ARKANSAS’ YOUNG WINS FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE OZARK DIVISION FINALE ON LAKE OF THE OZARKS PRESENTED BY MINN KOTA

ARKANSAS’ YOUNG WINS FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE OZARK DIVISION FINALE ON LAKE OF THE OZARKS PRESENTED BY MINN KOTA

Delgado wins co-angler title

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OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (Sept. 26, 2016) – Ed Young of Harrison, Arkansas, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20 pounds, 12 ounces, Sunday to win the FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Ozark Division Super Tournament on Lake of the Ozarks presented by Minn Kota, with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 37 pounds, 13 ounces. For his victory, Young earned $6,586.

“On Saturday I started close to the takeoff ramp and was throwing a River2Sea Whopper Plopper,” said Young, who notched his first win in BFL competition. “I hit some main-lake points with black rock and caught some keepers fairly quick. After that, I worked my way up to the 55-mile marker of the lake.”

Young said he spent the majority of the event fishing shallow flats in main-lake pockets.

“There was a perch spawn going on, and I’d catch fish wherever they were present,” said Young. “I was flipping the shallow side of docks using a Red Bug-colored Zoom Magnum Trick Worm and Ribbontail Worm – both rigged on shaky-head jigs.”

Young said all of his bass came from less than 4 feet of water each day, and that a slow and steady presentation was a crucial part of his success.

“I caught around nine keepers on Day One, and another eight on Day Two – all on Lew’s rods and reels,” said Young.

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st:          Ed Young, Harrison, Ark., 10 bass, 37-13, $6,586

2^nd:         Jeffrey Smith, Knob Noster, Mo., 10 bass, 37-5, $3,293

3^rd:          Charlie Bogard, O’Fallon, Mo., 10 bass, 37-3, $2,195

4^th:          Andy Newcomb, Camdenton, Mo., 10 bass, 36-5, $1,537

5^th:          Dion Hibdon, Sunrise Beach, Mo., 10 bass, 34-6, $1,617

6^th:          Bob Renken, Linn Creek, Mo., 10 bass, 34-1, $1,207

7^th:          Dennis Berhorst, Holts Summit, Mo., 10 bass, 32-2, $1,098

8^th:          Roger Cook, Lebanon, Mo., nine bass, 31-12, $988

9^th:          Jeremy Medina, Camdenton, Mo., 10 bass, 31-4, $878

10^th:        John Sapper, De Soto, Mo., 10 bass, 31-4, $768

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Craig Berkshire of Rogers, Arkansas, caught a bass weighing 6 pounds even – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $945.

Stephen Delgado of Lees Summit, Missouri, won the co-angler division and earned $3,293 with a two-day cumulative catch of nine bass weighing 25 pounds, 13 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st:          Stephen Delgado, Lees Summit, Mo., nine bass, 25-13, $3,293

2^nd:         Dennis Spell, Bonne Terre, Mo., 10 bass, 24-12, $1,646

3^rd:          Ryan Jordan, Lake Ozark, Mo., eight bass, 20-4, $1,098

4^th:          Jamie Eynard, Holts Summit, Mo., 10 bass, 19-10, $768

5^th:          Sam Bremmerkamp, Joplin, Mo., seven bass, 19-0, $859

6^th:          Aaron Strohkirch, Camdenton, Mo., seven bass, 18-13, $604

7^th:          Brandon Hecker, Camdenton, Mo., six bass, 17-15, $549

8^th:          Kevin Manion, Park Hills, Mo., five bass, 17-6, $494

9^th:          John Bell, Lake Saint Louis, Mo., eight bass, 16-6, $439

10^th:        Rich Purington, Platsmouth, Neb., five bass, 15-13, $906

Purington caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 5 pounds, 3 ounces, and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $472.

The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 27-29 Regional Championship on Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, Arkansas. 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 are competing to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the BFL All-American. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.

For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the BFL on Facebook at Facebook.com/FLWFishing and on Twitter at Twitter.com/FLWFishing.