Casey Martin of New Hope, Alabama won the American Bass Anglers Ram Truck Open Series Alabama North tournament, held February 11, 2017 at Lake Guntersville. Running out of Goose Pond in Scottsboro, Alabama, Martin caught five bass weighing 21 pounds. He took home $6,300 for his efforts.

“Everything I caught came on a custom painted ½ oz. Rat-L-Trap. I was a grind all day, I was able to catch eight fish. I caught one fish using a jig fishing some rocky terrain,” stated Martin.

In second for the Boaters, Tim Hurst of Oxford, Alabama landed a five-bass tournament limit weighing 20.83 pounds. He collected $1,850 for the effort. “I caught my fish today on a rattletrap fishing spawning flats. I threw this bait all day long and it paid off,” Hurst said.

Greg Lamb of Birchwood, Tennessee took third for the Boaters with five bass weighing 19.58 pounds. He anchored his catch with a 7.52-pound kicker earning $1,250 for his efforts. “I threw a Chatterbait all day. We were fishing shallow milfoil in a creek channel. We had a good little hotspot so we kept going across it. It was a slow go, but we had good bites,” stated Lamb.

Finishing fourth, Benny Medlen of Scottsboro, Alabama landed a five-bass limit for 19.34 pounds including a 6.86-pound kicker.

Damien Willis of Jacksonville, Alabama rounded out the top five Boaters with five bass at 18.90 pounds.

The biggest bass for the Boaters was caught by Greg Lamb that weighed 7.52 pounds and pocketed $1,000.

In the Co-Angler Division, Jeffery Sanford of Decatur, Alabama won with three bass weighing 12.28 pounds. He sealed his victory with a 5.55-pound kicker to pocket a check for $2,420.

“I caught my biggest bass using a Watermelon Jig with a red Strike King Chunk. My other fish was caught using a Royal Shad Rattle Trap. I caught all of my fish by throwing into 13 ft. of water and bringing it back to 8-9 ft. f water.” Sanford said.

Taking second for the Co-Anglers, Jeff Bradford of Chattanooga, Tennessee brought in a three-bass division limit weighing 11.06 pounds including a 4.43-pound kicker. He collected $750 for the effort. “We sat on a ledge and threw crankbaits all day. I caught two in the morning and then about 1:30 I caught my third one. I used a crawdad color XD 3 Crankbait,”  said Bradford.

Mark Pirkle of Cleveland, Tennessee placed third among the Co-Anglers with two bass weighing 10.79 pounds. He anchored his catch with a 7.02-pound kicker to earn $500. “I caught my fish today using a Chatterbait and I caught the other bass using a Shad Rap. I had the third bass on, but it was not quite big enough to weigh in,” states Pirkle.

In fourth place among the Co-Anglers, Lester Baker Jr. of Adairsville, Georgia brought in three bass weighing 10.12 pounds including a 4.79-pound kicker.

Ken Draskovic of Scottsboro, Alabama finished in fifth place with three bass weighing 10.01 pounds topped by a 3.67-pound kicker.

The biggest bass for the Co-Anglers was caught by Mark Pirkle that weighed 7.02 and pocketed an additional $375.

Slated for March 5, 2017 the next divisional tournament will be held on Lake Guntersville out of Goose Pond in Scottsboro, Alabama. At the end of the season, the best anglers from across the nation advance the 2018 Ray Scott Championship.

For more information on this tournament, call Kristin Malott, tournament manager, at (256)771-3709 or ABA at (256)232-0406. On line, see www.ramopenseries.com.

About American Bass Anglers: American Bass Anglers is committed to providing low cost, close to home tournaments for the weekend angler and at the same time offer each competitor an upward path for individual angler progression. For more information about American Bass Anglers, the Ram Truck Open Series, the American Fishing Tour or the American Couples Series, visit www.americanbassanglers.com.