Search
Subscribe
Friday, December 19, 2025
Home Blog Page 954

10 Things You’ll Wish You Had in a Fishing Tournament By Grant Kelly W2Fish

wpalert
-
0
10 Things You’ll Wish You Had in a Fishing Tournament By Grant Kelly W2Fish

These essential items are easy to forget at home, so this checklist will help you stay prepared for your upcoming bass fishing tournaments.

Georgia angler Grant Kelly with a nice largemouth (Photo: Walker Smith)

I’m one of the most forgetful people you’ll ever meet—especially when it comes to fishing tournaments. I’ll get so caught up in the small details like rigging tackle, that I’ll completely overlook the most important pieces of equipment. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had that “oh, crap” feeling at the boat ramp or after catching my first keeper of the day, when I realize that I’ve forgotten something at the house.

Some of this checklist is funny, but by gosh, all of it is true. Make sure to run down this checklist before your next bass fishing tournament.

LIVETARGET’s award-winning Sunfish Hollow Body is a true show-stopper

wpalert
-
0
LIVETARGET’s award-winning Sunfish Hollow Body is a true show-stopper

 

Sunfish on Top, Anyone?

LIVETARGET’s award-winning Sunfish Hollow Body is a true show-stopper

[print_link]

Niagara-On-The-Lake, ON (April 30, 2018) – Innovations in hollow body topwater lures have expanded this once narrowly-applied presentation into a productive technique for both fresh- and saltwater species. Advanced soft plastic bodies engineered to exclude water and collapse readily when attacked, customized hooks that shed weeds while still piercing mouths, and intricate anatomical details that provide true-to-life realism, have all contributed to the explosion in the popularity, and effectiveness, of hollow body topwaters.

 

 

Sunfish Hollow Body (Natural/Blue Pumpkinseed)

 

Once the exclusive domain of frog imitations, hollow body topwater profiles have diversified dramatically in recent years, resulting in surface eruptions from marauding fish that have never feasted on amphibians. LIVETARGET, the leader in anatomically-accurate, ultra-realistic artificial lures, has crafted four unique hollow body topwaters that have garnered ICAST New Product Showcase trophies since 2010, including a far-from-traditional frog, a unique mouse, a saltwater mullet bait, and their show-stopping Sunfish Hollow Body.

“Without a shadow of a doubt, sunfish are a major forage base for predator bass,” noted LIVETARGET pro angler Dave Mercer, host of “Dave Mercer’s Facts of Fishing” on the Outdoor Channel and WFN. “You’ll find bluegill and sunfish around every pad bed, every dock, every piece of structure – and the LIVETARGET Sunfish Hollow Body perfectly imitates what they look like and how they behave.”

 

Indeed, the LIVETARGET Sunfish Hollow Body expertly replicates the profile of a small, stunned sunfish that is struggling helplessly on the surface. Bristling with true-to-life, three-dimensional anatomical features including fins, tail, gill opercles and eyes, the LIVETARGET Sunfish Hollow Body puts wary bass at ease, casting the perfect illusion of a living, vulnerable sunfish that is about to meet its demise.

With ten distinct color patterns to choose from, you’ll be able to easily select the LIVETARGET Sunfish Hollow Body that exactly mimics your local forage base, whether you battle bass in the pine-studded northland, the cypress swamps of the deep south, or any of the fin-infested waters in-between.

 

Sunfish Hollow Body (Natural/Green Bluegill)

 

“There are so many different ways and subtle nuances with this bait, and how you can work it, to effectively catch fish,” remarked Mercer. “Of course you’ve got your standard retrieve over pads. You’ll be able to work through the greenery without getting hung up because of the bait’s intricate, well-balanced design. Its custom Trokar hook rides high and dry, and is further protected from the slop by the lure’s 3D pectoral and pelvic fins. What a great concept for triggering bites AND for making the bait even more weedless!”

Mercer explains that the LIVETARGET Sunfish Hollow Body shines when it leaves the salad bar. “The real magic happens in the open water. If I want to pop it really slow, the LIVETARGET Sunfish Hollow Body executes a perfect, wide, side-to-side walk. And get this – when I pop the bait, it actually dives down subsurface just a bit, and then rolls back to the top. That up and down motion creates a long-lasting bubble trail on the surface, helping nearby fish to locate the source of all the commotion. This unique dive-and-rise cycle helps bass to see a LOT more of this bait than they do with more conventional topwaters, allowing the realism and the artistry of the LIVETARGET Sunfish Hollow Body to seal the deal.

 

“Truly, this is the first hollow body topwater lure that I have as much confidence in the open water as I do in the weeds.”

Precisely weighted for long casts, weedless presentations and effective hooksets, the LIVETARGET Sunfish Hollow Body is in a class of its own. When combined with other LIVETARGET hollow body topwaters, like the Frog and the Mouse, anglers truly have a library of actions, patterns and profiles to tempt bass, pike, and other freshwater apex predators into aggressively feeding up on top.

Find the Sunfish Hollow Body now at your favorite retailer, in three lengths, weights, and a full spectrum of ten ultra-realistic color patterns, with MSRP $14.49 – $15.49.

 

Sunfish Hollow Body (Natural/Olive Bluegill)

At LIVETARGET, our connection and commitment to the primal spirit of competition drives us to design and craft lures that give anglers a distinct advantage. Professional bass angler and TV personality Dave Mercer relies on LIVETARGET, and you can too, whenever you step into the boat, cast a line from shore or wade in your favorite stream. Whenever and wherever we fish, we compete.

Visit us today to shop and learn about LIVETARGET lures and The Nature of Competition.

 

 

HUMBARD AND NEECE TIE FOR WIN AT T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE VOLUNTEER DIVISION EVENT ON CHEROKEE LAKE

wpalert
-
0
HUMBARD AND NEECE TIE FOR WIN AT T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE VOLUNTEER DIVISION EVENT ON CHEROKEE LAKE

HUMBARD AND NEECE TIE FOR WIN AT T-H MARINE FLW BASS FISHING LEAGUE VOLUNTEER DIVISION EVENT ON CHEROKEE LAKE

Elizabethton’s Johnson Wins Co-angler Title

[print_link]

MORRISTOWN, Tenn. (April 30, 2018) – Boaters Corey Neece of Bristol, Tennessee, and Bill Humbard of New Market, Tennessee, each weighed a five-bass limit Saturday totaling 15 pounds, 12 ounces to tie for the win at the 2018 T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Volunteer Division event on Cherokee Lake. Each angler took home $2,665, while Humbard also earned an additional $1,000 in contingency prize bonuses.

Both winning anglers said that they fished the lower end of the lake, targeting and rotating through humps and points near the dam. Both estimated that they caught around 30 keepers and both weighed in limits consisting entirely of smallmouth.

“I was fishing with a swimbait and a finesse worm,” Humbard said. “They really wanted a slower presentation. My co-angler would grab the net for me and let his swimbait just lay on the bottom. When he picked it up, there was a few times that he had a fish on it.”

Humbard’s swimbait was a blue and chartreuse-colored Keitech Swing Impact 2.8, fished on a ¼ ounce swimbait head. His finesse worm was a watermelon red-colored Zoom Finesse worm, rigged on a 1/8-ounce Buckeye Lures Spot Remover jig. He estimated that he caught half of his fish on each bait.

“I think the key for me was the bottom – the smallmouth were really relating to the pea gravel,” Neece said. “I had four places that I just rotated through all day long and every time I would come back through more fish had pulled up.”

Neece said his bait of choice was a 5-inch Carolina-rigged green-pumpkin Zoom Lizard.

The top 10 boaters finished the tournament in:

1st:          Bill Humbard, New Market, Tenn., five bass, 15-12, $3,665

1st:          Corey Neece, Bristol, Tenn., five bass, 15-12, $2,665

3rd:         Kyle Smith, Elizabethton, Tenn., five bass, 15-2, $1,185

4th:         Tate Rice, Newport, Tenn., five bass, 14-10, $1,284

5th:         Tyler Duckworth, Gray, Tenn., five bass, 14-3, $711

6th:         Jeremy Gordon, Rutledge, Tenn., five bass, 14-0, $851

7th:         J.R. Henard, Rogersville, Tenn., five bass, 13-8, $592

8th:         Hermilo Salgado, Artemus, Ky., five bass, 13-7, $633

9th:         Lukas Phillips, Athens, Tenn., five bass, 12-10, $474

10th:       Matt Brown, Corbin, Ky., five bass, 12-9, $415

Complete results can be found at FLWFishing.com.

Rice caught a bass weighing 5 pounds, 3 ounces – the heaviest of the event in the Boater Division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $455.

Dustin Johnson of Elizabethton, Tennessee, won the Co-angler Division and $2,004 Saturday after catching a five-bass limit weighing 14 pounds, 14 ounces.

The top 10 co-anglers were:

1st:          Dustin Johnson, Elizabethton, Tenn., five bass, 14-14, $2,004

2nd:         Jason Bridwell, Kingsport, Tenn., five bass, 13-3, $1,088

3rd:         David Blakely, Kingsport, Tenn., five bass, 13-0, $642

4th:         Brandon Harris, Spring City, Tenn., four bass, 12-12, $415

5th:         Mark Dillard, Bluff City, Tenn., five bass, 12-6, $355

6th:         Greg Ray, Bandy, Va., five bass, 12-0, $311

6th:         Lester Botts, Blountville, Tenn., five bass, 12-0, $311

8th:         Dennis Lewis, Powell, Tenn., five bass, 11-15, $267

9th:         Bradley Watts, Afton, Tenn., five bass, 11-14, $237

10th:       Darren Miller, Bristol, Tenn., five bass, 11-13, $207

Johnson also caught the largest bass in the Co-angler Division – a 4-pound, 1-ounce fish that earned him the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $227.

The T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Volunteer Division event at Lake Cherokee was hosted by the Morristown Area Chamber of Commerce.

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. 18-20 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Norman in Huntersville, North Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude outboard.

The 2018 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 2018 BFL All-American will be held May 31-June 2 at Cross Lake in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. 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, YouTube and Snapchat.

MURRAY STATE UNIVERSITY WINS YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING EVENT AT KENTUCKY AND BARKLEY LAKES PRESENTED BY BERKLEY

wpalert
-
0
MURRAY STATE UNIVERSITY WINS YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING EVENT AT KENTUCKY AND BARKLEY LAKES PRESENTED BY BERKLEY

MURRAY STATE UNIVERSITY WINS YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING EVENT AT KENTUCKY AND BARKLEY LAKES PRESENTED BY BERKLEY

[print_link]

GILBERTSVILLE, Ky. (April 30, 2018) – The Murray State University team of Clayton Trueblood of Petersburg, Illinois, and Nick Montilino of Edina, Minnesota, won the YETI FLW College Fishing event at Kentucky and Barkley Lakes presented by Berkley on Saturday with a five-bass limit weighing 21 pounds, 7 ounces. The victory earned the Racers bass club $2,000 and a spot in the 2019 FLW College Fishing National Championship.

“We had planned to spend the day fishing inside the Kentucky Dam Marina, but we made a last minute call to make a run and fish the north end of Lake Barkley,” said Trueblood, a sophomore majoring in agricultural business.

“We decided to go to Barkley for two reasons – one, there was another local tournament going on with around 250 boats, so there was quite a bit of pressure on Kentucky Lake,” said Montilino, a junior majoring in business administration. “The second reason is because the water was a little dirtier on Barkley. The water is very clear on Kentucky Lake right now and it is hard to get any bites flipping.”

The Murray State duo said that they targeted bushes in creek channels running into the main bays. They caught only six keepers throughout the day on Texas-rigged black and blue-colored Strike King Rage Bugs, pegged with 3/8-ounce weights.

“It happened fast – within the first hour and a half on the water,” said Trueblood. “We thought we had around 17 pounds and we assumed that we needed one more big bite to earn the win, but we were shocked when the scale read 21 pounds.”

“The key for us was fishing clean,” Montilino said. “We didn’t miss any fish and landed every one of our bites – that was huge with only six bites all day long.”

The top 10 teams on Kentucky Lake that advanced to the 2019 College Fishing National Championship are:

1st:          Murray State University – Clayton Trueblood, Petersburg, Ill., and Nick Montilino, Edina, Minn., five bass, 21-7, $2,000

2nd:         Murray State University – Peyton Porter, Gilbertsville, Ky., and Micah Chessor, Paducah, Ky., five bass, 18-7, $1,400

3rd:         Campbellsville University – Mason Sapp, Campbellsville, Ky., and Tray Hardwick, Monticello, Ky., five bass, 16-3, $500

4th:         Murray State University – Jordan Hartman, Murray, Ky., and Will Gentry, Utica, Ky., four bass, 12-12, $750

5th:         Southern Illinois University – Jake Wagner and Kyle Wagner, both of Waterloo, Ill., four bass, 12-12, $500

6th:         Murray State University – Adam Puckett and Blake Albertson, both of Bloomington, Ind., three bass, 12-9, $200

7th:         Purdue University – Zach Zanders and Chanler Fleetwood, Vallonia, Ind., three bass, 12-2

8th:         Southeast Missouri State University – Luke Brozovich, Minooka, Ill., and Andrey Atkeson, Fredericktown, Mo., four bass, 12-0

9th:         University of Missouri – Tyler Beckerman and Ethan Wallace, both of Columbia, Mo., four bass, 11-6

10th:       Indiana State University – Cody Will, Teutopolis, Ill., and Jordan Nauert, Fillmore, Ind., three bass, 11-6

Complete results for the entire field can be found at FLWFishing.com.

The YETI FLW College Fishing event at Kentucky and Barkley Lakes presented by Berkley was hosted by the Kentucky Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau, and was the first of three regular-season qualifying tournaments for Central Conference anglers in 2018. The next YETI FLW College Fishing event takes place May 5, when Southeastern Conference anglers compete at the YETI FLW College Fishing event at Lake Chickamauga presented by Bass Pro Shops in Dayton, Tennessee.

YETI FLW College Fishing teams compete in three regular-season qualifying tournaments in one of five conferences – Central, Northern, Southern, Southeastern and Western. The top ten 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 2019 FLW College Fishing National Championship. Additional teams will qualify for the National Championship if the field size in regular-season events exceeds 100 boats.

The 2018 FLW College Fishing National Championship will take place May 30-June 1 on the Red River in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission & Red River Waterway Commission.

YETI FLW College Fishing is free to enter. 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.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow YETI FLW College Fishing on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.

Justin & Ralph Hicks Win Missy Miller MS Team Bass Tournament on SMl with 19.47 lbs

wpalert
-
0
Justin & Ralph Hicks Win Missy Miller MS Team Bass Tournament on SMl with 19.47 lbs

on a beautiful Spring day in central VA 82 anglers come together for a great cause The Missy Miller MS event held on Smith Mountian Lake. Each & every year this event has been growing in size & we would like to thank you the angler for making that happen. We would like to congratulate the father-son team of Justin & Ralph Hicks on their five fish weighing 19.47lbs. Thank again to all of the anglers all those that prepared the food & those that donated their time to that awesome event. See you all in 2019.

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL RESULTS

Bass Cast Radio A Conversation with Bassmaster Elite Angler James Elam & More – Sponsored by Buck Tail Johnny’s & Combat Wipes

wpalert
-
0
Bass Cast Radio A Conversation with Bassmaster Elite Angler James Elam & More – Sponsored by Buck Tail Johnny’s & Combat Wipes

“Oklahoma pro James Elam gives us the inside scoop on what played out in the 2018 Bassmaster Classic”

[spreaker type=player resource=”episode_id=14666338″ width=”100%” height=”350px” theme=”dark” playlist=”show” playlist-continuous=”true” autoplay=”false” live-autoplay=”false” chapters-image=”true” hide-logo=”false” hide-likes=”false” hide-comments=”false” hide-sharing=”false” ]

Click Photo to check out their Website
Click Photo To order today!

Rick Ohlson & Randy Parker Win PBC ACADEMY SPORTS & OUTDOORS Saturday April 28th, 2018 ~ Jordan Lake with 26.43lbs

wpalert
-
0
Rick Ohlson & Randy Parker Win PBC ACADEMY SPORTS & OUTDOORS Saturday April 28th, 2018 ~ Jordan Lake with 26.43lbs

QUALIFIER #5 RESULTS
Saturday April 28th, 2018 ~ Jordan Lake ~ Farrington Point Wildlife Ramp

[print_link]

The 2018 PBC Academy Sports & Outdoors $10,000 Spring Team Bass Trail Qualifier #5 at Jordan Lake got off with a great start with light winds and morning temps at 52 degrees. It then warmed up to around 70 in the pm. Water temps averaged about 63 degrees. Winds were light at the 6:30 blastoff and then picked up to 8 to 12 for the afternoon! 90 teams duked it out and between a full moon, cool night and the lake rising 4 feet almost overnight it was tough!

Randy Parker & Rick Ohlson topped the field weighing in 5 bass at 26.34 lbs. plus they won the 1st Place TWT for a total of $3,120 in winnings. The team found the fish in shallow wate r around trees & bushes while flipping plastic worms & jigs!!! They had 1 r eally good fish (6.13) that helped weight the sack!!

  Parker on left and Ohlson on right.

Scott Mooneyham & Buster Seabolt took 2nd place with 5 fish weighing 22.54 lbs. to take home $864 in winnings. The 3rd Place  Team of Bud Whitt & Spencer Moody weighed in 5 at 20.62 lbs., took 2nd Place TWT and won the 1st Place
Big Fish (7.75 lbs.) for a whopping total of $2,635!! The 2nd Place Big Fish (6.77 lbs.) was won by Tyler Faggart & Paul Owens netting them $534!!    The prize money got spread around pretty good today!Only 225 fish were weighed in (which is really low for Jordan this time of year) for a total of 691 pounds for an ave rage of 3.07 lbs. each. Most of the fish were caught on  plastic worms, jigs, chatterbaits and spinnerbaits in anywhere from 1 to 5 feet of water. We still need for the water to warm up a little to get that hot bite we all want! Going to Falls in 2 weeks and  hopefully it will warm up a bit! Falls is always a great lake just about any time of year!!

I want to thank all the anglers that participated and all our sponsors that support this trail. Our next tournament is Saturday May 5th, the PBC 115 Team Bass Shootout Invitational at Jordan Lake our of Farrington Point Ramp which is just for boats with 115 horsepowered motors or less. All the info can be found at this link:
http://piedmontbassclassics.com/2018Invite115MainPage.html
Following that will be the PBC Academy Sports & Outdoors $10,000 Spring Team Bass Trail Qualifier #6, Saturday May 12th at Falls Lake out of Ledge Rock Ramp.
All the information on our tournaments can be found http://piedmontbassclassics.com/

 

Now here are the full results: 

1st Place:  Rick Ohlson & Randy Parker of Garner & Clayton…5 bass…26.34 lbs…$1,415
2nd Place:  Scott Mooneyham & Buster Seabolt of Fayetteville & Dunn…5 bass…22.54 lbs…$864
3rd Place:  Bud Whitt & Spencer Moody of Staley & Siler City…5 bass…20.62 lbs…$684
4th Place:  Clay Ausley & Allen Parker of Fuquay Varina & Sanford…5 bass…20.08 lbs…$612
5th Place:  Josh Whitford & Jesse Wise of Linden & Ervin…5 bass…19.91 lbs…$540
6th Place:  Ben Cannon & Chad Craven of Apex & Willow Springs…5 bass…19.26 lbs…$468
7th Place:  Chase & Gary Johnson of Four Oaks…5 bass…19.15 lbs…$396
8th Place:  Tyler Faggart & Paul Owens of Raleigh…5 bass…17.00 lbs…$324
9th Place:  Tom & James Saywell of Fuquay Varina & Chardon, OH…5 bass…16.25 lbs…$288
10th Place:  Todd Sumner & Rich Sczcerbala of Southern Pines & Apex…5 bass…15.84 lbs…$252
11th Place:  Corey Linton & Marc Peck of Pikeville…4 bass..15.53 lbs…$220
12th Place:  Stump Bledsoe & Glenn Elliott of Hope Mills & Fayetteville…5 bass…15.50 lbs…$215
13th Place:  Mark Herndon & Jay Garrard of Bahama & Durham…5 bass…15.25 lbs…$210
14th Place:  Eric & Jim Massey of Raleigh …5 bass…14.66 lbs…$150
15th Place:  Chris Inscoe & Danny Lyons of Clayton…5 bass…14.43 lbs…$145
16th Place:  Jim & Trey Nichols of Chapel Hill & Snow Camp…5 bass…14.33 lbs…$137
17th Place:  Jaime Fajardo & Josh Hooks of Fuquay Varina & Apex…5 bass…14.11 lbs…$120
18th Place: Chris & H.T. Eakins of Selma & Angier…4 bass…13.94 lbs…$1001st Place Big Fish..

3rd Place Team above…7.75 lbs…$1,246
2nd Place Big Fish..8th Place Team above…6.77 lbs…$5341st Place TWT..1st Place Team above…

26.34 lbs…$1,645
2nd Place TWT..3rd Place Team above: 20.62 lbs…$705

************************************************************

Next PBC Tournament  ~ May 5th , 2018
2018 115 INVITATIONAL
TEAM BASS SHOOTOUT !!!
JORDAN LAKE..FARRINGTON POINT WILDLIFE RAMP
Blast Off Approx. 6:00 am...1st Flight Weighin 3:00 pm
Pay Entry at ramp from 5:00 am.      Cash Only At The Ramp.
Click Here For All The Information On This Trail.

*************************************************************

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/

Clayton Mullins & Dave Allen Win Lake Anna Elite Series April 29,2018 With 23.55 lbs

wpalert
-
0
Clayton Mullins & Dave Allen Win Lake Anna Elite Series April 29,2018 With 23.55 lbs
April 29, 2018 – Week 2
 

1st Place & Big Fish
Clayton Mullins & Dave Allen
5 Fish – 23.55 lbs
BF – 7.40 lbs

 
 

2nd Place
George Decatur & Preston Cox
5 Fish – 22.14 lbs

 
 

3rd Place
Rob Grike & Eric Nelson
5 Fish – 16.27 lbs

 
 

4th Place
Jeff & Tommy Bailey
5 Fish – 15.30 lbs

 
 

5th Place
Dylan & Mike Wood
5 Fish – 14.96 lbs

 
 

6th Place
Shawn Britton & Mike Hurdle
5 Fish – 15.44 lbs

 
 

Mark Kelly
5.63 lbs

 
 

Roy Berry

 
Click Here for Official StandingsClick Here to See More Fishing Pics
Official Results
Place Team Name # Fish Weight (lbs) Points
1
/ BF		 Clayton Mullins / Dave Allen 5 23.55
BF – 7.40		 51
2 Preston Cox / George Decatur 5 22.14 49
3 Rob Grike / Eric Nelson 5 16.27 48
4 Tommy Bailey / Jeff Bailey 5 15.30 47
5 Mike Wood / Dylan Wood 5 14.96 46
6 Mike Hurdle / Shawn Britton 4 14.44 45
7 Tim Garner / Erfic Johnson (s) 5 13.89 44
8 Jonathan Mullins / Josh Mullins 5 13.28 43
9 Dean Perrin / Trey Perrin 5 13.27 42
10 Phil Banks / Scott Mullins 5 11.01 41
11 Mark Finley / Bob Powell 5 10.98 40
12 Taylor McCann / Wilson Bradley 5 10.82 39
13 Scott Connors / Brian Connors 5 10.38 38
14 Nathan Keller / Jeff Jones 5 9.92 37
15 John Doyle / Eugene Carter 5 9.55 36
16 Ron Ellis 4 9.43 35
17 PJ Cox / Phil Wilcox 5 8.59 34
18 Mark Kelly 2 7.78 33
19 Gene Hord / Scott Aikens 5 7.17 32
20 Larry Limits / Check Dent 5 5.89 31
21 Richard Marlow / Roy Berry 2 3.25 30
22 Matt Connors / Chris Moore 2 3.12 29
23 Dave Everly / Charles Shuck – – 19
23 Tom Gandy – – 19
23 Mark Mitchell / Steve Rose – – 19
Sturgeon Creek Marina would Like to thank JF Fick
and Arizona Tea for their continued support of the
Lake Anna Elite, Youth, Summer and Winter Series

Whopper Plopper 101: All There Is To Know About The Whopper Plopper – MTB

wpalert
-
0
Whopper Plopper 101: All There Is To Know About The Whopper Plopper – MTB

Whopper Plopper 101: All There Is To Know About The Whopper Plopper

[print_link]

Originally designed as a musky bait, the Whopper Plopper by River2Sea has quickly become one of the hottest topwater baits in the bass world – and they’re flying off tackle store shelves from coast to coast. An inline stick bait with a segmented propeller on the back, the Whopper Plopper is part buzzbait, part prop bait, and 100 percent deadly on bass of all three species.

Whopper Plopper 101

whopper plopper

Already a staple in both recreational and tournament angler’s arsenals , we thought it would be a good idea to put together a comprehensive guide on all things Whopper Plopper, including what it is, how and where to fish it, which sizes to throw when, and what to do once you catch one on it.

What Is A Whopper Plopper?

The Whopper Plopper is basically a hard plastic spook-style body, with a rotating propeller section on the rear. It floats horizontally at rest, and the tail spins in the water on the retrieve, creating the unique “plop, plop, plop” sound and bubble trail. It comes in four sizes, from a diminutive 90mm (3/8oz) version all the way up to the musky and giant bass designed 190mm (2 ¾ oz) option.

How To Fish A Whopper Plopper

The key to the Whopper Plopper’s success is its versatility, and the fact that it floats on the pause. As long as the tail is spinning and it’s making noise, it’s working. The simplest and most basic way to fish it is just like a buzzbait with a slow steady retrieve. Make a long cast, and start slow-reeling it back to the boat. The Plopper also works when twitched like a popper or worked with a longer “jerk, jerk, pause” action like with a traditional prop bait. Experiment with different retrieves until you find one that you’re confident with – and stick with it. The biggest key is making sure you’re able to hear the droning “plop” as you retrieve it.

How To Rig A Whopper Plopper

whopperplopper

Because it comes in 4 different sizes, there’s no one-size-fits-all rigging for the Whopper Plopper. The 90mm size works really well on a traditional, 6 ½ or 7 foot medium-heavy casting rod, 10-14 pound monofilament, or 20-30 pound braid. The 110mm Plopper performs best on a 7 or 7 ½ foot medium-heavy to heavy rod, and 14-17 pound monofilament (or 30 pound braid). For the 130, a 7 ½ foot heavy rod or medium swimbait setup will work fine, spooled with 50 pound braid or 20 pound mono. If you’re brave enough to throw the 190mm size, come rigged with a heavy swimbait setup, or umbrella rig rod rigged with 50 or 65 pound braid.

Where to Throw A Whopper Plopper?

whopper plopper

One of the coolest things about the Whopper Plopper is it catches them pretty much anywhere bass swim. Major tournaments have been won on the Whopper Plopper from the tule choked tidal California Delta to the highland reservoirs of the Ozarks. If bass are feeding up, they will eat a Plopper. That being said, hone in on typical topwater locations like rip-rap, points, docks, in front of laydowns, over submerged vegetation, and along current seams.

Whopper Plopper Tips & Tricks

whopper plopper

Because of its popularity, the Whopper Plopper has already developed a host of hacks and tricks that can make it more effective or even help you hook and land more bass. Here are several.

  • Use rubber bands on the trebles. Because it’s got several large trebles, the Whopper Plopper isn’t the most grass-friendly topwater. Try using light rubber bands (like the ones used for orthodontia) to secure the hooks along the body of the bait. This dramatically reduces the “snagginess” of the Plopper, and they break when a fish bites.
  • Use your rod tip to “steer” it and keep it spinning. On long casts, the Plopper sometimes likes to dig in and not spin correctly right off the bat. Point your rod tip at the bait, and keep it high through the beginning of the retrieve. This will keep the nose up, and get you the most sound.
  • Put a highlight on the tail. In murky water, get some nail polish, or airplane model enamel and paint the tip of the prop blade a bright or contrasting color. Bass tend to follow Whopper Ploppers at times, and the tiny spot of color gives them a good aiming point.
  • Stop around cover. It may seem obvious, but the most successful Whopper Plopper anglers will typically pause the bait during the retrieve, whenever the bait goes by something likely to hold bass. This may be the tip of a dock, a clump of grass, or a protrusion in the tules.
  • Don’t “play them out.” When fighting fish on the Whopper Plopper, particularly in the bigger sizes like the 130mm and 190mm, do not play the fish out. The Plopper is a big bait with a lot of inertia, so bass can throw the hooks if they get a really good head shake on the jump. Put the screws to them once they bite, and grind as hard as you can to get them in the boat.

Are You Missing Out?

mystery-tackle-boxWith a Mystery Tackle Box Subscription, you’ll get a box jam packed full of baits, including limited edition baits not available anywhere else in America! You’ll also receive access to tips from our experts, how to videos, and more! With baits up to 40% off retail, this is one service every angler needs to try!

WILLIAMS LEADS WIRE-TO-WIRE, WINS FLW TOUR AT LEWIS SMITH LAKE PRESENTED BY T-H MARINE

wpalert
-
0
WILLIAMS LEADS WIRE-TO-WIRE, WINS FLW TOUR AT LEWIS SMITH LAKE PRESENTED BY T-H MARINE

WILLIAMS LEADS WIRE-TO-WIRE, WINS FLW TOUR AT LEWIS SMITH LAKE PRESENTED BY T-H MARINE

North Carolina Angler fends off 181 FLW Tour pros with more than 64 pounds, earns $100k

[print_link]

Link to HD video of Williams’ winning moment

JASPER, Ala. (April 29, 2018) – Pro David Williams of Maiden, North Carolina, brought a 13-pound, 13-ounce, limit of bass to the weigh-in stage Sunday to win the FLW Tour at Lewis Smith Lake presented by T-H Marine with a four-day cumulative total of 20 bass weighing 64 pounds, 9 ounces. For his dominant showing on the water this week, Williams earned $102,700 and moved up to the No. 4 position in the Pennzoil Marine Angler of the Year race.

“It’s an incredibly tough field of anglers and each one dreams of winning one of these tournaments. To win one in my first year on Tour is pretty special,” said Williams, who earned his first career Tour-level win and is now extremely likely to qualify for the Forrest Wood Cup. “It’s been a long time coming and its extra special when you really have to work for it.”

During the tournament Williams targeted the morning shad spawn, skipping a jig around and under docks up the White Oak, Crooked and Rock creek arms. He was able to rack up the majority of his weight fairly quickly each morning, catching both largemouth and spotted bass.

“I had no idea I’d lead from start to finish – I didn’t really have that great of a practice,” said Williams. “I had one good area and didn’t really realize how many fish were in there. But, I was able to milk it for four days. It was pretty incredible.”

Williams said his main baits this week were a white Queen Tackle Tungsten Swim Jig and a TrueSouth Custom Lures Fathead Jig with a Bizz Baits Cutter Craw and Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed Craw as trailers. He also worked a TrueSouth Shimmy Jig with a Zoom Z Craw and a TrueSouth V-Twin buzzbait near flooded cover, in between docks, to lure a few key bites as well.

“Lewis Smith Lake fishes a lot like our lakes back home in North Carolina and that’s the reason I think that I did well,” said Williams.

The final 10 Pros on Lewis Smith Lake finished:

1st:          David Williams, Maiden, N.C., 20 bass, 64-9, $102,700

2nd:         John Cox, DeBary, Fla., 20 bass, 59-12, $30,000

3rd:          Cody Meyer, Auburn, Calif., 20 bass, 59-2, $25,000

4th:          Pennzoil Marine pro Matt Arey, Shelby, N.C., 20 bass, 57-6, $20,100

5th:          Jordan Osborne, Longview, Texas, 20 bass, 54-10, $19,000

6th:          Jason Reyes, Huffman, Texas, 20 bass, 54-8, $18,000

7th:          Clent Davis, Montevallo, Ala., 20 bass, 52-2, $17,000

8th:          Matt Becker, Finleyville, Pa., 20 bass, 51-12, $16,000

9th:          Todd Auten, Lake Wylie, S.C., 20 bass, 50-9, $15,000

10th:        Jimmy Reese, Witter Springs, Calif., 20 bass, 50-5, $14,000

For a full list of results visit FLWFishing.com.

Overall there were 50 bass weighing 128 pounds, 1 ounce, caught by the final 10 pros Sunday. All 10 pros weighed a five-bass limit.

Joel Willert of Prior Lake, Minnesota, won the Co-angler Division and $20,100 Friday with a two-day total of 10 bass weighing 24 pounds, 4 ounces. After winning the Co-angler title at Lake Cumberland earlier this month, Willert became the fifth co-angler in FLW Tour history to win back-to-back events.

Television coverage of the FLW Tour at Lewis Smith Lake presented by T-H Marine will premiere in high-definition (HD) on NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) June 6 from Noon-1 p.m. EST. The Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show airs on NBCSN, the Pursuit Channel and the World Fishing Network and is broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide.

The total purse for the FLW Tour at Lewis Smith Lake presented by T-H Marine was more than $930,000. The event was hosted by the Chamber of Commerce of Walker County. The next tournament for FLW Tour anglers will be the FLW Tour at Kentucky Lake presented by Costa, May 17-20, in Gilbertsville, Kentucky, hosted by the Kentucky Lake Convention & Visitors Bureau.

In FLW Tour competition, pros and co-anglers are randomly paired each day, with pros supplying the boat, controlling boat movement and competing against other pros. Co-anglers fish from the back deck against other co-anglers. The full field of anglers competed in the two-day opening round. Co-angler competition concluded following Friday’s weigh-in, while the top 30 pros based on their two-day accumulated weight advanced to Saturday. Only the top 10 pros continued competition Sunday, with the winner determined by the heaviest accumulated weight from the four days of competition.

Throughout the season, anglers are also vying for valuable points in hopes of qualifying for the 2018 Forrest Wood Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing. The 2018 Forrest Wood Cup will be on Lake Ouachita in Hot Springs, Arkansas, Aug. 10-12 and is hosted by the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism and Visit Hot Springs.

For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow the sport’s top anglers on the FLW Tour on FLW’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat.

1...953954955...1,534Page 954 of 1,534

Follow Us

The latest

Winter Is Prime for Trophy Bass

Fresh Baitz 0
Late fall and early winter are often overlooked, yet...

Bassmaster Elite Angler and St. Croix Rod Pro, Bob Downey, Joins SEVIIN Reels Team

Bass News 0
PARK FALLS, WIS. – “Ol’ Bob Downey” will be competing...

Tyler & Ricky Trent win the Kerr Lake Fall Final with 18.83 lbs

Buggs Island/Kerr Lake Tournament Results 0
We are currently working on a 2026 BassKings schedule...

© 2023 The Bass Cast. All Rights Reserved.