Sean Minderman of Spokane, Wash., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20
pounds, 15 ounces Saturday to win the EverStart Series Western Division
event on the California Delta with a three-day total of 15 bass
weighing 68 pounds, 5 ounces. For his victory, Minderman earned $31,442
and a 198VX Ranger boat with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury
outboard motor.
“It has been a while and what a great feeling,†said Minderman.
“It has been a tough go the last couple of years and I have not been
able to fish as much as I would have liked to. It just feels like God
has shined on me this week and I have to thank Ranger Boats, my family
including my wife Michelle, my son Kade and my daughter Kailey.â€
“With the weather warming up, I figured the fish would be moving
up to spawn so I looked for areas where they would be moving into and a
found a couple that I felt would work,†added Minderman. “I burnt those
spots up the first two days as I caught a 9-pounder on the first day
and an 11-pounder on the second day, but had to scramble today and God
shined on me and I was able to find a spot where I caught my big three
today.â€
Minderman went on to say that he caught all his fish on the
first day using a Senko and on the second day he caught his fish
flipping a beaver. He said he boated his big three on the final day
using a Roboworm drop-shot.
Rounding out the top 10 pros were:
2nd: Charlie Weyer, West Hills, Calif., 15 bass, 65-13, $10,780
3rd: Clifford Pirch, Payson, Ariz., 15 bass, 65-10, $8,983
4th: Stephen Tosh Jr., Modesto, Calif., 15 bass, 63-4, $8,085
5th: Mark Casey, Fairfield, Calif., 15 bass, 63-3, $7,187
6th: Joe Uribe Jr., Lake Forest, Calif., 15 bass, 62-11, $6,288
7th: Ken Mah, Elk Grove, Calif., 15 bass, 58-8, $5,390
8th: Robert Lee, Angels Camp, Calif., 15 bass, 58-0, $4,492
9th: Benjamin Byrd, Moab, Utah, 15 bass, 56-2, $3,593
10th: Michael Tuck, Granite Bay, Calif., 14 bass, 51-3, $2,695
Lee caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Pro
Division Friday – an 11-pound, 1-ounce bass – that earned him the day’s
EverStart Series Big Bass award of $254.
Kyle Baker of Lancaster, Calif., 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 41 pound, 14 ounces.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers were:
2nd: Lester Albury, Temecula, Calif., 15 bass, 39-0, $4,143
3rd: Gary Morris, Tracy, Calif., 14 bass, 37-12, $3,683
4th: Steven Cook, Phoenix, Ariz., 15 bass, 37-10, $3,222
5th: Phil Risnes, Hartford, S.D., 13 bass, 37-2, $2,762
6th: Greig Sniffen, Saratoga, Calif., 15 bass, 35-11, $2,302
7th: Jared Frantzich, Sacramento, Calif., 14 bass, 35-4, $1,841
8th: Hideki Maeda, 13 bass, 33-0, $1,381
9th: Christopher Irigoyen, Henderson, Nev., 12 bass, 31-7, $921
10th: Mike Chen of Stockton, Calif., 12 bass, 29-9, $737
Morris caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the
Co-angler Division Friday – an 11-pound, 6-ounce bass – that earned him
the day’s EverStart Series Big Bass award of $169.
The EverStart Series consists of five divisions – Central,
Northern, Southeast, Texas and Western. Each division consists of four
tournaments and competitors will be vying for valuable points in each
division that could earn them the Strike King Angler of the Year title
along with $5,000 for the pro and $2,000 for the co-angler. The top 40
pros and co-anglers from each respective division will qualify for the
EverStart Series Championship that will be held on Kentucky Lake in
Buchanan, Tenn., Oct. 27-30.
The final EverStart Series Western Division tournament will be
Sept. 22-24 on Clear Lake in Clearlake, Calif. and is hosted by Twin
Pine Casino & Hotel.
