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Today is PFD day at Wired2Fish.com. We want Wired readers to give us your input on the best lifejackets/PFDs. So far today the feedback has been exceptional. We will make sure the manufacturers know what you feel is important. Mustang and Stearns are the leaders in protective personal floatation devices. Both meet and/or exceed Coast Guard specifications.
Here is what Stearns offers.
Stearns offers two models of angler life jackets perfect for pro's and amateurs alike. Here is their points regarding each.
Stearns Professional Series™ Sportvest
Model No.: 4165
Color: Taupe
Sizes: S-3XL
PFD Type: Type III
MSRP: $64.99
- Technical polyester fabric provides soft hand for all-day comfort
- Two adjustable belts on each side with Delrin® slides for secure, comfortable fit
- Ergonomic, seven-piece hinged foam design
- Gusseted chest pockets with flap; snap closure for convenient storage
- Spacious zippered pockets with side entry handwarmer pocket
- D-ring
- Aquafoam™ flotation foam
Stearns Ultra™ 4000 Inflatable Automatic
Model No.: 1439
Color: Royal Blue
Sizes: Adult Universal
PFD Type: Type V
MSRP: $257.99
- Lightweight comfort for improved range of motion and ventilation
- Automatic inflation when submerged in water
- Manual inflation by pulling lanyard or by using self-inflation tube
- Tri-fold design repacks neatly and easily
- Includes one CO2 cylinder, with pin and pill
- Type V approved for use as Type II
- Re-arming kits (Model No. 0924) available
.
For more information on other Stearns or SOSpenders products, to purchase products online or to locate a dealer in your area, go to stearnsflotation.com.
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Our Wired writers cover fishing everyday. They see a lot of good and also run into some sad things as well. Wired Staffer Pete Robbins give us his take on PFD's and his feelings on them. Some great stuff here. To read go to Unplugged.
You can weigh in as well on personal floatation. Go to What's Up and give us your opinion.
Don't forget that May 16-22 is National Safe Boating Week.
Always wear your life jackets!!
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By Pete Robbins
At dinner this past Saturday night, the Legend, Harold Allen told me that he thinks flip-flops should be banned from the Elite Series. He said they look unprofessional. Dirty Harry is old school like that.
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Wired2Fish staffer Jason Bryant sent us his feelings on the best PFD and we thought it might get you thinking. Sound like its application specific. What do you think?
Below are his thoughts:
When it comes to PFDs I have a little different background than most anglers. Not only do I fish from a boat, but I also fish out of a kayak, sometimes offshore. In the boat, without a doubt, the inflatable type vests are most comfortable. I think everyone probably agrees on that. I feel safe in these types of vests, but I'll admit, there's always a lingering question in the back of my mind of "What if this thing doesn't inflate?". I check my inflatable PFDs frequently to make sure they're in good working order. I don't want that thing to fail to inflate in the event I actually get tossed into the drink. A buddy of mine used one of these types of PFDs for a couple of years only to find out that it didn't have the cartridge in it. If he'd have gotten into a situation where he actually needed flotation he would've been in a world of hurt. So it definitely pays to maintain and inspect your inflatable devices.
When I'm on the kayak it's a different story. In the kayak you're always getting wet, especially when you're paddling offshore and you have to go through the breakers. A water-sensitive inflatable PFD just won't cut it out there, but one of those big bulky jobs won't do the trick, either, because it makes paddling basically impossible. When it comes to form and function, the PFDs designed for paddlers are light years beyond most "boat vests" you get at marine dealers. They're lightweight, cool, comfortable and provide a wide range of movement. Most importantly, they work - really well. If you've ever actually been in the water wearing one of the zip-up or fastener type devices and you didn't have it cinched up properly, you know how much of a struggle they can be. The vest rides up around your neck and sometimes they turn out to be more of a hindrance than an asset. Vests made for paddlers have more of the buoyancy around the stomach and on the back than around the neck and chest.
If I had to pick one all-around PFD for all conditions it would be a "hybrid" style PFD made for paddlers. These vests use a combination of foam flotation and inflation to provide buoyancy - hence the name hybrid. If you need more flotation than the built-in foam provides you simply blow into a tube on the vest and you've got it.
Obviously, everybody has their favorite PFD, and it's really tough to beat the inflatable types when it comes to comfort, but I always have my hybrid handy, too. When I have a guest in the boat I usually let them wear the hybrid and I wear the inflatable. Most of the guys who wear it for the first time talk about how comfortable it is for being a "conventional" PFD. The vests made for paddlers are a little more expensive than your typical run-of-the-mill boat vest, but without a doubt, you get what you pay for, and you never have to worry about replacing cartridges, either.
Editors note: Good Stuff Jason!
Send us your comments and give us your opinion. Wired Readers are a smart bunch. We may save another anglers life!
Don't forget National Safe Boating Week is May 16-22.
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By Alan McGuckin, Dynamic Sponsorships
A look inside the back of Terry “Big Show” Scroggins’ Toyota Tundra spurs one to ask, “Is this guy an angler or a general contractor?”
It’s a mad mix of everything from crankbaits to cordless drills. Big Show’s inventory ranges from soft plastic YUM crawdads to a gas-powered electrical generator. Scroggins leaves nothing to chance – and apparently nothing in his garage.
Let Big Show explain. “You never know what troubles you’re gonna encounter when you’re on the road half the year. You gotta be prepared to fix anything, and you gotta be prepared to help the other Elite Series guys fix their stuff too. We all help each other,” said Scroggins, who is known for his generosity and compassion.
“Last week, I broke out my tools and helped Jason Williamson replace a battery charger,” said Scroggins.
“We’ve got the best factory service crews in the business at our tournaments. And that’s why every night when we get off the water there will be four or five anglers waiting in line for their services. I’ve learned to watch what the service trailer guys do to fix things, and then I do it myself. Then I don’t have to waste time waiting in line,” said Scroggins.
Triton’s Andy Stallings says Scroggins is a good student. “A lot of times Terry will call me and ask for direction or advice on how to fix something, and usually he can do it himself,” confirmed Stallings, who has managed the Triton service trailer for nine years.
Scroggins advises that turning wrenches is not only necessary but also wise. “Even when things don’t necessarily need fixed, I try to make sure all the bolts are tight after every tournament and that everything is being maintained. Years ago, the self-locking nuts on my outboard motor mount backed themselves loose, and it fell off the back of my boat as I was running at full speed down the St. John’s River.”
Fact is Scroggins has never been scared of mechanical issues. For 15 years, he prepped and painted 35 cars a week in the family auto body business. “I learned long ago that just about anything you tear up could be fixed if you’ve got the right tools and a little help from your buddy. Fact is, if you put me and ole “G-Man” Gerald Swindle on a project, we can make anything work,” laughed Scroggins.
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Part One and Part Two of our series we talked about the boat (Ranger Banshee 16'8) and the motor (Yamaha 9.9 Four Stroke). We also spoke to performance issues we resolved with the proper propeller and the use of a T&H Small Motor Jackplate.
Wiring
One of the most critical parts of this build was the wiring. As we mentioned the boat was completely stripped when we got it from Ranger. Typically this boat has a poling platform and many times is void of a front seat and trolling motor. The poling platform is not needed but seats, electronics and trolling motor are essential. Placing the proper wiring with the correct switches in an accessible area takes planning too.
Notice the hatch in the Ranger below the foot pedal. It allowed for easy access for wire runs to rear of the boat and also serves as a storage area.
One of the reasons we chose the Ranger is Ranger never scrimps on the critical elements. Wire races, level floatation, switch panel locations and battery storage areas were positioned well. We decided on 6 gauge wiring from bow to stern and used recommended electronics wiring that total distance as well. Wiring it right to begin with cuts down problems in the future. Reducing the number of splices, using the correct size electrical ends, and water proof switches are also important. Note: pulling a pull wire that is left in place also allows for upgrades in the future for wiring. We ran wiring for the troller, navigation lights and electronics on the initial pull.
Positioning the switches close to the batteries is a good move as well. Smaller gauge wiring run short distances always works best. When building a boat like this it is important to plan for the future and maintanence etc is simplified when planning in done prior to install.
Switch panel is located in rear of the boat across from operators position. Jackplate switch is also located here.
The batteries (3) are in the rear of the boat in the compartments. Two of the batteries are for the trolling motor. All accessories including depth finders, jackplate, outboard etc are run off of the starting battery. Battery boxes, tie downs and terminal covers are mandatory in the compartments.
The next section we will talk about seating, trolling motor and livewell installation.
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 CBAA photo
From the CBAA Championship- Student Anglers from the University of Illinois Fighting Illini Bass Club fought record high temperatures, high winds, and stiff peer competition from 60 anglers representing eight other Big 10 clubs on their way to capturing their third Collegiate Bass Anglers Association Big 10 Championship Title in four Year (2009, 2007, 2006)! Fighting Illini anglers brought in 16.46 pounds of Brookville Lake bass, anchored by the events only limit (9.22 lbs) caught by Kate Schroeder and T.J. Lane. Big fish of the event was caught by Minnesota Golden Gopher angler Joe Petefish, a 3.57 lbs largemouth bass.
2009 CBAA Big 10 Results:
Champion: Illinois 16.46 lbs; 2nd: Iowa 5.74 lbs; 3rd: Minnesota 5.68 lbs; 4th: Purdue 4.11 lbs; 5th: Penn State 3.27 lbs; 6th: Ohio State 2.80 lbs; 7th: Indiana 2.61 lbs; 8th: Michigan State 2.11 lbs; 9th: Michigan 0.00 lbs; DNC: Wisconsin, Northwestern
2009 Big 10 Champion Fighting Illini Bass Club anglers pictured above are; Matthew VanLandeghem, Carlos Sandoval, Omar Sinno, Matthew Widtmann, Marshall Lachecki, Daniel Homann, Kate Schroeder, T.J. Lane, Kerry Ryan and Leo Kimm.
Congrats Illinois!
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Tru-Tungsten has a new "Flik and Dart" tungsten head for finicky bass that has it dialed in. The "Flea Flicker" was designed by Mike Iaconelli and the multi-colored, round tungsten head with a special hook is perfect for casting, jerking and twitching for pre-spawn, spawn and post spawn fish. As always Tru-Tunsten utilizes tungsten as the weight material and the attention to detail is critical.
With a straight worm this head makes the bait act crazy! It comes in 3 new sizes including 3/16, 1/8, and 1/4 ounce and the attention to detail makes it work perfectly.
On a recent trip to Amistad Iaconelli gave Wired2Fish a primer on just how effective this new head is. Used with spinning gear the new Flea Flicker will be at local tackle shops very soon.
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Reaction Strike is already known for a making a wide variety of high-end lures, in particular some truly incredible multi-segmented baits like the Revolution Shad and Revolution Bluegill. They're not resting on their laurels, though. In addition to introducing new lures on a monthly basis, they're expanding their pro-staff big time.
The company has recently added FLW Tour pro Sean Hoernke and BASS Elite Series pros Brent Chapman and Mark Burgess.
In addition to new pros and new baits, Reaction Strike is making a concerted effort to adapt to regional needs. That's why they're signing up anglers like Burgess, who as a Massachusetts resident is the only Elite Series pro from New England. While that might mean some extra driving time, it also means that he's aware of the primary forage up there and the specific color patterns that work best.
Check out these pics of four prototype signature series colors that Burgess is working on. They'll be available soon. If you fish up north, whether that be Champlain, Winnipesaukee, the Great Lakes or the glacial lakes of the midwest, you owe it to yourself to snap a few of these up as soon as they hit the shelves.
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Is Pete Robbins the KVD of fantasy BASS? Pete racked up 1,321 points at the Smith Mountain event on his way to his second overall victory in the Wired2Fish fantasy BASS league this year. He's dwelling within the uppermost echelon of fantasy competition with a 99.1 percentile ranking. But the season is only halfway over. Can a Wired reader step up and give Pete a run for his money down the stretch? Only time will tell.
Editors note: Pete Robbins is an attorney for the Federal Government. Enough said.
BASS wasn't the only fantasy game in town last weekend. The FLW Tour had a derby going on at North Carolina's Lake Norman. Antonio Govela came out on top in the Wired2Fish FLW fantasy league. He picked three anglers in the Top 10 and nailed an exacta pick with Andy Morgan in 2nd place.
Both BASS and FLW are down to four events left in their respective seasons (or as far as BASS is concerned, the regular season), so there's still plenty of time for the standings to shake up. We took a look at the numbers across both Wired2Fish leagues in an attempt to find out who's the ultimate W2F fantasy basser - let's call these the Wired2Fish Fantasy Angler of the Year standings. Some fantasy players are strong in one league but struggling in the other, while others are showing a consistent level of performance on both sides.
Take note, the standings from the latest FLW event at Norman still haven't been updated, so the rank below will change as soon as those numbers are published. Keep an eye on Wired2Fish for the updated rankings later in the week. If you still aren't a member of both leagues, what are you waiting for?
Rank Name
1.Don Kelsey
2.Doug Cavin
3.Jason Bryant
4.Tony Papazian
5. Pete Robbins
6.Steve Salyers
6.Wade Hobaugh
8.Philip Pare
9.Jon Newman
10.Bob Bryant
*Note - If you don't see your name in the Top 10 standings and think it should be, send us a note at feedback@wired2fish.com and let us know. It might be because your entry name doesn't match up in the two leagues. And don't forget, we want to hear your picks! BASS heads to Guntersville May 7th, and the FLW Tour's next stop is Beaver Lake on May 14th. Send us your picks for these events and they might end up in one of our fantasy preview stories.
Reply Forward Invite Jason Bryant to chat
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Buckeye Lures introduced today a new "Flick it" football head for 'castin and shakin' a straight worm. Many companies now have a ball shaped head for this proven technique. The football head makes the worm do some crazy things during the retrieve and then wobble when resting. The cable guard and the uniqueness of the football shape makes it unlike any other product on the market.
The Flick It comes in 1/16, 3/32 and 3/16 ounce sizes.
To learn more about the Buckeye Flick It click here.
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Hendersonville, Tennessee's H20 Hydro Wraps continues to put out the best looking vinyl wraps in fishing and keep the best anglers boats and trucks looking spectacular. Check out some of their latest work below:
 Dean Rojas truck
Team H2O Wraps
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The Berkley Experience Trailer is headed to the Scheels store in Bismarck, N.D. The trailer will roll in April 30-May 2 and will offer demonstrations and interactive games for kids and adults.
The Berkley Experience Trailer gives the everyday angler the opportunity to view baits in the Berkley line and chances to see the baits in action. Kids and adults alike will enjoy fishing games and competing in knot tying contests.
“We want everyone young and old alike to enjoy the Berkley experience,” said Andrew Marks, Berkley Marketing Manager “In addition to our bait and line interactive displays we will have Abu Garcia reel demonstrations, interactive touch screens to learn how to “Catch More Fish” and a showcase for our latest and most innovative fishing products.”
Special sales and promotions will be offered wherever the Berkley trailer stops. If you are unable to make it by the trailer and test the interactive components in Bismarck, N.D., look at the upcoming events.
April 30-May 2
Scheels – Bismarck, N.D.
Kirkwood Mall
802 Kirkwood Mall
Bismarck, ND 58504
Phone: 701-255-7255
Upcoming Events
May 6 – 8 – Gander Mountain Forest Lake, Minn.
May 15 – 18 – Scheels – St. Cloud, Minn.
May 22 – 24 – Scheels, Reno, Nev.
May 29 – 31 – Bass Pro Manteca, Calif.
June 5 – 7 - Berkley Big Bass Challenge Tournament, Bethel Island, Calif. |
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Twenty one year old National Guard pro Stetson Blaylock wins the FLW Tour Open at Lake Norman today. He is the youngest angler to win an FLW Tour event.
In second was Andy Morgan, third Koby Krieger, fourth Greg Pugh, and fifth Sean Hoernke.
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STETSON BLAYLOCK |
BENTON, AR |
5 |
10-15 |
5 |
13-08 |
10 |
24-07 |
5 |
11-02 |
5 |
12-13 |
10 |
23-15 |
$150,000
+$50,000 (Ranger Boat Bonus) |
| 2 |
ANDY MORGAN |
DAYTON, TN |
5 |
13-00 |
5 |
10-15 |
10 |
23-15 |
5 |
10-06 |
5 |
12-09 |
10 |
22-15 |
$55,000 |
| 3 |
KOBY KREIGER |
OKEECHOBEE, FL |
5 |
11-14 |
5 |
12-05 |
10 |
24-03 |
5 |
12-09 |
5 |
9-02 |
10 |
21-11 |
$45,000 |
| 4 |
GREG PUGH |
CULLMAN, AL |
5 |
12-11 |
5 |
10-07 |
10 |
23-02 |
5 |
8-08 |
5 |
10-12 |
10 |
19-04 |
$35,000 |
| 5 |
SEAN HOERNKE |
THE WOODLANDS, TX |
5 |
9-13 |
5 |
15-10 |
10 |
25-07 |
5 |
9-00 |
5 |
8-14 |
10 |
17-14 |
$30,000 |
| 6 |
JIM MOYNAGH |
CARVER, MN |
5 |
12-04 |
5 |
10-14 |
10 |
23-02 |
5 |
10-00 |
4 |
6-12 |
9 |
16-12 |
$28,000 |
| 7 |
JACOB POWROZNIK |
PRINCE GEORGE, VA |
5 |
13-12 |
5 |
8-13 |
10 |
22-09 |
5 |
8-14 |
5 |
7-05 |
10 |
16-03 |
$26,000 |
| 8 |
ERIC AMBORT |
MABELVALE, AR |
5 |
11-13 |
5 |
14-00 |
10 |
25-13 |
5 |
8-08 |
4 |
5-02 |
9 |
13-10 |
$24,000 |
| 9 |
DALE EVANS |
SUMMERVILLE, SC |
5 |
13-11 |
5 |
10-09 |
10 |
24-04 |
4 |
4-14 |
5 |
7-08 |
9 |
12-06 |
$22,000 |
| 10 |
KEITH WILLIAMS |
CONWAY, AR |
5 |
13-03 |
5 |
11-14 |
10 |
25-01 |
5 |
9-04 |
1 |
1-05 |
6 |
10-09 |
$20,000 |
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Kevin VanDam wins the BASS Elite Series Smith Mountain Lake tournament narrowly defeating Alabama's Matt Herren for the title. VanDam weighed in 13-14 today for a total of 61-13. Herren finished in second with 59-5 followed by Kelly Jordon with 58-3, Greg Hackney with 57-0, Aaron Martens with 55-0 and Shaw Grigsby and James Niggemeyer with 54-3.
Dean Rojas finished in 7th with 53-11 followed by Skeet Reese with 53-5, Matthew Sphar with 49-3, Byron Velvick with 45-10 and Jeff Conella with 42-12.
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The Illinois High School Association completed all but two of the Sectional Championships for High Schools in Illinois on Friday. Two lakes, Heideke and Lasalle were postponed due to high winds and will conclude tomorrow. Sixteen Sectional Champions and 2 runner up teams from each Sectional with be fishing the State Championship on Illinois's Carlyle Lake May 8 an 9 to crown the first state high school bass fishing champions.
Illinois is the first state to have fishing as a true sport. Over 800 kids in 16 sectional participated across the state Friday.
Weigh-in's were heavily attended and the response from each location was outstanding.
We will be posting photographs of this event this week.
Congrats to the IHSA and the anglers from the State of Illinois for a job well done!
Wired2Fish will be covering the Illinois State Fishing Championship in May.
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From FLW Communications:
KREIGER LEADS WALMART FLW TOUR NATIONAL GUARD OPEN ON LAKE NORMAN
Ober wins co-angler title, $40,000
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (April 25, 2009) – Team Iams pro Koby Kreiger of Okeechobee, Fla., caught a five-bass limit weighing 12 pounds, 9 ounces Saturday to capture the lead in a top-10 field that includes some of the greatest anglers in the world. Kreiger now holds a 1-pound, 7-ounce edge over his closest competitor, Team Berkley pro Stetson Blaylock of Benton, Ark., heading into the final day of competition in the Walmart FLW Tour’s $1.1 million National Guard Open on Lake Norman. If he holds on for the win, Kreiger will pocket $200,000.
“I caught them today faster than I have any day of the tournament so far,” said Kreiger, who has won more than $988,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “I didn’t see as many on the bed as I had been seeing, but then again, I was going pretty fast.
“I could fish a bit easier because I had my limit so early and didn’t have to rush around,” Kreiger added.
Kreiger said he caught his first fish on his third cast of the day and another two in quick succession in the first pocket he fished, which he said was about 100 yards long. After missing his fifth fish, he relocated to another pocket and had his limit after only an hour and a half.
Kreiger said every fish that he caught while sight fishing came on a White Pearl Zoom Super Hog. Kreiger also attacked the banks with a Bomber Long A or a Rebel Pop-R to find fish.
“A lot of the fish that you catch show themselves to you, and if they don’t hit your bait, they at least follow it out,” Kreiger said. “You can see where they come from and then turn around and sight fish for them. You’re not really throwing those baits to catch the fish, you’re throwing those baits to get the fish to show you where they’re at.”
Kreiger said his solitary goal for Sunday is to catch five fish.
“I figured going into the last two days, if you can catch 12 pounds both days, in my opinion, if you don’t win, it’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Kreiger said.
Blaylock caught five fish weighing 11 pounds, 2 ounces to advance to the final day of competition as the No. 2 seed.
“It was actually a tough day,” said Blaylock, who is fishing in only his third FLW Tour event as a professional. “I had more bites today than I had the last two days. I missed one of the keepers I had four times before I caught it. And then I couldn’t get the bedders to bite as good.”
Blaylock said he was comfortable with targeting fish by skipping a jig under shallow docks, and managed to land five keepers by doing so. Blaylock said the fish he’s finding are spooky from having so many baits thrown at them over the course of the last few days, but he seems to have found what the bass want.
“I think they want it skipped over their head,” Blaylock said. “When it skips over their head, they go crazy, and when they see it land, they go over and get it. They shouldn’t be biting a craw-colored jig this time of year. They should have quit after the spawn started. But I’m sticking with it and I’ll do it tomorrow.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros are Andy Morgan of Dayton, Tenn. (five bass, 10-6); Team BP pro Jim Moynagh of Carver, Minn. (five bass, 10-0); Keith Williams of Conway, Ark. (five bass, 9-4); Sean Hoernke of The Woodlands, Texas (five bass, 9-0); Jacob Powroznik of Prince George, Va. (five bass, 8-14); Eric Ambort of Mabelvale, Ark. (five bass, 8-8); Team Snickers/M&Ms pro Greg Pugh of Cullman, Ala. (five bass, 8-8) and Dale Evans of Summerville, S.C. (four bass, 4-14).
Overall there were 49 bass weighing 93 pounds, 1 ounce caught in the Pro Division Saturday. The catch included nine five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of $200,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the $2 million Forrest Wood Cup presented by Castrol and BP, which will be held July 30-Aug. 2 on the Three Rivers in Pittsburgh, Pa., where they could win as much as $1 million – the sport’s biggest award.
Jason Ober of Johnstown, Pa., won the Co-angler Division and $40,000 Saturday with a five-bass limit weighing 7 pounds, 11 ounces followed by Jeff Freeman of Max Meadows, Va., in second place with three bass weighing 6-2 worth $15,000.
Ober opened the tournament in third place Thursday with five bass weighing 9-5 while fishing with Danny Pierce of Greenbrier, Ark. On Friday he slipped to fourth place with a five-bass catch weighing 6-9 while fishing with Kim Stricker of Howell, Mich. He wrapped up his win while fishing with Blaylock.
“It doesn’t matter what you’re fishing, whether it’s a club tournament, a team tournament or fishing the Tour, it’s awesome to win,” said Ober, who has won more than $150,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “I’m overwhelmed with emotion and I thank the Lord for the opportunity to be here today.”
Ober, who fishes Stren Series events as a pro, said he plans to spend three seasons fishing the FLW Tour as a co-angler before attempting to move to the front of the boat. Ober said his experience as a pro in the Stren Series helps him as a co-angler, but said the co-angler competition is more challenging because co-anglers fish behind the best pros in the world and must be able to successfully adapt to any situation.
Ober said he caught his fish Saturday on a 4-inch green pumpkin soft-plastic stickbait around docks. Ober said he targeted the front posts and last few feet of the docks, spots his pro anglers avoided all week. Ober said he caught 14 fish throughout the course of the day, including six keepers. Ober fished 10-pound PowerPro braid with a 10-pound Berkley Trilene 100% Flourocarbon leader so he could make long casts.
“When you’re fishing as a co-angler, one of the most important things you can do is be very cognizant of your surroundings,” Ober said. “I’m always looking around to find a stump as far away as I can find it. I throw to the other side of the pocket, because if you fish the same way as your partner, you’re wasting your time. C’mon, these guys are vacuum cleaners.”
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers are Team PTSI co-angler Spencer Shuffield of Bismarck, Ark. (four bass, 5-12, $7,500); David Hudson of Jasper, Ala. (three bass, 5-9, $5,000); Dearal Rodgers of Camden, S.C. (three bass, 5-6, $4,000); Shane Lehew of Charlotte, N.C. (three bass, 4-6, $3,500); David Lauer of South Bend, Ind. (three bass, 4-5, $3,000); Bob Bjorkland of Centennial, Colo. (two bass, 3-7, $2,500); Fred Martin of North Little Rock, Ark. (two bass, 2-10, $2,000) and Grant McPeters of Marion, N.C. (two bass, 2-8, $1,750).
Overall there were 30 bass weighing 47 pounds, 12 ounces caught in the Co-angler Division Saturday. The catch included one five-bass limit.
Anglers will take off at 7 Sunday morning from Blythe Landing located at 15901 North Carolina Hwy. 73 in Huntersville, N.C., followed by a 4 p.m. weigh-in at the Cabarrus Arena & Events Center located at 4751 Hwy. 49 North in Concord, N.C.
For more info go to www.flwoutdoors.com
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From BASS Communications:
Michigan’s Kevin VanDam Takes Lead at Bassmaster Elite Event on Smith Mountain Lake; In Prime Position in AOY Race
MONETA, Va. – Despite experiencing a “slow day,” four-time Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., managed a two-day total of 32 pounds, 9 ounces – enough to take the lead at the Advance Auto Parts Blue Ridge Brawl on Smith Mountain Lake. A notoriously fast angler, VanDam’s patience was tested Friday, but the reigning AOY ably managed to adapt.
VanDam, a 14-time BASS winner, was running a defined pattern in different areas, primarily focusing on smallmouth bass. He mixed in sight fishing – a technique used by many in the top tier of the field – along with a number of blind casts. A key to his success was stealthy boat operation, as he said it was important to identify a fish and quickly cast to it before it sensed him.
“I was pretty fortunate today because it was definitely a struggle out there,” said VanDam, who leads the BASS career earnings list with more than $3 million. “The fish were in a pretty funny mood today and it was important to be patient.”
While he has established a slim lead – 14 ounces over Fred Roumbanis of Bixby, Okla., -- VanDam said he would search for new water as he had tapped into many of the productive spots he located in practice. He said he knew that the fish were relating to bottom but couldn’t identify exactly what about the bottom the larger bass liked.
Similar to last year, VanDam is making his performance count just when the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race is getting interesting. Nearly halfway through the regular season, with a solid finish here, VanDam could grab hold of the AOY lead. Dangerous with any lead, VanDam is excited about the new Bassmaster Elite Series postseason.
“This year, especially, there is going to be a ton of drama,” said VanDam, 41. “I’m on a pretty good roll right now but it’s important to peak right near the postseason. Anything can happen this year.”
While VanDam’s pattern was defined, Roumbanis was all over the place Friday. He had 15 rods strapped to the deck and used every one of them while junk fishing around spacious Smith Mountain. A skilled sight fisherman, Roumbanis tried that tactic but came up empty-handed Friday. He did, however, locate some bedding bass that he plans to go to Saturday.
His day started quickly – he boated a 5-pound, 9-ounce bass one hour into his competition day.
“The water is so clear so you can cover a huge area with one cast,” said Roumbanis, 30, who called his style “slow-fast.”
“So you don’t need to get to keyed in to any one area. I had the trolling motor on full all day. But at the same time, you need to patient.”
Roumbanis scored a 16th-place finish on Smith Mountain in 2007 but conditions were much different at that event. Searching for his third BASS victory, Roumbanis is 33rd in the AOY standings and in solid position to qualify for his third Bassmaster Classic.
Behind Roumbanis by 1 ounce was Day One leader Kelly Jordon of Mineola Texas, with 31-10. Jumping to fourth was Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala., with 30-13. Holding steady in fifth was Matthew Sphar of Pavilion, N.Y., with 30-10.
Another talented sight-fisherman, Dean Rojas was lurking close in sixth with 30 pounds, 0 ounces. The field was cut to the top 50 anglers for Saturday’s competition, and only the top 12 will advance to Sunday’s final day of competition.
Other anglers safely in the cut included Japan’s Morizo Shimizu (13th), Elite rookie J Todd Tucker of Moultrie, Ga.. (18th) and home-state pro John Crews of Salem (45th). The 2007 Blue Ridge Brawl champion, Casey Ashley of Donalds, S.C., just missed the cut and finished 56th.
Several anglers noted that Smith Mountain could really turn on in the final two days. Jordon was giddy at the possibilities and figured that a 30-pound bag was still possible. Rojas, too, was encouraged and felt that the final day could be a slugfest.
The Blue Ridge Brawl includes a top prize of $100,000 and awards valuable points in the 2009 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title race. The top 12 pros in the AOY standings at the end of the regular season will advance to the two-event postseason, during which the Angler of the Year will be determined.
Local sponsors of the Blue Ridge Brawl are Franklin and Bedford counties.
Official sponsors of the Bassmaster Elite Series: Toyota Trucks, Berkley, BOOYAH Baits, Evan Williams Bourbon, Mercury, OPTIMA Batteries, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Outboards
DAY 2 STANDINGS- ADVANCE AUTO PARTS BLUE RIDGE BRAWL
2009 Advance Auto Parts Blue Ridge Brawl 4/23-4/26
Smith Mountain Lake, Moneta VA.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 32-09 305
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 17-02
2. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, OK 10 31-11 295
Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 5 16-08
3. Kelly Jordon Mineola, TX 10 31-10 295
Day 1: 5 20-09 Day 2: 5 11-01
4. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 10 30-13 285
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 16-11
5. Matthew Sphar Pavilion, NY 10 30-10 280
Day 1: 5 17-13 Day 2: 5 12-13
6. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 10 30-00 276
Day 1: 5 18-07 Day 2: 5 11-09
7. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 10 29-07 272
Day 1: 5 17-11 Day 2: 5 11-12
8. Shaw E Grigsby Gainesville, FL 10 29-01 268
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 13-15
9. Mark Tyler Vian, OK 10 28-15 264
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 13-08
10. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 10 28-12 260
Day 1: 5 16-06 Day 2: 5 12-06
11. Jeff Reynolds Idabel, OK 10 28-09 257
Day 1: 5 16-07 Day 2: 5 12-02
12. Byron Velvick Del Rio, TX 10 28-03 254
Day 1: 5 13-05 Day 2: 5 14-14
13. Morizo Shimizu Osaka JAPAN 10 28-02 251
Day 1: 5 14-06 Day 2: 5 13-12
14. Mark Tucker Saint Louis, MO 10 28-00 248
Day 1: 5 14-07 Day 2: 5 13-09
15. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 27-13 245
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 14-00
16. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 10 27-11 243
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 13-08
17. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, NJ 10 27-07 241
Day 1: 5 15-13 Day 2: 5 11-10
18. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 10 26-15 239
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 5 12-03
19. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 10 26-15 237
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 14-09
20. Bradley Hallman Norman, OK 10 26-14 235
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 11-12
21. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 10 26-14 233
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 13-15
22. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 10 26-13 231
Day 1: 5 14-09 Day 2: 5 12-04
23. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 10 26-11 229
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 12-09
24. Dave Wolak Wake Forest, NC 10 26-09 227
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 10-04
25. Randy Howell Springville, AL 10 26-07 225
Day 1: 5 14-03 Day 2: 5 12-04
26. Terry Butcher Talala, OK 10 26-06 223
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 10-15
27. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 9 25-15 221
Day 1: 5 16-15 Day 2: 4 09-00
28. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 10 25-13 219
Day 1: 5 10-07 Day 2: 5 15-06
29. Jeff Connella Bentley, LA 10 25-12 217
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 5 14-03
30. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, NC 10 25-11 215
Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 12-00
31. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 9 25-11 213
Day 1: 5 15-04 Day 2: 4 10-07
32. Boyd Duckett Demopolis, AL 10 25-08 211
Day 1: 5 13-14 Day 2: 5 11-10
33. Billy Mccaghren Mayflower, AR 9 25-01 209
Day 1: 5 14-14 Day 2: 4 10-03
34. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 10 25-00 207
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 11-07
35. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 10 25-00 205
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 5 12-06
36. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 10 24-12 203
Day 1: 5 09-03 Day 2: 5 15-09
37. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 10 24-12 201
Day 1: 5 12-08 Day 2: 5 12-04
38. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 10 24-10 199
Day 1: 5 13-02 Day 2: 5 11-08
39. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 10 24-07 197
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 11-04
40. Brian Clark Haltom City, TX 10 24-04 195
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 12-00
41. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 10 24-03 193
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 08-13
42. Pat Golden High Point, NC 10 24-01 191
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 13-04
43. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 10 23-14 189
Day 1: 5 16-05 Day 2: 5 07-09
44. Marty Stone Fayetteville, NC 10 23-14 187
Day 1: 5 15-09 Day 2: 5 08-05
45. John Crews Salem, VA 10 23-14 185
Day 1: 5 11-15 Day 2: 5 11-15
46. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 10 23-10 183
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 5 08-14
47. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 10 23-09 181
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 10-00
48. Chris Lane Lakeland, FL 10 23-08 179
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 5 10-14
49. Jason Quinn York, SC 10 23-04 177
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 5 09-08
50. Scott Campbell Springfield, MO 10 23-04 175
Day 1: 5 10-14 Day 2: 5 12-06
51. Alton Jones Waco, TX 10 23-03 173
Day 1: 5 09-12 Day 2: 5 13-07
52. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 10 22-15 171
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 09-05
53. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, KY 10 22-15 169
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 5 11-05
54. Jim Murray Arabi, GA 10 22-13 167
Day 1: 5 10-07 Day 2: 5 12-06
55. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 9 22-13 165
Day 1: 5 15-04 Day 2: 4 07-09
56. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 9 22-10 163
Day 1: 4 12-11 Day 2: 5 09-15
57. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 10 22-09 161
Day 1: 5 08-15 Day 2: 5 13-10
58. Vince Fulks Purcell, OK 10 21-14 159
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 5 09-12
59. Luke Gritter Kalamazoo, MI 10 21-14 157
Day 1: 5 10-10 Day 2: 5 11-04
60. Wade Grooms Bonneau, SC 9 21-14 155
Day 1: 5 14-04 Day 2: 4 07-10
61. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 9 21-14 153
Day 1: 5 13-01 Day 2: 4 08-13
62. Rick Morris Virginia Beach, VA 10 21-10 151
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 10-13
63. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 10 21-08 149
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 5 10-11
64. Jimmy Mize Ben Lomond, AR 10 21-07 147
Day 1: 5 10-09 Day 2: 5 10-14
65. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 10 21-06 145
Day 1: 5 09-12 Day 2: 5 11-10
66. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 10 21-03 143
Day 1: 5 10-07 Day 2: 5 10-12
67. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 10 21-02 141
Day 1: 5 10-08 Day 2: 5 10-10
68. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 10 21-00 139
Day 1: 5 11-06 Day 2: 5 09-10
69. David Smith Del City, OK 10 21-00 137
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 5 10-14
70. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 9 21-00 135
Day 1: 5 14-00 Day 2: 4 07-00
71. Denny Brauer Camdenton, MO 9 21-00 133
Day 1: 4 08-15 Day 2: 5 12-01
72. Grant Goldbeck Gaithersburg, MD 10 20-14 131
Day 1: 5 09-15 Day 2: 5 10-15
73. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 8 20-14 129
Day 1: 5 14-11 Day 2: 3 06-03
74. Pete Ponds Madison, MS 10 20-11 127
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 5 09-01
75. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 10 20-11 125
Day 1: 5 10-15 Day 2: 5 09-12
76. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 8 20-10 123
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 3 08-15
77. Todd Auten Lake Wylie, SC 8 20-06 121
Day 1: 5 14-11 Day 2: 3 05-11
78. Jami Fralick Martin, SD 8 20-02 119
Day 1: 3 11-00 Day 2: 5 09-02
79. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 10 20-00 117
Day 1: 5 12-00 Day 2: 5 08-00
80. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 10 19-15 115
Day 1: 5 10-08 Day 2: 5 09-07
81. Mike Wurm Hot Springs, AR 10 19-10 113
Day 1: 5 11-13 Day 2: 5 07-13
82. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 10 19-07 111
Day 1: 5 09-14 Day 2: 5 09-09
83. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 9 19-05 109
Day 1: 4 07-10 Day 2: 5 11-11
84. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 8 19-05 107
Day 1: 5 12-07 Day 2: 3 06-14
85. Jeremy Starks Charleston, WV 9 18-15 105
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 4 07-05
86. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 10 18-10 103
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 07-09
87. Kevin Langill Terrell, NC 9 18-05 101
Day 1: 5 09-08 Day 2: 4 08-13
88. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 10 18-02 99
Day 1: 5 08-06 Day 2: 5 09-12
89. Bill Lowen North Bend, OH 7 18-00 97
Day 1: 5 14-06 Day 2: 2 03-10
90. Chad Griffin Cresson, TX 8 17-06 95
Day 1: 3 05-03 Day 2: 5 12-03
91. Mark Burgess Norton, MA 9 16-12 93
Day 1: 5 09-10 Day 2: 4 07-02
92. Guy Eaker Cherryville, NC 7 16-02 91
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 2 05-01
93. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 8 15-14 89
Day 1: 5 09-15 Day 2: 3 05-15
94. Zell Rowland Montgomery, TX 7 15-09 87
Day 1: 2 04-11 Day 2: 5 10-14
95. Clark Reehm Russellville, AR 7 15-03 85
Day 1: 5 10-03 Day 2: 2 05-00
96. Elton Luce Jr. Brookeland, TX 5 13-08 83
Day 1: 5 13-08 Day 2: 0 00-00
97. Ken D Cook Lawton, OK 5 11-15 81
Day 1: 4 09-09 Day 2: 1 02-06
98. Peter E Thliveros St Augustine, FL 4 08-15 79
Day 1: 4 08-15 Day 2: 0 00-00
99. Brent Broderick Oregonia, OH 1 01-04 77
Day 1: 1 01-04 Day 2: 0 00-00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
BIG BASS
Day
1 Wade Grooms Bonneau, SC 06-08 $0.00
2 Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 06-07 $0.00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 90 479 1244-06
2 77 447 1030-12
----------------------------------
167 926 2275-02
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FRom FLW Outdoors Communciations:
Jacob Powroznik of Prince George, Va., survived a tough first day of competition at the Walmart FLW Tour’s National Guard Open on Lake Norman and weighed five fish weighing 13 pounds, 12 ounces to end the day with a slim 1-ounce lead. The National Guard Open features anglers from all across the United States, Mexico, Canada and Japan.
“It was pretty tough,” said Powroznik, who has earned more than $490,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “At this time of the year, the fish have got to be shallow, so you can kind of narrow them down a little bit, but … I’m still kind of dumbfounded about what happened.
“I had like 27 on the bed, and I only caught two off of the bed today,” Powroznik added. “A lot of them got caught, but a lot of them just left. I started today going after two 3-pounders that were side by side, and I know I was the first boat there, but the fish were not there. I don’t know if it was because they dropped the water … I just don’t know.”
Powroznik said he sight fished until about 10 a.m. All he had in the livewell at that time were two bass, so he decided to change his tack. Powroznik said he fished boat docks and banks before he switched to fishing in pockets.
“When I’d pull into a pocket, I’d get a couple of bites right away,” Powroznik said. “Then I’d fish the rest of the pocket and never get another bite until I got back around to the mouth of it. So that keyed me into fishing just the mouths of the pockets. The water was dropping a bit and the fish were hanging near docks and stumps near the mouth of the pockets.”
Powroznik said he is going to fish the second day of competition similar to how he fished the first.
“I’m just going to put the trolling motor down and go fishing,” Powroznik said. “I think I can get enough bites to do pretty good. And if I see one on the bed that looks pretty good, I’ll stop and try to catch it.”
Rounding out the top five places are Dale Evans of Summerville, S.C. (five bass, 13-11); Team Febreze pro Michael Bennett of Lincoln, Calif. (five bass, 13-10); Team Land O’Lakes pro Keith Williams of Conway, Ark. (five bass, 13-3); and Team National Guard pro Scott Martin of Clewiston, Fla. (five bass, 13-1).
Team National Guard pro Brent Ehrler of Redlands, Calif., earned the day’s $1,000 Folgers Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 4-pound, 10-ounce bass.
Overall there were 683 bass weighing 1,245 pounds, 3 ounces caught by 153 pros Thursday. The catch included 114 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of $200,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for $2 million Forrest Wood Cup presented by Castrol and BP, which will be held July 30-Aug. 2 on the Three Rivers in Pittsburgh, Pa., where they could win as much as $1 million – the sport’s biggest award.
David Hudson of Jasper, Ala., leads the Co-angler Division with five bass weighing 12-0 followed by Jerry Hayden of Charlotte, N.C., in second place with five bass weighing 10-9.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Jason Ober of Johnstown, Pa. (five bass, 9-5); Dearel Rodgers of Camden, S.C. (five bass, 9-0) and Grant McPeters of Marion, N.C. (five bass, 8-11).
Hayden earned the day’s $500 Folgers Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 4-pound, 13-ounce bass.
Overall there were 320 bass weighing 514 pounds, 13 ounces caught by 127 co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 19 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $40,000 this week.
Anglers will take off at 7 a.m. each day from Blythe Landing located at 15901 North Carolina Hwy. 73 in Huntersville, N.C. Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at Blythe Landing beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday’s weigh-ins will be held at the Cabarrus Arena & Events Center located at 4751 Hwy. 49 North in Concord, N.C., beginning at 4 p.m.
In conjunction with the weigh-ins Saturday and Sunday, FLW Outdoors will host a free Family Fun Zone and outdoor show at the Cabarrus Arena & Events Center from noon to 4 p.m. each day. The Family Fun Zone offers fans a chance to meet their Fantasy Fishing team anglers face-to-face and review the latest products from Berkley, Lowrance, Ranger, Evinrude, Yamaha and other sponsors while children are treated to giveaways, fishing themed games and rides like the Ranger Boat simulator. Children 14 and under visiting the Family Fun Zone on Sunday will receive a free rod and reel combo while supplies last. One lucky member of the audience will even win a new Ranger boat during the final 4 p.m. weigh-in Sunday, April 26. Admission is free, and you must be present to win.
In FLW Tour competition, pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day, with pros supplying the boat, controlling boat movement and competing against other pros. Co-anglers fish from the back deck against other co-anglers. The full field competes in the two-day opening round for one of 10 slots in Saturday’s competition based on their two-day accumulated weight. Weights are cleared for day three, and co-angler competition concludes following Saturday’s weigh-in. The top 10 pros continue competition Sunday, with the winner determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from days three and four.
The total purse for the National Guard Open event at Lake Norman is more than $1.1 million, including $11,000 through 50th place in the Pro Division.
Coverage of the tournament, hosted by the Charlotte Sports Commission, Visit Lake Norman, Visit Charlotte and Cabarrus County Convention & Visitors Bureau, will be broadcast on Versus, the network which brings anglers the best fishing programming on television featuring the most-trusted authorities on the water. The Emmy-nominated “FLW Outdoors,” will air May 31 from 12:30 to 1:30 ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is also broadcast internationally through agreements with WFN (World Fishing Network) and Matchroom Sport to more than 429 million households in such countries as Canada, Germany, China, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia, Russia, Hungary and the United Kingdom, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoor-sports television show in the world.
The FLW Tour will award more than $8 million cash to the world’s top bass anglers in 2009. Regular season competition includes three qualifiers and three opens. Each event takes anglers a step closer to the $2 million Forrest Wood Cup presented by Castrol, which will be held July 30-Aug. 2 on the Three Rivers in Pittsburgh, Pa. The prestigious championship and outdoor show hosted by Visit Pittsburgh will feature 77 pros, 77 co-anglers and bass fishing’s largest cash award – a potential $1 million first-place prize for the winning pro.
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors also is taking fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports, $10 million in cash and prizes. Sign up for Player’s Advantage for only $10 to get your edge and win.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.
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From BASS Communications:
Texas’ Kelly Jordon Jumps to Day One Advantage at Bassmaster Elite Series Event on Smith Mountain Lake
MONETA, Va. – Looking to turn around a mediocre season, Kelly Jordon of Mineola, Texas, stuck to what he knows best and sight-fished his way to the Day One lead at the Advance Auto Parts Blue Ridge Brawl on picturesque Smith Mountain Lake. Jordon, a four-time BASS winner, amassed 20 pounds, 9 ounces -- enough to hold off another sight-fishing specialist, Dean Rojas of Lake Havasu City, Ariz., by more than 2 pounds.
A perennial Bassmaster Classic qualifier, Jordon is working to shake off a slow start to his 2009 season. He is 47th in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings, but a solid finish at Smith Mountain would put him in prime position to qualify for his eighth Bassmaster Classic.
With three events in the books, the competition for the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year and its $200,000 top prize is heating up. Heading into the tournament, Alton Jones of Waco, Texas, held a slight margin over Stephen Browning of Hot Springs, Ark. Both faltered Thursday -- Jones is in 86th and Browning is 96th -- and the door is wide open for luminaries such as four-time AOY Kevin VanDam (fifth) and 2009 Bassmaster Classic champion Skeet Reese (seventh). At the end of the regular season, the top 36 will advance to the 2010 Bassmaster Classic, set for Feb. 19-21 on Lay Lake out of Birmingham, Ala.
“This certainly helps,” Jordon said. “I had a pretty solid practice so I expected to do well. It should be interesting the next couple of days. If the fish move up on the beds like they should, it will be wide open.”
Predicting that a 30-pound bag was possible, Jordon was confident that he could continue to pile on the pounds. What he wasn’t sure of was which day would be best for the sight-fishing bite. He also was unsure of how recreational boat traffic – a virtual certainty on Smith Mountain – would affect the sight bite.
“It could get magical here in the next couple of days,” said Jordon, 38. “I just can’t wait to get back out there.”
Meanwhile, Rojas, despite a draw for a late launch Thursday morning, caught all of his 18 pounds, 7 ounces, by 9 a.m. He was in areas that were void of other competitors and felt his seclusion was important. He used the rest of his competition day to look around and essentially practice for the remaining three days.
He has located several areas that are holding bedding bass and feels that another solid limit is well within his grasp Friday. Like Jordon, he felt that the spacious fishery could really turn on, but he was unsure of when.
Rojas, 37, fished flawlessly and while he could have upgraded his weight – perhaps within Jordon’s range – he made the decision to search for new water. He played it close to the vest on specifics of his pattern.
“Things are in motion right now and the lake is changing every day,” said Rojas, who has eclipsed $1 million in BASS career earnings. “Friday should be good, but I just don’t know what is in store for Saturday and Sunday.”
In third was Matthew Sphar of Pavilion, N.Y., with 17-13. In fourth was Elite rookie Matt Herren of Trussville, Ala., (17-11) and fifth was Derek Remitz of Grant, Ala. (16-15).
A deep, clear fishery, Smith Mountain showed its true colors as a productive bass fishery Thursday as 90 anglers boated five-fish limits. The scenic 20,600-acre lake nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains has been featured in four previous BASS events, the last of which was the 2007 Bassmaster Elite Series event won by then-rookie Casey Ashley of Donalds, S.C. Ashley made history as the youngest pro – he was 23 at the time – to win an Elite Series event.
The Blue Ridge Brawl includes a top prize of $100,000 and awards valuable points in the 2009 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title race. The top 12 pros in the AOY standings at the end of the regular season will advance to the two-event postseason, during which the Angler of the Year will be determined.
DAY 1 STANDINGS- ADVANCE AUTO PARTS BLUE RIDGE BRAWL
2009 Advance Auto Parts Blue Ridge Brawl 4/23-4/26
Smith Mountain Lake, Moneta VA.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 1
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Kelly Jordon Mineola, TX 5 20-09 305
Day 1: 5 20-09
2. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 5 18-07 295
Day 1: 5 18-07
3. Matthew Sphar Pavilion, NY 5 17-13 290
Day 1: 5 17-13
4. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 5 17-11 285
Day 1: 5 17-11
5. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 5 16-15 280
Day 1: 5 16-15
6. Jeff Reynolds Idabel, OK 5 16-07 276
Day 1: 5 16-07
7. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 5 16-06 272
Day 1: 5 16-06
8. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 5 16-05 268
Day 1: 5 16-05
8. Dave Wolak Wake Forest, NC 5 16-05 268
Day 1: 5 16-05
10. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, NJ 5 15-13 260
Day 1: 5 15-13
11. Marty Stone Fayetteville, NC 5 15-09 257
Day 1: 5 15-09
12. Terry Butcher Talala, OK 5 15-07 254
Day 1: 5 15-07
12. Mark Tyler Vian, OK 5 15-07 254
Day 1: 5 15-07
12. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 5 15-07 254
Day 1: 5 15-07
15. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 5 15-06 245
Day 1: 5 15-06
16. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 5 15-04 243
Day 1: 5 15-04
16. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 5 15-04 243
Day 1: 5 15-04
18. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, OK 5 15-03 239
Day 1: 5 15-03
19. Shaw E Grigsby Gainesville, FL 5 15-02 237
Day 1: 5 15-02
19. Bradley Hallman Norman, OK 5 15-02 237
Day 1: 5 15-02
21. Billy Mccaghren Mayflower, AR 5 14-14 233
Day 1: 5 14-14
22. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 5 14-12 231
Day 1: 5 14-12
22. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 5 14-12 231
Day 1: 5 14-12
24. Todd Auten Lake Wylie, SC 5 14-11 227
Day 1: 5 14-11
24. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 5 14-11 227
Day 1: 5 14-11
26. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 5 14-09 223
Day 1: 5 14-09
27. Mark Tucker Saint Louis, MO 5 14-07 221
Day 1: 5 14-07
28. Bill Lowen North Bend, OH 5 14-06 219
Day 1: 5 14-06
28. Morizo Shimizu Osaka JAPAN 5 14-06 219
Day 1: 5 14-06
30. Wade Grooms Bonneau, SC 5 14-04 215
Day 1: 5 14-04
31. Randy Howell Springville, AL 5 14-03 213
Day 1: 5 14-03
31. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 5 14-03 213
Day 1: 5 14-03
33. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 5 14-02 209
Day 1: 5 14-02
33. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 5 14-02 209
Day 1: 5 14-02
35. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 5 14-00 205
Day 1: 5 14-00
36. Boyd Duckett Demopolis, AL 5 13-14 203
Day 1: 5 13-14
37. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 5 13-13 201
Day 1: 5 13-13
38. Jason Quinn York, SC 5 13-12 199
Day 1: 5 13-12
39. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, NC 5 13-11 197
Day 1: 5 13-11
40. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 5 13-10 195
Day 1: 5 13-10
41. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 5 13-09 193
Day 1: 5 13-09
41. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 5 13-09 193
Day 1: 5 13-09
43. Elton Luce Jr. Brookeland, TX 5 13-08 189
Day 1: 5 13-08
44. Byron Velvick Del Rio, TX 5 13-05 187
Day 1: 5 13-05
45. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 5 13-03 185
Day 1: 5 13-03
46. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 5 13-02 183
Day 1: 5 13-02
47. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 5 13-01 181
Day 1: 5 13-01
48. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 5 12-15 179
Day 1: 5 12-15
49. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 4 12-11 177
Day 1: 4 12-11
50. Chris Lane Lakeland, FL 5 12-10 175
Day 1: 5 12-10
50. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 5 12-10 175
Day 1: 5 12-10
52. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 5 12-08 171
Day 1: 5 12-08
53. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 5 12-07 169
Day 1: 5 12-07
54. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 5 12-06 167
Day 1: 5 12-06
55. Brian Clark Haltom City, TX 5 12-04 165
Day 1: 5 12-04
56. Vince Fulks Purcell, OK 5 12-02 163
Day 1: 5 12-02
57. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 5 12-00 161
Day 1: 5 12-00
58. John Crews Salem, VA 5 11-15 159
Day 1: 5 11-15
59. Mike Wurm Hot Springs, AR 5 11-13 157
Day 1: 5 11-13
60. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 5 11-11 155
Day 1: 5 11-11
61. Pete Ponds Madison, MS 5 11-10 153
Day 1: 5 11-10
61. Jeremy Starks Charleston, WV 5 11-10 153
Day 1: 5 11-10
61. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, KY 5 11-10 153
Day 1: 5 11-10
64. Jeff Connella Bentley, LA 5 11-09 147
Day 1: 5 11-09
65. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 5 11-06 145
Day 1: 5 11-06
66. Guy Eaker Cherryville, NC 5 11-01 143
Day 1: 5 11-01
66. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 5 11-01 143
Day 1: 5 11-01
68. Jami Fralick Martin, SD 3 11-00 139
Day 1: 3 11-00
69. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 5 10-15 137
Day 1: 5 10-15
70. Scott Campbell Springfield, MO 5 10-14 135
Day 1: 5 10-14
71. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 5 10-13 133
Day 1: 5 10-13
71. Pat Golden High Point, NC 5 10-13 133
Day 1: 5 10-13
71. Rick Morris Virginia Beach, VA 5 10-13 133
Day 1: 5 10-13
74. Luke Gritter Kalamazoo, MI 5 10-10 127
Day 1: 5 10-10
75. Jimmy Mize Ben Lomond, AR 5 10-09 125
Day 1: 5 10-09
76. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 5 10-08 123
Day 1: 5 10-08
76. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 5 10-08 123
Day 1: 5 10-08
78. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 5 10-07 119
Day 1: 5 10-07
78. Jim Murray Arabi, GA 5 10-07 119
Day 1: 5 10-07
78. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 5 10-07 119
Day 1: 5 10-07
81. Clark Reehm Russellville, AR 5 10-03 113
Day 1: 5 10-03
82. David Smith Del City, OK 5 10-02 111
Day 1: 5 10-02
83. Grant Goldbeck Gaithersburg, MD 5 09-15 109
Day 1: 5 09-15
83. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 5 09-15 109
Day 1: 5 09-15
85. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 5 09-14 105
Day 1: 5 09-14
86. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 5 09-12 103
Day 1: 5 09-12
86. Alton Jones Waco, TX 5 09-12 103
Day 1: 5 09-12
88. Mark Burgess Norton, MA 5 09-10 99
Day 1: 5 09-10
89. Ken D Cook Lawton, OK 4 09-09 97
Day 1: 4 09-09
90. Kevin Langill Terrell, NC 5 09-08 95
Day 1: 5 09-08
91. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 5 09-03 93
Day 1: 5 09-03
92. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 5 08-15 91
Day 1: 5 08-15
93. Denny Brauer Camdenton, MO 4 08-15 89
Day 1: 4 08-15
93. Peter E Thliveros St Augustine, FL 4 08-15 89
Day 1: 4 08-15
95. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 5 08-06 85
Day 1: 5 08-06
96. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 4 07-10 83
Day 1: 4 07-10
97. Chad Griffin Cresson, TX 3 05-03 81
Day 1: 3 05-03
98. Zell Rowland Montgomery, TX 2 04-11 79
Day 1: 2 04-11
99. Brent Broderick Oregonia, OH 1 01-04 77
Day 1: 1 01-04
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BIG BASS
Day
1 Wade Grooms Bonneau, SC 06-08 $0.00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 90 479 1244-06
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90 479 1244-06
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Lake Guntersville, Alabama lady angler Michelle Posey is truly a Wired Angler. She looks great in the new Wired2Fish Hoodie too. Thanks Michelle and thanks for being a Wired2Fish supporter!
Take one......by the boat!!
Take two......by the Michelle mobile!!
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THE BASS FEDERATION NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP TO AIR SUNDAY ON VERSUS
Advisory for Wednesday, April 22, 2009
WHAT: TBF National Championship on Bull Shoals Lake
WHEN: Sunday, April 26, 2009 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. Eastern time.
WHere: VERSUS
NOTES: With over 1,000 miles of winding shoreline, Bull Shoals Lake, home of the 2009 TBF National Championship, offers some of the best fishing in the world. Coming into the final day of competition in fifth place and over 7 ½ pounds out of the lead, Elizabeth, W. Va., pro Robert Harkness rallies back and wins the $100,000 “Living the Dream” prize package by just 11 ounces.
For a complete schedule of tournaments and news, please visit FLWOutdoors.com.
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Now that we have chosen the right boat, the 16' 8" Ranger Banshee we had to get the right motor to push it. We didn't want to plow....we wanted to get on plane or at least close to it and we knew that a 500 pound boat needed some tricks to make that happen.
We wanted cutting edge...we wanted a 4 stroke and we wanted the most RPM's we could get. We chose the tiller 9.9 Yamaha, long shaft, with a 9 pitch Yamaha prop. The boat came with a 12 pitch but we knew we needed more "umph" and the 12 pitch didn't cut it. The 9 pitch gave us the entra RPMs we needed and with the proper set up of the T&H Marine Atlas Small Motor Jackplate we anticipated we would have enough power to get the lift we needed, as well.
One other critical element we needed was the trim tabs. The Ranger Banshee comes standard with electric trim tabs. They were on the boat but not hooked up. Hooking them up, testing postiioning, tweaking the jackplate and setting the trim got us over the top. Tweaking the jackplate/trim to the bottom setting and setting the trim tabs all the way down got us the lift we needed. (See photo)
Instead of running 8-9 mph and we did with the motor on the transom we were now running near 15 with gear, two anglers and a light load. That's right....a 16 foot 8 inch fiberglass boat was on plane and we had a major advantage over the other competitors on the restricted bodies of water we fish. Even though the speed was minimally faster than the other boats it was just enough to outdistance and many times ourrun other anglers who were running tippy jon boats.
We need to mention that because of the width and because the boat only drafts 4.5 inches of water it is stable as a rock.
Other keys:
1.Controls for trim tabs and jackplate had to be easily accessible and within reach of the driver. (See photo)
2. We chose a 3 gallon gas tank. Plenty of fuel for the tournament and not more weight!
3. Balancing and distributing the weight in the boat is a must!
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Jason Bryant takes a look at what is shaping up to being a slugfest at the BASS Elite Series on Smith Mountain Lake and helps, we question that, you with your fantasy picks. We think he forgot a few hammers!! What do you think?
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Editors note: A good pair of shades, calm slick conditions and the best sight anglers in the world. Sounds pretty good to us! Jason, don't forget Kelly Jordon and Todd Faircloth!
This week’s contest at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia marks the halfway point of this economy-shortened 2009 Bassmaster Elite Series regular-season campaign. Plain and simple, the first three events of this season have been downright tough to call from a fantasy angle. Lake Amistad has been the closest thing to a ‘normal’ tournament that’s taken place this year, and even that event was plagued by plummeting temperatures, swirling winds and wave heights that were more suited for hanging ten than catching five.
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Spro pro's Dean Rojas and John Crews give us their insight on Smith Mountain Lake on Spro on Tour. To view click here
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Buckeye Lures MOP jig lovers are going to be thrilled. There is now a "new" Football Head MOP jig that is going to take rock and ledge fishing to a new level. Same great skirt, same great hook, same great keeper but now with a creatively designed football head with a flat ridged bottom specifically designed to feel every pebble, shell or rough spot on the bottom. As with all Buckeye products its all about quality. No blems, perfect colors to match the water color, super sharp keepers and no scrimping on materials. They use only the best components.
The Buckeye Football Head MOP jig will be a mainstay this summer. Rest assured!
To learn more about this and other great Buckeye products click here.
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Looking for that special piece of ground perfect to fish and hunt? How about giant bass, trophy whitetail, world class turkey's? Large sections or small plots on the countries best water? Lake front, river front, mountains, pastures, farms, and timbered ground are all available.
Country Road Outdoors has just that piece of ground you are looking for. Check them out by clicking here.
Mike DiSario, President of Country Road Outdoors and his staff handle all of the details. Check out their TV Show, Country Road Adventures, their magazine and their website. Dream property for hunters and fishermen!
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In the April issue of Fishing Tackle Retailer, they report that Zoom Bait Company is the largest seller of soft plastic products in 2009, so far. This is from information provided by Southwick's AnglerSurvey.com.
The top 5 sellers for Zoom are the Zoom Lizard, the Super Fluke, the Baby Brush Hog, the Trick and Finesse Worms and the Ultra-Vibe Super Speed Craw.
In second according to FTR is Berkley with the Power Worm and Berkley Jumbo Floating Leech.
Yum and Gary Yamamoto Custom Baits were also recognized on this report as being top sellers and brands anglers prefer.
In the "Hot Bait" category chosen by industry leaders were the Lake Fork Hyper Freak, the Strike King Space Monkey, the Biffle O Lizard, the Dean Rojas Fighting Frog from Big Bite Baits, and the Snag Proof Bass Kicker Frog.
New products receiving mention included the Tru-tungsten Depth Shad, the Jackall Cover Craw and the Trigger X Flapdad.
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The Berkley Bass Tank will be at the FLW Tour Family Fun Zone in Charlotte, N.C. The tank is scheduled to stop April 25 – 26 and will feature seminars and appearances by Berkley Pro Anglers.
Berkley sends two 4,000-gallon bass tanks all over the country to help out the everyday angler. Kids and adults alike will enjoy learning about new Berkley products and tips on how to use these innovative baits.
“The Berkley Bass Tanks are out on the road, giving all anglers the opportunity to hone their skills,” said Tammy Cox, Berkley Marketing Manager “Not only will attendees learn to “Catch More Fish,” they will also learn about new products that will help them become a better angler.”
April 25 – 26
FLW Tour Family Fun Zone
Cabarrus Event Center
4751 US Hwy. 49 N.
Concord, NC 28025
If you are unable to make it by the FLW Tour Family Fun Zone, plan to attend one of these other upcoming events:
April 24-26 – Joe’s Fish Fest, St. Paul, Minn.
May 8-10 – Ambucks Outdoor Show, Enid, Okla.
May 9-10 – BASS Elite Series Expo, Guntersville, Ala.
May 16-17 – FLW Tour Family Fun Zone, Rogers, Ark.
May 29-30 – BFL All-American Family Fun Zone, Davenport Iowa
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The Berkley Bass Tank will be at the Joe’s Fish Fest in St. Paul, Minn. The tank is scheduled to stop April 24 – 26 and will feature seminars and appearances by Berkley Pro Anglers.
Berkley sends two 4,000-gallon bass tanks all over the country to help out the everyday angler. Kids and adults alike will enjoy learning about new Berkley products and tips on how to use these innovative baits.
“The Berkley Bass Tanks are out on the road, giving all anglers the opportunity to hone their skills,” said Tammy Cox, Berkley Marketing Manager “Not only will attendees learn to “Catch More Fish,” they will also learn about new products that will help them become a better angler.”
April 24 – 26
Joe’s Fish Fest
If you are unable to make it by Joe’s Fish Fest, plan to attend one of these other upcoming events:
April 25-26 – FLW Tour Family Fun Zone, Charlotte, N.C.
May 8-10 – Ambucks Outdoor Show, Enid, Okla.
May 9-10 – BASS Elite Series Expo, Guntersville, Ala.
May 16-17 – FLW Tour Family Fun Zone, Rogers, Ark.
May 29-30 – BFL All-American Family Fun Zone, Davenport Iowa
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 FLW photo
Jeff Coble has joined Phoenix Boats in a dual capacity. He will be the National Sales Manager and will also be on the National Pro Staff fishing for Phoenix. Jeff is a noted North Carolina angler who has been to both the Bassmaster Classic and the FLW All American several times.
Chad Morgenthaler of Illinois also recently joined Phoenix.
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OMEGA Creates New Pro-Mega Jig Designed for Structure Fishing
Todd Barnes and OMEGA Custom Tackle has teamed up with tournament veteran and deep-water specialist, Roger Fitzpatrick, to design the Pro-Mega structure-fishing jig.
This new creation was specifically designed to be fished out on deep structure amongst rock. The Pro-Mega is definitely the bait of choice when “stroking” a jig out on those bass infested ledges; however, the new offering also comes through brush extremely well.
“The ever popular football jig still has its place on rocky structures, however, the new Pro-Mega structure jig has no limitations,” says Fitzpatrick. “The football jig is one of the greatest tools ever designed for fishing structure, but it has a tendency to hang up around wood.”
The Missouri pro teamed up with OMEGA Custom Tackle to design the perfect structure-fishing jig. This jig allows him to probe deep-water haunts without getting hung-up when encountering wood. “This is the perfect all-purpose jig,” says Fitzpatrick.
The new Pro-Mega Jig by OMEGA Custom Tackle is available in 3/8, 5/8, and 7/8 oz. versions. The new structure jigs are equipped with Gamakatsu hooks, an optimum angle fiberguard, and are available with silicone and living rubber skirts.
For more information on the new and innovative Pro-Mega jig or other OMEGA Custom Tackle products, visit www.omegacustomtackle.com or call 636-368-2405.
To learn more:
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Ray Scott, the father of "catch and release", and one of the earliest innovators of livewells in bass boats is at it again with Fishmate Pro livewell systems. He is now endorsing them.
Owned by Dan Howell, Fishmate Pro is a superbly engineered fully contained livewell system that is perfect for most boats. Do it yourselfers and boat engineers will love the quality of the livewells designed and manufactured by Fishmate Pro.
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UNIVERSITY OF NORTH ALABAMA
DOMINATES SCBFS CHAMPIONSHIP
Collegiate anglers from 19 universities throughout the southeastern United States met at Lake Wilson in Florence, Alabama on April 17 & 18 to determine the 2009 Southern Collegiate Bass Fishing Series (SCBFS) Championship, which is sanctioned by the Association of Collegiate Anglers. These dedicated student athletes qualified for the event by participating in at least 2 of the 3 SCBFS qualifying events held earlier this year at lakes Neely-Henry, Guntersville and Wheeler.
The SCBFS is hosted by Auburn University who claimed the 2009 match fishing title, which is determined by each team's head-to-head win/loss record. Clay Messer & Sam Rochell, also of Auburn University, won the 2009 individual points title.
Each school team is allowed to send up to 4 boats to the events. The winning team at each qualifying event is determined by the combined weight of all the boats. At the championship, the winning team is determined by the combined weight of the top 2 boats each day.
Jann Swaim, Auburn University Bass Sports Club Director, explained that "The SCBFS was created to provide a unique format that closely mirrors that of other collegiate team sports."
"The SCBFS series and championship is a great testament to what college bass fishing is truly about in regard to school and club pride, the collegiate anglers that compete in this series and ACA events represent the true core and passion of what college bass fishing is all about," said Wade Middleton, Tournament Director of the BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship.
Under sunny skies and windy conditions on Day 1 of the SCBFS Championship, Lake Wilson gave up 5 bass limits for the majority of the field, several of which included smallmouth bass. In fact, big bass on Day 1 was a smallmouth weighing 4.48 pounds that was boated by Rob Young and Andrew Bacon from the University of North Alabama (UNA). UNA also took the lead on Day 1 with a total weight of 32.79 pounds.
Although the skies turned cloudy on Day 2, UNA continued to put on a fish catching clinic as they once again had the heaviest 5 bass sack of the day as well as the heaviest team weight with 35.90. UNA's 2 day total of 68.69 pounds was more than enough to secure the victory as they outweighed the 2nd place team of Auburn University by almost 5 pounds. "We had one key area and otherwise just junk fished with a variety of shad imitating lures including medium diving crankbaits, swimbaits, Flukes, spinnerbaits and Texas rigged lizards in 7 - 10 feet of water," stated Robb Young of UNA.
Rounding out the top 5 teams was:
2nd Auburn University 63.82
3rd Univ. of Alabama - Birmingham 59.75
4th Univ. of Tennessee - Chattanooga 58.51
5th Virginia Tech 58.50
In addition to winning free lodging for their club at the 2009 BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship, University of North Alabama also won the Cabela's Collegiate Cup award ($375 gift card), plus the Berkley Big Bag award ($500 merchandise).
Tyler Vaughn of Radford University caught the biggest bass of the tournament - a 7.87 pound largemouth that was tempted by a shad colored square bill crankbait fished around shallow rocks. Because they used All Star rods during the competition, Pure Fishing awarded the team 2 All Star ASR rods. Tyler is also eligible for the Grande Mexico Bass Trip to Lake Guerrero's Lago Vista Lodge where the collegiate anglers who catch the 5 biggest bass of the year during ACA sanctioned competition will join Jeff Kriet and Wade Middleton to shoot an episode of Americana Outdoors television show.
Every school club competing in the SCBFS Championship will receive guaranteed entry for two 2-person teams at the 2009 BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship (CBFC) that will be held at Lake Lewisville, Texas from May 25 - 29. The CBFC television series will air on the Versus network this fall. It will include coverage from five regional events in addition to the BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship. Tournament results and stories about collegiate bass fishing can be found at www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com.
National Sponsors of BoatU.S. Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship and Association of Collegiate Anglers events include: BoatU.S, Cabela's, BoatU.S. Angler, Ranger Boats, TruckVault, Costa Del Mar, Berkley, Aviva Fishin' Buddy, Activision, Sperry Top-Sider, Sebile Lures, frogg togggs, Columbia Sportswear, Yamaha, Plano, Garmin, Power Pole, All Star Rod, Abu Garcia, Gemini Custom Apparel, Lago Vista Lodge, City of Lewisville, Sneaky Pete's, The Bass Federation, and Angler's Legacy.
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Nominate an Environmental Leader for Recreational Boating on Earth Day
BoatU.S. Foundation Environmental Leadership Award Comes with $1,000
ALEXANDRIA, VA, April 20, 2009 - Is there someone in your town who has helped boaters be more environmentally responsible and made their local waterways cleaner?
With Earth Day's arrival April 22, the BoatU.S. Foundationplans to honor those who have made a significant contribution towards improving waterway health and educating boaters on how to minimize their environmental impact. Any group, organization, company, marina or individual who has worked hard to make a difference is eligible for the 2009 BoatU.S. Foundation Environmental Leadership Award. The recipient also receives $1,000 to help continue their environmental efforts. The deadline to apply is June 30, 2009.
"We are looking for nominees who have had a real impact," said Susan Shingledecker, assistant vice president and director of environmental programs for the BoatU.S. Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water. "For example, the award could go to a group that has cleaned up miles of beaches, a hometown marina that has led the way in helping keep our waterways clean, or a boat club member who has spearheaded a local environmental education campaign," she added.
The award was created to complement the efforts of the BoatU.S. Foundation, which has a long history of working with waterway users, marinas and local organizations throughout the country to help bring environmental messages directly to boaters.
Applications and more information about the award are available at http://www.BoatUS.com/Foundation. Any questions may be directed to Shingledecker at SShingledecker@BoatUS.com.
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Ardent Outdoors provides premier quality fishing products has the best culling system in the business with the Ardent Smart Cull System. The Ardent Contest was a big success thanks to the great Wired2Fish readers. Thanks to all who participated.
The winner of the Ardent Smart Cull System is:
Steve Couwenhoven
Schererville, IN
Congrats Steve. Your package is on the way.
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Zach Caudill and Joe Landry from LSU-Shreveport won the UnderArmour College Bass West Super Regional yesterday. To learn more click here.
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Thanks to all of the Wired readers who entered the Gene Larew Biffle O' Contest on Wired2Fish. The Berkley hat chose the winners, you have to ask Todd about what that means, and they are:
Alan Osborne
Adairsville, GA
Bob Perry
Yantis, Tx.
Eddie Riley
Columbia, LA
Jason Gibson
Texarkana, AR
Todd Branton
Haughton, La
Roy Egstad
Aitkin, Mn.
Steve Hobbs
Mount Juliet, TN
Michael Carrigan
Boise, ID
Congrats to all. Your Gene Larew packages are on the way!
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Dave Mansue of Robbinsville, N.J., earned his first BASS victory at the season-opening Bassmaster Northern Open presented by Oakley on the Chesapeake Bay. Mansue's three-day total of 47-pounds, 6-ounces was enough to hold off Curtis Richardson of Belleville, Canada by exactly six pounds.
“This is incredible,” Mansue said. “I've been fishing competitively for 10 years and it feels great to be able to say I'm a champion now.”
Mansue only managed three fish weighing 10 pounds, 13 ounces on Saturday, but it was enough to maintain his lead over Day One leader Frank Scalish of Cleveland, Ohio. Scalish brought a single fish weighing 5-pounds, 10-ounces to the scales to finish third with a three-day total of 39-10. As Mansue predicted after Friday’s weigh-in, he took advantage of a strong current to claim his first victory.
“I said I'd need the current, and it was there today,” he said. "There were four places I had planned to fish and I kept rotating through them trying to get a bite. I probably went around four or five times today.”
Mansue was working a 3/4-ounce green pumpkin football head jig with a green pumpkin Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw trailer along rocky outcroppings and boulders to bag his fish. The current played a big part in his win, and he was relatively secluded.
“I know there were a lot of boats piled up in a few places, but I thought if I could get away form them I'd stand a better chance,” he said. “As far as I could tell, there was no one else doing what I was doing.”
For his win, Mansue took home $49,114 and sits atop the Northern Opens points standings. At the end of the third Northern Open, the top seven point winners will qualifying for the 2010 Bassmaster Elite Series season and the top two earn berths in the 2010 Bassmaster Classic, set for Feb. 19-21 on Lay Lake out of Birmingham, Ala. The complete standings can be found at Bassmaster.com.
Richardson thought he had the event won because when he talked to Mansue during Saturday, Mansue said he hadn't gotten a bite yet, which was true; Mansue's first fish came at 12:30.
Richardson was using a custom drop shot bait made by a company in Ontario, Canada. The bait is called the Slammer, a goby-minnow hybrid bait that he threw to bridge pilings and underwater points. Richardson brought in the second biggest bag on Saturday weighing 14 pounds, 11 ounces for a three-day total of 41-06.
“I thought I had it wrapped up,” he said. “I lost two fish today, but I lost some yesterday, too. I think I let the tournament slip through my fingers yesterday. But everyone lost fish, the current put a bow in your line that made it hard to get a good hookset. If I had executed better I would've had it, I think.”
A pair of Bassmaster Elite Series pros finished in the top 10: Kotaro Kiriyama of Moody, Ala., was fifth; and 2006 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Mike Iaconelli of Runnemede, N.J., was eighth.
In the co-angler division, Moo Bae of West Friendship, Md., won a Triton/Mercury boat package valued at $32,000 after he dominated the field by nearly seven pounds. His three-day total was 27 pounds, 1 ounce.
Bae was throwing a black, red and neon Chompers tube on a 1/8-ounce shaky head to debris out in open water.
Louis Croce of Morton, Pa., finished second in the co-angler division with a 20-02 total, and Dan Warczok of Cohocton, N.Y., was third with 19-11.
The next stop in the three-tournament Northern Open division is the Aug. 20-22 event on Lake Champlain out of Plattsburgh, N.Y.
The Cecil County Office of Economic Development & Tourism is the tournament host.
Official Sponsors of the 2009 Bassmaster Opens: Toyota Trucks, Berkley, BOOYAH Baits, Evan Williams Bourbon, Mercury, OPTIMA Batteries, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Marine.
Supporting Sponsors of the 2009 Bassmaster Opens: Bass Pro Shops, Triton Boats.
About BASS
For more than 40 years, BASS has served as the authority on bass fishing. With its considerable multi-media platforms and expansive tournament trail, BASS is guided by its mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications Bassmaster Magazine, BASS Times and Fishing Tackle Retailer and comprehensive Web properties in ESPN360.com, ESPN’s broadband sports network, Bassmaster.com, BASSInsider.com and ESPNOutdoors.com, the organization is committed to delivering content true to the lifestyle. Additionally, television programming on ESPN2 continues to provide relevant content – from tips and techniques to in-depth tournament coverage – to passionate audiences.
The organization oversees the prestigious Bassmaster tournament trail, which includes the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bassmaster Opens, Women’s Bassmaster Tour and the Bassmaster Classic, the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing. Through its grassroots network, the BASS Federation Nation, BASS sanctions more than 20,000 events annually.
BASS also offers an array of services to its more than 500,000 members while spearheading progressive, positive change on issues related to conservation and water access. The organization is headquartered in Celebration, Fla.
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Media contact: Doug Grassian, (407) 566-2216 or doug.grassian@espn.com
2009 Northern 1 - Cecil County, MD BO 04/16-04/18 Chesapeake Bay, Cecil County Md.
(BOATER) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Dave Mansue Robbinsville, N.J. 13 47-06 310 $49,114.00
Day 1: 5 19-09 Day 2: 5 17-00 Day 3: 3 10-13
2. Curtis Richardson Belleville, Canada 11 41-06 295 $21,829.00
Day 1: 5 22-01 Day 2: 2 4-10 Day 3: 4 14-11
3. Frank Scalish Cleveland, Ohio 10 39-10 295 $18,554.00
Day 1: 5 22-14 Day 2: 4 11-02 Day 3: 1 5-10
4. Matt Greenblatt Tequesta, Fla. 9 35-11 285 $13,643.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 4 16-06 Day 3: 5 19-05
5. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, Ala. 9 31-11 280 $10,914.00
Day 1: 5 16-14 Day 2: 3 10-11 Day 3: 1 4-02
6. Rodney Sorrell Stokesdale, N.C. 9 30-13 276 $9,823.00
Day 1: 5 17-14 Day 2: 3 9-12 Day 3: 1 3-03
7. Aaron Hastings Middletown, Md. 9 29-08 272 $8,731.00
Day 1: 3 11-09 Day 2: 2 5-04 Day 3: 4 12-11
8. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, N.J. 9 29-06 268 $7,640.00
Day 1: 3 8-12 Day 2: 3 9-06 Day 3: 3 11-04
9. Chad Rice Whiteford, Md. 8 28-13 264 $6,549.00
Day 1: 3 13-01 Day 2: 1 3-02 Day 3: 4 12-10
10. Chris Price Church Hill, Md. 9 26-02 260 $5,457.00
Day 1: 4 11-01 Day 2: 3 9-01 Day 3: 2 6-00
11. Eric Johnson Kingston, Mass. 7 25-01 257 $4,366.00
Day 1: 4 13-11 Day 2: 2 7-02 Day 3: 1 4-04
12. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, Ga. 8 24-15 254 $3,820.00
Day 1: 2 6-04 Day 2: 3 9-01 Day 3: 3 9-10
13. Jonathon Vandam Kalamazoo, Mich. 6 24-15 251 $3,274.00
Day 1: 5 21-12 Day 2: 1 3-03 Day 3: 0 0-00
14. Keith Kurpicki Washington, N.J. 10 24-10 248 $2,729.00
Day 1: 3 8-00 Day 2: 5 11-04 Day 3: 2 5-06
15. Ryan Park Mount Joy, Pa. 6 24-01 245 $2,456.00
Day 1: 5 21-10 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 1 2-07
16. Jeremy Starks Charleston, W.Va. 6 23-11 243 $2,183.00
Day 1: 2 9-03 Day 2: 3 10-13 Day 3: 1 3-11
17. Kevin Short Mayflower, Ark. 7 22-08 241 $2,128.00
Day 1: 4 13-03 Day 2: 1 2-07 Day 3: 2 6-14
18. Sean Wieda Florence, Ky. 7 22-08 239 $2,074.00
Day 1: 3 8-10 Day 2: 3 11-06 Day 3: 1 2-08
19. Brian Bylotas Olyphant, Pa. 7 22-03 237 $2,019.00
Day 1: 1 2-04 Day 2: 5 17-04 Day 3: 1 2-11
20. Thomas Waltz Saint Albans, Vt. 6 21-15 235 $1,965.00
Day 1: 4 13-03 Day 2: 1 5-12 Day 3: 1 3-00
21. Paul Leblanc Medway, Mass. 7 21-04 233 $1,910.00
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 2 5-02
22. Glenn Delong Bellville, Ohio 6 20-12 231 $1,855.00
Day 1: 4 14-00 Day 2: 1 3-14 Day 3: 1 2-14
23. Bryan Schmitt Deale, Md. 5 20-03 229 $1,801.00
Day 1: 1 4-01 Day 2: 2 9-03 Day 3: 2 6-15
24. Whitney Stephens Piketon, Ohio 7 19-05 227 $1,746.00
Day 1: 4 12-00 Day 2: 2 5-06 Day 3: 1 1-15
25. David Smith Del City, Okla. 6 18-12 225 $1,692.00
Day 1: 4 13-07 Day 2: 1 2-08 Day 3: 1 2-13
26. Casey Rohring Burt, N.Y. 6 18-06 223 $1,637.00
Day 1: 5 16-03 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 1 2-03
27. Sean Alvarez Rutland, Vt. (VT) 6 17-08 221 $1,583.00
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 1 2-12 Day 3: 0 0-00
28. Steve Oleksyn Rochester, N.Y. 4 15-05 219 $1,528.00
Day 1: 4 15-05 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
29. Ken Cook Lawton, Okla. 5 15-01 217 $1,473.00
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
30. Tom Booth Rochester, N.Y. 4 13-03 215 $1,419.00
Day 1: 2 7-03 Day 2: 2 6-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 11 232 767-02
2 3 176 560-15
3 1 49 162-10
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15 457 1490-11
2009 Northern 1 - Cecil County, MD NB 04/16-04/18 Chesapeake Bay, Cecil County Md.
(NON-BOATER) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Moo Bae West Friendship, Md. 7 27-01 305 $32,000.00
Day 1: 3 11-05 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 4 15-12
2. Louis Croce Morton, Pa. 5 20-02 295 $5,486.00
Day 1: 2 7-03 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 3 12-15
3. Dan Warczok Cohocton, N.Y. 6 19-11 290 $4,389.00
Day 1: 2 6-15 Day 2: 3 8-15 Day 3: 1 3-13
4. David Kovack Lancaster, Pa. 6 19-03 285 $3,291.00
Day 1: 3 10-03 Day 2: 2 5-13 Day 3: 1 3-03
5. Thomas Nolf Pittsburgh, Pa. 6 18-06 280 $2,743.00
Day 1: 5 15-03 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 1 3-03
6. Ed Guidon Bethlehem, Pa. 5 16-00 286 $2,469.00
Day 1: 5 16-00 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
7. Timothy Wyckoff Lorain, Ohio 5 15-07 272 $2,194.00
Day 1: 4 11-14 Day 2: 1 3-09 Day 3: 0 0-00
8. Terry Ford Westerville, Ohio 3 14-09 268 $2,085.00
Day 1: 2 10-03 Day 2: 1 4-06 Day 3: 0 0-00
9. David Ryan Aliquippa, Pa. 5 14-07 264 $1,865.00
Day 1: 1 2-05 Day 2: 4 12-02 Day 3: 0 0-00
10. Bill Wilson Newfield, N.J. 4 13-15 260 $1,426.00
Day 1: 2 8-05 Day 2: 1 3-03 Day 3: 1 2-07
11. Valeri Timofeev East Stroudsburg, Pa. 4 13-11 257 $1,207.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 3 10-04 Day 3: 1 3-07
12. Carl Hayes Sharpsburg, Ga. 4 13-00 254 $1,097.00
Day 1: 2 6-11 Day 2: 1 3-03 Day 3: 1 3-02
13. Jim Jeff Townsend Philadelphia, Pa. 4 13-00 251 $987.00
Day 1: 2 5-08 Day 2: 1 4-03 Day 3: 1 3-05
14. Peter Typer Port Colborne, Canada 4 11-10 248 $878.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 3 7-00 Day 3: 1 4-10
15. Larry Baer Elizabethtown, Pa. 3 11-08 245 $768.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 2 7-13 Day 3: 1 3-11
16. Randy Ruffin Virginia Beach, Va. 3 11-07 243 $741.00
Day 1: 1 2-15 Day 2: 1 3-06 Day 3: 1 5-02
17. Jeff Stetler Leesburg, N.J. 3 11-01 241 $713.00
Day 1: 2 8-12 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 1 2-05
18. Skip Morse Belle Mead, N.J. 2 9-04 239 $686.00
Day 1: 2 9-04 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
19. Jason Bassett Blaine, Minn. 4 9-03 237 $658.00
Day 1: 2 5-11 Day 2: 1 1-05 Day 3: 1 2-03
20. Fabian Rodriguez Ocean City, Md. 2 8-10 235 $631.00
Day 1: 2 8-10 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
21. Randy Patton Coatesville, Pa. 2 8-06 233 $603.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 2 8-06 Day 3: 0 0-00
22. James Hitt Baltimore, Md. 3 8-02 231 $549.00
Day 1: 2 6-00 Day 2: 1 2-02 Day 3: 0 0-00
23. Kevin Hoogenboom Erie, Pa. 2 8-00 229 $521.00
Day 1: 1 5-06 Day 2: 1 2-10 Day 3: 0 0-00
24. Ryan Smith Galloway, N.J. 2 7-07 227 $494.00
Day 1: 0 0-00 Day 2: 2 7-07 Day 3: 0 0-00
25. Rudolph Luisi Vineland, N.J. 2 7-05 225 $466.00
Day 1: 2 7-05 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
26. Brian Mccomb Manistee, Mich. 2 7-00 223 $439.00
Day 1: 2 7-00 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
27. Michael Dooley Downingtown, Pa. 2 6-15 221 $411.00
Day 1: 1 4-07 Day 2: 1 2-08 Day 3: 0 0-00
28. Charlie Dougherty Bel Air, Md. 2 6-13 219 $384.00
Day 1: 1 4-05 Day 2: 1 2-08 Day 3: 0 0-00
29. David Perrego Dover, Del. 2 6-04 217 $357.00
Day 1: 2 6-04 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
30. Hugh Worth Chelmsford, Mass. 2 6-03 215 $329.00
Day 1: 2 6-03 Day 2: 0 0-00 Day 3: 0 0-00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 2 93 308-12
2 0 76 237-09
3 0 19 69-02
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2 188 615-07
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Pete Robbins couldn't stand it. He loves this sport, he loves bass and he loves his boat. He tells us he loves his wife too....but that is another story. Today on Unplugged he weighs in on what "he" looks for in a bass boat.
You have your chance too. Check out What's Up today and give us your two cents as well.
This is getting interesting and what most of us thought was important to boat buying consumers.......well.......maybe it is, maybe its not!
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Editors note: Buying a new boat is a big deal. They are not cheap and they had better meet the anglers needs. We have a survey asking for your opinion currently up on What's Up. Our illustrious staff couldn't hold off any longer and Pete Robbins is weighing in below. Do you agree with him?
Terry, you’ve tasked us, your loyal followers, with telling you what matters to us most in a bass boat.
Not fair, man. Just plain not fair.
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Thanks to all the Wired readers for participating in the "Killer" Dobyns Rod Contest. We shook up all the correct answers and placed the correct answers names in a hermetically sealed Mason jar and put it in our COO Todd Hammills office for safe keeping. He opened the jar and Bill Horvath of Leavenworth, Kansas was drawn as the winner of the Dobyns Rod. Congrats Bill!
Look for another Dobyns Rod to be given away soon.
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This just in from Pure Fishing:
John Doerr Named Interim President of Pure Fishing
COLUMBIA, SC (April 17, 2009) – Pure Fishing announces that Chief Operations Officer, John Doerr, will serve as Interim President, effective immediately. Doerr will occupy the post during Pure Fishing’s search for a permanent replacement to Terry Carlson, who recently left the company.
Jarden Corporation President and Chief Operating Officer, James E. Lillie, made the announcement to the company on Wednesday.
“During this interim period we are confident that John’s relationship with the Leadership Team, his experience, familiarity and knowledge of the business combined with his leadership skills will provide strong support, consistent with Jarden’s DNA, in driving continued success,” Lillie said.
Doerr, who grew up working for his family’s wholesale distribution company and retail sporting goods stores in Idaho, received his bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY, and his MBA from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. His professional background includes working with Kurt Salmon Associates, Cobra Golf, Bell Sports and Cannondale Bicycle Company in a variety of senior-level roles. During his tenure at Cannondale, he served as Chief Operating Officer and President of Operations, as well as holding the title of Co-President for global business activities in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia.
“Pure Fishing continues to be a world-wide leader in the design and production of quality fishing tackle and it is an honor to assume this role,” Doerr said. “We have great momentum and we look forward to strengthening our partnership with our customers and continue to bring innovative products to the global angling community.”
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Sign Up Begins for 2009 Corporate Cup
The PAA will begin taking entries for the 2009 Corporate Cup on Pickwick Lake, hosted by Florence/Lauderdale Tourism in the city of Florence, Alabama. The prestigious Corporate Cup will take place September 10 – 12th at McFarland Park.
Teams and anglers that participated in last year’s event have priority have priority entry from April 20 – 24th 2009. All other companies and anglers interested in signing up can call beginning April 27th.
· Deposit will be $1500.00 for all teams entering and the balance of $3500.00 will be due no later than August 11th, 2009.
· Priority entries may call the PAA office beginning at 8:30am on Monday, the 20th of April.
Call the PAA office at 270.527.2030 / Credit cards can be taken over the phone / Payments can be sent by mail to: PAA, PO BOX 655, BENTON, KY 42025.
For complete information, visit the Corporate Cup Page. (http://www.fishpaa.com/tournaments/paa_corporate_cup.htm)
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 EGreene photo
2009 Bassmaster Classic Champ Skeet Reese continues to get press. Jim Jones, of the Sacremento Bee, talks about Reese and his California roots in a great article today. To read it click here. |
Ohio's Frank Scalish leads Day One of the BASS Northern Open on the Chesapeake Bay. To learn more click here. |
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The second issue of Bass Anglers Guide for 2009 is now on newstands. With over 37 bass related articles Mark Lassagne continues to pump out content that bass anglers love. This issue contains articles from Ken Cook, Jay Yelas, and Mark Tyler and a special 20 Question Q&A with Gary Dobyns. To check it out click here.
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There are several key elements that need to be thought out when preparing to renovate an old boat. It takes time and a note pad is essential. Having a couple of "handy" fishing buddies is also critical. We had both here at Wired2Fish.
Step One
The "plan" is critical.
1. Chronicle what you have- The first thing to take into consideration is knowing what you have. Does the boat float? Does it have a solid infrastructure? Is the layout condusive to renovation? Is it wired correctly or if not does it have ways to run wire? All are keys to this project.
2. Getting a Blueprint- The Wired2Fish boat was hand picked and procurement took some time. We wanted a wide boat with a shallow draft. We wanted one that could be customized and we wanted tiller. We looked at both aluminum and fiberglass. We settled on a fiberglass Ranger Banshee 16-8 tiller.
The file photo below we obtained had a Minn Kota trolling motor with an long shaft so we knew the front deck was strong enough to support our Minn Kota 80- 24 volt Maxxum we had earmarked for this project. There were several other items we found interesting in this photo we will discuss later. Hint- Transom and livewell.
 JBryant photo 
Setting the work plan was critical. The Banshee is a flats boat designed for shallow salt water. We combed the Internet for information about this boat and owners comments. All the comments we found were favorable. It had the floor space, deck space and storage we were looking for. We also knew that we could customize it based on our past experience with other Ranger Boats.
Although this boat usually is equipped with both casting and polling platforms we did not want the polling platform on a bass boat for obvious reasons. We knew we were going to have to repair several holes in the boat from the platform.
We also knew that this boat used poltruded fiberglass for strength and mounting so we felt comfortable it was the right boat for our plan.
We blueprinted the layout in 3 categories. Structural, Electrical and Functionality. We want over the boat with a fine tooth comb before the first thing was started.
3. Building a materials list. This was an ongoing process. It too was built on 3 categories, Structural, Electrical and Functional and this list included batteries, powerplant, trolling motor, electronics, and amenities. More on this later. Do not underestimate the need for stainless steel screws in multiple sizes and numbers. They are not cheap and you will go through a ton of them. The same is true with connectors.
The next stage in the process is the "Getting Started" phase and we will discuss it in Part II.
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The Elite Series Pros are serious about setting good examples and many have done a great job of contibuting to kids programs on a regular basis. One such angler is Grant Goldbeck.
On the weigh-in stage at the April 2-5 Evan Williams Bourbon Dixie Duel in Decatur, Ala., Elite pro Goldbeck announced to the crowd that he would be signing autographs and handing out free wristbands to encourage kids to get into fishing.
The blue bands, which are imprinted with “Support Junior Bassmasters,” are created by Goldbeck’s sponsor Southern Outdoors America to promote The Longshank, its line of spinnerbaits and buzzbaits. Goldbeck plans to hand out the bracelets to kids everywhere during his travels for the 2009 Bassmaster Elite Series.
“The future of our sport is in the kids,” said Goldbeck, whose 4-year-old son, Kirby, already loves fishing.
From Gaithersburg, Md., Goldbeck has competed on the Elite tour for four years. He was a boxer for about 12 years before he broke his hands one time too many and had to develop another career.
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Oakley Signs as Presenting Sponsor of Select Bassmaster Open Events
BASS announced today that Oakley, the Orange County, Calif.-based eyewear producer, will join the organization as a presenting sponsor of select Bassmaster Open events.
The agreement marks the first foray into BASS sponsorship for the popular sunglasses maker. It includes presenting sponsorship of one event each in the three Bassmaster Open Divisions. The sponsorship will kick off with the upcoming April 16-18 Bassmaster Northern Open on the Chesapeake Bay and Cecil, Md. Oakley will also present the April 30 – May 2 Bassmaster Southern Open event on Wheeler Lake and the Sept. 3-5 Central Open event on Sam Rayburn Reservoir and Jasper, Texas.
“We are excited to collaborate with BASS and be involved with the Bassmaster tournaments”, said Patrick McIlvain, vice president of Oakley Sports Marketing. “This alliance will showcase the technical advantages of our polarized eyewear in three of the most competitive fishing events of the year.”
The sponsorship agreement includes a presence across BASS’ multimedia assets, including Bassmaster Magazine, BASS Times and Fishing Tackle Retailer.
“Oakley has a rock-solid reputation in the outdoors and sports industry” said Tom Ricks, vice president and general manager, ESPN Outdoors & BASS. “The Bassmaster Opens are an attractive property with high levels of participation and its status as the qualifying level into the Elite Series.”
For more information on Oakley visit www.Oakley.com.
Bassmaster Open Official Sponsors: Toyota Trucks, Berkley, BOOYAH Baits, Evan Williams Bourbon, Mercury, OPTIMA Batteries, Skeeter Boats and Yamaha Marine.
Bassmaster Open Supporting Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops and Triton Boats.
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GAGLIARDI’S TABLE ROCK WIN AIRS APRIL 19 ON VERSUS
One-hour show covers second tournament of 2009 FLW Tour season
In mid-March, the world’s best bass anglers converged in Branson, Mo., for the second Walmart FLW Tour event of the season on Table Rock Lake presented by Berkley. Complete coverage of the tournament, which saw record-breaking crowds, will air Sunday, April 19 from 12:30-1:30 p.m. ET on VERSUS as part of the weekly “FLW Outdoors” program. The first-place purse of $125,000 went to Chevy pro Anthony Gagliardi, but the title was up for grabs until the 2006 Angler of the Year made a key adjustment.
With just two keeper bass in his livewell at midday on day two, Gagliardi was in survival mode, hoping to scratch out enough weight to simply get a check. Then he moved his boat off the bank, picked up a deeper-diving jerkbait and began fishing where his boat had just been sitting. The move proved to be the correct one as Gagliardi filled his five-bass limit and made the top-10 cutoff in eighth place. Over the next two days, the Prosperity, S.C., native caught 28 pounds, 14 ounces and claimed the third FLW Tour title of his young career.
Eleven ounces behind Gagliardi was Folgers pro Scott Suggs of Bryant, Ark., who took home $50,000 as a consolation. While most anglers focused on largemouths, Suggs started each morning by working a 4-inch Berkley Hollow Belly swimbait through schools of suspended spotted bass over 130 feet of water. Once he attained his limit, Suggs would then attempt to upgrade by fishing with a 3/4-ounce jig in shallow water.
Scott Canterbury of Springville, Ala., finished third with a two-day total of 26 pounds, 3 ounces worth $40,000. Canterbury spent the week fishing steep banks with a Wiggle Wart crankbait. After two top-10s in the first two events of the season, the 2008 Rookie of the Year is now tied with David Walker for the Land O’Lakes Angler of the Year lead at 391 points.
VERSUS Country broadcasts “FLW Outdoors” in high-definition (HD) Sundays from 12:30-1:30 p.m. ET. FLWOutdoors.com also provides an online guide listing upcoming episodes of “FLW Outdoors.” In addition, each episode of “FLW Outdoors” will be available on demand in its entirety on FLWOutdoors.com.
“FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million households worldwide, including internationally through agreements with WFN (World Fishing Network) and Matchroom Sport to such countries as Canada, Germany, China, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia, Russia, Hungary and the United Kingdom, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoor-sports television show in the world.
FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors also is taking fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports, $10 million in cash and prizes. Sign up for Player’s Advantage for only $10 to get your edge and win.
For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com
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Skeeter Launches New Federation Nation Retail Program - Reasons to Join Your Local Federation Nation Chapter are Even Greater
KILGORE, Texas, April 14, 2009 – As the Official Boat Sponsor of BASS, Skeeter’s management team knew this was an excellent opportunity to put its product in front of the most avid fishermen in the world – the BASS Federation Nation. Knowing that this group has high expectations from anything and everything “bass fishing,” Skeeter is proud to introduce an exciting new retail program for 2009 - the Skeeter/Yamaha BASS Federation Nation Program – exclusively for Federation Nation members.
“The BASS Federation Nation is the heart and soul of our great sport of bass fishing,” says Jeff Stone, Senior Vice President/General Manager of Skeeter. “The Federation Nation provides a solid foundation that will support both the competitive and recreational aspects of the sport well into the future. Skeeter is proud to support the Federation Nation, and we are confident that this new retail program will expose Federation Nation members to Skeeter’s stellar line-up of bass boats,” Stone added.
The Skeeter/Yamaha BASS Federation Nation Program provides cash-back rebates for in-stock and ordered Skeeter/Yamaha packages until March 2, 2010, extends Skeeter’s ‘Real Money’ tournament incentive program by offering up to $3,000 for a sanctioned tournament win and adds a two year Yamaha Extended Service (Y.E.S.) contract on qualified Skeeter/Yamaha boat packages.
BASS Federation Nation members will also be interested about Skeeter’s $50,000 cash incentive for a victory at the 2009 Federation Nation Championship, and $100,000 cash incentive for a Bassmaster Classic victory. “Don’t think for a second that a Federation Nation member can’t keep up with the superstars at the Bassmaster Classic,” says Skeeter’s National Sales Manager, Ben Jarrett. “During this year’s Classic, Skeeter/Federation Nation member Bryan Schmidt finished the Classic in 6th place, and even spent time in the ‘hot seat’ as the leader of the Classic on the final day of competition,” says Jarrett.
Skeeter Products, Inc., the Official Boat Sponsor of BASS, makes fishing and boating fun and rewarding with an owner’s tournament, its ‘Real Money’ incentive program, and a top-notch dealer network. For more information about the Skeeter/Yamaha BASS Federation Nation Program, check with your Chapter, drop-by your local authorized Skeeter dealer, or visit www.skeeterboats.com.
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Fishing time means boating time and nothing makes a bad day out of a good day faster than a breakdown or something not working properly.
Before taking your first trip out in the boat make sure you, check and charge the batteries (check fluid levels too), check the trolling motor prop for line or breaks and check the trolling motor plug for corrosion. Test the bilge, aerator and lights.
Make sure you have all the proper safety equipment on board including rope, throwable device, horn or whistle, paddle if necessary in your state and life jackets.
Test everything before putting it on the water and don't forget the trailer, as well. Make sure the bearings are greased and all the lights work properly.
Make sure you PUT the PLUG IN!!
This is also a great time to add a Keelshield keel protector and a skeg shield from Keelshield. Both will make sure your trip will be a good one.
To learn more about Keelshield click here. Tell them that Wired2Fish.com sent you.
Check out the new pedestal covers while you are there!
Have fun.
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Dick’s Sporting Goods Partners With Toyota Texas Bass Classic
Lake Conroe, Texas – The Toyota Texas Bass Classic (TTBC) has announced that sporting goods retailer Dick’s Sporting Goods is partnering with the 2009 event. Dick’s Sporting Goods is the exclusive TTBC merchandise retailer, official TTBC apparel provider and official TTBC sporting goods provider. The TTBC will be held October 16 – 18 at Lake Conroe in Montgomery, Texas.
“With our deep roots in fishing from when Dick's Sporting Goods started as a bait-and-tackle shop over 60 years ago, we are proud to be a partner at the 2009 Toyota Texas Bass Classic at Lake Conroe. We have a great appreciation for the sport of fishing and we continue to be a destination for anglers across the country,” said Jeffrey R. Hennion, EVP and Chief Marketing Officer.
Dick’s will have a significant presence on-site during the tournament. The area will feature the Dick's Sporting Goods Field & Stream mobile fish tank where professional anglers will be on hand giving free product demonstrations and fishing seminars. Dick's Sporting Goods will also be bringing its Field & Stream mobile archery range, as many bass anglers are also avid bow hunters.
“This is an outstanding partnership for the Toyota Texas Bass Classic,” said Tournament Director Lenny Francoeur. “Dick’s Sporting Goods is highly regarded across the country as an industry leading sporting goods retailer. This partnership offers them an outstanding venue for building brand awareness while giving TTBC fans a great experience in their exhibition area.”
For the first year, the TTBC is positioned as the world championship of the PAA Tournament Series and the format will be an individual angling competition, making the event a true world championship. The field will be comprised of 60 anglers, all qualified members of the PAA who earn spots based on PAA Tournament Series finishes or other merits.
The Toyota Texas Bass Classic is sanctioned by the Professional Anglers Association with technical assistance and support from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Inland Fisheries Division. Title sponsor for the event is Toyota. Dick’s Sporting Goods is the official sporting goods provider. Evan Williams is the official bourbon. The tournament will be held on Buffalo Springs, a planned development in the City of Montgomery. Corporate partnership opportunities are available for 2009. For additional information, visit www.toyotatexasbassclassic.com.
About Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc.
Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. is an authentic full-line sporting goods retailer offering a broad assortment of brand name sporting goods equipment, apparel, and footwear in a specialty store environment. As of January 31, 2009, the Company operated 384 Dick's Sporting Goods stores in 39 states primarily throughout the eastern half of the U.S. The Company also owns Golf Galaxy, Inc., a multi-channel golf specialty retailer, with 89 stores in 31 states, ecommerce websites and catalog operations and Chick's Sporting Goods, Inc., which operates 14 specialty sporting goods stores in Southern California.
Dick’s Sporting Goods Partners With Toyota Texas Bass Classic
The Toyota Texas Bass Classic (TTBC) has announced that sporting goods retailer Dick’s Sporting Goods is partnering with the 2009 event. Dick’s Sporting Goods is the exclusive TTBC merchandise retailer, official TTBC apparel provider and official TTBC sporting goods provider. The TTBC will be held October 16 – 18 at Lake Conroe in Montgomery, Texas.
“With our deep roots in fishing from when Dick's Sporting Goods started as a bait-and-tackle shop over 60 years ago, we are proud to be a partner at the 2009 Toyota Texas Bass Classic at Lake Conroe. We have a great appreciation for the sport of fishing and we continue to be a destination for anglers across the country,” said Jeffrey R. Hennion, EVP and Chief Marketing Officer.
Dick’s will have a significant presence on-site during the tournament. The area will feature the Dick's Sporting Goods Field & Stream mobile fish tank where professional anglers will be on hand giving free product demonstrations and fishing seminars. Dick's Sporting Goods will also be bringing its Field & Stream mobile archery range, as many bass anglers are also avid bow hunters.
“This is an outstanding partnership for the Toyota Texas Bass Classic,” said Tournament Director Lenny Francoeur. “Dick’s Sporting Goods is highly regarded across the country as an industry leading sporting goods retailer. This partnership offers them an outstanding venue for building brand awareness while giving TTBC fans a great experience in their exhibition area.”
For the first year, the TTBC is positioned as the world championship of the PAA Tournament Series and the format will be an individual angling competition, making the event a true world championship. The field will be comprised of 60 anglers, all qualified members of the PAA who earn spots based on PAA Tournament Series finishes or other merits.
The Toyota Texas Bass Classic is sanctioned by the Professional Anglers Association with technical assistance and support from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Inland Fisheries Division. Title sponsor for the event is Toyota. Dick’s Sporting Goods is the official sporting goods provider. Evan Williams is the official bourbon. The tournament will be held on Buffalo Springs, a planned development in the City of Montgomery. Corporate partnership opportunities are available for 2009. For additional information, visit www.toyotatexasbassclassic.com.
About Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc.
Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. is an authentic full-line sporting goods retailer offering a broad assortment of brand name sporting goods equipment, apparel, and footwear in a specialty store environment. As of January 31, 2009, the Company operated 384 Dick's Sporting Goods stores in 39 states primarily throughout the eastern half of the U.S. The Company also owns Golf Galaxy, Inc., a multi-channel golf specialty retailer, with 89 stores in 31 states, ecommerce websites and catalog operations and Chick's Sporting Goods, Inc., which operates 14 specialty sporting goods stores in Southern California. |
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Micropterus Legalis and fishing scibe Pete Robbins sat down with bass fishing photog Elizabeth Greene and discussed taking pictures of "green guys" and the guys who pursue them in today in Unplugged.
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BERKLEY EXPERIENCE TRAILER COMING TO ROGERS, MINN.
The Berkley Experience Trailer is headed to the Cabela’s store in Rogers, Minn. The trailer will roll in April 17 – 19 and will offer demonstrations and interactive games for kids and adults.
The Berkley Experience Trailer gives the everyday angler the opportunity to view baits in the Berkley line and chances to see the baits in action. Kids and adults alike will enjoy fishing games and competing in knot tying contests.
“We want everyone young and old alike to enjoy the Berkley experience,” said Andrew Marks, Berkley Marketing Manager “In addition to our bait and line interactive displays we will have Abu Garcia reel demonstrations, interactive touch screens to learn how to “Catch More Fish” and a showcase for our latest and most innovative fishing products.”
Special sales and promotions will be offered wherever the Berkley trailer stops. If you are unable to make it by the trailer and test the interactive components in Rogers, Minn., look at the upcoming events.
April 17 – 19
Cabela’s – Rogers, Minn.
20200 Rogers Drive
Rogers, MN 55374
Phone: 763-493-8600
Upcoming Events
April 23 – 25 – Scheels, Fargo, S.D.
April 30 – May 2 – Scheels, Bismarck, N.D.
May 6 – 8 – Gander Mountain, Forest Lake, Minn.
May 15 – 18 – Scheels, St. Cloud, Minn.
May 22 – 24 – Sportsman’s Warehouse, Rocklin, Calif.
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Thanks to all the Wired readers who entered the Bow to Stern and KVD Line and Lure Contest.
RMR Industries provided the product and we provided the questions. We tried to be "slick" but you were all way ahead of us!! Sorry, we have been waiting all week to use that pun.
The winners of the contest are:
Jay Hunt
Fayetteville, AR
Johnny Daw
Joaquin, TX
Seung Hwang
Seattle, WA
Your products are on the way and thanks to all.
You can buy BTS and KVD Line and Lure at Tackle Warehouse by clicking here.
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If a picture is worth a thousand words, what is a picture of a tournament-winning bass worth?
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Noth Carolina's Todd Auten won the PAA Neely Henry tournament over the weekend. To learn more click here.
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Wired2Fish had some Bassmaster Classic Video's from the Classic Show floor that were informative, entertaining and funny. Note: Our editor made us say that!. We will have a contest that will begin tomorrow from one of the companies Terry Brown interviewed and it will be a contest you will not want to miss. Now for the hint: This video was with a guy who has won 39 boats. Stay tuned tomorrow and a chance to win a prize worth nearly $300.00!
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Boyd Duckett took the Day One lead at Gadsden Alabama's Neely Henry Carrot Stix PAA event yesterday with a 5 bass limit weighing 22.16. The "Sage" Tommy Martin is in second with 5 bass weighing 17.69 lbs. Dave Mansue is in third with 17.67 and Illinois angler Duke Jenkel is in 4th with 17.25 lbs.
Below is the rest of the field totals.
| 1 |
Boyd Duckett |
5 |
22.16 |
| 2 |
Tommy Martin |
5 |
17.69 |
| 3 |
Dave Mansue |
5 |
17.67 |
| 4 |
Duke Jenkel |
5 |
17.25 |
| 5 |
Kyle Mabrey |
5 |
17.13 |
| 6 |
Lonnie O'Neal |
5 |
16.77 |
| 7 |
Steve Kennedy |
5 |
15.92 |
| 8 |
Mark Rose |
5 |
15.86 |
| 9 |
Dave Smith |
5 |
15.84 |
| 10 |
Sean Hoernke |
5 |
15.38 |
| 11 |
Zell Rowland |
5 |
15.2 |
| 12 |
Jeff Kreit |
5 |
14.9 |
| 13 |
Tim Sisk |
5 |
14.62 |
| 14 |
Lance Vick |
5 |
14.49 |
| 15 |
JT Kenney |
5 |
14.48 |
| 16 |
Scott Suggs |
5 |
14.44 |
| 17 |
Andy Montgomery |
5 |
14.21 |
| 18 |
Mike Wurm |
5 |
14.21 |
| 19 |
Russell Cecil |
5 |
13.98 |
| 20 |
Jonathan Black |
5 |
13.93 |
| 21 |
Greg Pugh |
5 |
13.86 |
| 22 |
Shaw Grigsby |
5 |
13.68 |
| 23 |
Trevor Knight |
5 |
13.67 |
| 24 |
Sandy Melvin |
5 |
13.54 |
| 25 |
Jami Fralick |
5 |
13.46 |
| 26 |
Brent Crow |
5 |
13.38 |
| 27 |
Charlie Ingram |
5 |
13.22 |
| 28 |
Chris Daves |
5 |
13.16 |
| 29 |
Joe Thomas |
5 |
13.05 |
| 30 |
Stacey King |
5 |
12.91 |
| 31 |
Guy Eaker |
5 |
12.69 |
| 32 |
Gordon Phillips |
5 |
12.68 |
| 33 |
Brian Thrift |
5 |
12.67 |
| 34 |
Todd Auten |
5 |
12.64 |
| 35 |
Andy Morgan |
5 |
12.54 |
| 36 |
Justin Rackley |
5 |
12.41 |
| 37 |
Terry Baksay |
5 |
12.28 |
| 38 |
Jason Reyes |
5 |
12.21 |
| 39 |
Chris Wilkerson |
5 |
12.08 |
| 40 |
Chris Elliott |
5 |
12.02 |
| 41 |
Tim Horton |
5 |
11.93 |
| 42 |
Chris Baumgardner |
5 |
11.86 |
| 43 |
Tommy Biffle |
5 |
11.79 |
| 44 |
Randy Howell |
5 |
11.7 |
| 45 |
Chad Morgenthaler |
5 |
11.68 |
| 46 |
John Crews, Jr. |
5 |
11.67 |
| 47 |
Dalton Bobo |
5 |
11.57 |
| 48 |
Matthew Ogrodowicz |
5 |
11.54 |
| 49 |
Bob Blosser |
5 |
11.44 |
| 50 |
Ken Bearden |
5 |
11.43 |
| 51 |
Sam Newby |
5 |
11.33 |
| 52 |
Kevin Wirth |
5 |
11.05 |
| 53 |
Paul Elias |
5 |
11.05 |
| 54 |
Fred Contaoi |
5 |
11.03 |
| 55 |
Gary Klein |
5 |
10.89 |
| 56 |
Craig Dowling |
5 |
10.88 |
| 57 |
Patrick Pierce |
5 |
10.86 |
| 58 |
Byron Velvick |
5 |
10.64 |
| 59 |
Ott Defoe |
5 |
10.63 |
| 60 |
Aaron Lee Jakub |
5 |
10.62 |
| 61 |
Mark Davis |
5 |
10.59 |
| 62 |
Shinichi Fukae |
5 |
10.59 |
| 63 |
Andy Gaia |
5 |
10.57 |
| 64 |
Koby Kreiger |
5 |
10.49 |
| 65 |
Ricky Guy |
5 |
10.47 |
| 66 |
Bernie Schultz |
5 |
10.45 |
| 67 |
Peter Thliveros |
5 |
10.45 |
| 68 |
Jason Christie |
5 |
10.44 |
| 69 |
Mike McClelland |
5 |
10.17 |
| 70 |
Rick Morris |
5 |
10.15 |
| 71 |
Ken Cook |
5 |
10.13 |
| 72 |
Brent Chapman |
5 |
9.98 |
| 73 |
Elton Luce |
5 |
9.97 |
| 74 |
Brandon Coulter |
5 |
9.95 |
| 75 |
Denny Brauer |
5 |
9.87 |
| 76 |
Aaron Martens |
5 |
9.77 |
| 77 |
Pat Kelly |
5 |
9.75 |
| 78 |
Cody Bird |
5 |
9.74 |
| 79 |
Greg Vinson |
5 |
9.69 |
| 80 |
Nick DiBerardino |
5 |
9.68 |
| 81 |
Sean Ritchie |
5 |
9.52 |
| 82 |
Pete Ponds |
5 |
9.48 |
| 83 |
Douglas Jones |
5 |
9.43 |
| 84 |
James Niggemeyer |
5 |
9.41 |
| 85 |
Anthony Gagliardi |
5 |
9.34 |
| 86 |
Wes Thomas |
5 |
9.22 |
| 87 |
Shonn Blassingame |
5 |
9.16 |
| 88 |
David Walker |
5 |
9.14 |
| 89 |
Kurt Dove |
5 |
9.04 |
| 90 |
Arch Cornett |
5 |
9.03 |
| 91 |
Charles Bebber |
5 |
9.02 |
| 92 |
Takahiro Omori |
5 |
8.96 |
| 93 |
Gary Riffle |
5 |
8.95 |
| 94 |
Charlie Hartley |
5 |
8.94 |
| 95 |
Kelly Jordon |
5 |
8.89 |
| 96 |
Michael Murphy |
5 |
8.87 |
| 97 |
Art Ferguson |
5 |
8.74 |
| 98 |
Art Ferguson |
5 |
8.74 |
| 99 |
Arnie Lane |
5 |
8.56 |
| 100 |
Ashley Miller |
5 |
8.38 |
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| Place |
Angler Name |
# of fish |
Tot. Weight |
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|
|
| 101 |
Luke Clausen |
5 |
8.29 |
| 102 |
Scott Browning |
5 |
8.22 |
| 103 |
Tony Chachere |
5 |
8.15 |
| 104 |
Terry Butcher |
4 |
8.07 |
| 105 |
Dennis Price Jr. |
5 |
8.04 |
| 106 |
Casey Martin |
5 |
7.99 |
| 107 |
Brian Snowden |
5 |
7.94 |
| 108 |
Curt Lytle |
5 |
7.9 |
| 109 |
David Curtis, Jr. |
5 |
7.87 |
| 110 |
Derek Remitz |
4 |
7.81 |
| 111 |
Russ Moran |
5 |
7.75 |
| 112 |
Russ Lane |
5 |
7.56 |
| 113 |
Ben Matsubu |
5 |
7.44 |
| 114 |
Dave Lefebre |
5 |
7.38 |
| 115 |
Matt Herren |
4 |
7.26 |
| 116 |
Ricky Fields |
5 |
7.06 |
| 117 |
Bob Bennett |
5 |
7.01 |
| 118 |
Ray Brazier |
4 |
6.97 |
| 119 |
Trea Luedke |
5 |
6.85 |
| 120 |
Glenn Browne |
3 |
6.84 |
| 121 |
Mike Hawkes |
5 |
6.81 |
| 122 |
Matt Reed |
5 |
6.8 |
| 123 |
Patrick Amick |
5 |
6.71 |
| 124 |
Scott Canterbury |
5 |
6.62 |
| 125 |
Erwin Cole |
5 |
6.56 |
| 126 |
Bobby Lane |
5 |
6.23 |
| 127 |
Ronnie Wagner |
5 |
5.91 |
| 128 |
Alan Bull |
5 |
5.67 |
| 129 |
Roger Boler |
2 |
5.6 |
| 130 |
Peter Savoia |
4 |
5.57 |
| 131 |
Eddy Thomas |
5 |
5.05 |
| 132 |
Clay Dyer |
4 |
4.78 |
| 133 |
Gary Clouse |
4 |
4.74 |
| 134 |
Brian Penso |
4 |
4.65 |
| 135 |
George Crain |
3 |
4.31 |
| 136 |
Gene Ellison |
2 |
3.93 |
| 137 |
Keith Caka |
4 |
3.83 |
| 138 |
Brad Hallman |
3 |
3.61 |
| 139 |
Sam Greer |
2 |
3.5 |
| 140 |
Larry Ellis |
2 |
3.24 |
| 141 |
Blake Shifflett |
3 |
3.05 |
| 142 |
Keith Pace |
2 |
3.05 |
| 143 |
Mike Delvisco |
2 |
2.98 |
| 144 |
Jason Seaton |
1 |
1.19 |
| 145 |
Jason Williamson |
0 |
0 |
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Adventure Products, the developers and manufacturers of the EGO Landing Net series, has joined Wired2Fish as a partner/advertiser for 2009.
“We are excited to show the fishing community that the EGO combines the best in sport fishing net design and technology and delivers outstanding value to serious sports fisherman” said Grant Corbett, President of Adventure Products. “Working with Wired2Fish will allow more die-hard anglers to gain first hand knowledge and exposure to our products.”
“Knowing that buying an EGO Net will be the last net you have to ever purchase is a cool deal. They are extremely tough, lightweight and balanced and believe it or not they float.” Said Terry Brown, President of Wire2Fish. “We get to work with the best companies that produce products in numerous categories. We believe EGO makes an outstanding product and are excited to help showcase their landing nets to the bass fishing world!”
Be on the lookout for some great contests and information about the EGO design advantage in upcoming weeks!
To learn more about EGO and Adventure Products, click here.
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This years Bassmaster Classic Champ and last season's AOY for the Elite Series are two of the biggest dogs on the porch.
Without question Skeet Reese and Kevin VanDam are two of the most profiled and noted anglers of all time. They are arguably two of the best anglers in the world too and with that honor comes a few perks.
This year at the Bassmaster Classic Motorguide color coordinated their mounting brackets for their trolling motors and are they cool. Check out the pictures below. Note: Motorguide tells us they have no plans to do anymore of these.....this is a one-time deal!
Editors note: We want posters!
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 Wired photo
Elite Series pro and World Record Holder Dean Rojas will be making an appearance at K&K True Value Hardware in Bettendorf, IA on Tuesday, April 28. He will be at their store from 6:30 pm till close to answer questions and sign autographs. Rojas signature products will be available including Big Bite Fighting Frogs, Spro Bronzeye Frogs and Poppers.
Stop by and see Dean.
The store address is:
K&K True Value Hardware
1818 Grant St
Bettendorf, IA 52722
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Alabama Wired2Fish "Dude" Tony Posey was at the Wheeler BASS Elite Series event and was greeted by Mr. Bass, Ray Scott. We always knew Ray was Wired!!! Nice to see he really is.
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From Alan McGuckin, Toyota Trucks
 McGuckin photo
Mike Iaconelli’s personality leads to conversations among bass fishing fans that drip of the love-hate relationships more frequently discussed in pro wrestling or NASCAR. Regardless of the cheers or jeers, what the former college honor student has accomplished as an angler is at the very least admirable – and mostly mind-boggling.
With his 5th place finish at the Bassmaster Elite on Lake Wheeler, Iaconelli has now scored a Top 10 in 12 of the past 14 tournaments he’s fished. What makes Wheeler’s performance so impressive is that just one week earlier he was disastrous at Dardanelle, hinting that not only is Ike human like the rest of us, but that perhaps his glorious run had come to a screeching halt. Not so, Ike, climbed into his Tundra, likely screamed in disgust a time or two, steered it 6-hours east into northern Alabama, and proceed to wack 45 pounds at Lake Wheeler.
Ike was catching as many as 30 bass a day at Lake Wheeler. He was running and gunning, but remained focused on bluff walls that had a shallow ledge or lip rather than the totally vertical walls characteristic of most rocky bluffs. Mike drug a ½ ounce, green pumpkin, Berkley Gripper Finesse Jig on the ledges, or shelves, of the bluff walls. He would keep his boat in 20’ of water, and cast into the 6 – 10’ depths atop the ledges. When he encountered pockets along the bluffs, he would throw a shallow diving black and blue colored LaserLure around the points formed by the pockets.
Here’s the bottom line sports fans -- Ike has scored a Top 10 in 86% of the last 14 tournaments he’s fished – a stat that doesn’t require a college honor student to judge it as mind boggling.
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All of us want a new boat. There is nothing better than picking out the colors, features, engine and options then getting it home and taking it to the water. If you have had that opportunity you would admit its pretty special.
The next best option to getting a new ride is updating and cleaning up the old skowl and making it like new. Boat manufacturers like Ranger have boats out there that can be over 40 years old. They still float, they still catch fish and they are now called "retro".
How about putting some new into the old. New lids, new pumps, new carpet, a jackplate and a livewell upgrade are just a few things that can be done to the "old girl" to make her like new again.
We have been working on a project here at Wired2Fish and are near completion. We took an old boat and are making a new one out of it. Its a small lake special and we are going to let you in on the results. Companies that have been involved in our little project are Ranger, Humminbird, Minn Kota, Yamaha, Berkley, Bluewater LED Lighting, Buells Marine, T&H Marine, Igloo, Gator Grip, Ardent, Mayfair, and several others that we will tell you about later.
We bet you have a boat just like it at home and would challenge you to send a photo of your finished project. We want to see the good ones, the funny ones and the cool ones. We want to hear the stories and the challenges. We will post some of them on Wired2Fish.
Saving a few bucks can actually mean spending a few as well. Stay tuned...you will see our project very soon.
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The bug and gunk season is just about upon us and boat care is is critical to making sure your ride keeps it showroom appearance. Nauticare has a great product that is perfect for removing bugs, tar and foreign smudges and it also leaves a glimmering shine. We use it on the Wired2Fish boats and its like magic.
Here is what Nauticare says about it:
Nauticare® Boat & PWC Cleaner & Polish Nauticare Boat & PWC Cleaner & Polish is specially formulated to remove dirt, grease, bugs, bird and spider droppings, road grime from towing, and water spots on contact. This detailer requires no water and leaves a showroom shine that protects against sun damage, ozone damage and dirt accumulation in one easy step.
Here is what Wired2Fish says about it:
It flat works great!!!
It retails for $8.99 a can and can be purchased it at Tackle Warehouse by clicking here. |
Mark Klossner, Mercury’s brand manager for the Optimax/ProXS lines, jet outboards and two-strokes, has announced that he is leaving the company this month to pursue an opportunity with a company that builds and markets premium snow removal equipment.
Klossner has been with Mercury for 10 years and said that it has been an enjoyable tenure, but that it’s time to move on. While his name may not ring a bell with every casual angler out there, he has made an indelible stamp on the world of competitive angling through the projects he has championed, which include Mercury’s popular 3-liter engines and, most notably, the ProXS line. Since their widespread introduction five years ago, the 225 ProXS and 250 ProXS have become the gold standard for Mercury pros at all levels of competition, combining top performance with fuel efficiency. When rising fuel costs became a concern, the addition of the 175 ProXS filled a niche for the budget-conscious baser.
Klossner is an avid angler himself, and while he may be leaving the industry, those of you in Wisconsin will likely continue to see him on local lakes, no doubt with a black motor hung on the back of his boat.
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Necessity is the mother of invention and she has struck again! White Night back up lights for trailers is a cool lighting system that is perfect for bass anglers.
Whether launching for an early morning tournament or fishing a Tuesday or Thursday night wildcat event these lights are the cats meow! They light up a wide area.
The White Night mounts easily to your truck's receiver hitch and features two 55 watt high-output halogen lamps (130,000 candle power of light) in a high impact black plastic case. The lamps are angled to throw an 80-foot spread of white light whenever the vehicle is in reverse. So whether your fishing a tournament or you just need a little light shed on the subject, the White Night Light System is the best option for your truck.
i  
When you purchase the special plug there is no splicing and the unit itself is so simple to install that a Wired2Fish editor might be able to do it.
To see the White Night Lights in action or buy click here.
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Blake Shifflet, who is fishing the PAA event at Neely Henry texted us from his IPhone and said it snowed all morning at Neely Henry. We also spoke to last weeks Elite Series Winner Tommy Biffle and when asked how much it snowed he said "It snowed enough to make it pretty miserable". Biffle did say that fish were biting however!
It is springtime...right?
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First in 2009 it was Skeet Reese, next it was Anthony Gagliardi. Who was next in the Lucky Craft winners circle? Click here to find out. |
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The Professional Anglers Association has a new look website. Lee Bailey Jr., a former Elite Series pro, is lead designer for the PAA. New features and functionality and a new live weigh-in will be launched this week from the PAA Carrot Stix Tournament at Neely Henry.
To learn more and see the new website click here.
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 FLW photo
Buckeye Lures introduced a new "Wake Up" Wake Bait and it is now time to get a couple of these ready for pre-spawn and spawning bass. The side to side wobble is second to none and shallow bass cannot resist them. This bait is solid balsa wood with a circuit board bill. All Wake Ups come with Mustad Ultra Point Hooks and a premium paint finish. Wake Ups do not dive and wobble side to side on the surface. This bait was designed with 2006 FLW Angler of the Year and Recent FLW Table Rock Tour Winner Anthony Gagliardi.
Tune in tomorrow to Wired Radio with Terry Brown as we will be talking about Anthony's win at Table Rock and fishing this on other Buckeye Baits.
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The Masters starts this week at Augusta and Elite Series Pro J Todd Tucker will be there. Check out our new Unplugged story today by Alan Clemons about his role at the biggest event in golf.
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Elite Series pro J. Todd Tucker departed Alabama following the Sunday wrap-up of the Bassmaster Elite Series Dixie Duel on Wheeler Lake and headed east toward a small town in Georgia a few people will hear about this week.
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Some boat buyers look for features like recessed foot pedals or fancy seating. Others look to the gelcoat, fancy stripes and the glossy finish but to Ranger buyers they look much deeper. They look to the inner strength of the boat and the durability. Sure, fit and finish, features and cosmetics are important but after a long day on the water its what under that shiny exterior that makes a difference. Ranger owners know the differences. Ranger doesn't hide them and our last trip to the Ranger plant emphasized the Ranger Differences.
Ranger has long been the standard for level flotation, composite components and technology minded features. No one has bulit a boat like Ranger and for 40 years they continue to be the innovators of a superior quality boat. At the end of the day it is truly about quality and long standing value for the dollar spent.
The pride each worker put into the product was amazing whether they worked on wiring harness's or rolled on fiberglass matting. Each boat was built as if they were building it for a family member.
One of the inner components that has made a Ranger a Ranger is pultrusion. Pultrusion is layers of fiberglass that is heat treated and blended with resin to make a composite material that is tougher than iron. The advantages of this material are many.
The Advantage of Pultrusion- A Ranger Difference
Building a stiff part that is also durable and not brittle is tough. Not only must it be tough but it must be one that increases screw retention to increase overall strength and durability. Pultruded Fiberglass materials used in a Ranger Boats continue to dominate cheaper composite construction other companies may utilize. Ranger developed and patented the technology. Pultrusion means greater strength in the transom, floors, decks and throughout the entire boat. Pultruded fiberglass has a superb tensile strength and when you see a Ranger you know that the transom and the gussets are all built as one piece. Strength is felt in the floors, gussets, hulls and deck. The Ranger feel was clear in our test drives, smooth and solid, and when we went to the plant after the drive we found out why.
 Pultruded fiberglass gussets and transom while the hull is still in the mold. Wired photo.
Building a boat with attention to detail and building it to last has been the mantra at Ranger since day one. Walking through the plant you could feel it. Talking to other Ranger owners you could hear it and riding in a new Ranger made it clear that this is one premier product.
To learn more go to:
http://www.rangerboats.com/insideTheRide/content.cfm?section=ep
http://www.rangerboats.com/RangerVideos/videos.cfm
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Bass West Magazine is making some major changes that readers will really enjoy. To read about those changes click here.
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When the second event of the 2009 Carrot Stix Professional Anglers Association (PAA) Tournament Series blasts off next week on Alabama's Lake Neely Henry, Chad Morgenthaler will make history as the first tour-level pro to run a Phoenix Bass Boat in competition. He recently aligned with the Tullahoma, Tennessee boat manufacturer and his 21-foot 721 ProXP will sport the familiar Jasper Engines emblems on the front panels and a Phoenix Logo on the rear quarter-panel.
Phoenix Boats signed on as the official boat sponsor of the PAA tournament trail in early January, 2009.
"My efforts for the PAA have taken a lot of blood, sweat and tears and a tremendous number of hours," said Morgenthaler, the PAA Vice President. "I believe in the cause and once we established our plans for 2010 and beyond, it was important for me personally to do business with the companies who believed in our dream. I need to do my part to support the people who support us. I have to lead by example."
Morgenthaler cited the positive values of Phoenix President Gary Clouse, a 30 year veteran of the bass boat industry and one of the segment's most consistent innovators, as a driving force behind his decision to sign with the relatively new company: "He's an outstanding person with a unique business plan to deal with these difficult economic times. He has great values and I'm honored that he has allowed me to get in on the ground floor level."
Of the company's decision to sign Morgenthaler, Clouse said "Chad is a quality individual and will be a great asset in our marketing efforts. The exposure that he brings to the table for Phoenix in a year's time as he travels and promotes will be huge. And in addition to being a great
promoter, Chad is always near the top of the leader board and that certainly helps the total exposure package."
But personalities alone were not enough for Morgenthaler to agree to make the switch from his prior boat company, about whom he has nothing but positive things to say. It was the opportunity to run a top-flight product with some elements of his personal stamp that convinced him that now was the right time to move.
"Any time you make a major change, it's a difficult decision," Morgenthaler said. "I left a lot of FLW contingency money on the table, but as Jasper drove home to me three years ago, branding yourself with the right match of partners is critical. When Gary shared with me his experience and all of the thought that went into the development of Phoenix boats, that's what sold me. The new features, like the rotating tackle storage, livewells with backup systems and a dash that will accommodate the largest electronics are all innovative, but he also gave me the opportunity for a lot of input. The President of the company was asking me for my thoughts and that's an opportunity I'd never had before."
Both men encouraged any bass anglers who spot Morgenthaler at the lake to ask him to demonstrate the boat's unique fishing features and total performance.
"I would encourage all PAA members as well as weekend anglers who are in the market for a new boat to give us a look before you make your decision," Clouse stated. "We are producing a boat that stacks up with those made by anyone in the industry, and at an affordable price."
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It is clear by the numbers that there are a ton of Zoom users in the Wired2Fish audience. Thanks to all who participated in the Zoom Magnum Trick Worm Contest. The winners are:
Les Schaeffer
HIAWATHA, IOWA
Chris Pirch
Fredericksburg, VA
Art DeForest
Grand Jct. CO
Kevin Patton
Washington, Illinois
Your new Zoom Magnum Trick Worms are on the way. Stay tuned for another great Wired2Fish Contest very soon!
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Thanks to everyone who got involved in the Grande Bass Contest. Congrats to the following Wired2Fish readers for correctly answering the Grande Bass questions:
Nick Simon
Caledonia, MS
Rick Ehlers
Catawba, SC
Scott McDonald
Lewisville Texas
Your Grande Bass Rattlesnakes are on the way!
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Blue Water LED Lighting proudly announces its partnership with BASS Elite Series angler Randy Howell of Springville, AL. Randy’s boat features a customized Blue Water LED Lighting package with red, white and blue lighting in the storage compartments, steering console, front deck and trailer. Fans watching the Elite Series boats preparing for blast-off this season will easily identify Howell’s rig thanks to its LED lighting. “Installation is very straight-forward and in no time at all I added functionality and a slick look to my rig. The lights are a huge help anytime I am working in the boat. Preparation during pre-dawn hours and after dark is vital to a successful tournament finish. Being able to see what I am doing helps me keep a positive attitude at the start and end of the day.”
Blue Water LED president Mike Daleo says the selection of Howell was based on his reputation as a truly professional angler. “We thoroughly researched the field looking for an angler with Randy’s faith, integrity and passion for the sport. We look forward to seeing him lift a trophy over his head on Tour this year while showing off the positive benefits of LED lighting.”
Through direct-to-consumer pricing Blue Water LED offers a basic boat package for only $87.99. The package includes lighting for the rod locker, four compartments, livewells and cooler. All packages include the necessary adhesives for installation. A step-by-step instructional DVD is available.
Blue Water LED offers a lifetime warranty on its products. LED lighting does not attract insects like conventional lights used at night. LED lighting also uses a low amperage draw and will not affect battery levels.
Fishing in his 16 year as a full-time professional angler, Springville, AL angler Randy Howell qualified for his 8th Classic with an 8th place finish in the 2008 BASS Elite Series. Fans can watch video and read articles and tips from Howell at www.randyhowell.com.
Based in Jeffersonville, IN Blue Water LED Lighting provides waterproof LED lighting for boats, motorcycles, trucks and RV’s as well as a compliment of innovative fishing accessories. For more information contact Mike Daleo at mike@bluewaterled.com, visit www.bluewaterled.com or call toll free at (800) 920-8245.
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Tommy Biffle used a variety of lures in his win at Lake Wheeler over the weekend. We spoke to him today about his choices and here's what he had to say about them. "I changed up on just about every pass. I had a small area and knew it had the fish in it to win. I used a Lunker Lure Rattleback jig with a Gene Larew Biffle Craw trailer (Black/Blue), a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver (Black Neon) and a Gene Larew Biffle O Lizard (Black Neon) to catch my fish."
Biffle is already on the water practicing for the next event, a PAA tournament at Neely Henry. We will have him on Wired Radio very soon to talk about the victory and how he milked his winning area.
To buy the Biffle Craw or the Biffle O lizard click here.
To buy the Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver click here.
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Oklahoma's Tommy Biffle took charge again today in a shortened Elite Series event at Lake Wheeler in Alabama. He weighed 5 bass today for 14-13 giving him 50-13 for the tournament and the win. He flipped bushes and brush near the take off for the win. In second place was Casey Ashley with 46-4. In third place was Takahiro Omori with 45-10. Making a big leap to 4th today was Brent Chapman. He weighed 18-10 today, had 45-4 for the event and had a big bass of 6-7.
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In the new Next Generation Tackle Box product evaluation we get a bit "dippy" and feature the Reaction Innovation Skinny Dipper. Buy some of these and your spring fishing will improve......check it out!
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Adam Oliver, a parametic, pictured here with the 15.82-pound largemouth bass he caught Saturday from Black Bayou-Hosston north of Shreveport. The fish will rank second in the State Top 10 Fish Records List if approved by the state Fish Records Committee for Louisiana. The fish was caught flipping a Lake Fork Tackle Craw Tube in Lake Fork Secret color. Nice job Adam and nice job again Lake Fork Tackle.
He was fishing with Kyle Bryant, a longtime friend, who had caught a 13 pounder from the same location almost a year ago.
 Kyle Bryant photo
Lake Fork Tackle Craw Tube in Lake Fork Secret (pictured below)
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Chad T. Keogh of Black Creek, BC found some of the first open water fishing of 2009 to his liking recently. He caught 10 smallies with a shaky head and managed to land this 5 pound 3 ouncer as well. Water temps reached 47 degrees. Great job Chad and nice smallie.
Chad let us know that the fish below was his first open water smallie this year. This was a 4 lb 12 oz smallie caught on a mid-lake hump that came out of 50’ of water up to 22’. He was using a 4” smoke w/purple flake tube on a ¼ oz football jig (inside). Nice!
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Bassmaster Elite Series Event to Conclude Sunday no matter what...Second Shortened event in a row
BASS announced that Sunday, April 5 will be the final day of competition of the Evan Williams Bourbon Dixie Duel on Wheeler Lake because of unsafe weather forecasts for Monday and Tuesday. Tournament officials made the announcement prior to the 7:15 a.m. (CT) launch of boats Sunday.
The field, cut to the top 50 anglers Saturday, is competing for a top prize of $100,000 and valuable points toward the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title.
Fans are encouraged to attend Sunday's weigh-in (4 p.m.) at Ingalls Harbor, 701 Market Street NW, Decatur.
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Team BP pro Guido Hibdon of Sunrise Beach, Mo., caught a five-bass limit weighing 24 pounds, 1 ounce Saturday to win $125,000 in the Walmart FLW Series® BP Eastern Division tournament on Lake Eufaula with a four-day catch of 20 bass weighing 83-9.
The catch gave him the win by a solid 5-pound, 1-ounce margin over Tom Mann Jr. of Buford, Ga., who caught a total of 20 bass weighing 78-8 and earned $50,000.
“Every fish I caught was spawned out,” said Hibdon, who now has earned more than $604,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “I don’t know when they spawned, but it was a good ways back. And what these fish were doing, they were coming out of the creeks, and they were coming to me. And every day there was more of them. The hardest part of the deal was being patient and making the same casts.
“You know, my camera guy this morning, I about ran him nuts,” Hibdon added. “I sat and threw at one rock 40 times and caught a five- or six-pounder or whatever it was, and he said ‘I can’t believe it.”
Hibdon said he fished the entire tournament near the dam south of Eufaula and managed to land about 10 keepers on the last day of competition. Hibdon said every one of the fish he caught Saturday came on a Copper Perch-colored Lucky Craft RC 2.5 square-billed crankbait. Hibdon said he controlled the depth of the crankbait by varying the size of line he paired it with.
“You could have caught them on a black (crankbait),” Hibdon said. “You just had to make a lot of casts.”
Hibdon opened the tournament in fifth place Wednesday with five bass weighing 19-3. On Thursday he added another five bass weighing 17-1 but slipped to sixth place. He then caught five bass weighing 23-4 Friday to make the crucial top 10 cut in second place. In addition to the crankbait, Hibdon used a jig and a hollow worm fished on a Carolina rig during the first three days of competition.
“This was just a classic case of an old man slowing down and fishing real slow,” Hibdon said. “And trust me, I do that really well.”
Rounding out the top five pros are Team Berkley pro Glenn Browne of Ocala, Fla. (20 bass, 76-5, $40,000); Matthew Wilbanks of Gainesville, Ga. (18 bass, 75-15, $30,000) and Team Keebler pro Dave Lefebre of Union City, Pa. (20 bass, 70-1, $20,000).
O.T. Fears of Sallisaw, Okla., caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Pro Division Thursday – a 9-pound, 8-ounce bass – that earned him the day’s Big Bass award of $500.
Overall there were 45 bass weighing 160 pounds caught by 10 pros Saturday. The catch included eight five-bass limits.
Chris Hults of Vancleave, Miss., won the Co-angler Division and $20,000 Friday with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 44 pounds, 2 ounces followed by Tim Peek of Sharpsburg, Ga., in second place with 11 bass weighing 40-2 worth $10,000.
Hults opened the tournament in 12th place Wednesday with five bass weighing 11-15 while fishing with pro Matthew Wilbanks. On Thursday he jumped to fifth place on the strength of a five-bass catch weighing 14-5 while fishing with Team National Guard pro Jonathan Newton of Rogersville, Ala. He wrapped up the win Friday with a five-bass catch weighing 17-14 while fishing with pro Tim McDonald of Lexington, Ky.
“I’ve won several BFLs in the past and have never quite been able to finish it in these bigger tournaments,” said Hults, who finished third in the 2008 Forrest Wood Cup at Lake Murray in Columbia, S.C. “I think Eufaula fishes a lot like my home water does. I think that helped me.”
Hults said he fished shallow during his three days of competition and relied on an arsenal of baits, including a Berkley PowerBait Chigger Craw, a swimming jig, a soft-plastic creature bait and a spinnerbait.
Hults’ brother, Alan, also fished the tournament and Hults cited family knowledge of Lake Eufaula as being key to his victory.
“Normally we practice before the tournaments, but this time we didn’t get to,” Hults said. “We just relied on past history with Alan doing so well the past couple of years. Basically we just came into it and did the same thing he’s done the past two years.”
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Chuck Thurlow of Auburn, Ala. (10 bass, 38-8, $7,500); Derrick Snavely of Rogersville, Tenn. (nine bass, 35-15, $5,000) and Charles Stevenson of Albany, Ga. (13 bass, 35-11, $4,000).
Snavely caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Co-angler Division Wednesday – a 9-pound, 8-ounce bass – that earned him the day’s Big Bass award of $333.
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 Wired photo
Oklahoma’s Tommy Biffle Surges to Lead at Bassmaster Elite Event on Wheeler Lake
DECATUR, Ala. – Three-time BASS event winner Tommy Biffle of Wagoner, Okla., fishing in a remote cove on Wheeler Lake catapulted to the lead of the Evan Williams Bourbon Dixie Duel with a two-day total of 36 pounds. Biffle has more than a 2-pound advantage over Takahiro Omori of Emory, Texas, who remains in second with 33-9.
Friday’s competition of the Bassmaster Elite Series’ third stop was canceled due to unsafe river conditions. Biffle, who was sixth after Thursday, was pleased with the increased water level of Wheeler Lake that has swelled about 2 feet since Thursday.
The former race boat driver lost several larger fish from his location that he says is fairly close to the launch location. Biffle would not disclose specifics about the remote spot or his tournament strategy. He weighed in the biggest bag of the tournament so far tipping the scales at 19-14 on Saturday.
“I had a little bit of bad luck when I broke a big one off and lost a 5-pounder when he was coming over the side of the boat,” said Biffle, 51. “The big one was down under a log, and he was pulling hard and I was and my line just snapped.”
He was successful in upgrading his catch throughout the day and estimates he landed about 30 bass. Fishing in bluebird skies and adjusting to the rise of the river, Biffle hopes for similar conditions on Sunday.
“I hope they don’t adjust the water levels overnight,” he said. “Out of all of the years we have been coming here I have been hoping for a big stringer. I plan on fishing from this same spot until at least noon tomorrow.”
Omori, winner of the 2004 Bassmaster Classic, remained consistent in boating 16-1 Saturday, a little less than Thursday’s 17-8 total. The six-time BASS event winner will continue to deploy his strategy of moving to various spots and finding a shallow bite. Omori was only able to fish for several hours as his boat broke down and fellow competitor Jared Lintner of Arroyo Grande, Calif., hauled Omori in for the weigh-in.
“I only caught six keepers today that were the right size,” said Omori, who was in second after Thursday. “I was going to check another place but I hit something really hard that my lower end unit went out and that was the end of my day.”
Bradley Hallman of Norman, Okla., made a big move into the third position with a two-day total of 30-14. His bag consisted of a couple 5-pounders that propelled him from Thursday’s 28th position. Hallman ran over 70 miles to boat his day two catch of 16-1 and is fishing structure for most of his fish.
“I was fishing with about 25 other boats around me today,” said Hallman. “I did not go there the first day as the bites were not there for me in practice. I will probably go back there tomorrow. I fished about four or five different places nearby and my pattern is holding up.”
Rounding out the top five are Mark Tucker of Saint Louis, Mo., in fourth with 30-0, and 2003 Bassmaster Classic Champion Mike Iaconelli of Runnemede, N.J., in fifth with 29-13. Iaconelli was third after the first day of competition.
Also, BASS announced prior to the Saturday weigh-in that the field will be cut to the top 50 for Sunday’s competition due to Friday’s cancelation. Weather forecasts for Monday predict high winds, and tournament officials will announce how the tournament will conclude prior to Sunday’s launch at 7:15 a.m. The tournament will finish either Sunday with the top 50 fishing, or Monday with the top 12, only if the weather forecast is favorable.
Within the cutline was 2008 Bassmaster Classic champion Alton Jones (16); 2009 Elite Series winners Mark Menendez (12th) and Jason Williamson (27th); 2009 Bassmaster Classic champion Skeet Reese (45th); and four-time Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year Kevin VanDam (49).
The Evan Williams Bourbon Dixie Duel includes a top prize of $100,000 and awards valuable points in the 2009 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title race. Fans are encouraged to attend Sunday’s launch (7:15 a.m. CT) and weigh-in (4 p.m.) at Ingalls Harbor, 701 Market Street NW, Decatur.
With 1,063 miles of shoreline, Wheeler is the largest of three Alabama lakes that connect with the Tennessee River. It has been the host of 10 BASS events, including the 1974 Bassmaster Classic, and also will feature the second Bassmaster Southern Open of 2009, set for April 30-May 2.
The local sponsor of the Dixie Duel is the Decatur-Morgan County Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Sponsors of the Bassmaster Elite Series: Toyota Trucks, Berkley, BOOYAH Baits, Evan Williams Bourbon, Mercury, OPTIMA Batteries, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha Marine; Bass Pro Shops, Costa Del Mar, Ramada, SpongeTech and Triton Boats.
EVAN WILLIAMS BOURBON DIXIE DUEL DAY 1
2009 Dixie Duel 4/2-4/5
Lake Wheeler, Decatur AL.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 10 36-00 305
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 5 19-14
2. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 10 33-09 295
Day 1: 5 17-08 Day 2: 5 16-01
3. Bradley Hallman Norman, OK 10 30-14 290
Day 1: 5 13-01 Day 2: 5 17-13
4. Mark Tucker Saint Louis, MO 10 30-00 285
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 5 18-07
5. Michael Iaconelli Runnemede, NJ 10 29-13 280
Day 1: 5 17-01 Day 2: 5 12-12
6. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 10 29-13 276
Day 1: 5 14-15 Day 2: 5 14-14
7. Rick Morris Virginia Beach, VA 10 28-12 272
Day 1: 5 16-13 Day 2: 5 11-15
8. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 10 28-12 268
Day 1: 5 13-06 Day 2: 5 15-06
9. Randy Howell Springville, AL 10 28-04 264
Day 1: 5 16-06 Day 2: 5 11-14
10. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 10 28-03 260
Day 1: 5 14-00 Day 2: 5 14-03
11. Stephen Browning Hot Springs National Pa 10 27-15 257
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 16-04
12. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 10 27-01 254
Day 1: 5 16-01 Day 2: 5 11-00
13. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 10 26-14 251
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 13-01
14. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 10 26-10 248
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 13-00
15. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 10 26-09 245
Day 1: 5 12-11 Day 2: 5 13-14
16. Alton Jones Waco, TX 10 26-08 248
Day 1: 5 17-12 Day 2: 5 08-12
17. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 10 26-05 241
Day 1: 5 13-11 Day 2: 5 12-10
18. Jeff Connella Bentley, LA 10 25-14 239
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 12-11
19. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 10 25-08 237
Day 1: 5 12-00 Day 2: 5 13-08
20. Bill Lowen North Bend, OH 10 25-07 235
Day 1: 5 11-06 Day 2: 5 14-01
21. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 10 25-05 233
Day 1: 5 11-06 Day 2: 5 13-15
22. Todd Auten Lake Wylie, SC 10 25-03 231
Day 1: 5 12-12 Day 2: 5 12-07
22. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 10 25-03 231
Day 1: 5 12-12 Day 2: 5 12-07
24. Brian Clark Haltom City, TX 10 24-14 227
Day 1: 5 13-14 Day 2: 5 11-00
25. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 10 24-10 225
Day 1: 5 14-14 Day 2: 5 09-12
26. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 10 24-07 223
Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 13-12
27. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 10 24-06 221
Day 1: 5 15-07 Day 2: 5 08-15
28. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 10 24-06 219
Day 1: 5 13-05 Day 2: 5 11-01
29. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 24-05 217
Day 1: 5 11-09 Day 2: 5 12-12
30. Terry Butcher Talala, OK 10 24-01 215
Day 1: 5 11-04 Day 2: 5 12-13
31. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 10 24-00 213
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 08-14
32. Vince Fulks Purcell, OK 10 23-14 211
Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 12-11
33. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 10 23-11 209
Day 1: 5 08-01 Day 2: 5 15-10
34. Matthew Sphar Pavilion, NY 10 23-05 207
Day 1: 5 12-11 Day 2: 5 10-10
35. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 10 23-05 205
Day 1: 5 11-06 Day 2: 5 11-15
36. Mark Burgess Norton, MA 8 23-03 203
Day 1: 3 10-07 Day 2: 5 12-12
37. Jason Quinn York, SC 10 23-01 201
Day 1: 5 13-14 Day 2: 5 09-03
38. Scott Campbell Springfield, MO 10 23-00 199
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 5 08-04
39. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 10 23-00 197
Day 1: 5 13-10 Day 2: 5 09-06
40. Denny Brauer Camdenton, MO 10 23-00 195
Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 12-05
41. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 10 22-14 193
Day 1: 5 15-02 Day 2: 5 07-12
42. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 10 22-14 191
Day 1: 5 14-07 Day 2: 5 08-07
43. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 10 22-14 189
Day 1: 5 12-09 Day 2: 5 10-05
44. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, NC 10 22-14 187
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 11-03
45. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 10 22-13 185
Day 1: 5 15-10 Day 2: 5 07-03
46. Shaw E Grigsby Gainesville, FL 10 22-12 183
Day 1: 5 08-02 Day 2: 5 14-10
47. Guy Eaker Cherryville, NC 10 22-11 181
Day 1: 5 10-09 Day 2: 5 12-02
48. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 10 22-07 179
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 5 12-03
49. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 22-04 177
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 5 10-02
50. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 10 22-04 175
Day 1: 5 10-12 Day 2: 5 11-08
51. Mark Tyler Vian, OK 10 22-02 173
Day 1: 5 08-15 Day 2: 5 13-03
52. Jami Fralick Martin, SD 10 22-01 171
Day 1: 5 11-13 Day 2: 5 10-04
53. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 10 21-14 169
Day 1: 5 10-01 Day 2: 5 11-13
54. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, KY 10 21-14 167
Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 10-11
55. Jon Bondy Windsor CANADA 10 21-13 165
Day 1: 5 09-15 Day 2: 5 11-14
56. Billy Mccaghren Mayflower, AR 10 21-12 163
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 10-11
57. Zell Rowland Montgomery, TX 10 21-10 161
Day 1: 5 09-13 Day 2: 5 11-13
58. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 10 21-10 159
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 5 10-10
59. Chad Griffin Cresson, TX 10 21-09 157
Day 1: 5 13-09 Day 2: 5 08-00
60. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 10 21-09 155
Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 10-14
61. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 10 21-08 153
Day 1: 5 10-01 Day 2: 5 11-07
62. Brent Broderick Oregonia, OH 9 21-08 151
Day 1: 4 07-02 Day 2: 5 14-06
63. Peter E Thliveros St Augustine, FL 10 21-04 149
Day 1: 5 11-07 Day 2: 5 09-13
64. Marty Stone Fayetteville, NC 10 21-00 147
Day 1: 5 10-12 Day 2: 5 10-04
65. Clark Reehm Russellville, AR 10 20-13 145
Day 1: 5 10-00 Day 2: 5 10-13
66. Byron Velvick Del Rio, TX 10 20-12 143
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 5 08-10
67. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 10 20-08 141
Day 1: 5 10-07 Day 2: 5 10-01
68. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 10 20-07 139
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 08-15
69. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, OK 10 20-06 137
Day 1: 5 08-00 Day 2: 5 12-06
70. Pat Golden High Point, NC 10 20-05 135
Day 1: 5 12-01 Day 2: 5 08-04
71. Jeff Reynolds Idabel, OK 10 20-03 133
Day 1: 5 08-09 Day 2: 5 11-10
72. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 10 20-00 131
Day 1: 5 08-13 Day 2: 5 11-03
73. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 10 19-12 129
Day 1: 5 12-03 Day 2: 5 07-09
74. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 10 19-11 127
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 08-00
75. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 10 19-06 125
Day 1: 5 10-01 Day 2: 5 09-05
76. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 10 19-03 123
Day 1: 5 10-09 Day 2: 5 08-10
77. Dave Wolak Wake Forest, NC 7 19-03 121
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 2 06-13
78. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 10 19-01 119
Day 1: 5 11-07 Day 2: 5 07-10
79. Boyd Duckett Demopolis, AL 8 18-10 117
Day 1: 5 13-15 Day 2: 3 04-11
80. Jim Murray Arabi, GA 10 18-00 115
Day 1: 5 08-15 Day 2: 5 09-01
81. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 10 17-14 113
Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 07-03
82. Grant Goldbeck Gaithersburg, MD 10 17-12 111
Day 1: 5 07-13 Day 2: 5 09-15
83. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 10 17-10 109
Day 1: 5 07-00 Day 2: 5 10-10
84. Chris Lane Lakeland, FL 10 17-09 107
Day 1: 5 09-05 Day 2: 5 08-04
85. Mike Wurm Hot Springs, AR 10 17-07 105
Day 1: 5 09-02 Day 2: 5 08-05
86. Kelly Jordon Mineola, TX 10 17-04 103
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 5 07-00
87. Ken D Cook Lawton, OK 10 17-01 101
Day 1: 5 07-08 Day 2: 5 09-09
88. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 10 17-01 99
Day 1: 5 08-02 Day 2: 5 08-15
89. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 10 16-15 97
Day 1: 5 10-00 Day 2: 5 06-15
90. Pete Ponds Madison, MS 10 16-14 95
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 5 05-04
91. Jeremy Starks Charleston, WV 10 16-13 93
Day 1: 5 08-09 Day 2: 5 08-04
92. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 10 16-03 91
Day 1: 5 06-09 Day 2: 5 09-10
93. Wade Grooms Bonneau, SC 10 15-05 89
Day 1: 5 07-01 Day 2: 5 08-04
94. Luke Gritter Kalamazoo, MI 10 14-15 87
Day 1: 5 08-11 Day 2: 5 06-04
95. Morizo Shimizu Osaka JAPAN 8 14-13 85
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 3 04-11
96. David Smith Del City, OK 10 13-06 83
Day 1: 5 08-00 Day 2: 5 05-06
97. John Crews Salem, VA 10 13-06 81
Day 1: 5 07-05 Day 2: 5 06-01
98. Elton Luce Jr. Brookeland, TX 8 12-08 79
Day 1: 3 05-13 Day 2: 5 06-11
99. Jimmy Mize Ben Lomond, AR 6 10-08 77
Day 1: 5 09-08 Day 2: 1 01-00
100. Kevin Langill Terrell, NC 5 06-11 76
Day 1: 5 06-11 Day 2: 0 00-00
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BIG BASS
Day
1 Alton Jones Waco, TX 07-00 $0.00
2 Shaw E Grigsby Gainesville, FL 07-02 $0.00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 97 495 1147-08
2 95 484 1055-06
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192 979 2202-14
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North Carolina’s Chuck Murray Wins Federation Nation Southern Divisional Victory at Gaston Lake
ROANOKE RAPIDS, N.C. – While carrying out plans to host the BASS Federation Nation Southern Divisional presented by Yamaha Outboards and Skeeter Boats this week, April 1-3, Chuck Murray of Louisburg, N.C., squeezed in some time to put together a winning pattern for the event as well.
After holding on to the runner-up spot for the first two days, Murray caught four bass Friday to clinch the tournament with an overall weight of 44 pounds, 11 ounces. The North Carolina BASS Federation Nation president relied on his experience on Gaston Lake to bag a final day total of 11-14.
Murray caught most of his fish with a crawfish color Bomber Fat Free Fingerling crankbait casting it along the rocky points and flats of Gaston Lake. He used the crankbait during the first two days of competition.
“The key to this win was fishing main lake structure,” said Murray, who estimated that the bigger fish he caught each day were about 10 feet deep.
“Today was a totally different day,” he said. “We were fishing the culverts and the riprap and then I picked up a jig and threw it as close as I could to a boat dock and caught a 3-pounder.”
Murray adjusted to the sunny skies and added three more keepers to capture the tournament.
Winning the divisional and leading his North Carolina team also qualified Murray for the BASS Federation Nation Championship presented by Yamaha Outboards and Skeeter Boats, the ultimate amateur bass fishing championship to be held Oct. 28-30 on the Harris Chain of Lakes out of Tavares, Fla.
The other six state champions who advanced to the national championship were David Boyd (Florida); Brandon Card (Kentucky); Kenneth Pannell (Alabama); Chris Neely (Georgia); Brent Long (South Carolina); and Ben Parker (Tennessee). The Southern Divisional qualifiers will be among the 55 championship contenders vying for six spots in the 2010 Bassmaster Classic set for Feb. 19-21 on Lay Lake out of Birmingham, Ala.
Alabama won the team competition of the Southern Divisional with a cumulative weight of 261 pounds, 12 ounces. The 12-man squad claimed the divisional’s top prize — a $30,000 Skeeter bass boat rigged with a Yamaha outboard motor.
The catches of the young anglers competing in the Junior Bassmasters Southern Divisional today were also added to the cumulative weights of their respective state teams in the adult competition. Tanner Plumlee of Tennessee won the 11-14-year-olds age division by catching three bass weighing 4-11. Ross Burns caught four bass weighing 7-3 to top the 15-18 age group and help the South Carolina team finish third. Both youngsters qualified for the Junior Bassmasters World Championship to be held in conjunction with the Federation Nation Championship in October. The tournament results for the Junior Bassmasters Southern Divisional will be posted at Bassmaster.com.
The Southern Divisional is the first of six regional qualifiers for the Federation Nation Championship. Next on the schedule is the Western Divisional set for May 11-15 on the Columbia River out of Tri Cities, Wash.
Sponsors of the BASS Federation Nation: Yamaha Outboards, Skeeter Boats, Toyota Trucks, Berkley, BOOYAH Baits, Evan Williams Bourbon, Mercury and OPTIMA Batteries.
About BASS
For more than 40 years, BASS has served as the authority on bass fishing. With its considerable multi-media platforms and expansive tournament trail, BASS is guided by its mission to serve all fishing fans. Through its industry-leading publications Bassmaster Magazine, BASS Times and Fishing Tackle Retailer and comprehensive Web properties in ESPN360.com, ESPN’s sports broadband network, Bassmaster.com, BASSInsider.com and ESPNOutdoors.com, the organization is committed to delivering content true to the lifestyle. Additionally, television programming on ESPN2 continues to provide relevant content – from tips and techniques to in-depth tournament coverage – to passionate audiences.
The organization oversees the prestigious Bassmaster tournament trail, which includes the Bassmaster Elite Series, Bassmaster Opens, Women’s Bassmaster Tour and the Bassmaster Classic, the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing. Through its grassroots network, the BASS Federation Nation, BASS sanctions more than 20,000 events annually.
BASS also offers an array of services to its more than 500,000 members while spearheading progressive, positive change on issues related to conservation and water access. The organization is headquartered in Celebration, Fla.
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Media Contact: Anthony Bartkowski; (407) 744-4566 or anthony.a.bartkowski@espn.com.
2009 Federation Nation - 2009 SOUTHERN DIVISIONAL 04/01-04/03 Gaston Lake, Roanoke Rapids N.C.
(BOATER) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$
1. Chuck Murray Louisburg, N.C. (NC) 14 44-11
2. Brent Long Cornelius, N.C. (SC) 15 43-14
3. Kenneth Pannell Springville, Ala. (AL) 15 42-13
4. Conrad Bolt Seneca, S.C. (SC) 13 39-06
5. Brandon Card Lexington, Ky. (KY) 13 31-08
6. Ben Parker Union City, Tenn. (TN) 11 30-07
7. Mark Robertson Henderson, N.C. (NC) 14 29-00
8. Patrick Tierney Denver, N.C. (NC) 14 28-03
9. Chris Neely Chattahoochee, Fla. (GA) 11 28-00
10. Brendan Smith Kennesaw, Ga. (GA) 14 27-12
11. Eric Jeter Asheville, N.C. (NC) 12 27-06
12. Allan Glasgow Ashville, Ala. (AL) 12 26-14
13. David Boyd Quincy, Fla. (FL) 11 26-00
14. Brian Anderson Denver, N.C. (NC) 15 25-04
15. Mike Morris White, Ga. (GA) 13 24-09
16. Kyle Colley Ashville, Ala. (AL) 10 24-03
17. Joe Lay Duncanville, Ala. (AL) 10 24-02
18. John Crisp Mt Washington, Ky. (KY) 9 24-02
19. John Talton Gerogetown, Tenn. (TN) 11 23-14
20. George Crain Cropwell, Ala. (AL) 8 23-10
21. Robert Rogers Pinopolis, S.C. (SC) 12 23-08
22. Alan Shultz Rutledge, Ga. (GA) 12 23-05
23. Jackie Overbey Ewing, Ky. (KY) 7 22-08
24. Sean Dassau Helena, Ala. (AL) 10 22-03
25. Heath Martin Louisville, Ky. (KY) 12 21-05
26. Doug Nichles Leeds, Ala. (AL) 10 20-00
27. Scott Jones Louisville, Ky. (KY) 11 19-02
28. Brent Tullis Acworth, Ga. (GA) 9 19-01
29. Richard Smith Cecilia, Ky. (KY) 7 18-15
30. John Hendry Lakeland, Fla. (FL) 9 18-04
31. Tom Hill Lexington, Ky. (KY) 10 18-00
32. Angelo Koundourakis Bainbridge, Ga. (GA) 8 17-15
33. Richard Morrison Bristol, Tenn. (TN) 8 17-15
34. Wade Mitchell Moody, Ala. (AL) 7 17-06
35. David Williams Maiden, N.C. (NC) 9 17-01
36. Simon Morrow Alexander City, Ala. (AL) 7 16-14
37. Tony Beck Social Circle, Ga. (GA) 9 16-11
38. Mark Pierce Clarksville, Tenn. (TN) 8 16-10
39. Bron Hemphill Conover, N.C. (NC) 7 16-03
40. Lancen Halbert Enoree, S.C. (SC) 9 16-01
41. Brandon Bryant Ladson, S.C. (SC) 6 15-14
42. Robert Griswold Concord, N.C. (NC) 9 15-05
43. Kevin Harkins Holly Hill, S.C. (SC) 8 15-05
44. Tim Snellings Lake Wales, Fla. (FL) 6 14-00
45. Gerald Weber Louisville, Ky. (KY) 8 13-14
46. Lawrence McConnell Dunnellon, Fla. (FL) 7 13-14
47. Tony Lister Robertsdale, Ala. (AL) 7 13-13
48. Nick Bell Lousiburg, N.C. (NC) 7 13-12
49. Bradley Gunter Greenwood, S.C. (SC) 9 13-07
50. John Bynum Raleigh, N.C. (NC) 7 13-05
51. David Hendrick Cherryville, N.C. (NC) 7 13-04
52. Carl Logan Winder, Ga. (GA) 7 12-06
53. Eulon Lee Montgomery, Ala. (AL) 7 12-02
54. Patrick Brown Swainsboro, Ga. (GA) 7 11-14
55. Nobel Willits Altamonte Springs, Fla. (FL) 7 11-07
56. Andy Warren Maury City, Tenn. (TN) 5 10-14
57. Steve Vann Goldsboro, N.C. (NC) 3 10-07
58. Alan Franks Gainesville, Ga. (GA) 6 10-03
59. Tim Adams Powder Springs, Ga. (GA) 5 10-02
60. Lance Asbury Saltville, Va. (TN) 6 9-15
61. Gregory Weber Louisville, Ky. (KY) 4 9-14
62. Jeffrey Statzer Kingsport, Tenn. (TN) 5 9-11
63. Charles Graybeal, Jr Erwin, Tenn. (TN) 5 9-09
64. Joey Payne Jacksonville, Ala. (AL) 6 9-04
65. Tony Bigot Ft Walton Beach, Fla. (FL) 4 9-03
66. Greg Glouse Easley, S.C. (SC) 5 9-02
67. Jerry Kelley Wewahitchka, Fla. (FL) 4 8-15
68. Jeff Giarrizzo Clarksville, Tenn. (TN) 5 8-11
69. Rick Holmes Manning, S.C. (SC) 5 8-02
70. David Roddy Inman, S.C. (SC) 5 7-13
71. Jason Holland Kings Mountain, N.C. (SC) 4 7-10
72. Dean Favorite Paris, Ky. (KY) 4 7-07
73. Ross Burns Columbia, S.C. (SC) 4 7-03
74. Ralph Moseley Lynn Haven, Fla. (FL) 4 6-01
75. Rick Kelly Union City, Tenn. (TN) 2 6-01
76. Robert Richardson Palmetto, Ga. (GA) 3 5-12
77. Shannon Heflin Pleasant View, Tenn. (TN) 2 5-10
78. Heath Annin Tallahassee, Fla. (FL) 3 5-04
79. Tanner Plumlee Jackson, Tenn. (TN) 3 4-11
80. Mike Gerald Conway, S.C. (SC) 3 4-09
81. Jackson Cowdrey Lyman, S.C. (SC) 2 4-06
81. Zeke Gossett Cropwell, Ala. (AL) 2 4-06
83. Dillon Tucker Brilliant, Ala. (AL) 1 4-02
84. Matthew Khoury Cape Town, Samoa (SA) 2 4-01
85. Chucky Culley Hiddenite, N.C. (NC) 2 3-13
85. Logan Holt Oxford, N.C. (NC) 2 3-13
87. Nic Jeter Bainbridge, Ga. (GA) 2 3-08
88. Brandon Marshall Paris, Ky. (KY) 2 3-07
89. Ross Mortimer Gauteng, Samoa (SA) 2 3-05
90. Billy Coffey Union City, Tenn. (TN) 1 3-04
91. Linda Paul Cape Coral, Fla. (FL) 2 3-03
92. Robert Dennie Pleasureville, Ky. (KY) 1 2-14
93. Ken Willits Mount Dora, Fla. (FL) 1 2-07
94. J Hunter Rushing Quincy, Fla. (FL) 1 2-03
95. Cecil Hock Valrico, Fla. (FL) 1 2-00
96. Tyler Brown Payneville, Ky. (KY) 1 1-13
97. Ryan Edwards Stuart, Fla. (FL) 1 1-12
98. Tanner Hunt Old Fort, Tenn. (TN) 1 1-09
99. Jonathan Fleckenstein Sharpsburg, Ga. (GA) 0 0-00
99. Austin Hagan Clarkson, Ky. (KY) 0 0-00
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 20 226 494-05
2 20 223 460-04
3 12 218 481-09
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52 667 1436-02
TEAM STANDINGS Day 3
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State Lbs-Oz
1 ALABAMA 261-12
2 NORTH CAROLINA 261-07
3 SOUTH CAROLINA 216-04
4 GEORGIA 211-02
5 KENTUCKY 194-13
6 TENNESSEE 158-13
7 FLORIDA 124-09
8 SA 7-06
INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS Day 3
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ALABAMA
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$
1 Kenneth Pannell Springville, Ala. 15 42-13
2 Allan Glasgow Ashville, Ala. 12 26-14
3 Kyle Colley Ashville, Ala. 10 24-03
4 Joe Lay Duncanville, Ala. 10 24-02
5 George Crain Cropwell, Ala. 8 23-10
6 Sean Dassau Helena, Ala. 10 22-03
7 Doug Nichles Leeds, Ala. 10 20-00
8 Wade Mitchell Moody, Ala. 7 17-06
9 Simon Morrow Alexander City, Ala. 7 16-14
10 Tony Lister Robertsdale, Ala. 7 13-13
11 Eulon Lee Montgomery, Ala. 7 12-02
12 Joey Payne Jacksonville, Ala. 6 9-04
13 Zeke Gossett Cropwell, Ala. 2 4-06
14 Dillon Tucker Brilliant, Ala. 1 4-02
NORTH CAROLINA
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$
1 Chuck Murray Louisburg, N.C. 14 44-11
2 Mark Robertson Henderson, N.C. 14 29-00
3 Patrick Tierney Denver, N.C. 14 28-03
4 Eric Jeter Asheville, N.C. 12 27-06
5 Brian Anderson Denver, N.C. 15 25-04
6 David Williams Maiden, N.C. 9 17-01
7 Bron Hemphill Conover, N.C. 7 16-03
8 Robert Griswold Concord, N.C. 9 15-05
9 Nick Bell Lousiburg, N.C. 7 13-12
10 John Bynum Raleigh, N.C. 7 13-05
11 David Hendrick Cherryville, N.C. 7 13-04
12 Steve Vann Goldsboro, N.C. 3 10-07
13 Chucky Culley Hiddenite, N.C. 2 3-13
13 Logan Holt Oxford, N.C. 2 3-13
SOUTH CAROLINA
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$
1 Brent Long Cornelius, N.C. 15 43-14
2 Conrad Bolt Seneca, S.C. 13 39-06
3 Robert Rogers Pinopolis, S.C. 12 23-08
4 Lancen Halbert Enoree, S.C. 9 16-01
5 Brandon Bryant Ladson, S.C. 6 15-14
6 Kevin Harkins Holly Hill, S.C. 8 15-05
7 Bradley Gunter Greenwood, S.C. 9 13-07
8 Greg Glouse Easley, S.C. 5 9-02
9 Rick Holmes Manning, S.C. 5 8-02
10 David Roddy Inman, S.C. 5 7-13
11 Jason Holland Kings Mountain, N.C. 4 7-10
12 Ross Burns Columbia, S.C. 4 7-03
13 Mike Gerald Conway, S.C. 3 4-09
14 Jackson Cowdrey Lyman, S.C. 2 4-06
GEORGIA
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$
1 Chris Neely Chattahoochee, Fla. 11 28-00
2 Brendan Smith Kennesaw, Ga. 14 27-12
3 Mike Morris White, Ga. 13 24-09
4 Alan Shultz Rutledge, Ga. 12 23-05
5 Brent Tullis Acworth, Ga. 9 19-01
6 Angelo Koundourakis Bainbridge, Ga. 8 17-15
7 Tony Beck Social Circle, Ga. 9 16-11
8 Carl Logan Winder, Ga. 7 12-06
9 Patrick Brown Swainsboro, Ga. 7 11-14
10 Alan Franks Gainesville, Ga. 6 10-03
11 Tim Adams Powder Springs, Ga. 5 10-02
12 Robert Richardson Palmetto, Ga. 3 5-12
13 Nic Jeter Bainbridge, Ga. 2 3-08
14 Jonathan Fleckenstei Sharpsburg, Ga. 0 0-00
KENTUCKY
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$
1 Brandon Card Lexington, Ky. 13 31-08
2 John Crisp Mt Washington, Ky. 9 24-02
3 Jackie Overbey Ewing, Ky. 7 22-08
4 Heath Martin Louisville, Ky. 12 21-05
5 Scott Jones Louisville, Ky. 11 19-02
6 Richard Smith Cecilia, Ky. 7 18-15
7 Tom Hill Lexington, Ky. 10 18-00
8 Gerald Weber Louisville, Ky. 8 13-14
9 Gregory Weber Louisville, Ky. 4 9-14
10 Dean Favorite Paris, Ky. 4 7-07
11 Brandon Marshall Paris, Ky. 2 3-07
12 Robert Dennie Pleasureville, Ky. 1 2-14
13 Tyler Brown Payneville, Ky. 1 1-13
14 Austin Hagan Clarkson, Ky. 0 0-00
TENNESSEE
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$
1 Ben Parker Union City, Tenn. 11 30-07
2 John Talton Gerogetown, Tenn. 11 23-14
3 Richard Morrison Bristol, Tenn. 8 17-15
4 Mark Pierce Clarksville, Tenn. 8 16-10
5 Andy Warren Maury City, Tenn. 5 10-14
6 Lance Asbury Saltville, Va. 6 9-15
7 Jeffrey Statzer Kingsport, Tenn. 5 9-11
8 Charles Graybeal, Jr Erwin, Tenn. 5 9-09
9 Jeff Giarrizzo Clarksville, Tenn. 5 8-11
10 Rick Kelly Union City, Tenn. 2 6-01
11 Shannon Heflin Pleasant View, Tenn. 2 5-10
12 Tanner Plumlee Jackson, Tenn. 3 4-11
13 Billy Coffey Union City, Tenn. 1 3-04
14 Tanner Hunt Old Fort, Tenn. 1 1-09
FLORIDA
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Total $$$
1 David Boyd Quincy, Fla. 11 26-00
2 John Hendry Lakeland, Fla. 9 18-04
3 Tim Snellings Lake Wales, Fla. 6 14-00
4 Lawrence McConnell Dunnellon, Fla. 7 13-14
5 Nobel Willits Altamonte Springs, Fla. 7 11-07
6 Tony Bigot Ft Walton Beach, Fla. 4 9-03
7 Jerry Kelley Wewahitchka, Fla. 4 8-15
8 Ralph Moseley Lynn Haven, Fla. 4 6-01
9 Heath Annin Tallahassee, Fla. 3 5-04
10 Linda Paul Cape Coral, Fla. 2 3-03
11 Ken Willits Mount Dora, Fla. 1 2-07
12 J Hunter Rushing Quincy, Fla. 1 2-03
13 Cecil Hock Valrico, Fla. 1 2-00
14 Ryan Edwards Stuart, Fla. 1 1-12
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Team Berkley pro Glenn Browne of Ocala, Fla., caught a five-bass limit weighing 23 pounds, 14 ounces Friday to capture the lead in the Walmart FLW Series® BP Eastern Division tournament on Lake Eufaula. With a three-day catch of 15 bass weighing 64-1, he holds a 4-pound, 9-ounce lead over his closest competitor, Team BP pro Guido Hibdon of Sunrise Beach, Mo., heading into the final day of competition.
“I was struggling,” said Browne, who has won more than $425,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “It was a lot tougher for me today.
“I caught my limit on a spinnerbait, then moved to another spot and caught another decent one on a spinnerbait, probably a 4-pounder,” Browne added. “I pulled into a pocket at the end of the day and culled one and I said ‘Man, I’m going to catch one on a Chigger Craw flippin’.’ And I picked it up and caught one of my big ones and said ‘I know where another pocket is.’ We ran up there, I pulled in there and after probably 20 flips I caught another big one. That was the last two hours of the day.”
Browne said the move to the Berkley PowerBait Chigger Craw and fishing spots he is familiar with from previous tournaments were the keys to his success Friday. Browne also said luck might be on his side in this tournament. He had a fish break a spinnerbait and fall into the net at the boat Thursday and another strange occurrence Friday.
“The first big one I caught, I had just put the reel on the rod and didn’t tighten it,” Browne said. “I set the hook and the reel popped off in my hand. So I’m stretched out and running to the back of the boat and it’s flopping in the back and my co-angler runs back there and scoops it up.
“It was a phenomenal day of fishing,” Browne added. “Everything I did was right.”
Hibdon caught a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 59-8 to advance to the final round as the No. 2 seed.
“The fish changed on me again,” said Hibdon, who has won more than $479,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “It’s the craziest thing. Two hours (without a fish) is a long time. I let it go another hour and I thought ‘Something’s completely wrong.’”
Hibdon discovered the post-spawn fish had moved just a little deeper than he caught them the day before and said he was fishing over their heads. Hibdon adjusted and caught seven keepers in one hour.
Rounding out the top five pros are Tom Mann Jr. of Buford, Ga. (15 bass, 58-1); Team Land O’Lakes pro Ott Defoe of Knoxville, Tenn. (15 bass, 57-5) and Randall Tharp of Gardendale, Ala. (15 bass, 55-1).
Also clearing the top 10 cut weight of 46 pounds, 4 ounces in the Pro Division are Team BP pro J.T. Kenney of Palm Bay, Fla.; Matthew Wilbanks of Gainesville, Ga.; Team Kellogg’s pro Dave Lefebre of Union City, Pa.; Team National Guard pro Scott Martin of Clewiston, Fla.; and Team Chevy pro Dion Hibdon of Stover, Mo.
Woo Daves of Spring Grove, Va., earned the day’s $500 Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 7-pound, 4-ounce bass.
Overall there were 414 bass weighing 1,179 pounds, 10 ounces caught by 129 pros Friday. The catch included 42 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing this week for a top award of $125,000 plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for a shot at the $2.5 million, 2010 Forrest Wood Cup, where the winning pro will earn as much as $1 million – the sport’s biggest award.
Chris Hults of Vancleave, Miss., won the Co-angler Division and $20,000 Friday with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 44 pounds, 2 ounces followed by Tim Peek of Sharpsburg, Ga., in second place with 11 bass weighing 40-2 worth $10,000.
Hults opened the tournament in 12th place Wednesday with five bass weighing 11-15 while fishing with pro Matthew Wilbanks. On Thursday he jumped to fifth place on the strength of a five-bass catch weighing 14-5 while fishing with Team National Guard pro Jonathan Newton of Rogersville, Ala. He wrapped up the win Friday with a five-bass catch weighing 17-14 while fishing with pro Tim McDonald of Lexington, Ky.
“I’ve won several BFLs in the past and have never quite been able to finish it in these bigger tournaments,” said Hults, who finished third in the 2008 Forrest Wood Cup at Lake Murray in Columbia, S.C. “I think Eufaula fishes a lot like my home water does. I think that helped me.”
Hults said he fished shallow during his three days of competition and relied on an arsenal of baits, including a Berkley PowerBait Chigger Craw, a swimming jig, a soft-plastic creature bait and a spinnerbait.
Hults’ brother, Alan, also fished the tournament and Hults cited family knowledge of Lake Eufaula as being key to his victory.
“Normally we practice before the tournaments, but this time we didn’t get to,” Hults said. “We just relied on past history with Alan doing so well the past couple of years. Basically we just came into it and did the same thing he’s done the past two years.”
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Chuck Thurlow of Auburn, Ala. (10 bass, 38-8, $7,500); Derrick Snavely of Rogersville, Tenn. (nine bass, 35-15, $5,000) and Charles Stevenson of Albany, Ga. (13 bass, 35-11, $4,000).
Peek earned $333 for the Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 6-pound, 2-ounce bass he caught while fishing with pro Sparky Peterson of Monrovia, Md.
Overall there were 204 bass weighing 555 pounds, 7 ounces caught by 97 co-anglers Friday. The catch included 11 five-bass limits.
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FLW just unveiled their new College Fishing Weigh-in/Office Truck and it is AWESOME! Take a look at this vehicle and check out the killer photo.....NICE.
 FLW photo |
 FLW photo
RANGER PRO BRENT EHRLER TOPS $1 MILLION CAREER EARNINGS MARK
Redlands, Calif., pro reaches milestone with recent FLW Series win
With his victory in the FLW National Guard Western Series tournament at Arizona’s Lake Havasu last weekend, Ranger Pro and former Forrest Wood Cup champion, Brent Ehrler, eclipsed the prestigious $1 million career earnings mark. The 32-year-old California native, in just his fourth season as a full-time tournament angler, joins the long list of Ranger luminaries such as Scott Suggs, Clark Wendlandt, Dion Hibdon and others who have won more than $1 million in tour-level competitions.
Erhler’s remarkable climb into the $1 million club came in spite of dealing with the sudden and painful loss of several friends who died in a plane crash just prior to the Lake Havasu event. Though dealing with the tragedy, Ehrler decided to compete in the event – a decision that culminated with a dramatic 2-ounce, come-from-behind victory and a first-place payday in excess of $114,000.
“You know, I couldn’t have done this without my friends and family,” said Ehrler. “Winning this was huge for me. It was really hard to focus. But in the end, this meant more than anything.”
In addition to capturing Angler of the Year honors on the FLW Tour and competing for a second Forrest Wood Cup championship, Ehrler’s next goal will be to join fellow Ranger Pro Staff members George Cochran, Denny Brauer, Peter Thliveros and David Dudley in the exclusive $2 million club.
“We’ve been fortunate to be blessed with such a talented, successful and honorable pro staff. From the beginnings of our company, their involvement and feedback have been prominent in our success as a brand. It’s why we and our founder, Forrest L. Wood, have always been so committed to anglers everywhere,” said Ranger Boat President, Randy Hopper. “We send our sincerest congratulations to Brent for everything he has accomplished as a professional angler and thank him for the positive way he has represented himself and Ranger Boats as a professional angler.”
Brent Ehrler Career Highlights:
2006 Forrest Win Cup Champion
2004 Stren Series Championship winner
3 Tour-level tournament wins
17 Top-10 Tour-level tournament finishes
2008 FLW Tour Angler of the Year runner up
2007 Ranger Cup winner
Currently 2nd place in BassFan.com World Rankings and leading the FLW Tour Angler of the Year points race
About Ranger Boats
Ranger Boats, headquartered in Flippin, Ark., is the nation's largest manufacturer of premium fiberglass fishing boats, including a series of bass, multi-species, fish 'n play and saltwater boats. Founded in 1968 by Forrest L. Wood, Ranger Boats continues its commitment to building the highest quality, strongest performing boats on the water.
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From some of the BASS pro's on todays cancellation:
"Its pretty bad. The is wind stacking up against the current. The waves stack up to 4 foot and are 4 foot apart.....makes it pretty miserable. I am making a long run and this is probably a good thing for me"- Mike McClelland
"Its a good call. Big rains, heavy current and the wind makes it real bad.....deadly. It will force everyone to change tomorrow. I had 12-12 yesterday and this could be a benefit to some anglers. I applaud Trip for this decision."- Matt Herren
"I back Trip on this one. The waves are stacking up, 4-5 feet, and we got a ton of water from last nights storm. I am still thinking about how to make an adjustment for tomorrow. Right now the lake is at full pool and we have several more options.
When asked what he will do today he said " I have a project with Skirts Plus we working on during the down time. I am heading back to the hotel to work with Cliff Pace on the blueprint for that."- Gary Klein
This is a bad deal and its a really stacking the waves up. A bunch of the guys are heading a long way and this is a great call. There would be a ton of stuff broken at this deal. I am going to get tackle and equipment together today and check the water levels. The fish could come up with this rising water"- Jeff Kriet
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BASS has cancelled Day Two of the Elite Series event on Lake Wheeler due to wind and current. Stay tuned for more details as we get them.
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Kansas angler Bob Greene knows how to bass fish and he knows how to dress. Both are very apparent in the photo below. Modeling the latest in Wired2Fish shirts.......Ladies and Gentlemen.....Bob Greene!! Nice boat, nice fish, nice shirt and great guy. Thanks for sending us the photo.
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Team BP pro J.T. Kenney of Palm Bay, Fla., caught a five-bass limit weighing 23 pounds, 8 ounces Thursday to capture the lead in the Walmart FLW Series® BP Eastern Division tournament on Lake Eufaula with a two-day catch of 10 bass weighing 40-13.
“Yesterday I caught a good limit quick down the lake in the clear water,” said Kenney, who has won more than $698,000 in FLW Outdoors events. “I came back (near Lakepoint Resort State Park) just to mess around because I didn’t have a whole lot of stuff down there. I didn’t want to burn it up.
“So I came back up here and caught two nice ones and culled up to 17 pounds,” Kenney added. “And I thought I had just happened to catch two nice ones.”
Kenney said he started fishing Thursday where he began the first day of competition, but when he arrived at his spot, it was well populated with boats. Kenney said he managed to catch a 4-pounder and another keeper by 11:30 a.m., but knew he had to make a change if he was going to get his limit.
“So I went back up to the area where I culled yesterday and it was just on,” said Kenney. “It was just whack, whack … they were really in there.”
Kenney said he and his co-angler pulled seven or eight keepers out of that spot in one hour before they relocated to find more of the same pattern.
“I think it’s just that the water was high and then it dropped and I’ve found what the fish decided to pull to,” Kenney said. “If you know exactly where to put it, they’ll open their mouths and eat it.”
Kenney now holds a slim 10-ounce lead over second place Team Berkley pro Glenn Browne of Ocala, Fla., who managed to haul in a total of 10 bass weighing 40-3 during the first two days of competition.
“I never had to go to my flippin’ stick,” said Browne, who said he found success south of Lakepoint Resort State Park in the high water with a spinnerbait. “I caught one, then I caught another and just stuck with it. I caught about three limits of fish today.
“I caught my fish that I had yesterday in the same area, but I didn’t stay in there as long,” Browne added. “I don’t know that I realized what I had there yesterday.”
Rounding out the top five pros are Team Land O’Lakes pro Ott Defoe of Knoxville, Tenn. (10 bass, 39-4); Tom Mann Jr. of Buford, Ga. (10 bass, 39-1) and Jimmy Millsaps of Canton, Ga. (10 bass, 37-13).
O.T. Fears of Sallisaw, Okla., earned the day’s $500 Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a 9-pound, 8-ounce bass.
Overall there were 462 bass weighing 1,368 pounds, 13 ounces caught by 139 pros Thursday. The catch included 52 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing this week for a top award of $125,000 plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for a shot at the $2.5 million, 2010 Forrest Wood Cup, where the winning pro will earn as much as $1 million – the sport’s biggest award.
Chuck Thurlow of Auburn, Ala., leads the Co-angler Division with a two-day total of nine bass weighing 36-4 followed by Tim Peek of Sharpsburg, Ga., in second place with 10 bass weighing 34-0.
“I’m out of baits totally,” said Thurlow, who said he relied on a finesse swimbait to catch his fish the first two days of competition. “I’ve got to go get some somewhere. There’s none around here, so I guess Columbus, Ga., is my first stop.
“I’ve got some stuff I can make work, but the confidence factor … I believe I’ll be making a road trip tonight,” Thurlow added.
Thurlow caught five bass weighing 22-3 while fishing with pro Terry Bolton of Paducah, Ky., Wednesday and four bass weighing 14-1 while fishing with pro Roger Crafton of Boca Grande, Fla., Thursday.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Rob Hicks of Lula, Ga. (10 bass, 29-14); Day 1 leader Derrick Snavely of Rogersville, Tenn. (six bass, 28-5) and Chris Hults of Vancleave, Miss. (10 bass, 26-4).
Mike Tanksley of Crossville, Tenn., earned $333 for the Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to an 8-pound, 1-ounce bass he caught while fishing with pro Nick Gainey of Charleston, S.C.
Overall there were 264 bass weighing 695 pounds, 4 ounces caught by 115 co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 10 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are competing this week for a top award of $25,000 as well as a shot at the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup.
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Heavy downpours could slow things for tomorrow with high water and mud but today Alton Jones found the right fish to take the day one lead At Lake Wheeler with 5 bass weighing 17-12. He is followed closely by Takahiro Omori with 17-8 and Mike Iaconelli with 17-1.
Its a who's who in the leader board with Four Bassmaster Classic champions and three Anglers of the Year in the top 10, along with the winners of the two previous Elite tournaments this year.
Here are the day one standings:
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 Clem photo
Noted outdoorsman, writer and outdoor editor Alan Clemons will be stepping down from his position as outdoor editor of the Huntsville Times effective April 30. He has taken a early retirement offer and will remain in the outdoors in a yet to be named position in the Huntsville area.
Clemons bi-line has appeared all over the outdoor press as a contributor for BASS and other publications.
"It has been a wonderful ride with an enjoyable diversity of people, topics, frivolities and the varied passions that help fuel the outdoors life. We are all attached by a thread of commonality whether we are catching a bass, calling a turkey, hiking a trail or raising awareness about conservation issues" noted Clemons. "Being a newspaper journalist is all I ever wanted to do. As a high school senior I pestered my hometown weekly newspaper editor, who was a friend of my father, for a job. He relented and my first assignment as an ink-stained wretch was Jan. 1, 1984, to write about the hometown star playing in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. Since then I have covered everything from city council meetings, “stick ‘n ball sports” and plane crashes to outdoors activities, a smattering of politics and other critter issues."
Alan has contributed to Wired2Fish on numerous occasions and is a great friend and associate to all of us here.
Good Luck Alan as you move forward in the new position!
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Professional anglers are met with a variety of things that mother nature throws at them. Wind, cold, snow, thunderstorms, hail, you name it the best in the business have to deal with it. This week at the FLW Series event on Lake Eufaula muddy water is the newest plague. “I’m talking orange from bank to bank,” said Iams pro Koby Kreiger. Many have said its the same color as the boat Krieger runs. (picture below)
 FLW photo
Over 7 inches of rain has fallen in the area and has raised the lake over 2 foot.
It looks like Ott Defoe figured them out with 22-2 and was designated "head mudder" for day one.
To learn more about the mud and FLW Outdoors click here. |
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Lake Guntersville angler and Wired2Fish reader Tony Posey is truly a "wired" angler. He just sent us some great pictures and there is no question this guy has it dialed in.
Not only does he dress cool but how about the Posey fleet?
Stay tuned as many of the items Tony is wearing and are on the back of his vehicles will soon be available on the Wired2Fish Store. You asked for it and we are about to deliver.
How big is this bass Tony? Great looking hat and shirt.
Thanks for sending us the photos Tony!
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When the sun came out from behind clouds Wednesday afternoon, anglers fishing the Walmart FLW Series® BP Eastern Division tournament on Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Ala., thought it must have been an April Fools’ Day prank. However, the rains that had been hitting the area for days did let up during the afternoon hours, and the 300 anglers fishing the tournament managed to cross a dry weigh-in stage.
At the end of the day, Team Land O’Lakes pro Ott Defoe of Knoxville, Tenn., weighed in five bass weighing 22 pounds, 2 ounces to lead Day 1. He now holds a 1-pound, 3-ounce lead in the tournament featuring 150 pros and 150 co-anglers representing 25 states and Japan.
“The fish I caught are spawning, or will be spawning, whatever the case may be,” said Defoe, who has earned more than $266,000 in FLW Outdoors competition. “You’re liable to get bit on one section today, one section tomorrow and that section over there the next day. It’s just whichever fish are feeding whenever you’re in there.
“There are times during the day when a spawning fish is more active,” Defoe added. “For whatever reason, this fish over here will be mad at this point in time — maybe a bluegill has come in there and got it stirred up — and if you happen to get your bait in there at that point in time, that one is already agitated.”
While Defoe wouldn’t reveal specific spots or baits he fished, he said he boated eight or nine keepers during the course of the day and stayed in shallow water to catch his limit. Defoe said he had four different areas he fished Wednesday and boat traffic was not a problem.
“When I got bit in a good area, it would be three bites, but most areas I got bit would be two bites,” Defoe said. “Then you would go on to the next place and get two more bites.
“It’s really just spread-out stuff,” Defoe added. “It’s not pulling up and fishing a 10-foot section of bank and going. It’s fishing around the whole cove or creek or whatever.”
Scott Jenkins of Franklin, Ga., trails Defoe in the No. 2 spot with five bass weighing 20-15.
Rounding out the top five pros are Sean Hoernke of The Woodlands, Texas (five bass, 20-14); Team Iams pro Koby Kreiger of Okeechobee, Fla. (five bass, 19-9) and Team BP pro Guido Hibdon of Sunrise Beach, Mo. (five bass, 19-3).
Thanh Le of Lake Havasu City, Ariz., and Tommy Martin of Hemphill, Texas, split the day’s $500 Big Bass award in the Pro Division thanks to a pair of 7-pound, 5-ounce bass.
Overall there were 526 bass weighing 1,526 pounds, 14 ounces caught by 136 pros Wednesday. The catch included 68 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing this week for a top award of $125,000 plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for a shot at the $2.5 million, 2010 Forrest Wood Cup, where the winning pro will earn as much as $1 million – the sport’s biggest award.
Derrick Snavely of Rogersville, Tenn., leads the Co-angler Division with five bass weighing 26-0 followed by Chuck Thurlow of Auburn, Ala., in second place with five bass weighing 22-3.
“I had five fish in the first hour and a half,” said Snavely, who is fishing in his second year of FLW Series competition. “We pulled up on a stretch and I caught three just bang-bang-bang, then Guido (Hibdon) caught one, then I caught my 9-pounder.
“It was really surreal,” Snavely added. “It’s the most weight I’ve ever had in a tournament. It was an awesome day. Guido’s great to fish with … I mean, he’s a legend. We connected out there.”
Snavely said he caught the majority of his bass “fishing slowly” while fishing with Hibdon.
Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Tim Peek of Sharpsburg, Ga. (five bass, 16-11); Rayfield Reeves of Tamarac, Fla. (four bass, 15-13) and Steve Harwood of Weaverville, N.C. (three bass, 15-9).
Snavely earned $333 for the Big Bass award in the Co-angler Division thanks to a 9-pound, 8-ounce bass he caught on a crankbait.
Overall there were 254 bass weighing 683 pounds, 11 ounces caught by 109 co-anglers Wednesday. The catch included 12 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are competing this week for a top award of $25,000 as well as a shot at the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup.
Anglers will take off at 7 each morning from Lakepoint Resort State Park located at 104 Lakepoint Drive in Eufaula. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday’s weigh-in will be held at the Walmart store located at 1252 S. Eufaula Ave. in Eufaula beginning at 4 p.m. Children will also be treated to a Family Fun Zone prior to Saturday’s weigh-in from noon to 4 p.m. at Walmart. All activities are free and open to the public.
In FLW Series competition, pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day, with pros supplying the boat, controlling boat movement and competing against other pros. Co-anglers fish from the back deck against other co-anglers. The total purse for the Lake Eufaula tournament is nearly $900,000, including $10,000 through 50th place in the Pro Division.
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Wired2Fish readers have answered the bell again and have hit Jason Bryants Challenge head-on on BASS and FLW Fantasy fishing. Readers have signed up in a big way to take on the Wired2Fish staff. Who knows more...the readers or the staff?
Today, he comments on last weeks picks, Heath Smith got involved from the readers team, and of course Pete Robbins is still bragging.
Check out todays update from Jason Bryant in Unplugged and send us your picks. Join our league on both the FLW and BASS trails and start the mud slinging.
In typical Wired2Fish fashion there could be something in it for the winner!!
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How about that Dardanelle derby?
I’ll come right out and say it: I bombed – big time. My picks took the wild ride down the proverbial porcelain whirlpool. Actually, I had two anglers in the Top 10, which is usually enough to put you up near the top somewhere. Unfortunately, I had a 150-pound anchor named Michael Iaconelli holding me back from fantasy greatness. I knew the law of averages would catch up with Ike at some point, and it caught him in a big way at Dardanelle – 96th place, ouch.
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Pure Fishing announces the recent appointment of Hunter Cole as the Sr. Marketing Manager of PR and Media. In his new role, Cole will be responsible for print, television, and interactive media activity for all Pure Fishing brands. He will also work closely with Blue Heron Communications to ensure that the brand message is in the forefront and that media outlets continue to be informed of new product introductions.
Cole has had an extensive 24 year career in the fishing industry. Most recently, Cole served with Mann’s Bait Company as the Director of Marketing where he was responsible for all marketing and media activities. Prior to Mann’s, Cole spent almost 20 years with BASS/ESPN, working as Director, Sponsor Fulfillment, a position that allowed him to develop, implement, and manage all sponsorship activation initiatives. Prior to this, he served as Advertising Director for all BASS consumer publications.
“Hunter is an avid fresh and saltwater fisherman. His product knowledge and experience in marketing and communications will be an invaluable asset as we continue to execute our strategies as anindustry leader in fishing tackle for all levels of angling experience,” said John Bartow, Sr. Director of Marketing Communications. “He will play a key role in the development and implementation of marketing strategies for all Pure Fishing brands.”
“It is an honor and privilege to join the Pure Fishing team,” said Cole. “I have always admired the company’s dedication to product innovation and excellence, conservation, and youth initiatives.”
In 1982, Cole was awarded a B.S. degree in Communications and Advertising from the University of Alabama.
Cole and his family will relocate to Columbia, SC.
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The new Spro on Tour videos are up from Wheeler Lake on the third stop of the BASS Elite Series. Click here to watch the video. |
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