RAMPEY WINS WALMART BASS FISHING LEAGUE SAVANNAH RIVER DIVISION OPENER ON LAKE KEOWEE
Coleman wins co-angler title
SENECA, S.C. (Feb. 9, 2015) – Jayme Rampey of Liberty, South Carolina, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 17 pounds even Saturday to win the first Walmart Bass Fishing League Savannah River Division tournament of 2015 on Lake Keowee. For his victory, Rampey earned $8,154.
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| Jayme Rampey of Liberty, South Carolina won the first Walmart Bass Fishing League Savannah River Division tournament of 2015 on Lake Keowee, earning him $8,154. |
“It feels really good to win this tournament,” said Rampey, who fishes as a professional on the Walmart FLW Tour. “I finished off last year with a win, so to begin the 2015 season with a victory is really exciting.”
Rampey said that he spent his day fishing the South Cove edges and banks a few miles from the boat ramp. Around 9 a.m. he netted two fish throwing an umbrella rig with Buckeye J-Will swimbait heads and shad-colored Keitech swimbaits.
“The bite was really good along those edges, so I made the decision early to keep grinding it out there,” Rampey said.
Exploring the edges and banks, Rampey caught a few more in the early afternoon on a Buckeye Spot Remover shaky-head jig with a green pumpkin-colored Zoom Trick Worm to reach his limit.
“It was a pretty straightforward day of fishing,” Rampey went on to say. “I won a BFL tournament on Lake Keowee a couple of years back by fishing the shallow water, so I figured I’d do it again and it worked out.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:
1st: Jayme Rampey, Liberty, S.C., five bass, 17-0, $5,154 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus + $1,000 Mercury Bonus
2nd: Matthew Justice, Fair Play, S.C., five bass, 15-2, $2,577
3rd: Dearal Rodgers, Camden, S.C., five bass, 13-4, $1,719
4th: Jeremy Strong, Elberton, Ga., five bass, 13-3, $1,203
5th: Chris Baxter, Winder, Ga., five bass, 13-2, $1,031
6th: Marcus Church, Seneca, S.C., five bass, 13-1, $945
7th: Sean Skey, Sumter, S.C., five bass, 12-15, $859
8th: Bryan Cothran, Belton, S.C., five bass, 12-14, $773
9th: Brandon Cobb, Greenwood, S.C., five bass, 12-13, $687
10th: Craig Sahms, Taylors, S.C., five bass, 12-3, $601
Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Chris Coleman of Laurens, South Carolina, weighed in a five-bass limit totaling 12 pounds, 2 ounces Saturday to win $2,577 in the co-angler division.
The top 10 co-anglers were:
1st: Chris Coleman, Laurens, S.C., five bass, 12-2, $2,577
2nd: Nathaniel Moore Fairview, N.C., five bass, 11-13, $1,288
3rd: Spencer Woodson, Jonesville, S.C., four bass, 10-8, $858
4th: John Wilson, Six Mile, S.C., five bass, 10-6, $601
5th: Kaleb Turner, Hartwell, Ga., four bass, 9-14, $515
6th: Stanley Grant, Salem, S.C., five bass, 9-13, $472
7th: Walter Whitfield, Chesnee, S.C., five bass 9-11, $429
8th: Brandon Brock, Honea Path, S.C., five bass, 9-10, $365
8th: Mike Brown, Buford, Ga., five bass, 9-10, $365
10th: Bryan Waddell, Taylors, S.C., five bass, 9-8, $301
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 15-17 Regional Championship on Lake Wateree in Camden, S.C. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 50 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and compete to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Rayovac FLW Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
