did say that all of his fish came on just two baits.
I used to live in Houston and I got to fish on this lake quite a bit,†Cotten went on to say. “It’s really fun getting to come back here and I can’t wait to go fishing again tomorrow.â€
The top 10 pros after day one at Sam Rayburn Reservoir are:
1st: Rick Cotten, Guntersville, Ala., five bass, 25-15
2nd: Andy Montgomery, Blacksburg, S.C., five bass, 24-11
3rd: Walmart pro Mark Rose, West Memphis, Ark., five bass, 23-14
4th: Ryan Davidson, Huntington, W.Va., five bass, 21-6
5th: Steve Kennedy, Auburn, Ala., five bass, 18-14
6th: Chevy pro Bryan Thrift, Shelby, N.C., five bass, 18-12
7th: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., five bass, 18-8
8th: Ramie Colson Jr., Cadiz, Ky., five bass, 17-12
9th: Cheez-It pro Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas, five bass, 17-9
9th: Lendell Martin Jr., Nacogdoches, Texas, five bass, 17-9
For a full list of results visit FLWOutdoors.com.
Chevy pro Jay Yelas of Corvallis, Ore., won the Big Bass Award on the pro side Thursday with a fish weighing 8 pounds, 13 ounces to win $500.
Overall there were 729 bass weighing 1,815 pounds, 6 ounces caught by 173 pros Thursday. The catch included 105 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the 2014 Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart, the world championship of bass fishing. The top 35 anglers in the point standings from the six events on the 2014 Walmart FLW Tour will qualify. The 2014 Forrest Wood Cup will be in Columbia, S.C., Aug. 14-17 on Lake Murray and is hosted by Capital City Lake Murray Country. Anglers could win as much as $500,000 – professional bass-fishing’s richest prize.
Tim Beale of Hernando, Miss., and Eric Self of Lawndale, N.C., tied for the lead in the co-angler division after each brought five bass to the scale weighing 18 pounds, 4 ounces.
The top 10 co-anglers are:
1st: Tim Beale, Hernando, Miss., five bass, 18-4
1st: Eric Self, Lawndale, N.C., five bass, 18-4
3rd: Nick Thliveros, St. Augustine, Fla., five bass, 16-3
4th: Stephen Crawley, Bush, La., five bass, 15-4
5th: Jake Gipson, Niceville, Fla., three bass, 13-10
6th: Joey Romano, Denham Springs, La., five bass, 13-8
7th: Jeff Gengler, Fort Collins, Colo., four bass, 13-2
8th: Forrest Smith, Pickerington, Ohio, four bass, 12-14
9th: Kyle Monti, Okeechobee, Fla., four bass, 12-12
10th: Casey O’Donnell, Bradenton, Fla., five bass, 12-11
For a full list of results visit FLWOutdoors.com.
Beale also caught Thursday’s Big Bass in the co-angler division weighing 8-9 to win $250.
Overall there were 465 bass weighing 997 pounds, 2 ounces caught by co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 29 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $25,000 this week plus valuable points that could help them qualify for the 2014 Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart. The top 35 co-anglers in the point standings from the six events on the 2014 Walmart FLW Tour will qualify.
Anglers will take off from Cassels-Boykin County Park located at FM Road 3123 (off State Highway 147) in Zavalla, Texas., at 7 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. On Sunday, the final day of competition, the top 10 anglers will take off at 7:30 a.m. Friday’s weigh-in will be held at Cassels-Boykin County Park beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday’s final weigh-ins will be held at the Walmart located at 2500 Daniel McCall Drive in Lufkin beginning at 4 p.m.
Fans will also be treated to the FLW Expo at Walmart on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. prior to the final weigh-ins. The Expo includes Ranger boat simulators, the opportunity to interact with professional anglers, enjoy interactive games, activities and giveaways provided by sponsors, and fans can learn more about the sport of fishing and other outdoor activities. All activities are free and open to the public. Also on Sunday, country music star Michael Ray will perform a free live concert on the Walmart weigh-in stage at 3 p.m.
Coverage of the Sam Rayburn Reservoir tournament will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network when “FLW†airs June 7 from 11 a.m.-12 p.m. ET. The Emmy-nominated "FLW" television show is hosted by Jason Harper 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 complete details and updated information visit FLWOutdoors.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.
Record Spot Caught on Cypress Springs Lake in Texas Bass Couples East Region-Full Results here!
Piedmont Bass Classics Spring Mini Trail Qualifier #3 Results - Mayo Reservoir - Mar 22, 2014
1st Place: Steve Upchurch & Jeff Hodges...5 bass...17.51 lbs
The Piedmont Bass Classics Team Bass Spring Mini Trail qualifier #3 results showed that Mayo Reservoir is
still a good producing lake even with the cold water conditions! 26 teams vied for the 1st place money on a right pretty day for fishing.
It was a little chilly that morning at 44 degree s but ended up being a nice and comfortable 70 degrees at
weighin. The forecast was for 7 mph winds but it ended up being a pretty steady 15 gusting to 20 at times. Water
temps averaged 50 degrees. The prespawn bass seemed to be in fairly shallow 3-6 foot stained water mostly
near the points. Most of the fish were caught on Rat-L-Traps and crankbaits.
Jeff Hodges & Steve Upchurch caught 5 healthy bass weighing a total of 17.51 lbs. taking 1st Place. They also
won 1st Place TWT for a total of $1,011 in winnings. 2nd Place went to Randy Fisher & Donnie Lowe with 5
bass weighing 15.83 lbs. They also won the Big Fish award (5.62 lbs.) and took home a total of $649. Tim Goss
won the Tow Boats US bonus of $50.
75 bass were weighed in for a total of 217 pounds. This averaged right at 3 lbs. a fish and they were nice and
healthy looking. Mayo is a good small lake fishery!
I want to thank all the anglers that participated and all our sponsors that support these trails. Our next
tournament will be the 2014 Boats Unlimited Team Tournament Bass Trail Qualifier #3, Saturday, Mar. 29th at
Shearon Harris out of Cross Point Landing Wildlife Ramp. Coming up Saturday April 5th will be the Tobacco
Bass Invitational at Kerr Lake out of Flemingtown Landing Wildlife Ramp.
All the information on our tournaments can be found at www.piedmontbassclassics.com
Now here are the full results:
1st Place: Steve Upchurch & Jeff Hodges of Raleigh & Pittsboro...5 bass...17.51 lbs...$675
2nd Place: Randy Fisher & Donnie Lowe of Hillsborough & Mebane...5 bass...15.83 lbs...$389
3rd Place: Keith Deal & Ricky Kenworth of Holly Springs & Cary...5 bass...15.43 lbs...$270
4th Place: Lynn Fox & Wesly Ross of Gibsonville & Reidsville...5 bass...15.03 lbs...$203
5th Place: Rodney Bowen & Barney Compton of Timberlake & Leasburg...5 bass...14.93 lbs...$153
1st Place Big Fish: 2nd Place Team above...5.62 lbs...$260
1st Place TWT: 1st Place Team above: 17.51 lbs...$336
2nd Place TWT: 3rd Place Team above: 15.43 lbs...$144
Tow Boats US Award: Tim Goss of Franklinton: $50
Contact Information:
Phil McCarson...Tournament Director---922 Valetta Rd.---Durham, NC 27712
Home: 919-471-1571 Cell: 919-971-5042
email: philsflags@msn.com website: www.piedmontbassclassics.com
Weekend Wrap Up with AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh
AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh joins us to look back at one of the better weekends we've seen in years across the region. Now there is a reason for all these great weights, and Rob shares that with us. Click here for more!
Curtis Vaughn and Mike Sipple haul in 32.13 Lbs on Falls for the NC Div Opener for AC Marine
55 teams turned out for the NC Div Opener for the Anglers Choice Marine TT on Falls Lake. WOW! What an impressive haul these guys had with 1st and 2nd place both over 30 Lbs! BF was 10.34 and overall the weights were tremendous. Here are some great pic's of the winners as well as the 10+ LB BF. Full results are attached at the bottom:
1st Place Team of Vaughn and Sipple hold up their 32+ Lb Winning Sack!
2nd place team of Chris Richey and George Bost with 31+ Lbs!
3rd Place team of Fisher and Hunt with their 26.49 LB Sack!
BF Winner Lee Williams holds up his 10.34 LB Toad!
Stanley Wins Bfl On Percy Priest Lake
Stanley earned his second career BFL victory on a day when he caught the tournament Big Fish and estimated that he caught four separate limits that would each have weighed at least 13 pounds.
Cecil Finds Bedding Bass During Competition Rounds to Win Rayovac on Toledo Bend
Costas Wins B F L On Santee Cooper
Scott Threadgill and Dwayne Saunders win the CBC on Norman-Take home $13k-Full results here!
A record crowd showed up for the 1st NC Div event of the 2014 CBC Season with 203 teams blasting off from Blythe Landing Sat morning. The fishing on Norman has been hot, and the weigh-in did not disappoint! There were more limits brought in Sat afternoon than we have ever seen on Norman. Large spots were the norm in the 2-2.5 Lb range along with a very high quality BF of 5.80 Lbs caught by the winning team. The Blanton father son team won the Skeeter bonus money, so finishing in 8th place allowed them to go home with $6300!! Congrats to all the anglers who came out and made this one heck of a tournament! Here are some great pic's and full results below:
CBC Norman Champs hold up their $13,000 Stringer!
CBC 2nd Place team of Greg Osborne and Wyatt Blevins
CBC 3rd Place Team of Jeff and KJ Queen place near the top-Again!
AC Pro Staffer Rob Digh Holds up some of his stringer after finishing in 11th place
Will Blanton Holds up his Skeeter Bonus CHeck with Al Odom
| Place | Team Name | Team # | Fish Weighed | Net Weight | Big Fish | Points | Winnings | $$ Each | |
| 1 | Scott Threadgill - Dwayne Saund | 45 | 5 | 18.740 | 5.800 | 310 | $12,000 | 6,000.00 | |
| 2 | Greg Osborne - Wyatt Blevins | 128 | 5 | 17.830 | 0.000 | 309 | $5,000 | 2,500.00 | |
| 3 | Jeff Queen - Kristopher KJ Quee | 159 | 5 | 15.500 | 0.000 | 308 | $3,500 | 1,750.00 | |
| 4 | Dale Surrett - Brian Morgan | 199 | 5 | 15.310 | 0.000 | 307 | $2,500 | 1,250.00 | |
| 5 | Thomas Hardwick - Tommy William | 191 | 5 | 14.630 | 0.000 | 306 | $2,000 | 1,000.00 | |
| 6 | Larry Yancey - Milton Yancey | 58 | 5 | 14.620 | 0.000 | 305 | $1,750 | 875.00 | |
| 7 | Darren Sigmon - Brian Huffman | 143 | 5 | 14.540 | 0.000 | 304 | $1,500 | 750.00 | |
| 8 | William Blanton - David Blanton | 187 | 5 | 14.430 | 0.000 | 303 | $1,300 | 650.00 | |
| 9 | Todd Sumner - Robert Parrish | 195 | 5 | 14.230 | 5.470 | 302 | $1,100 | 550.00 | |
| 10 | Terry Wike - Greg Deal | 93 | 5 | 14.130 | 0.000 | 301 | $1,000 | 500.00 | |
| 11 | Robert Stilner - Rob Digh | 139 | 5 | 13.930 | 0.000 | 300 | $900 | 450.00 | |
| 12 | Nathan Webber - Paul Rigsbee | 163 | 5 | 13.890 | 0.000 | 299 | $850 | 425.00 | |
| 13 | Nick Miller - Brandon Brickweg | 106 | 5 | 13.500 | 0.000 | 298 | $700 | 350.00 | |
| 14 | Gene Webster - Mike Seawright | 65 | 5 | 13.490 | 0.000 | 297 | $560 | 280.00 | |
| 15 | Brian Gallimore - Brian Mays | 203 | 5 | 13.430 | 0.000 | 296 | $520 | 260.00 | |
| 16 | Marvin Godard - Robert Adams | 193 | 5 | 13.420 | 0.000 | 295 | $475 | 237.50 | |
| 17 | Scott Sellers - Randy Childers | 49 | 5 | 13.330 | 0.000 | 294 | $450 | 225.00 | |
| 18 | John McBride - Shaun Hall | 100 | 5 | 13.310 | 0.000 | 293 | $400 | 200.00 | |
| 19 | Chris Corriher - Randy Christy | 72 | 5 | 13.240 | 0.000 | 292 | $350 | 175.00 | |
| 20 | Chuck Camp - Mark Swink | 180 | 5 | 13.200 | 0.000 | 291 | $340 | 170.00 | |
| 21 | Dwight Dellinger - Doug Delling | 53 | 5 | 13.140 | 0.000 | 290 | $325 | 162.50 | |
| 22 | Kevin Toler - Rodney Lambert | 48 | 5 | 13.020 | 0.000 | 289 | $315 | 157.50 | |
| 23 | Roy Barrow - Jerry Bullaboy | 71 | 5 | 12.980 | 0.000 | 288 | $300 | 150.00 | |
| 24 | tony woodard - scott smith | 114 | 5 | 12.890 | 0.000 | 287 | $290 | 145.00 | |
| 25 | Doug Punch - tim bumgarner | 12 | 5 | 12.810 | 3.690 | 286 | $280 | 140.00 | |
| 26 | Joshua Queen - Mike Queen | 30 | 5 | 12.790 | 0.000 | 285 | $275 | 137.50 | |
| 27 | JESSIE TOWERY - Dwayne towery | 196 | 5 | 12.700 | 0.000 | 284 | $260 | 130.00 | |
| 28 | Jason Threadgill - Todd Walters | 120 | 5 | 12.610 | 0.000 | 283 | $250 | 125.00 | |
| 29 | Lester Elton - Chris Martin | 121 | 5 | 12.310 | 0.000 | 282 | $240 | 120.00 | |
| 30 | Dale Luckey - John Brown | 147 | 5 | 12.260 | 0.000 | 281 | $235 | 117.50 | |
| 31 | Buddy Black - Timothy Borders | 55 | 5 | 12.250 | 0.000 | 280 | $225 | 112.50 | |
| 32 | Robert Porter - Chris Dellinger | 54 | 5 | 12.180 | 0.000 | 279 | $205 | 102.50 | |
| 32 | Dennis Allen - Travis Allen | 149 | 5 | 12.180 | 0.000 | 279 | $205 | 102.50 | |
| 34 | tracy brown - Duane Marlowe | 82 | 5 | 12.170 | 0.000 | 277 | |||
| 35 | Brent Kukowski - Patrick Carter | 28 | 5 | 12.160 | 0.000 | 276 | |||
| 36 | Keith Speece - Wendell Ireland | 29 | 5 | 12.160 | 5.640 | 275 | |||
| 37 | Larry LeHew - Adam Waters | 98 | 5 | 12.140 | 0.000 | 275 | |||
| 38 | Mike Stephens - Hunter Hicks | 164 | 5 | 12.110 | 0.000 | 274 | |||
| 39 | Russell Hoyle - Jerry Pruitt | 141 | 5 | 12.040 | 0.000 | 273 | |||
| 40 | Stephen Griggs - Rodney Sorrell | 95 | 5 | 12.010 | 0.000 | 272 | |||
| 41 | joel ketcham - Steve Dyer | 2 | 5 | 11.650 | 0.000 | 271 | |||
| 42 | Jason Wilson - Kelly Logan | 158 | 5 | 11.630 | 0.000 | 270 | |||
| 43 | Christian Shoda - Josh Sherwood | 184 | 5 | 11.620 | 0.000 | 269 | |||
| 44 | Steven Austin - Roger Wood | 115 | 5 | 11.590 | 0.000 | 268 | |||
| 45 | Bron Hemphill - Nathan Dellinge | 56 | 5 | 11.570 | 0.000 | 267 | |||
| 46 | Doug Easton - Pete Bejte | 138 | 5 | 11.560 | 0.000 | 266 | |||
| 47 | Charles Sipe - Charlie Sipe | 35 | 5 | 11.440 | 0.000 | 265 | |||
| 48 | William Harris - Stanton Harris | 43 | 5 | 11.290 | 0.000 | 264 | |||
| 49 | David Williams - Gerald William | 181 | 5 | 11.240 | 0.000 | 263 | |||
| 50 | Charles Stroud - Danny Bullman | 86 | 5 | 11.130 | 0.000 | 262 | |||
| 51 | Bobby Lateuch - Jerry Craig | 148 | 5 | 11.090 | 0.000 | 261 | |||
| 52 | michael bryant - Eric Rothrock | 182 | 5 | 11.070 | 0.000 | 260 | |||
| 53 | Dale Duncan - Donnie Woody | 188 | 5 | 11.050 | 0.000 | 259 | |||
| 54 | george lambeth - ron wolfarth | 47 | 5 | 11.040 | 0.000 | 258 | |||
| 55 | Thomas Richmond - Artie Phillip | 41 | 5 | 11.010 | 0.000 | 257 | |||
| 56 | Aric Dwyer - zack bolick | 142 | 5 | 10.960 | 0.000 | 256 | |||
| 57 | Chris Graham - Ricky Byrd | 46 | 5 | 10.880 | 0.000 | 255 | |||
| 58 | Roger Hoover - Scott Hamrick | 75 | 5 | 10.870 | 0.000 | 254 | |||
| 59 | Vince Parker - Mark Parker | 162 | 5 | 10.860 | 0.000 | 253 | |||
| 60 | Patrick Tierney - Todd Auten | 130 | 5 | 10.850 | 0.000 | 252 | |||
| 61 | Brent Berry - Lee Hoilman | 11 | 5 | 10.840 | 3.880 | 251 | |||
| 62 | Steve Addington - Scott Beattie | 31 | 5 | 10.830 | 0.000 | 250 | |||
| 63 | Tony Foster - Steve Sink | 174 | 5 | 10.720 | 0.000 | 249 | |||
| 64 | Wayne Hauser - Alfred Keisling | 194 | 5 | 10.660 | 0.000 | 248 | |||
| 65 | Todd Garner - Chad Taylor | 38 | 5 | 10.640 | 0.000 | 247 | |||
| 66 | Morris Ruff - Travis Ruff | 151 | 5 | 10.640 | 0.000 | 246 | |||
| 67 | Wesley Cashwell - Shane Doughti | 3 | 5 | 10.530 | 0.000 | 245 | |||
| 68 | Bill Grier - Robby Byrum | 189 | 5 | 10.430 | 0.000 | 244 | |||
| 69 | Stephen McLeod - John Russell | 132 | 5 | 10.370 | 0.000 | 243 | |||
| 70 | Gary Love - Ricky Todd | 36 | 5 | 10.340 | 0.000 | 242 | |||
| 71 | Alan Johnston - Thomas Anderson | 133 | 5 | 10.320 | 0.000 | 241 | |||
| 72 | Chuck Morton - Chuck Collins | 66 | 5 | 10.290 | 0.000 | 240 | |||
| 73 | Danny Mason - Lionel Mason | 134 | 5 | 10.290 | 0.000 | 239 | |||
| 74 | sheldon hipps - Ronnie Kobos | 76 | 5 | 10.270 | 0.000 | 238 | |||
| 75 | Harold Drew - Jackie Reilly | 20 | 5 | 10.200 | 0.000 | 237 | |||
| 76 | Tracy Schiff - Eric Grigg | 61 | 5 | 10.170 | 0.000 | 236 | |||
| 77 | Shane Lineberger - Jerry Linebe | 42 | 5 | 10.160 | 0.000 | 235 | |||
| 78 | Brian Triplett - Stacey Richard | 81 | 5 | 10.130 | 0.000 | 234 | |||
| 79 | Brandon Chandler - Scott Alliso | 83 | 5 | 10.100 | 0.000 | 233 | |||
| 80 | Dave Snyder - david snyder | 123 | 5 | 10.050 | 0.000 | 232 | |||
| 81 | Shannon Stowe - Brian Stowe | 80 | 5 | 9.980 | 0.000 | 231 | |||
| 82 | Randy Gray - Drew Stankwytch | 169 | 5 | 9.870 | 0.000 | 230 | |||
| 83 | Jason Eaker - Allen Eaker | 7 | 5 | 9.810 | 0.000 | 229 | |||
| 84 | Thomas Vickers - Brian Huskins | 171 | 5 | 9.710 | 0.000 | 228 | |||
| 85 | marcus Leech - Tim Chapman | 34 | 5 | 9.680 | 0.000 | 227 | |||
| 86 | robert mixon - Mark Green | 77 | 5 | 9.540 | 0.000 | 226 | |||
| 87 | Steve Godfrey - Steve Harwood | 140 | 5 | 9.440 | 0.000 | 225 | |||
| 88 | Larry Horton - Steve Arnold | 166 | 5 | 9.370 | 0.000 | 224 | |||
| 89 | Mike Scott - Chris Johnson | 178 | 5 | 9.370 | 0.000 | 223 | |||
| 90 | Reginald Pickett - Larry Kirk | 27 | 5 | 9.330 | 0.000 | 222 | |||
| 91 | Michael Bellassai - Jake Hart | 25 | 5 | 9.320 | 0.000 | 221 | |||
| 92 | Reggie Guffey - Tommy Chapman | 74 | 5 | 9.240 | 0.000 | 220 | |||
| 93 | Tommy Lambert - Matthew Walters | 109 | 5 | 9.040 | 0.000 | 219 | |||
| 94 | Mark Beck - todd durham | 165 | 5 | 9.040 | 0.000 | 218 | |||
| 95 | Josh Huffman - Nolan Eller | 112 | 5 | 9.030 | 0.000 | 217 | |||
| 96 | Jeff Coble - David Wright | 124 | 5 | 9.020 | 0.000 | 216 | |||
| 97 | Mark Mitchell - Mike Kirkley | 39 | 3 | 9.000 | 0.000 | 215 | |||
| 98 | Jason Lowman - Paul Brittain | 155 | 4 | 8.990 | 0.000 | 214 | |||
| 99 | Charlie Hanshaw - Jeffrey Hansh | 51 | 5 | 8.960 | 0.000 | 213 | |||
| 100 | Darrell Fisher - William Gregor | 176 | 5 | 8.950 | 0.000 | 212 | |||
| 101 | Rick Dunstan - Cliff Kirby | 167 | 5 | 8.930 | 0.000 | 211 | |||
| 102 | Nathan White - Chris Guest | 5 | 5 | 8.910 | 0.000 | 210 | |||
| 103 | Josh Stepp - Aaron Curry | 103 | 5 | 8.910 | 0.000 | 209 | |||
| 104 | Mason Boyd - christopher terry | 13 | 5 | 8.890 | 0.000 | 208 | |||
| 105 | Phillip Frady - Dirk Porter | 87 | 5 | 8.850 | 0.000 | 207 | |||
| 106 | brandon gardner - william cordt | 172 | 5 | 8.830 | 0.000 | 206 | |||
| 107 | John Drew - David Horton | 107 | 5 | 8.760 | 0.000 | 205 | |||
| 108 | Wayne Ingram - Bobby Gill | 127 | 4 | 8.760 | 0.000 | 204 | |||
| 109 | Chris Albright - Jarrett Albrig | 63 | 5 | 8.740 | 0.000 | 203 | |||
| 110 | Brian Travis - Ashley Brotherto | 15 | 5 | 8.620 | 0.000 | 202 | |||
| 111 | marty williams - howard bean | 89 | 5 | 8.490 | 0.000 | 201 | |||
| 112 | Bobby Snyder - Tim Cline | 116 | 5 | 8.360 | 0.000 | 200 | |||
| 113 | Don Sprinkle - Wayne Skipworth | 168 | 5 | 8.050 | 0.000 | 199 | |||
| 114 | Gene Parker - Stanley Harkins | 18 | 5 | 8.040 | 0.000 | 198 | |||
| 115 | Eddie Davis - Rob Fitch | 186 | 5 | 7.850 | 0.000 | 197 | |||
| 116 | Mitch Drew - Kenny Drew | 125 | 5 | 7.840 | 0.000 | 196 | |||
| 117 | Brad Petway - Keith Hawley | 177 | 5 | 7.700 | 0.000 | 195 | |||
| 118 | Mike Branch - Brian Branch | 118 | 4 | 7.680 | 0.000 | 194 | |||
| 119 | Chandler Revels - Joe Lowery | 185 | 5 | 7.610 | 0.000 | 193 | |||
| 120 | Bryan LeFever - Wayne Sharpe | 145 | 5 | 7.590 | 0.000 | 192 | |||
| 121 | Mike Brehm - Craig Rozema | 44 | 5 | 7.580 | 0.000 | 191 | |||
| 122 | Scott Henley - Dean Minor | 154 | 4 | 7.440 | 0.000 | 190 | |||
| 123 | Chris Richey - George Bost | 90 | 5 | 7.220 | 0.000 | 189 | |||
| 124 | Roger Adams - josh adams | 64 | 5 | 7.190 | 0.000 | 188 | |||
| 125 | Paul Guthrie - Danny Hucks | 4 | 5 | 6.950 | 0.000 | 187 | |||
| 126 | Danny Nifong - Matthew Nifong | 84 | 3 | 6.810 | 0.000 | 186 | |||
| 127 | Jimmy Cummings - Jesse Smith | 40 | 4 | 6.450 | 0.000 | 185 | |||
| 128 | Dennis Cable - Tim Harrison | 68 | 4 | 6.310 | 0.000 | 184 | |||
| 129 | Chris Vallance - | 8 | 4 | 6.100 | 0.000 | 183 | |||
| 130 | Phil Hennessee - Rob Johnson | 50 | 4 | 6.080 | 0.000 | 182 | |||
| 131 | Billy Gunter - Bernie Davis | 1 | 2 | 6.030 | 0.000 | 181 | |||
| 132 | Jimmy Carswell - Bobby Carswell | 110 | 4 | 5.670 | 0.000 | 180 | |||
| 133 | Jeff Tant - Doug Parrish | 19 | 2 | 5.470 | 0.000 | 179 | |||
| 134 | Chris McDuffie - Greg Creech | 9 | 3 | 5.430 | 0.000 | 178 | |||
| 135 | James Hobbs - Dustin Calloway | 57 | 3 | 5.050 | 0.000 | 177 | |||
| 136 | Randy Randolph - Allen Willis | 6 | 2 | 5.010 | 3.200 | 176 | |||
| 137 | Mike Allman - Keith Porter | 17 | 2 | 4.990 | 3.300 | 175 | |||
| 138 | Rob Ross - Rory Saliger | 157 | 3 | 4.970 | 0.000 | 174 | |||
| 139 | David Pless - Keith Revis | 105 | 2 | 4.920 | 0.000 | 173 | |||
| 140 | Gary Cline - Terry Wien | 117 | 3 | 4.560 | 0.000 | 172 | |||
| 141 | Gene Sparks - Thomas Glavin | 60 | 3 | 4.430 | 0.000 | 171 | |||
| 142 | Jason Dancy - alan mcglamery | 136 | 3 | 4.370 | 0.000 | 170 | |||
| 143 | Michael Walters - Joseph Floyd | 32 | 2 | 4.350 | 0.000 | 169 | |||
| 144 | Robert Branch - Stuart Parker | 201 | 2 | 4.080 | 0.000 | 168 | |||
| 145 | Michael Hofmann - Patrick Mcgir | 102 | 2 | 4.070 | 0.000 | 167 | |||
| 146 | Christopher Allard - Scottie Sm | 104 | 2 | 3.470 | 0.000 | 166 | |||
| 147 | Adam Ridings - Chris Beaird | 88 | 2 | 3.320 | 0.000 | 165 | |||
| 148 | Tyler Hoopaugh - Chris Hoopaugh | 16 | 2 | 3.190 | 0.000 | 164 | |||
| 149 | brad anderson - brian king | 146 | 1 | 1.800 | 0.000 | 163 | |||
| 150 | Noah Steere - Tim Spencer | 24 | 1 | 1.620 | 0.000 | 162 | |||
| 151 | Trip Emerson - Caleb Unger | 14 | 1 | 1.430 | 0.000 | 161 | |||
| 152 | Levi Meeks - Steven Crockford | 21 | 1 | 1.410 | 0.000 | 160 | |||
| 153 | William Hardy - michael boeke | 129 | 1 | 1.360 | 0.000 | 159 | |||
| 154 | Matt Stout - | 10 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 158 | |||
| 155 | Louie Hull - Chuck Montgomery | 22 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 157 | |||
| 156 | Chris Ellis - Justin Shropshire | 23 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 156 | |||
| 157 | Wendell Gaddy - Pam Gaddy | 26 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 155 | |||
| 158 | Butch Zadlo - Bryan Lewis | 33 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 154 | |||
| 159 | Matthew Benge - Charles Hobbs | 37 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 153 | |||
| 160 | Travus Lovell - Joshua Lyalls | 52 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 152 | |||
| 161 | David Clanton - Derek Lilley | 59 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 151 | |||
| 162 | dennis hensley - Steve Yoder | 62 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 150 | |||
| 163 | Greg Whittington - Robert Churc | 67 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 149 | |||
| 164 | Bryce Owen - Jonathan Phillips | 69 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 148 | |||
| 165 | W C Reed - Judy Reed | 70 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 147 | |||
| 166 | mike clark - orlando giles | 73 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 146 | |||
| 167 | Rodney Morrow - Steve Jordan | 78 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 145 | |||
| 168 | Ronald Farrow - Roger Farrow | 79 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 144 | |||
| 169 | Craig Chambers - Keith Ogden | 85 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 143 | |||
| 170 | Chuck Daymude - Graham Rushing | 91 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 142 | |||
| 171 | Billy Scoggins - Eddie Parker | 92 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 141 | |||
| 172 | Greg Sims - Michael Huffman | 94 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 140 | |||
| 173 | Hau Tran - | 96 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 139 | |||
| 174 | dylan bailey - Brian Bailey | 97 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 138 | |||
| 175 | Mike Nishimoto - Ben McKinney25 | 99 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 137 | |||
| 176 | Roger Pope - Michael Smith | 101 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 136 | |||
| 177 | Duke Denison - Jamie Denison | 108 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 135 | |||
| 178 | Ben Warner - Richard Hurt | 111 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 134 | |||
| 179 | Miles Hair - Terry Tolar | 113 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 133 | |||
| 180 | ronnie wilson - Josh Gardner | 119 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 132 | |||
| 181 | Steve Shaw - Ken Fender | 122 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 131 | |||
| 182 | Mitchell Cook - Todd Huffman | 126 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 130 | |||
| 183 | Dempsey Carter - Ted Mobley | 131 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 129 | |||
| 184 | Brent White - cody andrews | 135 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 128 | |||
| 185 | Jason Amato - Charlie Christenb | 137 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 127 | |||
| 186 | george fleming - tannar blanks | 144 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 126 | |||
| 187 | Alton Rockett - Brandon Earls | 150 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 125 | |||
| 188 | Reid Mcginn - Brandon Williams | 152 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 124 | |||
| 189 | Ben Parker - Jimmy Drumm | 153 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 123 | |||
| 190 | Donald Poteat - Johnny Allen | 156 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 122 | |||
| 191 | Eddie Smith - Michael Carson | 160 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 121 | |||
| 192 | Eric Jeter - Darron Jeter | 161 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 120 | |||
| 193 | Mike Ray - Chris Anderson | 170 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 119 | |||
| 194 | Chris Wagner - Chase Deal | 173 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 118 | |||
| 195 | Zach McGlamery - jerry mcglamer | 175 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 117 | |||
| 196 | Shawn Crosby - Linda Patterson | 179 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 116 | |||
| 197 | Brayden Rakes - Chris Cox | 183 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 115 | |||
| 198 | Jim Witherspoon - Jerry Goble | 190 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 114 | |||
| 199 | Max Long - Jason Long | 192 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 113 | |||
| 200 | Will Petty - Barry Bost | 197 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 112 | |||
| 201 | Earl Proctor - David Fortenberr | 198 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 111 | |||
| 202 | Corey Patton - Kyle Whisnant | 200 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 110 | |||
| 203 | Lewis Thomasson - Matt Haywood | 202 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 109 |
Chris Lane Wins Bassmaster Elite Series On St Johns River!
When everything is in sync and his timing feels perfect, Chris Lane says he experiences a sensation like a clock ticking inside of him. He yells “Pow!” when he boats a big bass.
Over the four-day Bassmaster Elite Series event on the St. Johns River system, Lane heard the tick-tock, and his word of triumph exploded repeatedly from his lips.
Starting Sunday’s final round with a 12 1/2-pound lead, the tournament was Lane’s to win or lose.
Lane not only stayed in stride the final day by catching 15 pounds, but he also he walked off with the victory in high style: His winning margin was 14 pounds, 4 ounces over the second-place finisher, Dean Rojas.
Lane amassed 90-13 over the four days of competition. He added a sixth Bassmaster victory to his resume that includes being the 2012 Bassmaster Classic champion and a 2013 Bassmaster Elite Series winner.
A Florida native now living in Guntersville, Ala., Lane’s win in Palatka, Fla., was like coming home for the victory parade. Fans flocked to him for autographs, and several photographers shot a family photo of so many people, they almost fell out of the cameras’ viewfinder.
“To win here in Florida is something special for me. This (the trophy) is for my family who got up at 3 o’clock and drove all the way from Guntersville,” Lane said.
All four days of competition Lane fished on Dexter, a lake of the St. Johns River system peppered with lily pad patches with an average depth of about 7 feet and about a mile long.
He decided on Dexter during practice for the event because he’d fished it before. His instinct was proved right when huge bass began to hit his lure so hard, they were sawing tough lily pad stems in half, he said.
Even when he was in 15th place on the first day, Lane did not question his decision to stick with Dexter. The conditions there were perfect — higher water and lower temperature than normal for March.
His reward for keeping faith in his instincts came on Day 2. He produced the event’s largest catch of 37-9, plus the lead by almost 9 pounds. Day 3 with 19-9, he stretched that margin to an incredible 12 pounds, 8 ounces, the second-largest lead in Elite history.
On Sunday, he returned to Dexter. If the lunkers were still there, he didn’t find them.
“I knew things were getting a little slow because there are only so many lily pads to fish, and once you take two or three fish off a pad, you’re not going to go back there and catch another one,” he said. “It was getting thin. I had to buckle down today and grind hard.”
Lane either cast into Dexter’s pads or punched a jig into the vegetation, targeting largemouth bass that were prespawners and postspawners, he said.
Which pads held bass, he said, “was just something you learn from fishing in Florida. You can’t explain it, but you know when you see it. And in practice I tried to find a patch I could get not just one, but eight bites out of.”
Casting to pads was his choice over sight fishing in eel grass, a pattern employed by many in the 108-angler Elite field.
Lane said he considered his winning lures to be a Luck-E-Strike ribbontail worm in black-and-blue, and a prototype soft stickbait being developed by Luck-E-Strike. He rigged both with a 1/8-ounce Reins weight. His jig, he said, was homemade, black-and-blue and rigged with a 3/4-ounce weight and 65-pound line.
Trailing Lane by 14-4 was Rojas of Lake Havasu City, Ariz. Rojas was happy with his second-place finish at 76-9 because he’d been in 20th place after Day 1, then climbed to 11th, then ninth before ending in the runner-up position after weighing a five-bass limit of 21-10, his best of the event.
By finishing in third place with 75-4, Mark Davis of Mount Ida, Ark., retained his early lead in the race for Toyota Angler of the Year, an award he’s won three times. Taking fourth place at St. Johns with 74-7 was the 2012 Elite winner on the same fishery, Alton Jones of Lorena, Texas. Fifth place was by Davy Hite of Ninety Six, S.C., with 73-3.
Bonuses that Elite pros earned at the St. Johns event were:
* Toyota Bonus Bucks award of $3,000 to the highest finisher eligible for the bonus: Davy Hite. This Bonus Bucks award at the previous Elite event was won by Andy Montgomery of Blacksburg, S.C.
* Toyota Bonus Bucks award of $2,000 to the second-highest finisher eligible for the bonus: David Walker. This Bonus Bucks award at the previous Elite event was won by Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla.
* Toyota’s $1,000 bonus to the leader in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year points race: Mark Davis
* Berkley Heavyweight Award of $500 for the best five-fish limit: Chris Lane for his 37-9 on Day 2.
* Carhartt Big Bass of the tournament worth $1,000 plus another $500 for wearing Carhartt apparel: Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La., for his 10-10 on Day 2.
* Power-Pole Captain’s Cash award of $1,000 to the winner: Chris Lane.
* Rigid Industries Jackpot award of $250 daily to the angler eligible for the bonus who brought in 25 pounds or more in one day: Day 2, Chris Lane for his 37-9 on Day 2, $250 plus Day 1’s unclaimed $250. The unclaimed $500 from days 3 and 4 roll over into the next Elite event’s Rigid Industries Jackpot.
* Livingston Lures Leader Award of $500 for heading up the leaderboard on the second day: Chris Lane.
ESPN2 will air coverage of the St. Johns River event on The Bassmasters, Sunday, April 6, at 8 a.m. ET. A reair is scheduled for Sunday, April 13, also at 8 a.m. ET. Fans can catch the episode again on The Outdoor Channel on May 19.
Next up for the Elite Series is the April 3-6 A.R.E Truck Caps Bassmaster Elite at Table Rock Lake out of Branson, Mo.
St. Johns Event Local Host: Putnam County Chamber of Commerce.
2014 Bassmaster Elite Series St. John River 3/20-3/23
St. Johns River, Palatka FL.
Standings Day 4
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 20 90-13 100 $102,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-11 Day 2: 5 37-09 Day 3: 5 19-09 Day 4: 5 15-00
2. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 20 76-09 99 $25,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-15 Day 2: 5 19-07 Day 3: 5 17-09 Day 4: 5 21-10
3. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 20 75-04 98 $21,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-03 Day 2: 5 26-07 Day 3: 5 16-13 Day 4: 5 13-13
4. Alton Jones Lorena, TX 20 74-07 97 $15,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-01 Day 2: 5 21-11 Day 3: 5 19-08 Day 4: 5 15-03
5. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 20 73-03 96 $14,000.00
Day 1: 5 24-01 Day 2: 5 14-07 Day 3: 5 24-13 Day 4: 5 09-14
6. David Walker Sevierville, TN 20 71-13 95 $13,500.00
Day 1: 5 14-07 Day 2: 5 20-01 Day 3: 5 19-11 Day 4: 5 17-10
7. Randy Howell Springville, AL 20 71-12 94 $13,000.00
Day 1: 5 27-03 Day 2: 5 20-02 Day 3: 5 11-09 Day 4: 5 12-14
8. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 20 70-03 93 $12,500.00
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 5 28-02 Day 3: 5 17-11 Day 4: 5 09-10
9. Justin Lucas Guntersville, AL 20 69-10 92 $12,000.00
Day 1: 5 19-12 Day 2: 5 24-15 Day 3: 5 13-04 Day 4: 5 11-11
10. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 20 68-09 91 $11,500.00
Day 1: 5 12-11 Day 2: 5 21-02 Day 3: 5 21-00 Day 4: 5 13-12
11. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 19 65-00 90 $11,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-14 Day 2: 5 16-11 Day 3: 5 19-14 Day 4: 4 10-09
12. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 20 63-13 89 $10,500.00
Day 1: 5 19-05 Day 2: 5 24-14 Day 3: 5 13-04 Day 4: 5 06-06
CARHARTT BIG BASS
Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10-10 $1,000.00
BERKLEY HEAVYWEIGHT
Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 37-09 $500.00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 97 521 1440-06
2 99 515 1514-05
3 46 243 705-06
4 11 59 158-00
----------------------------------
253 1338 3818-01
Cbc Lake Norman Wrap Up With Director Brett Collins.....wateree Up Next!!
CBC Tournament Director Brett Collins talks about a record setting turnout (203 Teams) as well as the fantastic fishing that these anglers were able to experience on Norman Sat. With Wateree up next weekend, don't look for much to change expect bigger limits!!
Scott Threadgill And Dwayne Saunders Win The Cbc On Lake Norman And Take Home $13,000!!
Scott Threadgill and Dwayne Saunders talk about their great day, 18.74 LB sack, BF (5.80), and the $13,000 they took home with Tournament Director Brett Collins!!
Excitement Building For First Anglers Choice Nc Division Tournament Sunday On Falls Lake
Jerame Edwards & Butch McMurray won the VA Division opener on Smith Mountain
Two weeks ago Chris Lucas did not know what to expect for the first Anglers Choice Marine Team Tournament of the year on Virginia's Smith Mountain Lake. A brutal winter storm hit the day before and there was a real question of how many teams would even be able to get to the lake.
But, despite the cold, snow and ice, 187 boats showed up for the first Virginia Division tournament of the year – and, despite the winter chill, the bass were hungry.
“We probably would have had 250 boats if a lot of our boats had not been snowed in,” Lucas said. “But the tournament went really well and it took a pretty good weight to win it. There were a lot of big fish weighed in – a couple over 7 pounds, a lot of 6-pounders and plenty of 4- and 5-pounders.”
Despite the winter storm, the day of the tournament at Smith Mountain it was 65 degrees and gorgeous, Lucas said.
“But that morning the ramp was iced and we had to put salt on it. But by the afternoon, they were putting on sunscreen because they were getting sunburned,” he added.
Now, with the first North Carolina Division tournament scheduled this Sunday on Falls Lake, Lucas has questions about how it will turn out, but he is encouraged by the response seen so far from anglers in both North Carolina and Virginia.
“A lot of our Virginia boats are going to Falls and we are getting a lot of calls from the Raleigh area, too,” he said. “I don't know that we will have 187 boats, but I think we are going to have a pretty good sized tournament to kick off the Carolina side of the series this year. A lot of folks we have not seen before are coming to fish.”
As for the fishing, Lucas said he had no idea about what the bass are doing this first weekend of spring in Falls, but some of the fishermen have reported being very excited about fishing the lake.
“I had one guy call me and tell me he got a map of Falls. Some of the deepest water he found was about 20 feet, but there was a whole bunch of stuff down there to fish around, so I think it will be pretty good fishing.”
Beginning last year the Anglers Choice Team series was split into two divisions, one for Virginia and one for North Carolina, with four qualifiers in each division.
“What's unique is that you can get four qualifiers in two weekends on Buggs Island,” Lucas said. “Make two trips and you have two qualifiers to fish for a boat. Then through the course of the season fish two more and qualify for the whole shooting match. You can fish six of the eight qualifiers in just four weekends the way the schedule is set up.”
The double qualifier weekends are April 5 and 6 and June 7 and 8, with anglers able to fish the Virginia Division qualifier on Saturday and the North Carolina Division qualifier on Sunday both weekends.
“Our anglers really like this opportunity because fishing a trail is an investment and it helps cut down on expenses for the fishermen,” Lucas said.
“The other aspect of out trail this year is that we are going to have two separate Classics, with a Ranger Boat for the winners on the Virginia side and a Triton for the winners on the North Carolina side. So, with the opportunity to fish both Classics, guys have two chances to win a boat.”
And, he added, about 80 teams so far have registered for the Bassmaster Trail to fish for the opportunity to qualify for the 2015 Bassmaster Classic.
The Virginia Division schedule runs March 8, Smith Mountain Lake; April 5, Kerr Reservoir; May 10, Smith Mountain Lake; June 7, Kerr Reservoir; with the Virginia Classic Oct. 4-5 on Smith Mountain Lake. The North Carolina Division runs March 23 on Falls Lake, April 6 on Kerr Reservoir; May 24 on High Rock; June 8 on Kerr Reservoir; with the North Carolina Classic Oct. 25-26 on High Rock.
“Anglers should note that this first North Carolina tournament is a Sunday event and we will be launching out of Ledge Rock. We had another ramp scheduled earlier, but some folks from down that way called and advised that it was not conducive to our tournament, so we had to switch to Ledge Rock,” Lucas said.
Anglers Choice Marine Team Trail NC Division
Sun, Mar 23, 2014
Falls Lake
Ledge Rock
Call Chris Lucas 276-358-0844
Spring May Not Be Quite Soon Enough For Carolinas Bass Challenge Tournament On Lake Norman
Spring finally arrived in the Carolinas Thursday, bringing sunshine and warmer temperatures – a welcome relief from the winter chill, dark skies and precipitation that have prevailed for months.
But the relief from the weather rigors of winter might not have come soon enough to bust the bass out of their winter doldrums in time for the first Carolina Bass Challenge North Carolina Division tournament of 2014 Saturday on Lake Norman.
“I can't believe the water temperature has moved up a lot this week,” said veteran angler Jeff Coble of Manson, N.C. “The fish are wanting to move up and start spawning, but the water temperature just won't let them, so I figure the fish will still be in pre-spawn this weekend.”
Fellow veteran angler David Wright of Lexington, N.C., agreed.
“I don't know if the next couple of days of warmer weather will be enough,” Wright said. “I just don't know how much it's going to warm things up.”
For the past month the weather has teased the bass and the fishermen, Wright noted. The occasional warmer, drier day, seemed to portend the arrival of spring and the start of spawning activity, but then there would be another wintry blast to knock things back. But, Wright noted, the trend has been towards conditions getting right for spring.
“It seems like every time it warms up a little another front comes through and cools things down, but just not quite as much as it was. If we get 60-degree water we will see spawning or fish trying to spawn,” he said.
Wright would seem to have a leg up on other anglers since he fished an American Bass Anglers tournament on Norman last weekend, placing 4th with five bass that weighed 13.48 pounds. However, in the short time since that weigh-in the lake has experienced another bone-chilling cold front, followed by the sunny arrival of spring on Thursday.
With the lake off limits the week before the tournament, both anglers agreed there is very little to go on as far as having a set fishing strategy for Saturday.
“Nobody is going to have any up-to-the-minute information. You are just going to have to guess right when you get on the lake Saturday morning,”Coble said.
“You will just have to go out there and start fishing and see what's happening,” Wright added.
More than 170 two-man teams are expected to fish for more than $40,000 in cash and prizes Saturday, according to Al Odom, tournament administrator.
“First Place will be $10,000 with the highest finishing Skeeter/Yamaha owner taking home $5,000,” Odom said. “The Big Fish winner will take home $1,000. CBC pays one place for every 6 teams entered and features a 100 percent-plus payout.”
Carolinas Bass Challenge - NC Division
Sat, Mar 22, 2014
Lake Norman
Blythe Landing
Call Brett Collins 803-413-7521
www.carolinasbasschallenge.com
Low Water Means Largemouths Should Prevail In Alabama Bass Trail North Division Tournament On Pickwick
Very low water levels means the Alabama Bass Trail North Division tournament on Pickwick Lake Saturday likely will be a largemouth bass tournament, according to veteran tournament angler Rex Chambers.
“The water is down probably three feet from what it usually is, with lots of rock showing,” Chambers said. “They have not run any water since Monday and they probably will not run any this week since we have not got any rain. That is going to put the current-dependent people in a little bind.”
Chambers said that this is the time of year when a lot of anglers like to get in the current and the area called “the Horseshoe” right below the dam and catch big smallmouth with an occasional big largemouth. But with less current to target smallmouth bass in the tournament should be dominated by largemouth bass, he added.
“With the water low and them not pulling any water, the smallmouth are not turned on,” Chambers said. “I am sure there will be some smallmouth weighed in, but the largemouths are on the move and they are shallow. They are ready to spawn as soon as the water temperature warms up.”
That means anglers will have to shift their focus to areas downstream that harbor largemouths, he noted.
“I think about 75 percent of the field will be running mid-river, trying to find some grass to pull some largemouths out of,” he said. “Anybody who finds the right patch of grass will be the ones who come out on top.”
Chambers said half the field likely will be throwing rattle baits in the grass and some will be casting jerkbaits.
“Once those Pickwick largemouths get on the move they get on a jerkbait bite,” he noted.
Chambers and his partner Kevin McMahan are fishing both divisions of the New Alabama Bass Trail. “I live halfway between Smith Lake and Guntersville. I am about an hour to an hour and 15 minutes from just about every lake in North Alabama,” said Chambers, who, with McMahan, finished 13th in the first North Division Tournament on Guntersville in early February.
“We really expected to win it, but all the ice and cold weather kind of changed our bite, so we will take that 13th place and go on to Pickwick and see if we can do a little better,” he said.
The Alabama Bass Trail, which launched this year, could be even more attractive in its second year, 2015, Program Director Kay Donaldson said.
“We think we will see a big increase next year. We are about 70 percent done in having all those dates confirmed and we hope to release the 2015 dates this May. We are looking for more interest from anglers in Florida and South Georgia and we think getting the dates out early this year will help people get prepared for next year.
Registration is available online at www.alabamabasstrail.org up to the Wednesday preceding each tournament. The entry fee per tournament is $250 per team.
The schedule includes: North Division – Feb. 1, Lake Guntersville; March 22, Pickwick Lake; April 5, Neely Henry Lake; May 31, Wheeler Lake; June 21, Logan Martin Lake. South Division – March 1, Mobile-Tensaw River Delta; March 15, Lake Eufaula; April 19, Lake Jordan; May 10, Alabama River (Millers Ferry); June 7, Lay Lake.
Each tournament has a guaranteed first prize of $10,000, plus $23,000 to the top 20 places and $500 to big fish. There are also numerous bonus packages available to winning and placing anglers.
The Top 50 teams for both the Northern and Southern Divisions will advance to the 2014 ABT Team Championship Oct. 10-11 at Smith Lake in Jasper. Plus, the top 25 student boats overall will be in the final event. To be eligible for the championship, teams must enter all five qualifying events in their respective division.
The grand prize for the no-entry fee championship is a fully-rigged Phoenix 619 Pro Bass Boat with a 150-horsepower Mercury Outboard, valued at $40,000. Adding to that excitement level is an opportunity to advance to the Bassmasters Team Championship and possibly earn a berth in the Bassmaster Classic.
“We are looking at an estimated $420,000 total in prizes for the series,” Donaldson said. “We think the anglers are going to really enjoy it because they will have the opportunity to advance to our championship and from there the opportunity to go to the BASS Team Championship.”
Alabama Bass Trail - North Division
Sat, Mar 22, 2014
Pickwick Lake
McFarland Park
Call Kay Donaldson 855-934-7425
Pickwick Lake to Host Second Stop of Alabama Bass Trail Tournament Series’ Northern Division Mar 22, 2014
Hosted by the Florence-Lauderdale Tourism Board, the tournament has attracted 400 amateur anglers from across the southeastern United States and is expected to generate an approximate $500,000 economic impact for the Florence area and Lauderdale County.
Takeoff is set for approximately 7 a.m. and weigh-in begins at 3 p.m. at the boat ramp in McFarland Park in Florence, AL. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public. Registration and briefing will take place at the Marriott Shoals Conference Center beginning at 5 p.m. on Friday, March 21. According to Alabama Bass Trail’s Program Director Kay Donaldson, the tournament is expected to pump an estimated $500,000 into the local economy of the host city through revenue generated by anglers and their family members dining, shopping, and overnighting in local hotels and motels.
Sanctioned by BASS (Bass Anglers Sportsman Society), the tournament trail features two divisions: Northern and Southern. Each division is made up of five tournaments on five different lakes. Maximum number of boats is 200 and each tournament will have a $10,000 guaranteed first place prize and will pay 20 places.
Northern Division:
Lake Guntersville February 1, 2014 hosted by Marshall County CVB
Pickwick Lake March 22, 2014 hosted by Florence-Lauderdale Tourism
Neely Henry Lake April 5, 2014 hosted by City of Gadsden Parks & Recreation
Wheeler Lake May 31, 2014 hosted by Decatur-Morgan County CVB
Logan Martin Lake June 21, 2014
Southern Division:
Mobile-Tensaw Delta March 1, 2014 hosted by North Baldwin Chamber of Commerce
Lake Eufaula March 15, 2014 hosted by Eufaula-Barbour County Chamber of Commerce
Lake Jordan April 19, 2014 hosted by Wetumpka Chamber of Commerce
Alabama River (Millers Ferry) May 10, 2014 hosted by Wilcox County Chamber and the City of Monroeville
Lay Lake June 7 hosted by Shelby County Commission
The championship is a 125 boat, two-day event. The 125 boats are comprised of the top 50 teams in points from both divisions that fished all five events in their respective divisions, along with the top 25 student boats collectively from both divisions that fished all five events in their respective division. Hosted by Chamber of Commerce of Walker County, the championship tournament is set for October 10-11, 2014 on Lewis Smith Lake.
The championship is a no entry tournament and the first place prize is a fully-rigged 2015 Phoenix 619 Pro with a Mercury 150, trolling motor and electronics valued at $37,495 with an additional $40,000 in cash and prizes. The official bass boat of the Alabama Bass Trail, Phoenix Bass boats will also offer the tier one First Flight incentive plan to tournament winners in a qualifying Phoenix boat.
Alabama Bass Trail Tournament Series’ sponsors include Bill Penney Toyota, the Alabama Tourism Department, Phoenix Bass Boats, Inc., Fishlife, Elite Outdoors Media, McDonalds of Alabama, and Pradco-FISHING representing BOOYAH and YUM, Dobyns Rods, Randy Jones Agency – Nationwide, T-H Marine Supplies, Inc., Alabama Power Company, Buffalo Rock, Inc., Jet-Pep, Inc., Tennessee Valley Authority, Rigid Industries, Inc., and Frogg Toggs, Inc., Go Pro, Gander Mountain, HydroWaveTM, Garmin, and Yeti Coolers.
For more information on the Alabama Bass Trail and the tournament series, call Program Director Kay Donaldson at 855.934.7425 or visit www.alabamabasstrail.org.
About Alabama Bass Trail
The Alabama Bass Trail is a program of the Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association. Its mission is to promote Alabama as a year round fishing destination, to preserve natural resources for generations to come, and to educate high school and college aged students to be good stewards of natural resources. The 11 bass fishing lakes consist of Lake Guntersville, Wheeler Lake, Pickwick Lake, Lewis Smith Lake, Neely Henry Lake, Lay Lake, Logan Martin Lake, Lake Jordan, Alabama River (Millers Ferry), Lake Eufaula, and the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta. For more information, visit www.alabamabasstrail.org.
Murray State Wins Collegiate Bass Fishing Open On Lake Chickamauga
The Association of Collegiate Anglers kicked off the 2014 Cabela's Collegiate Bass Fishing Series in style with over 260 college anglers from over 60 schools attending the Collegiate Bass Fishing Open at Lake Chickamauga near Dayton, TN. The famed fishery played host to one the most unique formats in college fishing for this event which features a combined weight format between two boats and four anglers from the same school. Each boat weighed in their heaviest three fish limits daily and then combined their weight with their other boat's weights and the heaviest combined weight over two days is be used to crown the winner.
This event also featured nine of the top ten teams in the current Cabela's School of the Year race, making it arguably the toughest field yet to date this season. Playing host to the event was Dayton, TN who rolled out the red carpet for the college anglers with a registration banquet and assistance at the event.
"When you combine the best collegiate anglers, the hottest big bass lake in the country in the most angler friendly host city in America, you can't help but have a record breaking event. We had over 100 volunteers show up to provide these anglers the same VIP treatment that we give our professional anglers and I believe they were able to see why Dayton is called the "new bass fishing capitol of the south," said Dennis Tumlin, Executive Director of Rhea Economic Development and Tourism Council. "I can't thank our volunteers and our city & county officials enough along with TWRA for creating a one of a kind angling environment here in Dayton."
The college anglers did not disappoint nor did the lake, with numerous fish over 6 pounds hitting the scales and when the final weigh in wrapped up, it was Murray State's Team of Justin Graben, Dan Schult, Justin Bergen, Cody Santel that won the event edging out Bethel University and Auburn University who finished in second and third, respectively.
"We knew everyone would be throwing an umbrella rig and didn't want to share water with those guys. Shallow fishing is all four of our strengths and from our knowledge and experience on the river we knew there would be some good fish pushed shallow so we looked for that type of water," stated Cody Santel of Murray State Bass Club. "Our three baits for the week were a jig, chatterbait, and a 2.5 squarebill. The crankbait caught the majority of our fish, and accounted for the 6 and 7 pounder myself and Berger weighed in. The key though to the chatterbait and crankbait bite was to reel as slowly as possible through the wood."
"We have some awesome anglers on the team this season, and a lot of us have had some great finishes in the past but it feels good to finally seal the deal with a major win. Our club is as strong as it has ever been, and we have a bunch of new freshman this year who can really fish and I'm excited to see how this year will play out. Murray State is definitely going to be a team to watch out for," Santel went on to say.
The Murray State Team feels that this win will be a huge momentum builder for the rest of the Association of Collegiate Angler events as well as move them into contention for the Cabela's School of the Year Race. All the team members wanted to thank all their families and sponsors and stated that without their help the team could never send as many teams to the event as we did. We have some great sponsors that help us out, but a special thanks to Wood Forrest Bank, John at Fisherman's Headquarters, Navionics, and Mr. Campisano.
"We noticed in practice that if we fished parallel to the swings we would get better bites. We also figured out that if you threw the umbrella rig on fluorocarbon you would get more quality bites," Cody Ross of the Bethel Bass Team. The team went on to thank their parents for making it all possible as well as their sponsors Lews, Strike King, Car-Hart, Triton boats, and everyone else that supports the team. They are looking forward to the Cabela's Big Bass Bash in April as Kentucky Lake has been on fire lately and that event should be a great one for all the anglers.
Rounding out the Top Ten Places:
4th Virginia Tech
5th North Carolina State University
6th North Carolina State University
7th Tennessee Tech University
8th Bethel University
9th University of Tennessee-Knoxville
10th Southwestern Oklahoma State University
For full results click here and to see our photo gallery from the Collegiate Bass Fishing Open click here.
The event, which will be televised later this year as part of the national televised series, will highlight the entire schedule of the Association of Collegiate Anglers events. It will include the most prestigious, largest, and longest running event in college fishing, the BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship held on Lake Pickwick, as well as the Cabela's Collegiate Big Bass Bash held on Kentucky Lake.
Piedmont Bass Classics Spring Mini Trail Qualifier #1 Results - Shearon Harris - Mar 16, 2014
32 teams came out on a cold Sunday morning to fish the rescheduled Piedmont Bass Classics February 15th
snowed out Mini Trail Qualifier #1 at Shearon Harris.It was a little chilly that morning at 36 degrees and it didn't warm up until after noon and then only got up to about 56 degrees with a light rain. The wind was mostly light but did gust a few times during the day. Water temps averaged from 47 to 58. You had to find the warmer water and cast with Chatterbaits, Crankbaits, Jigs, C-Rigs & Spinnerbaits to get a hit.
Jaime Fajardo & Scott Woodson caught 5 nice bass weighing a total of 22.27 lbs taking 1st Place. They also won 1st Place TWT for a total of $1,127 in winnings. They are also with the Stratos Boats 2X program and will probably earn another $749 for fishing out of a Stratos Boat!
2nd Place went to the team of Chuck Byrd & Seth Ellis with 5 bass weighing 17.06 lbs. They also won the 2nd Place TWT and took home a total of $599. Big fish for the day weighed 8.84 lbs. and was landed by the team of David Lynch & Daniel Everwine and paid them $320!!
62 bass were weighed in for a total of 185 pounds. All the bass caught were nice and healthy looking. Harris is still a hawg hunters paradise! I want to thank all the anglers that participated and all our sponsors that support these trails.
The next tournament, coming up Saturday March 22nd, will be the Piedmont Bass Classics Mini Trail Qualifier #3 at Mayo Reservoir. Our 2014 Boats Unlimited Team Tournament Bass Trail Qualifier #3, will be Saturday, Mar. 29th at Shearon Harris out of Cross Point Landing Wildlife Ramp.
All the information on our tournaments can be found at yahoo and bing search or
http://piedmontbassclassics.com/index.html
Now here are the full results:
1st Place: Jaime Fajardo & Scott Woodson of Fuquay Varina...5 bass...22.27 lbs...$749
2nd Place: Chuck Byrd & Seth Ellis of Sanford & Lillington...5 bass...17.06 lbs...$437
3rd Place: Chip Baty & Alan Parker of Linden...5 bass...16.33 lbs...$312
4th Place: Mike Miller & Phil Edgerton of Pittsboro & Durham...2 bass...15.44 lbs...$229
5th Place: Jerry Marshburn & Tim Parker of Sanford & New Hill...5 bass...14.01...$187
6th Place: Carl & Justin Johnson of Apex...5 bass...13.19 lbs...$166
1st Place Big Fish: David Lynch & Daniel Everwine of Siler City...8.84 lbs...$320
1st Place TWT: 1st Place Team above: 22.27 lbs...$378
2nd Place TWT: 2nd Place Team above: 17.70 lbs...$162
Tow Boats US Member Bonus: Tim Goss of Franklinton: $50
Contact Information:
Phil McCarson...Tournament Director---922 Valetta Rd.---Durham, NC 27712
Home: 919-471-1571 Cell: 919-971-5042
email: philsflags@msn.com website: www.piedmontbassclassics.com
Piedmont Bass Classics Hyco Lake Open Results - Mar 15, 2014
34 teams showed up for the 2nd annual Piedmont Bass Classics Hyco Lake Open. We had pretty good weather conditions with about 47 degrees in the morning and about 68 at weighin with winds 5 to 10 mph gusting to 17 mph during the day. Water temps ranged from 47 to 58 depending on the areas fished and most of
the water was really stained from previous rains that week.
Jimmy & James Wall, of Greensboro, took 1st place honors with 5 bass weighing a whopping 31.72 lbs. They won the 1st place money, Big Fish Award (10.43 lbs.) & the Tournament Within A Tournament for a total of $1,602. Allen Haigh & Doug Washburn weighing in 5 totalling 15.76 lbs., won 2nd place and 2nd place TWT for a grand total of $670.
97 fish were weighed in for a total weight of 228 pounds. Most fish were caught from 3 to 12 feet of water on a variety of baits including jerk baits, c-rigs, jigs, spinnerbaits & crankbaits for the most part, and the fish looked very healthy. The hot baits for the day reported to be c-rigs! I want to thank all the anglers that participated and that supported this tournament.
Our next tournament will be the Piedmont Bass Classics Team Bass Spring Mini Trail Qualifier #3 at Mayo Reservoir, Saturday March 22nd out of Triple Springs Wildlife Ramp.
All the information on our tournaments can be found at: http://piedmontbassclassics.com/index.html
Now here are the full results:
1st Place: Jimmy & James Wall of Greensboro...5 bass...31.72 lbs...$925
2nd Place: Allen Haigh & Doug Washburn of Prospect Hill & Bracey, VA...5 bass...15.76 lbs...$517
3rd Place: Joey & Lee Moore of Sutherlin, VA & Eden...5 bass...12.40 lbs...$408
4th Place: Marty Warren & Derek Cobb of Elon & Burlington...5 bass...12.04 lbs...$300
5th Place: Kenneth Dixon & W.F. Cox of Leasburg...5 bass...11.92 lbs...$217
6th Place: Kenny Allen & Larry Moody of Raleigh & Youngsville...5 bass...10.50 lbs...$190
7th Place: Dennis Duncan of Danville, VA...4 bass...10.31 lbs...$163
Winner Big Fish..1st Place Team above: 10.43 lbs...$320
1st Place TWT..1st Place Team above: 31.72 lbs...$357
2nd Place TWT..2nd Place Team above: 15.76 lbs...153