The Googan Squad Scout is a suspending jerkbait on the hunt for a mondo. A neutrally buoyant lure that doesn’t quite float and doesn’t quite sink, the Scout suspends in the water column with a nose-down look, daring fish to take a swipe.
Each Googan Squad Scout is built with an ultra-tough shell shaped like a streamlined baitfish. The torpedo design increases it’s swimming ability while providing the aerodynamic shape needed to make bomb casts.
The Googan Squad Scout is available in 2 lifelike sizes to help you give the fish what they want.
The Googan Squad Scout measures out to 4 1/8” and weighs in at 1/2 an ounce. The Googan Squad Scout comes with 3 needlepoint treble hooks, and dives to a depth of 4-6 feet.
The Scout Jr. is 3 ½” and weighs 1/4 of an ounce. The Googan Squad Scout Jr. has 2 treble hooks and dives to a depth of 3-5 feet.
Both Scouts should be tied to the Googan Squad Fluorocarbon line. Use 8-12 lb line with the Scout Jr. and 10-15 lb line with the larger version.
Each Googan Squad Scout comes with a set of internal rattles that are nestled in a chamber just below the belly of the bait. The rattles help keep that ”nose down” look, which drives fish wild.
The internal rattles also emit a unique fish calling noise throughout each cast. This helps call in fish from further distances away.
The added weight from the internal rattle system also helps with the Scout’s castability. During the release, the weight forward design will help sling your bait even further.
You can fish the Googan Squad Scout’s over submerged grass, around bluff walls, near main and secondary points, drop-offs, and anywhere else bass are ambushing baitfish.
Use this bait anytime you want to imitate a wounded or fleeing baitfish in areas void of snags. With the rod tip down and with a bit of slack in the line, give the bait short pops with a cadence of a rip, rip, pause. The colder the water, the longer the pause should be. This will give bass a little extra time to catch up.
While jerkbaits will catch fish all year long in all water types, fish the Scout’s in water temperatures of 45-65 degrees.
Click on a star to rate it!
Average rating 5 / 5. Vote count: 3
Anglers and Divers: See More… Faster
[print_link]
Supercharge CMOR Mapping’s remarkable high-resolution seafloor maps with Raymarine power and speed
The best diving and bottom-fishing spots are the ones that don’t show up on paper or digital charts and aren’t marked on commercially available fishing maps. They’re the forgotten wrecks, the isolated reefs, the ledges hidden between the contour lines — the kinds of places that take hundreds of hours on the water and countless dollars in fuel to find.
A Revolution in Charting
CMOR Mapping’s chartplotter-compatible bathymetry clearly reveals those spots. With resolution as high as one meter (each pixel represents a single square meter of bottom) and coverage of the entire bottom, anglers, divers and other treasure seekers can now see every bump in remarkable detail. And just as important, they’ll see the areas of featureless underwater desert – areas where they don’t need to spend time looking – just as clearly.
An initial look at CMOR Mapping’s charts reveals that traditional fishing maps are simply no match for this new era of charting. Users can explore the charts without leaving the dock and preplan trips by zooming in and revealing productive new spots for targeted species. This ability builds great efficiency – ultimately relieving users from wasted time and fuel – and results in more time catching fish.
Seamlessly Compatible
CMOR Mapping imagery is seamlessly compatible with most chartplotters, including Raymarine models running on the ultra responsive LightHouse operating systems. Installation takes under 20 seconds. Simply insert the Micro SD card (SD adapter included), select Chart from the LightHouse home screen, then Menu, Settings, and select the CMOR Mapping Chart option from the cartography tab. Zoom in on the desired coverage area to begin viewing CMOR’s incredibly detailed bathymetry data.
Total Accuracy
CMOR mapping utilizes your precise GPS location, unlocking the ability to view your vessel icon over the data, guaranteeing accuracy within centimeters of the bottom features on the chart.
All other vector data — tides, nav aids, routes, waypoints, etc. —remains available on your plotter and can be viewed as an overlay if desired. Put simply, a CMOR card adds another layer of extremely valuable data to what you already see on your Raymarine chartplotter.
Complete and Detailed
Most fishing maps and charts that show depth contour lines interpolate those lines from historical sounding data. In other words, the contours are drawn by looking at the measured depth at a number of points and then making educated guesses about what the bottom looks like between those points. In many cases, the results are fairly accurate. But isolated features — a 5-foot ledge between two soundings a quarter mile apart, for example — are easily missed.
In contrast, CMOR Mapping data is the result of methodical surveys with high-resolution echosounders, built by an experienced team of hydrographers and developers who share a passion for fishing and diving. There is no interpolation, no guesswork, and no unverified “hotspots” reported by local captains. The result is a complete, accurate, and highly detailed representation of the bottom, including significant features not shown on any other chart or fishing map. CMOR puts you on the spot every time.
A New Level of Focus
The value of CMOR Mapping imagery when fishing or diving a new area is obvious; instead of relying on “public numbers” or feeling your way along looking for more productive spots, CMOR puts you in the game immediately.
But CMOR’s value extends to home waters as well. Not only will users see features they never knew existed — things they have run right past a hundred times — but they’ll also see known features in game-changing detail. Large, dispersed artificial reef areas, for example, come into an entirely new level of focus, with each individual piece of structure clearly visible. With CMOR Mapping, those all-important “spots on the spot” have never been easier to find and navigate to.
“Hands down, CMOR delivers the most detailed bottom charting on the market,” says Raymarine Pro Captain Alonzo Sotillo of Tides Right Charters fishing the South Florida waters of Biscayne Bay, Flamingo and Key Largo. “Paired up with Raymarine Axiom’s LightHouse operating system and quad core processor, the detail, clarity and speed are unreal.”
Maximum Performance
CMOR high-resolution seafloor mapping is compatible with any Raymarine chartplotter, but the CMOR advantage is compounded when combined with the blazing speed and raw processing power of Raymarine’s Axiom and Element models, which feature bright, high-definition displays and are driven by blazing-fast quad core processors.
“We’re pleased to offer compatibility with nearly all Raymarine chartplotter and MFD models,” says CMOR Mapping owner, Erik Anderson, “but Axiom’s technology definitely elevates the user experience. Our highly detailed charts are data intensive, and Axiom’s quad core processor and high-resolution display combine to showcase the benefits of our products beautifully.”
Expanding Coverage
CMOR provides great coverage throughout popular areas of the Gulf of Mexico and US East Coast. Current cards include: South Florida, Florida Middle Grounds, West Gulf of Mexico, East Gulf of Mexico, North Florida/Georgia/South Carolina, Marquesas/Tortugas/Pulley Ridge, Mid-Atlantic, Georgetown/Cape Lookout, New York/New Jersey, Long/Block Island Sound/Martha’s Vinyard, and the Gulf of Maine. Retail price is $700 per card, and $100 updates are available.
For more information on CMOR Mapping, visit cmormapping.com. For more information about Raymarine multifunction displays and chartplotters, visit raymarine.com.
We had a really big year on the Savannah River in 2019! In 2018 CATT paid back $12,805.00 on the Savannah River and this year the total payback jumped up to $16,480.00! HUGE Thanks to Joe Toth and the job he’s doing with the CATT Savannah River Division! Hope you will join us in 2020 and bring some of your friends! More teams equals even bigger payouts!
Tim Roundtree & Al Pittman weighed in 5 bass at 14.21 lbs and the 2nd BF at 4.70 lbs! They took home a total of $2,380.00!
2nd place went to Gary Lee Sr. & Gary Lee Jr with a limit weighing 13.70 lbs! They weighed in the 1st BF at 7.47 lbs and collected $1,140.00 PLUS a Lews Mach Baitcast Reel!
3rd was Patrick Findley & Corey Rewis with 12.84 lbs!
4th Place went to Christopher Chavis with 12.82 lbs!
| 21 Teams | BF | Weight | Winnings |
| Tim Roundtree/Al Pittman | 4.70 | 14.21 | $2,380.00 |
| Gary Lee Sr./Gary Lee Jr. | 7.47 | 13.70 | $1,140.00 |
| Patrick Findley/Corey Rewis | 0.00 | 12.84 | $550.00 |
| Christopher Chavis | 0.00 | 12.82 | $250.00 |
| Wesley Mullins/Matt Cantrell | 0.00 | 11.43 | |
| Michael Hurt | 0.00 | 11.35 | |
| Anthony Joyner/Barry Conley | 0.00 | 9.90 | |
| Frank Ackerman/Mike Markovic | 0.00 | 9.72 | |
| Tracy Burnsed/David Cole | 0.00 | 9.35 | |
| Jerr Hood/Ann Hood | 0.00 | 8.85 | |
| Nathan Singletary/Steve Decker | 0.00 | 8.81 | |
| Ryan Kent/Tyler Wilson | 0.00 | 8.79 | |
| Victor Belagorska/Landen Caldwell | 0.00 | 8.61 | |
| Paul Johnson/Adam Wood | 0.00 | 7.97 | |
| Eddie Rogers | 0.00 | 7.96 | |
| Weston Wilkes | 0.00 | 7.96 | |
| Joe Toth | 0.00 | 7.86 | |
| Monte Misplay/Dan Martin Sr. | 0.00 | 7.59 | |
| Rocky Mullis/Jeff Mullis | 0.00 | 5.79 | |
| Barry Thames/Jamie Thames | 0.00 | 0.00 | |
| Ronald Welsh | 0.00 | 0.00 | |
| Total Entrys | $2,400.00 | ||
| BONUS $ | $320.00 | ||
| 2019 Savannah River Fall Final Fund | $1,580.00 | ||
| Total Paid At Ramp | $4,320.00 | ||
| Total Paid 2019 Fall Savannah River | $10,790.00 | ||
| Grand Total Paid Savannah River 2019 | $16,480.00 |
The 2020 Bassmaster High School and College circuits kick-off this spring at Toledo Bend Reservoir in Many, La., as part of their four-event regular season.
Photo by Seigo Saito/B.A.S.S.
October 25, 2019
B.A.S.S. Announces 2020 Schedules For College And High School Circuits
[print_link]
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Young anglers across the country can officially start marking their calendars after B.A.S.S. officials announced the 2020 schedules for the organization’s college and high school series Friday.
The ground-breaking youth circuits, which have helped reshape the direction of competitive angling for the better part of a decade, will each include four regular-season events, plus a season-ending championship.
Due to the soaring popularity of the trails, the field size will again be capped at 250 boats for both college and high school. Each high school event will also include a field of up to 50 Junior boats for competitors ranging from second to eighth grade.
“When you consider that we’ve had to cap the field size to keep the tournaments from being too big, that tells you all you need to know about the popularity of fishing at the college and high school levels,” said Hank Weldon, Tournament Director for B.A.S.S.’s College, High School and Junior Series. “There are thousands of young anglers who are hungry to compete — and as we’ve seen with so many former college and high school anglers now competing at the highest levels of bass fishing, it’s changing the sport from top to bottom.”
The Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops will begin Jan. 23-25 on Toledo Bend Reservoir in Many, La. It will then include three more springtime events on Smith Lake in Cullman, Ala. (Feb. 27-29), Lake Hartwell in Anderson S.C. (March 26-28) and Lake Cumberland in Russell County, Ky. (May 6-8).
The trail’s championship will be a summertime event on a northern fishery, but the exact date and location will not be announced until a later date. The Top 4 teams in the championship advance to the College Classic Bracket for an opportunity to earn a berth in the 2021 Bassmaster Classic.
Evidence of college fishing’s effect on the upper reaches of professional angling were evident this year with Brandon Cobb, a former member of the Clemson University fishing team, winning two Bassmaster Elite Series events. Also, 15 of the 2019 season’s 75 Elite Series pros fished for college programs.
“That’s one of the many benefits of the College Series,” Weldon said. “Anglers who want to fish professionally get to see a lot of different lakes under a lot of different conditions — and do it all while fishing against the best competition out there.
“Success on the college level is the perfect next step toward becoming a pro.”
The Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series presented by Academy Sports + Outdoors will also include four regular-season events. The one-day events will be Jan. 26 on Toledo Bend Reservoir, March 1 on Smith Lake, May 9 on Lake Cumberland and June 20 on a northern fishery to be announced soon.
The college and high school events on Smith Lake will help kickoff festivities for the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk on Lake Guntersville, Ala., which is scheduled for March 6-8 with weigh-ins in Birmingham. The 2020 Bassmaster Classic, the 50th, will see 2019 College Classic Bracket champion Cody Huff of Bethel University competing against qualifiers from the Elite Series as well as Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens, Bassmaster Team and TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation champions.
“We are excited to welcome back the B.A.S.S. College series to Smith Lake for 2020,” said Roger Steele, Director of Tourism for the Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center. “We’re also thrilled to welcome for the first time the B.A.S.S. High School series to our area and look forward to introducing this group of students to the hospitality of Cullman County.
“Our community was so impressed by the friendliness and professionalism of the B.A.S.S. staff and participating anglers from last year’s event that we are more than happy to welcome everyone back for an even better year in 2020.”
The date and location for the High School Championship will be announced at a later time.
“We couldn’t be happier with the schedule we’ve put together,” Weldon said. “From Day 1, the Junior, High School and College Series have been about opportunity — and this schedule gives young anglers a chance to experience some of the best fisheries in the country.”
Online registration for the High School and Junior Series will open Nov. 12. Registration for the College Series will open Nov. 19. For more information, visit Bassmaster.com.
2020 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops
Jan. 23-25, Toledo Bend Reservoir, Many, La.
Feb. 27-29, Smith Lake, Cullman, Ala.
March 26-28, Lake Hartwell, Anderson, S.C.
May 6-8, Lake Cumberland, Russell County, Ky.
2020 Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series presented by Academy Sports + Outdoors
Jan. 26, Toledo Bend Reservoir, Many, La.
March 1, Smith Lake, Cullman, Ala.
May 9, Lake Cumberland, Russell County, Ky.
June 20, TBD
RESULTS…..PBC CASHION FISHING RODS ‘END OF YEAR’ TEAM TOURNAMENT
BASS FISHING TRAIL FINAL QUALIFIER #8
Saturday October 19th, 2019 ~ ~ Falls Lake ~ ~ Ledge Rock Wildlife Ramp
[print_link]
Another tough bite today in the PBC Cashion Fishing Rods ‘End of Year’ Team Tournament Bass Fishing Trail Final Qualifier #8 at Falls Lake. Most of the 31 boat field had a hard time finding nice size bass. What really helped the winner
this time was a 6.21 lb. kicker!! Surface water temps were around 77 degrees and the weather was a little chilly with light winds and temps running from 40 to 65. The Fall bite around here is always tough!!
www.cashionrods.com https://www.facebook.com/CashionRods
Ben Cannon, fishing alone without his regular partner Chad Craven, won 1st with 5 bass weighing a total of 16.74 lbs. and also won 1st Place TWT and 1st Place Big Fish (6.21 lbs.) for a total of $1,774 in prize money!
The 2nd Place team of Mark Herndon & Jay Garrard caught a 5 fish limit of bass weighing 13.25 lbs. and along with winning the 2nd Place TWT they took home $720 in winnings. Thomas Sheffer and Ken McNeill took 3rd Place with 5 bass weighing 12.89 lbs. taking home $360 in winnings. The team of Doug Stallings & T.J. Althaus won the Big Fish Award for the day with a nice 4.73 pounder to take home $434 in cash!!
73 bass were brought to the scales and most looked very healthy! Topwater, worm rigs, jigs,crankbaits & spinnerbaits in 4′ to 12′ of water on channel dropoffs & rocky bottoms seemed to be the lures of choice.Most of the smaller bass were caught shallow.
I want to thank Cashion Fishing Rods and all the anglers that participated.
Our next tournament will be the PBC Cashion Fishing Rods ‘End of Year’ Team Tournament Bass Fishing TrailChampionship Saturday October 26th at Jordan Lake out of Farrington Point Wildlife Ramp for qualified teams only.
All the information on our tournaments and dates can be found at: http://piedmontbassclassics.com/
Now here are the full results:
1st Place: Ben Cannon & Chad Craven of Apex & Willow Springs…5 bass…16.74 lbs…$885
2nd Place: Mark Herndon & Jay Garrard of Bahama & Durham…5 bass…13.25 lbs…$525
3rd Place: Thomas Sheffer & Ken McNeill of Cary & Raleigh…5 bass…12.89 lbs…$360
4th Place: Chad Fara & Stephen Lasher of Durham & Bahama…5 bass…12.72 lbs…$280
5th Place: Seth & Kristina Ellis of Durham…5 bass…11.03 lbs…$230
6th Place: Charles Stewart & Matt Dean of Stem & Clayton…5 bass…10.75 lbs…$200
1st Place Big Fish: 1st Place Team above: 6.21 lbs…$434
2nd Place Big Fish: Doug Stallings & T.J. Althaus of Stem & Raleigh…4.73 lbs…$186
1st Place TWT: 1st Place Team above: 16.74 lbs…$455
2nd Place TWT: 2nd Place Team above: 13.25 lbs…$195
Contact Information:
Phil McCarson…Tournament Director—922 Valetta Rd.—Durham, NC 27712
Home: 919-471-1571 Cell: 919-971-5042
email: [email protected] website: http://piedmontbassclassics.com/
MAJOR LEAGUE FISHING AND FLW ANNOUNCE EXPANDED 2020 FLW SERIES AND T-H MARINE BFL DETAILS, SCHEDULES, ENTRY DATES, AND ADVANCEMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Enhancements Include New Lower Entry Fees, Increased Payout Percentages and $200,000 FLW Series Championship Award
TULSA, Okla. (Oct. 24, 2019) – Major League Fishing (MLF) and Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) announced today the expanded 2020 FLW Series and T-H Marine Bass Fishing League (BFL) details, schedules, rules, entry fees and payouts, highlighted by lower entry fees in both circuits and an expanded FLW Series schedule, along with upping the championship payout to $200,000 for first place and adding $10,000 bonuses for the highest-finishing pro from each of the eight U.S. FLW Series divisions and the International division.
The 2020 FLW Series season will consist of three events in eight divisions, up from five divisions in 2019. Anglers that fish all three qualifiers in any of the eight divisions and finish in the top 25 will qualify for the no-entry-fee FLW Series Championship for a shot at winning $200,000 cash, plus lucrative contingency bonuses. The winning co-angler at the championship earns a $30,000 17-foot bass boat with a 115-horsepower outboard. The new win-and-you’re-in format guarantees that anglers are never out of contention to qualify for the Championship, too. Fish all three qualifiers in a division and win a tournament, and they’ll be on their way to the Championship. FLW Series entry fees have been reduced to $1,700 pro and $550 co-angler per tournament, while top payouts in each event remain $40,000 for pros and a $30,000 17-foot bass boat with a 115-horsepower outboard for co-anglers. As field sizes increase, so do payouts, with top awards reaching $65,000 pro and $35,000 co-angler at 260 boats, and awards of $2,000 pro and $550 co-angler extending through 65th place. Complete payout details are listed below.
MLF and FLW are also rolling back entry fees in the T-H Marine BFL to give grassroots anglers – the heart and soul of the bass fishing community – the best payouts at the lowest cost available anywhere. Entry fees are now just $200 per boater and $100 per co-angler for one-day qualifiers and $300 per boater and $150 per co-angler for two-day Super Tournaments – the lowest levels since 2014. While entry fees have been lowered, BFL payouts remain the same as 2019 with boaters fishing for top awards of $6,000 plus contingency bonuses in each one-day qualifier and $9,000 plus contingency bonuses in each two-day Super Tournament. Co-anglers fish for top awards of $3,000 plus contingency bonuses in each one-day qualifier and $4,500 plus contingency bonuses in each two-day Super Tournament. Anglers also have the opportunity to qualify for six no-entry-fee regional championships with top awards of $60,000 boater and $50,000 co-angler, a no-entry-fee Wild Card regional, the no-entry-fee All-American with top awards of $100,000 boater and $50,000 co-angler, and even the FLW Series Championship with top awards of $200,000 pro/boater and $30,000 co-angler. Complete payout details are listed below.
“Major League Fishing was founded by tournament anglers, so we are an angler-driven league,” said Boyd Duckett, MLF co-founder and board director. “We respect and value the loyal FLW Series and BFL anglers, and we are very excited to announce the enhancements to what was already the best grassroots organization on the planet. I am confident that the anglers will be extremely satisfied with both the FLW Series and BFL circuits moving forward.”
The BFL is the stepping stone to the FLW Series, which is now the pathway to the new 150-angler FLW Pro Circuit and ultimately MLF’s Bass Pro Tour, where 80 of the world’s top pros compete with no entry fees. The FLW Series and BFL also put anglers in front of the sport’s largest fan base, with coverage on FLWFishing.com, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter reaching more than 1 million fans each month.
Earlier this month, MLF announced an agreement to acquire FLW. This deal, which brings together the largest grassroots organization in the world with the best pro anglers in the world, is expected to close in the coming days.
“It’s the best of both worlds for FLW anglers – what you’ve come to know and expect from FLW, now with the power of Major League Fishing behind us,” said Kathy Fennel, FLW President of Operations. “We are proud of the fact that no other organization offers higher rewards for lower entry fees.”
Complete details, schedules, rules and more for the 2020 FLW Series can be found online at FLWFishing.com.
Registration for the 2020 FLW Series season opens Oct. 28, 2019, for the top 40 pros and co-anglers from each division of the 2019 FLW Series, the top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division of the 2019 BFL, the winner of each 2019 BFL tournament who paid an entry fee for all five tournaments in a division and fished at least two tournaments in the same division. These anglers have until Nov. 4, 2019, to secure their priority entry. Ranger boat owners may register beginning Nov. 5, 2019. Anglers who fished a full division of the 2019 FLW Series or 2019 BFL can register beginning Nov. 6, 2019, followed by Triton and Nitro boat owners Nov. 7, 2019. TBF members can register Nov. 8, 2019. All other entries will be accepted beginning Nov. 11, 2019. Register by calling 270.252.1000 or online at FLWFishing.com.
The complete 2020 T-H Marine BFL schedule, along with details, rules and payouts for the BFL season can be found online at FLWFishing.com.
Anglers can register for the 2020 T-H Marine BFL season at FLWFishing.com or by calling 270.252.1000 on the dates listed below:
For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the FLW Series and the BFL on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagra
Interviews, photos, logos and a Google map of the FLW Series tournaments are available on request.
2020 FLW Series Schedule:
Central Division
Feb. 27-29 Lake Chickamauga – Dayton, Tenn.
April 16-18 Dale Hollow Lake – Monroe, Tenn.
May 28-30 Pickwick Lake – Florence, Ala.
Eastern Division
March 3-5* Lake Hartwell – Seneca, S.C.
April 30-May 2 Lake Norman – Huntersville, N.C.
Sept. 10-12 Potomac River – Marbury, Md.
Northern Division
July 16-18 Lake Champlain – Plattsburgh, N.Y.
Aug. 20-22 St. Lawrence River – Massena, N.Y.
Sept. 17-19 Detroit River – Trenton, Mich.
Plains Division
March 26-28 Lake of the Ozarks – Osage Beach, Mo.
May 7-9 Table Rock Lake – Branson, Mo.
Sept. 17-19 Lake Dardanelle – Russellville, Ark.
Southeastern Division
March 26-28 Wheeler Lake – Decatur, Ala.
May 7-9 Lake Neely Henry – Gadsden, Ala.
June 4-6 Lake Eufaula – Eufaula, Ala.
Southern Division
Feb. 13-15 St. John’s River – Palatka, Fla.
March 12-14 Lake Okeechobee – Clewiston, Fla.
April 16-18 Lake Seminole – Bainbridge, Ga.
Southwestern Division
Jan. 30-Feb. 1 Toledo Bend Reservoir – Many, La.
April 8-10** Fort Gibson Lake – Wagoner, Okla.
Oct. 15-17 Sam Rayburn Reservoir – Brookeland, Texas
Western Division
March 12-14 Lake Havasu – Lake Havasu City, Ariz.
April 30-May 2 California Delta – Bethel Island, Calif.
Sept. 24-26 Clear Lake – Lakeport, Calif.
FLW Series Championship
Nov 5-7 TBA, watch FLWFishing.com for details
* Tuesday – Thursday event
** Wednesday – Friday event
2020 FLW Series Payouts*:
160 Boat Qualifying Event:
Place
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13-15
16-20 3,000
21-25 2,750
26-30 2,500
31-40 2,000
Big Bass
Entry Fee $1,700
Place
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16-20
21-25 3,000
26-30 2,700
31-40 2,350
41-45 2,300
46-50 2,250 675
51-55
56-60
61-65
Big Bass
Entry Fee $1,700
*Payback is based on the number of paid entries for each tournament, scaling up for every 20 boats over 160 and scaling down for every boat below 160.
FLW Series Championship:
Place
1 $200,000
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11-15 4,500
16-20 3,500
21-25 3,000
26-30 2,500
31-40 2,000
|
|
New Illinois State Record Smallmouth Bass Gobbles Z-Man® Ned Rig |
|
Downtown Chicago waterfront serves up 7-pound 3-ounce whopper — and it’s still swimming |
|
Ladson, SC (October 23, 2019) – Most of Chicago’s 2.7-million residents were fast asleep. But for avid angler Joe Capilupo, the night of Monday, October 14 provided the perfect opportunity to cast for Lake Michigan smallmouth bass. The payoff, as it turned out, would more than justify a little loss of shut-eye. Working their usual Chi-town fishing turf, Capilupo and two friends had cast and moseyed their way from the Shedd Aquarium, south toward Buckingham Fountain without much action. Twenty minutes before 11pm, a police officer strolled by to remind the anglers the Monroe Harbor lakefront park would soon be closing. At 10:50pm, Capilupo felt something crack his Ned rig. “Soon as I set the hook, the fish started pulling really hard, stripping drag,” recalls Capilupo, a Cook county corrections officer. “Figured I had probably hooked a drum or maybe a bigger bass.” Darkness prevented Capilupo from getting a good look at the fish until he worked it slightly closer to shore. “When the fish finally flashed in the water, I thought, my gosh, I’ve got a huge smallmouth bass! But even then, I figured it couldn’t have gone more than 5-pounds, which had been my goal for several years. “I reached for the net and hollered for my buddies Jonny Pitelka and Myles Cooke to come over and help.” |
|
|
The bait that captured Capilupo’s record bass, a Z-Man Finesse TRD (California Craw pattern). |
|
As Capilupo stretched out to maneuver the smallmouth bass into his net, the fish woke up and tail-walked clear of the water. “It was an incredible jump, but it kind of gave me a heart attack,” he laughed. Fortunately for the LeGrange, Illinois angler, the big bass’ head-shake didn’t dislodge the Z-Man jig and Finesse TRD from its jaw. “When we finally got the fish to shore, I got a better look at her and thought she might go 6 (pounds). The bass was so big my buddies actually had to help me lift it up.” After a handheld scale displayed a weight of 7-pounds 5-ounces, the anglers realized the smallmouth bass might eclipse the state record. Capilupo and friends started dialing friends, outdoor writers, Illinois fisheries officials or anyone who might help register the bass on a certified scale. “We couldn’t reach anyone at first. Nobody believed us, so I went on social media and someone told us to go to nearby Henry’s Sports and Bait. Meanwhile, another friend had brought big garbage bags which we filled with water. My mom delivered a large cooler and another buddy had returned from Wal-Mart with an aerator. We stayed up all night and made sure the fish stayed in the water and regained its strength. “Eventually, a co-owner and store employee met us at Henry’s,” noted Capilupo. “Their reaction was incredible; they were blown away by the fish, and helped us really take good care of it in one of their special bait tanks.” |
|
|
By 1:30pm on Tuesday, the bass had at last been certified by a Department of Natural Resources biologist. Officially, the bass weighed 7-pounds 3-ounces, measuring 22-1/4-inches in length and 16-1/2-inches in girth. The previous Illinois state record smallmouth weighed 6-pounds 7-ounces, caught in 1985. Recalling some of the misfortunes he faced earlier that Monday, Capilupo said his favorite St. Croix rod had gone overboard while kayak fishing. Somehow, his friend Pitelka managed to snag and save the outfit—a St. Croix Mojo Bass rod and Daiwa Legalis reel. “It just didn’t feel like my day,” recalls Capilupo, who had up until his big bite, landed only a small rock bass. “I’d also lost A 15-incher (bass) and had a good-sized drum break my hook. It was an old, rusty hook and I should have switched out.” Ultimately, having tied on a fresh 1/5-ounce Z-Man Ned Rig jighead onto which he threaded his favorite bass bait— a California Craw pattern Finesse TRD— Capilupo made the cast that reversed his fortune. “The Z-Man Ned rig is really the only bait we throw for smallmouths,” he said. “It’s our go-to, never-fail bait, for sure.” Capilupo described the fateful cast, which occurred not far from the Shedd Aquarium. “I had just put on a new California Craw TRD and cast out about 20 feet. That longer 7-foot 1-inch St. Croix is the perfect rod for shorecasting. I let the lure drop to the bottom and gave it a little twitch. I picture the retrieve as a frog hopping. Right after that first hop, I felt a big jarring hit and set the hook.” |
|
|
More than twenty-four hours later, the trio of anglers huddled in Henry’s back-rooms to discuss the planned release of their prized smallmouth bass. As Henry’s Sports and Bait co-owner Tom Palmisano told Chicago Sun Times outdoor columnist Dale Bowman, “He (Capilupo) is one of the classiest fishermen in the world. His buddy was sitting in the back of my store, tending to the fish like a newborn baby on its way home from the hospital. I can’t think of a happier moment in my years in the business.” “We knew we wanted to release the bass back into Lake Michigan,” noted Capilupo. “And there’s no question, the bass was in beautiful shape when we did. “Back into Lake Michigan, she goes,” Capilupo recited in a YouTube video documenting the release. “Thanks buddy. Great fight. Great fish. Seven pounds 3 ounces. Smallmouth bass.” |
|
FLW CLOSES OUT SEASON AT LAKE HARTWELL WITH WEEKEND OF FLW YOUTH BASS-FISHING TOURNAMENTS
Hartwell to host YETI FLW College Fishing tournament Friday, Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Open tournament Saturday
[print_link]
HARTWELL, Ga. (Oct. 23, 2019) –Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) is set to return to Hartwell next weekend to close out their 2019 tournament season with two events for young anglers, Nov. 1-2, with the YETI FLW College Fishing tournament at Lake Hartwell presented by Costa and the Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Lake Hartwell Open.
The tournaments, hosted by the Hart County Chamber of Commerce, will showcase some of the top young anglers from across the region competing for cash and prizes and angling for their chance to advance to the 2020 FLW College Fishing National Championship and 20202 High School Fishing National Championship events.
“This is going to be a very fun weekend of tournaments for the young anglers,” said FLW pro Bradford Beavers of Summerville, South Carolina, who won the two-day BFL Super-Tournament on Lake Hartwell just last month. “I think that with way the fish have been biting, these tournaments could be won either way – shallow or offshore. Your chances of catching more numbers of fish is better offshore. But if you can catch five up shallow running the bank, they’ll probably be bigger fish.
“If I were fishing in these tournaments, I would try to focus on one or the other,” Beavers continued. “If you’re not a local, it can be very difficult to dial in both patterns. I do know we are going to see plenty of fish being caught.”
Beavers said that for anglers targeting the deep, schooling fish he suggests they throw any topwater bait that can “walk-the-dog”. For anglers choosing to run the bank, he said a buzzbait would be hard to beat.
“From my experience there and from the weights I have seen lately, I think the top teams will need right around 14 to 15 pounds to be in contention for the win,” Beavers went on to say.
The college anglers will kick off competition on Friday, Nov. 1, at 8 a.m. EDT at the Gum Branch Park, located on Vanna Waller Road in Hartwell. The weigh-in will be held at the park on Friday at 3:30 p.m. The high school anglers will then compete on Saturday, Nov. 2, launching at 8 a.m. from Gum Branch Park and weighing in at 3:30 p.m. All takeoffs and weigh-ins are free to attend and open to the public, and will be streamed live online at FLWFishing.com.
YETI FLW College Fishing teams compete in three regular-season qualifying tournaments in one of five conferences – Central, Northern, Southern, Southeastern and Western. All participants must be registered, full-time students at a college, university or community college and members of a college fishing club that is recognized by their school. The top 10 teams from each division’s three regular-season tournaments and the top 20 teams from the annual FLW College Fishing Open will advance to the 2020 FLW College Fishing National Championship, scheduled for Feb. 26-28 on the Harris Chain of Lakes in Leesburg, Florida. Additional teams will qualify for the National Championship if the field size in regular-season events exceeds 100 boats.
The Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Open tournaments are free, two-person (team) events for students in grades 7-12 and open to any FLW and Student Angler Federation-affiliated high school clubs. The top 10 percent of teams at each Open event along with the TBF High School Fishing state championships will advance to the 2020 High School Fishing National Championship on the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin. The High School Fishing national champions will each receive a $5,000 college scholarship to the school of their choice.
For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow YETI FLW College Fishing and the Bass Pro Shops FLW High School Fishing Opens at Facebook, Twitter, Instagra
