Smithville’s Bouldin claims Co-angler title

SPARTA, Tenn. (March 20, 2017) – Tim Phy of Cookeville, Tennessee, brought a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 3 ounces, to the scale Saturday to win the first T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Music City Division event of 2017 on Center Hill Lake. For his win, Phy pocketed $6,053.

 

According to tournament reports, Phy caught his fish near mid-lake gravel points in 8 to 10 feet of water using a green-pumpkin-colored D&L Tackle Jig.

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st:          Tim Phy, Cookeville, Tenn., five bass, 20-3, $4,053 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus

2^nd:         Terry Steele, Sparta, Tenn., five bass, 17-6, $1,877

3^rd:          Adam Wagner, Cookeville, Tenn., five bass, 17-0, $1,185

4^th:          Matt Stanley, Alexandria, Tenn., five bass, 16-6, $829

5^th:          Jay Melton, Murfreesboro, Tenn., five bass, 16-4, $711

6^th:          Hunter Bouldin, McMinnville, Tenn., five bass, 15-10, $651

7^th:          Kevin Crutcher, Collierville, Tenn., five bass, 15-5, $592

8^th:          Noel Smith, Portland, Tenn., five bass, 15-0, $533

9^th:          William Merrick, Mount Juliet, Tenn., five bass, 14-2, $474

10^th:        Conoly Brown, Nashville, Tenn., five bass, 14-1, $415

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Rik Richter of Cookeville, Tennessee, caught a bass weighing 5 pounds, 4 ounces – the largest of the event – which earned him the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $455.

Matthew Bouldin of Smithville, Tennessee, weighed in five bass totaling 17 pounds, 8 ounces Saturday to win the Co-angler Division and the top prize of $1,777.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st:          Matthew Bouldin, Smithville, Tenn., five bass, 17-8, $1,777

2^nd:         Ricky Underhill, Parts Unknown, five bass, 14-1, $888

3^rd:          Justin Lloyd, Murfreesboro, Tenn., three bass, 10-10, $692

4^th:          Rodney Brown, Gainesboro, Tenn., four bass, 10-3, $415

5^th:          Mitchell Adams, Goodletsville, Tenn., two bass, 9-10, $582

6^th:          Steven Brown, Tompkinsville, Ky., four bass, 9-6, $326

7^th:          Gregory Goodwin, Louisville, Ky., two bass, 8-8, $296

8^th:          Matt Simcox, Paris, Tenn., four bass, 7-6, $267

9^th:          Jake May, Smyrna, Tenn., three bass, 6-15, $237

10^th:        Brennon Binkley, Franklin, Tenn., four bass, 6-10, $197

10^th:        Sam Loveless, Somerset, Ky., five bass, 6-10, $197

Adams caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing 5 pounds, 6 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $227.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 12-14 BFL Regional Championship on Wheeler Lake in Decatur, Alabama. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.

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

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