TEXAS’ WILSON GOES WIRE-TO-WIRE, WINS COSTA FLW SERIES TOURNAMENT ON SAM RAYBURN PRESENTED BY MERCURY
Montgomery pro Earns Second Career FLW Series Victory and $37,586
Link to photo of tournament champion Kris Wilson
BROOKELAND, Texas (June 15, 2019) – Pro Kris Wilson of Montgomery, Texas, caught a five-bass limit Saturday weighing 24 pounds, 1 ounce, to lead the event from start to finish and win the three-day Costa FLW Series on Sam Rayburn Reservoir presented by Mercury Marine. Wilson’s three-day total of 15 bass weighing 72 pounds, 8 ounces, was enough to earn him the victory by a 13-pound, 15-ounce margin over second-place pro Josh Bensema of Willis, Texas, and earn him $37,586.
“Coming into this event I expected the fish to be in the bushes, but it really evolved as the week went on,” said Wilson, who earned his second career FLW Series victory on Sam Rayburn. “I really focused on finding fish that were coming to me rather than leaving. And that ended up being about 300 yards out from the bushes.
“My main areas were mainly in the mouths of big coves, and the fish were set up on hard spots – ledges and points,” Wilson continued. “The key was that it had to have a hard bottom. I was running a lot of spots, but I had three spots that produced big fish each day.”
Wilson said he caught around 15 keepers each day. His main tactic was dragging a Carolina-rigged red bug creature bait that resembles a Zoom Brush Hog, poured by him and his tournament partner, Harold Moore. He also weighed in two keepers on chartreuse and blue-colored 6th Sense Lures C15 and C20 crankbaits.
The top 10 pros on Sam Rayburn Reservoir finished:
1st: Kris Wilson, Montgomery, Texas, 15 bass, 72-8, $37,586
2nd: Josh Bensema, Willis, Texas, 15 bass, 58-9, $13,910
3rd: Justin Morton, Etoile, Texas, 15 bass, 50-0, $10,692
4th: Cole Moore, Anacoco, La., 15 bass, 47-6, $8,910
5th: Albert Collins, Nacogdoches, Texas, 15 bass, 47-1, $8,019
6th: Cory Rambo, Orange, Texas, 15 bass, 46-15, $7,128
7th: Dicky Newberry, Houston, Texas, 15 bass, 44-0, $6,237
8th: Matt Pangrac, Broken Arrow, Okla., 15 bass, 43-0, $5,346
9th: Bob Vote, Kingwood, Texas, 15 bass, 41-3, $4,455
10th: Eric Wright, Balch Springs, Texas, 15 bass, 40-15, $3,812
A complete list of results can be found at FLWFishing.com.
Wilson weighed a 9-pound, 5-ounce bass Friday – the heaviest of the tournament in the Pro Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $248.
Zack Freeman of Russellville, Arkansas, won the Co-angler Division with a three-day total of 15 bass weighing 53 pounds, 5 ounces. For his win, Freeman took home the top prize package of a new Ranger Z175 boat with a 115-horsepower outboard motor.
The top 10 co-anglers on Sam Rayburn finished:
1st: Zack Freeman, Russellville, Ark., 15 bass, 53-5, $27,347
2nd: Alan Moore, Lufkin, Texas, 15 bass, 47-6, $4,628
3rd: Steve Phillips, Diboll, Texas, 15 bass, 40-7, $3,712
4th: Charles Dubroc, Hessmer, La., 14 bass, 37-4, $3,204
5th: Jerry Meece, Lufkin, Texas, 15 bass, 33-13, $2,997
6th: Buddy Hicks, Port Neches, Texas, 15 bass, 33-2, $2,289
7th: Louis Ferguson, Woodville, Texas, 15 bass, 32-15, $1,831
8th: John Hatton, Buna, Texas, 13 bass, 32-9, $1,602
9th: James Callaghan, De Berry, Texas, 15 bass, 32-5, $1,373
10th: Michael Bates, Corsicana, Texas, 10 bass, 27-6, $1,144
Freeman also caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the Co-angler Division Friday, a fish weighing 7 pounds, 10 ounces. He earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $165.
The Costa FLW Series on Sam Rayburn Reservoir presented by Mercury Marine was hosted by the Jasper Lake Sam Rayburn Area Chamber of Commerce. It was the second of three Southwestern Division tournaments of the 2019 regular season. The next tournament for FLW Series anglers will be the Northern Division presented by Gajo Baits opener, the Costa FLW Series at Lake Champlain, held July 18-20 in Plattsburgh, New York. For a complete schedule, visit FLWFishing.com.
The Costa FLW Series consists of five U.S. divisions – Central, Northern, Southeastern, Southwestern and Western – along with the International division. Each U.S. division consists of three regular-season tournaments with competitors vying for valuable points that could earn them the opportunity to compete in the season-ending Costa FLW Series Championship. The 2019 Costa FLW Series Championship is being held Oct. 31 – Nov. 2 on Lake Cumberland in Burnside, Kentucky.
For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the Costa FLW Series on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagra