1st Place went to the team of Travis Towe and Danny Towe with a weight of 19.53
2nd Place went to the team of Jim McCullough and Ronnie Lemons with a weight of 12.43
3rd Place went to the team of David Peters and Steve Conner with a weight of 9.00
4Th Place went to the team of Phillip VanDerVeer and Kevin Smith with a weight of 8.65
1st Place went to the team of Jim McCullough and Ronnie Lemons with a weight of 16.39
2nd place went to the team of Travis towe and Danny Towe with a weight of 15.70
3rd Place went to the team of Phillip VanDerVeer and Damien McMahon with a weight of 11.88
4th place went to the team of Brian Callaway and Gary Dickerson with a weight of 11.84
5th place went to the team of David Peters and Steve Conner with a weight of 11.80
6th place went to the team of Calvin Bates and Otto Velastro with a weight of 11.15
Big fish went to the team of David Peters and Steve Conner with a nice 5.18 Large mouth
1st Place went to the team of Jim McCullough and Ronnie Lemons with a weight of 16.39
2nd place went to the team of Travis towe and Danny Towe with a weight of 15.70
3rd Place went to the team of Phillip VanDerVeer and Damien McMahon with a weight of 11.88
4th place went to the team of Brian Callaway and Gary Dickerson with a weight of 11.84
5th place went to the team of David Peters and Steve Conner with a weight of 11.80
6th place went to the team of Calvin Bates and Otto Velastro with a weight of 11.15
Big fish went to the team of David Peters and Steve Conner with a nice 5.18 Large mouth
Just wanted to let everybody know that Saturdays Winter Series Tournament has been moved to Sunday with the incoming weather that is expected. Still launching from Parkway Marina.
19.Jan.2013 by Gary Mortenson
OROVILLE, Calif. – Heading into the opening event of the 2013 EverStart Series Western Division season, Ryan Friend of Oroville, Calif., decided that he wanted to participate in an FLW tournament as a boater for the very first time in his career. However, despite a difficult tournament, Friend managed to shake off some rookie nerves, pull off some last-minute heroics and turn in a stellar three-day performance resulting in a total weight of 37 pounds, 5 ounces – good enough to capture the very first EverStart Series title of his career.
Needless-to-say, Friend was ecstatic with the result.
“This is absolutely the best win of my career,” said Ryan, who netted the top prize of $33,000 as well as a brand new, fully rigged Ranger Z518 boat with 200 HP outboard engine for his efforts. “I can’t really explain how I’m feeling right now. I grew up here reading about these guys and to be standing on stage and competing against them now is unbelievable. This is my first experience as a boater at an FLW event and to win it’s just amazing. I really had just an awesome week.”
Although Friend fished extraordinarily well all week, targeting bass in 15 to 20 feet of water primarily with lighter, finesse jigs, he knew that he would need one heck of a sack in today’s competition to fulfill his dream of capturing an EverStart tournament title.
“It was really slow today but I pounded my spots as much as I could,” he said. “I was basically targeting flats, clay banks and shallow points with boulders all week. At around 1 p.m., I had about 10 pounds in the boat, but I didn’t have a big kicker fish like I had the first two days. And I knew I had to get that big bite because on this lake, if you don’t get one of those, you’re in real trouble.”
As luck would have it, fate smiled on Friend just as time nearly expired in today’s contest.
“With about 20 minutes to go, I went back to a spot I’d fished the first two days and finally hooked into a big fish,” said Friend, referring to 4-pound, 14-ounce giant. “When I finally got that fish into the boat, I couldn’t believe it. It just goes to show that you can never give up. Overall, the day ended up great. Pretty much everything just went right for me today.”
After receiving word from the tournament director that he in fact had pulled off the win, the normally reserved California native gave a huge fist pump to the crowd and shouted, “Boom!”
The relief on Friend’s face was palpable.
“I knew that I had really beaten up my spots,” he said. “And I’m just glad I don’t have to go fishing tomorrow because I’m not even sure what I’d do. This has just been an awesome week.”
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19.Jan.2013 by Gary Mortenson
OROVILLE, Calif. – Heading into the opening event of the 2013 EverStart Series Western Division season, Ryan Friend of Oroville, Calif., decided that he wanted to participate in an FLW tournament as a boater for the very first time in his career. However, despite a difficult tournament, Friend managed to shake off some rookie nerves, pull off some last-minute heroics and turn in a stellar three-day performance resulting in a total weight of 37 pounds, 5 ounces – good enough to capture the very first EverStart Series title of his career.
Needless-to-say, Friend was ecstatic with the result.
“This is absolutely the best win of my career,” said Ryan, who netted the top prize of $33,000 as well as a brand new, fully rigged Ranger Z518 boat with 200 HP outboard engine for his efforts. “I can’t really explain how I’m feeling right now. I grew up here reading about these guys and to be standing on stage and competing against them now is unbelievable. This is my first experience as a boater at an FLW event and to win it’s just amazing. I really had just an awesome week.”
Although Friend fished extraordinarily well all week, targeting bass in 15 to 20 feet of water primarily with lighter, finesse jigs, he knew that he would need one heck of a sack in today’s competition to fulfill his dream of capturing an EverStart tournament title.
“It was really slow today but I pounded my spots as much as I could,” he said. “I was basically targeting flats, clay banks and shallow points with boulders all week. At around 1 p.m., I had about 10 pounds in the boat, but I didn’t have a big kicker fish like I had the first two days. And I knew I had to get that big bite because on this lake, if you don’t get one of those, you’re in real trouble.”
As luck would have it, fate smiled on Friend just as time nearly expired in today’s contest.
“With about 20 minutes to go, I went back to a spot I’d fished the first two days and finally hooked into a big fish,” said Friend, referring to 4-pound, 14-ounce giant. “When I finally got that fish into the boat, I couldn’t believe it. It just goes to show that you can never give up. Overall, the day ended up great. Pretty much everything just went right for me today.”
After receiving word from the tournament director that he in fact had pulled off the win, the normally reserved California native gave a huge fist pump to the crowd and shouted, “Boom!”
The relief on Friend’s face was palpable.
“I knew that I had really beaten up my spots,” he said. “And I’m just glad I don’t have to go fishing tomorrow because I’m not even sure what I’d do. This has just been an awesome week.”
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17.Jan.2013 by Gary Mortenson
OROVILLE, Calif. – As expected, the first day of 2013 EverStart Series Western Division competition on Lake Oroville featured a tight contest from the outset. In fact, by the time Thursday’s weigh-in had concluded, weights were so bunched up that only 3 pounds separated eighth place from 93rd – a remarkable statistic to say the least.
However, for veteran pros, the results weren’t entirely surprising as that’s how Lake Oroville fishes historically. With plenty of fish in the 1- to 2-pound range, and a dearth of behemoth bass, anglers who made the successful jump up the leaderboard were almost required to show off a few nice kickers.
And nobody did that better than EverStart pro Jeff Michels of Lakehead, Calif. Boasting a five-fish limit of 13 pounds, 5 ounces, Michels now sits in the proverbial driver’s seat heading into Friday’s all-important day of competition – the day in which the top-10 cut in the both the pro and co-angler divisions will be announced.
Michels, who actually surprised himself with his day’s catch, said he couldn’t be happier with the results.
“This morning I thought 7 pounds was all I was going to get,” he said. “But I found one spot and got lucky on it. I caught two nice ones there right away, left and came back and landed another two quality bass later in the afternoon. It feels good to be in the lead. But let’s wait and see how I’m feeling after tomorrow.”
Michels said that he was familiar with the area from past events, but he didn’t know that it would produce as well as did.
“I knew the general area pretty well so I just tried to zero in on where the bigger fish were,” he said. “Then, during the first day of practice I was able to figure out a little bit better where exactly I wanted to fish. The area really isn’t that remarkable. It’s basically a nothing pea gravel bank.”
While a number of pros targeted bass by using reaction baits in the morning and switching to a more finesse-based approach later in the afternoon, Michels said that he stuck with reaction baits for the entire outing.
“Yeah, I threw reaction baits all day long,” he said. “I was using a small, 3 ½-inch swimbait and 6-pound test line. I only had two spinning rods on the deck the whole day. Some guys were throwing bigger baits but here you have to match the hatch and the (baitfish) really aren’t much bigger than 3 or 4 inches.”
However, the real question for Michels is: Can that spot produce for two more days?
“I think it can,” he said. “I might not be as successful throwing what I did today but I think I can slow down and still catch them with something else. I know this spot has some big fish on it. There is a giant there in the 5- to 6-pound range. And now, I just have to get it to bite.”
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17.Jan.2013 by Gary Mortenson
OROVILLE, Calif. – As expected, the first day of 2013 EverStart Series Western Division competition on Lake Oroville featured a tight contest from the outset. In fact, by the time Thursday’s weigh-in had concluded, weights were so bunched up that only 3 pounds separated eighth place from 93rd – a remarkable statistic to say the least.
However, for veteran pros, the results weren’t entirely surprising as that’s how Lake Oroville fishes historically. With plenty of fish in the 1- to 2-pound range, and a dearth of behemoth bass, anglers who made the successful jump up the leaderboard were almost required to show off a few nice kickers.
And nobody did that better than EverStart pro Jeff Michels of Lakehead, Calif. Boasting a five-fish limit of 13 pounds, 5 ounces, Michels now sits in the proverbial driver’s seat heading into Friday’s all-important day of competition – the day in which the top-10 cut in the both the pro and co-angler divisions will be announced.
Michels, who actually surprised himself with his day’s catch, said he couldn’t be happier with the results.
“This morning I thought 7 pounds was all I was going to get,” he said. “But I found one spot and got lucky on it. I caught two nice ones there right away, left and came back and landed another two quality bass later in the afternoon. It feels good to be in the lead. But let’s wait and see how I’m feeling after tomorrow.”
Michels said that he was familiar with the area from past events, but he didn’t know that it would produce as well as did.
“I knew the general area pretty well so I just tried to zero in on where the bigger fish were,” he said. “Then, during the first day of practice I was able to figure out a little bit better where exactly I wanted to fish. The area really isn’t that remarkable. It’s basically a nothing pea gravel bank.”
While a number of pros targeted bass by using reaction baits in the morning and switching to a more finesse-based approach later in the afternoon, Michels said that he stuck with reaction baits for the entire outing.
“Yeah, I threw reaction baits all day long,” he said. “I was using a small, 3 ½-inch swimbait and 6-pound test line. I only had two spinning rods on the deck the whole day. Some guys were throwing bigger baits but here you have to match the hatch and the (baitfish) really aren’t much bigger than 3 or 4 inches.”
However, the real question for Michels is: Can that spot produce for two more days?
“I think it can,” he said. “I might not be as successful throwing what I did today but I think I can slow down and still catch them with something else. I know this spot has some big fish on it. There is a giant there in the 5- to 6-pound range. And now, I just have to get it to bite.”
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12.Jan.2013 by Rob Newell
OKEECHOBEE, Fla. – When your very first fish of a three-day tournament is 9-pounder, it could be fortune. When your very last fish of that three-day tournament is another 9-pounder, it could be fate. But when you win that same three-day tournament by a tiebreaker, someone from above is looking out for you.
That’s exactly how the week went for EverStart rookie pro Ben Todd of Pierson, Fla. His first fish of the tournament on Thursday was 9-pounder. Then late this afternoon, with a small limit in his box and just minutes left in the fishing day, Todd hooked and landed another 9-pounder and won the EverStart Series event on Lake Okeechobee by a tiebreaker.
Todd’s total weight – 59 pounds, 3 ounces – was the exact total weight of runner-up Trevor Fitzgerald who mounted a gallant charge for the title with an impressive 25-pound-10 ounce catch today. But since Todd was ahead of Fitzgerald going into the final day, Todd got the winning hardware and the $40,000 check to go with it.
“You see that right there,” Todd said, seconds after his weight stopped at 16-3, the exact weight he needed to win. “That was not me. The Lord did that…not me.”
Indeed it was a magical week for the 32-year old Todd who works on his family’s farm in Pierson. It started with a 31-7 limit on day one. Then waned to an 11-9 limit on day two. And then surged again with the magic digits 16-3 today, thanks to the tournament winning 9-pounder.
Todd found his winning area late on Tuesday afternoon.
“I made one quick pass down through there, had 10 bites and shook them all off,” he said. “But I saw two of them as I was shaking them off and they were big. I did not return to the area until Thursday morning. My first fish of the day was 9-pounder and that kind of set the tone for the day as I kept catching big ones.”
Todd’s key stretch included a line of reeds “in the middle” around the J&S area, which was protected from the predominant east wind that occurred throughout the event.
“I was not fishing the very outside reeds,” Todd detailed. “And I was not fishing all the way inside near the bank, either. This area had a line of reeds going down through the middle. The whole area was maybe three acres in size. And it’s not like the fish were bunched up in a tiny spot. I caught them all the way down this line of reeds that ran north and south.”
Todd’s key lures were a Gambler Fat Ace and a Tightlines UV UVenko. The Fat Ace was in a river bug color and the UVenko was in black and blue. He rigged the lures Texas-style with a 5/0 Gamakatsu flipping hook and topped them with 3/8-tungsten weights on 50-pound test PowerPro braid.
“The fish were spawning around the reeds,” he explained. “I couldn’t see the beds and I couldn’t see the fish, but I could just tell by how they were set up, they had made beds around those reeds. I’d pitch the bait in-between and around the reeds and just let it fall into where I thought a bed would be. I’d start the day with the Gambler Fat Ace and then when things got slow or I was re-fishing some of my stretches, I’d switch to the UVenko to give them a different look. I think that UV technology really gives the lure a different appearance in the water – something they’ve never seen before.”
“Today it was all the UVenko,” he added. “I caught small fish early, but late in the day all the boats disappeared and things got calm and quiet and I got that indescribable feeling that maybe another big female or two was moving up. I kept looking at my watch…30 minutes left…20 minutes left…10 minutes left and then that big one bit. When I got her in the boat I knew I had a shot at winning.”
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11.Jan.2013 by Rob Newell
OKEECHOBEE, Fla. – After seven 20-pound plus limits crossed the EverStart weigh-in stage on day one, day two’s number of 20-plusers fell to just two.
While the overall number of bass weighed in was still about the same for both days, the bigger bass just didn’t show up as often today. The replenishment of new-moon females does not seem to be happening as fast as many had hoped.
Some blamed today’s weather – a gray, overcast day that even drizzled out a little rain shower from time to time – for holding the big girls back. Many of Okeechobee’s top sticks believe the calm, sunny days are the ones that seem to be an aphrodisiac for nesting females and today the sun did not really shine until weigh-in began.
Others think the fishing pressure kept the shy gals at bay. Increased boat numbers inherently seem to follow the leaders on day two of a tournament, and today was no exception.
After sacking a dream bag of 31 pounds, 7 ounces on day one, leader Ben Todd of Pierson, Fla., was able to hold his top spot with an 11-pound, 9 ounce catch for a two-day total of 43 pounds. He now has a 5-pound lead over Okeechobee’s own Brandon McMillan who climbed from 7th to second today.
And while no one wants to enter the final day of an Okeechobee event with Big Mac lurking behind them, Todd remains optimistic.
“I fished the same area today and caught 12 or 13 bass, but just no big ones,” Todd said. “The weather was completely opposite of yesterday. Yesterday was sunny and bright all day. Those big females were set up on the beds perfectly and you could almost call your shot. But today, it was dark, cloudy and rainy and I just don’t think those big females feel comfortable getting up there and laying eggs on dark days. I don’t know, that’s just my guess.”
Todd also felt the increased pressure was a factor.
“Yesterday, I could move around the area freely and fish where I wanted when I wanted,” he said “But today, I was kind of boxed in. When I went back to rotate through my area I had to get in line. So much of this fishing here is a timing thing. You have in your mind the little places you want to hit a certain times and when you get out of that timing it throws you off.”
“I still feel good about the area though,” Todd added. “There are still plenty of bucks around. And I think the females are sitting out there wanting to come in. Hopefully with some sun and a few less boats tomorrow that wave of big ones will come on in and set up.”
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