Sallee Combed Ledges With Strike King Crank Baits To Win Bfl On Kentucky/barkley Lakes
HARDIN, Ky. (June 3, 2013) – Greg Sallee of Gilbertsville, Ky., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20 pounds even Saturday to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League LBL Division event on Kentucky/Barkley lakes. For his victory, Sallee earned $4,009.
“I’ve come close a couple of times to winning one of these tournaments, but I was never able to close the deal,” said Sallee. “I was very happy and a little surprised. I thought I would need a few more pounds to win and I lost a big fish about an hour before weigh-in that I thought was going to hurt me, but I guess the only thing it hurt was my feelings.”
According to Sallee it was a nasty day on Kentucky Lake. It was rainy and windy all day long, however, the winds never picked up enough to get to a point where it was “really” rough.
“I was catching fish so I didn’t really pay attention to the weather,” Sallee went on to say. “I was fishing main lake ledges with Strike King crankbaits on a Kistler rod. Those are awesome rods and I have to say they have really helped improve my fishing. I was using a 7-foot 10-inch Z bone Crank Bait rod.
“All my fish were about 4-pounders. I did lose that big one at the end of the day that I thought was going to haunt me, but that is the nature of crankbait fishing; they all don’t come to the boat. I lost another fish first thing and one later on in the day when I was using a jig. But the last one I missed really hurt.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Charles Jones, Jackson, Tenn., five bass, 19-10, $2,005
3rd: Ben Johnson, Paducah, Ky., five bass, 19-0, $1,336
4th: Joey Henderson, Mayfield, Ky., five bass, 18-14, $935
5th: Chuck Callahan, Cincinnati, Ohio, five bass, 18-0, $802
6th: Billy Schroeder, Paducah, Ky., five bass, 17-12, $735
7th: Craig Dowling, Franklin, Tenn., five bass, 17-11, $668
8th: Logan Thomas, Gilbertsville, Ky., five bass, 17-3, $601
9th: Scott Wasson, Evansville, Ind., five bass, 17-2, $535
10th: Michael Wooley, Collierville, Tenn., five bass, 17-1, $468
Complete results can be found at FLWOutdoors.com.
Albert Schaaf Sr. of Waynesville, Ohio, weighed five bass totaling 19 pounds, 4 ounces Saturday to win the Co-angler Division. Schaaf Sr. earned $2,005 for his victory.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Barry Baldwin, Waynesville, Ohio, five bass, 18-13, $1,002
3rd: Tim Huddleston, Paducah, Ky., five bass, 16-4, $668
4th: Mitchell Adams, Nashville, Tenn., five bass, 15-9, $468
5th: John Wilkerson, Nashville, Tenn., five bass, 14-14, $401
6th: Tom Anderson, London, Ohio, five bass, 14-9, $368
7th: Brendan Murphy, Cape Girardeau, Mo., five bass, 14-5, $334
8th: Orville Gowen, Leitchfield, Ky., five bass, 14-3, $301
9th: Steve Keller Jr., Bethel, Ohio, five bass, 13-14, $267
10th: Jerry Sterling, Jackson, Mo., five bass, 13-11, $234
The next BFL LBL Division tournament is scheduled for Sept. 21-22 on Kentucky/Barkley lakes in Gilbertsville, Ky. After the last divisional tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 3-5 Regional Championship on Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Ala. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 40 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and compete to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. The 2013 BFL All-American is being held June 27–29 on the Nickajack Lake in Chattanooga, Tenn. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
