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MARYLAND’S DUARTE WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE SOUTH CAROLINA DIVISION OPENER ON LAKE HARTWELL PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS

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February 19, 2019

MARYLAND’S DUARTE WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE SOUTH CAROLINA DIVISION OPENER ON LAKE HARTWELL PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS

Co-angler Title Goes to Gilbert’s Hough

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ANDERSON, S.C. (Feb. 18, 2019) – Boater John Duarte of Middle River, Maryland, caught five bass Saturday weighing 18 pounds, 8 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) South Carolina Division season opener on Lake Hartwell presented by Navionics. For his win, Duarte earned $4,396.

“I fished mid-lake docks in pockets and tried to cover as much water as I could,” said Duarte, who earned his second career victory in BFL competition. “It was on fire from 11 (a.m.) until the end of the tournament. I think the time of day positioned those fish in the backs of the pockets and put them where they were easy to catch.”

Duarte said he caught 12 to 15 keepers overall, saying that four of the five fish he weighed came on a 4.8-inch Pro Blue Red Pearl-colored Keitech FAT Swing Impact swimbait with a ¼-ounce jighead.

“I was skipping it under the docks and casting to the edges,” said Duarte.

Duarte’s other limit-fish came on a ½-ounce homemade green-pumpkin-colored jig with a Zoom Big Salty Chunk trailer of the same color. He said he caught it around 8:30 a.m. from under a docked pontoon boat up the Seneca River.

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st: John Duarte, Middle River, Md., five bass, 18-8, $2,396 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus

2^nd: Wesley Sandifer, Chapin, S.C., five bass, 16-0, $1,148

3^rd: Kyle Austin, Ridgeville, S.C., five bass, 15-14, $701

4^th: Scott Allgood, Fair Play, S.C., five bass, 15-8, $489

5^th: Shayne McFarlin, Martin, Ga., five bass, 15-6, $419

6^th: Nitro pro David Williams, Maiden, N.C., five bass, 14-13, $384

7^th: Thomas Guthke, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 13-9, $349

8^th: Randy Childers, Anderson, S.C., five bass, 13-7, $314

9^th: Travis Garrett, Toccoa, Ga., five bass, 13-6

10^th: Jayme Rampey, Liberty, S.C., five bass, 13-1

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Brian Tucci of Surfside Beach, South Carolina, caught a 5-pound, 4-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $100.

Kate Hough of Gilbert, South Carolina, won the Co-angler Division and $1,248 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 11 pounds, 13 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st: Kate Hough, Gilbert, S.C., five bass, 11-13, $1,248

2^nd: Stephen Britt, Columbia, S.C., five bass, 10-3, $574

3^rd: Jeff Horton, Boiling Springs, S.C., five bass, 9-7, $349

4^th: Mario Hill, Thomson, Ga., five bass, 9-4, $245

5^th: Lee Inman, Inman, S.C., five bass, 8-15, $210

6^th: Kyle Deeds, Greenville, S.C., five bass, 8-6, $192

7^th: Bill Hawkins, Piedmont, S.C., five bass, 8-3, $175

8^th: Shawn Kincaid, Lexington, S.C., five bass, 8-1, $157

9^th: Jeff Rikard, Leesville, S.C., four bass, 6-1

10^th: Weston Thomas, Chapin, S.C., five bass, 6-0

Dwayne Parton of Anderson, South Carolina, caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 3 pounds, 10 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $100.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Seminole in Bainbridge, Georgia. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard.

The T-H Marine FLW BFL South Carolina Division tournament on Lake Hartwell presented by Navionics was hosted by the Anderson Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The 2019 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they 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. The 2019 BFL All-American will be held May 30-June 1 at the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism and the Commissioners of Charles County. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

Jeremy Talbert & Tod Haynes Win CATT Yadkin Feb 9,2019 with 21.62 lbs

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February 18, 2019

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Jeremy Talbert & Tod Haynes Win CATT Yadkin Feb 9,2019 with 21.62 lbs

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Next Yadkin Divisions Qualifier is Mar 3 at Badin launching from Alcoa!

Jeremy Talbert & Tod Haynes weighed up a fat sack of Tillery bass at 21.62 lbs and also weighed the BF at 5.39 lbs! Their win was worth a total of $785.00!

2nd went to Jeff Coley & Brice Hollis

3rd Marty Williams & Mark Beck

John Lancaster & Mike Smith won the Wacky Riggers cash award $50 for their 4th Place finish!

	Big	Total	Total
15 Teams	Fish	Weight	Winnings	Points
Tod Haynes – Jeremy Talbert	5.39	21.62	$785.00	110
Brice Hollis – Jeff Coley	5.14	18.13	$340.00	109
Marty Williams – Mark Beck	3.53	13.94	$80.00	108
John Lancaster – Mike Smith	3.20	13.74		107
Andrew Wallace	4.34	12.15		106
George lambeth – Herby Young	3.34	12.13		105
Justin Goodyear – Tony Waterhouse	0.00	10.82		104
Kent Reed	0.00	10.69		103
George Gooch – Zac Gooch	4.15	9.90		102
Mike ray – Orlando Giles	0.00	9.49		101
RM Parker – Corey Gibson	0.00	3.69		100
Roy Barrow – April Barrow	0.00	0.00		99
Mike White – Billy Lee	0.00	0.00		99
Dean Jacobs – Jeremy Branch	0.00	0.00		99
Ron Wolfarth	0.00	0.00		99
Total Entrys			$1,200.00
BONUS $			$325.00
Total Paid At Ramp			$1,205.00
Yadkin Spring 2019 Final Fund			$260.00
2019 CATT Championship Fund			$30.00
2019 Yadkin Spring Final Fund Total			$260.00
2019 CATT Championship Fund Total			$2,685.00

BOYNTON BEACH’S STEVENS CATCHES 32-POUND LIMIT, WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE GATOR DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON LAKE OKEECHOBEE

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February 18, 2019

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BOYNTON BEACH’S STEVENS CATCHES 32-POUND LIMIT, WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE GATOR DIVISION TOURNAMENT ON LAKE OKEECHOBEE

Lake Worth’s Goldberg Grabs Co-angler Title

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OKEECHOBEE, Fla. (Feb. 18, 2019) – Boater Kail Stevens of Boynton Beach, Florida, caught a massive five-bass limit Saturday weighing 32 pounds, 10 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Gator Division tournament on Lake Okeechobee. Stevens took home $4,766 for his efforts.

“We had a little cold front come through and it slowed everything down leading up to the tournament,” said Stevens, who earned his first career victory with FLW. “On Saturday, though, it seemed like a new wave of fish moved up.

“I was around the Monkey Box and Harney Pond and was fishing for bedding fish,” continued Stevens. “I didn’t know whether they were in or out yet. I started inside, shallow, where I could see bottom and I caught some smaller bucks. That told me they might be coming in, but they’re not in yet. I went out midway toward the main lake and caught a 7-pounder flipping cattails.”

Stevens said he caught the 7-pounder flipping a 4.25-inch black and blue Gambler Stinger.

“I fished through there and ended up back where I started, and on my first cast back I caught an 8-pound, 11-ouncer,” said Stevens. “Three casts later I caught a 6-pounder. I Power-Poled down and picked off two more 5-plus-pounders. I went from having 12 pounds to 25 or 26 pounds in 30 to 40 minutes.”

Stevens said those fish came on black and blue- and green-pumpkin-colored Gambler Big EZ swimbaits.

“In practice the water was dirtier, so I threw lighter colors, but in the tournament it cleared up so I went darker,” Stevens went on to say. ”All of my fish came from the same 100-yard stretch. It was definitely a day I’ll never forget.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st: Kail Stevens, Boynton Beach, Fla., five bass, 32-10, $4,766

2^nd: Brandon Medlock, Lake Placid, Fla., five bass, 29-12, $1,883

3^rd: Timothy Feller, Coral Springs, Fla., five bass, 27-2, $1,456

4^th: Alex Terescenko, West Palm Beach, Fla., five bass, 26-1, $879

5^th: Josh McDermott, Fishers, Ind., five bass, 25-2, $853

6^th: Christian Greico, Tampa, Fla., five bass, 24-11, $690

7^th: Trent Pardue, Troy, N.C., five bass, 24-3, $628

8^th: Nicholas Anthony, Port Saint Lucie, Fla., five bass, 24-2, $565

9^th: Val Osinski, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., five bass, 23-1, $502

10^th: Chad Van Slyke, Cicero, N.Y., five bass, 23-0, $439

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Derek Savage of Port Saint Lucie, Florida, caught a 9-pound, 13-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $500.

Sam Goldberg of Lake Worth, Florida, won the Co-angler Division and $2,133 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 22 pounds, 5 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st: Sam Goldberg, Lake Worth, Fla., five bass, 22-5, $2,133

2^nd: Shawn York, Sarasota, Fla., five bass, 21-5, $1,142

3^rd: Joshua Weaver, Monroe, Ga., five bass, 17-14, $627

4^th: Bill Osceola II, Ochopee, Fla., five bass, 17-5, $439

5^th: Doug Caldwell, Indiantown, Fla., five bass, 17-0, $377

6^th: Dalton Hottle, Monmouth, Ill., five bass, 16-13, $345

7^th: Kazunori Okuma, Moriyama, Japan, five bass, 16-9, $314

8^th: Stephanie Hutcheson, Orange City, Fla., five bass, 16-8, $332

9^th: Kenneth Guy, Miramar, Fla., five bass, 15-13, $251

10^th: Ricky Martes, Lake Worth, Fla., five bass, 15-9, $220

Goldberg also caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division, a fish weighing in at 8 pounds, 4 ounces. The catch earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $250.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Seminole in Bainbridge, Georgia. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard.

The T-H Marine FLW BFL Gator Division tournament on Lake Okeechobee was hosted by the Okeechobee County Tourist & Development Council.

The 2019 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they 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. The 2019 BFL All-American will be held May 30-June 1 at the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism and the Commissioners of Charles County. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

Lance Pemble Win’s 2019 Big Bass Tour on Harris Chain of Lakes, Florida

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February 18, 2019

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Lance Pemble Win’s 2019 Big Bass Tour on Harris Chain of Lakes, Florida

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Overall Leaders

Rank	Name	Weight
1	LANCE PEMBLE	10.90
2	CORY HAWKINS	10.57
3	RYAN WORTHINGTON	9.99
4	CHRIS DEIMEL	9.80
5	CHET FORD	9.78
6	JASON BERRYMAN	9.48
7	RICK DANNER	8.98
8	MICHAEL ANTLEY	8.89
9	JEFF ROBINSON	8.74
10	JOSH ALSBROOKS	8.70

CLICK LINK TO SEE FULL RESULTS

TENNESSEE’S AARON WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE OPENER ON LAKE GUNTERSVILLE PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS

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February 18, 2019

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TENNESSEE’S AARON WINS T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE OPENER ON LAKE GUNTERSVILLE PRESENTED BY NAVIONICS

Co-angler Title Goes to Indiana’s Lyons

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SCOTTSBORO, Ala. (Feb. 18, 2019) – Boater Chad Aaron of Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, caught five bass Saturday weighing 25 pounds, 14 ounces, to win the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Choo Choo Division season opener on Lake Guntersville presented by Navionics. For his win, Aaron earned $4,363.

“I was hitting small underwater eddies. They were specific – I had to cast within a couple of feet to get bit,” said Aaron, who earned his second career victory in FLW competition. “It’s something I’ve been doing on the Tennessee River for years – just playing the current deal. When there’s heavy rain and the water is stained and muddy in the wintertime and early spring, it sets up the way I like to fish.”

Aaron said he worked through eight eddies, mid-lake, and caught 12 keepers in the process. He used a ½- and ¾-ounce black jig with a Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed craw and custom 4- to 6-inch shad-colored swimbaits, noting that a 5-inch swimbait did especially well throughout the day.

“I just rotated through the baits as the spots reloaded,” said Aaron. “If they missed the swimbait, I’d throw the jig in there and they’d eat it – I caught three or four like that. When I’d catch one fish out of an eddy, I’d leave for 30 minutes. They were one-fish spots – they weren’t schools by any means.”

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1^st: Chad Aaron, Lawrenceburg, Tenn., five bass, 25-14, $4,363

2^nd: Kent Keys, Anniston, Ala., five bass, 25-3, $2,082

3^rd: Aaron Stephens, Hayden, Ala., five bass, 24-14, $1,787

4^th: Derek Remitz, Grant, Ala., five bass, 23-5, $971

5^th: Scott Towry, Lawrenceburg, Tenn., five bass, 21-10, $833

6^th: Braden Marshall, Hixson, Tenn., five bass, 20-9, $763

7^th: Dennis Barnes, Boaz, Ala., five bass, 20-7, $694

8^th: Trey Gamble, Helena, Ala., five bass, 19-4, $625

9^th: Ricky Parpolowicz, Decatur, Ala., five bass, 19-1, $555

10^th: Cory Mathis, Newnan, Ga., five bass, 18-13, $486

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Daniel Trevino Jr. of Langston, Alabama, caught an 8-pound, 12-ounce bass – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $580.

Mark Lyons of Marion, Indiana, won the Co-angler Division and $2,082 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 17 pounds, 14 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1^st: Mark Lyons, Marion, Ind., five bass, 17-14, $2,082

2^nd: David Freeman, Hixson, Tenn., five bass, 15-14, $1,041

3^rd: Todd Harris, Athens, Tenn., five bass, 14-3, $692

4^th: Cody Davis, Hico, Texas, five bass, 14-1, $486

5^th: Marcus Corbett, Anniston, Ala., five bass, 13-8, $516

6^th: Ethan Wheeler, Mayfield, Ky., five bass, 12-14, $432

7^th: Steven Jacques, Addison, Ala., three bass, 12-11, $347

8^th: Charles Billingsley, Huntsville, Ala., four bass, 12-5, $312

9^th: Justin Stringer, Hartselle, Ala., three bass, 11-15, $278

10^th: Matt Hardy, Guntown, Miss., two bass, 11-10, $243

Tracey Gearlds of Tullahoma, Tennessee and Tyler Youngblood of Ooltewah, Tennessee, each caught a bass weighing 8 pounds even in the Co-angler Division – tying for the day’s largest. As a result, the duo split the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $290.

The top 45 boaters and co-anglers in the region based on point standings, along with the five winners in each qualifying event, will be entered in the Oct. 10-12 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Seminole in Bainbridge, Georgia. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518L with a 200-horsepower outboard.

The 2019 BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 128 tournaments throughout the season, five qualifying events in each division. The top 45 boaters and co-anglers from each division, along with the five winners of the qualifying events, will advance to one of six regional tournaments where they 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. The 2019 BFL All-American will be held May 30-June 1 at the Potomac River in Marbury, Maryland, and is hosted by the Charles County Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism and the Commissioners of Charles County. Top performers in the BFL can move up to the Costa FLW Series or even the FLW Tour.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

Evers Wraps up Dominating Win of Bass Pro Tour Stage Two on Lake Conroe

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February 18, 2019

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Evers Wraps up Dominating Win of Bass Pro Tour Stage Two on Lake Conroe

Edwin Evers kept catching them today,, 24 scorable bass in all that totaled 51-12, to claim the
Championship Sunday title at Lake Conroe.

CONROE, Texas (Feb. 17, 2019) – In the immediate aftermath of the first Major League Fishing® (MLF) Bass Pro Tour event in Kissimmee, Florida two weeks ago, Edwin Evers’ dissatisfaction with finishing second was palpable. Ever the professional, Evers complimented his fellow competitors and smiled for photos at the Berkley Postgame Show, but no talk of Cup points could bring the Oklahoma pro comfort.

Sunday afternoon on Lake Conroe, Evers made sure that the only postgame talk would be of how he earned his first-ever MLF Bass Pro Tour trophy.

Evers racked up 51 pounds, 12 ounces to outdistance Jeff Sprague, (40-8), Boyd Duckett (35-15), Brent Ehrler (34-13) and David Walker (34-7) and claim the win at the Bass Pro Tour Huk Stage Two presented by Favorite Fishing. The Oklahoma pro caught 24 scorable fish on the day, including an exclamation point with 9 minutes left in competition: an 8-1 that hit a drop-shot Berkley Havoc Bottom Hopper.

“You can’t imagine how good it feels to catch a fish like that,” Evers admitted. “I knew there were big fish in there, because I shook some big ones off the second day of the event. The big females just hadn’t gotten there yet, but they’re coming.”

Evers’ winning area


	Edwin Evers flipped his way to victory on Lake Conroe.(Photo by Garrick Dixon)

Evers’ pattern was to flip his way down the bank with a Black Blue Berkley Havoc Pit Boss,
picking out small indentations and grassy, undercut banks and flipping his bait as close to the bank as he could. He also caught some fish on a vibrating jig.

The area that Evers fished – a canal that he found during the Elimination Round – was shallow at the entrance, but fell off into slightly deeper water the further back he went.

“I feel like I know this lake as well as any lake I fish, but I’d never been in that canal before,” Evers admitted. “It looked right when I looked at it on the map, and I had it all to myself – I assume because it was probably pretty muddy in practice. The water was just a little warmer and a little bit cleaner on a couple of those key stretches.”

Holding off a midday charge

Evers looked like he might run away with the day almost from the opening gun, racking up over 26 pounds in the first period flipping a Berkley Havoc Pit Boss and winding a vibrating jig. Evers accounted for 13 of the 47 fish recorded during the period.

He eventually hit a lull midway through the second period, going nearly 90 minutes without a scorable fish. Sprague, meanwhile, went on a run, putting 8-9 on the scales to pull within 4 pounds of Evers just before the period break.

The Texas pro was haunted by a couple of near-misses on fish that he estimated to be in the 7-pound range.

“I had the chances, but I couldn’t execute on a couple of pretty key bites,” Sprague said. “I can’t complain too much, I had a great week, but I’d like to have a couple of those bites back.”

Evers stomped on the gas in the final period, adding seven fish for 21-5 in the final two-and-a-half hours after deciding to stay in his key area instead of moving.

Finishing out the Top 10

Jordan Lee finished sixth with 27-8, followed by Randall Tharp (17-3), Wesley Strader (9-11), Gary Klein (7-0) and Stephen Browning (6-2).

Next up for the MLF Bass Pro Tour

The 80-man Bass Pro Tour field will get a three-week break before heading to Raleigh, North Carolina March 26-31 for Stage Three on Jordan Lake, Falls Lake, and Shearon Harris Reservoir.

For more information on the Major League Fishing schedule, anglers and rules, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com.

Connecticut’s Paul Mueller Wins Spotted Bass Slugfest At Lake Lanier, Georgia

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February 18, 2019

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Connecticut’s Paul Mueller Wins Spotted Bass Slugfest At Lake Lanier, Georgia

Connecticut angler Paul Mueller celebrates with his family after winning the Toyota Bassmaster Elite At Lake Lanier with a four-day total of 69 pounds.

Photo by B.A.S.S. / Seigo Saito

Feb. 17, 2019

Connecticut’s Paul Mueller Wins Spotted Bass Slugfest At Lake Lanier, Georgia

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GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Former B.A.S.S. Nation Champion Paul Mueller proved he belongs in the big leagues of professional fishing by winning a spotted bass shootout on Georgia’s Lake Lanier. Mueller earned $100,000 by winning the Toyota Bassmaster Elite at Lake Lanier today.

Desperate to fill out his five-bass limit with bigger spotted bass, Mueller returned to a deep ridge that had produced most of his big spotted bass on previous days. There, he managed to dredge up two big spotted bass that pushed him ahead of Texas angler Chris Zaldain by less than a pound.

“I struggled today,” Mueller said. “I had run out of options, so I went back to my primary spot and caught a 5 1/4 (pounder) and then a 4. Without those two fish, I don’t win.”

Mueller had 18 pounds, 8 ounces for the day, giving him a four-day total of 69-0. It could have been even more. “There were still fish on that spot when I left,” he added. “At the end of the day, I lost a couple of big ones. I could have had a 20-something bag today.”

He described the structure as a large, underwater ridge with two shallower areas on top and very deep water on each side. He caught most of his spotted bass the first day on a Reins Bubbling Shad on a Do It Molds Freestyle Jighead, but the big producer the rest of the time was a 3 1/4-ounce Reins Fat Rockvibe Shad Swimbait on a 1/2-ounce herring head underspin jighead with the spinner removed.

“Who would have thought you could win this tournament — a blueback herring tournament — off of one spot?” he said. In fisheries where the nomadic herring are a main staple of bass diet, spotted bass are notorious for leaving their holding areas unexpectedly and en masse.

That happened to Zaldain, who also had to contend with a wind shift today that moved his schools of bass. A sudden drop of temperatures into the low 40s didn’t help.

“I fished long, sloping points all week and had to switch to western banks today because of the east wind,” he said.

Zaldain was the leader with 51-9 going into Championship Sunday, when only the Top 10 finalists competed, but he fell short with a 16-9 limit today that included two smaller bass. He alternated between a 3-inch Megabass Spark Shad swimbait on a 3/8-ounce jighead and a 3/8-ounce drop shot with a 3-inch Megabass Hazedong Shad.

Unlike Mueller and Zaldain, the others in the Top 5, and most of those in the Top 10, fished crankbaits in shallow to medium depths, especially on shorelines and points in 38,000-acre Lake Lanier.

Keith Combs of Texas finished third with 66-1, earning a $20,000 payday that pushed him into the Millionaire’s Club of B.A.S.S. His career earnings now stand at $1,001,635. He alternated between Strike King crankbaits and a 6-inch shaky head worm and followed a “run-and-gun” pattern to try numerous spots during the day. “I didn’t stay anywhere long,” he said.

Second-round leader David Mullins of Tennessee dropped to fourth with 65-14 after his bigger fish in the backs of pockets deserted him, and Todd Auten of South Carolina moved up into fifth with 63-6.

The 75 pro anglers had high praise for the quality of fishing on Lake Lanier, which had never hosted an Elite Series event before. Several spotted bass heavier than 5 pounds were weighed in, but it was a 6-14 largemouth that earned Bill Lowen of Indiana the $1,500 Phoenix Boats Big Bass Award.

The 917 bass caught in the four-day tournament averaged more than 2 3/4 pounds, an amazing average for a spotted bass fishery. Also impressive, all 917 were released alive and returned to Lake Lanier.

Chris Johnston, a newcomer to the Elites from Canada, claimed the lead in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year race after two events and earned $1,000. He finished 10th at Lanier and was second behind winner Rick Clunn in the Power-Pole Bassmaster Elite at the St. Johns River, Florida, last week.

Lee Livesay of Texas now leads the DICK’S Sporting Goods Rookie of the Year race, earning $500. The highest-scoring rookie at the end of the 10-event Elite season will collect the $10,000 ROY prize.

2019 Toyota Bassmaster Elite at Lake Lanier 2/14-2/17
Lake Lanier, Gwinnett GA.
(PROFESSIONAL) Standings Day 4

   Angler                   Hometown              No./lbs-oz  Pts   Total $$$

1.  Paul Mueller           Naugatuck, CT           20  69-00  100 $100,000.00
  Day 1: 5   16-11     Day 2: 5   18-04     Day 3: 5   15-09     Day 4: 5   18-08
2.  Chris Zaldain          Fort Worth, TX          20  68-02   99  $25,000.00
  Day 1: 5   16-15     Day 2: 5   16-06     Day 3: 5   18-04     Day 4: 5   16-09
3.  Keith Combs            Huntington, TX          20  66-01   98  $20,000.00
  Day 1: 5   16-06     Day 2: 5   16-15     Day 3: 5   16-05     Day 4: 5   16-07
4.  David Mullins          Mt Carmel, TN           20  65-14   97  $15,000.00
  Day 1: 5   17-12     Day 2: 5   19-06     Day 3: 5   14-02     Day 4: 5   14-10
5.  Todd Auten             Lake Wylie, SC          20  63-06   96  $15,000.00
  Day 1: 5   16-01     Day 2: 5   12-14     Day 3: 5   17-05     Day 4: 5   17-02
6.  Bill Weidler           Helena, AL              20  62-03   95  $15,000.00
  Day 1: 5   14-10     Day 2: 5   14-11     Day 3: 5   17-13     Day 4: 5   15-01
7.  Brandon Card           Knoxville, TN           20  60-04   94  $15,000.00
  Day 1: 5   15-15     Day 2: 5   13-12     Day 3: 5   16-06     Day 4: 5   14-03
8.  Stetson Blaylock       Benton, AR              20  59-13   93  $15,000.00
  Day 1: 5   13-12     Day 2: 5   18-11     Day 3: 5   14-03     Day 4: 5   13-03
9.  Clent Davis            Montevallo, AL          20  58-08   92  $15,000.00
  Day 1: 5   15-14     Day 2: 5   15-00     Day 3: 5   14-11     Day 4: 5   12-15
10. Chris Johnston         Peterborough Ontario CA 20  57-07   91  $16,000.00
  Day 1: 5   15-01     Day 2: 5   16-09     Day 3: 5   14-01     Day 4: 5   11-12
PHOENIX BOATS BIG BASS
     Bill Lowen               Brookville, IN      06-14      $1,500.00
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals
Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight
 1        68       361       988-08
 2        54       335       900-02
 3        33       171       487-09
 4        10        50       150-06
----------------------------------
         165       917      2526-09

The importance of focus February 16, 2019 – Bassmaster

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February 17, 2019

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The importance of focus February 16, 2019 – Bassmaster

Focus is a subject you don’t hear much about except when a professional bass tournament is on the line. The truth is, though, that it’s much more important to the success of catching bass in any situation than anyone ever talks about — until now.

My life is busy. I have a family, a business and a professional fishing career. My family comes first. My wife and I have a lot of fun together. My stepson is in college, but we spent a ton of time together doing lots of activities.

I try to help coach my daughters’ sports teams and attend all the games and meets I can. I eat lunch with my youngest daughter at her elementary school once a week when I’m in town. My older daughter is in middle school so I can’t do that anymore with her. I wish I could.

John Pollard and Dallas Weldon Win 2019 Alabama Bass Trail Lake Martin

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February 17, 2019

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John Pollard and Dallas Weldon Win 2019 Alabama Bass Trail Lake Martin
ABT Sponsor Eric Morris of Wedowee Marine and Benn Williamson post Runner Up Finish
by Dan O’Sullivan

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February 16, 2019 – Alexander City, Ala. – The 2019 Alabama Bass Trail’s Southern Division schedule kicked off with a bang on Lake Martin in Alexander City, Ala. There had been much consternation about the conditions, and how the fish were going to bite, but as can be expected in an Alabama bass Trail event, the field produced with a strong showing.

When the weigh-in concluded and Wind Creek State Park on Saturday afternoon, a pair of familiar names found themselves atop the leaderboard. John Pollard and Dallas Weldon, the 2018 Southern Division Points winners and overall ABT Anglers of the Year, had plopped 17.63 pounds of Lake Martin bass on the scales to take home the win. Not only did they earn the $10,000 first prize, but they also collected a slew of contingency money from ABT; including the Mountain Dew Big Bass for their 5.49-pound lunker, Phoenix Boats, Wedowee Marine, and Garmin; which brought their total earning for the day to $20,000.

The pair was proud to say the least. “We’ve fished these for a long time, and we’ve done really well here, but haven’t been able to close out a win,” they said. “To be able to finally win one of these, against a field like this means so much, and now that we can say we’ve won an ABT event; it’s pretty special.”

The longtime tournament partners said that they fished in a relatively small, three mile area of the lake. They reported targeting largemouth by fishing every piece of cover they came across with a “crawdad colored,” 3/8-ounce Phenix Lures Football Jig tipped with a matching Zoom Creepy Crawler for a trailer. “We had one fish at 11:00 and were starting to think about making a change, when we both caught good ones,” they said. “That gave us the confidence we needed to keep hunting the bites we needed. We culled a few times, and managed to pull it out; now we can move forward and focus on trying to repeat as AOY; we won’t change how we do things now.”

The second place team of ABT sponsor, Eric Morris of Wedowee Marine, and Ben Williamson “junk fished” their way to a 16.67-pound limit that earned them the $5,000 runner up prize. “We had 15 rods on the deck and used them all,” they said. “We caught them shallow, and we caught them 40 feet deep; we kept adjusting and made it work. We work hard to find quality fish, and to put this together is really exciting.”

For Morris, the whole day was special. “This really is a good day for us at Wedowee Marine overall,” said Morris. “Our friends and customers won, finished second, and third – I couldn’t be happier to see people who trust us with their purchase do well; it’s really fun.”

The Southern Division of the Alabama Bass Trail hits the water next at Lake Jordan on March 30.

The Top 10 Standings are below, for complete standings, visit: https://www.alabamabasstrail.org/tournament-series/lm-results/

Place	Team	Weight	Big Fish	Winnings
1	John Pollard / Dallas Weldon	17.63	5.49	$10,000.00
2	Eric Morris / Ben Williamson	16.67		$5,000.00
3	Brannon Hurst / Mike Freeman	16.18		$4,000.00
4	Ken Walters / Jason Beasley	15.34		$3,000.00
5	Rob Lee / Steve Winslett	15.11	3.83	$2,000.00
6	Seth Johnston / Donnie Johnston	14.79		$1,500.00
7	Joey Aderhold / Jonathan Collins	14.43		$1,100.00
8	Tony Hogan / Vernon Ward	14.31		$1,100.00
9	Myles Palmer / B.J. Barnett	14.17		$1,100.00
10	Marty Giddens / Josh Stracner	13.88		$1,100.00

The sponsors of the 2019 Alabama Bass Trail include; Phoenix Bass Boats, Bill Penney Toyota, Garmin, Academy Sports & Outdoors, America’s First Federal Credit Union, Sweet Home Alabama, Alabama Tourism Department, Alabama Mountain Lakes Tourist Association, T-H Marine Supplies, Wedowee Marine, Buffalo Rock, Mountain Dew, Jack’s, Fish Neely Henry Lake.com, Alabama Power Company, Lew’s Fishing, AFTCO, YETI, Power Pole, Big Bite Bait Company and E3 Apparel.

Duckett Leads Top 10 Anglers into Championship Round of Bass Pro Tour Huk Stage Two Conroe presented by Favorite Fishing

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February 17, 2019

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Boyd Duckett racked up 21 fish for 38 pounds, 5 ounces to lead the way into Championship Sunday.

Duckett Leads Top 10 Anglers into Championship Round of Bass Pro Tour
Huk Stage Two Conroe presented by Favorite Fishing

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CONROE, Texas (Feb. 16, 2019) – For the better part of the past year, Boyd Duckett has been “Mr. MLF” as he worked endlessly to establish the Major League Fishing® (MLF) Bass Pro Tour. But for the seven hours of competition in the Knockout Round of MLF Bass Pro Tour Huk Stage Two Conroe presented by Favorite Fishing, Duckett was “Mr. Consistency”.

Duckett caught his first scorable bass 22 minutes into the competition at Lake Conroe and then steadily added fish to SCORETRACKER® throughout the morning and early afternoon, swimming a small worm. By the time Period 3 got underway, Duckett had already weighed 31 pounds, 14 ounces, and owned a 9-plus-pound lead on the field.

The Alabama pro would eventually finish the day with 38-5 on 21 fish, followed by Gary Klein (30-1), Edwin Evers (29-2), Brent Ehrler (28-12) and Jordan Lee (28-12).

“I’ve always been decent at compartmentalizing my fishing and my work, but I just couldn’t make fishing the most important thing at Toho,” Duckett admitted, referring to the MLF Bass Pro Tour’s inaugural event in Florida two weeks ago. “Coming into this one, I told everybody that I was going to concentrate on my fishing. It’s been nice to just be an angler at this event.”

And Duckett the angler has been consistently stout on Conroe from Day 1. He recorded 46 fish in his first three rounds, despite spending the majority of each competition day either looking for new water, or guarding what he considers his best area.

“I like that this fishery is tough,” Duckett said. “I’ve traditionally done well in events that are difficult to fish. You really have to figure out how to catch these fish, you can dial something in that’s just a little bit different than what the other guys are doing.”

Surviving the battle for the Championship 10

Randall Tharp (27-13), David Walker (27-10), Wesley Strader (27-5), Jeff Sprague (26-6) and Stephen Browning (25-13) filled out the Top 10 and will compete in the Championship. And while all five anglers endured their moments of stress, Browning had to work especially hard for his spot in the finals.

Entering the last 10 minutes of competition, Browning, Shin Fukae, Keith Poche, Andy Montgomery and Jonathan VanDam all sat within 14 ounces of each other in the race to make the 10 cut.

Poche hooked a fish with under 2 minutes to go – at the time trailing Fukae by just 3 ounces – but the fish was unscorable at 14 ounces. As it turned out, Browning was the angler who would ultimately experience the thrill of victory.

The Arkansas pro hooked a 3-4 with 30 seconds left in the round, pushing him from 12th place to 10th. And that meant that Fukae suffered the agony of defeat as he fell to 11th, 2-9 behind Browning.

“I’m still shaking,” Browning said at the Berkley Postgame Show. “You go through the most emotional highs and lows in this format, and that’s what makes it all so exciting.”

Championship Round reset

The Championship 10 will head back out onto Lake Conroe on Sunday with weights zeroed, turning the battle for the championship trophy into a one-day dogfight. Strader, Lee and Evers have been the most consistent this week, recording the highest combined weights in their three competition rounds.

How, where & when to watch

Official live scoring updates are available via SCORETRACKER from the start of competition at 7:30 a.m. CT. The MLF NOW! Championship Sunday live stream begins at 10 a.m. CT, with on-the-water coverage following the action until the end of competition at 3:30 p.m. The MLF Berkley Postgame Show begins at 5 p.m.

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