Abu Garcia released information about their new rod called the Villain. The rod uses 40-ton graphite, the lightest most sensitive in their lineup of rods, and it has a lot of interesting features that should make it a very neat rod for guys in the $160-180 budget range. The are using an LRC graphite which is a low resin graphite that keeps the weight out of the rod. They use titanium guides with titanium inserts. The reel seat is a C6 carbon infused total exposed reel seat that gives you total blank exposure for the maximum sensitivity in your hand.
The rods are custom balanced for the Revo MGX. They will work for other reels of course but it will make for a sweet super-light setup. We're anxious to check these rods out in a couple weeks at ICAST.
For now check out Aussie Andrew Wheeler, product manager for Abu Garcia as he goes through some of the features in this video. You can see more about their new line of rods on the Villain page at AbuGarcia.com.
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Following a week of stormy, unstable weather, the collegiate anglers competing in the 2011 BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Open presented by Pepsi
were relieved to discover that the weather would be ideal for the first
day of competition. With a light north wind, sunny skies and rumors
that the TVA would be moving water throughout the day, many competitors
were optimistic that the ledge bite Kentucky Lake is famous for this
time of year would be on. Other competitors anticipated a strong
flipping bite.
Austin Peay State University claimed the day one lead with an
impressive 26.41 pounds. Teammates, Chase Hunnell and Ethan Ingle
explained that they caught about 15 keepers from two sweet spots on main
river ledges using homemade football jigs and Berkley Power Worms tied
to FireLine Fused Crystal line by 10:00 am. “We spent the rest of the
day fishing new water,” said Hunnell. The team had an early number today
which means they’ll be one of the last boats to depart from Paris
Landing Marina tomorrow morning. Hunnell continued saying, “We’re
concerned that there could be lots of boats fishing near our morning
sweet spot. The good news is that we never saw another boat within a
mile of our other sweet spot that produced quality bites today. We also
have a third spot that we never made a cast on today.”
Sitting in second place with 24.69 pounds is Eastern Kentucky
University, who won the Open title in 2010. Team members, Jonas Ertel,
Tyler Moberly, Kyle Raymer, John Smith, Matt Salmons and Will Pope
estimated that they caught over 100 bass between them on a combination
of swimbaits, spinnerbaits, jigs and worms. “They bit everything but a
crankbait,” explained Moberly. The team has located a number of schools
of bass but they have to catch lots of small fish in order to catch a
few big bass. The team has a new strategy for tomorrow. Two boats will
run to the water that produced slightly better quality bass while one
boat will fish the spots that produced big numbers today.
Finishing in third place with 23.83 pounds, Eric Self, Tyler Beam,
Shane Lehew and Adam Waters of the University of North Carolina –
Charlotte are excited to get back on the water tomorrow. “We’re not
seeing any other competitors on the spots we’re fishing,” said Waters.
The team caught approximately 15 keepers fishing Strike King 6XD
crankbaits, ER Lures football jigs and worms on rock lined ledges and
shell beds.
Rounding out the top ten is:
5 Northwest Shoals 21.86
6 Tennessee-Chattanooga 21.13
7 Murray State 19.72
8 Purdue 19.64
9 Tennessee-Martin 18.34
10 North Carolina State 18.30
With the top three teams separated by a little more than two and a
half pounds, tomorrow’s final day weigh-in promises to be exciting.
The full field of student anglers will takeoff from Paris Landing
Marina at safe light tomorrow morning and will return for the final day
weigh in beginning at 2:00 pm. The Open champions will be determined
based on the highest combined weight from days one and two.
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Along the All-Star Week campaign trail:
Greg Vinson left his dentist’s office with a new toothbrush and
promises from the entire staff to vote for him — and to tell their
friends to go to Bassmaster.com and vote for him.
Vinson is campaigning
hard to be one of four final entrants in Toyota Trucks All-Star Week,
the July 23-31 Bassmaster Elite Series postseason. The $100,000
competition will be on his home water, Lake Jordan and the Alabama
River.
Vinson is a pro angler,
not a politician, but he knows that even a dental appointment is another
chance to ask for the vote. He’s also working Facebook hard, and he has
jumped on all recent offers for TV, radio and print interviews.
He feels what he’s doing is working, that he has a chance to win this unique, vote-once-a-day election.
“Everywhere I go, I’ve been getting a lot of support. The feedback’s been awesome,” he said.
Vinson sees his strong
2011 season as the reason fans should vote for him, not because he
happens to live in Wetumpka, Ala., the host of the Lake Jordan leg of
the postseason. He ended the regular season 11th in the Toyota Tundra
Bassmaster Angler of the Year points system.
“I don’t want people to vote for me just because I’m the local guy, but because I’ve earned it,” he emphasized.
Alton Jones finished the
points race even higher than Vinson — ninth place. As first man out of
the Top 8 cut for a postseason berth, Jones is hoping his 12,000
Facebook and Twitter followers — and their friends — will vote him into
the final four.
“I’m pouring myself
completely into it (campaigning). We’ll see if I have enough support to
get to All-Star Week,” said Jones, who is working the vote from his
Waco, Texas, home.
He spends time each day online giving fishing tips based on fan questions, and he thinks the strategy is working.
“I’m finding that people are saying, ‘Thanks for the tips; I voted for you today.’”
Keith Poche is another
candidate who feels he has shown he deserves an All-Star berth. He ended
the season in 10th place in points.
“My whole thing is, I
finished 10th in points and I’m a local guy. So I am saying, ‘Vote for
me because I deserve to be there. Give me, a guy who lives in Alabama,
an opportunity to represent you.’”
Poche is not missing any opportunities to get the vote.
“I’ve called everybody I
know, even people I haven’t talked to in a long while,” Poche said. “I
Facebooked it up, I’ve got friends working on Facebook for me, my
sponsors are reaching out, people back home in Louisiana are working for
me. My brother-in-law is sending about 40 emails once a day.”
Poche, a Louisiana
native who moved to Troy, Ala., about 12 years ago to attend college,
fished his first bass tournament on Lake Jordan, and he knows the
Alabama River well.
Chris Lane, another
Elite Series pro who finished the 2011 regular season high in points,
has a campaign manager: his wife, Holly Lane.
“She has been doing a fantastic job of campaigning. She’s taken the bull by the horns,” he said.
His wife has been using
social media to ask for the vote, he said, working from their
Guntersville, Ala., home, while he’s on tour. She’s touched all their
contacts, and uses email as well as Facebook.
The last day to vote at
Bassmaster.com will be July 10. Each vote is also an entry in a
sweepstakes for a $30,000 Triton/Mercury bass boat. There is no limit to
voting, but voters are entered only one time in the sweepstakes for the
boat.
The pros who get the most votes will be announced by July 13.
After one week,
preliminary voting results were published at Bassmaster.com. Michael
Iaconelli was leading the Region 1 voting. In Region 2, the leader was
Denny Brauer; Aaron Martens was the leader of Region 3; and Skeet Reese
was the leader of Region 4. More first-week results by region are
expected to be published each day.
Trips with Roy & Crochet are the prizes for this one:
A day on the water with Bassmaster Elite Series anglers Bradley Roy and
Cliff Crochet are the grand prizes being offered in a sweepstakes by
Biobor EB.
Biobor EB will award a
fishing trip to the best guessers of how many gallons of fuel each pro
used through the entire 2011 regular season. Each winner will receive a
prepaid Visa card for their travel costs to Kentucky (Roy’s home) or
Louisiana (Crochet’s home). The contest will end July 31.
The link to enter is Biobor.com.
Essential skill, by KVD: The magazine Men’s Health recently published a story titled “18 Essential Summer Skills for Guys.” No. 14 on the list: “Land the Biggest Bass.”
Who better to provide
such advice than Kevin VanDam? After all, he owns seven Toyota Tundra
Bassmaster Angler of the Year titles and four Bassmaster Classic
trophies. It was natural that the magazine chose to interview him.
VanDam kept his advice
at a level suitable for a novice angler. He suggested getting a bite by
fishing a spinnerbait within the first hour after a summer sunset.
From
the article: “Keep tension on the line so you can react if the fish
moves,” Van Dam says. If it swims away, point the rod toward it so it
doesn’t break your line or pull off the hook. When the fish moves toward
you, quickly reel in the slack. Repeat until you lose it or land it.
VanDam’s instructions made catching a bass sound simple, as only an expert can make his skills seem.
He has caught thousands
upon thousands of bass in his career. No one keeps records of boated
bass, but VanDam has weighed 8,914 pounds and 15 ounces of bass in his
Bassmaster career of 241 tournaments.
Day in the rain: Tuesday’s live-streamed program on Bassmaster.com with Stephen Browning was interrupted by a dangerous storm.
The June 28 show, A Day on the Lake Live presented by Z-Man,
began at 9 a.m. ET as Browning launched on the Arkansas River out of
Little Rock, Ark. He was accompanied by host Steve Bowman, editor of
Bassmaster.com.
About two hours into it, lightning forced them to take cover.
But the camera didn’t stop rolling. Once they were safely out of the
water and parked under the I-30 bridge approach, Bowman interviewed
Browning on how to fish a river’s wing dam. The storm was so violent,
even the camera lens was dotted with the driving rain; cracks of thunder
covered their words, and they had to quit a few minutes early.
The show can be viewed anytime on Bassmaster.com.
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In 1986, Mann’s® Bait Company introduced the first crankbait to break the 20-foot barrier, the patented 20+™. Twenty-five years later, Mann’s® has announced the deepest running jointed crankbait - The JOINTED 20+™. The JOINTED 20+ will be displayed for the first time at the ICAST SHOW in Las Vegas in July.
The lure is said to reach depths of more than 20 feet while having both a crankbait action and an action similar to a swimbait. It will be available in early December and will be offered in 10 popular color patterns. The lure will be 3 3/8 inches long and weigh 3/4-ounce.
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According to BagleyBaits.com and the Bagley Baits YouTube channel, Jarmo Rapala and Bill Cullerton now own and run the new Bagley Bait Company. Their website just has a graphic with a blurb of information and place to sign up to be notified about the upcoming releases from Bagley's. Jarmo Rapala is listed as the Chief Lure Designer while Bill Cullerton is listed as the President.
They plan to relaunch a bunch of the famous styles and the quality that the original company was known for in the original designs. There have been quality issues with the designs over the last several years and the old versions of the crankbaits became a pricey hard-to-find prize. Now Cullerton and Rapala are planning to team with Lee Sisson who is one of the original designers of the early baits and is now listed as a Consultant to the new Bagley's.
Watch this video from Jarmo, Cullerton and Sisson about what the new Bagley's will bring to the market. Stay tuned for more details.
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David Walker is a seasoned pro. Even though he is a rookie on the Elite Series he knows how to fish and has fished both FLW and BASS Tours for years. Getting his first win on the Elite Series was sweet and happened on Father's Day. Listen to Weighing In Radio to hear David's take on this victory by clicking here.
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 Pro Angler Mike DelVisco welcomes Louisville Kentucky based Thorntons Inc. as a new sponsor partner. Thorntons Inc. a leading, independent gasoline/convenience-chain retailer, marketing throughout the Midwest ranks #250 among Forbes magazine’s 500 largest privately held companies.
DelVisco states "I am thrilled and honored to represent Thorntons and look forward to working with them as we introduce the Thorntons brand to anglers and outdoors man alike."
Thorntons operates 163 gasoline and convenience stores, car washes and travel plazas in five states: Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Tennessee.
"If you think of it, whenever we head to the lake or for other outdoor activities there are simply things we need for a great day outdoors. Fuel, ice, snack, cold drinks coffee and breakfast items etc."
"I always know when I pull up to a Thorntons the stores are always clean bright and inviting and service is top notch"
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For avid anglers dreaming of spending a day in the boat with a professional bass angler to watch every cast and ask detailed questions about specific fishing techniques and tactics, now this is a reality. Thanks to streaming video and Bassmaster.com, fishing enthusiasts can now spend a day on the water with some of the best bass pros in the business from the comfort of their own homes.
On June 27th from 1 p.m. - 2 p.m. central standard time, Z-Man pro staffer, B.A.S.S. Elite Series angler and eight-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier, Stephen Browning, will be the featured angler in Bassmaster.com’s hugely popular Bassmaster University segment. Hosted by the legendary Tommy Sanders, this one-hour instructional segment will break down the techniques and tactics that Browning plans on employing when fishing a (currently undisclosed) Arkansas waterway the following day.
The June 28th online airing of Bassmaster.com’s Day on the Lake Live segment will provide fishing enthusiasts with a front-row seat in Browning’s boat while he fishes for approximately four hours. During that time, viewers can submit questions via Bassmaster.com and Browning will answer the inquiries live while he is fishing.
“I’m psyched to be part of these two great educational shows,” says Browning. It’s always a treat to fish home waters, and I’m looking forward to interacting with viewers to explain my fishing tactics and discuss the unique properties and fish-catching capabilities that makes Z-Man’s bait lineup so special.”
“We are thrilled with the excellent seasons that Z-Man's B.A.S.S. Elite Series pros Stephen Browning and David Walker just wrapped up and congratulate both on qualifying for the 2012 Bassmaster Classic,” states Daniel Nussbaum, general manager and executive vice president for Z-Man. The Bassmaster University and Day on the Lake segments—first with Stephen and later this summer with David—will provide an in-depth look at how these top-level pros approach different fishing situations and effectively select and present baits from the Z-Man arsenal.”
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By Frank Evans / FOM
The annual FOM Legacy Series National Championship came to an
electrifying finish Saturday, as the Alabama Northwest father-daughter team
of William and Savannah Davis hauled in 22.13 pounds in the closing
moments of the weigh-in to clutch the victory. Sitting in 18th place
after day one, William and Savannah captured the big win by a mere 0.19-pound margin. The new Legacy Series National Champions nailed this big win
by making a 50-mile run each day down to the Krueger Island and Brunton
Branch areas where they then, worked secondary ledges with a Chartruese-Blue
Norman DD-22 crankbait and green pumpkin jigs tipped with Zoom Super Craws.
With Saturday's five massive largemouths added to day one's 14.24, the new
champs 36.37 pounds earned them a brand new Skeeter 190ZX/150 hp Yamaha,
valued at more than $32,000.
Day one leaders and the Tennessee Central father-daughter team of Steve
and Ashley Sentell netted 22.76 pounds on day one and 13.42 pounds Saturday, for a total of 36.18 pounds and a second place finish. Steve and Ashley
worked a submerged hump each day, located about 45 miles down-lake, with
10-inch Red Shad and Plum Ol' Monster worms, Strike King Chartreuse
Shad 6XDs, and 3/4-ounce Strike King green pumpkin Tour Grade Football jigs.
Finishing in third place with 35.74 pounds were Alabama Northeast teammates,
Jason Lambert and Ethan Flack. Jason and Ethan stated that they fished
main channel ledges from one end of the lake to the other before
concentrating their efforts in the Natchez Trace area and limiting out
with 18.44 on day one and 17.30 Saturday. Their consistent weights of bass liked
brown Yank'em football jigs tipped with Paca Craws and Carolina-rigged,
plum-colored, Zoom Ol' Monster worms.
The Tennessee Central Legacy team of Scott and Baker Brummett
concentrated on the deep channel ledges near Bear Creek to catch 18.30
on day one and 14.42 today. Scott noted that they slowly worked ayu and
hitch colored, 6-inch Basstrix Swimbaits in the 20-foot depths to catch
suspended fish along with a new multi-swimbait rig, soon to be marketed
by FLW Pro, Andy Poss. Baker's 5-pound bass fell for a carolina-rigged
green pumpkin lizard. Scott wanted to thank his sponsors: Mercury,
Ranger, Mid-South Boat Sales, and Clark Marine.
Surging all the way from 15th to 5th place, Georgia North's
Robbie and Gabe Sowash finished with an impressive 30.49 pounds. Robbie
and Gabe traveled about 25 miles downstream and worked deep main channel
ledges near Bear Creek with Texas and Carolina-rigged Zoom Mag II and
Ol' Monster plum-colored worms, along with Berkley white swimbaits
Tennessee West Legacy partners, Charlie and Michael Jones, took today's
$400, First Big Fish Award with a 5.51-pound bass that fell for a Strike King 6XD. Charlie
stated that Michael netted two largemouths that went more than 5 pounds in their
impressive 21.59-pound catch.
The day two, Second Big Fish Award went to Dakota Bellew for his 5.12-pound
largemouth which busted a Sammy-style topwater walking bait just before
9 am Saturday. Craig said that they caught nearly 30 fish a day near the
Natchez Trace Bridge while following the schooling bass in the Colbert
Park area.
The sweltering heat and sunny skies of day two saw 139 teams bring in
642 fish that crossed the scale at just a tad bit more than 1393 pounds and included
113 five-fish limits. The two-day tournament total contained 1350 bass,
weighing 2903.27 pounds, and 236, five-fish limits.
Be sure to visit FOMNTT.com for more details, photos and information on fishing the trail.
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The
Fairmont State University team of Brent Dodrill of Fairmont, W. Va.,
and Wil Dieffenbauch of Hundred, W.Va., won the National Guard FLW
College Fishing Northern Division on Lake Champlain Saturday with five
bass weighing 16 pounds, 2 ounces. The victory earned the team $10,000
to be split between the university and the university’s bass fishing
club - $7,500 for the bass club and $2,500 for their school. The win
also helped them advance to the Northern Division Regional Championship.
“We are real excited,” said Dodrill, a sophomore
occupational safety major. “We had a 12 hour drive and this was my first
time on Lake Champlain, what a thrill. Wil and I came up here with what
we thought was a pretty good game plan and things seemed to work out
for us.
“It was windy pretty much all day, lots of big waves,”
continued Dodrill. “We fished three rock points that produced all our
fish. I was drop-shotting a Jackall Cross Tail on a casting rod. The rod
is what really made the difference for me because I could feel every
bite.”
"I was on Champlain one other time,” said Dieffenbauch, a
junior in civil engineering. “I had a pretty good idea of what the lake
was like. We picked a few areas on the map that looked like they would
hold smallmouth and went fishing.
“Most of our big fish came in the morning, added
Dieffenbauch. “We didn’t get our last three-pound smallie until the last
hour of the day.”
This will be the third consecutive year the team from Fairmont State qualified for the Northern Regional Championship.
Rounding out the top five teams and also advancing to the Northern Regional Championship are:
2nd: Ramapo College – Joseph Zapf, Whippany, N.J., and Jeffrey Voss, Secaucus, N.J., five bass, 15-3, $3,000
3rd: Christopher Newport – Derek Berhalter, Farnham, Va., and Ryan Ingalls, Fairfax, Va., five bass, 14-1, $2,000
4th: Castleton State College – Dan and Patrick Infurna, Fair Haven, Vt., five bass, 13-6, $2,000
5th: North Carolina State University – Jeff Bumgarner,
Wade, N.C., and Ben Dziwulski, Woodbine, Md., five bass, 12-0, $2,000
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Photo by David A. Brown / FLWOutdoors.com
Adrian
Avena of Vineland, N.J., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20 pounds, 3
ounces Saturday to win the EverStart Series Northern Division event on
Lake Champlain with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 58 pounds. For
his victory, Avena earned $29,153.
“I had a great day,” said the twenty-year old Avena. “I made a
lot of good decisions and things worked out for me. Someone told me that
when you are in the zone you are in the zone. Today and on day one I
was in the zone. I slacked a little on day two, but it all worked out, I
am so blessed. My hands are so beat-up I can hardly lift my fish.
“I made the long run to Ticonderoga every day, it was tough
ride,” Avena went on to say. “But the run was definitely worth it. I
fished in the same area all week but every day was different. I figured
out that the fish were there but you had to change your presentation in
order to get them to bite.
“On day one I used a variety of baits; swimbaits, senkos and I
did some flipping,” Avena continued. “On day two I was using swimbaits
and buzzbaits and today it was all about the crankbaits, I was using
Whiskey River Craws.
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Aaron Wessels, Watervliet, N.Y., 15 bass, 54-4, $9,995
3rd: Glenn Babineau, Mechanicville, N.Y., 15 bass, 53-14, $8,330
4th: Joe Lucarelli, Center Harbor, N.H., 15 bass, 53-9, $7,497
5th: Thomas Lavictoire, Jr., West Rutland, Vt., 15 bass, 50-14, $6,664
6th: Michael Wolfenden, Warwick, R.I., 15 bass, 50-0, $5,831
7th: Adam Singer, Brookfield, Ct., 15 bass, 47-12, $4,998
8th: Craig Townsend, Mount Holly, N.J., 15 bass, 45-11, $4,165
9th: James Schneider, Watervliet, N.Y., 15 bass, 44-10, $3,332
10th: Chris Adams, Rutland, Vt., 15 bass, 44-10, $2,499
Adrian Avena caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the
Pro Division Thursday – a 6-pound, 12-ounce bass – that earned him the
day’s EverStart Series Big Bass award of $228.
Myron Worona of Hermitage, Pa., won the Co-angler Division and a
Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard motor with a three-day
total of 15 bass weighing 44pound, 12 ounces.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Emily McLeod, Williston, Vt., 15 bass, 44-1, $3,899
3rd: Brian Keister, Cedar Brook, N.J., 15 bass, 42-5, $3,465
4th: Brad Rutherford, Lavonia, Ga., 15 bass, 40-8, $3,032
5th: Kenneth Hoffman, Cambridge, N.Y., 15 bass, 37-15, $2,599
6th: Dick Gum, Woodbridge, Va., 15 bass, 37-2, $2,166
7th: Trudy Noechel, Lost Creek, W. Va., 15 bass, 34-11, $1,733
8th: Chris Kinney-Hermes, Champlain, N.Y., 13 bass, 34-7, $1,300
9th: Chris Girouard, Epson, N.H., 13 bass, 33-13, $866
10th: Jacob Wheeler, Indianapolis, Ind., 15 bass, 33-4, $693
Kenneth Hoffman caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the
Co-angler Division Friday – a 5-pound, 5-ounce bass – that earned him
the day’s EverStart Series Big Bass award of $152.
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Photos courtesy of FishPAA.com / Be sure to check out their photo galleries!
Heading into the second event of this year’s PAA Bass Pro Shops
Tournament Series Presented by Carrot Stix, smart money was on Stacey
King to challenge for the title. Conventional wisdom was not
overturned this week as King led the tournament from wire to wire with
three limits of bass that totaled 58.52 pounds.
His 1 1/2-pound day one lead dwindled to just over a pound
yesterday, but on the strength of a massive 22.99 limit today, he claimed
the title by more than 6 pounds.
For his efforts, he won $5,000 in cash and a new Nitro Z-8 with a Mercury 225 Optimax outboard and TH-Marine Atlas jackplate.
King also had the biggest single bass of the tournament today, a 6.22-pound largemouth that earned him a Humminbird 898c SI combo.
The remainder of the top five, in order, included Hefty pro Mike
McClelland, Frog Tape pro Brian Travis, Booyah pro Terry Butcher and
reigning PAA Angler of the Year, Gene Larew pro Tommy Biffle.
While King cemented his status as Table Rock royalty with the victory,
behind every good man there’s a good woman. In this case the queen, also
named King, is his wife Peggy.
“I really didn’t have a lot of confidence going into today,” the Nitro
pro said. “I told Peggy that this morning. You think I didn’t get a butt
chewing?”
Apparently the butt chewing she dished out sunk into his brain in a
hurry. He caught the tournament’s big fish on his second cast of the
day. King used a variety of lures, including jigs and swimbaits, but
related that every fish he brought to the scale this week came on one
of two oversized plastic worms – a Bass Pro Shops 12-inch Squirmin’ Worm
and a 13-inch straight-tailed hand pour.
King credited some of this morning’s success to second place finisher Mike McClelland.
“Normally, I like to fish that big worm fast,” King said. “But yesterday
on stage Mike said something about having to slow down to get better
bites. This morning early I fished it real slow.” That made a huge
difference. He had enough weight to win within the first few hours.
“Big fish like big baits, especially in the summertime.”
King confirmed that he’d have thrown even larger worms if he could find some.
He did his damage on tapering points that abutted the river channel.
McClelland’s weights improved each day, and if it weren't for King’s massive limit,
his 22-pound bag would have been the biggest of the tournament. Like
King, he fished large profile baits all week. They included a Jewel
football-head jig with a Zoom Brush Hog as a trailer, a big Zoom Ol' Monster worm
and an unnamed swimbait.
“In a tournament like this, you have to make up your mind to fish for fewer bites with big baits,” he said.
After an uncharacteristically difficult Elite Series season, McClelland hoped that this event would be his “slump-buster.” He cost himself the chance to win by starting in the wrong place on day
one. He didn’t land his first keeper that day until nearly 1 o’clock and
managed to salvage the day with over 12 pounds in the last few hours.
While a runner-up finish can be disappointing, McClelland had a positive
outlook about the angler who beat him.
“This is where I learned to bass fish,” he said. “If I’m going to get
beat here, I want to get beat by Stacey King. When I was 16 years old, he
took me under his wing and took me out on the Bassmaster tour with him.
He’s one of the most incredible anglers I’ve ever been around.”
Biffle and Travis spent most of their day flipping and each had his
lightest limit of the tournament. Biffle burned a lot of gas and a lot
of baits to amass his 45.26 pound total catch.
“I’d go up and fish one tree, then run two to three miles or up to ten
miles to the next one,” Biffle said. “You’ve got to be fortunate to get
the big bites and then when you get them you have to be lucky to get
them out of the bushes. I probably went through 200 to 300 Biffle Bugs
in the past three days.”
The next tournament in the PAA Bass Pro Shops Tournament Series
Presented by Carrot Stix will take place August 18-20 on Alabama’s Neely
Henry Lake near Gadsden, Alabama.
Complete Results - Click Here
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Tournament leader Stacey King hoped to extend his pound and a half lead
on Mark Menendez on day two of the PAA event on Table Rock Lake.
King’s 15.41-pound catch kept him in first heading into the
final day of competition, but his lead over second place grew more tenuous.
Frog Tape pro Brian Travis, who entered Day Two in 5th place, added
17.78 pounds of Table Rock bass to his 16.98 pound Day One catch and now
sits just slightly over a pound behind King.
Will King’s mercurial 20.12-pound first-day catch propel him to victory
on his home lake, or will the steadier sacks brought in by Travis prove
to be King’s undoing?
The other three anglers in the top five after Thursday – Menendez, Kelly
Power and James Watson – all fell out, making room for Tommy Biffle,
Terry Butcher and Mike McClelland to claim their vacated spaces.
McClelland jumped the greatest distance of all of them, from 18th place
into 5th on the strength of his 18.16-pound catch. He sits over 5 pounds behind King, though. Meanwhile Biffle is a little over 3 pounds out and Butcher is off the winning pace by just about 4
pounds.
Menendez fell to 13th overall. He’ll have a chance to make up ground tomorrow, but he probably lost an opportunity to win.
Gary Yamamoto was the last man inside the top twenty cut with a two-day
total of 23.20 pounds. The unfortunate first man out was Texas pro
Justin Rackley, who tallied 22.73 pounds.
Nitro pro King was disappointed that he weighed five pounds less today
than he did on Thursday. He believes that this morning’s stormy
conditions hurt his bite.
“I would rather see bright, sunny conditions tomorrow,” he said. “They
typically don’t run much water on the weekends and there will be more
traffic out there.”
He had only seven “good bites” today, culling once
and losing another fish that would have helped him.
Travis said he’s caught all of his weigh fish on one bait in one
confined area which is free of other tournament competitors. “It’s
isolated structure,” he explained. “I haven’t seen anybody fish it
except a few locals.”
He’s flipping and said the key is to “find stuff you can actually get to.”
“I’m not changing tomorrow,” he continued. “I’ve been in this position
before and zeroed the next day. There’s not too many fish there. I could
go there and blank. But I’ve been leaving at 10:30 every day and I
think that if I stay there I can catch as much as I’d be able to catch
anywhere else.”
Gene Larew pro Tommy Biffle’s tactics this week are no secret. He’s
putting a couple of flipping sticks on the deck in the morning and using
them until it’s time to come in.
“I’m just doing what I like to do,” the Oklahoma pro said. “I can catch
them anywhere I want on this lake.” He’d struggled to catch quality fish
earlier in the week but had two in the five pound class today in his
18.64 pound bag. There’s no rhyme or reason to where the bigger bites
came, he said. “You’ve just got to run into one every now and then.”
Booyah pro Butcher jumped up from 11th place into 4th with a 17.64 pound
limit. After a difficult year on the Elite Series trail, he said he’s
fishing by instinct this week and with more confidence than in the
months gone by.
“I think I have a little deal figured out on what they’re doing,”
Butcher said. “I ran new water today and had a limit pretty early. That
helped – I knew I’d secured a check.” He’ll have to have another big
limit tomorrow and hope that some of the three anglers ahead of him
stumble in order to claim the win.
Hefty pro Mike McClelland also had an uncharacteristically tough year on
tour so far in 2011. This tournament started off equally rough – he
didn’t have a keeper until after noon on Thursday – but he “fought
through a personal battle yesterday” and made a monster leap today.
“The biggest thing was that yesterday I fished too fast,” the Arkansas
pro explained. “When they finally bite, they’re pretty aggressive, but
getting them to bite is tough.” He’s fishing all large-profile baits
including a big jig and a Zoom Ol’ Monster worm and “in the afternoon
went even bigger,” although he declined to specify exactly what lure
that change involved.
Local top stick Kelly Power made the same realization as McClelland that
it was important to slow down, but he didn’t implement that plan and
fell down the leaderboard.
“It wasn’t the fish, it was me,” Power explained. “I lost two
four-pounders on a crankbait and after that I started going too fast. It
was a mental error, a home lake deal. I’m fishing the right stuff. It’s
just a matter of slowing down.”
Menendez believes that the early morning storms hurt him. After landing
over 25 keepers on Thursday, he could manage only four today.
“My day started a little slow,” he said. “The clouds killed the flipping
bite. I ran as far to the west as I could to get to the high skies and
when I got there I started getting bit.” Unfortunately for him, it was
too late to salvage the day. The question remains whether any of the
anglers still in contention will have enough time to catch King, or
whether he’ll hold on for his first PAA victory.
The tournament continues through Saturday going out of Chateau on the
Lake marina. Daily launches and free 3 p.m. weigh-ins the first two days
will take place at Chateau on the Lake. The final day weigh-in will
begin at 4:30 p.m. at the Bass Pro Shops fountains at Branson Landing in
Branson. At stake for the winner is cash and a new Nitro Z-8 with a
Mercury 225 Optimax and T-H Marine Atlas jackplate, with a Humminbird
898c Si Combo to the Humminbird Big Bass of the Tournament winner.
For Complete Results - Click Here
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Eco Pro Tungsten Company owner Brian Wagenhoffer announced today that Anglers Select LLC (The parent company of Eco Pro Tungsten) has acquired distribution rights for North America with Kumho Hooks of Korea.
Kumho is an established hook manufacturer specializing in high quality needlepoints. Anglers Select has now established Kumho USA to supply innovative new hooks to the American market as well as Kumhos existing range of premium and OEM hooks.
Company President Tim Norman has teamed with fishing superstar Gary Klein and will unveil an exciting new range of innovative, patented hooks at ICAST next month in Las Vegas. "I have worked with Gary (Klein) in the past and he was my first choice to help us innovate new and exciting products at Kumho USA" said Norman. "He is not only one of the best fishermen of all time he is also one of the great innovators. We will be launching Gary’s first new series of hooks as well as kumho’s full range of products July 13th at ICAST booth 2608."
"It is very exciting to be with a company that allows me to have my own workshop" said Klein. "They are allowing me to develop and design my own hooks and the first ones are awesome. The keeper system, by itself, is an innovation that all anglers will want."
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Eco Pro Tungsten is rapidly taking a commanding competitive edge in the tungsten business but they are not sitting on their hands either. Having pro's like Dean Rojas on their staff and the wherewithal to build high quality products allow them to do it right the first time. They not only make great tungsten fishing weights but have some very big announcements forthcoming at ICAST to put more unbelieveable terminal tackle in the hands of die-hard anglers.
When you think everything has been done, Eco Pro builds a better mousetrap and rest assured you will be impressed with their new offerings!
Thanks again to everyone who entered the Eco Pro Tungsten Spins Contest. Its evident that anglers who want to catch more fish know in-line spinners are a go-to bait when fishing gets tough.
The winners of the contest are:
George Cropp Manassas, VA
Fritz Williams Southern Pines, NC
Leslie Gregg Ridgeville, OH
Al Bishop Wheatfield, IN
Congrats and your spins are on the way to each of you!
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Wave announced today that well-known West Coast bass angler, swimbait expert and owner of iROD Fishing Rods (www.irodfishing.com), Matt Newman, has been signed to their national pro staff.
“We’re very pleased to have Matt Newman onboard,” said Paul Whitman Jr., VP Sales for Wave. “He’s the kind of angler we want — experienced, knowledgeable, innovative and hard working. We want our baits to be designed and tested by top-shelf anglers. This is a big step in that direction. Matt’s the kind of angler who’ll not let a bait move from one step to the next until it’s perfect. We appreciate that. In fact it’s what Wave is all about.”
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PowerTeam Lures will be releasing their newest addition, the 5” Sick Stick to their already deadly line up at this year’s ICAST show in Las Vegas, Nevada. “Designing a stickstyle bait that allows anglers to have complete control over the fall and amount of action the bait gives off is absolutely crucial.” states Bob Bernotsky, owner and designer of PowerTeam Lures. “It’s no secret that bass change their minds day to day, hour to hour and sometimes minute to minute. If anglers don’t adjust their presentation accordingly to suit the mood of the bass, it can make for a long (and possibly costly) day.”
The 5” Sick Stick is a neutrally buoyant stick bait comprised of a square core encased in round rings. These three key elements add more flash, visual stimulant and a controllable wobble to the adjustable fall. The square core also creates a side to side swaying motion during the fall as the flat sides of the core deflect off the water. “This bait was specifically designed to be fished on a weighted wacky head for complete control” explains Bob. “When bass are in a negative mood, rig it on a 1/16 oz. weighted wacky head for an ultra-slow fall with a tight subtle wobble. For more aggressive bass rig it on a 1/8 – 3/16 oz. weighted wacky head for a more erratic swaying wobble and faster fall.” Bob also stated that even though the Sick Stick was designed to be fished with a weighted wacky head, it’s equally as deadly on a shakey head, a drop shot, Texas rigged or Carolina rigged. The Sick Stick will be available in 14 different colors.
PowerTeam Lures is excited for the release of the 5” Sick Stick and getting it into the hands of anglers just in time for the summer season. The functional design is what gets fishermen to try it. The excellent results is what keeps them coming back!
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For Nitro pro Stacey King, everything about the first day of the Bass
Pro Shops PAA Tournament Presented by Carrot Stix went according to
plan. He caught a big bag by 8:30 am, culled twice more up to 20.12
pounds, and stayed off many of his best spots.
For Kentucky pro Mark Menendez, the beginning of the day looked like it
was going to be a disaster. After running aground en route to the
take-off site, he feared that he might not even get to fish. Thanks to
the help of some of his fellow pros, his boat was towed off the
offending mud bar. Their helpfulness came back to bite them as he sacked
18.60 pounds of Table Rock bass and sits in second, just a pound and a
half behind King.
Kelly Power (17.87 lbs.), James Watson (17.07 lbs.) and Brian Travis (16.73 lbs.) round out the top five.
Today’s slick conditions and lack of manmade current slowed the bite for
some, but it didn’t hurt King at all. He relied upon decades of
experience on Table Rock.
“This pattern will last all summer,” he said. While he declined to state
exactly how or where he’s fishing, King did say that he has a bait
tweak that he believes provides a distinct advantage, even in a crowd.
“There are several people fishing in the same area as me. I don’t mind
following people.”
He’d love to earn a win in front of a hometown crowd. “Any time you can
win on your home lake it’s awesome, especially when you’re fishing
against the caliber of fishermen in this event.”
Menendez didn’t practice yesterday, having figured out a “one-two punch”
that he felt could last for three days of competition. But his relaxed
state of mind came to a grinding halt along with his boat when he ran
onto a shallow bar in the dark prior to blast-off early this morning.
“It’s pretty scary when you’re putting along in the dark and come to a
complete stop,” he said. His boat and motor suffered some damage due to
the impact, but not enough to prevent him from fishing. He caught keeper
fish all day, and stated that he had “lots of extras.” His haul
included the big fish of the day, a 5.53 pound largemouth that he caught
around 8 o’clock.
Missouri pro Kelly Power didn’t suffer the same sort of morning mishap
as Menendez, but his day didn’t get started the way he wanted it to,
either. After catching three quick keepers, he lost several near the
boat and broke another one off.
“Then someone told me that Stacey (King) had 18 pounds so I put my head
down and fished harder,” he said. Unlike many of the pros who are
catching their fish in the shallow bushes, Power, another Table Rock
expert, is dragging a peanut butter and jelly colored Jewel football
head jig in 15 to 18 feet of water.
James Watson of Waynesville, Mo., another Table Rock stalwart, sits less
than a pound behind Power and just over four pounds out of first. His
catch included a 4.99 pound largemouth. Unlike the other two Missourians
in the top five, he’s fishing shallow.
“I love to flip so I kept my flipping stick in my hand all day,” Watson
said. “I got three quality bites.” While he may not be fishing the
typical seasonal pattern for Table Rock, he is relying upon history,
fishing specific stretches of bank that have produced for him in prior
years. “I guess you could say I have a little bit of home field
advantage. I’m fishing with a lot of confidence.” His primary lure was a
Luck E Strike Ringer worm in the tequila sunrise color pattern.
Rounding out the top five is Frog Tape pro Brian Travis who is not a
Table Rock local, but nevertheless relied upon past experience to amass
his big limit today.
“I have confidence in a few areas that I fish every time we come here,”
he said. He has his water to himself, but like King he amassed the bulk
of his weight early in the morning. After 8 o’clock he had trouble
getting keeper bites.
The tournament continues through Saturday going out of Chateau on the
Lake marina. Daily launches and free 3 p.m. weigh-ins the first two days
will take place at Chateau on the Lake. The final day weigh-in will
begin at 4:30 p.m. at the Bass Pro Shops fountains at Branson Landing in
Branson. At stake for the winner is cash and a new Nitro Z-8 with a
Mercury 225 Optimax and T-H Marine Atlas jackplate, with a Humminbird
898c Si Combo to the Humminbird Big Bass of the Tournament winner.
Complete Day 1 Results - Click Here
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Our buddy Ken Duke wrote another great piece on Bassmaster.com today that is a statistical look at the Elite Series season. Ken takes a look at the catches, weights, averages and more by angler so you can see who was really getting the job done on a day to day basis and also who wasn't. Some guys will cringe when they look at these stats but it's neat to see a season of work broken down this way. And it really identifies who consistently does well and who occasionally does well.
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FLW Outdoors announced Thursday the 2011 National Guard FLW College Fishing All-America Team. The team, selected based on an objective point system determined by College Fishing Tournament Director Kevin Hunt, represents the best of the best among the nation’s college anglers. The list includes 30 anglers, headed by the 2010 national champions from the University of Florida, Jake Gipson and Matthew Wercinski. The All-America team is featured in the July issue of FLW Outdoors Magazine, which is available on newsstands June 28.
FLW College Fishing consists of 495 collegiate clubs and more than 3,300 anglers. The All-America teams are selected through a point system that is based on the consistency of team performances in local tournaments and regional qualifiers in 2010 and the 2011 national championship. All-America status is earned by those who stay focused throughout the tournament season and emulate the qualities that the National Guard FLW College Fishing program strives to foster in tomorrow’s pros.
“The 2011 class of National Guard FLW College Fishing All-Americas reflects the best of the best among the participants who compete in the circuit,” said FLW Outdoors Magazine Editor-in-Chief Colin Moore. “These All-Americas, like those who came before them and those who will come after, are the standard bearers of National Guard FLW College Fishing and exemplify the thousands of young men and women involved in the program. No doubt the National Guard is pleased to be associated with this group of anglers, and FLW Outdoors is certainly proud to be able to showcase them.”
The team, listed in alphabetical order, includes:
Name City, Sate School
Jake Akin Powder Springs, Ga. Kennesaw State University
Jeremy Anibas Colfax, Wis. UW-Stout
Shaye Baker* Tallassee, Ala. Auburn University
Damian Bean San Luis Obispo, Calif. California Poly
Kevin Beverley Fuquay Varina, N.C. NC State University
Jeff Bumgarner Wade, N.C. NC State University
Zach Caudle Shreveport, La. LSU Shreveport
Spencer Clark Florissant, Mo. Truman State University
Ben Dziwulski* Woodbine, Md. NC State University
Thomas Frink Woodstock, Ga. Kennesaw State University
Jake Gipson* Niceville, Fla. University of Florida
Ryan Helke Menomonie, Wis. UW-Stout
Scott Hellesen San Luis Obispo, Calif. California Poly
Danny Iles Hemphill, Texas Lamar University
Ryan Ingalls Fairfax, Va. Christopher Newport University
Joe Landry Shreveport, La. LSU Shreveport
Jordan Lee Vinemont, Ala. Auburn University
Peter Lee Elk Grove, Calif. Sacramento State
Paul Manley* College Station, Texas Texas A&M
Robert Matsuura Sacramento, Calif. Sacramento State
Mike McCarthy Jr. Chesterfield, Mo. Truman State University
Parker Moran Chico, Calif. Chico State
Matt Morrison Silsbee, Texas Lamar University
Jesse Schultz* New Albany, Ind. Indiana University
Andrew Shafer* College Station, Texas Texas A&M
Marshal Smith San Jose, Calif. Chico State
Dustin Vaal* Bloomington, Ind. Indiana University
Matthew Wercinski* Niceville, Fla. University of Florida
Will White Marion, N.C. NC State University
Joe Wilkerson Falls Church, Va. Christopher Newport University
* Repeat All-America
The list also can be viewed at FLWOutdoors.com.
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 The Ouachita River out of Monroe, La., will be the site of the 2011 B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Championship presented by Yamaha and Skeeter Boats, Nov. 3-5, 2011.
“Northeast Louisiana is known as the ‘Sportsman's Paradise,’ so naturally, partnering with B.A.S.S. to bring the Federation Nation Championship here is an excellent opportunity to showcase our natural resources,” said Scott Bruscato, director of convention sales for the Monroe-West Monroe Convention and Visitors Bureau, host organization of the championship. “We are proud to be the host city this year and look forward to a great event on the Ouachita River.”
The B.A.S.S. Federation Nation local clubs are organized in 47 states and six countries (Canada, Italy, Japan, Mexico, South Africa and Zimbabwe), which are part of six geographic divisions (North, South, Central, East, West and Mid-Atlantic).
Federation Nation states have been sending teams to divisional tournaments to fish for a chance to win a Skeeter ZX 190, Yamaha VZ 150, trailer, Minn Kota Fortex 80 trolling motor, Humminbird 788c and a prop, valued at $35,000. The top angler from each divisional team will advance to the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Championship. From there, the top angler from each of the six divisions in the championship will be awarded a berth in the 2012 Bassmaster Classic set for Feb. 24-26 out of Shreveport-Bossier City, La.
The six anglers who advance to the Classic also receive automatic qualification into the 2012 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Central, Northern and/or Southern Opens. The Bassmaster Federation Nation Championship overall winner also earns a berth in the prestigious Bassmaster Elite Series.
“I am excited for B.A.S.S. to return to Monroe, La., and the Ouachita River,” said Don Corkran, director of the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation. “I first visited Monroe for a World Championship Fishing (WCF) event in 2000, and the level of support we got from the Convention and Visitors Bureau, the city and the citizens was tremendous. It is always special to return to a location that provides great support and is also home to such a great fishery.”
Daily launches and weigh-ins will take place at the Forsythe Boat Dock, 2201 Riverside Drive, Monroe, LA 71201, and are free and open to the public.
Live, streaming video of the weigh-ins is included in the wire-to-wire coverage of the 2011 B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Championship presented by Yamaha and Skeeter Boats on Bassmaster.com.
For more information about the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation, go to bassmaster.com/federation-series.
B.A.S.S. Federation Nation anglers who have qualified for 2011 B.A.S.S. Federation Nation Championship (as of June 23)
Defending Champion: Brandon Palaniuk
Southern Divisional:
AL: Jamie Horton
FL: Michael Smith
GA: Jeff Jones
KY: Heath Martin
NC: Stephen Dyer
SC: Jeff Green
TN: Mark Pierce (also the Southern Divisional champion)
Western Divisional:
AZ: Gerald Kimzey
CA: Don Edmonds
CO: Ed McCaw
ID: Josh Polfer
MT: Curtis Spindler
NV: Aaron Leon
NM: Jay Salisbury (also the Western Divisional champion)
OR: Jim Brinkerhoff
UT: Jared Roos
WA: Aaron Echternkemp
WY: Boyd Golightly
Central Divisional:
AR: Josh Wray
KS: Beau Branine
LA: Jason Pecoraro
MO: Daniel Stark
MS: Destre Dedeaux
NE: Pat Klausen
OK: Jared Miller
TX: Tom Jessop (also the Central Divisional champion)
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Seven-time BASS Angler of the Year Kevin VanDam visits with Terry Brown on Weighing In Radio today and talks about his fishing and his work on building new products for companies he works with. To listen click here. |
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One of the most popular big worms on the market has been the Zoom Ol' Monster worm. This worm has accounted for millions of bass catches out in deep water and heavy cover alike and one thing we've found over the last several years is the fish will eat even bigger worms. Well now Zoom is working on the final prototypes of the new 12-inch Zoom Ol' Monster. Chris Baxter is out field testing the worm as we speak and once the final touches are put on the 12-inch version, they will ramp up production and get them out to anglers across the country.
Stay tuned! But until then, here's another sneak peek at the new worm.
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B.A.S.S. Communications
J. Todd Tucker didn’t miss a beat. He launched his campaign the day before fans were invited to begin voting June 21 at www.Bassmaster.com to select the final four anglers for Toyota Trucks All-Star Week.
“Voting started at
midnight, so we got people interested a few hours before,” said the
Bassmaster Elite Series angler from Moultrie, Ga.
His strategy included
sending a broadcast email to 3,000 people on June 20 at about 7 p.m. And
he’s hitting social media, every sponsor website — in fact every
channel his team can think of. The pass-on multiplies the number of
people reached.
“I’d say that by the end of the night, we hit 25,000 people. And we’re going to hit them again every day,” he said.
Tucker is only one of
many Elite pros actively asking for the vote. Hot campaigning is
expected over the next 20 days, until the polls close July 10.
The four winners will
join the eight who already qualified for the July 23-31 postseason event
in Alabama. The $100,000 competition will happen on Lake Jordan out of
Wetumpka, Ala., for two days, then move on for a final three days on the
Alabama River out of nearby Montgomery.
Each voter can cast a ballot once a day. The ballot consists of four choices, one Elite pro per geographical region.
Fans have been given a
big incentive to vote often because each ballot cast is also an entry
into the Toyota Trucks All-Star Week Fan Favorites Sweepstakes. Once all
votes are cast, 12 voters will be randomly selected and paired with the
12 anglers. The fan who is paired with the eventual All-Star champion
will win the grand prize of a Triton/Mercury bass boat rig valued at
more than $30,000. All 12 sweepstakes finalists will win Berkley tackle
packs.
Tucker said the All-Star election is more than a popularity contest for him or any other Elite pro.
“It’s an opportunity to
build the fan base of our sport, to get the fans more involved,” he
said. “For me, that’s the bottom line.”
At least one of Tucker’s
fellow Elite pros is tying his campaign into his support for a charity.
John Crews of Salem, Va., sent a June 21 email with the subject line of
“My Pledge.”
“My pledge is that if I
am voted into the All-Star Week and win, I will donate $25,000 to the
Tackle the Storm Foundation. In addition, if I am voted in … I will also
donate $5 per pound of bass that I weigh during the competition. In
other words, if I get in All-Star Week, the kids will benefit,” his
email stated.
The objective of Tackle
the Storm is to replace kids’ fishing equipment lost in the April 27
bout of tornadoes that socked the South.
Crews and Tucker are
just two of the 91 Elite pros eligible to win a postseason entry via fan
voting. The four voted in will join the eight who qualified by being
the top points earners in the regular season.
The list is led by Kevin
VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., who won his seventh Toyota Tundra
Bassmaster Angler of the Year points competition last Sunday. The other
postseason qualifiers are Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., points
runner-up; Gerald Swindle of Warrior, Ala.; Ott DeFoe of Knoxville,
Tenn., who last Sunday won the 2011 Bassmaster Rookie of the Year title;
Steve Kennedy of Auburn, Ala.; Terry Scroggins of San Mateo, Fla.;
Casey Ashley of Donalds, S.C.; and — last in at the No. 8 spot — Davy
Hite of Ninety Six, S.C.
The remaining four as
selected by fans will be announced by July 13. The 12 randomly selected
fans and their virtual pairings with pros will be announced before the
postseason begins.
Salute to a survivor:
On stage last Saturday during the Bassmaster Elite Series event in
Decatur, Ala., not far from his home, Tim Horton was so moved he stopped
speaking.
Not so much because he’d
made the top-12 cut to compete the final day, an accomplishment that
meant a 2012 Bassmaster Classic berth was close at hand. And not so much
that he’d pulled that off in his home state, not far from where he
lives in Muscle Shoals. For all those reasons, he was joyous.
Words left him as he
saluted a man in the audience, a survivor of the killer tornado that
ripped Alabama on April 27. Larry Plott, Horton’s uncle who had served
Franklin County as its sheriff for 28 years, lost his home to the April
27 tornado that flattened the small town of Phil Campbell.
“Only the foundation of his home was left,” Horton described.
“Early on, the focus, of
course, was to get the basics back — living quarters, food, clothing,”
Horton said. “Then I was talking to my mom last night, and she mentioned
he felt he was ready to go fishing again, but didn’t have any tackle.”
Through his mother, Horton knew his uncle would be in the audience on Saturday.
On stage Horton told the
story of how one man who gave so much lost so much, but kept going, and
kept alive his love of fishing. Then Horton asked his uncle to stand,
and the crowd cheered.
After he left the stage,
Horton immediately ran back to his boat, collected five of his Duckett
Fishing brand rods and reels, and gave them to Plott. Horton said he’d
follow up with lures and other equipment.
The very determined Randy Howell:
Powered only by his trolling motor, Randy Howell piloted his boat on
windy Wheeler Lake for four miles to reach the support crew that could
repair his boat’s gearing.
It was the second day of
the tournament, the Bassmaster Elite Series season closer. Howell
needed to turn in a good performance on Wheeler or risk falling out of
the cut for a 2012 Bassmaster Classic qualification. The first day he
had brought only 7 1/2 pounds to the scales. The second day he had about
14 pounds in the livewell when the gearing acted up. A storm was
brewing.
He wasn’t going to let
anything stop him. He pushed on, and didn’t stop casting during his
four-mile trek back to the ramp. He landed a 3 1/2-pounder, and spotted a
place that later yielded an even bigger bass.
“As I was going by on
the trolling motor, I saw a place that looked good, and I had a gut
feeling to go fish it,” he said. “I got back in, got fixed up really
fast, and got back out there and caught a 5 1/2-pounder,” he said.
His day’s bag weighed in at 18-7. That put him in 16th place, up from 87th, with 25-15 over two days.
“Everything worked out,” he said.
Wheeler Lake has been good to Howell many times, and was in fact the site of his first major win in 1998.
“I won $100,000. It was
my first big break into the sport,” he said. “I was 23 years old, moved
from North Carolina to Alabama, and was just getting serious and focused
on a career in fishing. This lake’s been good to me.”
KVD’s catfish award: Even before the Bassmaster Elite Series season finale began last week, Kevin VanDam garnered an award.
Presented by the mayor
of host city Decatur, Ala., Don Stanford, the paper certificate was
titled: “1st Annual KVD Pre-Fish Award for Largest Catfish.”
VanDam had boated a
behemoth catfish on Wheeler Lake during practice. Pundit weight
estimates on the cat ranged from an optimistic 90 to a more likely 45
pounds — still plenty of fish to heave over the gunnels.
For the United Way:
The Decatur-Morgan County Convention Visitors Bureau presented T-shirts
to all 99 Bassmaster Elite Series anglers last week on the eve of the
Dixie Duel. Each shirt represented a donation in the angler’s name to
the United Way to aid victims of the April 27 tornado.
Printed on the tees was
“Family Jam 2011.” United Way workers collected donations June 18-19 at
the music fest happening at Ingalls Harbor in Decatur while anglers
competed on the water.
Said at the June 16-19 Dixie Duel:
“This is a lake that
fits my style.” — Kevin VanDam after the first day. He finished in
second place in the tournament with 61 pounds, 13 ounces, and walked off
with his fourth consecutive Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year
title.
“It is what it is. I
have to go back and evaluate to see what I can change for next season.” —
Gary Klein, after a lackluster season. Ending at 59th in points, he
missed out on a 30th Bassmaster Classic qualification.
“I didn’t want to get
DQ’d for getting my phone out.” — Ish Monroe, explaining why he didn’t
take a photo of two noodlers who pulled up near him and proceeded to
extract, barehanded, huge catfish from underwater holes.
“Mathematically, I could
do it, but it’s not looking good.” — Steve Kennedy on his chances of
catching Kevin VanDam in the points race in the last hours of
competition
“Rookie of the Year is a major accomplishment for me.” — Ott DeFoe
“This is the best
Father’s Day I’ve ever had, I promise you that.” — David Walker, who in
landing the Dixie Duel trophy scored his first win in a major event, and
earned his way back to the Bassmaster Classic
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EFTTEX,
the European Fishing Tackle Trade Exposition, concluded on Sunday their
30th anniversary show in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The gala closing
ceremony included the announcements of the new product award winners.
Leading the awards announcements was the naming of Berkley NanoFil as
recipient of the first-ever category for Innovation of the Year.
Stated one of the EFTTEX judges: “NanoFil did not fit into either our
monofilament or braid category, yet it scored enough votes to have won
either category. It is a worthy winner of our inaugural Innovation of
the Year award.”
“We are elated,” exclaimed NanoFil Product Manager Joe Meyer at the
event. “We’ve worked with the folks from Dyneema for seven years
perfecting NanoFil and the end product is unlike any fishing line we’ve
ever invented. The unifilament process allows us to produce a fishing
line that is thinner, stronger and more manageable than ever thought
possible.”
To read Jason's review of Nanofil, visit this link.
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Photo by Alan McGuckin
The time is right. Lets go fishing!
Repel Insect Repellents is running a contest on Facebook for a chance to go fishing with Elite Series pro Gary Klein. You will get to spend the day with Gary at one of his secret fishing holes near his home in Weatherford, Texas. To sign up go to the Repel Insect Repellent Facebook page.
Prize Details
The prize consists solely of $5,000; a one-half day of fishing with Gary Klein in, or around, Weatherford, Texas including airfare, hotel accommodations, meals and ground transportation for the Winner and a guest; and Repel gift bag containing Repel products valued at $50. The ARV of the fishing trip is $2,000. The total ARV of the prize is $7,050.
Prize Eligibility: Only persons residing in United States who are at least 18 years of age can enter.
Sweepstakes Starts: June 14, 2011 @ 01:50 pm (CDT)
Sweepstakes Ends: August 31, 2011 @ 11:59 am (CDT)
Need more Details?
Read the Official Rules
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Liddle Marketing Company is pleased to provide a way for anglers to ramp up their walleye fishing knowledge and skill from the very best—All-Stars in fact. The All-Star Walleye School is slated for Sunday, August 28th through Wednesday, August 31st on the spectacular walleye fishery in north central Minnesota—Leech Lake, recently showcased with a National Guard FLW Walleye Tour tournament stop. Spend two-and-a-half days for a game-changing experience with All-Star anglers like Mark Courts, Paul Meleen and Kevin McQuoid. Students will learn more in this close-knit setting than they can imagine; getting both on-the-water and indoor classroom time. Attendees will have plenty of chance to offer up very specific questions as well as drill-down on techniques that are on their list.
“This school is not only unique from the quality and caliber of the anglers presenting their knowledge,” shared Chip Leer, All-Star Walleye School host as well as emcee for the National Guard FLW Walleye Tour. “As the guys enroll they have a chance to answer questions about which techniques or tactics are most important for them—and that’s what we’ll cover. It’s customized for both on the water and in the classroom.”
The dual approach to hands-on and classroom skill building is an important component to this learning opportunity.
“We really need both,” shared Mark Courts, truly an All-Star with over $350,000 in walleye tournament winnings. “We’ll cover fundamentals during the presentation classroom time, and then switch it up to practical application on the water. And all the little questions can come out at that time, in case someone might not want to ask in front of a room full of people.”
All-Star Kevin McQuoid, long-time guide on Mille Lacs and two-time FLW walleye tournament winner, agrees.
“There’s plenty of time with three instructors to ask a question or talk about something really specific to their home waters,” shared McQuoid, with over $280,000 in tournament winnings in the FLW. “Mark, Paul and I know each other well—and we’ll each cover different things, so you will learn some key fundamentals and how each of us tweaks them based on the current conditions.”
Held at the beautiful Chase on the Lake Resort in Walker, Minnesota, the All-Star Walleye School is destined to become a first-stop for any serious walleye angler wanting to ramp up their skills from the very best. Packages start at $600 and interested parties should contact Chip Leer at 218-547-4714 or e-mail: info@liddlemarketingcompany.com.
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Ouzo Bait Co. has hired former Bassmaster Tour angler Harold Allen to promote the company’s products. Allen, who retired in 2006 from the trail, after amassing more that $400,000 in B.A.S.S. winnings, is excited to be a part of the Ouzo team.
“This is a chance to work with a young company, to have an impact, build innovative products that are not currently out there,” said Allen, who was actually on the water fishing as he talked. “Anytime you can get in on the ground floor and be a part of something, it’s exciting.”
The three-year-old company is expecting Allen to have a significant role in product development.
Also, because he is a great promoter, Allen will work events for the company as well, including ICAST 2011 in July. Mainly, however, the addition of the well-known, likeable and fun-loving angler gives Ouzo a jack-of-all trades that can help in any number of ways.
“Harold is a great guy, first of all,” said Debi Duplechain, president of Ouzo. “He loves to fish, everyone likes him and he is a great promoter. Now that he is on our staff, I can also pick his brain when designing new lures, tweaking our existing line and brainstorming about future projects. I’m very excited.”
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We have been using the Ardent Reel Supreme this year and the advantages have been obvious. A lubricant for reels that contains a dry lube and anti-corrosion has taken some of our older reels and given them new life. Last year we had a Quantum KVD Tour go into the drink. We were able to fish it out and we cleaned and lubricated it thoroughly. After the "swim" it just never sounded or cast as well. They are great reels and we weren't ready to put it in the "if everything else fails" box just yet. We again took the reel apart and this time used Ardent Reel Supreme. Immediately the reel had new life and was the reel that came out of the box.
Reel Supreme is better than oil. It is a liquid but has a dry lubricant built in. It dissolves grease, oil and salt on contact and has an anti-corrosion property that fills pores too. Reel Supreme is waterproof and very slippery and can be applied to all moving parts and we recommend it on both old and new reels.
It comes in a 1/4-ounce tube that works great for hard to get to areas.
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Mechanically
inclined Bassmaster Elite Series pro Britt Myers is a good-mood kind of guy who
loves to tell a story and leave you searching for the truth between the lines
of his good-natured tales as he walks away laughing.
However,
there was nothing funny about the fact that the good-hearted fifth year Elite
Series pro found himself alone in a predicament he couldn’t fix last Tuesday
night while practicing for the Bassmaster Elite Series event on Wheeler Lake.
Worse yet, darkness was creeping over long stretches of the Tennessee River,
and Myers was a long way from the boat ramp.
“I
fished until the sun went down, and when it was time to come back to the ramp,
I had serious outboard issues," Myers said. "I thought about calling my buddy Gerald Swindle,
but it would have taken him well over an hour to get to me and, honestly,
towing one bass boat with another places a serious strain on the outboard
that’s doing the towing, which may have in turn hurt Gerald’s engine. I was a
long way from the ramp. It was getting dark. And I was getting really uptight.
“Amid
my slight panic, thank goodness, I remembered that I had joined BoatUS Angler earlier this year. Having
never used their services, as I sat in the middle of the Tennessee River, I
thought that calling them might be a long shot, and that it would probably take
hours before somebody would come to get me, but I dialed the toll-free number
on the membership tag they give for a keychain when you sign-up, and sure enough,
tow boat Captain Russ Hudson said he’d be there to get me in 20 minutes, and
sure enough he was. It was unbelievable.
“He
towed me in at about eight miles per hour, versus a bass boat that could have
only towed me at three miles per hour. That helped cut my time in half in
getting back to my trailer so that I could then head to Decatur where our Elite
Series outboard service tech 'Scotty B' graciously met me at 10:30 p.m., and
fixed my problem.”
Myers is a gear head himself, having owned and operated a very successful
truck and auto accessory store called CS Motorsports in Gastonia, NC for the
past 19 years.
“When
I bought my BoatUS Angler membership, I paid $72 to get both the Unlimited
on-the-road and on-the-water towing benefits, which in turn allowed me to
sign-up for their Weigh-to-Win cash
tournament bonus program,” he said. “Captain Hudson said his towing
services would have cost me $400 without my membership to BoatUS Angler. Plus,
I cashed-in on some Weigh-to-Win bonus money at the Bassmaster Southern Open
this year. If you fish a lot of tournaments, you’d be crazy not to sign up. If
they sold a lifetime membership, I’d buy one.”
Getting
a BoatUS Angler membership with on-the-water or on-the road towing and
signing-up for their Weigh-to-Win program like Britt did, is easy. Memberships
are as affordable as $38. Just dial (918) 742-6424 and ask for Kendell. She’ll
make sure you’re registered.
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David Walker is always smiling. He has a great family, a great group of sponsors and he just secured a Bassmaster Classic spot with his win of the Elite Series event on Lake Wheeler this past weekend. He joined the ATX Wheels team this year and Chris Anderson of ATX was proud as a peacock of his accomplishments as well. "ATX Wheels would like to congratulate David Walker on his much deserved win this weekend at the Dixie Duel, we are glad that he is part of the ATX team"......keep smiling David!
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Thanks to everyone who participated in the SIMMS Contest on Wired2Fish. The comments provided by many of you indeed show how important exceptionally dry footwear is to anglers. Simms is an industry leading in clothing for outdoors people as they provide layering, rainsuits, shoes and garments all specifically with the angler and outdoorspeople in mind.
The winners of the Simms Pursuit GORE-TEX® Mid Shoe Contest are:
Bryan Scott
McKinney, TX
BG Whitley
LaGrange, GA
Congrats!
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Eight pros earned their way Sunday into the Bassmaster Elite Series postseason, the July 23-31 Toyota Trucks All-Star Week in Alabama.
The list of eight initial qualifiers was topped by Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., newly crowned 2011 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year. The other seven set for the postseason were Edwin Evers, Talala, Okla.; Gerald Swindle, Warrior, Ala.; Ott DeFoe, Knoxville, Tenn.; Steve Kennedy, Auburn, Ala.; Terry Scroggins, San Mateo, Fla.; Casey Ashley, Donalds, S.C.; and Davy Hite, Ninety Six, S.C.
The eight were the top finishers in the 2011 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year points race, which reached the finish line Sunday at the Elite Series season finale on Wheeler Lake.
Four more Elite anglers voted in by fans will complete the postseason field of 12.
The voting will begin Tuesday, June 21, at Bassmaster.com and continue through July 10. The winners will be announced by July 13.
The dozen pros will fish under a new postseason format that awards $100,000 to the winner.
The first leg of the competition will be July 23-24 on Alabama’s Lake Jordan with the Ramada All-Star Semi-Final. Weigh-ins will be out of Wetumpka, Ala. Only the top eight will advance July 29 to the nearby Alabama River for the Evan Williams Bourbon All-Star Championship out of Montgomery, Ala.
“I like both fisheries,” said VanDam. “I’ve fished them the last few postseasons, and I like that I might have an advantage over the others — but I know they’re good and it will be a good competition.”
To begin the July 29-31 river round — a bracketed competition — anglers will be seeded by cumulative weights from the Lake Jordan leg. After two days of eliminations, the two anglers left standing will compete against each other for one more day, winner take all.
The Bassmaster fans who cast votes for the four anglers will be entered in the Toyota Trucks All-Star Fan Favorite Sweepstakes. The winners will be 12 fans who will be virtually paired with the 12 All-Star anglers. The fan whose name is matched with the pro who wins will be awarded a Triton 18XS boat with a Mercury 150 OptiMax engine. All 12 fan finalists will win a prize pack from Berkley and Havoc.
Rules governing the voting and sweepstakes will be available online at Bassmaster.com.
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The Eastern Kentucky team of John Smith of Richmond, Ky., and Kyle Raymer of Brandenburg, Ky., won the National Guard FLW College Fishing Central Division event on the Wolf River Chain
Sunday with five bass weighing 12 pounds, 10 ounces. The victory earned
the team $10,000 to be split between the university and the
university’s bass fishing club - $7,500 for the bass club and $2,500 for
their school. The win also helped them advance to the Central Division
Regional Championship.
“This feels awesome,” said Raymer, a sophomore business and
marketing major. “We’ve had a few top-10 finishes, but it feels good to
finally get a win.
“We prefished and absolutely busted them and most of the fish
were coming on a crankbait on riprap,” Raymer added. “But when we pulled
up we saw the grass was gone and couldn’t throw a crankbait.”
Raymer said the team tried fishing a dock pattern and received
a few bites that way, then finished the day throwing Strike King
buzzbaits on seawalls and crankbaits on riprap. Raymer said the team
relied on baits in either black or black and blue to catch 25 to 30
fish, including 12 keepers during the course of the day.
Rounding out the top five teams and also advancing to the Central Regional Championship are:
2nd: UW-Stevens Point – Ted Johnson and Jody Derks, both of Waupaca, Wis. (five bass, 12-1, $3,000)
3rd: Winona State University – Cade Laufenberg, Stoddard,
Wis., and Zac Cassill, Fairfax, Iowa (five bass, 11-4, $2,000)
4th: UW-Whitewater – Brooks Gullixon, Iola, Wis., and Bradley Taylor, Wausaukee, Wis. (five bass, 11-0, $2,000)
5th: University of Missouri – Taylor Knight, Columbia, Mo., and Champ Caldwell, Perry, Mo. (five bass, 11-0, $2,000)
The top five teams from each tournament qualify for the
regional championship where the first-place team will win $12,500 cash
for their school and $12,500 cash and a Ranger 177TR bass boat with a
90-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard wrapped in school colors for
their fishing club. The top five teams from each regional tournament
advance to the national championship where the first-place team will win
$25,000 for their school and $50,000 cash and a Ranger 177TR bass boat
with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard wrapped in school
colors for their fishing club.
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By B.A.S.S. Communications
Most David Walker fans automatically assume he’s won a major
tournament in his career, and now they are correct.
Amassing a Wheeler Lake catch of 63 pounds, 10 ounces the
Sevierville, Tenn., pro took possession Sunday of the Bassmaster Elite Series
Dixie Duel trophy, his first win in a premier circuit.
“I’ve fished a lot of them, and I hadn’t won one,” said
Walker, 46, an experienced pro who made a name for himself on the FLW circuit
before joining the Elite Series for the 2011 season. “I always felt like I was
good enough to do it, and I feel like I’ve paid my dues. And why not a win?
“That was my slogan for the whole week: ‘Why not me?’ And
here I am, talking about a win — I might be a little rusty on that topic,” he
quipped.
Walker won $100,000 and a 2012 Bassmaster Classic berth, his
primary goal in becoming an Elite pro. Because he also earned enough Toyota Tundra
Bassmaster of the Year points for a ticket to the 2012 world championship,
Walker reached his goal of returning to the Classic not once, but twice in one
season.
Kevin VanDam came within 1 pound, 13 ounces, of a 2011
regular-season Elite win. Sunday was the day after he closed on his fourth
consecutive Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year award, which he’s won
seven times in his career.
Day Three leader Bradley Roy of Lancaster, Ky., had 60-6
over four days to end in third place, shy of his last-hour bid to win and gain
a Classic berth. Fourth was Ish Monroe of Hughson, Calif., with 58-15, more
than good enough to punch his ticket to the Classic.
Rounding out the Top 5 was Ott DeFoe of Knoxville, Tenn.,
with 58-9. DeFoe’s strong finish to the season was the guarantee that he got
into the postseason as well as the 2012 Classic. Fourth in overall points,
DeFoe also won the 2011 Bassmaster Rookie of the Year award.
 Walker stayed on or near the top of the Dixie Duel’s
leaderboard over all four days. He started in second place with an impressive
haul of 18 pounds and 2 ounces. He took over on Day Two with 35-3, but slid
back to the runner-up spot before taking the title Sunday.
The winner caught most of his weight on a ledge pattern in
two spots. He rotated casts with an 11-inch plum-colored worm, a Lake Fork
chrome spoon and deep-diving crankbaits in two different shad patterns.
“Those were my main, key weapons,” he said, not specifying
brands.
“With the crankbait, I made a long throw, and once I felt
the crankbait hit the bottom, I felt the fish get it. And once the first fish
got it, it was every cast — hit bottom, a fish would get it, hit bottom, a fish
would get it.”
Saturday’s brisk wind dictated that he stick with a spoon
Saturday, but the wind direction changed enough Sunday so he could work with
other lures.
“The casts I needed to make were directly downwind so I
could throw even farther and feel (the bait working) even more,” he said. “The
difficult thing was holding (the boat) in position.”
VanDam’s Dixie Duel total was 61-13.
“I just didn’t get the quality bites today,” he said. “I
caught a ton of fish today, I fished everything I wanted to, but it was all I
could manage. I fished clean this week. I didn’t lose, I got beat.”
As the Angler of the Year, VanDam was first into the Toyota
Trucks All-Star Week postseason. As the 2011 Bassmaster Classic champ, he
already had his 2012 Classic berth secured.
The day’s largest bass was Greg Hackney’s 4-8, but it didn’t
beat Keith Poche’s 6-6 of Day Three.
Poche collected the Berkley Big Bass of the Tournament bonus
of $500.
Next up for the Bassmaster Elite Series is the postseason,
the July 23-31 Toyota Trucks All-Star Week in Alabama. Twelve anglers — four of
them selected by fan voting at Bassmaster.com beginning Tuesday — will compete
on Lake Jordan and the Alabama River. One lucky voter will end up with a
Triton/Mercury bass boat rig.
For more information about the Bassmaster Elite Series Dixie
Duel, go to bassmaster.com.
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Goodwill pro and father of two Chad Grigsby of Maple Grove, Minn., caught a five-bass limit weighing 22 pounds, 13 ounces Sunday to earn a Father’s Day win and $125,000 at the Walmart FLW Tour on Kentucky Lake presented by Kellogg’s with a four-day catch of 20 bass weighing 73-3.
The catch gave him the win by a solid 6-pound, 8-ounce margin over Kevin Snider of Elizabethtown, Ky., who caught a total of 20 bass weighing 66-11 and earned $33,287.
“This is what everybody strives for,” said Grigsby, who notched his first FLW Tour win in his 10 seasons as a pro. “You’ve got bars you strive for — make the top 20 and make the top 10. And I’ve bombed in some top 10s. But that’s because my whole goal is to fish to try to win it. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.
“I wasn’t going to go out and stay on the bank and try to catch 12 pounds and see where I ended up,” Grigsby added. “I wasn’t going to do that.”
Grigsby opened the tournament in 10th place Thursday with five bass weighing 19-11. On Friday he added another five bass weighing 14-10 to move up to seventh place. He then caught five bass weighing 16-1 Saturday to make the crucial top-10 cut in third place.
Grigsby said he fished spots around the Paris area as well as around Moors Resort and Marina on Kentucky Lake. The Paris area consisted of a channel swing that featured turns in it. Grigsby said he targeted bass in 19 to 21 feet of water in that area with a worm on a jighead. Grigsby said he started the first two days of competition there to catch a quick limit and then ran north in search of bigger fish.
Grigsby said he caught about eight keepers Sunday; his key area was near a creek in front of Moors.
“There’s a ditch that goes through it and then drops back to 15 or 16 feet,” Grigsby said. “And the top where the ditch comes back up is where the big shell bed is. That’s where I caught every one of them.
“Everybody was talking about catching 50 and 60 (fish) and whatever, but I didn’t get in on that,” Grigsby added. “If I caught a bunch of little ones I wouldn’t stay, because I’ve found if you catch a bunch of little ones you don’t usually catch very many big ones. So if I caught one 3 (pounds) or better, that would be the area I would focus on.”
Grigsby’s setup for the week included a 3/4-ounce Secret Lures football-head jig as well as a jighead with a homemade worm on it. Grigsby also employed the use of a Strike King 6XD deep-diving crankbait. Grigsby used a 7-foot, 10-inch All-Star cranking rod to cast the crankbait far enough to get it to dive to its maximum depth.
Grigsby said he was relieved to get his elusive first Tour victory behind him.
“I knew this day was coming,” he said. “I thought it would have been here by now. It wears on you a little bit when you get close and you can’t seal the deal. Everything just worked out.
“I wasn’t really on anything, but I could scrounge around and catch a couple of big ones every day, and today I happened to catch four of them,” Grigsby added.
The remaining top 10 pros finished the tournament in:
3rd: Chevy pro Jay Yelas of Corvallis, Ore., 20 bass, 62-10, $28,520
4th: Ramie Colson Jr. of Cadiz, Ky., 17 bass, 61-4, $25,003
5th: Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., 20 bass, 59-6, $18,987
6th: National Guard pro Mark Rose, Marion, Ark., 19 bass, 58-4, $16,127
7th: Tom Mann Jr., Buford, Ga., 20 bass, 57-13, $15,173
8th: Cody Bird, Granbury, Texas, 18 bass, 54-13, $14,220
9th: Diet Mt. Dew pro Jason Christie, Park Hill, Okla., 15 bass, 50-6, $13,267
10th: Cheez It pro Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas, 15 bass, 45-2, $12,313
Fukae was involved in a one-boat accident during Sunday’s competition and unable to attend weigh-in as a result. Fukae was treated for minor injuries and released and his cameraman was taken to a Nashville hospital for further observation.
A complete list of results can be found at FLWOutdoors.com.
Overall there were 40 bass weighing 108 pounds, 13 ounces caught by pros Sunday. The catch included seven five-bass limits.
Richard Peek of Centre, Ala., won the Co-angler Division and $20,000 Saturday with a three-day total of 14 bass weighing 47 pounds, 2 ounces followed by Tony Dumitras of Winston, Ga., in second place with 14 bass weighing 46-14 worth $7,134.
In FLW Tour competition, pros and co-anglers are vying for valuable points that could help them qualify for the 2011 Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart, where they could win up to $600,000 – the sport’s biggest award – and $60,000 respectively. This year’s Cup will be in Hot Springs, Ark., Aug. 11-14 on Lake Ouachita.
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Twenty-nine Bassmaster Elite Series pros nailed down qualifications on Sunday for the Feb. 24-26 Bassmaster Classic. With the nine Elite anglers who qualified earlier in the season, there are 38 who can get ready for the Red River world championship out of Shreveport-Bossier City, La.
Some of the pros had known they’d have enough points to get into the 2012 Classic field. But those riding the bubble had to sweat it out over the past week at the season closer on Wheeler Lake, constantly refiguring math on the points and doing a lot of Hail Mary casting.
This year, the top 28 Elite pros in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year points standings were awarded a Classic berth. If an angler in that top 28 qualified for the Classic through another route, B.A.S.S. worked down the Elite points list to award the berth to the next in line.
By the close of the regular season on June 19, there were nine duplicate qualifications, pushing the cutline to include 37th place.
Before the Wheeler tournament began, nine Elite anglers had no Classic worries. One was Kevin VanDam, who as 2011 Classic winner got an automatic in for the next time. Even before VanDam had his, Gerald Swindle won a seat for 2012 by winning the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Southern Open season opener in January, thanks to the new win-you’re-in rule of all Bassmaster Opens.
The same rule applied to Elite champs. That’s how Classic seats were secured by Shaw Grigsby, Edwin Evers, Davy Hite, Dean Rojas, Steve Kennedy, Casey Ashley and Denny Brauer.
On Sunday afternoon, Dixie Duel champ David Walker had one of those win-you’re-in Classic qualifications in hand as well as a qualification through the Angler of the Year points system.
Those without instant-ins or with shaky points standings were the Elite pros who, figuratively speaking, had calculators strapped to their boat’s dashboards all week. That group included Ish Monroe teetering at 35th in points going into the Wheeler tournament.
His catches on Day One and Day Two were both in the 12-pound class. Then he hauled in a huge sack of bass Saturday. As he waited at the tanks for his turn at the scales, Monroe happily confirmed the obvious: “This is the bag that seals the Classic, oh yes it is.”
Monroe locked in at 20th place.
Marty Robinson has a similar, if not 20-pound story. Robinson was 33rd at the beginning of the week. He had three solid days. But he had to wait until Sunday to find out he had hung on at 35th. It will be his first Classic appearance, the accomplishment of his long-held goal.
Other first-time qualifiers for the Classic were Walker, Ott DeFoe and Keith Combs.
First out at 38th place was Kelly Jordon of Palestine, Texas.
He and a few of the others near the cutline can keep their Classic hopes alive for a while because of possible duplications stemming from winners of the season’s remaining five Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open tournaments.
It’s also possible that an Elite angler will get in on his own by winning an Open. That could happen in the two remaining Central Opens (if the pro fished the first Central), or in the Northern Open circuit that begins in July. Any Northern winner also must fish all three Northern events to collect a Classic entry.
Bassmaster Elite Series anglers who have qualified for 2012 Bassmaster Classic (as of June 19)
These Elite anglers qualified by winning events:
1. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, Mich. (2011 Classic winner)
2. Gerald Swindle Warrior, Ala. (Open event winner)
3. Shaw Grigsby Gainesville, Fla. (Elite event winner)
4. Edwin Evers Talala, Okla. (Elite event winner)
5. Davy Hite Ninety Six, S.C. (Elite event winner)
6. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, Ariz. (Elite event winner)
7. Stephen Kennedy Auburn, Ala. (Elite event winner)
8. Casey Ashley Donalds, S.C. (Elite event winner)
9. Dennis Brauer Camdenton, Mo. (Elite event winner)
10. David Walker Sevierville, Tenn. (Elite event winner)
These Elite anglers qualified through the points system:
1. Ott DeFoe Knoxville, Tenn.
2. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, Fla.
3. Alton Jones Waco, Texas
4. Keith Poche Troy, Ala.
5. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, Ala.
6. Chris Lane Guntersville, Ala.
7. Randy Howell Springville, Ala.
8. Keith Combs Huntington, Texas
9. Aaron Martens Leeds, Ala.
10. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, N.J.
11. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, N.C.
12. Ish Monroe Hughson, Calif.
13. Todd Faircloth Jasper, Texas
14. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, Calif.
15. Bobby Lane Lakeland, Fla.
16. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, Okla.
17. Greg Hackney Gonzales, La.
18. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, Ky.
19. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, Okla.
20. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, Ala.
21. John Crews Salem, Va.
22. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, Ark.
23. Takahiro Omori Emory, Texas
24. Matt Reed Madisonville, Texas
25. Bill Lowen Brookville, Ind.
26. Marty Robinson Lyman, S.C.
27. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, Kan.
28. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, Idaho
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By B.A.S.S. Communications
It was no surprise on Sunday when 25-year-old Ott DeFoe of Knoxville, Tenn., was declared the 2011 Bassmaster Rookie of the Year.
Anyone who had even casually tracked DeFoe’s first year in the Bassmaster Elite Series knew that he wasn’t a typical rookie. His strong performances all year pointed to the fact that he’d pick up the top-rookie trophy at season’s end.
“To come into this and win Rookie of the Year means a lot to me,” he said. “The winner can always say he was the best in his freshman class of anglers entering the Elite Series. It gives you a lot of credibility.”
DeFoe set himself apart early. After the second Elite tournament, he led all other rookies in the points tally (the same points system used to score for the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year award).
The best rookie of 2011 was also a season standout among all Elite pros, rookie or veteran. Sunday he ended in the top eight in overall points, nailing one of eight berths awarded Sunday for Toyota Trucks All-Star Week and a 2012 Bassmaster Classic qualification.
All-Star Week is the Elite Series’ new postseason event slated for July 23-31. It will be played on Lake Jordan out of Wetumpka, Ala., and on the Alabama River out of Montgomery, Ala. Only 12 anglers will compete. Eight come from the top of the Elite points standings. The other four will be selected through online voting by fans beginning June 21 at Bassmaster.com. The prize in the winner-take-all event is $100,000.
“I am extremely proud to qualify for the postseason and the Classic in my rookie year,” DeFoe said.
The 2012 Classic will be his first — as a competitor. With his father and brother, he attended every Classic from the age of 11 until he was about 19.
His Elite season accomplishments include seven of eight Top 50 cuts of the 2011 season (he missed out only in the Arkansas River event). Two top-12 cuts are on his record, too. The first was at Georgia’s West Point Lake in May, the second at Alabama’s Wheeler Lake for the June 19 season finale.
He said he began the year with a full list of goals: making a Top 12, winning Rookie of the Year, qualifying for the Classic, getting into the postseason, and winning an Elite tournament.
“Winning is the only one of my goals I didn’t make this season,” he said. “But I think winning in your rookie year is asking quite a bit.”
DeFoe, who competed in his first tournament when he was 9 years old, qualified for the Elite Series through the 2010 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Southern Open circuit. Before that, starting at age 16, he competed on the FLW circuit, logging 95 events from 2002 to 2010. His FLW record included 17 top 10 finishes and four championship qualifications.
But he wanted to move up into the Bassmaster Elite circuit. He spent just one season in the Opens earning his Elite qualification. Electing to continue with Southern Opens in 2011, he scored third place in Open points.
DeFoe delivered a stellar 2011 season at a time when his personal life was delivering too. The parents of a 4-year-old girl, he and his wife became parents of twins just three days before he had to travel to Arkansas for the June 9-12 Elite event. Because he drove straight to Alabama for the Dixie Duel, he had not seen his family for weeks. His wife, daughter, twins, and other family members drove to Decatur to be with him as he accepted the Rookie of the Year trophy — icing on the cake to his Father’s Day.
For more information about the Bassmaster Elite Series Dixie Duel, and for final Bassmaster Rookie of the Year points standings, go to www.bassmaster.com.
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Sgt.
Pool of Paducah, Ky., and Sgt. Harrison of Mayfield, Ky., won the
National Guard FLW Soldier Appreciation Tournament held on Kentucky Lake
Saturday. The team, fishing with pro Roy Hawk, caught three bass for a
total of 12 pounds, 6 ounces to take the title and bragging rights
amongst their peers.
Storms threatened the skies early during the tournament, but the weather didn’t slow down the fishermen.
“The weather was fine for about 30 minutes and then it started to get
real bad,” Pool said. “The rain started pouring down, the wind was real
bad and the water was rough, but we were out there to just do the best
we could to catch any kind of fish that we could catch. Roy got us on
the big fish fore sure, and we really appreciate that.”
“This is the first time I’ve ever fished in a tournament and it feels
great to win it,” Harrison added. “Especially since our unit is from
here in Murray. We were proud to represent them.”
Each of the participants in the National Guard FLW Soldier Appreciation
Tournament are members of the National Guard. In this tournament,
Walmart FLW Tour pro anglers took teams of two members of the National
Guard fishing to compete amongst their peers. Each team was allowed to
bring in three bass. FLW Outdoors is operating the tournaments in
conjunction with the National Guard to show appreciation to our service
members of the National Guard.
“We mainly threw 1/2- and 3/4-ounce Pepper Jigs Custom Baits,” Hawk said. “We caught them on both points and ledges.
“It means a ton to me to take these guys fishing because it gives me
the opportunity to actually give something back to them because they’ve
given so much to us,” Hawk added. “Having this tournament set up to give
back to them is really special. We appreciate all they do and their
sacrifice.”
A total of 27 service men, 14 teams, participated in the tournament. Rounding out the teams was:
2 nd: 1st Lt. Fryberger, Paducah, Ky., and 2nd Lt. Settles, Paducah, Ky., fishing with pro Chad Branham, 8-6
3 rd: Spc. Williams, Owensboro, Ky., and Spc. Boone, Owensboro, Ky., fishing with pro Troy Morrow, 8-5
4 th: Spc. Moore, Mayfield, Ky., and Pfc. Williams, Mayfield, Ky., fishing with National Guard pro Justin Lucas, 8-4
5 th: Command Sgt. Major Higgs, Altamont, Ill., and Sgt. 1st
Class Jackson, Marseilles, Ill., fishing with National Guard pro Brett
Hite, 7-13
6 th: Sgt. Goselin, fishing with Duracell/Gillette pro Jacob Powroznik, 7-3
7 th: Sgt. Mills, Murray, Ky., and Spc. Elkins, Murray, Ky., fishing with pro Kevin Hawk, 6-11
8th: Sgt. 1st Class Lopez, Nove, W.V., and Staff Sgt. Fernandez, Benton, Ky., fishing with pro Jim Leary, 6-9
9th: Sgt. Latiolais, Thibodaux, La., and Staff Sgt. Lowery, Alabaster, Ala., fishing with National Guard pro Jonathan Newton, 5-10
10th: Pvt. Brandenburg, Murray, Ky., and Spc. Spalding, Murray, Ky., fishing with pro John Voyles, 5-9
11th: Pfc. Thomas, Mayfield, Ky., and Sgt. Athenas, Paducah, Ky., fishing with pro Cody Meyer, 5-5
12th: Sgt. Keefer, Charleston, Ill., and Spc. Klotz, Machesney Park, Ill., fishing with Sgt. Adam Lock, 3-11
13th: Pfc. Ramage, Smithland, Ky., and First Sgt. Goodwin, Whitesville, Ky., fishing with Command Sgt. Major Doc McGhee, 1-12
14th: Spc. Grooms, Clinton, Ky., and Spc. McHugh, Calvert City, Ky., fishing with pro Jay Keith, 0-0
The Soldier Appreciation Tournament was held in conjunction with the
Walmart FLW Tour on Kentucky Lake presented by Kellogg’s and hosted by
the Murray Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Marshall County
Tourist Commission.
For complete details and updated information visit FLWOutdoors.com.
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 Ramie Colson Jr. of Cadiz, Ky., caught two bass weighing 7 pounds, 1 ounce Saturday to maintain his lead at the Walmart FLW Tour on Kentucky Lake presented by Kellogg’s and advanced to the top 10 as the crucial No. 1 seed. With a three-day catch of 12 bass weighing 51-12, he now holds a 1-pound, 4-ounce lead in the tournament going into the final day of competition.
“I made a bad call this morning,” said Colson, who now has led the first three days of competition even after stumbling a bit Saturday. “I had some shallower ledges that I went and fished this morning that I hadn’t fished and I thought they would hold some fish.
“Typically when it gets cloudy and rainy the fish go up shallower on the drops,” Colson added. “I spent a little too much time trying to catch them on the shallow drops. When I finally decided to go back into the creeks, I ended up catching them and I wished I’d have just done that.”
Colson’s baits for the tournament have been homemade ½- and ¾-ounce Arkie-style jigs with a Zoom Big Salty Chunk trailer as well as a plum-colored Zoom Ol’ Monster worm.
“I was pleased with where I caught my fish because that’s where they should have been,” Colson said. “I’m just disappointed I didn’t make that decision earlier. I should have just fished a spot or two and vacated it and gone back to my creeks so I would have had time to hit my other stuff in the back of the creeks.
“Now it’s anybody’s ball game,” Colson added. “Like I said, anybody can catch a 25-pound sack of fish. I need to catch at least 20 pounds tomorrow to feel comfortable.”
Chevy pro Jay Yelas of Corvallis, Ore., advanced to the final round of 10 pros in the No. 2 spot with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 50-8.
“Ask all of these guys and they’ll say they’re shocked I’m in second place flipping bushes in the middle of June,” Yelas said. “I’m catching 30 or 40 a day. There’s so many bass and nobody’s been fishing for them all week. They’re not schooled up, though. You just hunt and peck when you’re flipping bushes.”
Yelas said he has been fishing the south end of Barkley Lake and has caught most of his fish on a ½-ounce Berkley Gripper Jig in both black and blue or black and brown and either a black and blue Berkley Havoc Craw Fatty or a green pumpkin Berkley Chigger Craw as a trailer. Yelas said he’s also caught a few fish on a buzzbait and a spinnerbait.
“What helped me today was this weather,” Yelas said. “Any time it rains really hard and the wind blows it’s just terrible conditions for ledge fishing. Just the worst. But it’s some of the best for fishing shallow. You can just catch them. The weather just played into my hands and kept the weights down. I’ve had progressively smaller stringers each day, but I’ve been moving up. So the fishing’s really gotten tough with the weather and the fishing pressure on those ledges.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros and advancing to the final day of competition are:
3rd: Goodwill pro Chad Grigsby, Maple Grove, Minn., 15 bass, 50-6
4th: Kevin Snider, Elizabethtown, Ky., 15 bass, 49-8
5th: Diet Mt. Dew pro Jason Christie, Park Hill, Okla., 14 bass, 48-8
6th: Tom Mann Jr., Buford, Ga., 15 bass, 48-3
7th: National Guard pro Mark Rose, Marion, Ark., 14 bass, 45-14
8th: Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., 15 bass, 45-9
9th: Cody Bird, Granbury, Texas, 14 bass, 45-5
10th: Cheez It pro Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas, 15 bass, 45-2
Finishing in 11th through 20th are:
11th: David Young, Mayfield, Ky., 15 bass, 44-15, $11,837
12th: Blake Nick, Adger, Ala., 12 bass, 44-8, $11,837
13th: John Cox, Debary, Fla., 15 bass, 44-7, $11,837
14th: David Kromm, Kennewick, Wash., 14 bass, 43-15, $11,837
15th: EverStart pro Ron Shuffield, Bismarck, Ark., 15 bass, 43-1, $11,837
16th: Glenn Chappelear, Acworth, Ga., 12 bass, 41-10, $11,360
17th: National Guard pro Brent Ehrler, Redlands, Calif., 15 bass, 41-8, $11,360
18th: Richard Lowitzki, St. Charles, Ill., 18 bass, 41-2, 11,360
19th: Folgers pro Scott Suggs, Bryant, Ark., 15 bass, 40-7, $11,360
20th: Chevy pro Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., 12 bass, 35-10, $11,360
Final results for the remaining field can be found at FLWOutdoors.com.
Overall there were 82 bass weighing 212 pounds, 14 ounces caught by pros Saturday. The catch included 11 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart, the world championship of bass fishing. This year’s Cup will be in Hot Springs, Ark., Aug. 11-14 on Lake Ouachita where pros are competing for a top prize of $600,000 – the sport’s biggest award. Pro anglers are also vying for the prestigious 2011 Walmart FLW Tour Angler of the Year presented by Kellogg’s that will be determined by the most points accumulated over the six Tour Majors with the winner receiving $100,000 for their accomplishment.
Richard Peek of Centre, Ala., won the Co-angler Division and $20,000 Saturday with a three-day total of 14 bass weighing 47 pounds, 2 ounces followed by Tony Dumitras of Winston, Ga., in second place with 14 bass weighing 46-14 worth $7,134.
“I’m speechless,” said Peek, who won the EverStart Series Southeast Division event on Pickwick Lake presented by Mercury last weekend. “I’m having a great year already, and I hope to keep it going. I’ve been on the road for 40 days straight.
“It kind of threw me for a loop today drawing Ramie because he got out of the Tennessee River system, and it was a little more tough on me to figure out,” Peek added. “I’m just thankful it worked out the way it did.”
Peek said he “junk fished” a lot during the week with baits like 10-inch ribbon-tail worms, Carolina rigs and jigs and attributes his win to getting the “right bites.” Those bites helped contribute to Peek’s fifth FLW Outdoors top-10 finish of the season.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Dakota Lucy, Hot Springs, Ark., 15 bass, 38-13, $4,750
4th: Patrick Bone, Cleveland, Ga., 13 bass, 37-5, $3,797
5th: Justin Sward, Birmingham, Ala., 15 bass, 36-13, $2,844
6th: Sean Stepp, Stafford, Va., 15 bass, 36-6, $2,367
7th: Matt Hults, Gautier, Miss., 14 bass, 36-3, $1,890
8th: Rob Hicks, Lula, Ga., 14 bass, 35-13, $1,700
9th: Billy Brindle, Calhoun, Ga., 15 bass, 35-12, $1,604
10th: Dan Thill, La Crosse, Wis., 15 bass, 35-9, $1,509
Final results for the remaining field can be found at FLWOutdoors.com.
Overall there were 64 bass weighing 148 pounds, 13 ounces caught by co-anglers Saturday. The catch included six five-bass limits.
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Kevin VanDam of
Kalamazoo, Mich., amassed enough points Saturday to close the deal he
said he’s been focused on since his first cast this season: the 2011
Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year award, his seventh
best-angler title and fourth consecutive.
Not even the legendary
Roland Martin, holder of nine Angler of the Year titles through 1985,
strung together more than three in a row.
VanDam on Saturday also
became the first pro to land Angler of the Year and Bassmaster Classic
titles in the same season for two seasons running.
“This one means as much
if not more to me. Winning never gets old when you’re competing against
these guys,” said VanDam of his fellow Bassmaster Elite Series pros.
“I’ve been out to win Angler of the Year since the first cast of the
first tournament of the season.
“Every pro wants to win
Angler of the Year because it is our sport’s highest award. It shows
you’re at the top of your game and it rewards consistency. I haven’t won
a regular-season tournament this year — although I’m trying to change
that here on Wheeler.”
VanDam — many fans call
him “KVD” — closed on the Angler of the Year title on the third day of
the four-day Dixie Duel, the Wheeler Lake event in Alabama that doubled
as the points race finish line and the Bassmaster Elite Series season
finale. The tournament concludes Sunday, but by Saturday no angler had a
mathematical chance of overtaking VanDam in the points standings.
Edwin Evers of Talala,
Okla., came the closest. Trailing by 55 points going into the Wheeler
Lake event, Evers had been VanDam’s top threat.
The Oklahoma pro had, in
fact, been nipping at the heels of the points leaders throughout the
season: Shaw Grigsby after the season opener (which he won), Alton Jones
from tournament No. 2 through No. 5, and Terry Scroggins, who took the
lead after the sixth event but lost it to VanDam in Arkansas.
Evers — the runner-up to
VanDam for the 2010 title — faded as a threat in the first two days of
Dixie Duel competition. But the game wasn’t over, and Evers got another
at-bat when the competition continued Saturday.
“I don’t have any quit in me,” Evers said as he set out Saturday for one more swipe at VanDam.
But the heroics Evers
needed didn’t happen for him. There was no magic in Steve Kennedy’s hat
either. Third in points behind VanDam going into the Wheeler event,
Kennedy on Saturday also had had a mathematical chance of catching
VanDam.
The $100,000 award was
based on points earned in 2011 over eight regular-season tournaments.
VanDam started the season with a fourth-place finish on Florida’s Harris
Chain of Lakes. He followed with 11th place on the St. Johns River.
After the third and fourth events — finishing 22nd on Pickwick, 33rd on
Toledo Bend — he was No. 3 in the standings. Then, fishing through
back-to-back events in April at West Point Lake and Lake Murray, VanDam
inched into second place in points.
He took over at No. 1 on May 12 after the Arkansas River event. At that point only one event, the Dixie Duel, remained.
VanDam won his first
Angler of the Year crown in 1992 when he was the still the 24-year-old
“Kalamazoo Kid.” The road to the Angler of the Year was much different
in the early 1990s, VanDam said.
“It’s harder now to
win,” he said. “And when I won that first one, I really didn’t
understand the magnitude of what it meant to win an Angler of the Year
title.”
He had to work four more
years for his second title in 1996. He won for the third time in 1999.
Then he started stacking the crowns: 2008, 2009, 2010 and now 2011.
Meanwhile, he was winning Classics: 2001, 2005 and back-to-backs in 2010
and 2011.
VanDam weighed in on the question of what the sport considers to be hardest title to win, Classic or Angler of the Year.
“Winning the Classic is a
big deal — an incredible, awesome accomplishment. It’s the toughest
tournament there is to win, but it’s one tournament. I think if you ask
most anglers, they’d say winning Angler of the Year is harder,” he said.
VanDam, 43, has set the
bar high on a list of statistics and records in Bassmaster tournament
history. Since his first Bassmaster tournament in 1987, VanDam has won
$5.2 million — more than the second- and third-place money winners
combined — on the B.A.S.S. circuit. When he won the 2011 Classic, he
tied with Rick Clunn for most Classic victories, four. VanDam has
qualified for 22 consecutive Classics (counting Classic 2012). He has
posted top-10 finishes 94 times. He has stacked up a record 20
Bassmaster event wins, including the four Classics.
The competition among
Elite Series pros for points wasn’t over when VanDam won the title. The
Elite field will work through Sunday to claim spots below No. 1 and
collect prizes awarded on a sliding scale to 50th place.
Final points standings will be available Sunday afternoon at Bassmaster.com.
Monday, VanDam is scheduled to be featured on ESPN’s Mike & Mike in the Morning.
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Bradley Roy of Lancaster, Ky., injected new life into his sagging season Saturday at the Bassmaster Elite Series season finale by bringing in 17 pounds, 10 ounces, and jumping four places into the lead with 50-5 over three days.
Roy’s big charge this week on Alabama’s Wheeler Lake started with a quiet 13th place on the first day. He made more noise on the second day by hitting fifth place. Saturday, Roy got everyone’s attention by whisking the lead from David Walker of Sevierville, Tenn., who fell to second place with 48-10, but still just 1 pound, 11 ounces behind Roy.
“I feel like I’ve turned a bad season into a good one in one day. I’m determined, I need to win this,” said the 20-year-old Roy, the pro who made a quick name for himself in 2009 as the youngest pro to ever qualify for the Elite Series. He was just 18 at the time. He went on to become the 2010 Bassmaster Rookie of the Year.
In third after three days with 47-2 was Kevin VanDam, newly crowned 2011 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year. With the same weight as VanDam, but given fourth place after a tie-breaker was applied was Day One leader Ott DeFoe of Knoxville, Tenn. Fifth was Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La., with 46-10.
The day’s biggest bag of 20-14 propelled Ish Monroe from 34th into sixth at 45 pounds, 1 ounce. Monroe is intent on a big finish at the Wheeler event to earn enough points to qualify for the 2012 Classic.
The Classic is Roy’s goal, too. Roy had slumped into 83rd place in the 2011 season standings. His only hope to qualify for the 2012 Bassmaster Classic was to win an event, and he made his move this week.
Roy said he’s been working the same ledge of Wheeler Lake all three days of the Dixie Duel to climb the leaderboard each day. He’s actually been sharing water all that time with Monroe, but didn’t realize it until Saturday when they both turned up there at the same time.
“I think we’ve been showing up at different times, so I thought I had it to myself. But there’s been plenty of fish there for us both,” Roy said.
If Roy wins Sunday, it would mean a $100,000 payday and an instant qualification for the 2012 Bassmaster Classic.
“I’ve been having a ‘sophomore slump’ year. The only way to get into the Classic is the hard way, and that’s winning one of these things. That’s all that’s on my mind, to have a shot to win it tomorrow, get those key bites and get them in the boat,” Roy said.
Roy and Monroe agreed that the spot held enough fish to carry them both through the final day of competition.
“There’s tons of fish there,” Monroe added.
Monroe said he arrived at the spot Saturday, saw Roy there, and they worked out a share plan. Monroe began to fish, and caught a 5-pounder on his first cast.
“At one point, I guarantee, I made 10 casts and got 10 bites,” said Monroe. “Then he was catching them every cast, and I’m not, but I’m catching bigger ones.”
After boating the fish he needed, Monroe said he cut his lure from his line, tossed it to Roy, and left Roy to it.
“I knew he was in the Top 10 with an opportunity to win and hadn’t made the Classic,” Monroe said. “I felt sure now that I would have enough points for a Classic berth, so I said, ‘Dude, it’s all yours,’ and I left.”
Roy said he did catch one bass on the lure Monroe gave to him, a slightly different color than what he’d been using.
Both Roy and Monroe came in early to save some fish for Sunday and for fish care issues.
VanDam, the Angler of the Year trophy safely tucked under his arm, turned his attention to taking the Dixie Duel trophy. He’s 3 pounds, 3 ounces from the leader.
“It’s the final day, so there’s no reason to save back fish,” he said, adding that he has a few areas he’s held in reserve. “I know I’m going to have to catch a big stringer to win.”
Afternoon wind killed his bite, he said. A thunderstorm with high winds kicked up midafternoon and put a chop on Wheeler that also hurt Walker.
“The wind literally blew me off the fishing,” Walker said. “The last part of the day was a wash, you could only hope to get a bite on my spot. I’ll go back there tomorrow, but I know good and well not to sit around there and die on it.”
The big bass of the day, a 6-6, was brought in by Keith Poche of Troy, Ala. He said he caught it on a 5-inch NetBait Salt Lick in green pumpkin. That bass helped Poche into the Top 12 at No. 9 for Sunday’s competition. Poche’s bass now stands as the frontrunner for the Berkley Big Bass of the Tournament award, which carries a $500 bonus.
The field was cut to 12 for Sunday’s finale. On the line are the event’s $100,000 prize, eight qualifications for the Toyota Trucks All-Star Week in July, and entries into the Bassmaster Classic of February 2012.
Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., at first secured a Top 12 spot, but lost it. He weighed his day’s catch and returned to his boat and discovered a sixth bass still in his livewell. Tournament officials said Reese reported the fish.
The sixth fish in a post-weigh-in situation costs the angler all credit for his day’s catch. Reese ended in 33rd place, out of the cut and out of a chance to gain a Bassmaster Classic berth by winning the event. Takahiro Omori of Emory, Texas, who had been first out of the cut, was awarded the 12-place spot.
For more information about the Bassmaster Elite Series Dixie Duel, go to bassmaster.com.
2011 Dixie Duel - Decatur, AL 6/16-6/19
Wheeler Lake, Decatur AL.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 3
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 15 50-05 305
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 18-01 Day 3: 5 17-10
2. David Walker Sevierville, TN 15 48-10 300
Day 1: 5 18-02 Day 2: 5 17-01 Day 3: 5 13-07
3. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 15 47-02 290
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 15-12 Day 3: 5 16-00
4. Ott DeFoe Knoxville, TN 15 47-02 290
Day 1: 5 18-06 Day 2: 5 14-07 Day 3: 5 14-05
5. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 15 46-10 280
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 5 19-09 Day 3: 5 12-05
6. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 15 45-01 276
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 12-05 Day 3: 5 20-14
7. Kelly Jordon Palestine, TX 15 43-10 272
Day 1: 5 14-11 Day 2: 5 12-02 Day 3: 5 16-13
8. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 15 42-14 268
Day 1: 5 16-06 Day 2: 5 10-03 Day 3: 5 16-05
9. Keith Poche Troy, AL 15 42-06 264
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 5 11-12 Day 3: 5 18-00
10. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 15 41-07 260
Day 1: 5 11-13 Day 2: 5 16-02 Day 3: 5 13-08
11. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 15 41-07 257
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 13-08 Day 3: 5 12-14
12. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 15 40-00 254
Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 12-15 Day 3: 5 13-13
13. Travis Manson De Pere, WI 15 38-14 251 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 5 11-03 Day 3: 5 11-09
14. Randy Howell Springville, AL 15 38-10 248 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 07-08 Day 2: 5 18-07 Day 3: 5 12-11
15. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 15 38-10 245 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 11-12 Day 3: 5 12-12
16. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 15 37-08 243 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 12-12 Day 3: 5 11-09
17. Dave Wolak Wake Forest, NC 15 36-04 241 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-12 Day 2: 5 12-08 Day 3: 5 12-00
18. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 15 36-03 239 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 12-00 Day 3: 5 13-02
19. Peter E Thliveros St Augustine, FL 15 36-02 237 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-09 Day 2: 5 11-12 Day 3: 5 09-13
20. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 15 36-00 235 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 11-15 Day 3: 5 12-03
21. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 15 35-14 233 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 09-00 Day 2: 5 13-07 Day 3: 5 13-07
22. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 15 35-12 231 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-05 Day 2: 5 12-09 Day 3: 5 09-14
23. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 15 35-08 229 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-05 Day 2: 5 13-05 Day 3: 5 10-14
24. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 15 35-08 227 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 5 13-14 Day 3: 5 11-06
25. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 15 35-08 225 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 12-14 Day 3: 5 10-06
26. Nate Wellman Newaygo, MI 15 35-02 223 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 5 11-10 Day 3: 5 10-14
27. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 15 34-13 221 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 5 07-06 Day 3: 5 10-02
28. Denny Brauer Camdenton, MO 15 33-15 219 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 11-00 Day 3: 5 09-02
29. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 15 33-13 217 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 13-12 Day 3: 5 08-09
30. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 15 33-10 215 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 09-04 Day 2: 5 17-01 Day 3: 5 07-05
31. James Stricklin Texarkania, TX 15 33-04 213 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 14-04 Day 3: 5 07-08
32. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 15 33-02 211 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 10-08 Day 3: 5 09-12
33. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 10 33-02 209..$10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 19-05 Day 3: 0 00-00
34. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 15 32-15 207 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-00 Day 2: 5 11-10 Day 3: 5 07-05
35. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 15 32-12 205 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 5 09-06 Day 3: 5 08-10
36. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, KY 15 32-06 203 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-07 Day 2: 5 11-02 Day 3: 5 06-13
37. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 14 32-06 201 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-03 Day 2: 5 14-14 Day 3: 4 07-05
38. Jason Quinn Lake Wylie, SC 15 32-05 199 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 5 11-07 Day 3: 5 08-12
39. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 15 32-04 197 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 5 10-14 Day 3: 5 09-12
40. Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 15 31-14 195 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 10-09 Day 3: 5 08-15
41. Terry Butcher Talala, OK 15 31-13 193 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 5 13-14 Day 3: 5 07-13
42. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 15 31-05 191 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 11-01 Day 3: 5 08-12
43. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 15 31-02 189 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 14-04 Day 2: 5 09-01 Day 3: 5 07-13
44. Dennis Tietje Roanoke, LA 15 31-01 187 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 10-07 Day 3: 5 07-07
45. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 15 30-10 185 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 09-00 Day 3: 5 08-03
46. Chad Griffin Cresson, TX 9 30-03 183 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 18-01 Day 2: 3 10-13 Day 3: 1 01-05
47. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 15 29-12 181 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-09 Day 2: 5 10-05 Day 3: 5 06-14
48. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 15 29-11 179 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 5 08-11 Day 3: 5 07-04
49. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 11 26-01 177 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 13-06 Day 3: 1 01-08
50. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 12 24-12 175 $5,000.00
Day 1: 5 15-14 Day 2: 5 06-13 Day 3: 2 02-01
51. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 10 24-12 175 $5,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 11-8 Day 3: 0 00-00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 96 488 1093-05
2 97 490 1114-05
3 45 233 517-04
----------------------------------
238 1211 2724-14
|
|
By Alan McGuckin
In much the same way that geese and ducks are intuitively
called north each autumn, yesterday, top pros Tommy Biffle and Greg Hackney
were instinctually called from Lake Wheeler’s deep-water structure to the
shallow waters where both feel most at home.
The flight path toward the shoreline landed both Quantum
pros near the top of the leaderboard, and Greg Hackney explained success came
fast once he touched down.
“It’s a place about the length of three bass boats, and when I pulled up there
yesterday, I caught eight keepers in 45 minutes,” Hackney said. “My smallest
was 2 ½-pounds, and by the time I was done culling, my best five weighed
19-pounds.
“The cool thing was, I caught them in
the most fun way possible – shallow – and I could visibly watch them bite. I
had 30 boats nearby, but I did my best to hide. I’ll start their first today,
I’ve probably already caught most of the big ones from that spot, but there’s a
good chance there’s still at least a couple good fish there. No matter what happens today, I pretty much
wrapped-up a spot in the Bassmaster Classic with that 19-pound limit yesterday.”
Tommy Biffle tried hard to avoid his instincts, but a dismal
9-pound limit on the first day of the tournament forced him ‘home’ to water no
deeper than his waist. “I knew coming into this tournament that you could catch
a few fish shallow, but I didn’t think you could win here this week fishing
shallow,” said Biffle, who won the Bassmaster Elite here at Lake Wheeler in
early April two years ago.
“I haven’t even been near that spot where I won. Between
local fishing pressure that’s rolled in there since I won, and the fact that
the water is probably 95-degrees in there, I didn’t see any point in fishing
it,” added Biffle. “The spot I caught that 17-pound limit from yesterday is no
bigger than this Ranger boat of mine, and it’s not three feet deep. I put my
Power-Poles down and caught two big ones on back-to-back pitches,” added
Biffle, who vaulted up to 13th place when the scale stopped spinning yesterday.
While Hackney and Biffle were called shallow, comically
good-natured veteran pro Kenyon Hill was calling geese before morning
blast-off. That’s right; Hill had a lanyard full of calls tucked beneath the
console of his Triton before take-off, and honked on them as his ride-along
Marshall walked down the dock.
“By coincidence, I drew the same guy yesterday as my
Marshall. We got to talking duck hunting, and I figured today we’d play a
little show and tell,” grinned Hill, who started duck hunting in cold and leaky
waders as a teenager around Buncombe Creek on Lake Texoma.
“I’m no world champion caller. I hunt 15 days a year, mainly
in Oklahoma and Kansas, but I can’t wait to pick up my dog Addie from Washita
Retrievers in Marlow, Oklahoma when I get home from Wheeler. Addie’s being
trained to be a hunting dog … and my best friend.
“Don’t think for a minute,
that I won’t stop fishing today and honk at a ‘sky carp’, a.k.a. goose, if one
flies over. Heck, yesterday, I stopped bass fishing and hammered the white bass
when they started schooling near us.”
Hill, who like Biffle and Hackney, proved you can indeed be successful and
qualify for multiple Bassmaster Classics as long as you’re willing to follow
your instincts and seek fun along your flight path.
|
By B.A.S.S. Communications
David Walker, who fished
a major circuit for years before leaving it to join the Bassmaster
Elite Series this season, says everyone believes he’s won a major
tournament in his career, but that’s not true.
Walker of Sevierville,
Tenn., came closer Friday to filling that hole in his history by taking
the lead with 35 pounds, 3 ounces, in the Elite Series season finale on
Wheeler Lake, the June 16-19 Dixie Duel.
Walker has work ahead of
him. He is 14 ounces ahead of Greg Hackney of Gonzales, La., who ended
the day with 34-5. A superfocused Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif.,
determined to win the event and score a Bassmaster Classic berth, moved
into third from 19th with 33-2 after two days.
First-day leader Ott
DeFoe of Knoxville, Tenn., slipped to fourth place with 32-13. Bradley
Roy of Lancaster, Ky., popped up from 13th place into fifth with 32-11.
 Walker’s decision to
fish the Elite Series had a lot to do with his desire to compete once
again in a Bassmaster Classic. He’s appeared in six Classics, but not
since 2006. Coming into the Wheeler event, he was 46th in points, and
needs to move up about 10 ticks. Thanks to double-qualifiers, the
cutline hovers at 37th place.
“A chance to win a big
tournament has just followed along with my Classic goal,” Walker, 46,
said. “I’ve never had a major tournament win. I’ve won other stuff, but
not an Elite tournament, not an FLW Tour tournament. I’ve come close —
too many times.”
On Wheeler, he and Reese
have been courteously sharing “one little area” over the first two days
of competition, Walker said. At one point Friday he moved off to fish
another spot.
“That paid off pretty good — but then he (Reese) had it to himself and that helped him out that much more,” Walker said.
Reese bagged 19-5 to Walker’s 17-1.
Walker is concerned that their spot — a ledge — won’t continue to produce, or not produce enough for two anglers.
“But there’s obviously a lot of fish there, and it’s held up so far,” Walker said.
He said he’s fishing clean, his limits are happening early for him, and his biggest fish was about a 4-pounder.
Hackney outfished both
Walker and Reese on Friday. His sack went 19-9 on the scales, but he had
started the day in 11th place, so had to make up ground to take second
place.
“I think the biggest
thing for me today was the weather,” Hackney said. “I caught my big fish
today just before that bad weather hit this morning. They were
aggressive and active. Then I stayed away from my primary stuff and went
looking. I have to be careful not to burn up my fish.”
He said he shared water
Friday with about 20 other anglers, but is working it slightly
differently to get the better bite. With the field cut in half for
Saturday’s competition, Hackney said he’s counting on having the area
more to himself.
Like Walker and Reese, Hackney’s focus at the Dixie Duel is to earn enough points to qualify for the 2012 Bassmaster Classic.
“That’s the main objective, my main goal this week, and today will pull me forward on that,” Hackney said.
A win means not only the
$100,000 first-place prize, but an instant-in for the 2012 Classic.
Unless they fall hard sometime over the final two days of Duel
competition, Walker and Hackney are now in a position to get to the
Classic via the Elite points system. Reese isn’t. Lacking enough points,
he must win at Wheeler to get to the Classic via the Elite Series.
The 2012 Classic is
scheduled for the Red River out of Shreveport-Bossier City, La., the
same venue where Reese won his Classic title in 2009.
“Winning here is my only
option,” Reese said. “I spent the week fishing out (offshore), looking
for a way to win. I didn’t think you could win it fishing the bank, but
obviously there’s some big stringers coming in from the shallows.”
In the Toyota Tundra
Bassmaster Angler of the Year race, leader Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo,
Mich., came close to closing. But his nearest challengers in points,
Oklahoma’s Edwin Evers and Alabama’s Steve Kennedy, both made the cut to
compete on Saturday. With a mathematically possible chance still
existing for either Evers or Kennedy to overtake him, VanDam must wait
another day to see if he will win his fourth consecutive title and
seventh of his career.
VanDam was in sixth place in the Dixie Duel after Friday, and he’s out for the event win. He’s 4-1 behind leader Walker.
“I’d like to be in contention to win this thing,” he said. “You do that, and the other (the points race) takes care of itself.”
The big bass of Friday
was caught by Tim Horton of Muscle Shoals, Ala., a 6-4. He said he
caught it on a Bomber No. 7 Switchback Shad in the purple darter finish.
Horton’s fish is in contention for the Berkley Big Bass of the
Tournament bonus of $500.
2011 Dixie Duel - Decatur, AL 6/16-6/19
Wheeler Lake, Decatur AL.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. David Walker Sevierville, TN 10 35-03 305
Day 1: 5 18-02 Day 2: 5 17-01
2. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 34-05 295
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 5 19-09
3. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 10 33-02 290
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 19-05
4. Ott DeFoe Knoxville, TN 10 32-13 290
Day 1: 5 18-06 Day 2: 5 14-07
5. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 10 32-11 280
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 18-01
6. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 31-02 276
Day 1: 5 15-06 Day 2: 5 15-12
7. Chad Griffin Cresson, TX 8 28-14 272
Day 1: 5 18-01 Day 2: 3 10-13
8. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 10 28-09 268
Day 1: 5 15-01 Day 2: 5 13-08
9. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 10 27-15 264
Day 1: 5 11-13 Day 2: 5 16-02
10. Travis Manson De Pere, WI 10 27-05 260
Day 1: 5 16-02 Day 2: 5 11-03
11. Kelly Jordon Palestine, TX 10 26-13 257
Day 1: 5 14-11 Day 2: 5 12-02
12. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 10 26-09 254
Day 1: 5 16-06 Day 2: 5 10-03
13. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 10 26-05 251
Day 1: 5 09-04 Day 2: 5 17-01
14. Peter E Thliveros St Augustine, FL 10 26-05 248
Day 1: 5 14-09 Day 2: 5 11-12
15. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 10 26-03 245
Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 12-15
16. Randy Howell Springville, AL 10 25-15 243
Day 1: 5 07-08 Day 2: 5 18-07
17. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 10 25-15 241
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 12-12
18. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 10 25-14 239
Day 1: 5 13-05 Day 2: 5 12-09
19. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 10 25-14 237
Day 1: 5 14-02 Day 2: 5 11-12
20. James Stricklin Texarkania, TX 10 25-12 235
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 14-04
21. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 10 25-10 233
Day 1: 5 14-00 Day 2: 5 11-10
22. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, KY 10 25-09 231
Day 1: 5 14-07 Day 2: 5 11-02
23. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 10 25-04 229
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 13-12
24. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 10 25-02 227
Day 1: 5 12-04 Day 2: 5 12-14
25. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 10 25-01 225
Day 1: 5 10-03 Day 2: 5 14-14
26. Denny Brauer Camdenton, MO 10 24-13 223
Day 1: 5 13-13 Day 2: 5 11-00
27. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 10 24-12 221
Day 1: 5 13-04 Day 2: 5 11-08
28. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 10 24-11 219
Day 1: 5 17-05 Day 2: 5 07-06
29. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 10 24-10 217
Day 1: 5 11-05 Day 2: 5 13-05
30. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 10 24-09 215
Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 13-06
31. Keith Poche Troy, AL 10 24-06 213
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 5 11-12
32. Dave Wolak Wake Forest, NC 10 24-04 211
Day 1: 5 11-12 Day 2: 5 12-08
33. Nate Wellman Newaygo, MI 10 24-04 209
Day 1: 5 12-10 Day 2: 5 11-10
34. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 10 24-03 207
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 12-05
35. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 10 24-02 205
Day 1: 5 14-12 Day 2: 5 09-06
36. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 10 24-02 203
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 5 13-14
37. Terry Butcher Talala, OK 10 24-00 201
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 5 13-14
38. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 10 23-13 199
Day 1: 5 11-14 Day 2: 5 11-15
39. Dennis Tietje Roanoke, LA 10 23-10 197
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 5 10-07
40. Jason Quinn Lake Wylie, SC 10 23-09 195
Day 1: 5 12-02 Day 2: 5 11-07
41. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 10 23-06 193
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 10-08
42. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 10 23-05 191
Day 1: 5 14-04 Day 2: 5 09-01
43. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 10 23-01 189
Day 1: 5 11-01 Day 2: 5 12-00
44. Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 10 22-15 187
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 10-09
45. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 10 22-14 185
Day 1: 5 12-09 Day 2: 5 10-05
46. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 10 22-11 183
Day 1: 5 15-14 Day 2: 5 06-13
47. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 10 22-09 181
Day 1: 5 11-08 Day 2: 5 11-01
48. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 10 22-08 179
Day 1: 5 11-10 Day 2: 5 10-14
49. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 10 22-07 177
Day 1: 5 13-12 Day 2: 5 08-11
50. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 10 22-07 175
Day 1: 5 13-07 Day 2: 5 09-00
51. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 10 22-07 175
Day 1: 5 09-00 Day 2: 5 13-07
52. Pat Golden High Point, NC 10 22-07 171
Day 1: 5 10-11 Day 2: 5 11-12
53. Jeff Connella Bentley, LA 10 22-05 169
Day 1: 5 11-11 Day 2: 5 10-10
54. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 10 21-15 167
Day 1: 5 08-07 Day 2: 5 13-08
55. Grant Goldbeck Boerne, TX 10 21-11 165
Day 1: 5 09-11 Day 2: 5 12-00
56. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 10 21-10 163
Day 1: 5 09-14 Day 2: 5 11-12
57. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 10 21-10 161
Day 1: 5 10-00 Day 2: 5 11-10
58. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 10 21-09 159
Day 1: 5 07-05 Day 2: 5 14-04
59. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, NC 10 21-08 157
Day 1: 5 11-03 Day 2: 5 10-05
60. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 21-08 155
Day 1: 5 07-13 Day 2: 5 13-11
61. Rick Morris Virginia Beach, VA 10 21-07 153
Day 1: 5 09-09 Day 2: 5 11-14
62. Boyd Duckett Demopolis, AL 10 20-09 151
Day 1: 5 12-15 Day 2: 5 07-10
63. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 10 20-09 149
Day 1: 5 09-09 Day 2: 5 11-00
64. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 10 20-08 147
Day 1: 5 08-08 Day 2: 5 12-00
65. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 10 20-08 145
Day 1: 5 09-01 Day 2: 5 11-07
66. Alton Jones Waco, TX 10 20-07 143
Day 1: 5 08-08 Day 2: 5 11-15
67. Andy Montgomery Blacksburg, SC 10 20-07 141
Day 1: 5 08-13 Day 2: 5 11-10
68. John Crews Salem, VA 10 20-06 139
Day 1: 5 08-05 Day 2: 5 12-01
69. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 10 20-06 137
Day 1: 5 13-05 Day 2: 5 07-01
70. Russell Parrish Riesel, TX 10 20-05 135
Day 1: 5 12-14 Day 2: 5 07-07
71. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 10 20-04 133
Day 1: 5 08-01 Day 2: 5 12-03
72. Cliff Crochet Pierre Part, LA 10 20-04 131
Day 1: 5 08-11 Day 2: 5 11-09
73. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 10 20-02 129
Day 1: 5 11-04 Day 2: 5 08-14
74. Pete Ponds Madison, MS 10 20-01 127
Day 1: 5 06-06 Day 2: 5 13-11
75. Bradley Hallman Norman, OK 10 19-09 125
Day 1: 5 09-05 Day 2: 5 10-04
76. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 10 19-02 123
Day 1: 5 10-01 Day 2: 5 09-01
77. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 10 18-15 121
Day 1: 5 09-06 Day 2: 5 09-09
78. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 10 18-12 119
Day 1: 5 10-08 Day 2: 5 08-04
79. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 10 18-12 117
Day 1: 5 09-01 Day 2: 5 09-11
80. Scott Ashmore Broken Arrow, OK 10 18-05 115
Day 1: 5 09-15 Day 2: 5 08-06
81. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 10 18-01 113
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 5 07-15
82. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 10 17-07 111
Day 1: 5 10-00 Day 2: 5 07-07
83. Zell Rowland Austin, TX 10 17-04 109
Day 1: 5 09-05 Day 2: 5 07-15
84. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 10 17-04 107
Day 1: 5 08-09 Day 2: 5 08-11
85. Billy McCaghren Mayflower, AR 10 17-02 105
Day 1: 5 07-03 Day 2: 5 09-15
86. Shaw E Grigsby Gainesville, FL 10 17-02 103
Day 1: 5 07-09 Day 2: 5 09-09
87. Dean Alexander Georgetown, TX 10 17-00 101
Day 1: 5 07-00 Day 2: 5 10-00
88. Matt Greenblatt Port St Lucie, FL 10 16-13 99
Day 1: 5 08-14 Day 2: 5 07-15
89. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 10 16-11 97
Day 1: 5 06-15 Day 2: 5 09-12
90. Clark Reehm Lufkin, TX 10 16-10 95
Day 1: 5 08-14 Day 2: 5 07-12
91. Jami Fralick Martin, SD 10 16-07 93
Day 1: 5 08-05 Day 2: 5 08-02
92. David Smith Del City, OK 10 16-02 91
Day 1: 5 07-07 Day 2: 5 08-11
93. Lee Sisson Winter Haven, FL 9 16-01 89
Day 1: 4 07-04 Day 2: 5 08-13
94. Ben Parker Springville, TN 8 14-12 87
Day 1: 3 04-00 Day 2: 5 10-12
95. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, OK 10 14-08 85
Day 1: 5 05-15 Day 2: 5 08-09
96. Craig Schuff Watauga, TX 10 13-13 83
Day 1: 5 07-15 Day 2: 5 05-14
97. Ryan Said Wixom, MI 7 12-09 81
Day 1: 5 07-00 Day 2: 2 05-09
98. Brent Broderick Oregonia, OH 10 12-06 79
Day 1: 5 05-12 Day 2: 5 06-10
99. Morizo Shimizu Matsugaoka JAPAN 6 09-05 77
Day 1: 1 01-14 Day 2: 5 07-07
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 96 488 1093-05
2 97 490 1114-05
----------------------------------
193 978 2207-10
|
 Ramie Colson Jr. of Cadiz, Ky., caught a five-bass limit weighing 21 pounds, 6 ounces Friday to take sole possession of the lead on day two of the Walmart FLW Tour on Kentucky Lake presented by Kellogg’s. His two-day catch totals 10 bass weighing 44 pounds, 11 ounces in a tournament that features anglers from all over the U.S. and Canada. The top 20 will fish day three and the top 10 will compete for the title on day four.
“I had a limit by 8:15 but they only weighed 10 ½ or 11 pounds,” Colson said. “After I got my limit and it was cloudy I figured I’d vacate the drops because the clouds aren’t good for them. I have caught them like that before, but after I fished two or three places and didn’t get bit I said, ‘Well, I need to move and come back later.’”
Colson said he relocated and moved to fish in the backs of some creeks, but the move produced only a few small fish. At 11:30, however, Colson moved back to deep water and went to a spot he didn’t fish on the first day of competition and caught a 5-pounder and a fish that weighed 6 pounds, 10 ounces on back-to-back casts.
Colson said he has focused on brush piles he placed in Lake Barkley before the off-limits period for fishermen. He said he has picked apart brush piles on top of ledges and methodically fished each brush pile with two or three casts for fish that were “buried up in it” with a homemade ½-ounce Arkie-style jig with a Zoom Big Salty Chunk trailer Thursday and a ¾-ounce jig Friday as well as a plum-colored Zoom Ol’ Monster worm.
Colson said the option to fish shallow brush while convention wisdom says to fish deep ledges may give him a slight edge in the event.
“If the sun shines tomorrow I’ve got one creek I’ll run to for sure and four or five different things I’ll try to fish,” Colson said. “Believe me, you’d be surprised what’s back there in 2 to 3 feet of water when you put (brush) out. You can catch a 20-pound bag easily doing that. I’ve done it several times when everybody’s fishing drops and catching little fish.”
Day one co-leader Glenn Chappelear of Acworth, Ga., is in the No. 2 spot with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 37-14.
Chappelear said he caught a few small fish early but didn’t catch any quality fish until he made a 35-mile run to north Kentucky Lake. Chappelear said he caught 25 to 30 keepers during the course of the day.
“I feel really good about it,” Chappelear said. “I’ve got a lot of fish and I need the Lord to bless me with key fish. I can catch a lot of 2-pounders, but you’ve got to have 5-pounders to win.”
Rounding out the top 20 pros that will fish another day on Kentucky Lake are:
3rd: Blake Nick, Adger, Ala., 10 bass, 37-14
4th: Kevin Snider, Elizabethtown, Ky., 10 bass, 37-13
5th: National Guard pro Mark Rose, Marion, Ark., 10 bass, 36-8
6th: Chevy pro Jay Yelas, Corvallis, Ore., 10 bass, 35-5
7th: Goodwill pro Chad Grigsby, Maple Grove, Minn., 10 bass, 34-5
8th: David Kromm, Kennewick, Wash., 10 bass, 34-2
9th: Cody Bird, Granbury, Texas, 10 bass, 34-1
10th: Richard Lowitzki, St. Charles, Ill., 10 bass, 33-15
11th: Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 33-11
12th: Diet Mt. Dew pro Jason Christie, Park Hill, Okla., 10 bass, 33-6
13th: Ron Shuffield, Bismarck, Ark., 10 bass, 33-0
14th: Tom Mann Jr., Buford, Ga., 10 bass, 32-15
15th: David Young, Mayfield, Ky., 10 bass, 32-12
16th: John Cox, Debary, Fla., 10 bass, 31-14
17th: Chevy pro Anthony Gagliardi, Prosperity, S.C., 10 bass, 31-10
18th: Cheez It pro Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas, 10 bass, 31-3
19th: National Guard pro Brent Ehrler, Redlands, Calif., 10 bass, 31-2
20th: Folgers pro Scott Suggs, Bryant, Ark., 10 bass, 30-15
Final results for the remaining field can be found on FLWOutdoors.com.
Colson Jr. caught the Snickers® Big Bass weighing 6-10 on the pro side to win $500.
Overall there were 574 bass weighing 1,509 pounds, 8 ounces caught by 135 pros Friday. The catch included 90 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart, the world championship of bass fishing. This year’s Cup will be in Hot Springs, Ark., Aug. 11-14 on Lake Ouachita where pros are competing for a top prize of $600,000 – the sport’s biggest award. Pro anglers are also vying for the prestigious 2011 Walmart FLW Tour Angler of the Year presented by Kellogg’s that will be determined by the most points accumulated over the six Tour Majors with the winner receiving $100,000 for their accomplishment.
Richard Peek of Centre, Ala., leads the Co-angler Division with an opening-round total of 10 bass weighing 35 pounds, 10 ounces, followed by Tony Dumitras of Winston, Ga., in second place with 10 bass weighing 35-3.
Rounding out the top 20 co-anglers are:
3rd: Mike Helton, Jeffersonville, Ind., 10 bass, 29-8
4th: Frank Divis Sr., Fayetteville, Ark., nine bass, 29-4
5th: Maurice Cobb, Kuttawa, Ky., 10 bass, 28-15
6th: Spiro Agouros, Peterborough, Ont., nine bass, 28-9
7th: Rob Hicks, Lula, Ga., 10 bass, 28-2
8th: Dakota Lucy, Hot Springs, Ark., 10 bass, 27-7
9th: Matt Hults, Gautier, Miss., 10 bass, 26-11
10th: Patrick Bone, Cleveland, Ga., nine bass, 26-5
11th: Dan Thill, La Crosse, Wis., 10 bass, 26-1
12th: James Dixon, Southfield, Mich., 10 bass, 26-1
13th: Billy Brindle, Calhoun, Ga., 10 bass, 25-13
14th: David Counts, Ozark, Mo., 10 bass, 24-0
15th: Justin Sward, Birmingham, Ala., 10 bass, 23-15
16th: Sean Stepp, Stafford, Va., 10 bass, 23-15
17th: J.R. Wright, Truckee, Calif., 10 bass, 23-14
18th: Scott Gibson, Wiggins, Miss., seven bass, 23-12
19th: Mike Devere, Berea, Ky., nine bass, 23-7
20th: Derek Yamamoto, Boulder City, Nev., 10 bass, 23-5
Final results for the remaining field can be found on FLWOutdoors.com.
Gibson caught the Snickers® Big Bass weighing 7-1 in the co-angler division to win $250.
Overall there were 474 bass weighing 1,139 pounds, 5 ounces caught by 129 co-anglers Friday. The catch included 55 five-bass limits.
|
|
By Alan McGuckin
The heavy grey clouds that hung over Ingalls Harbor during
Friday morning’s launch at the Bassmaster Elite Series event on Lake Wheeler
caused some to put on rainsuits, and others to look skyward and wonder if they
too should grab their GORE-TEX®.
It was a mind game against uncontrollable skies as to
whether they would be counted in or left out by rain clouds they couldn’t
control. Concurrently, a major pressure
front stemming from questions about inclusion or exclusion from the 2012 Bassmaster
Classic was toying with the souls of many Elite Series pros.
With seven regular season events already in their Tundras’
rear view mirror, it all comes down to today and tomorrow. Can guys like Gary
Klein and Kelly Jordon bag miraculous enough limits of bass both today and
tomorrow to assure their seat in the 2012 Bassmaster Classic?
BoatUS Angler “Weigh-to-Win” member Kelly Jordon didn’t
hesitate to talk about the storm. “Pressure? Absolutely, there’s pressure! I
gotta catch them today and tomorrow to make the Classic. Heck, the Classic is
pretty much being held on my home water. How can I miss that?” asked the
normally very laid back, East Texas resident, whose home is just 140 miles from
Shreveport’s Red River waters.
Here’s the math – sort of. The top 28 finishers in the
Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race following this Sunday’s
weigh-in are assured a place in bass fishing’s biggest dance next February on
the Red River. But … but … based on
double qualification through Bassmaster Open tournaments, it’s highly likely
that as many as 35+ Elite Series pros will make it to Shreveport.
Terry “Big Show” Scroggins stood near Jordon at morning
blast-off, and offered him reassurance.
“Awe, you’ll make it, K.J.,” said
Scroggins, who has already safely secured a seat in Shreveport.
While Scroggins tried to comfort Jordon, he simultaneously
expressed regret about falling out of the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of
the Year race that he led three-quarters of the way through the season.
“I knew going into the Arkansas River that it would be tough
on me, and it was," Scroggins said. "But the thing about
it is, I had found the right fish there. In practice, I located the same area that most of the top finishers
eventually came from, but there was only room for about 25 boats in there, and
I was the 30th or so boat to get there the first day.
“Overall, it’s been a good year. I’ve
finished in the Top 25 in six out of seven events. I wish I’d have won at home
on the St. Johns River instead of finishing second. That would have made it a great year. But
there’s no pressure now for me. The King of the Hill is up there,” said
Scroggins in reference to Kevin VanDam. “He’s got the A.O.Y. wrapped up as far
as I’m concerned.”
While Scroggins feels no pressure because his fate has
already been decided, living legend Gary Klein feels no pressure for reasons
he’s not used to feeling. Klein, who has amazingly made it to 29 Bassmaster
Classics, has had a tough year to say the least. However, based on the new B.A.S.S. rule that
says if you win an Elite you’re automatically in the Classic, Klein has one
last chance. And based on his small 9-pound limit yesterday, the last chance
comes down to today.
Klein reflected on the past four months as he arranged eight
Quantum rods and reels across the deck of his boat.
“It hasn’t been a lack of focus. But
certainly, as the year progressed I had to readjust my goals to reality. I’ve
just missed the bite this year. I’ve just missed it. But really there’s no
pressure today. I don’t have anything to lose. I’m going to try to go out there
today and catch 18 pounds. Don’t count me out,” said Klein, in an ironic way
that seemed to sum up the thoughts of so many sitting under uncertain skies
here in the North Alabama Mountain Lakes region -- “Don’t count me out.”
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 Sacking 18 pounds, 6
ounces of Wheeler Lake bass, Bassmaster Elite Series rookie phenom Ott
DeFoe of Knoxville, Tenn., took the first-day lead at the Dixie Duel,
the June 16-19 regular-season finale. He led fellow Tennessean David
Walker by just 4 ounces.
DeFoe, who leads the
Bassmaster Rookie of the Year race, also raised the stakes Thursday in
the overall points race to the postseason. If DeFoe can finish the Dixie
Duel even close to how he started, he could find himself inside the Top
8 cut for the July Toyota Trucks All-Star Week postseason.
“It’s game-on now,” said the 25-year-old pro. “I want to make that postseason.”
And, while two anglers
more seasoned than DeFoe battled Thursday for points to capture the
Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year crown, the rookie put
himself in contention not only for the postseason, but for the Dixie
Duel trophy and its $100,000 prize. He’d also win an instant 2012
Bassmaster Classic qualification — a prize DeFoe has enough points to
claim already.
DeFoe has serious
challengers for the points and the Duel’s top prizes: Walker of
Sevierville, Tenn., was second Thursday with 18-2. Only 1 ounce behind
Walker was Chad Griffin of Cresson, Texas, third with 18-1. Paul Elias
of Laurel, Miss., pinned down fourth place with 17-5, and Russ Lane of
Prattville, Ala., weighed 16-6 for fifth place.
DeFoe started his day
with at least one thing most others in the Elite field did not: private
water, a shallow area. He said his morning bite geared up slowly, and
his first fish was a small keeper — so small, it turned out later to be
the one he culled in exchange for a 4-pounder.
He changed locations once, he said, and built up his bag over the day, still without having to share with anyone else.
“Both places I fished
today were all mine,” he said, adding he’d found them during a previous
event on Wheeler Lake. He said he has confidence the area will produce
for him again Friday, especially because he intentionally laid off it
early Thursday.
“And then I got dumb-lucky, too, and stopped on the way in, and caught a 3 1/2-pounder. That didn’t hurt,” DeFoe said.
Walker, after ending in
98th place at last week’s Bassmaster Elite Series event in Arkansas,
showed the field on Thursday what a 180-degree recovery looks like. His
first-day weight alone could prove to be what pushes Walker back above
the final cutline for the 2012 Bassmaster Classic, a standing he lost
after his Arkansas River bomb.
Unlike DeFoe, Walker’s sharing water.
“Wheeler Lake has a lot
of ledges, but is famous for having a few really good ledges,” Walker
said. “It’s not a surprise (to have to share). Everybody knows exactly
what to look for, and with the Elite Series, the lake ends up fishing
small. To find something nobody knows about? That’s an anomaly here.”
He said he caught a
4-11, his largest bass, on his first cast. That was the sign he needed
that the day would go his way, he said.
“To me, it (the catch)
was quite a relief,” Walker said. “To finish here in the Top 20 like I
need to, I knew I had to catch a limit and get one big fish. When I got
it on the first cast, the pressure was gone and I knew then that I had
the hard part over with.”
Walker has appeared in
six Bassmaster Classics, but not since 2006. Now 46, he was a successful
FLW Tour pro for years, but dropped that circuit after 2010 to fish the
Bassmaster Elite Series and have a chance at the Classic title once
again. At 46th in points, Walker needs to move up about 10 ticks. Thanks
to double-qualifiers, the cutline now hovers at 36th-37th place.
Griffin said he had a limit soon after 8 a.m. and was culling up by 8:15. He had mirror anchor fish, each 3-15.
“By 10 o’clock, I was wrapped up and done,” he said. “I went and sat under a dock and tried to take care of my fish.”
Griffin said he’s not
sharing water, and that the spot is likely to replenish enough to do him
good on Friday. He said he’s dragging a 6 1/2-inch Hag’s Tornado
ringworm on a 3/4-ounce shaky head jig with a 5/0 hook, a jig by Ezee
Jigs.
Griffin checked in an
hour early because he was concerned about fish care. He knew he’d incur
one 8-ounce penalty for the one he lost.
“After the practice I had, I knew 18 pounds was pretty good and I didn’t want to lose any more,” he said.
Edwin Evers of Talala,
Okla., and Kevin VanDam of Kalamazoo, Mich., left as the only two
contenders for the 2011 Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year
crown, fished Thursday for points. VanDam ended the day well ahead:
eighth place to Evers’ 43rd.
“I covered a lot of ground. It’s not easy out there at all,” VanDam said.
VanDam has only to stay
even with Evers to snap up the 2011 crown, which would be VanDam’s
fourth consecutive and seventh of his career. But for Evers, just being
on pace with VanDam wouldn’t help. Evers has to make up the 55 AOY
points VanDam has on him — and, of course, add at least one more to tip
the total his way — to win his first AOY title.
Both Evers and VanDam will compete Friday. The outcome after two days could decide the AOY crown.
“Anything can happen tomorrow,” VanDam said. “It’s a long ways from over.”
The largest bass weighed
on Thursday was a 6-1 by Marty Robinson of Lyman, S.C. At tournament’s
end, the best single fish over four days will win a Berkley Big Bass of
Tournament bonus of $500. The big fish might prove to be the bass that
helped Robinson earn enough points to get into the 2012 Bassmaster
Classic, his first qualification.
The Dixie Duel taking
place on Wheeler Lake out of Ingalls Harbor in Decatur, Ala., will be a
designated drop-off point on Saturday, June 18, and Sunday, June 19, for
donations to Tackle the Storm. Any type of usable tackle will be
collected by the Decatur Convention and Visitors Bureau and distributed
to children affected by the April 27 tornadoes that devastated many
areas of Alabama.
For more information about the Bassmaster Elite Series Dixie Duel, go to www.bassmaster.com.
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Pros Glenn Chappelear of Acworth, Ga., and Ramie Colson Jr. of Cadiz, Ky., both crossed the stage Thursday with five-bass limits weighing 23 pounds, 5 ounces to lead day one of the Walmart FLW Tour on Kentucky Lake presented by Kellogg’s. They now hold a 4-ounce lead over Diet Mt. Dew pro Jason Christie of Park Hill, Okla., who caught five bass weighing 23-1 in a tournament featuring anglers from all across the U.S. and Canada.
“I felt like fishing was a little bit tougher than it was when we were
here two years ago,” Chappelear said. “I located a school of fish on
Sunday morning (in practice) and caught several 3-pounders and a
5-pounder.
“I saw them on my graph first, so I knew it was a really large school
of fish,” Chappelear added. “I found some other fish in other parts of
the lake, but I wanted to fish in the north end if I could. I went back
Tuesday and it took me about 15 minutes to find the school of fish. As
soon as I found them it was first cast a 2-pounder and second cast a
3-pounder. So I left them alone.”
Chappelear said he started the first day of competition looking for the
school of fish. He quickly located them, waited for boat traffic to
pass him, then began assaulting the school. He threw his first cast at
6:20 a.m., quickly caught about 20 keepers and had a limit in his first
seven casts.
Chappelear said he targeted a creek channel ledge in 15 to 18 feet of
water and used three Strike King baits – a football jig with a Rage Tail
Lobster trailer, Sexy Shad 6XD deep-diving crankbait and a 5 1/2-inch
Sexy Spoon.
“My strategy is to see if I can make it to Saturday,” Chappelear said.
“I’ll be curious to see what I need to catch tomorrow. I’ve got some
other fish 30 miles away that’s an every-cast place. God really blessed
me today.”
Colson said his first spot of the day didn’t pay off for him, but he
managed to catch a 5-pounder and a couple of keepers at his second spot.
“It seemed like everything was working like it should,” Colson said. “I
fished several places in one area, and when I did get a good bite, it
was a decent fish – a 4- or 5-pound fish. I’ve got other areas I could
have fished, but I thought, ‘What’s the point of going and busting up
those fish to catch keepers?’ So I figured I’d save some. I’ve got stuff
I can run over three days easily.”
Colson said he was fishing a “typical June” pattern - creek channel
ledges in Lake Barkley. Colson said his practice wasn’t what he had
hoped for, but his bites came when it mattered. He said Thursday he
picked apart brush piles on top of ledges and methodically fished each
brush pile with two or three casts for fish that were “buried up in it.”
Colson said he relied on a homemade 1/2-ounce Arkie-style jig with a Zoom
Big Salty Chunk trailer as well as a plum-colored Zoom Ol’ Monster worm
to catch his fish.
“I’m tickled to death,” Colson said. “I was aiming for 20 pounds a day. Anything over that was a bonus.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros after day one on Kentucky Lake are:
4th: National Guard pro Mark Rose, Marion, Ark., five bass, 21-12
5th: Tom Mann Jr., Buford, Ga., five bass, 21-10
6th: Blake Nick, Adger, Ala., five bass, 21-8
7th: Cody Bird, Granbury, Texas, five bass, 21-7
8th: AMP pro Stetson Blaylock, Benton, Ark., five bass, 20-5
9th: Tom Monsoor, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 19-15
10th: Goodwill pro Chad Grigsby, Maple Grove, Minn., five bass, 19-11
For a full list of results visit FLWOutdoors.com.
Chevy pro Dion Hibdon of Stover, Mo., caught the Snickers® Big Bass weighing 7-2 on the pro side to win $500.
Overall there were 634 bass weighing 1,780 pounds, 5 ounces caught by
140 pros Thursday. The catch included 111 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week plus
valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the Forrest Wood Cup
presented by Walmart, the world championship of bass fishing. This
year’s Cup will be in Hot Springs, Ark., Aug. 11-14 on Lake Ouachita
where pros are competing for a top prize of $600,000 – the sport’s
biggest award. Pro anglers are also vying for the prestigious 2011
Walmart FLW Tour Angler of the Year presented by Kellogg’s that will be
determined by the most points accumulated over the six Tour Majors with
the winner receiving $100,000 for their accomplishment.
Tony Dumitras of Winston, Ga., leads the Co-angler Division with five
bass weighing 20-7 followed by Chad Parks of Olive Branch, Miss., in
second place with five bass weighing 18-10.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Patrick Bone, Cleveland, Ga., five bass, 17-7
4th: Mike Devere, Berea, Ky., five bass, 16-5
5th: Jason Law, Waycross, Ga., five bass, 15-15
6th: Mike Helton, Jeffersonville, Ind., five bass, 15-9
7th: Mark Denney, Somerset, Ky., five bass, 15-5
8th: Dakota Lucy, Hot Springs, Ark., five bass, 15-3
9th: Richard Peek, Centre, Ala., five bass, 14-15
10th: Dan Thill, La Crosse, Wis., five bass, 14-3
For a full list of results visit FLWOutdoors.com.
Helton caught the Snickers® Big Bass weighing 7-11 in the co-angler division to win $250.
Overall there were 464 bass weighing 1,149 pounds, 10 ounces caught by
131 co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 48 five-bass limits.
Co-anglers are fishing for a top award of $25,000 this week plus
valuable points that could help them qualify for the 2011 Forrest Wood
Cup. The Walmart FLW Tour Co-angler of the Year presented by Kellogg’s
will be determined by the most points accumulated over the six Tour
Majors and the winner will receive a new Ranger 198VX with a
200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
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By Alan McGuckin
If you own a bass boat, you know that learning to back a
trailer down a ramp is a rite of passage. Hence, 21-year old Brianna Palaniuk, younger sister of popular rookie
Brandon Palaniuk, was beaming with pride in the bright morning sun inside
Ingalls Harbor on Lake Wheeler over the fact that for the first time ever, she
successfully backed her brother’s Skeeter boat down the launch ramp.
Simply being there for her brother is one of the feel-good
stories of the 2011 Bassmaster Elite Series season. Brianna, who recently earned a degree in
English Literature from North Idaho College, saw an intriguing real-life story
unfolding in her brother’s cash strapped climb from the Federation Nation ranks
to admirable success in the Bassmasters Classic this past February, and onward
to bass fishing’s toughest trail.
So after attending the first two Elite tournaments in
Florida following the Classic, she decided to take advantage of the freedom
that youth affords, and began traveling on tour full-time with Brandon. Not
just for good company, but also to help him manage the multitude of daily
obligations that fuel the fire beneath bass fishing’s biggest pressure cooker.
So far, she’s served him well, but knew that backing a boat
trailer was missing from her list of resources. So Elite Series wives Iris
Robinson and LeAnn Swindle graciously offered to coach her. In fact, Mrs.
Swindle even brought along orange cones to the private training session the
three females conducted yesterday inside the spacious Ingalls Harbor Parking
Lot near downtown Decatur.
Considering her maiden voyage this morning played-out in
front of fans, and 98 of the top pros in the world, she passed the baptism-by-fire
trailer dunking with flying colors.
“I’m out here to support my brother, and backing a trailer is just one more
small means of support,” beamed Brianna.
Her brother grinned and added, “You’re the 100th person she’s told about her
achievement this morning. She’s proud of herself, and I’m proud of her too.”
While the Palaniuks shared aloud, Gerald Swindle was
grinning and keeping secrets about an eye-catching new prototype reel.
“I’m not supposed to let anybody see these new reels,”
Swindle said. “Not even my wife. The
guys at Quantum would kill me if they knew I let a camera near them. It’s the
coolest series of reels they’ve ever launched. It’s supposed to be a top secret
until next month at the ICAST Show, but they sent them for me to test, and by
golly, that’s what’s I’m doing. So far
they’ve been super smooth and extremely lightweight. I’ll promise you there’s
nothing out there that looks like them, or fishes like them.”
On the east wall of Ingalls Harbor, sat easy-going veteran
pro Mike McClelland popping vitamins, swigging protein drinks and showing-off a
Hefty bag of nutrition bars.
“Its part of the daily routine that sports nutritionist Ken Hoover of Athletes
Outdoors prescribes for me,” said McClelland. “I eat four capsules in the
morning, along with a few caffeine energy boosters at mid-day, and some
recovery products at the end of the day.”
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Porter, Texas based Royal Purple Lubricants has taken another step into the fishing industry with their signing as an advertiser on Wired2Fish.com. A longtime sponsor of the American Bass Anglers, Royal Purple will be launching several new marine products to their already stellar line up of synthetic lubricants in the next few weeks. We will be highlighting these new products as well as running special promotions for Royal Purple in upcoming weeks and months.
“Royal Purple is excited about our relationship with Wired2fish as it is recognized as a premier site dedicated to both recreational and professional angling," said Randy Fisher, Director of Consumer Marketing. "We look forward to showcasing our newest marine and automotive products to all fishing fans who enjoy the sport and who want the highest performance from their motors in both their vehicles and marine engines.”
"We are very excited about Royal Purple joining us here at Wired2Fish," said Terry Brown, President of Wired2Fish. "They have a great group of lubrication products and are great folks who have a passion for the outdoors. All of their products are designed to decrease heat, increase horsepower and protect valuable angler property like boats and tow vehicles. Its more than lubrication, its protecting an investment to them. Getting companies like Royal Purple involved in fishing is exciting and we are thrilled they are joining us here. Welcome aboard!"
Be on the look out for some killer promotions, contest and announcements from Royal Purple very soon.
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Brent Ehrler is proud to announce he has joined the Plano Molding Company Pro Staff, makers of Plano Tackle boxes. “I’ve been using Plano storage boxes for as long as I’ve been fishing, and I am excited to be part of the Plano team.”
Plano Molding has been making tackle boxes since 1952. There are many reasons people choose Plano for their tackle box needs, but Plano’s favorite is “It’s what my dad always used.”
Ehrler is excited about the new re-designed waterproof Stowaway series of boxes from Plano, “Besides keeping my tackle dry, protected and organized the new waterproof Stowaways are perfect for holding important things while I am fishing. I’ve already designated one for my cell phone, one for my boat registration and insurance.”
Offering tackle boxes in dozens of sizes and configurations, Plano makes it easy for anglers of all levels to organize their equipment. Ehrler also believes that Plano gives him a competitive advantage on the water.
“Time management is one thing that can make a huge difference for tournament anglers. Knowing where the baits are and getting to them fast gives me more time actually fishing, and when you fish against the best, every cast counts.”
About Brent Ehrler: The 34 year old 2007 FLW Cup Champion Brent Ehrler resides in Redlands California. Ehrler has 6 wins and over 1.7 million in winnings with FLW Outdoors during his 8 year career. To Learn more about Brent Ehrler please visit Brent Ehrler at BrentEhrler.com.
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The Star Tribune in Minneapolis reported yesterday about a big fish trophy that was being left to the University of Minnesota by its departing president. The walleye was caught by Robert "Walleye Bob" Bruininks in 1989 on July 4th. He caught the fish after a 45-minute fight and landed it by wading out of his boat into the water. Had he got the fish to the scales sooner, it could be the current state record walleye.
To read the full story and see a picture of Walleye Bob and his big walleye, click here.
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Brad Rubin and Chris Jones carved their names in
bass fishing history by sacking an impressive 17.58-pound, 5-fish limit
to win the North American Bass Circuit’s first-ever tournament, held on
Wisconsin’s mighty Lake Winnebago chain.
Their
mixed bag of beefy largemouths and bronzebacks -- anchored by a 4.52-pound
smallie that was big bass of the tournament -- earned them a $10,000
first-place check, along with bonuses including $1,000 Ranger Cup, $500
Cabela’s Angler Cash, $100 Oxygenator and $750 in Big-Fish Pot winnings.
"We’re
pretty happy," beamed Jones, of Neenah, Wis. "We expected it
would take more than 17 pounds to win. After practice we felt good that we’d
be in the running, and it turned out perfect."
"It’s always great
to fish with Chris," added Rubin, of Antioch, Ill. "He definitely
had the home cooking on this body of water; he lives a mile from the
ramp. A week of prefishing didn’t hurt. We fought through hot weather
and high winds early in the week, then really cold weather and decent
winds the rest of the week, but we made it happen."
Tournament
partners for five years, Rubin and Jones expected bedding smallmouths,
but prefishing quickly proved it would be a post-spawn bite. Their
winning program included targeting main-lake points and "high spots"
with rocks and weeds in 2 to 8 feet of water, throwing 3/4-ounce
football jigs tipped with soft-plastic trailers, fished in a variety of
manners. "We had to use different techniques," said Rubin. "Sometimes
they hit the jig popping off the rocks, sometimes dragging, sometimes
just reeling it in slow."
In all, the top 5 teams shared a $16,000
payout plus Big Fish Pot and sponsor contingencies. Third-place
finishers Gary Adkins, of Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Carl Scharenbroch,
of Saukville, Wisconsin, won the U2 bonus for being the highest-placing
team with U2 Pro Formula Livewell Treatment in the boat. In 12th place,
fellow Wisconsinites Mark Duerr, of Milwaukee, and Tim Sadowske, of
Waukesha, earned the $250 Optima True Blue Rewards bonus. As a bonus
courtesy of Rapala, Trigger X and Sufix line, the top four teams also
received a great line and bait package comprised of these fine products.
The
Winnebago Chain yielded 141 bass weighing a total of 372.79 pounds. All
but one were released alive in the NABC’s catch-and-release format. The
Circuit’s Bass Conservation Fund donated $15 per boat, for a total of
$480, to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for fisheries
projects on the Winnebago system. To date, the NABC’s sister trail - the
Cabela’s Masters Walleye Circuit - has donated more than $275,000 to
fisheries projects where our tournaments are held, and the NABC is proud
to build on that great tradition of fisheries conservation.
Throughout
the weigh-in, the NABC and National Professional Anglers Association
presented kids age 12 and under with great gifts, including free
rod-and-reel combos, along with free tackle packages from Northland
Fishing Tackle. To the delight of the large crowd gathered at scenic
Menominee Park in downtown Oshkosh, a parade of youngsters took the
stage to accept their tackle, offer their thoughts on bass fishing, and
share their dreams of one day joining the ranks of the NABC’s tournament
anglers.
This was the first stop of the NABC’s inaugural season.
Next up is the world-class smallmouth fishery of Lake Michigan’s Bays de
Noc at Escanaba on July 30-31 (one-day event includes a built-in
bad-weather day). The third and final qualifier is August 19 on
Minnesota’s legendary Lake Minnetonka. NABC teams are vying for a coveted invite to the World Bass Championship, set for Sept. 24-25 on Leech Lake,
Minnesota. The 50-boat qualifiers reward teams paying the $400 entry
fee with great odds at a $10,000 first-place cash prize, while the
Championship pays $20,000 for first place.
The NABC is open to all
anglers. And its popular team format -- which lets you choose your partner
and cut your costs -- has stood the test of time for 26 tournament seasons
on the Cabela’s MWC. Openings remain for Escanaba and Minnetonka. Teams
may register by mail, fax, or online. For details visit the
northamericanbasscircuit website, call toll-free (877) 893-7947, or
email events@namginc.com.
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FLW Outdoors announced the 2012 Walmart FLW Tour
schedule Wednesday. The 2012 season will feature 10 tournaments: six
FLW Tour Majors and four FLW Tour Opens. The Forrest Wood Cup, the world
championship of bass fishing, will return to
Lake Lanier and the Gwinnett Center in Hall and Gwinnett Counties, Ga.,
following the tremendous success seen there in 2010.
Along with the FLW Tour schedule, FLW
Outdoors also announced that the 2012 Walmart BFL All-American presented
by Chevy will be held at National Harbor on the Potomac River in
conjunction with an FLW Tour Major at the same location.
“We take great pride in providing the
highest quality events for our anglers, sponsors and fans,” said Kathy
Fennel, president, FLW Outdoors Operations Division. “In 2012 we will be
visiting some of the nation’s top fisheries at peak times, so the catch
at each stop should be outstanding. We are especially excited to be
hosting the All-American in our nation’s capital in conjunction with the
FLW Tour Major on the Potomac River. This unique venue provides the
perfect setting to host two of the sport’s biggest events.”
The 2012 FLW Tour schedule is listed below and can be viewed at FLWOutdoors.com.
Date Fishery Location Tournament
Feb. 9-12 Lake Okeechobee Clewiston, Fla. FLW Tour Open
March 8-11 Lake Hartwell Greenville/Anderson, S.C. FLW Tour Major
March 29-April 1 Table Rock Lake Branson, Mo. FLW Tour Major
April 26-29 Beaver Lake Rogers, Ark. FLW Tour Major
May 17-20 Potomac River National Harbor, Md. FLW Tour Major
June 7-10 Kentucky Lake Murray/Gilbertsville, Ky. FLW Tour Major
June 28-July 1 Lake Champlain Plattsburgh, N.Y. FLW Tour Major
Aug. 9-12 Lake Lanier Duluth/Gainesville, Ga. Forrest Wood Cup
Aug. 23-26 Detroit River Detroit, Mich. FLW Tour Open
Sept. 20-23 Lake Wheeler Decatur, Ala. FLW Tour Open
Oct. 11-14 Sam Rayburn Reservoir Lufkin, Texas FLW Tour Open
The six FLW Tour Majors, which will
feature 150-boat fields, are open to professional anglers that enter all
six tournaments. Pros fishing the FLW Tour Majors will receive priority
when entering FLW Tour Opens, and pros entering all four FLW Tour Opens
will receive priority over individual entrants. FLW Tour Opens will
feature 150-boat fields as well. Complete details regarding registration
requirements will be available in the near future at FLWOutdoors.com, or you can call (270) 252-1000 for more information.
Pro anglers will compete for a top
award of up to $125,000, and co-anglers will vie for a top prize of up
to $25,000 in each tournament. With a full field, the paybacks will be
$10,000 through 50th place and $4,000 through 60th place on the pro side and $1,000 through 50th place and $700 through 60th
place on the co-angler side. Entry fees will remain unchanged for 2012
at $4,000 per tournament for pros and $700 per tournament for
co-anglers.
The 2012 Forrest Wood Cup presented by
Walmart will consist of 46 pros and 46 co-anglers. In 2012, the top 35
ranked pros and as many co-anglers from the FLW Tour Majors, along with
the top five in the rankings from the 2011 FLW Tour Opens, will qualify
for the Cup along with the 2011 FLW Tour Angler of the Year and
Co-angler of the Year, and 2011 Forrest Wood Cup pro and co-angler
champions. The 2012 Walmart BFL All-American boater and co-angler
champions, 2011 EverStart Series pro and co-angler champions, 2012
National Guard FLW College Fishing champions and 2012 TBF National
Championship winners will round out the field.
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Vicious Fishing today announced a significant move into the Canadian market through a new agreement with EdgePoint Incorporated and its product distribution network. Under this agreement, EdgePoint Inc. will immediately begin distributing the entire family of Vicious Fishing lines.
“With new products like Pro Elite Fluorocarbon and hot selling items such as Panfish Ice and our Vicious Braid, Canada offers a great opportunity for Vicious Fishing to take a big step forward in the North American market. We're very happy to have EdgePoint Inc. lead us into this new territory.” stated Chris Armstrong, National Sales Manager of Vicious Fishing. “Our consumer demand has grown exponentially year-after-year since we introduced the brand in 2006 and we think this will help us continue to see that growth for years to come.”
The Pro Elite Fluorocarbon is produced in Japan with some of the most superior resins and technology available. Vicious utilizes a level winding spooling process that continually lays-down the line side-by-side or parallel to itself across a single row; concurrently stacking the line precisely on top of the previous row as it traverses across additional rows. The significant benefits of this state of the art process will be recognized by all anglers once they fish with Pro Elite Fluorocarbon.“ adds Eugene Ghounarides, CEO of EdgePoint, Inc. A few of the key benefits of leveling winding vs. traditional spooled line are:
- Significantly reduced line memory: Laser-guided system maintains even tension throughout the spooling process and keeps the line from twisting while eliminating line stretch as it traverses across each layer or row; thus keeping the line supple and memory free.
- Casts further: The technique of winding the line side-by-side across each layer and stacking each layer parallel maintains the lines inherent smoothness and eliminates line criss-cross which cause minute knicks and abrasions on the line surface. As a result, the line passes more freely through the rod guides; providing longer and smooth casts.
- Increased abrasion resistance.
- Maintains tensile and knot strength longer.
- Smooth and easier to handle: The precise and even line tension throughout the spooling process eliminates line twist and keeps the line smooth and supple and more in-round; thus the line is easier to handle when tying knots or adding terminal tackle.
- The line performs better on spinning reels because it maintains less memory and handles easily.
“We've been seeking a fishing line manufacturer for quite some time and found our perfect fit with Vicious. A top of the line product, outstanding value and great people,” commented Craig Butler, COO of EdgePoint Inc. “We're really excited to have Vicious on board with us.”
For dealers interested in stocking any of the Vicious Fishing products, please contact EdgePoint at sales@edgepointinc.com or call (416) 277-6308.
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“Ed-WIN” Evers on the hunt in Alabama: Edwin Evers of Talala, Okla., scored last Sunday, and he wasn’t even competing.
At the Sunday conclusion
of the Diamond Drive in Little Rock, Ark., Evers officially moved from
fourth into second place in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the
Year points race. He’s now 55 points behind the leader, and it’s a new
leader: Kevin VanDam, who has positioned himself to close on his fourth
consecutive title.
But Evers wasn’t on site
in Arkansas to celebrate his two-place jump. After not making the
final-day cut on Saturday, he had headed to Alabama’s Wheeler Lake so
he’d be ready Monday for the first day of practice for the all-important
June 16-19 Dixie Duel, where the title will be decided.
Coming off stage Saturday, when he knew he was out of it, he lamented the loss of a chance to earn more points on Sunday.
“I did all I could here,
but I was disappointed,” said Evers, who ended with an 18th-place
finish. “It was lack of execution on a few fish I didn’t get into the
boat. You start noticing those fish when points are on the line.”
But he’d seen the
preliminary points standings, and he knew he’d end up in second place.
He said he was encouraged by his two-place move.
He didn’t get to fish on
Sunday, but the day was not wasted. By not making the Diamond Drive
final-day cut when VanDam did, Evers had an off day that he spent
traveling to Alabama. So, on Sunday night, when VanDam still had that
same 350-mile trip in front of him, Evers was relaxing and getting a
good night’s sleep.
Monday evening after his
first day of practice on Wheeler Lake, Evers said he was rested, had
plenty of energy and felt very optimistic about overtaking VanDam.
“I think I can catch him,” Evers said. “If he falters a little bit, I’ve got a chance.”
Contingent on doing very
well himself, Evers figured that if VanDam landed a Top-5 finish, he
could sew up the title. But if VanDam gets only as far as 20th or even
to 15th, it would not be enough.
Much depends on the
fishability of the Tennessee River impoundment on the four days the
Elite Series field will face it. Evers said the bite Monday was as slow
as the current.
“Normally here, you
catch the numbers, but I didn’t catch many today,” he said. “I think
that has to do with the fact that there’s hardly any current at all. I
don’t foresee that changing unless there’s a monsoon of rain between now
and Thursday. We’ll all have to figure out how to catch them with the
amount of current we have.”
As expected, a pattern that keys on vegetation isn’t going to happen.
“I haven’t found one
sprig,” Evers said when asked if he’d seen any grass as he ran up and
down the river Monday, eliminating water.
Another non-surprise: The Decatur Flats will be covered by competitors.
“The Flats houses as
many bass as anywhere on the whole lake,” he said. “There are always
numerous pros who figure out how to catch them there. I’m looking there —
and trying to find stuff everyone else isn’t hitting.”
DeFoe has a new challenger in rookie race:
After the Bassmaster Elite Series Arkansas River event, Ott DeFoe of
Knoxville, Tenn., was still ranked as the top rookie, but Keith Combs of
Huntington, Texas, made a move on him.
Combs climbed from fifth place to second place in the Bassmaster Rookie of the Year race. He’s now 127 points behind DeFoe.
DeFoe lost some of his
cushion after ending in 58th place in Arkansas. Combs shot through that
open door with his 15th-place finish.
Some extra bling at the Diamond Drive: Bassmaster Elite Series pros once again mopped up on bonuses.
Jonathon VanDam won two
bonuses at the Diamond Drive. One for $3,000 comes through the Toyota
Bonus Bucks contingency program that awards the two highest finishers
(among those eligible). His second bonus was $500 from Berkley for
weighing the Berkley Big Bass of the Tournament, a 5-0 on Day 3.
Tim Horton will collect
$2,000 in Toyota Bonus Bucks. Eighth in the Diamond Drive, he was the
second-highest finisher enrolled in the Toyota program.
Kevin VanDam won a
$1,000 bonus for leading the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year
points race after the Diamond Drive. A six-time AOY winner, VanDam is
leading the race for the first time this season after starting out in
fourth place, then hovering in third and second place.
Diamond Drive winner Denny Brauer landed an extra $1,000 from Power-Pole through its Captain’s Cash program.
On stage at the Diamond
Drive, three commemorative bonus checks were presented for awards earned
on Lake Murray at the previous Elite Series event. Terry Scroggins got
the $1,000 award from Toyota for leading the points race after the
Murray competition. Casey Ashley won $1,000 in Power-Pole Captain’s
Cash. Jami Fralick took the $500 Berkley bonus for the Lake Murray
event’s biggest bass, a 6-9.
A Day on the Lake Live presented by Z-Man on tap online: Bassmaster Elite Series pro Stephen Browning of Hot Springs, Ark., will be featured June 28 on A Day on the Lake Live presented by Z-Man, on the Arkansas River from 8 a.m. (CT) to noon (CT).
The Bassmaster.com live
webcast will offer visitors four hours of on-the-water action and the
opportunity to post questions and comments through the live chat module.
There’s no cost to watch or participate.
On June 27, the day
before the webcast, Browning will be the featured guest in a one-hour
Bassmaster University presented by Z-Man segment at 1 p.m. (CT), hosted
by Tommy Sanders.
David Walker will be the star of an August presentation of A Day on the Lake Live presented by Z-Man.
B.A.S.S. chats with Salazar: B.A.S.S.
Conservation Director Noreen Clough was one of more than 360
individuals from organizations all over the country who participated in
the June 10 online chat with Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar.
The discussion centered
on the Interior's activities in support of President Barack Obama’s
America's Great Outdoors (AGO) initiative. June is Great Outdoors Month.
Clough said questions to
the secretary touched on conservation of rivers, protection of farm and
ranch lands, development of alternative energy sources, global climate
change and expansion of the National Park and National Wildlife Refuge
systems.
“B.A.S.S. Conservation
has been a supporter of the AGO initiative because it is important to us
as anglers,” Clough said. “It is based on the tenet that lasting
conservation solutions start with the American people, and that nobody
knows better which places are most important to American communities
than do the people who live, work and recreate in them. And not many
people spend more time recreating and working to conserve and protect
places to fish than anglers do.”
Spoken at the June 9-12 Diamond Drive:
* “The river will bite
you in the butt; it doesn’t matter who you are.” — Kevin Short of
Mayflower, Ark., an old hand at Arkansas River fishing. He ended in 36th
place, out of the final-day cut.
* “It was unfortunate
for all of us today, but if I had it to do over, I’d do the same again.”
— Billy McCaghren of Mayflower, Ark., finishing ninth after losing all
his Day 4 weight to a late penalty after he and nine others were delayed
at a lock.
* “Those guys who knew
they were going to zero let the guys with fish leave the lock first.” —
Gerald Swindle, with enough weight on the final day for 7-12 to the
good. He took third place despite a 6-pound late penalty due to a
locking delay.
* “I came into this
wanting to make the Classic, so I gambled and locked up one lock.” — Ish
Monroe who took a 3-pound hit on Day 3 after being delayed at a lock.
He was one of only two pros who did not get caught by a lock on Day 4.
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Photo courtesy of B.A.S.S. Communications
In 2011 you’d be hard pressed to find a professional angler with a busier schedule than Hughson, California’s Ish Monroe. On his schedule for 2011 are the full Elite Series schedule plus as many FLW Tour, FLW Opens, and PAA events he can fit onto his calendar.
With a schedule stacked with events week after week Monroe couldn’t have picked a better time to get into “the zone.” So far in 2011 Monroe has amassed 3 top-12 cuts on the Elite Series Tour. In 3 events on the FLW Tour he has 2 top 50 cuts including a 17th place finish at Lake Hartwell on the FLW Tour.
When asked about his hot streak in 2011 Monroe explained.
“When you are fishing as much as I am, you don’t get to do as much forward thinking about the events as you might with time off. So I fish my strengths as much as possible -- frogging and flipping.”
While Monroe has caught fish on dozens of baits during the 2011 campaign he believes his return to his strengths whenever possible is one of the reasons for his success.
“I love to fish, and love to fish any bait, but when I have the frog or flipping stick in my hand, I know I am at my best.”
On the Arkansas River, this past week, Monroe put his favorite bait to work. Fishing the Snag Proof Phat frog all three days almost exclusively, Monroe was able to finish in fourth place and put him in solid position to qualify for the 2012 Bassmaser Classic.
Pattern
Monroe fished the backwaters of pool 7 on the Arkansas River. “The key was finding the backwaters with moving water. It didn’t matter if the water was coming in from another backwater or from the main river, it just had to be moving,” explained Monroe.
Once he found moving water he fished open water over rock and wood. Ish describes the way he fishes the Phat Frog in open water as a walk the dog style action.
“The Phat Frog is one of the best walking frogs on the market and that is important in open water. With a simple twitch of the rod I am able to get the Phat Frog to walk back and forth and the fish couldn’t resist it.”
Color
Choosing a color of any bait is often a decision that most anglers spend a lot of time contemplating. Monroe is no different, and he chooses the color of his Phat frog based on weather conditions, water color and the forage of the water he is fishing.
“The Arkansas River is muddy and when I am fishing dirty water or on overcast days I like the Papa Midnight color. I caught every fish I weighed in on a Papa Midnight Phat Frog, and quite a few more during pre-fish.”
An interesting side note for most frog anglers is the number of baits he went through during the week. With three days of prefishing and four days of the event and more than 35 bass boated, Monroe used a single frog.
“The Tube Technology that we’ve built the bait around keeps water out, provides for a great hook up ratio and keeps the bait in one piece.”
Equipment
Monroe used a 7-foot,4-inch XBD Daiwa Steez rod that Monroe helped design, a Daiwa Zillion Type R High Speed reel and 55-pound Daiwa Samurai Braid.
“The 7-foot,4-inch Daiwa Steez rod is perfect for open water and fishing over matted grass or vegetation. It’s light and has the perfect action to walk the Phat Frog in open water. Yet, its strong enough to get the fish out of heavy cover.”
For open water fishing Monroe uses the 55-pound class Samurai Braid. When he’s fishing over vegetation he’ll upgrade to the 70-pound Samurai Braid.
On the reel selection, Monroe points to the high speed aspect of the Zillion that makes it the go-to reel.
“When a fish takes the bait in open water and runs at you, the high speed retrieve allows me to catch up to it and get a good hook set. “
On to Wheeler Lake
Next up for Monroe is Lake Wheeler and although Monroe doesn’t think the Phat Frog will be his main pattern he knows it will still play a role in the event.
“Wheeler is known for fishing the deep shell beds. But the frog is my number one pitch and a few bites on a frog can change the game, so I’ll have it on the deck and toss it around quite a bit I am sure.“
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Dobyns Rods announced it has joined the sponsor class of FLW Outdoors, the best in fishing, on and off the water. Dobyns Rods, created by professional angler Gary Dobyns, offers three lines of rods – Champion Series, Champion Extreme Series and Savvy Series – each series offering multiple rods to cover every bass-fishing technique.
"FLW Outdoors is the world’s largest tournament fishing organization. More importantly, they are dedicated to growing the sport that we love through their many successful programs, and Dobyns Rods is proud to become a partner in those efforts long into the future," said Dobyns.
Dobyns Rods will market its high-performance products to a loyal segment of tournament fishermen and outdoor enthusiasts across the multiple promotional platforms of FLW Outdoors, including its tournaments, multiple websites, magazines and various FLW Outdoors events nationwide.
“Dobyns Rods are a high-quality product that has made a positive impact in the industry," said Kathy Fennel, president, FLW Outdoors Operations Division. "This partnership is a natural fit, and one we plan to build on for years to come.”
Fans of Dobyns Rods can enter to win a Ranger Z521 with an Evinrude outboard and other great prizes. For official rules and complete details, visit DobynsRods.com.
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The Kennesaw State University team of James Ellis of Acworth, Ga., and William Roland of Powder Springs, Ga., won the National Guard FLW College Fishing
Southeast Division event on Pickwick Lake Saturday with five bass
weighing 13 pounds, 6 ounces. The victory earned the team $10,000 to be
split between the university and the university’s bass fishing club -
$7,500 for the bass club and $2,500 for their school. The win also
helped them advance to the Southeast Division Regional Championship.
“This feels pretty good,” said Roland, a freshman. “It was a
lot of fun. We’re used to fishing smaller fisheries, so it was a lot
different to fish a big lake like that with the possibility of getting a
big bite.
"We were fortunate to put two fish over 3 (pounds) in the boat today, so that helped out,” Acworth added.
Acworth said the team caught about 30 keepers during the
course of the day and began the day exploring the backs and mouths of
creeks.
“We went shallow this morning,” Acworth said. “I knew if there
was going to be a shallow bite it would be this morning.”
“The grass and the brush looked pretty good, so I picked up my
flipping stick and flipped a Sweet Beaver and noticed I was getting
quality bites on that,” Acworth added. “So we flipped brush all day.”
Rounding out the top five teams and also advancing to the Southeast Regional Championship are:
2nd: Auburn University – Matt Lee, Auburn, Ala., and Jordan Lee, Vinemont, Ala. (five bass, 13-6, $3,000)
3rd: Mississippi State – Xan Hancock, Tupelo, Miss., and Andrew Gordon, Caledonia, Miss. (five bass, 13-4, $2,000)
4th: UAB – Taylor Mardis, Oneonta, Ala., and Patrick Townes, Cullman, Ala. (five bass, 12-8, $2,000)
5th: Tennessee Tech – Ryan Harpe, Cookeville, Tenn., and Chris Thomas, Cookeville, Tenn. (five bass, 11-9, $2,000)
The tiebreaker between first and second place went to Kennesaw
State University. According to the rules, the tie goes to the team that
signs up first for the tournament.
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Story and Photos by Alan McGuckin
For two days, controversy on the water tried hard to take center stage at the Bassmaster Elite Series event on the Arkansas River.
However, in the end, instead of competitive emotion, it was commercial river barge traffic and subsequent delays spent waiting to pass through the infamous lock and dam system that caused competitors to sweat the hardest and lose the most weight.
The majority of the Top 12 field knowingly gambled in trafficking through two lock and dam systems, and for the most part, things went smoothly for three days, until today when it counted most, and left most competitors six minutes late for weigh-in.
As tournament emcee Dave Mercer put it best in answering his own question: “Can anybody stop Kevin VanDam? Perhaps, a lock and dam system can.”
Indeed Kevin was late to weigh-in like eventual champion Denny Brauer, and all the others that locked down to Pine Bluff. Still, Kevin’s tenth place finish is exactly what he needed to prime the pump for another Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title that will be decided next week at Lake Wheeler.
“My goal was to make the Top 12 so I could go to Wheeler in striking distance of the Angler of the Year title," said VanDam. "Angler of the Year is my goal from the first day at the first tournament of the year. I love going out everyday and figuring out what it takes to catch little green fish, and I love Wheeler. I’m looking forward to heading there next."
While VanDam leaves licking his chops, most satisfying at day’s end was seeing widely respected Denny Brauer survive on-the-water rivalry and lock and dam delays en route to winning an Elite Series event that contained more drama than any in recent memory.
But with drama, as the clocked ticked away precious pounds with each passing minute that Brauer sat locked-out, came the ultimate compliment of respect that so many pros have for Denny.
Gerald Swindle, who is catching top finishes everywhere the tour seems to stop these days, caught a ton of admiration for the brotherhood brought forth during the delay. “There were nine boats down there, all of us talked and put a group plan in place while we sat there stuck for an hour. We decided to make sure Denny got out first once the gate opened. And then guys like me that had a good sack of fish would leave next behind Denny,” explained Swindle.
Gerald continued, “You heard a lot about all the animosity this week, but if you had been in that lock, you’d have seen how many of us admire that old man (referring to Brauer). Witnessing all of us guys help one another meant a lot to me. I was literally pushing Denny’s outboard with the nose of my boat to give him a boost when the gate finally opened,” said Swindle.
Indeed, once more this week, the brotherhood that is so much a part of this sport trumped any animosity that tried to steal the show.
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Tackle Warehouse is holding their annual Father's Day Sale this week. They will be discounting their merchandise 10 percent and some items will be marked down 20 percent as a result of this sale. All you have to do is click the banner above and it will take you to the store with the sale coupon code entered into your computer so that the discount is reflected in your shopping cart.
We constantly purchase tackle from TackleWarehouse.com as they have a lot of the newer hot products that we write about and want to test, so it's a great resource for the serious bass fisherman.
These sales are a great time to stock up on the necessities like tungsten weights, hooks, fishing line, etc.
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York, S.C. angler Jason Quinn, a B.A.S.S. Elite Series angler with 22 top 10 finishes and five Bassmaster Classic appearances, has joined Duckett Fishing’s 2011 professional staff, company owner and CEO Boyd Duckett announced today.
Quinn is the latest professional angler sporting an impressive track record to join the staff of Duckett Fishing, a company that began rod manufacturing and sales early in 2010. Quinn joins Elite Series anglers Kelly Jordon, Terry Scroggins, Tim Horton, Byron Velvick, Jason Williamson and Pete Ponds on the Duckett Fishing team, along with 2007 Classic champion and company owner Duckett.
 “Jason is a terrific angler, and we’re extremely proud and excited that he will be joining the Duckett Fishing team. Although Jason has an excellent track record, his reputation goes a step further, because he is also one of truly outstanding and impressive people on the Elite Series tour. Jason has a great personality. He’s a touch competitor, and he's a true also professional when he’s representing sponsors,” Duckett said.
“I have great respect for what Boyd Duckett has done as an angler and in business. He’s a true leader in our sport, and I’m really excited to be part of what Boyd is doing within our industry,” Quinn said.
Duckett, a highly successful businessman, announced the formation of Duckett Fishing in November 2009, and the company began its manufacturing operation early the following year. The company’s signature product is a white, lightweight rod known as MICROMagic that utilizes microguide technology.
“To be as plain as I can be about it, the rods are awesome,” Quinn said. “The microguide technology is phenomenal. They’re simply the best rods I’ve ever put in my hands. They’re light and sensitive, and you can fish comfortably with them all day long.”
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Photos by B.A.S.S. Communications
Leading for three days, Denny Brauer of Camdenton, Mo., closed on the Bassmaster Elite Series Diamond Drive on Sunday with 52 pounds, 2 ounces, posting a winning margin of more than 7 pounds.
Brauer had a 10-plus-pound lead going into the final round, an insurance policy he didn’t need. Adding 7-5 on the fourth and final day, the legend of the sport clinched a wire-to-wire victory.
His prize was $100,000 and a berth in the 2012 Bassmaster Classic.
Aaron Martens of Leeds, Ala., was the pro who went after Brauer hardest in the final hours of the Diamond Drive. But Martens, third after Saturday’s competition, weighed 10-11 Sunday for 45-1 overall and second place.
Finishing third was Gerald Swindle of Warrior, Ala., with 40-8. Fourth was Ish Monroe of Hughson, Calif., with 36-9, and fifth was Brauer’s hardest charger on Saturday, John Murray of Phoenix, Ariz., who ended in fifth place with 35-9.
Brauer’s victory was the 17th of his long Bassmaster career and the first since 2006. His many career accomplishments include the most prestigious two titles of the sport, Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year (1997) and the Bassmaster Classic (1998). But Saturday’s victory was special for Brauer for two reasons.
“It’s a relief to get into the Classic,” said Brauer, 62. It will be his 21st Classic appearance; he had missed Classic 2011.
The other reason, said Brauer, is breaking the five-year dry spell without a win.
“I think this has been the longest stretch in my career that I haven’t won,” he said. “That makes it extra-special right there. Every tournament you win, you wonder if maybe that was your last one. This is huge for me.
"If I had lost this tournament because of commercial traffic bumping me out of the lock it would have been my most frustrating event of my career. But the lock guys did a great job getting us in and out as fast as they could. They won this for me and so did my fellow competitors who put me to the front of the lock to make sure I got out before them. They helped me win this too.
 "At one of the tournaments on Eufala, the night before the tournament ... [Brauer chokes up] ... I told my wife I was going to win. I went down to the Pine Bluff pool and had 37 jig bites in practice. I knew some of them were good bites but I didn't set on a single fish so I knew they were all available to be caught. And I told her I'm going to win this tournament.
"I practiced in the river and I got stuck three times and hit a rock jetty and decided I didn't much care for fishing the river anymore so I trailered down to Pine Bluff the next day and fished down there.
"Every win is special, because it's so hard to win on this tour against these guys. Everyone of them is a great fisherman or they wouldn't be here. I wasn't sure I could still get it done and this win means a lot to me.
"The flipping stick didn't come out of the locker this week."
Most of his fish came from the back of the Pine Bluff Harbor in one spot about the size of two football fields. He described it as a “washout hole.”
“A lot of the fish, as they were done spawning, related to the edges of the washout,” he said. “And to a bar in there, too. I’d drag a jig, and find a little ‘rough’ area, and that’s when I’d get bit. I don’t know if the rough spots were gravel or shale or what, but the fish related to those even more than to the brushpiles there.”
His main bait was a 3/4-ounce Strike King football jig in green-pumpkin craw color with a green pumpkin Rage chunk. One big fish he caught came on a Strike King crankbait in sexy blueback herring color.
His fishing time, as for many in the field who elected to fish Pine Bluff Harbor, was mere hours because of the long run from the Little Rock pool, a trip that included locking through twice. On the final day, 10 of the 12 anglers competing, including Brauer, incurred late penalties because they had to wait at a lock for a commercial barge to come through. Most of the anglers who checked in late were 6 or 7 minutes behind the official time. At a pound a minute penalty, several anglers lost credit for their entire day’s catch.
Jonathon VanDam’s big bass, a 5-0, was enough for him to win the Diamond Drive’s Berkley Big Bass of the Tournament bonus of $500.
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By Alan McGuckin
Certainly, there are parallels between professional bass fishing and NASCAR. This week at the Bassmaster Elite Series event on the Arkansas River brings to light many comparisons between the two sports of deep Southern roots -- including the race to gain an advantage while using essentially the same equipment.
There have been daily, long, hot, grinding races down the river, with lock and dams serving as a pit stop, and anglers stomping the throttle when the gates open to see who can get to the best stuff first. There’s been controversy between ‘drivers’ and talk of one brand of boats being faster than all others, along with conversations of “sucking the paint off of so and so’s boat as I blew past him.”
But bass fishing’s version of restrictor plate racing this week has come in the form of sqaurebill crankbaits. Everybody has got one, their presence is boldly obvious, and in a sense, they’ve served to erase any advantage that might otherwise exist with the help of some sort of secret lure. In fact, Kevin VanDam had six nearly identical cranking combos lying on the front deck prior to blast-off on the final day of competition --four of his six featured a squarebill.
What was not as obvious as the four nearly identical lures VanDam had tied on was the one stealthy new black reel lying on the starboard rod locker. But with fans able to get up close and personal with the pros, much like they filter through the garages and pits at Talladega and Daytona, 36-year old Elite Series fan John Davidson stood 10-feet from KVD, spotted the one peculiar baitcaster, and quizzed Kevin about it.
VanDam graciously told Davidson, who has traveled from his home in Meridian, Mississippi to every Elite Series event but two this year, that it was a brand new, lighter version of his favorite 5.3:1 Quantum crankbait reel they are calling the Tour KVD Cranking Classic. KVD then encouraged Davidson, who builds airplanes for Lockheed Martin for a living, to feel the featherlike baitcaster for himself.
Just behind Davidson and VanDam, more show and tell was taking place around Gerald Swindle, who amid all his humor, has been on an upward run through the points race chase the past few weeks. Swindle had one spinning reel combo with a shaky head tied to it, along with one topwater, and of course … five … yes five … squarebill crankbait combos. The G-Man joked with nearby fans, “Fellas, do you think I might just plan to catch ‘em on a squarebill today? I mean it’s not obvious or anything is it?”
With a total of 11 crankbait combos between the two anglers, VanDam and Swindle accepted well wishes from fans, pushed away from the dock, stood for the National Anthem and started their engines for yet another long race down the Arkansas.
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Photo by FLW Outdoors
Pro Kevin Carstensen of Merrill, Wis., and co-angler Alan Wegleitner of Somerset, Wis., caught five walleyes weighing 12 pounds, 11 ounces to win the National Guard FLW Walleye Tour on Leech Lake presented by Mercury. Carstensen had a three-day catch of 15 walleyes weighing 41-11. He won by 4-pounds over his closest competitor in an event featuring anglers from 17 states and took home $63,000 for his efforts.
Despite having a 2 1/2 - pound penalty for bringing in five dead fish Carstensen’s two overs carried him to victory. On the final day of competition Carstensen suffered an equipment failure, his livewell died about 1 p.m..
“Oh man, I can’t believe this is happening,” said Carstensen, who won his first FLW Walleye Tour title. “When my livewell went down this afternoon I thought I was in trouble. My gut just dropped. I knew with the pros so close behind me that someone else would get their two overs and the penalty would just kill me. I am so happy and so fortunate right now.
“I went to the same spot I have been fishing all week and had my two overs by 10 a.m. and I thought life is good,” Carstensen went on to say. ”Then my livewell went down and I thought all was lost. But we kept grinding away and got three good slot fish to fill our limit and keep the hope alive.
“The area that I was fishing was way north on the lake,” Carstensen continued. “It was about a 10 by 10 foot area that just kept replenishing every day. I was fishing shallow, about 4 to 6 feet of water, along a transition line. There was about a 12-foot hole in the middle of it but the fish didn’t seem to go there. I tried fishing through it but got nothing. All the action was along the transition line where you could see where the water went from light to dark.
“I was dragging the bottom with crawlers on a rig with a 3/8-ounce weight. The longer the crawler the better,” Carstensen added. “I really simplified my fishing this week. During practice I decided I was over-thinking it too much and so I went with what was working and that was dragging a rig on the bottom. Sweet and simple.
“I have struggled on Leech in the past,” went on Carstensen. “But I think I have finally figured some things out between last year’s championship and this tournament. The lake is definitely growing on me!”
Rounding out the top 10 pros are:
2nd: National Guard pro Bill Shimota, Lonsdale, Minn., 15 walleyes, 37-11, $21,750
3rd: National Guard pro Mark Courts, Harris, Minn., 14 walleyes, 37-5, $15,500
4th: Paul Meleen, Isle, Minn., 14 walleyes, 32-14, $11,100
5th: Eric Olson, Red Wing, Minn., 15 walleyes, 32-6, $9,150
6th: David Bjorkman, Fargo, N.D., 10 walleyes, 29-2, $5,700
7th: Tom Kemos, Oconomowoc, Wis., 13 walleyes, 26-13, $5,750
8th: Rick Olson, Mina, S.D., 12 walleyes, 26-10, $6,300
9th: Mark Christianson, Walker, Minn., 13 walleyes, 24-12, $3,325
10th: Scott Larson, Mayville, N.D., 10 walleyes, 21-15, $4,350
A complete list of results can be found at FLWOutdoors.com
Wegleitner earned the victory in the Co-angler Division and took home $6,000. His three-day weight totaled 39 pounds, 1 ounce. He fished with Tom Keenan, Hatley Wis., Mark Christianson and Carstensen over the course of the tournament.
“When we first got to our spot this morning I thought this guy was nuts,” said Wegleitner. “We were fishing thick cat tails, but then we got our first walleye within 10 minutes, I realized he wasn’t crazy. We had some problems with our equipment … but Kevin was great and we fished through it.
”What a great week this has been for me,” Wegleitner went on to say. ”I got to fish with some great pros and learned a lot. I will be back, that is for sure.”
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers are:
2nd: Kurt Zins, Nicollet, Minn., 15 walleyes, 35-12, $2,850
3rd: Tim Depooter, Rock Island, Ill., 14 walleyes, 34-15, $1,710
4th: Edward Piekutowski, Moorhead, Minn., 15 walleyes, 34-12, $1,140
5th: Dan Meisner, Merrill, Wis., 13 walleyes, 32-12, $950
6th: James Stigen, Elk River, Minn., nine walleyes, 31-4, $855
7th: Randal Sterr, Oconomowoc, Wis., 11 walleyes, 27-2, $760
8th: Tyrone Larson, Amherst, Wis., 12 walleyes, 27-2, $665
9th: Boyd Strissel, Billings, Mont., 12 walleyes, 26-14, $570
10th: Dan Soehren, New Ulm, Minn., eight walleyes, 22-5, $475
Overall there were 36 walleyes weighing 75 pounds, 14 ounces caught by 10 boats Saturday. The catch included four five-walleye limits.
In Walleye Tour competition, pro and co-anglers are also competing for valuable points in the hope of qualifying for a shot at the 2011 National Guard FLW Walleye Tour Championship held on the Missouri River in Bismarck, N.D., Sept. 22-25. Anglers are also vying for the coveted Angler of the Year title, which earns them a place in the 2012 Walleye Tour Championship, as well as $10,000 for the pro and $2,500 for the co-angler.
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Photo Courtesy of FLW Outdoors
Lloyd Pickett Jr. of Bartlett, Tenn., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 16 pounds, 2 ounces Saturday to win the EverStart Series Southeast Division event presented by Mercury on Pickwick Lake with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 68 pounds, 14 ounces. For his victory, Pickett earned $34,783 and a 198VX Ranger boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard motor.
“I kind of figured out that all the boat pressure from the last three weeks had pushed the fish down,” Pickett said. “And then the water temperature came up about 18 degrees a couple of weeks ago and it kind of clued me in that the fish had gone really deep. A lot of the guys had their boats sitting on top of where the fish were holding.”
Pickett said many competitors were sitting in 20 to 25 feet of water and casting to a depth of 12 to 15 feet, but Pickett did the exact opposite. Pickett said he relied on a Carolina rig tipped with a creature bait or a worm 95 percent of the time during the tournament and targeted deep tree stumps and pea gravel beds. Pickett said he also employed a Strike King 6XD Sexy Shad deep-diving crankbait to catch his fish.
Pickett led the tournament the first two days of competition and had almost a 13 ½-pound lead going into the final day of competition but felt no comfort in that fact.
“I’ve fished enough of these to know with a big lead like that anything can go wrong,” Pickett said. “You can go out and zero or you can go out and have boat problems, so I was nervous the whole day. I had a 29-pound bag yesterday. This is one of those lakes where anybody can pull up to the right set of boulders or right set of deep stumps and walk away with a 30-pound bag.
“You never can count any one of these guys out,” Pickett continued. “I was nervous. My strategy was to go out and catch 16 or 17 pounds and make someone bring in 29 to 30 pounds.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Anthony Goggins, Auburn, Ala., 15 bass, 59-1, $11,926
3rd: Bobby Padgett, LaGrange, Ga., 15 bass, 56-11, $9,938
4th: Scott Mansfield, McKenzie, Tenn., 15 bass, 51-12, $8,944
5th: Matt Ferguson, Pontotoc, Miss., 15 bass, 50-8, $7,950
6th: Curt McGuire, Paris, Tenn., 15 bass, 49-14, $6,957
7th: William Davis, Sheffield, Ala., 15 bass, 48-14, $5,963
8th: Randy Haynes, Counce, Tenn., 15 bass, 48-2, $4,969
9th: Jeremy Utley, Florence, Ala., 15 bass, 46-0, $3,975
10th: Donny Beck, Killen, Ala., 15 bass, 39-13, $2,981
Pickett caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Pro Division Friday – an 8-pound, 5-ounce bass – that earned him the day’s EverStart Series Big Bass award of $296.
Richard Peek of Centre, Ala., won the Co-angler Division and a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard motor with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 58 pounds, 10 ounces.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Tim Cummings, Waynesboro, Tenn., 15 bass, 49-8, $4,458
3rd: Lyn Melton, Florence, Ala., 15 bass, 47-2, $3,987
4th: Daniel Hinkelman, Conyers, Ga., 15 bass, 43-1, $3,488
5th: T.J. Smith, Richmond, Ky., 15 bass, 42-11, $2,990
6th: Jason Smith, Killen, Ala., 15 bass, 41-14, $2,492
7th: Daniel Costley, Memphis, Tenn., 15 bass, 40-1, $1,993
8th: Justin Jones, Apex, N.C., 15 bass, 38-7, $1,495
9th: Robert Russell, Smyrna, Tenn., 15 bass, 35-4, $997
10th: Greg Sorrell, Guntersville, Ala., 15 bass, 33-3, $797
Costley caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Co-angler Division Thursday – an 8-pound, 7-ounce bass – that earned him the day’s EverStart Series Big Bass award of $197.
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Photos courtesy of B.A.S.S. Communications
If they’re honest about it, most bass pros would have to admit they’ve learned from Denny Brauer. Saturday, the famed pro from Camdenton, Mo., schooled some of the best in the business by keeping his lead for the third day in the Bassmaster Elite Series Diamond Drive.
Brauer’s catch of 10 pounds, 12 ounces, fended off the changing lineup of fellow Elite pros who have been doing their best all week to wreck Brauer’s chance at a 17th Bassmaster victory. But with 44-13 over three days, Brauer stayed 10-2 ahead of Saturday’s frontline challenger, John Murray of Phoenix, Ariz., who ended his day in second place with 34-11.
Only the best 12 anglers after three days made it to Sunday’s final round. They will compete for $100,000, a 2012 Bassmaster Classic berth, and points in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race.
Murray, among others in the Top 12, said he was resigned to fishing for second place on Sunday. But Brauer, a pro who has captured the sport’s most coveted titles — Bassmaster Classic champ and Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year — still was not convinced that a 10-pound lead was enough to win no matter what Day Four brought.
“If I can catch a limit, that would make it tougher for somebody else,” he said. “Somebody could bust a big bag, and if you stub your toe, you’re going to end up regretting it. You have to catch them all four days.”
Brauer had hoped his spot in Pool 4 would have produced better than 10-12 for him Saturday, but shared water, a narrow window of fishing time and short fish cut into his expectations.
“I had not caught a short fish (largemouth less than 15 inches) the first two days. Today, I got as many bites as the first two days, but they were smaller fish,” he said.
His final two keepers, one a 2 1/2-pounder, salvaged his day, he said. “It was a frustrating day, but neat to get a limit before I left my area.” He said he has caught the majority of this week’s fish on a Strike King Pro Tour football jig.
Brauer was among those who elected to lock downriver twice. He and others got stuck waiting Saturday morning for about an hour for barge traffic to clear — one of the challenges the river has thrown at the pros this week.
“The good thing was, they had the second lock open and ready to go when we got there, and they got us down fairly quickly. We lost a little time, but they did as good a job as they could for us,” Brauer said, calculating that he lost only about 10 minutes of active fishing time overall.
Murray said he caught his first fish on a crankbait near the takeoff ramp before he headed to the lock and was stuck waiting with Brauer and other Elite pros.
Finally down in the far pool, he quickly boated two more keepers, then his largest of the day, a 4-12. “And that was the last keeper I caught,” he said.
Murray brought in only four fish Saturday. He said his tactical decision was between spending precious time working the bank for keepers to get a limit, or to back out into deeper water, where the larger bass were hanging, but were harder to hook.
“It’s a hard decision,” Murray said. “You only have 2 1/2 hours to fish. It’s not like you can get a limit and then go out to upgrade. Tomorrow I’m going to have to weigh the factors to see what’s best. It’s such a craps shoot, to stay or to go.”
Within 5 ounces of Murray was Alabama’s Aaron Martens with 34-6; his third place was a three-spot improvement over his Friday finish. Martens is staying in Pool 6, opting out of the lock-through time-eater.
An angler who enjoys power fishing, Martens forced himself to slow down. The discipline helped him to 13-0 for the day.
“I fished like a snail. I hate it,” he said.
Fourth place was covered by Jonathon VanDam, the rookie from Kalamazoo, Mich., who zeroed on Day One and staged a comeback with 15-10 Friday supplemented by 18-5 on Saturday, the heaviest bag of the day.
Fifth place was taken by Gerald Swindle of Warrior, Ala. Swindle started slow at 33rd the first day, moved to 10th the second day before claiming fifth with 32-12. Billy McCaghren, local favorite from Mayflower, Ark., fell from third to sixth place with 30-7.
The pro who ran straight at Brauer on Friday, Kevin VanDam, ended Saturday in seventh after he stumbled Saturday, exactly as he had predicted was possible on the ever-changing Arkansas River. VanDam is looking for his 21st Bassmaster win and enough points to take over the lead in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race. A 2011 AOY crown would be his seventh and fourth consecutive title.
Four anglers were penalized for checking in late. Like six other anglers on Friday, the four incurred pound-a-minute late charges Saturday because they got stuck waiting for commercial barge traffic to clear the lock. Commercial traffic has priority locking time.
The biggest bass brought to the scales Saturday was a 5-0 caught by Jonathon VanDam. The fish bested Zell Rowland’s 4-14 on Friday, and became the frontrunner for the Diamond Drive’s Berkley Big Bass of the Tournament bonus of $500.
For more information about the Bassmaster Elite Series Diamond Drive, go to bassmaster.com.
FULL STANDINGS
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Denny Brauer Camdenton, MO 15 44-13 315
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 19-07 Day 3: 5 10-12
2. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 14 34-11 295
Day 1: 5 11-07 Day 2: 5 11-12 Day 3: 4 11-08
3. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 15 34-06 290
Day 1: 5 10-08 Day 2: 5 10-14 Day 3: 5 13-00
4. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 33-15 285
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 15-10 Day 3: 5 18-05
5. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 14 32-12 280
Day 1: 4 08-04 Day 2: 5 12-07 Day 3: 5 12-01
6. Billy McCaghren Mayflower, AR 12 30-07 276
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 4 11-04 Day 3: 3 06-00
7. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 12 30-04 272
Day 1: 5 12-12 Day 2: 5 12-15 Day 3: 2 04-09
8. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 14 29-15 268
Day 1: 5 10-06 Day 2: 5 10-15 Day 3: 4 08-10
9. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 14 29-10 264
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 4 06-07 Day 3: 5 08-11
10. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 12 29-03 260
Day 1: 3 07-06 Day 2: 4 09-01 Day 3: 5 12-12
11. Jason Quinn Lake Wylie, SC 14 28-02 257
Day 1: 5 07-09 Day 2: 4 11-09 Day 3: 5 09-00
12. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 11 27-14 254
Day 1: 2 04-09 Day 2: 4 09-03 Day 3: 5 14-02
13. Randy Howell Springville, AL 15 26-06 251 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 09-06 Day 2: 5 08-06 Day 3: 5 08-10
14. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 14 26-02 248 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 09-09 Day 2: 5 10-03 Day 3: 4 06-06
15. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 14 25-15 245 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 09-04 Day 2: 5 10-06 Day 3: 4 06-05
16. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 9 25-14 243 $10,000.00
Day 1: 3 09-02 Day 2: 4 10-06 Day 3: 2 06-06
17. Ben Parker Springville, TN 12 24-07 241 $10,000.00
Day 1: 3 06-11 Day 2: 5 08-04 Day 3: 4 09-08
18. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 12 24-07 239 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 08-07 Day 2: 3 07-07 Day 3: 5 08-09
19. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 10 24-07 237 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 2 05-15 Day 3: 3 08-04
20. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 11 24-06 235 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-05 Day 2: 5 12-01 Day 3: 1 02-00
21. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 10 24-01 233 $10,000.00
Day 1: 2 04-03 Day 2: 5 14-13 Day 3: 3 05-01
22. Clark Reehm Lufkin, TX 13 23-15 231 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 08-06 Day 3: 3 03-03
23. Keith Poche Troy, AL 11 23-15 229 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-08 Day 2: 2 02-15 Day 3: 4 07-08
24. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 11 23-13 227 $10,000.00
Day 1: 1 02-01 Day 2: 5 12-07 Day 3: 5 09-05
25. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 12 23-00 225 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 3 05-14 Day 3: 4 07-00
26. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 10 22-08 223 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 09-12 Day 2: 3 06-06 Day 3: 3 06-06
27. Rick Morris Virginia Beach, VA 14 22-04 221 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 07-03 Day 2: 5 07-08 Day 3: 5 07-09
28. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 10 22-03 219 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 07-00 Day 2: 4 11-10 Day 3: 2 03-09
29. Pete Ponds Madison, MS 9 22-03 217 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 10-11 Day 2: 2 03-11 Day 3: 3 07-13
30. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 12 20-13 215 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-00 Day 2: 3 04-12 Day 3: 4 06-01
31. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 9 20-11 213 $10,000.00
Day 1: 3 08-02 Day 2: 3 06-05 Day 3: 3 06-04
32. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 8 20-08 211 $10,000.00
Day 1: 1 03-10 Day 2: 5 13-00 Day 3: 2 03-14
33. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 15 20-07 209 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 08-12 Day 2: 5 07-04 Day 3: 5 04-07
34. John Crews Salem, VA 12 20-06 207 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-01 Day 2: 5 06-15 Day 3: 2 03-06
35. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 9 19-14 205 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 3 07-06 Day 3: 1 01-08
36. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 12 19-08 203 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 06-14 Day 2: 4 06-08 Day 3: 4 06-02
37. Dean Alexander Georgetown, TX 10 19-08 201 $10,000.00
Day 1: 2 03-15 Day 2: 5 09-12 Day 3: 3 05-13
38. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 9 19-08 199 $10,000.00
Day 1: 2 02-12 Day 2: 4 09-12 Day 3: 3 07-00
39. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 11 19-06 197 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 07-09 Day 2: 4 08-00 Day 3: 3 03-13
40. Scott Ashmore Broken Arrow, OK 9 18-15 195 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 07-05 Day 2: 2 06-03 Day 3: 3 05-07
41. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 13 18-02 193 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 07-11 Day 2: 5 08-08 Day 3: 3 01-15
42. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 17-12 191 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 08-06 Day 2: 5 09-06 Day 3: 0 00-00
43. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 7 17-12 189 $10,000.00
Day 1: 2 05-05 Day 2: 3 08-00 Day 3: 2 04-07
44. Morizo Shimizu Matsugaoka JAPAN 8 17-05 187 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 08-02 Day 2: 3 05-07 Day 3: 1 03-12
45. Shaw E Grigsby Gainesville, FL 7 17-03 185 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 13-00 Day 2: 0 00-00 Day 3: 2 04-03
46. David Smith Del City, OK 9 16-13 183 $10,000.00
Day 1: 5 10-05 Day 2: 2 04-02 Day 3: 2 02-06
47. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 8 15-14 181 $10,000.00
Day 1: 3 06-07 Day 2: 3 06-03 Day 3: 2 03-04
48. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 7 15-12 179 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 08-08 Day 2: 2 04-09 Day 3: 1 02-11
49. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 8 15-09 177 $10,000.00
Day 1: 4 08-09 Day 2: 3 06-00 Day 3: 1 01-00
50. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 8 14-08 175 $5,000.00
Day 1: 5 12-00 Day 2: 1 00-11 Day 3: 2 01-13
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Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 28 307 620-01
2 27 295 601-03
3 13 162 321-14
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68 764 1543-02
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Classic in the crosshairs: Three days ago, on the eve of the Diamond Drive, Ish Monroe and Takahiro Omori had good reason to worry about qualifying for the 2012 Bassmaster Classic.
Monroe was 50th in
points; Omori was 46th. Without a good finish on the Arkansas River,
they could be shut out through the Bassmaster Elite Series. There would
be too much ground to make up in the season finale next week.
On Saturday morning,
Omori said the pressure to make the Classic each season is always in the
background because he’s already a Classic champion.
“When you have won the
Classic, you feel you have to make it every year,” said Omori, the only
non-American to ever win the sport’s most prestigious tournament. Omori
is a Japanese native who now lives in Emory, Texas.
Omori won in 2004 on
North Carolina’s Lake Wylie. He’s a seven-time qualifier from 2001 to
2010, missing in 2006, 2009 and for the 2011 Classic held last February.
“I have a chance to make
it (in 2012) if I stay in the top 10 this week,” he said Saturday
morning. “And I have to do good next week, too. But I’m not putting
extra pressure on myself because of the Classic. If it works out, fine.
If not, then it does not.”
Monroe of Hughson,
Calif., recently embraced a don’t-worry philosophy. His new mental
attitude about his fishing performance applies to a Classic
qualification, too, he said Saturday.
“What’s going to happen
out there today is going to happen,” Monroe said. “I’m not thinking at
all about the Classic, I’m thinking about going out there and just
having fun.”
Not stressing over the
Classic doesn’t mean they don’t want it. Double qualifiers will be a
huge help in helping them toward that goal. Although the Classic cutline
was reset this season to 28th place on the points list, the final cut
probably will be somewhere around 37th or 38th because of double
qualifiers.
After Friday’s
competition, the points standings — unofficial, unawarded and subject to
change radically before they’re final on Sunday — have Monroe up to
41st place. Omori rose to 34th place. Both made the 50 cut Saturday, and
in the top 12 to boot.
Brauer shows VanDam: Kevin VanDam says that years ago, Denny Brauer taught him something very, very important, something that VanDam is using in the Diamond Drive to try to beat Brauer.
How to flip? Nope. VanDam knew that. Brauer’s lesson was tactical.
“He’s one of the guys
who, a long time ago, taught me the difference between fishing to do
well and fishing to win — how and when to take chances. No one’s done
that better over a career than he has.”
Brauer had more than 8 pounds and 6 ounces on VanDam going into Saturday’s round.
“I don’t expect him to stumble, but I’d like to be there if he does,” VanDam said.
KJ’s a daddy now: Kelly Jordon
— friends call him “KJ” — became a father for the first time on May 29.
Ruby Katelyn’s arrival between Elite events was perfect.
“It worked out great,”
said Jordon, who lives with his wife and daughter in Palestine, Texas.
“I even had a little time to be with her.”
“Little” is right: He
had about a week at home before he had to travel to Little Rock for the
Diamond Drive. He won’t get back home until after the season finale in
Alabama, June 16-19.
Jordon became a husband,
then a father, relatively late in life. He turned 40 last September.
Life has already begun changing for him, he said.
“My best night of sleep
in over a week was my first night in Arkansas,” he quipped. Being more
serious, he said that caring deeply about two special people affects him
in ways he’s still trying to find words for.
“All I know is that it’s crazy-great. I don’t know yet how else to say it.”
Five points on points:
Data mining of the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year points
standings as of Friday night, June 10, turned up a few interesting, um,
well…points about possible Classic qualification scenarios.
One: Brothers Chris and Bobby Lane
have 1,494 points each. They sit at 14th and 15th place, respectively.
That doesn’t pit brother against brother because where they’re standing,
the award would be the same for both: a 2012 Classic qualification.
Both the Lanes made the Classic in 2008, but have yet to duplicate that
brother act.
Two: The Classic cutline
is at 28th place. But double qualifiers will expand the number of Elite
pros in the 2012 Classic. That’s because when a pro nails a Classic
berth through a route other than the Elite points system, the points
berth goes to the next Elite pro on the list. All Elite event winners,
for example, win a Classic entry. If those event winners are high in the
points — and six of seven now are — their duplicate berths go to Elite
pros just below the 28 cutline.
Three: The above scenario means that the wait for a first Classic berth may be over for Marty Robinson, Elite pro since 2007; and Pat Golden, in the Elite field since 2008.
Four: Even closer to their first taste of a Classic as competitors are Keith Poche, an Elite rookie in 2010; and Ott DeFoe, 2011 rookie. Both are well above the 28 cutline.
Five: Skeet Reese,
the 2009 Classic champ who hasn’t missed qualifying since 2002, isn’t
likely to ride the Elite points into the 2012 contest. He’s hovering in
the 60s after two days of Diamond Drive fishing. His options include
winning next week’s Dixie Duel or winning one of the five remaining 2011
Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Open events.
While the points system
determines Classic qualifications, the main function is as a competition
for the season’s top angler award worth $100,000 and a prestigious
title. As of Friday, the leaders in the Bassmaster Angler of the Year
award competition were Kevin VanDam leading Edwin Evers, Steve Kennedy, Alton Jones and Terry Scroggins, in that order.
The standings change daily. Points earned at the Diamond Drive will be officially awarded after the tournament ends Sunday.
Murray’s small sweet spot: John Murray
found one brushpile in practice that helped him to start the Diamond
Drive in ninth place and advance on Day Two to fourth place.
“It’s about the size of a bass boat,” he described.
For more information — including live blogs from BASSTrakk technology watchers and on-the-water reporters geared up along with live hourly updates from the Hooked Up! Toyota Trucks stage, BASSCam
video, photo galleries and frequent new posts of analysis and reports —
on the Bassmaster Elite Series Diamond Drive, visit Bassmaster.com.
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Denny Brauer of Camdenton, Mo., called dibs on the Diamond Drive lead Friday with a limit of 19 pounds, 7 ounces of Arkansas River bass.
Brauer, who led the first day by only 2 ounces, put more than 8 pounds between him and his nearest challenger, Kevin VanDam. Brauer had a two-day total of 34-1 to VanDam’s 25-11, a surprisingly big lead in an event that’s been stumping many in the Bassmaster Elite Series field.
Brauer held at the top, but that was about the only leaderboard consistency over two days. Local favorite Billy McCaghren of Mayflower, Ark., climbed from fourth into third with 24-7. Fourth place was claimed by John Murray, who rose five ticks with 23-3 over two days. Fifth was Takahiro Omori, up from 15th place to anchor the top five at 22-6.
The field was cut to the top 50 for Saturday’s competition. The finale will be Sunday, when the top 12 go against each other for $100,000 and a 2012 Bassmaster Classic berth.
Brauer, owner of 16 Bassmaster titles over his venerable career, didn’t see his lead as assurance of a 17th win. One concern is local boat traffic.
“We suddenly got more company today, so I don’t know if it (area) will hold up,” said Brauer, whose five-fish bag was anchored by a 4-4 largemouth. “Tomorrow is a Saturday, the area I’m fishing is going to have a lot of traffic, and a lot of people know where I’m fishing.”
Brauer, unlike many of the pros, said he has not been affected by the river’s fluctuating water level and flow. He played it close to the vest, saying only that the reason he’s immune “has something to do with my proximity to deeper water.”
He said he milked his spot harder today than he did yesterday, but the difference wasn’t much: two hours the second day as opposed to only an hour and a half the first day. He’s leaving the area to make a two-lock trip back to the check-in point.
The fish he caught were postspawners, he said, and they’re pulling off deeper in a “classic” pattern. But he isn’t confident that will hold.
“I’m looking for many of the fish to be leaving, going to the main river, and that’s what worries me. That can happen overnight,” he said.
If Brauer feels his 8-plus-pound lead is tentative, the big number has the attention and respect of his nearest challengers.
“It’s very easy to stumble here. It could happen to me, it could happen to him. Denny usually doesn’t. He’s one of the best closers in the business,” VanDam said, adding that Brauer himself taught him how to take chances to win.
“I don’t expect him to stumble, but I’d sure like to be there if he does,” the superstar from Kalamazoo, Mich., added. “Who knows about tomorrow, it’s going to be a lot tougher. There’s pressure in the areas that have fish. But everybody’s in the same boat there.”
McCaghren, whose lack of a fifth fish kept him almost 10 pounds out of the lead, said that Brauer would have to go down hard for anyone to catch up. Like VanDam, McCaghren would like to try.
“It’s going to be tough,” said McCaghren, who’s been preparing for this tournament since the day he heard the announcement that the Elite Series was coming to his home water.
“I’m trying to fish stuff other people aren’t,” he said. “I beat on my areas pretty hard the first day, and lost two today. You can’t afford to lose a fish when you’re competing against these guys.”
VanDam’s strong performance so far in the Diamond Drive has helped his bid for a seventh and fourth consecutive Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year title. He was only 19 points behind AOY points leader Terry Scroggins going into the week; if the tournament were to end after two days and points awarded, VanDam would be leading the points race.
“The thing about the Angler of the Year race is that when it gets down to the end, and it’s tight, you can’t be conservative,” said VanDam. “You can’t go out and say ‘I just need to survive this tournament.’ You have to go out and try to win the thing.”
Brauer, VanDam, McCaghren and many others are locking through to fish multiple pools of the Arkansas River. Because of heavy commercial traffic at the Murray Lock and Dam, six pros were not able to lock back into Pool 6 in time to meet their official check-in time. According to B.A.S.S. rule C18, the late penalty is 1 pound for each minute late. The rule also stipulates that “any competitor more than 15 minutes late shall lose all credit for that day’s catch to include points credit under Rule C19."
Commercial traffic always has priority for lock use, and anglers were advised by B.A.S.S. officials of the locking times and protocol, and of the fact that backed-up commercial traffic due to recent flooding could shut a pro out of a lock at any time during competition.
Zell Rowland of Austin, Texas, was Friday’s big bass leader with a 4-14, the Berkley Big Bass of the Tournament so far.
For more information about the Bassmaster Elite Series Diamond Drive, go to bassmaster.com.
2011 Diamond Drive - Little Rock, AR 6/9-6/12
Arkansas River, Little Rock AR.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 2
Angler Hometown No./lbs-oz Pts Total $$$
1. Denny Brauer Camdenton, MO 10 34-01 310
Day 1: 5 14-10 Day 2: 5 19-07
2. Kevin VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 10 25-11 295
Day 1: 5 12-12 Day 2: 5 12-15
3. Billy McCaghren Mayflower, AR 9 24-07 290
Day 1: 5 13-03 Day 2: 4 11-04
4. John Murray Phoenix, AZ 10 23-03 285
Day 1: 5 11-07 Day 2: 5 11-12
5. Takahiro Omori Emory, TX 10 22-06 280
Day 1: 5 10-05 Day 2: 5 12-01
6. Aaron Martens Leeds, AL 10 21-06 276
Day 1: 5 10-08 Day 2: 5 10-14
7. Greg Vinson Wetumpka, AL 10 21-05 272
Day 1: 5 10-06 Day 2: 5 10-15
8. Ish Monroe Hughson, CA 9 20-15 268
Day 1: 5 14-08 Day 2: 4 06-07
9. Clark Reehm Lufkin, TX 10 20-12 264
Day 1: 5 12-06 Day 2: 5 08-06
10. Gerald Swindle Warrior, AL 9 20-11 260
Day 1: 4 08-04 Day 2: 5 12-07
11. Brent Chapman Lake Quivira, KS 10 19-12 257
Day 1: 5 09-09 Day 2: 5 10-03
12. Keith Combs Huntington, TX 10 19-10 254
Day 1: 5 09-04 Day 2: 5 10-06
13. Rick Clunn Ava, MO 7 19-08 251
Day 1: 3 09-02 Day 2: 4 10-06
14. Jason Quinn Lake Wylie, SC 9 19-02 248
Day 1: 5 07-09 Day 2: 4 11-09
15. Kenyon Hill Norman, OK 7 19-00 245
Day 1: 2 04-03 Day 2: 5 14-13
16. Todd Faircloth Jasper, TX 8 18-10 243
Day 1: 4 07-00 Day 2: 4 11-10
17. Jason Williamson Aiken, SC 8 18-06 241
Day 1: 5 11-00 Day 2: 3 07-06
18. Greg Hackney Gonzales, LA 10 17-12 239
Day 1: 5 08-06 Day 2: 5 09-06
18. Randy Howell Springville, AL 10 17-12 239
Day 1: 5 09-06 Day 2: 5 08-06
20. John Crews Salem, VA 10 17-00 235
Day 1: 5 10-01 Day 2: 5 06-15
21. Brandon Palaniuk Rathdrum, ID 6 16-10 233
Day 1: 1 03-10 Day 2: 5 13-00
22. Keith Poche Troy, AL 7 16-07 231
Day 1: 5 13-08 Day 2: 2 02-15
23. Matt Reed Madisonville, TX 7 16-07 229
Day 1: 3 07-06 Day 2: 4 09-01
24. Michael Iaconelli Pitts Grove, NJ 10 16-03 227
Day 1: 5 07-11 Day 2: 5 08-08
25. Russ Lane Prattville, AL 7 16-03 225
Day 1: 5 10-04 Day 2: 2 05-15
26. Cliff Pace Petal, MS 7 16-02 223
Day 1: 4 09-12 Day 2: 3 06-06
27. Bobby Lane Lakeland, FL 10 16-00 221
Day 1: 5 08-12 Day 2: 5 07-04
28. Steve Kennedy Auburn, AL 8 16-00 219
Day 1: 5 10-02 Day 2: 3 05-14
29. Edwin Evers Talala, OK 7 15-14 217
Day 1: 4 08-07 Day 2: 3 07-07
30. Jonathon VanDam Kalamazoo, MI 5 15-10 215
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 15-10
31. Davy Hite Ninety Six, SC 8 15-09 213
Day 1: 4 07-09 Day 2: 4 08-00
32. Ben Parker Springville, TN 8 14-15 211
Day 1: 3 06-11 Day 2: 5 08-04
33. Stephen Browning Hot Springs, AR 8 14-12 209
Day 1: 5 10-00 Day 2: 3 04-12
34. Rick Morris Virginia Beach, VA 9 14-11 207
Day 1: 4 07-03 Day 2: 5 07-08
35. Gary Klein Weatherford, TX 7 14-09 205
Day 1: 4 08-09 Day 2: 3 06-00
36. Skeet Reese Auburn, CA 6 14-08 203
Day 1: 1 02-01 Day 2: 5 12-07
37. David Smith Del City, OK 7 14-07 201
Day 1: 5 10-05 Day 2: 2 04-02
38. Britt Myers Lake Wylie, SC 6 14-07 199
Day 1: 3 08-02 Day 2: 3 06-05
39. Pete Ponds Madison, MS 6 14-06 197
Day 1: 4 10-11 Day 2: 2 03-11
40. Timmy Horton Muscle Shoals, AL 6 13-12 195
Day 1: 2 04-09 Day 2: 4 09-03
41. Dean Alexander Georgetown, TX 7 13-11 193
Day 1: 2 03-15 Day 2: 5 09-12
42. Morizo Shimizu Matsugaoka JAPAN 7 13-09 191
Day 1: 4 08-02 Day 2: 3 05-07
43. Scott Ashmore Broken Arrow, OK 6 13-08 189
Day 1: 4 07-05 Day 2: 2 06-03
44. Kevin Short Mayflower, AR 8 13-06 187
Day 1: 4 06-14 Day 2: 4 06-08
45. James Niggemeyer Van, TX 5 13-05 185
Day 1: 2 05-05 Day 2: 3 08-00
46. Marty Robinson Lyman, SC 6 13-01 183
Day 1: 4 08-08 Day 2: 2 04-09
47. Shaw E Grigsby Gainesville, FL 5 13-00 181
Day 1: 5 13-00 Day 2: 0 00-00
48. Jared Lintner Arroyo Grande, CA 6 12-11 179
Day 1: 5 12-00 Day 2: 1 00-11
49. Charlie Hartley Grove City, OH 6 12-10 177
Day 1: 3 06-07 Day 2: 3 06-03
50. Casey Ashley Donalds, SC 6 12-08 175
Day 1: 2 02-12 Day 2: 4 09-12
51. Scott Rook Little Rock, AR 7 12-07 173
Day 1: 3 06-07 Day 2: 4 06-00
52. Andy Montgomery Blacksburg, SC 6 12-07 171
Day 1: 5 10-13 Day 2: 1 01-10
53. Zell Rowland Austin, TX 4 12-00 169
Day 1: 2 05-02 Day 2: 2 06-14
54. Yusuke Miyazaki Forney, TX 6 11-12 167
Day 1: 1 01-08 Day 2: 5 10-04
55. Tommy Biffle Wagoner, OK 8 11-09 165
Day 1: 5 06-03 Day 2: 3 05-06
56. Craig Schuff Watauga, TX 7 11-09 163
Day 1: 4 06-10 Day 2: 3 04-15
57. Jeff Connella Bentley, LA 7 11-09 161
Day 1: 2 04-04 Day 2: 5 07-05
58. Ott DeFoe Knoxville, TN 9 11-08 159
Day 1: 4 05-14 Day 2: 5 05-10
59. Kelly Jordon Palestine, TX 7 11-06 157
Day 1: 2 03-08 Day 2: 5 07-14
60. Bill Lowen Brookville, IN 6 11-05 155
Day 1: 5 08-05 Day 2: 1 03-00
61. James Stricklin Texarkania, TX 6 10-07 153
Day 1: 3 06-04 Day 2: 3 04-03
62. Derek Remitz Grant, AL 5 10-01 151
Day 1: 2 03-02 Day 2: 3 06-15
63. Paul Elias Laurel, MS 5 09-11 149
Day 1: 1 00-13 Day 2: 4 08-14
64. Ryan Said Wixom, MI 5 09-07 147
Day 1: 2 04-02 Day 2: 3 05-05
65. Mark Menendez Paducah, KY 6 09-05 145
Day 1: 3 03-15 Day 2: 3 05-06
66. Dustin Wilks Rocky Mount, NC 5 09-01 143
Day 1: 3 06-12 Day 2: 2 02-05
67. Chris Lane Guntersville, AL 4 08-12 141
Day 1: 1 01-05 Day 2: 3 07-07
68. Mark Davis Mount Ida, AR 4 08-10 139
Day 1: 4 08-10 Day 2: 0 00-00
69. Alton Jones Waco, TX 6 08-07 137
Day 1: 4 05-03 Day 2: 2 03-04
70. Cliff Crochet Pierre Part, LA 3 08-06 135
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 3 08-06
71. Kotaro Kiriyama Moody, AL 4 07-15 133
Day 1: 1 01-15 Day 2: 3 06-00
72. Fred Roumbanis Bixby, OK 4 07-12 131
Day 1: 3 05-08 Day 2: 1 02-04
73. Matt Greenblatt Port St Lucie, FL 3 07-11 129
Day 1: 3 07-11 Day 2: 0 00-00
74. Dave Wolak Wake Forest, NC 6 07-09 127
Day 1: 3 03-02 Day 2: 3 04-07
75. Boyd Duckett Demopolis, AL 4 07-08 125
Day 1: 4 07-08 Day 2: 0 00-00
76. Bernie Schultz Gainesville, FL 3 07-05 123
Day 1: 2 04-00 Day 2: 1 03-05
77. Dennis Tietje Roanoke, LA 3 07-03 121
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 3 07-03
78. Peter E Thliveros St Augustine, FL 3 07-03 119
Day 1: 2 04-10 Day 2: 1 02-09
79. Pat Golden High Point, NC 3 06-07 117
Day 1: 1 01-01 Day 2: 2 05-06
80. J Todd Tucker Moultrie, GA 3 06-05 115
Day 1: 1 01-02 Day 2: 2 05-03
81. Terry Butcher Talala, OK 4 06-04 113
Day 1: 2 02-14 Day 2: 2 03-06
82. Dean Rojas Lake Havasu City, AZ 3 05-11 111
Day 1: 3 05-11 Day 2: 0 00-00
83. Jeff Kriet Ardmore, OK 4 05-10 109
Day 1: 3 03-12 Day 2: 1 01-14
84. Terry Scroggins San Mateo, FL 3 05-10 107
Day 1: 2 03-13 Day 2: 1 01-13
85. Mike McClelland Bella Vista, AR 5 05-09 105
Day 1: 1 01-13 Day 2: 4 03-12
86. Nate Wellman Newaygo, MI 4 05-09 103
Day 1: 2 02-12 Day 2: 2 02-13
87. Jami Fralick Martin, SD 3 05-08 101
Day 1: 3 05-08 Day 2: 0 00-00
88. Bradley Hallman Norman, OK 2 05-01 99
Day 1: 2 05-01 Day 2: 0 00-00
89. Travis Manson De Pere, WI 3 04-14 97
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 3 04-14
90. Brian Snowden Reeds Spring, MO 2 04-12 95
Day 1: 2 04-12 Day 2: 0 00-00
91. Russell Parrish Riesel, TX 2 04-09 93
Day 1: 1 02-12 Day 2: 1 01-13
92. Matt Herren Trussville, AL 4 04-08 91
Day 1: 4 04-08 Day 2: 0 00-00
93. Kevin Wirth Crestwood, KY 4 04-06 89
Day 1: 2 01-13 Day 2: 2 02-09
94. Brent Broderick Oregonia, OH 2 04-01 87
Day 1: 1 02-05 Day 2: 1 01-12
95. Grant Goldbeck Boerne, TX 1 02-08 85
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 1 02-08
96. Lee Sisson Winter Haven, FL 1 01-14 83
Day 1: 1 01-14 Day 2: 0 00-00
97. Chad Griffin Cresson, TX 1 01-07 81
Day 1: 1 01-07 Day 2: 0 00-00
98. David Walker Sevierville, TN 4 00-12 79
Day 1: 1 00-12 Day 2: 3 00-00
99. Bradley Roy Lancaster, KY 5 00-00 77
Day 1: 0 00-00 Day 2: 5 00-00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day #Limits #Fish Weight
1 28 307 620-01
2 27 295 601-03
----------------------------------
55 602 1221-04
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Pro Kevin Carstensen of Merrill, Wis., and co-angler Kurt Zins of Nicollet, Minn., caught 5 walleyes weighing 15 pounds, 11 ounces Friday to propel Carstensen into the lead at the National Guard FLW Walleye Tour on Leech Lake presented by Mercury. Cartensen now has a two-day catch of 10 walleyes weighing 29-0 and a 1-pound, 5-ounce lead heading into the final day of competition. Anglers from 17 states are fishing for top awards of up to $63,000 in the Pro Division and up to $10,500 in the Co-angler Division.
“We were done fishing by 10 a.m.,” said Cartensen, who is looking for his first FLW Walleye Tour win. “Up until now Leech Lake has not been one of my favorite fisheries. This is old school fishing which really isn’t my style. But I found out in practice that I was giving too much thought to my fishing and I needed to keep it simple.
“So far it has been all jigging leeches, minnows and crawlers, that’s it,” Carstensen went on to say. “I have two primary spots that I have been fishing. Both are pretty dependent on the weather. Today I hit the shallower of the two. With the cloud cover that we had today I knew the bite would be on fire and I was right. Yesterday I went to the deeper area I had found because of the wind.
“The area I am fishing is unbelievable. I actually found this spot last year at the championship,” Carstensen added. “I don’t even think the locals know about it. Both my co-anglers have been shocked by how fast and furious it fishes. When I first got there both of them thought I was crazy. Neither one of them thought we would catch a fish there but you can catch small fish there all day long, it is so much fun. It will be my first stop tomorrow.”
Unlike most of the anglers that struggled with yesterday’s wind and cold, Carstensen said it did not impact his fishing. He indicated that today’s cloud cover actually helped him and increased the bite all around. Although there were more overs brought to the scale today than yesterday, many of the pros still struggled trying to get the elusive overs in the boat. A common complaint heard as the anglers crossed the stage was trying to catch the big ones first not giving them enough time to catch the slot fish.
Rounding out the top 10 pros are:
2nd: National Guard pro Bill Shimota, Lonsdale, Minn., 10 walleyes, 27-11
3rd: National Guard pro Mark Courts, Harris, Minn., 10 walleyes, 26-13
4th: Rick Olson, Mina, S.D., 10 walleyes, 24-2
5th: Tom Kemos, Oconomowoc, Wis., 10 walleyes, 23-4
6th: Paul Meleen, Isle, Minn., nine walleyes, 21-10
7th: Mark Christianson, Walker, Minn., 10 walleyes, 21-0
8th: David Bjorkman, Fargo, N.D., seven walleyes, 20-11
9th: Scott Larson, Mayville, N.D., nine walleyes, 20-11
10th: Eric Olson, Red Wing, Minn., 10 walleyes, 20-7
Alan Wegleitner of Somerset, Wis., leads the Co-angler Division with 10 walleyes weighing 26-6 followed by Kurt Zins of Nicollet, Minn., in second place with 10 walleyes weighing 25-12.
Fishing in his first FLW Walleye Tour tournament, Wegleitner said that both his partners were fishing with rigs. He was paired yesterday with Tom Keenan, Hatley Wis., and Christianson today.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Tim Depooter, Rock Island, Ill., 10 walleyes, 24-07
4th: Boyd Strissel, Billings, Mont., 10 walleyes, 24-6
5th: Randal Sterr, Oconomowoc, Wis., eight walleyes, 23-9
6th: Edward Piekutowski, Moorhead, Minn., 10 walleyes, 23-8
7th: Tyrone Larson, Amherst, Wis., nine walleyes, 23-6
8th: James Stigen, Elk River, Minn., six walleyes, 22-13
9th: Dan Soehren, New Ulm, Minn., seven walleyes, 21-1
10th: Dan Meisner, Merrill, Wis., eight walleyes, 20-13
Overall there were 318 walleyes weighing 608 pounds, 13 ounces caught by 95 boats Friday. The catch included 33 five-walleye limits.
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Luke Clausen discusses his recent win and gives a day by day play by play overview of how he did it. To read this interview click here. |
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LBAA pro Kim Bain Moore weighs in today with Terry Brown and talks about goal setting and why she fishes. She also talks about Andre, her husband who owns Reaction Innovations, and a little about Australia, as well. To listen click here. |
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Amid another gorgeous summer sunrise in downtown Little Rock
at the Bassmaster Elite Series tournament, tough fishing, hot weather and temperamental
trolling motors put tension in the humid air hanging in the launch harbor.
Like yesterday when Kevin VanDam willingly changed-out Davy
Hite’s hooks moments before the first cast of the day, the brotherhood that’s
as much a part of this sport as high horsepower outboards became hugely
apparent once again.
Far beyond their mutual residency in “The Palmetto State”
South Carolina pros Marty Robinson and Casey Ashley share a lot in common.
Seldom will you see one without the other. Not only are they traveling
roommates on tour, they also convoy their Toyota Tundras from one tournament to
the next, and can often be found picking guitar and singing country music to
relax after a long day on the water. Plus, both have a penchant for laughing
out loud.
But at 6:30 this morning, nobody was singing or laughing
when Robinson discovered moments before blast-off that his trolling motor had
no juice. Robinson is in contention to make his first Bassmaster Classic in
five grinding years on tour. But with lock and dam operators threatening to
close the gates along Marty’s riverine path to another solid day like yesterday,
stress levels skyrocketed from the reality that one bad day out here can crush
a dream season.
As five guys from the ever heroic Bassmaster Service Crew
pounced aboard Robinson’s boat and checked every wire, fuse, breaker and the
trolling motor itself – arguably it was Casey Ashley that saved the day when he
told Marty, “Marty, I’ve got a spare trolling motor in the back of my truck,
take my keys, run up there to the parking lot, and get it.”
Robinson took Casey’s keys, sprinted toward the parking lot
in his flip-flop sandals, and returned with Casey’s Tundra, along with the brand
new back-up trolling motor Casey promised. Robinson who is mechanically
inclined to the point of operating his own plumbing business with wife Iris
when not on tour, assisted in the installation, and 15 minutes after every
other boat had blasted off, Marty idled into the current of the Arkansas with a
smile on his suntanned face – because once again, brotherhood trumps bad wires
or temperamental trolling motors.
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Photos by Alan McGuckin
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Photos courtesy of B.A.S.S. Communications
For the second time of the Bassmaster Elite Series season, bass fishing legend Denny Brauer of Camdenton, Mo., took the lead on the first day.
And on what was arguably the toughest first day of any event in the 2011 Elite season, Brauer’s 14 pounds and 10 ounces of Arkansas River bass was enough to command the lead in the Diamond Drive on Thursday. He was 2 ounces ahead of Ish Monroe of Hughson, Calif., in second place with 14-8, and more than a pound in front of Keith Poche of Troy, Ala., third with 13-8.
In fourth place was the only pro from Arkansas to slip into the top five. Billy McCaghren of Mayflower brought in 13-3, managing 3 ounces more than did Shaw Grigsby, the pro who won the season opener on the Harris Chain of Lakes in his home state of Florida. In sixth was Michigan’s Kevin VanDam, who had 12-12.
Brauer, a 16-time Bassmaster event winner, was understandably closed-mouthed about his successful day.
“Come Day Four, I’d be happy to share that information — if I’m here on Day Four,” he said.
Brauer was making the point that the river was fishing so tough that even the first-day leader had no guarantees of following his own act. Of the 99 pros — the best bass anglers in the world — only 28 brought limits to the scales Thursday. Six pros came up empty-handed.
“I got fortunate today,” Brauer said. “What will happen tomorrow, I don’t know.”
He recounted a practice that began with few fish and was filled with a comedy of errors. “I only caught one keeper, got stuck five times, and had to be towed off twice, and hit a rock jetty. But I regrouped mentally and went out the second day and found a few fish.”
Those were the fish he caught and brought in Thursday, he said.
Brauer said he fished three different pools of the Arkansas River, which meant he spent the time to lock through twice. He said he was having to adapt to the rapidly fluctuating water levels of the river, and had a few ideas of new strategies to try.
“I really don’t have a clue if I can catch another one. Today was just a really good day for me,” he said.
Monroe said he “just went fishing” Thursday. That approach is part of his newly adopted attitude to have fun when he’s competing.
 “I started having fun and I started making cuts,” said Monroe, who broke a dry spell with a top-12 cut just last month on Georgia’s West Point Lake, and who won Berkley Big Bass of the Tournament in April on Toledo Bend with a 10-15 lunker.
He said he is keying in on “little tiny things” — subtle differences that other Elite pros fishing near him are not. The river’s fluctuating water levels are helping him, he said, and he’s minimizing downtown by electing to lock through just one lock.
“It’s too hard to catch them in four hours on a fishery that’s not that strong,” he said.
Of the leaders in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year race, VanDam in sixth place fared the best after one day on the Arkansas. Alton Jones and Terry Scroggins, VanDam’s fiercest AOY competitors, stumbled on Thursday: Jones was 58th with four fish that went 5-3; Scroggins, the current AOY leader, was in 71st place with two fish that weighed 3-13.
Points are not awarded until the end of the tournament, a fact not lost on Scroggins, who fished near VanDam on Thursday.
“Tomorrow, I think I’ll lock down just one pool and that will give me six hours to fish instead of just three and a half,” Scroggins said. “Today I swung for the fences. With the position I’m in, I had to gamble. Here, there’s so many things that can go wrong, and for anyone.”
For more information about the Bassmaster Elite Series Diamond Drive, go to bassmaster.com.
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Day one Leader Mark Courts / Photo courtesy of FLW Outdoors
National Guard pro Mark Courts of Harris, Minn., and co-angler John Cox of Bono, Ark., brought in five walleyes weighing 15 pounds, 14 ounces Thursday to lead day one of the National Guard FLW Walleye Tour tournament on Leech Lake presented by Mercury. The pair holds a mere, 7-ounce lead over their closest rivals in an event featuring 95 pros and 95 co-anglers representing 17 states fishing for top awards of $63,000 in the Pro Division and $10,500 in the Co-angler Division.
“The fishing is phenomenal on Leech Lake,” said Courts, who finished in fifth place at the Walleye Championship held on Leech Lake last year. “We couldn’t have hit this lake at a more perfect time. This is a first class fishery, and I am just having a ball. The fishing is only going to get better and better the next couple of days.
“We got our two 'overs' pretty early and finished the limit with some nice 'unders,'” Courts went on to say. “In order to win this tournament you have to bring in those two overs each day. I was mostly doing some typical Leech Lake rigging and jigging and spent a little time pulling spinners.
“The lake is really a wind driven lake' and that’s how I am fishing here; I am playing the wind,” Courts added. “The biggest challenge on this lake is finding a spot that is not heavily pressured. I am just excited to go fishing tomorrow. The only thing I could wish for is some cloud cover, and the fishing will be awesome.”
According to Courts the cold front that came through yesterday has not impacted the big bite and believes it helped keep water temperatures constant. Courts was worried earlier in the week that the extreme heat wave that hit on Monday would warm the water up too fast and really scatter the fish. He indicated that tomorrow’s predicted rain would only improve walleye fishing for him.
Rounding out the remainder of the top 10 pros and co-anglers after day one at Leech Lake are:
2nd: Paul Meleen, Isle, Minn., and Dave Smith, St. Joseph, Minn., five walleyes, 15-7
3rd: Duane Kriese Sr., Shakopee, Minn., and Dan Soehren, New Ulm, Minn., two walleyes, 13-14
4th: Kevin Carstensen, Merrill, Wis., and Brian Speckmann, Downers Grove, Ill., five walleyes, 13-5
5th: Matthew Ernst, North Oaks, Minn., and Randal Sterr, Oconomowoc, Wis., three walleyes, 12-10
6th: Richard Zachowski, Milwaukee, Wis., and Wallace Carter Jr., Lawrenceburg, Ky., five walleyes, 11-15
7th: Tom Keenan, Hatley, Wis., and Alan Wegleitner, Somerset, Wis., five walleyes, 11-13
8th: National Guard pro Bill Shimota, Londsdale, Minn., and Randy Kuchenmeister, Forest Lake, Minn., five walleyes, 11-13
9th: Scott Larson, Mayville, N.D., and Doug Weidenhammer, Ham Lake, Minn., five walleyes, 11-9
10th: David Kleszyk, Oakbrook Terrace, Ill., and Tim Depooter, Rock Island, Ill., five walleyes, 11-8
Overall there were 270 walleyes weighing 515 pounds, 12 ounces caught by 95 boats Thursday. The catch included 29 five-walleye limits.
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Operation Waypoint, a Minnesota-based, non-profit program administered by the St. Augusta American Legion Women’s Auxiliary Post 621, announced today the broadening of its program from a state and regional focus to national in scope with its new website, gpsfortroops.org.
Fully run by dedicated volunteers, the program is committed to increasing the safety of military men and women deploying to the Middle East with the guidance of highly accurate, handheld GPS units and mapping cards for Iraq and Afghanistan. Since its inception, Operation Waypoint has relied heavily on its partnership with Lowrance, a leading GPS navigation systems brand, to provide GPS products and charts to soldiers preparing to serve, as well as generous donations from service and social organizations, and numerous individuals to fund the effort. The redesigned Operation Waypoint website will build awareness for the organization’s work, making it easier for visitors to donate and encourage other organizations to become partners in the project to provide GPS devices for soldiers in their own communities.
Operation Waypoint was started in 2005 by retired educator Ed Meyer after a former student, preparing for deployment to Iraq, contacted him to ask what type of GPS unit would be best for his mission. As the military only provides one GPS device per unit, which is usually mounted in a vehicle, Meyer contacted a friend at Lowrance, requested three GPS handheld devices, and trained the company commander and two former students how to use them. Shortly after the soldiers arrived in Iraq, while traveling at night, their 24-vehicle convoy took a wrong turn into a very dangerous Baghdad neighborhood following the lead truck’s Army-issued GPS unit. Realizing the mistake, the convoy commander called Sgt. Gaylen Heacock, one of the soldiers equipped with a Lowrance GPS supplied by Meyer. Heacock’s device determined the correct route and was able to guide the convoy to safety. Upon hearing of how the Lowrance units aided in safety, Meyer worked through the American Legion Auxiliary and Post 621 to broaden the idea into a full not-for-profit program.
“Our goal is to spearhead an even larger movement where communities nationwide can directly support our troops in a very meaningful way,” said Meyer. “I believe that every soldier that feels a GPS would aid them in their mission in the Middle East should have one with them.”
With the enhancement of GPS accuracy and advanced features, today’s GPS units are even better suited to the challenges often seen by the military than when the program began. Operation Waypoint provides soldiers with Lowrance Endura Safari handheld GPS units that contain a precision GPS+WAAS antenna with 42-channel receiver and 3-axis magnetic compass to ensure troops have pinpoint accuracy for proper guidance or calling in air support when needed. The combination of the touchscreen, simple menus, and the ability to control one-handed or with gloves, keeps usability fast and seamless. However, the most important benefit is the ability to store up to 2000 waypoints for areas of safe passage, suspected insurgent buildings, and other items that are marked and identified with any of 193 different icons and then shared between GPS units over time or added to satellite maps.
“The [GPS] unit helped insure the safety of crews while running convoys through the worst part of Iraq,” said Sgt. Heacock. “It’s helpful in pinpointing causality evacuation points and points of hostile action.”
To date, Operation Waypoint is responsible for delivering over 200 handheld devices into the hands of deploying soldiers. The St. Augusta American Legion accepts donations for Operation Waypoint and purchases its Endura Safari handheld GPS units directly from Lowrance. Lowrance also provides permission for the organization to copy and encrypt its Middle East mapping onto locally sourced microSD cards. While more work, this avoids packaging and operational overhead costs that would normally be seen by a manufacturer. Once the GPS and mapping cards are prepared, each participating soldier is personally trained on the GPS and mapping prior to his or her taking it overseas.
“Each Lowrance GPS and chart card costs $115 after corporate discounts are factored in,” continued Meyer. “Unfortunately, there are still times when we can’t purchase enough units. I have even given my personal GPS away, because I can’t imagine turning down a brave solider. The challenge, as with most non-profits, is maintaining enough donations to support the program effectively.”
Operation Waypoint seeks to grow nationally by working with other American Legion Posts and organizations with a goal to provide a GPS unit to every deployed unit. For more information on Operation Waypoint, to make a donation or learn about other ways to support the organization’s work, please visit www.gpsfortroops.org or contact (320) 252-6693.
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Photo by Alan McGuckin
Make no mistake; bold amounts of tenacious competitiveness exist between Bassmaster Elite Series pros. Still, it’s a game played in deep pools of humility with fellowship often floating to the surface even on the first morning of the tournament.
Indeed, fellowship floated freely at sunrise this morning between Davy Hite and Kevin VanDam inside the small harbor where morning take-off is staged along the north bank of the Arkansas River in the heart of downtown Little Rock.
As boat numbers were called-out, Hite asked VanDam what size replacement treble hooks he liked best on his namesake Strike King KVD 1.5 crankbait. VanDam advised a larger size than what Hite obviously put on his lures and could tell Hite felt immediately disadvantaged.
Rather than ride off into the sunrise, leaving Hite restless with the wrong hooks, VanDam turned to Davy and said, “Hand them here, Davy. I’ll change them back to the right size for you.” Hite obliged and handed over his lures sporting incorrect hook sizes. KVD broke out the split-ring pliers and some of his namesake KVD Mustad hooks, and in classic blazing fast VanDam fashion, made all things good again with Davy’s lures in time for take off.
Even after nearly 10 years as his roommate, Hite couldn’t help but talk about Kevin’s admirable character.
“I’ve said it a million times, for the success that he’s had, it’s amazing how helpful and humble Kevin is," Hite said. "Sure we’re close friends, but he didn’t have to help me like that. He’s just so dang quick at changing out hooks, there was no logic in telling him I’d do it myself. His parents obviously raised him to be the high-character man that he is, and his wife makes sure he stays that way.”
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Just before the first day blast-off of the Bassmaster Elite Series event on the Arkansas River in Little Rock, Ark., Bassmaster Classic champion Kevin VanDam was proudly showing off what he considers to be the perfect cranking reel.
Kevin has been working for months with his career-long reel sponsor Quantum to design a special lighter bodied 5.3:1 ratio reel specially suited to the cranking system he’s used to win his two most recent Bassmaster Classic and Angler of the Year titles.
“Based on the success of the Smoke series of reels, I asked Quantum to build me a reel styled similar to that frame with the 5.3:1 ratio I love," said VanDam. "They nailed it. It’s a really low profile, significantly lighter reel we’re calling the Tour KVD Cranking Classic. It has the super smooth Performance Tuned 150-size gears in it. We’re officially launching it at the ICAST trade show next month. Plus, we put smaller guides and a smaller foregrip on my cranking rods to make them lighter too."
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Photo and story by Alan McGuckin
Pre-game conversations at every Bassmaster Elite Series
event inevitably turn to verbal wagers over what the “cut weight” will be. In other words, how much will you have to
catch the first two days of competition in order to place in the top half of
the standings and be eligible to compete on Saturday? Apparently, it won’t take much on the
Arkansas River this week.
Toyota Tundra driving pros Terry Scroggins, Marty Robinson
and Casey Ashley chatted prior to the mandatory pre-tournament meeting and all
agreed that fishing pressure, a larger than normal 15-inch minimum length
requirement for largemouth bass, and the unpredictability of trafficking
through the river’s lock and dam system would lead to far lower than normal Elite
Series weights.
Casey Ashley, who won the most recent Elite Series event,
spoke with confidence, but simultaneously offered a rather dismal outlook.
“It’s brutal. I feel like I can catch
them, but it’s brutal. It’s gonna be
really, really tough to catch a limit of 15-inch keepers. I’ll predict if you
can average seven pounds per day during the first two days that you’ll make the
cut.”
BoatUS Angler “Weigh-to-Win” member Marty Robinson predicts
the cut line to be very near to what his roommate and good friend Casey
predicts. “I’m not sure most guys know
for sure what they are capable of catching here because everybody was afraid to
jerk on too many of them in practice. The fishing is too tough to set a hook
and sting them. I did catch a 4-pounder
on the second day of practice, and you can bet I’ll be high-fiving my Marshall
if I catch one that big during the tournament. I think 15-pounds will take the lead on the first day, but you’ll only
need 15-pounds combined over the first two days to make the cut and fish on
Saturday.”
Current Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year points
leader Terry Scroggins is barely, just barely, more optimistic than Ashley and
Robinson. “The whole deal with this
river is that it fishes small and gets crowded. It won’t hold up to this much
fishing pressure, especially not over three or four days. Plus, the lock and
dam schedule will be a huge concern. I’m
optimistic I can do well, but I doubt it takes more than 16-pounds over the
first two days to make the cut. Fishing pressure and locks will have a lot to
do with the final outcome here.”
It’s hard to say how accurate the guesstimates of Ashley,
Robinson and Scroggins are. But one thing’s for sure, here in the blazing
southern summer air along the banks of the seemingly stingy Arkansas, half this
talented field could quickly be left out in the cold.
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With anticipation building for numerous college fishing competitors, National Guard FLW College Fishing
announced the 2011 regional championship dates, fisheries and host
schools. The regional fishing tournaments will be hosted by Penn State,
Auburn, Southern Illinois, Texas A&M and Arizona State. The
tournaments will begin in September and conclude in November. The top
five teams from each regional championship will advance to the National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship.
“We are very excited about the schedule for the 2011
National Guard FLW College Fishing Regional Championships,” said Kathy
Fennel, president of FLW Outdoors
Operations Division. “The fisheries we are visiting should offer the
college clubs a great venue and the host schools are excited about the
events, so it should make for a great weekend for all involved.”
The 2011 National Guard FLW College Fishing Regional Championship schedule is listed below.
Dates Division School Fishery Location
Sept. 1-3 Northern Penn
State Sayers Lake State College,
Penn.
Sept. 8-10 Southeast Auburn Lake Harding Auburn, Ala.
Oct. 6-8 Central Southern Illinois Lake Kinkaid Carbondale, Ill.
Oct. 13-15 Texas Texas
A&M Somerville Lake College Station,
Texas
Nov. 17-19 Western Arizona State Lake Pleasant Tempe, Ariz.
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The toughest test of the Bassmaster Elite
Series season kicks off tomorrow on the Arkansas River out of Little Rock. This
is the game changer for the whole Elite Series post season and Classic
qualification. Guys at the top will probably fall out and guys near the bottom
will move up a bunch. It’s one of those events where picking a winner is
difficult and holding on to an Angler of the Year lead can be tough. The
pressure mounts with just two events to go and the muddy mess of this event
could be more pressure that some can bear.
This is one of those events we like
to have mixed into a competitive season. It’s not necessarily about who’s the
best angler, but who best can fight through adversity to come out on top. It’s
going to be a grind and decision making becomes more critical in events like
this. Stay or go, move or camp, multiple casts to one piece of cover or hit as
many pieces as cover as possible. Those types of decisions will make or break
guys in this event.
But still there are guys that we
think will do well either because of the work they put in or the experience
they have on the fishery or their proven ability to do well in tough conditions
like these.
Terry’s Picks
Alton Jones – He flew over the
system and knows how to fish rivers. Big event for AOY, and he seems to like the
pressure.
Gary
Klein - He needs a break out tournament after a tough year and has
had great success on muddy rivers. Put a flipping stick in his hands and watch out.
Fred
Roumbanis – It’s hard to go against
"hot" and Boom Boom is on fire. He fishes rivers well and has been on
this one before.
Clark
Reehm – Rheem is my dark horse and needs a break. Has the skills,
and since he is a new father, he may have one of those tournaments.
Ott
DeFoe – I’m still riding the horse that I brought me here. He’s tough
as nails, and a johnboat may be in his plans. Good strategy if he chooses to
use it.
Todd’s Picks
Edwin Evers
– He’s having a banner year and he’s hungry for that AOY title. He’ll fish 24
hours a day if necessary and we expect he’ll leave no stone unturned in this
event.
Cliff Pace
– We just like Cliff. He’s a versatile angler. He’s from the muddy fisheries of
Louisiana and he’s going to have a comfort level on this fishery most won’t
find.
Matt Herren
– We like Herren with a flipping stick in his hand fishing visible shore grass
in muddy water. He’s won on Dardanelle up river before and he’ll use that
confidence and history to finish well here.
Billy McCaghren
– He knows the fishery and excels at catching fish in this muddy conditions. He’s
my wildcard pick for this event.
Ott DeFoe
– Sticking with my regular pick here. I picked him to win Rookie of the Year in
the first event and I’m holding faith that he’s going to keep placing well and
runaway with the title.
Jason’s
Picks
Edwin Evers – the guy has been on a
roll since last year and he’s an incredible “junk” fisherman. This event is
going to be the definition of junk fishing and he gets the nod as my odds on
favorite based on how this tournament is setting up.
Mark
Davis – he’s been quiet this year on tour and we’re thinking
being in his home state on a fishery he’s familiar with and his uncanny ability
to catch fish in variety of ways will make him a strong pick in this event.
Scott
Rook – Let’s see he’s won here before, knows this fishery better
than any angler in the event and he’s sleeping in his own bed this week. That
all makes for a comfort level, few anglers will have in this event and
sometimes the guy who is the calmest does the best.
Billy
Mccaghren - He’s just a stone’s throw down the road in Mayflower, Ark., and is
another angler who knows this fishery. He’s also a strong frog and jig
fisherman which should be hot tickets on this fishery this week.
David
Walker – I like Walker in tournaments where it’s about fishing the
obvious targets quickly before anyone else gets to them. If he gets a good draw
the first day, I expect him to work his magic on visible cover. He’s done well
on Dardanelle up the river from here and he’s a good river angler generally
speaking.
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The
Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA) announced today that
Florence/Lauderdale Tourism will host the 2012 and 2013 BoatUS
Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship events on Pickwick Lake in Alabama.
"We
are delighted for the opportunity to host the BoatUS Collegiate Bass
Fishing Championship in 2012 and 2013," said Debbie Wilson,
Florence/Lauderdale Tourism Executive Director. "We look forward to a
spectacular event in Florence on Pickwick Lake. Beth Agee and our
Florence tourism team have big plans for providing a memorable
experience for the collegiate anglers."
The
2012 Championship event will be held May 21-25 and will feature a two
person team format. Each school will be allowed to send their top three
teams and it's expected that as many as 200 teams will compete for the
prestigious national championship title. The full field will compete
both days and the winners will be determined by the heaviest cumulative
weight.
"We're
very excited that Florence. AL will host the 7th and 8th annual BoatUS
Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship events on Pickwick Lake," commented
Wade Middleton, Tournament Director and President of Careco TV. Since
the innaugural national championship event in 2006, our goal has been to
provide more opportunities for collegiate anglers while growing the
sport of bass fishing. "Florence/Lauderdale Tourism and Pickwick
Lake provide many resources that will contribute greatly to the future
growth of the BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship Series.
The
2012 event promises to be a highly contested tournament featuring the
big catches that Pickwick Lake has become known for during the late
spring time period. In addition to quality largemouth bass, Pickwick is
home to big smallmouth and spotted bass as well. Weigh-ins will take
place at McFarland Park on May 24 & 25 beginning at 3:00 pm each
day.
Camera
teams from CarecoTV will capture all the action and extensive coverage
of the event will be featured on the BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing
Championship television series; which will consist of 18 half hours of
programming that will air on the Versus network, now part of the NBC
Sports Group, during the Fall of 2012.
Under
the leadership of the ACA, collegiate bass fishing continues to grow at
an astounding pace as new fishing clubs are forming at universities
throughout the United States. There are currently more than 200
institutionally recognized fishing clubs nationwide.
Visit CollegiateBassChampionship.com for current news and more information about collegiate bass fishing events.
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Although New York is best known for the theater, fine restaurants and
the world-class nightlife, it is also a great place to wet a line. In
fact, after anglers cast more than one million online votes at wfnfishingtown.com,
Roscoe, NY has been selected as the 2011 WFN: World Fishing Network's
Ultimate Fishing Town USA Presented by Eagle Claw. The announcement was
made by Mark Rubinstein, President and CEO of World Fishing Network,
North America's only 24/7 fishing channel.
Representatives from The Roscoe - Rockland Chamber of Commerce will
receive a $25,000 donation to be used towards a fishing-related cause
and 10 WaveSpin Reels at a local ceremony emceed by Mariko Izumi, host
of WFN's popular fishing and travel show, Hookin' Up. The town will also
receive national recognition from the honor and have a feature produced
about fishing in Roscoe to air on WFN.
"We are so proud and thrilled to receive the title of WFN Ultimate
Fishing TownUSA," said Elaine Fettig of The Roscoe - Rockland Chamber of
Commerce, the group who spearheaded the town's efforts. "This
experience brought our community and the surrounding areas together --
from folks spreading the word about the contest; to the media speaking
about it frequently; to business owners allowing staff to vote during
the business day. We look forward to the opportunities this award will
provide to Roscoe, and we thank WFN for bringing our community together
in support of a common goal."
Roscoe, N.Y., also known as "Trout Town USA", is a small hamlet of about
600 people with such a strong fishing history that it has been known as
Trout Town USA for decades. Its choice natural setting offers anglers
five of America's top trout streams and numerous reservoirs and lakes.
It is conveniently located approximately two hours from New York City,
Connecticut and New Jersey at the gateway to the Catskill Park and
surrounded by over 20,000 acres of State Forest Preserve. In addition
to world class fishing there are a significant number of cultural and
other attractions nearby as well, from the Bethel Woods Center for the
Arts on the former site of the Woodstock Festival to museums, covered
bridges, arts societies, fine shops and more.
After more than 300 towns all across the U.S.A. were nominated in March,
a preliminary round of voting in April narrowed the field to 20
finalists. The competition quickly became a two town race as Roscoe and
Waddington, N.Y. traded places atop the leader board. In the end,
Roscoe edged Waddington by a small margin.
"We commend all of the towns for their enthusiasm, passion and pride and
wanting to invite anglers all across the U.S.A. to experience
everything their town has to offer," said Mr. Rubinstein. "WFN's search
for our Ultimate Fishing Town was not just about finding the place to
catch the most fish. As any angler will tell you, and as Roscoe proved,
the people are just as important a factor. Roscoe's passionate angling
community stepped-up to prove that their pride, passion and fishing are
second to none."
As the runner-up, Waddington, NY will be awarded $5,000 while the third
place finisher, Baudette, MN will receive $2,500. The Top 20 finalists
in order of finish were:
Roscoe, NY
Waddington, NY
Baudette, MN
Gladstone, MI
Winthrop Harbor, IL
Seward, AK
Destin, FL
Kissimmee, FL
Homer, AK
Florence, AL
Boulder Junction, WI
Hartsel, CO
Annapolis, MD
Richmond Hill, GA
Bradford, PA
Bainbridge, GA
Gold Beach, OR
Zapata, TX
Denver, CO
Grand Isle, LA
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 Abu Garcia® is proud to announce the launch of the Abu Garcia Sneak Peek
Sweepstakes that gives the everyday angler a chance to receive the
newest gear offered by Abu Garcia, and this is all before it hits stores
around the country.
From June 1- August 1, 2011 consumers can register to win new products
in weekly giveaways leading up to the big reveal at the ICAST show in
Las Vegas, Nev. The prizes will be announced shortly after each drawing
via the contest website and the Abu Garcia Fan Page.
"This is a great opportunity for consumers to get the newest of new
products from Abu Garcia," said Chris Derrick, Abu Garcia Brand Manager.
"Our products for 2012 will blow the minds of every angler out there.
We have really innovated the rod and reel market and the new products
will prove that we are on the leading edge of innovation in the fishing
industry."
Consumers may register for the promotion through Facebook.com/AbuGarcia, and visiting the Sneak Peek Sweepstakes tab, or by visiting AbuGarcia.com and clicking on the sweepstakes widget.
Click here to enter the contest http://wildfireapp.com/website/6/contests/121596.
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Due to high water, the United States Coast Guard has closed the Missouri
River along Nebraska to recreational boat traffic until further notice.
"The closure is due to floodwaters that put recreational boaters at
risk," said Nebraska Game and Parks Commission Boating Law Administrator
Herb Angell. "The wash and wake caused by motorboats could cause
additional damage to already flooded properties. Fast, deep water,
loaded with debris has created a danger to boaters and public safety."
The river is flooding in many places because of increased discharges at
Gavins Point Dam. Exceptional rainfall in Montana and the spring runoff
has filled the reservoirs upstream from Gavins Point, causing the need
for increased discharges.
Boaters on the lower Platte River also should use caution, and Game and
Parks recommends that air-boaters stay off that portion of the river.
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Chris Ross knows how to build crankbaits. His Mississippi based company has been doing it for years and his color selection is second to none. He even has a color called "mistake" that Bandit pro staff angler Matt Herren loves to throw. His new squarebill crankbait has the best colors that Bandit has to offer but also includes a special beveled bill that gives it properties that make it very unique. Shallow water cranking is hot and the Bandit Squarebill will help you put more fish in the boat.
Thanks to everyone who participated in our Bandit Contest. The winners are getting a killer assortment of the new Bandit Squarebill crankbaits. Those winners are:
Ben Fuchs
Manhattan, KS
Morgan Swisher
Madera, CA
Tim Stock
Lykens, PA
They are on the way!
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There are a lot of FLW Tour pros and co-anglers who were really interested to see what it took to win this past weekend's Triton Owners Tournament. Kentucky Lake is off limits right now to the FLW anglers. Travis
Cockburn and Jacob Zeigler won the
12th annual Triton Owners Tournament, held June 3-4, 2011, on Kentucky
Lake.
Besting the other 308 boats in the tournament, Cockburn and Zeigler brought in five bass weighing
29.12 pounds for a 5.82-pound average to seal the victory. On the first
day of the event open only to anglers owning Triton boats and their
partners, Cockburn and Zeigler held fourth place with 22.91 pounds. They
finished with a 10-bass two-day limit weighing 52.03 pounds. Their
largest fish weighed 5.90 pounds, putting $7,000 into their winning
hands.
“On the first day, we ran south and caught seven keepers in our first
spot,” Cockburn said. “From there, we went north and caught a couple
fish to cull up. Late in the day, we pulled up on a ledge and found some
schoolers. On Day 1, we probably caught about 12 keepers.”
“We were throwing big Berkley Power Worms in green pumpkin and sexy shad
Strike King crankbaits,” Zeigler added. “On Day 2, we went north and
fished main lake ledges over shell beds in about 14 feet of water. By 9
a.m., we had everything. We caught about nine keepers on the final day.”
For more information on this tournament, see americanbassanglers.com.
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Elite Series pro Ben Parker was featured in a recent segment on WBBJ Channel 7 Eyewitness News in Tennessee. He talks about his life long passion for fishing and hunting and how he made the switch from a lucrative investment banking career to professional bass fishing. It was interesting plus it's really cool to see Ben catch two nice largemouth, at the same time, on camera! He talks about the Elite Series, Electronics classes and more.
To watch the video on their site, click here.
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Chevy pro Luke Clausen of Otis Orchards, Wash., caught a five-bass limit weighing 19 pounds, 4 ounces Sunday to win $125,000 at the Walmart FLW Tour on the Potomac River presented by National Guard with a four-day catch of 20 bass weighing 69-14.
The catch gave him the win by a 1-pound, 13-ounce margin over Michael Iaconelli of Pittsgrove, N.J., who caught a total of 20 bass weighing 68-1 and earned $35,000.
“This is amazing,” said Clausen, who hasn’t won a major tournament since 2006 when he won the Bassmaster Classic. “I get pretty mad pretty easily and I would have been pretty upset with a second place finish. This is a relief really. After winning both the Forrest Wood Cup and the Bassmaster Classic and not having a victory since 2006, I have been pretty frustrated. To finally win again is just an amazing feeling.
“I was a little nervous coming to the scale today,” Clausen went on to say. “I thought I only had about 16 pounds and when I saw 19, I almost fell over.
“I fished in one area all week long,” Clausen added. “I am not real familiar with fishing tides so when I found this area in practice I felt had the opportunity of producing good quality fish. I just stuck with it all four days. And it did. I brought in six bass that weighed more than 5 pounds each.
“The area fished differently every day,” Clausen elaborated. “I learned something new each day and by today, I felt like I really knew how to fish it. There were about 25 boats in there the first two days and then Bryan Schmitt and I were in there all alone the final two days.
“The high tide was definitely better for me,” Clausen continued. “You could see what you were throwing at. Low tide made it very difficult. Thankfully we had a long high tide today. I was pretty worried when I saw that south wind this morning. I really thought I was going to be in trouble.
“Of course grass was key to this tournament. I was throwing inside the grass and outside the grass depending on the tide. I used so many different things for bait this week but my main go to baits were Z-man finesse worms and Z-man creature baits. Today I was using a swim jig. Basically whatever felt right was what I used. It changed often depending on the wind and the tide. One of the reasons the Potomac is so fun to fish is that you can do so many different things with so many different baits and they all work,” Clausen continued. “It doesn’t matter what you use or how you fish, you’ll catch fish all day long.
Clausen opened the tournament in 17th place Thursday with five bass weighing 15-3. On Friday he added another five bass weighing 17-0 using Z-Man creature baits to move up to fourth place. He then caught five bass weighing 18-7 on Z-Man finesse worms Saturday to make the crucial top-10 cut in second place. On Sunday he sealed his victory using a swim jig.
The remaining top 10 pros finished the tournament in:
3rd: Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., 20 bass, 65-5, $30,000
4th: Bryan Schmitt, Deale, Md., 20 bass, 64-12, $25,000
5th: Michael Williamson, Fort Smith, Ark., 20 bass, 61-6, $20,000
6th: AMP pro Stetson Blaylock, Benton, Ark., 20 bass, 60-0, $17,000
7th: Castrol pro David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., 20 bass, 58-0, $16,000
8th: Lance Vick, Mineola, Texas, 20 bass, 56-14, $15,000
9th: Chad Morgenthaler, Coulterville, Ill., 20 bass, 55-7, $14,000
10th: Cory Johnston, Peterborough, Ontario, 19 bass, 54-3, $13,000
A complete list of results can be found at FLWOutdoors.com.
Overall there were 49 bass weighing 142 pounds, 10 ounces caught by 10 pros Sunday. The catch included nine five-bass limits.
Cory Leonard of Castalia, N.C., won the Co-angler Division and $20,000 Saturday with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 37 pounds, 11 ounces followed by James Schneider of Watervliet, N.Y., in second place with 15 bass weighing 37-5 worth $7,500.
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Though it may appear like Bobby Ferguson dominated the 160-boat field at the third and final Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Southern Open, the Chuckey, Tenn., angler had his doubts during three days of fishing. He’s won many tournaments on Douglas Lake, but this Open presented some of the stiffest competition he’s ever faced.
Ferguson has fished Douglas for more than 10 years, and he had to dig deep into his wealth of knowledge to claim his first B.A.S.S. win. He sacked 15-15 for a three-day total of 61-9, more than 4 pounds ahead of runner-up Rogne Brown.
“This one feels really good,” he said. “There was a lot of tough competition out there. Any time you go into a tournament and you’ve got the likes of Tim Smiley and other local guys looking down your back, you’re in for a run.”
Over the three days of competition, Ferguson’s bite dwindled, forcing him to scramble somewhat to keep the lead after pack-leading stringers the first two days. Luckily, those hefty bags totaling 45-plus pounds gave him enough of a lead that he could afford a slight faltering the final day.
Rather than an off-and-on bite, Day Three showed Ferguson a slow bite. He managed to snag his two best fish in the final 30 minutes of competition.
Ferguson focused on ledges in 25 to 30 feet of water on Day Three, pulling one bass from 36 feet. He relied on a trio of baits, none of which he went into details about: a crankbait, soft swimbait and swimming jig. His crankbait bite was early, then once the sun got up, Ferguson focused on suspended fish.
“Suspended fish are the hardest fish that you’ll ever fish for,” he said. “It seemed like those bigger fish got out over points and suspended.”
Ferguson also had to contend with spectators encroaching on his fish. After he blasted off, a 35-boat armada and a helicopter followed him down the lake, with the chopper lingering for nearly 15 minutes.
“I have no idea what that was about,” Ferguson said about the helicopter. “But, I left two holes and came back a little later and there were spectator boats fishing them. That can be aggravating.”
For his win, Ferguson won $10,000 cash as well as a Nitro Z9 boat with a 225-hp Mercury OptiMax motor. Since he did not fish the previous two Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Southern Opens, Ferguson is not eligible for the Bassmaster Classic berth he would have earned otherwise.
The entry will now go to the next Bassmaster Elite Series pro in line based upon Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year points after the conclusion of the Elite Series season on Alabama’s Wheeler Lake in two weeks.
Rogne Brown of Hixson, Tenn., mounted an admirable comeback try on the third day, catching 19-9 for a 57-4 total. Tim Smiley of White Pine, Tenn., caught 15-14 on Day Three for a total of 54-6, good enough for third place.
In fourth place is Tommy Bryant of Knoxville, Tenn., who managed 12-12 on Day Three for a total of 44-2; and in fifth place is Roland Martin of Naples, Fla., who made a big move with 17-4 to wind up with 43-1.
On the co-angler side, Tim Robinson of Creedmoor, N.C., took home a brand new Triton/Mercury boat-and-motor package for his winning catch of 19-15, 5-14 of which he caught on Day Three.
“This takes a lot of pressure off of me,” he said amid an upwelling of tears after the last co-angler weighed. “I can’t thank the good Lord enough for this win. He’s been so good to me.”
Robinson was trailed closely by Dan Jolly of Houston, Texas, who made a run at Robinson with a Day Three catch of 6-1, which gave him a total of 19-7.
In third place is Jonathan Holland of Elkmont, Ala., who caught 6-10 on Day Three, giving him 19-4. In fourth place is Jack Morgan of Lake Placid, Fla., with 18-15. Rounding out the top five co-anglers is Jason Patterson of Bluffton, Ind., who totaled of 18-2.
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Photo courtesy of FLW Outdoors
Mike Iaconelli of Pittsgrove, N.J., caught a five-bass limit weighing 18 pounds, Saturday to capture the lead at the Walmart FLW Tour on the Potomac River presented by National Guard and advanced to the top 10 as the crucial No. 1 seed. With a three-day catch of 15 bass weighing 51-9, he now holds a narrow 15-ounce lead in the tournament going into the final day of competition.
“This feels good,” said Iaconelli, who still remembers losing the 2009 Forrest Wood Cup Championship by three ounces. “I want this win real bad. I have a little fire in my chest after losing by three ounces in Pittsburgh. It only happens once in a while that you get a legitimate shot at winning and this is one of those times.
“Timing is everything on this river,” Iaconelli went on to say. “The Potomac is unique in the fact that twice a day there is a high and a low tide. If you are using the right bait and hit the tide at the right time magic happens. Every day I fish I feel like I am getting a little more in tune with the tide. I feel like I am breathing and living with the fish and it is a good feeling.
“I am not camping on one spot,” continued Iaconelli. “Unlike the other pros that seem to be fishing in one area all day long, I have four good grassy areas during low tide and four good hard places that I can run to during dead high tide. And by hard places I mean woody areas like docks. I can only explain that I am doing both power fishing and finesse fishing.
“I will have about 10 rods on my deck tomorrow. Today I had 12. I can pretty much guarantee that I will be the only one with a spinning rod on my deck tomorrow,” Iaconelli added. “Twenty pounds is my magic number. I think that if I can catch 20 pounds tomorrow I will have a good shot at winning. My plan is to keep my head down and fish hard.”
Chevy pro Luke Clausen of Otis Orchards, Wash., advanced to the final round of 10 pros in the No. 2 spot with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 50-10.
“This is a phenomenal fishery,” said Clausen, “I have learned something new every day here. I have caught all my fish with Z-Man baits, I am catching something crazy like 30 fish on one bait. This has been an incredibly fun week and I am excited to go fishing again tomorrow.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros and advancing to the final day of competition are:
3rd: Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., 15 bass, 50-1
4th: Bryan Schmitt, Deale, Md., 15 bass, 47-9
5th: Castrol pro David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., 15 bass, 46-5
6th: Michael Williamson, Fort Smith, Ark., 15 bass, 46-4
7th: Lance Vick, Mineola, Texas, 15 bass, 45-14
8th: AMP pro Stetson Blaylock, Benton, Ark., 15 bass, 44-10
9th: Chad Morgenthaler, Coulterville, Ill., 15 bass, 44-4
10th: Cory Johnston, Peterborough, Ontario, 15 bass, 44-2
Finishing in 11th through 20th are:
11th: Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., 15 bass, 44-2, $12,500
12th: Straight Talk pro JT Kenney, Palm Bay, Fla., 15 bass, 43-8, $12,500
13th: Kyle Mabrey, McCalla, Ala., 15 bass, 43-5, $12,500
14th: Iams/Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro, Kent, Ohio, 15 bass, 43-4, $12,500
15th: Cheez-It pro Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas, 15 bass, 41-7, $12,500
16th: Robert Pearson, Herndon, Va., 15 bass, 41-3, $12,000
17th: Pete Thliveros, St. Augustine, Fla., 15 bass, 40-0, $12,000
18th: Clifford Pirch, Payson, Ariz., 13 bass, 35-15, $12,000
19th: John McGoey, Omemee, Ontario, 13 bass, 35-10, $12,000
20th: Band-aid/Neosporin pro Glenn Browne, Ocala, Fla., 12 bass, 35-2, $12,000
Final results for the remaining field can be found at FLWOutdoors.com.
Overall there were 93 bass weighing 261 pounds, 13 ounces caught by 20 pros Saturday. The catch included 17 five-bass limits.
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Bass Pro Shops® is announcing their support of Collegiate Bass Fishing by announcing an incentive program for College anglers who compete in the 2011 College Bass Series, the 2011 BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship Series, or the 2011 National Guard FLW College Fishing Events.
Collegiate anglers have to display a Bass Pro Shops logo on their fishing team jersey, a Bass Pro Shops decal on their boat and tow vehicle, as well as participate in a qualifying event and they will be eligible for incentive awards up to $2000.
Nitro and Tracker boat owners who fish a qualifying event and display the Nitro or Tracker logo on their jersey are eligible for additional incentives up to $1000.
Bass Pro Shops College Fishing Team members will receive a 25% discount card off Bass Pro branded merchandise.
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Huggins and Barnes with Winning Bass from Lake Dardanelle | Photo by College B.A.S.S.
Dustin Huggins said he and Arkansas Tech teammate Evan Barnes were in panic mode.
It was 11:30 a.m. and the team had only one fish in the well, and their Day One lead in the 2011 Mercury College B.A.S.S. West Super Regional was in serious jeopardy.
A drawdown on Lake Dardanelle left most of the 36 teams scrambling Friday, which Huggins and Barnes did in a big way, catching a 6-pound, 1-ounce bass then two fish on one cast. They totaled 15-12 on Day Two for a 31-15 total to top Texas A&M’s Stephen Becka and Weston Brown, who took second with 26-7.
“It jumped 15 to 20 feet from the boat, and Evan said, ‘Oh, God,’” Huggins said of the event’s largest fish. “And then it jumped again right into the net.”
The two still had work to do, and Huggins accomplished that when he brought in 5 1/2 pounds of fish on one crankbait.
“We got a lucky break,” Barnes said. “He had a 3 on one treble hook and a 2 1/2 on the other.”
Barnes finished their limit and “then we pulled up and had to come in.”
In third place was the Arkansas Tech team of Spencer Grace and Jared Allen, who climbed from ninth with the second biggest bag of the day, 14-6, to finish with 24-8.
Michael Miller and Kyle Billingsley of the University of Arkansas took fourth with 10-10 Friday for a total of 22-2. Fishing solo, John Anderson of Tarleton State took fifth with 21-7.
 Becka and Brown led much of the weigh-in at a steamy Lake Dardanelle State Park, where, according to the Weather Channel, the 97-degree high of the day beat the 1977 record. Joe Landry of LSU Shreveport said the reading on his handheld was 111.
But the anglers weren’t complaining so much about the weather as the drop in water that had teams altering plans.
“They dropped the water out a foot, and when you’re fishing in 2 feet of water and they drop it …” Louisiana-Lafayette’s Cody McCrary said after bringing in only three fish. “We were just too stubborn.”
Paul Rini and Chance Wilkinson of Northwestern State, La., started the day in second place with 13-8. They were a team to watch as boat issues on Day One limited them to four hours of fishing time, but the drop startled them when they returned to their area.
“We had only fished to 10 before our boat blew up, and we went back to our spot today and there was no water, so we just went fishing,” said Rini, who fell to seventh after bringing in four fish for 7-0 Friday. “We just couldn’t adapt. It doesn’t fish anything like the Red River.”
Anglers new to Lake Dardanelle remarked that Arkansas Tech anglers didn’t seem to have the same issues finding backup spots on their home lake, but Huggins and Barnes scared themselves, not finding anything in several areas before hitting the jackpot.
“We started out shallow and ran some water,” Huggins said, noting they found fish pulled away from the grass to deeper water. “This was one of the hardest days I’ve fished on this lake.”
College B.A.S.S. schools are required to finish in the top 50 percent in one of the three Super Regionals if they hope to qualify for the National Championship, July 7-9 on the Arkansas River out of the Little Rock.
After two days, the national championship team will be crowned, and then those two anglers go head-to-head for a berth in the 2012 Bassmaster Classic. Huggins and Barnes said they hope to fish against each other for the circuit’s coveted berth, which the longtime partners admit will be testy.
Check out photos and more coverage at Bassmaster.com/college.
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Bobby Lane Leads on Potomac River FLW Tour Open - Photo by Gary Mortenson, FLW Outdoors.com
Bobby Lane of Lakeland, Fla., caught a five-bass limit weighing 18 pounds, 8 ounces Friday to capture the lead on day two of the Walmart FLW Tour on the Potomac River presented by the National Guard. His two-day catch of 10 bass weighing 35 pounds, 11 ounces gives him a 2-pound, 2-ounce lead heading into the third day of the tournament. There were 154 pros and 154 co-anglers from across the United States and Canada that started the tournament. The top 20 will fish day three and the top 10 will compete for the title on day four.
“This river has been good to me,” said Lane, who was in fifth place after day one. “The key factor in being successful on this river is learning the tides. For me there is an hour-and-a-half window when the high tide starts rolling in that gives me my opportunity. All my big fish came in that hour-and-a-half window.
“There is not one area that is going to produce consistently year after year,” Lane went on to say. “The traffic on the river is so heavy that it puts a lot of pressure on the fish and they tend to move to new areas. I have had a lot of success in many different areas on the river. This week I have been fishing some new water. The area I am fishing now seems to be where the brim are spawning and the bass are coming back to feed.
“Basically I am flipping mats with Havoc soft plastic baits,” continued Lane. “I can’t wait to go knock ‘em dead tomorrow.”
Mike Iaconelli of Pittsgrove, N.J., is in the No. 2 spot with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 33-9.
Rounding out the top 20 pros that will fish Saturday on the Potomac River are:
3rd: Iams/Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro, Kent, Ohio, 10 bass, 33-2
4th: Chevy pro Luke Clausen, Otis Orchards, Wash., 10 bass, 32-3
5th: Cheez-It pro Shinichi Fukae, Palestine, Texas,10 bass, 31-13
6th: Chad Morgenthaler, Coulterville, Ill., 10 bass, 31-9
7th: Lance Vick, Mineola, Texas, 10 bass, 31-6
8th: Band-aid/Neosporin pro Glenn Browne, Ocala, Fla., 10 bass, 31-3
9th: Clifford Pirch, Payson, Ariz., 10 bass, 30-9
10th: Castrol pro David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., 10 bass, 30-6
11th: AMP pro Stetson Blaylock, Benton, Ark., 10 bass, 30-1
12th: Cory Johnston, Peterborough, Ontario, 10 bass, 29-14
13th: Straight Talk pro JT Kenney, Palm Bay, Fla., 10 bass, 29-10
14th: Michael Williamson, Fort Smith, Ark., 10 bass, 29-3
15th: John McGoey, Omemee, Ontario, 10 bass, 29-3
16th: Kyle Mabrey, McCalla, Ala., 10 bass, 29-0
17th: Pete Thliveros, St. Augustine, Fla., 10 bass, 28-15
18th: Andy Morgan, Dayton, Tenn., 10 bass, 28-13
19th: Bryan Schmitt, Deale, Md., 10 bass, 28-9
20th: Robert Pearson, Herndon, Va., 10 bass, 28-4
Final results for the remaining field can be found on FLWOutdoors.com.
Cheez-It pro Shinichi Fukae caught the Snickers® Big Bass weighing 6-3 on the pro side to win $500.
Overall there were 631 bass weighing 1,597 pounds, 14 ounces caught by 153 pros Friday. The catch included 106 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the 2012 Forrest Wood Cup presented by Walmart, the world championship of bass fishing. The top five anglers in the point standings from the four 2011 Walmart FLW Tour Open tournaments will qualify.
David Dudley’s 21-year-old nephew Philip Jarabeck of Lynchburg, Va., leads the Co-angler Division with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 26 pounds, 11 ounces, followed by Cory Leonard of Castalia, N.C., in second place with 10 bass weighing 25-12.
“I understand the tide,” said Jarabeck, who grew-up fishing with Dudley. “The tide positions the fish differently so you need to adjust to the bass.
“Grass fishing is always going to win on the Potomac,” Jarabeck went on to say. “As a co-angler it is a lot easier to adjust to your pro because the grass rotates 360 degrees around the boat and no matter where the pro is casting you can always find an area that is as equally as good to cast into. I have been flipping soft plastic creature baits to get all my fish so far this week.”
Rounding out the top 20 co-anglers are:
3rd: Matt Stoupa, Colonial Heights, Va., nine bass, 25-5
4th: Mark Banks, East Aurora, N.Y., 10 bass, 24-9
5th: Kermit Crowder, Matoaca, Va., eight bass, 24-3
6th: George Kapiton, Inverness, Fla., 10 bass, 23-14
7th: Kenny Kash, Indian Head, Md., eight bass, 23-8
8th: Ben Due, Mauston, Wis., 10 bass, 23-4
9th: Bill Spindler, Turnersville, N.J., 10 bass, 22-8
10th: James Schneider, Watervliet, N.Y., seven bass, 22-7
11th: Andrew Roberts, Spotsylvania, Va., 10 bass, 21-15
12th: William Shelton III, La Crosse, Va., eight bass, 21-12
13th: Skip Bennett, Mt. Vernon, Ill., nine Bass, 21-7
14th: David Williams, Fredericksburg, Va., 10 bass, 21-6
15th: Richard Peek, Centre, Ala., eight bass, 21-5
16th: Frank Divis, Sr., Fayetteville, Ark., nine bass, 21-3
17th: David Hanson, Welcome, Md., nine Bass, 20-2
18th: Charlie Evans, Gilbertsville, Ky., eight bass, 19-12
19th: Anthony Moscato, Aberdeen, N.J., six bass, 19-0
20th: Jeff Zeisner, Arva, Ontario, nine Bass, 18-15
Kermit Crowder caught the Snickers® Big Bass weighing 6-13 in the co-angler division to win $250.
Overall there were 355 bass weighing 834 pounds, 6 ounces caught by 145 co-anglers Friday. The catch included 26 five-bass limits.
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The preview of “FLW Outdoors” on VERSUS highlights coverage of the third Major of the 2011 Walmart FLW Tour on Lake Chickamauga.
A thriving bass fishery, Chickamauga was primed to deliver huge
stringers until fluctuating water levels deteriorated the bite. Arizona
pro Clifford Pirch
wisely focused on stable, protected areas and ground out his first FLW
Tour win with over 77 pounds. Complete coverage of the fishing
tournament will air June 5 from 1-2 p.m. ET on VERSUS as part of the
weekly “FLW Outdoors” program.
The two-time U.S. Open champion caught what he could the first two days
off beds until torrential downpours late on day two muddied up his
water. When he couldn’t sight-fish, Pirch turned to pitching a jig under
and around boat docks, to riprap and to lay-downs. The bite slowed a
little each day, but the Payson, Ariz., pro was still able to scrounge
up more than enough for the win and a $125,000 payday.
In second place with 70 pounds, 8 ounces was Cheez-It pro Shinichi Fukae. Fukae’s second-place finish earned him $35,000. Tom Monsoor of La Crosse, Wis., took third and earned $30,000 with a total weight of 69 pounds, 5 ounces. Straight Talk pro Scott Canterbury finished fourth 67-8 to earn $25,000, while National Guard pro Brett Hite took fifth with 62-9 and took home $20,000.
“FLW Outdoors” airs on VERSUS in high-definition (HD) Sundays from 1-2
p.m. ET. Hosted by Jason Harper, “FLW Outdoors,” is broadcast to more
than 500 million households worldwide through agreements with WFN (World
Fishing Network) and Matchroom Sport. FLWOutdoors.com also provides an online guide listing
upcoming episodes of “FLW Outdoors.” In addition, each episode of “FLW
Outdoors” is available on demand in its entirety on FLWOutdoors.com/flwondemand.
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Vic Vatalaro with his tournament leading day one catch - Photo by Gary Mortenson / FLWOutdoors.com
Chevy pro Larry Nixon of Bee Branch, Ark. and Iams/Pringles pro Vic Vatalaro of Kent, Ohio each crossed the stage Thursday with a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 2 ounces to lead day one of the Walmart FLW Tour on the Potomac River presented by National Guard. Nixon and Vatalaro now hold a 2-pound, 11-ounce lead over Michael Iaconelli
of Pittsgrove, N.J. who caught five bass weighing 17-7 in a tournament
featuring over 300 anglers from all across the United States and Canada.
“I caught a lot of fish today,” said Vatalaro, who shares the
lead with Nixon. “But I just couldn’t seem to cull. I got my biggest
fish early in the morning and couldn’t get any more big ones to bite. I
was basically fishing a 100 foot by 50 foot area all day long. After I
got my limit by about 9 a.m., I just tried to guard the area for
tomorrow. I have a couple of other spots to go to, but I tried them late
today and one was muddied up because of the high winds and the other
had a lot of traffic on it so I am hoping the area I fished today will
replenish itself and hold out another day.
“Grass is key,” Vatalaro went on to say. “There seem to be a
couple of points in the weeds that I am keying in on. The bass seem to
be schooling there so it should replenish for tomorrow. The tide was
high when I was catching my big fish. I like the high tide for the type
of fishing I am doing. Mostly I was using a worm and a Weedless Wonder
jig.
“Tomorrow I have an early draw so I am going to race to my spot
and grind it out. Hopefully I’ll be able to bring in another good
limit,” Vatalaro added.
Wind was a big factor in today’s tournament. Several anglers
reported three foot waves coming in making it difficult to fish the
grass. Others complained that the wind muddied up much of their waters
making it more difficult especially in the shallow areas. Iconelli, who
sits in third place and said he was all out to win the tournament,
added that the wind blew out the tide which is something you never want
to see.
“I was a little surprised that I brought in a 20-pound sack,”
said Nixon. “I had a couple of pretty good practice days so I knew the
potential was there.
“The wind was terrible so I pretty much haunted one area most of
the day,” Nixon added. “It was a typical tide pattern, lots of grass on
a hard bottom. I just hope the wind goes down tomorrow, then you’ll
really see some nice bags brought in.”
Nixon said there is no privacy on the river so he remained very
tight lipped about the baits he was using and the exact location he was
fishing.
Rounding out the top 10 pros after day one on the Potomac River are:
4th: Band-Aid/Neosporin pro Glenn Browne, Ocala, Fla., five bass, 17-4
5th: Bobby Lane, Lakeland, Fla., five bass, 17-3
6th: Aaron Hastings, Middletown, Md., five bass, 16-15
7th: Clifford Pirch, Payson, Ariz., five bass, 16-1
8th: Castrol pro David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., five bass, 16-0
9th: Takahiro Omori, Emory, Texas, five bass, 15-14
10th: Cory Johnston, Peterborough, Ontario, five bass, 15-10
Takahiro Omori caught the Snickers® Big Bass weighing 5-10 on the pro side to win $500.
Overall there were 653 bass weighing 1655 pounds, 10 ounces
caught by 152 pros Thursday. The catch included 103 five-bass limits.
Pros are competing for a top award of up to $125,000 this week
plus valuable points in the hope of qualifying for the 2012 Forrest Wood
Cup presented by Walmart,
the world championship of bass fishing. The top five anglers in the
point standings from the four 2011 Walmart FLW Tour Open tournaments
will qualify.
James Schneider of Watervliet, N.Y., leads the Co-angler
Division with five bass weighing 16-7 followed by Kenny Kash of Indian
Head, Md., in second place with five bass weighing 15-12.
“I really had to adapt to the wind,” said Schneider. “The
combination of high wind and high tide really helped me out today. The
wind helped blow the bait fish in with the tide so I tried to capitalize
on that strategy. I was mostly throwing a chatterbait in a little
deeper water. It was tough, I hope I can do it again tomorrow.”
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers are:
3rd: Philip Jarabeck, Lynchburg, Va., five bass, 15-10
4th: Cory Leonard, Castalia, N.C., five bass, 14-8
5th: Melvin Smitson, Baltimore, Md., five bass, 14-1
6th: Skip Bennett, Mt. Vernon, Ill., five bass, 13-15
7th: Anthony Moscato, Aberdeen, N.J., four bass, 13-6
8th: Charlie Evans, Gilbertsville, Ky., five bass, 12-15
9th: Brian Stack, Nanjemoy, Md., five bass, 12-13
10th: Ben Due, Mauston, Wis., five bass, 12-10
Danny Bucher of Spring City, Tenn., caught the Snickers® Big Bass weighing 5-11 in the co-angler division to win $250.
Overall there were 348 bass weighing 816 pounds, 6 ounces caught
by 124 co-anglers Thursday. The catch included 22 five-bass limits.
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 The Lucky Craft Rick Clunn crankbaits are coming to an end. Beginning
June 1st, the crankbaits, which are sold exclusively through Bass Pro
Shops, will only be available while supplies last.
The RC Series was responsible for re-energizing the square-bill
crankbait market over the last few years. One of the best selling and
most technologically advanced crankbaits on the market, the RC Series
has become a go-to lure for many anglers across the country.
The
RC Series has several victories to its credit including the 2010
Bassmaster Elite Series event on Lake Guntersville where Skeet Reese won
using a RC 3.5 DD in white shad.
Also in 2010, Lucky Craft pro Brent Ehrler won on the FLW Tour at Table Rock Lake throwing a RC 2.5 DD in ghost minnow.
Countless other local and regional events have been won on this high
performance crankbait and, no doubt, these crankbaits will catch fish
well into the future.
The RC Series consists of five separate models. The shallow running
models (0-4ft.) include versions with rattles and without. The deep
diving models (4-16ft.) are also featured with or without rattles. The
fifth model is the RC Wake, a versatile topwater wake-action bait.
Lucky Craft has become synonymous with incredible lifelike colors and
finishes. The RC Series was no exception. Over 21 incredible colors
make the up the RC Series, including the extremely popular Copper Green
Perch and Bull Bream. The RC Series has also brought to the industry
very innovative and situational colors like Phantom Watermelon Craw and
MS Crack.
So don’t miss this last opportunity to stock your tackle box with some
of the best crankbaits ever made. Once all the colors and models are
gone, they are gone.
The RC Series is available at your local Bass Pro Shops store or online at basspro.com.
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Angler Innovations USA, manufacturer of the Rod Jacket, is proud to announce the signing of Bassmaster Elite Series Pro Clark Reehm to the company’s pro staff. Clark will assist Angler Innovations in the promotion of its existing product line and in the development of additional quality products for today’s fishermen.
The Rod Jacket is a one piece rod and reel cover made of all-way stretch neoprene that covers and protects both the rod and reel and allows the combo to be fully rigged and ready to fish.
This move is consistent with Rheem's career moves to date and will help him to take his on- and off-the-water efforts to the next level:
“Throughout my career, I have primarily opted to partner with smaller companies within the fishing industry trying to put the best products in my hands instead of chasing after checks,” he said. “After speaking with the guys from Angler Innovations and hearing about some of the other new and creative products they are currently developing, I knew that this was definitely a train I wanted to get on.”
“Reehm is a young talent and an accomplished fisherman he is very knowledgeable about the industry, and we look forward to what he brings to the team,” said Angler Innovations Founder/Co Owner David Gazdak.
For more information about Angler Innovations, visit AnglerInnovationsUSA.com.
Follow Clark Reehm online:
twitter.com/BassmasterReehm
facebook.com/BassmasterREEHM
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Mercury has renewed
its official support of College B.A.S.S. and has become title sponsor of
the growing student circuit, covered live by Bassmaster.com and
broadcast on ESPNU. The sponsorship will include College B.A.S.S.’s
Super Regionals, as well as the season-ending Mercury College B.A.S.S.
Championship.
“Mercury Marine is
pleased to extend its participation in sponsoring College B.A.S.S.,”
said Mark Schwabero, president of Mercury Marine. “This is a wonderful
opportunity to not only help grow the sport, but also to influence the
manner in which tournament fishing creates an even greater outdoors
environment in this country and beyond. Bass fishing and its many family
aspects illustrate the reasons Mercury has long supported virtually all
types of angling.
“Bass tournament
fishing and Mercury Marine are a perfect match, and we're excited about
this increased affiliation with College B.A.S.S.”
Fans of all ages can
track Mercury College B.A.S.S. through online and TV coverage in 2011.
As it did for the season opener, Bassmaster.com will continue to provide
all-out coverage with live streaming broadcasts of the daily weigh-ins
and real-time leaderboard standings. Results, standings, analysis and
B.A.S.S.Cam videos will be posted and updated frequently at
Bassmaster.com.
Now in 72.6 million
households, ESPNU will air the Mercury College B.A.S.S. events beginning
Sunday, July 31, at 9 p.m. (ET). Two more original airings in 2011 will
follow on Aug. 7 and Aug. 14, also at 9 p.m. (ET).
“We’re excited about
showcasing these college anglers on such a big stage as ESPNU,” said
Mike McKinnis, vice president-media content at JM Associates.
The shows will begin with a review of how Andy Halford and Brock Mosley of the
Ole Miss fishing team triumphed over 47 other two-angler teams in the
May 20-21 season kickoff out of Montgomery, Ala., birthplace of B.A.S.S.
Also highlighted on the ESPNU shows will be the circuit’s two
additional regional events of 2011: the West Super Regional, June 2-3 on
Lake Dardanelle out of Russellville, Ark.; and the North Super
Regional, June 27-28 from Syracuse, N.Y., on Oneida Lake.
The July 7-9 finale
will be the Mercury College B.A.S.S. National Championship out of Little
Rock, Ark. Like the regional events, the championship will be a
competition among two-angler teams. Schools qualify to participate in
the championship by fielding teams that finished in the top half of a
Super Regional competition.
Then,
in a nail-biting twist to bass-angling competition, the two anglers on
the National Championship team will compete against each other for a
berth at the 2012 Bassmaster Classic. That head-to-head contest will
take place July 11 at a to-be-announced location.
This is the sixth season for college bass-angling competition and the first under the B.A.S.S. umbrella.
“With the solid
support offered by Mercury, B.A.S.S. can continue to foster this
important program,” said McKinnis. “Together, we can serve this core
group of anglers like never before. Perhaps many of them are future
pros, but even now, as college-age competitors, they inspire younger
kids to take up the sport.”
More about the circuit is available at Bassmaster.com/college. More about Mercury, including its current “Win an Engine of Your Choice” giveaway, is at MercuryMarine.com.
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In light of difficulties raising much-needed funding to support its programs, the Future Fisherman Foundation (F3) has sought and found a new home with The Bass Federation (TBF), Inc. of Ponca City, Okla. Since 1968, the Federation has been recognized as the oldest and largest organized broad-based, independent, grassroots organization in bass fishing. After weeks of discussion, F3’s board of directors and the leadership of TBF approved the merger, which will ensure important F3 programs such as Hooked on Fishing Not on Drugs (HOFNOD) continue to be available for educators and youth throughout the U.S. The transfer of all F3’s assets to TBF will take place immediately.
“For the last several years, our board members and staff have worked diligently to maintain the health and integrity of F3’s important youth fishing education programs despite a poor economy that made fund-raising extremely difficult,” F3 board chair, Kerry Campbell, said. “But, lack of funding in recent months made it clear we’d have to think outside the box if we were to continue supporting the dedicated educators nationwide who volunteer to teach fishing to children in almost every state.”
The Future Fisherman Foundation Board was excited about the possibility of combining efforts with TBF. The Bass Federation, already one of F3’s partners, has long held that getting kids to fish is a number one priority for our sport. “They’ve made great strides in this direction through their high-school fishing clubs and Student Angler Federation,” Campbell commented. “Allowing young students involved in F3’s HOFNOD and Physh Ed programs to ‘graduate’ into these programs seems a logical progression in their education, giving thousands of youth the opportunity to continue enjoying the benefits and joys of fishing into adulthood. We’re extremely appreciative the leadership of TBF took this into consideration and merged F3’s programs with theirs so our 25 year history as the nation’s number one youth fishing education organization will continue long into the future.”
Both groups believe that with TBF’s industry leading Reel Kids casting program, TBF Junior Angler Program and Student Angler Federation High School Fishing program, combined with the nationally recognized Future Fisherman Foundation programs, which have brought more than one million kids to fishing since F3 was founded in 1986 will create a solid base for building extraordinary things.
TBF has the largest most comprehensive youth fishing program in America today that is actually putting rods and reels in the hands of our youth and getting them to the water. TBF has dynamic partners in fishing like, FLW Outdoors, which play a significant partnership role in the TBF National Guard Junior World Championship, as well as, the TBF Student Angler Federation High School programs.
TBF President/CEO, Robert Cartlidge, echoed the enthusiasm, “F3 and TBF share common goals when it comes to the importance of providing fishing and educational opportunities to America’s youth.” Both organizations know these efforts are key when it comes to facilitating the recruitment of young anglers and introducing them to the values and ethics of fishing and the outdoors. “We heard about F3’s difficulties and their desire to merge their programs with those of an organization with a similar mission and values,” Cartlidge said. “We knew immediately we wanted to help. We welcome the Future Fisherman’s Foundation under the TBF umbrella to see youth fishing efforts continue and grow in ways that might not have been possible without this merger.”
Without a doubt, there’s lots of work to do, but I have complete confidence in the staff and the industry, and their support of youth fishing to make it happen,” Cartlidge continued. “Looking forward, we must work toward positioning the foundation to be self-supporting. We must also raise the bar in terms of support for programs and educators at the local school level for Hooked on Fishing Not on Drugs (HOFNOD), Phys-Ed, and all other programs. To that end, TBF and The Future Fisherman Foundation will immediately go to work to harness their collective synergies to create new opportunities supporting nationwide youth fishing programs and developing lifetime supporters of future anglers and resources. We invite all interested parties to contact us and get involved, because this is where the work starts and the future begins.”
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Onyx, the outdoor recreation brand, proudly announces its official sponsorship of Elite Series Rookie Ott DeFoe. Onyx is wrapping DeFoe’s Bass Tracker Grizzly 1860 and giving visitors to the Bass Pro Shops in Kodak, TN the opportunity to meet DeFoe and win an Onyx life jacket this weekend.
After 6 of 8 events, the 25 year old professional from Tennessee sits in 7th place in the Bassmaster Elite Series point standings. He leads the Bassmaster Rookie of the Year race. “Onyx’s motto is ‘Keeping you there’ and I’m hopeful that is exactly what we do,” said DeFoe. “The next Elite Series event on the Arkansas River may be a deal where accessing water I can’t reach in my Nitro will be a big help. Thanks to my Bass Tracker and Onyx I will be prepared.”
Ott is also very pleased with the Onyx line of products. “All year long I have worn the Onyx Inflatable Life Jacket and the Pro Tech rain jacket and bib from Onyx. I am very pleased with the performance of both of these products. They offer fishermen outstanding quality at a great value.”
DeFoe’s Bass Tracker will be on-site at the Bass Pro Shops Thursday through Saturday, June 2-4. Fans can enter a drawing to win an Onyx Inflatable Life Jacket and meet DeFoe on Saturday afternoon. “As long as my wife is not in active labor I will be there Saturday afternoon,” said a proud DeFoe. The DeFoes are expecting twins.
“As a water safety company, we are very excited to support Ott DeFoe in his fishing events and tournaments,” states Mary Snyder, VP Marketing of Absolute Outdoor. “Our Onyx brand of fishing and boating life jackets will be ‘keeping him there’ by offering the comfort, freedom of movement, and peace of mind when out on the water. We wish Ott the best of luck as he continues his race to the top.”
Onyx is an outdoor recreation brand under the Absolute Outdoor, Inc. company, based in St. Cloud, Minnesota.
Products included under the Onyx brand include life jackets for boating, hunting, and fishing; rainwear; Inflatable life jackets, camouflage hunting gear, featuring ArcticShield and X-System technologies.
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