Author: jcarrigan

Categories
The National Angler

MOLIX SUPERNATO FROG IS THE HOTTEST FROG FOR 2019 – featuring Justin Lucas

The Molix Supernato Frog is going to be the hottest frog for 2019 and it packs some amazing features. This frog is a combination of your everyday frog with a new set of legs that have a unique design that creates a commotion that bass has yet to see on the water. The action of these legs is excellent either fast or on a slow retrieve.

The big problem with frogs that have this style of legs, instead of skirt legs is simple. Once the legs get destroyed or ripped off the frog is done. Molix has really stepped up the advancements of this frog with its replaceable legs and the way they have designed the method for holding the legs in place. Plus, you can technically put any type of soft plastic as legs or trailer for this frog. For example, if you wanted a more subtle approach you could add on a short twin tail grub.

Molix Supernato Frog – Product Description

A new hybrid bait developed by Molix, with the contribution of Carl Jocumsen, Australian-USA Pro Angler, expert and talented frog angler. It was conceived by exploiting the hydrodynamics and the buoyancy of the realistic body of a classic frog bait. The double tail made of a high density mixture creates high frequency vibrations. The two parts of the bait are joined by a solid mechanism fixed in the back part of the body of the frog. The fastening system allows a quick and precise assembly and the possibility to use customized tails of any type and shape. The inward-facing appendages can move during the retrieval phases like a true propeller. It lends itself to slow and fast retrieval over the vegetation or also to powerful jerks-strokes. The Supernato Frog is armed with a double and strong OMTD Custom hook.

Check out the Molix Supernato Frog yourself now and just how much Justin Lucas loves this hot new frog.

Make sure and go to Tackle Warehouse to get your hands on the Molix Supernato Frog!
https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Molix_Supernato_Frog/descpage-MLXSF.html#customer_reviews

Categories
Major League Fishing - Bass Pro Tour/Cup Events

MLF BASS PRO TOUR SETS STAGE EIGHT DESTINATION FOR WISCONSIN’S LAKE WINNEBAGO!

TULSA, Okla. (May 14, 2019) – Major League Fishing® (MLF) announced today that the last stop of the 2019 Bass Pro Tour eight-stage season will be hosted by Neenah, Wisconsin, on Lake Winnebago.

The Evinrude Stage Eight Presented by Tracker Off Road competition will take place June 25 – 30 on Wisconsin’s largest lake, which spans approximately 138,000 acres and covers an area of about 30 miles by 10 miles.
Neenah has nearly 7,500 feet of shoreline parks, making it an ideal setting for the visiting MLF anglers, fans and sponsors.
“The Neenah community is incredibly excited about the opportunity to share our unique fishing destination with the world,” said Nikki Hessel, executive director of Future Neenah. “We have no doubt that our guests from Major League Fishing and beyond will fall in love with the stunning waterfront, impressive recreational activities, and exceptional dining and culture.”
Sharing in the enthusiasm for the venue is MLF’s Michael Mulone, the league’s senior director, events & partnerships, who knows well what the area and its hosts have to offer.
“Winnebago is overdue to host a bass-fishing competition of this magnitude, and what better way to put it in the spotlight than by bringing the best bass anglers in the world here to participate,” Mulone said. “Neenah is a can-do community which is welcoming MLF with open arms. We are excited to see how the weights of this fishery’s smallmouth and largemouth bass light up SCORETRACKER® for all the world to follow throughout each competition day.”

Neenah was named by early-day Wisconsin Governor James Duane Doty; it means “running water” in the language of the Ho-Chunk Native American tribe of the region.

The competition will occur primarily on Lake Winnebago, but will extend to other waters nearby, including Lake Butte des Morts and Green Lake.
The area has a rich history of quality fishing for a variety of freshwater species, especially walleye and yellow perch. League officials are confident that the MLF competition will also show just how good the bass fishing is, too.
“I’m confident our Bass Pro Tour anglers will showcase the size and numbers of the bass in the Neenah region, because this late June competition falls right on top of the very best timing for catching largemouth and smallmouth here. It’s going to be an exciting event for sure,” Mulone added.
Five Bass Pro Tour Stages have been held to date, with the Bass Pro Tour Stage Six Presented by TrueTimber up next at Missouri’s Table Rock Lake, May 17 – 22, near Branson.
Stage Eight is the finale of the 2019 MLF Bass Pro Tour regular season, and will be the field of 80 anglers’ final opportunity to earn points to qualify for the REDCREST. Only the Top 30 points earners from the regular season will advance to this prestigious league championship, which is also destined for Wisconsin (REDCREST will be held Aug. 19-25 in La Crosse).
“Chances are high that few, if any, MLF anglers will have had previous experience on Winnebago, but I’m predicting they’ll all be hopeful for a return after this visit,” said Don Rucks, MLF executive vice president and general manager. “And the productive fishery will likely cause lots of shifting in the final chase for one of REDCREST’s 30 positions, adding even more fuel to this expected high-octane shootout.”
All MLF Stages and the REDCREST use the league’s entertaining and conservation-friendly catch, weigh and immediate-release format.
The Lake Winnebago competition, as with each of the Stages, will result in its own two-hour television episode that will air on Discovery Channel in the fourth quarter of 2019. It will repeat on Sportsman Channel in first and second quarters of 2020.
MLF also has programming on Outdoor Channel, World Fishing Network, CBS, CBS Sports Network and Discovery Channel, and all episodes are available on-demand on MyOutdoorTV (MOTV).
Categories
King Kat

STEWART AND DUPLANTIS WIN CABELA’S KING KAT TOURNAMENT AT GALLIPOLIS, OH – The Pennsylvania team took top honors with only four fish!

Louisville, KY – May 12, 2019 – Catfish anglers from six states traveled to Gallipolis, OH on the Ohio & Kanawha Rivers for a King Kat Tournament Trail event presented by Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s. Forty-four teams gathered at Gallipolis to test their catfishing skills against other anglers and Mother Nature.

As usual, the catfish anglers approached the event on May 11th with optimism. Competitors were vying for $10,800 in cash and prizes, and an opportunity to qualify for the $120,000 Classic Championship to be held November 1 and 2, 2019, on the Tennessee River (Wheeler Lake) at Decatur, Alabama.

Mother Nature brought a chill to the weekend fishing. The skies were cloudy all day long keeping the temps from rising. Temperatures in the morning were in the mid-forties and only warmed to the low 60’s. A cold wind made if feel older than it actually was. The water level was down with some strong current present.

Results for the Top Catfish Teams

Top honors at Gallipolis, OH on the Ohio and Kanawha Rivers went to the team of William Stewart from Butler, PA and Edward Duplantis from Monaca, PA. The Pennsylvania team brought 106.72 pounds to the scales to claim the top spot and earn a check for $4,200.00.

Stewart and Duplantis fished the Kanawha in the morning where they found their biggest fish. With only that one big fish in the boat, they decided to move out to the Ohio River.

They were able to add three more fish from the Ohio. It was enough for them to take the win with only 4 fish, one fish less than the limit. Shad was their go-to bait.

The team fished on the rope all day. They were targeting structure at first, but made a move to fish some barges in 15 to 20 feet of water to finish out the day.

J.L. Campbell from Frankfort, OH and John Neiberling from Chillicothe, OH earned the runner-up spot with 90.38 pounds and a check for $ 2,100.00.

Campbell and Neiberling fished downriver from Gallipolis on the Ohio River. They were anchor fishing around the Robert C Byrd Lock and Dam.

The team reported targeting small structures in 20 feet of water. They used a combination of shad and skipjack to land 9 fish during the tournament.                                                                               

The third-place spot went to Rodney Harrison and Sam Thompson. The Eleanor, WV team weighed in 90.14 pounds to earn a check for $1,500.00.

Their success came by finding whatever structure they could and fishing it with shad and skipjack. They were also fishing on the rope all day long. They fished the Kanawha River about midways up to land about 20 fish for the day.

Wayne and Travis Bodine from Bardstown, KY took fourth place with 86.46 pounds. The team earned a check for $ 850.00.

Team Bodine fished around the Belleville Dam where they caught 9 fish for the day. They were anchor fishing on structure in 10 feet of water.

Upon experiencing a slow bite, the team reported downsizing their bait to get some bites. They used shad and skipjack for bait.

Rounding out the top five was Graham Maxwell from Rochester, PA and J Castelluccio from Imperial, PA. They teamed up to put 78.06 pounds in the boat and earn a check for $550.00.

Maxwell and Castelluccio found their fish up the Kanawha River. They caught 12 fish on the day. They were finding structure in 20 feet of water and anchoring up to fish it.

The Big Kat of the day went to Richard and Sherry Rhodes with a 48.20-pound flathead. The big flattie earned them a check for $900.      

The Remaining Top Catfish Teams

6th Place – Chad & Colton Blanton – 76.20

7th Place – Freddie & Amber Bryant – 73.76

Epilogue

Tournament director, Jeremy Coe thanked Amanda Crouse and the staff at the Gallia County Tourism for having the tournament in town and helping to make this event a huge success every year. He thanked the Super 8 for their hospitality toward the anglers.

Coe also gave a big thank you to Wes Banco for sponsoring the kids rodeo where over 70 kids came out and fished at Bob Evans Farm Pond.

“It was another great year at Gallipolis,” said Coe. “We always see some of the biggest flatheads on the trail. This year there were two flatheads that broke the 45-pound mark. That is very impressive and one of the reasons we always look forward to returning.”

National Sponsors

Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s King Kat Tournament Trail sponsors include: Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s, Excel Boats, Mercury Marine, Mustad Hooks, Humminbird, Minn Kota, B’n’M Poles, Gamma Line, Driftmaster Rod Holders, Ego Nets, Xtreme Bait Systems, Clear Boards, EFX Graphics, Catfish Now, Fin n’ Frames, and Crown Trophy

For more information on the championship and other King Kat activities visit their website at www.kingkatusa.com. Anglers can also follow the trail on the King Kat Facebook Page.

Categories
The National Angler

ZOOM BAIT CO. CHANGES THE NED RIG GAME IN 2019 WITH A ZOOM BEATDOWN

Zoom Bait Company announces the release of the new “Beatdown” soft plastic, a stubby finesse bait that will take Ned Rigging to new levels of effectiveness.

“This is a technique where the key is to do less and don’t overthink it,” said professional angler Gerald Swindle, a two-time Bassmaster Angler of the Year. “If you want to experience fast action and lots of bites, you need to let it do its thing on light line, usually 6- or 8-pound test.”

Swindle worked closely with Zoom’s designers to make sure the Beatdown combined some of the best of the competition’s design features with additional characteristics that make it user-friendly and more effective.

“It’s the perfect size,” he said. “It’s durable, but it’s also still very soft, which means that it’s not as aggravating to put onto the jighead as some of the others. It’s easier to rig, and they’ve got the Zoom colors, which are spot on.” He typically fishes it on a 1/8th or 1/16th ounce aspirin-head jig, but said the Beatdown will pair nicely with a wide variety of heads.

As waters become increasingly pressured by advanced anglers, fish naturally get wary, even on venues that were formerly power-fishing havens. As evidenced by its contribution to multiple tour level wins in recent years, Ned Rigging is not just for beginners. It catches fish from coast to coast, anywhere that bass swim, in a wide range of depths. That doesn’t mean it can’t be maximized, though, and this new offering from Zoom – with the company’s trademark consistency and quality — may be the final piece of the puzzle.

Zoom Beatdown Details

The Beatdown is 3.25” long and will initially come in eight proven colors to meet a wide variety of water colors and forage bases.

  • Green Pumpkin (139-025)
  • Watermelon Red (139-054)
  • Green Pumpkin Green (139-184)
  • Green Pumpkin Purple Gold (139-249)
  • Houdini (139-297)
  • California 420 (139-308)
  • Electric Shad (139-350)

Green Pumpkin (139-025)

California 420 (139-308)

The Zoom Beatdown is available at leading tackle stores and online retailers.

For more information about Zoom Bait Company, go to www.zoombait.com

Categories
Major League Fishing - Bass Pro Tour/Cup Events

ROJAS RIDES MORNING SHAD SPAWN TO WIN ON SMITH LAKE

CULLMAN, Ala. – It’s an age-old question in competitive bass fishing: pattern or location? If you ask MLF pro Dean Rojas this week, he’ll come down firmly on the side of “location”.

Fishing an area on the upper end of Smith Lake that he had found during practice for the Bass Pro Tour Phoenix Boats Stage Five Presented by Mercury, the Arizona pro went to work on the Sunday-morning shad spawn with a mix of baits (primarily a crankbait, swim jig, frog and swimbait). By the end of the first period, Rojas had put 23 fish on SCORETRACKER® for 36 pounds, 5 ounces – enough spotted and largemouth bass that Rojas could’ve put his rods down for most of the rest of the day and still won.

“It’s not too often that you get into a Championship Round where the fish are biting like that and you can use multiple baits to rack up a big lead,” Rojas said. “The conditions were right: we had overcast skies, a breeze, warm temperatures, and the fish were just feeding in the area I was in. It was just about capitalizing on this format. I knew I had to catch as many fish as I could early to put some distance between me and the field.”

Rojas added an additional 9-1 in the second and third periods for good measure, finishing with 47-0 and a 6-plus-pound win over Brent Chapman (40-14), Michael Neal (34-15), Jason Christie (32-6) and Todd Faircloth (32-2). Mark Rose (29-14), Brent Ehrler (26-0), Dustin Connell (24-14), Mike Iaconelli (17-14) and Fred Roumbanis (10-1) rounded out the Top 10.

“At the end of the first period, that was the end of (the bite),” Rojas admitted. “It was a big deal that I caught as many fish as I could to build a big lead. Period 2 and Period 3 were a matter of catching a few here and there, but I was struggling because they just wouldn’t bite.”


Rojas with one of several morning bites. Photo by Josh Gassmann

Rojas Cashes in on “Money Spot”

Rojas was one of a handful of anglers in the 80-man field who identified his primary area, a stretch of bushes in the Ryan Creek Arm. Rojas hit the area throughout the week of competition, sharing it periodically with Boyd Duckett, etc., but had the whole stretch to himself on Championship morning.

“I had to mix it up to catch all those fish, but there was bait all over that area, so I had a feeling the fish should be there this morning,” Rojas said. “I went to that spot every morning in the ride-around to see if they were still spawning, because that’s what they were doing in practice. I didn’t go to it until the Elimination Round because my other stuff wasn’t working, and then didn’t fish it in Knockout because Boyd was fishing there. I went there this morning and they were busting, so I sat down on it and fished it out.”

Chapman Made a Late Run at Rojas

Just 24 hours after qualifying for the finals thanks to a 3-13 largemouth that he caught with 10 seconds left, Chapman made another final-period run at the top of SCORETRACKER®, catching a 3-14 largemouth and a 4-10 largemouth in the final 20 minutes of competition to cut Rojas’ lead in half.

“I noticed going into the third period that things were getting tough, and that little point where I caught had a fish on every bush when there was a shad spawn going on,” Chapman said. “I figured that my best chance was to go somewhere where I knew I was putting my bait around fish on every single cast. I figured that was my best chance to at least put myself in position to have a chance to win.”


Brent Chapman put together another late-day flurry, finishing second. Photo by Josh Gassmann

Championship Notes

Rojas’ Stage Five win is his first tour-level win since a Bassmaster Elite Series title on Toledo Bend Reservoir in 2011, a span of 80 events … Neal fished his third Championship Round in five events this season … Sunday’s round was the first Bass Pro Tour Championship Sunday without Edwin Evers: the current Bass Pro Tour Points Race leader finished 16th, to add to his previous finishes of second, first, fourth and seventh … Faircloth was named the MLF Autism Awareness Champion on Sunday after weighing the most fish in April (Autism Awareness Month).

Categories
BASSMASTER Elite Series/Opens

COBB TOPS CENTURY MARK, WINS BIG AT TOYOTA BASSMASTER TEXAS FEST ON LAKE FORK

May 6, 2019, LAKE FORK, Texas — Photo courtesy of BASS

Big Bass. Big Stage. Big Dreams.

It’s the inspiring mantra B.A.S.S. unveiled before the 2019 Bassmaster Elite Series season, and it perfectly sums up the last two months for Brandon Cobb.

After earning his first Elite Series victory in April on Lake Hartwell in his home state of South Carolina, Cobb caught one big bass after another at Texas’ Lake Fork to amass a four-day total of 114 pounds. It earned him his second six-figure first-place prize of the season on one of the biggest stages in bass fishing — the Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

He’s living his dream — big time.

“It’s absolutely been an amazing season for me,” said Cobb, who also earned an automatic berth into the 2020 Bassmaster Classic presented by DICK’S Sporting Goods with the victory. “I had a lot of success on the FLW Tour, but I never could quite put together a win.

“For so many things to go right this season, it’s just been a dream come true.”

Cobb went into the day with nearly an 8-pound advantage over his closest competitor. But after a slow start, he actually lost the lead for a while to Georgia pro Micah Frazier.

Then Cobb, a 29-year-old former college angler at Clemson University, started working the magic that helped him grab the lead during Sunday’s semifinal round with a catch of 37-15.

Cobb put a three-pounder in his livewell at 8:23 a.m. and then added a 4-13 and a 6-5 in the span of six minutes between 9:07 a.m. and 9:13. He added a 3-15 at 9:38 and a 6-2 at 9:43. At that point, he had 24-13 and the tournament seemed to be over.

He kept culling until his five biggest fish weighed 6-5, 6-2, 6-2, 5-10 and 5-12 for total weight of 29-15. All fish were weighed on the water and immediately released.

“It was really boring until you’d run into them,” he said. “Then when you’d hit them, it was amazing.”

Cobb caught the bulk of his weight all week fishing around shallow shellbeds where bass were feeding on spawning shad. His primary bait was a Dual Hardcore Minnow Flat 110 SP jerkbait in ghost pro blue.

“I was basically running points and flats, and the areas I was fishing might be 6 feet deep for 200 yards,” he said. “But the fish, when they were eating, were in 1 to 2 1/2 feet of water up on the tops of the shellbeds.

“I’ve got mud all over me because I had to pick mud off my jerkbait bill just about every cast. I was literally jerking it into the bottom.”

Surface activity always signaled Cobb that the fishing was about to get good.

“When you hit a big school of shad up on one of those shellbeds, I think you pushed the bait up with your boat,” he said. “When that happened, bass would start blowing up everywhere on the surface.

“I hooked two or three doubles (two fish on one cast) today and actually caught one double.”

During the rare moments when Cobb wasn’t fishing the offshore shellbeds, he fished some shallow shoreline structure hoping to catch a few spawning fish. While doing that during Sunday’s semifinal round, he managed to boat an 11-1 monster that ranked as the Toyota Tundra Big Bass of the Week.

Cobb earned a new Toyota for that fish to add to the $247,500 cash he’s already won this year.

During ceremonies at the 50th Classic, to be held next March in Birmingham, Ala., Cobb will also receive one of the most exclusive awards presented by B.A.S.S. — the Century Belt. The belt is only given to anglers who catch at least 100 pounds of bass during an Elite Series event.

Second-place angler Garrett Paquette of Michigan, who caught 101-15, will also receive a Century Belt.

Prior to Texas Fest, no angler had earned one of the belts since the 2013 Elite Series event on Falcon Lake when Keith Combs (111-5), Rick Clunn (105-6) and John Crews (103-13) all topped the 100-pound mark.

Cobb has seemed cool and calm all season long. But now, with all of that hardware — and a Classic berth — already secured, he said he can be even more relaxed the rest of the way.

“I’ve been in position to win these kinds of events so many times,” he said. “But something would always go wrong, whether it was a bad last day or whatever.

“This has been the best year I could dream of. Aside from winning the Classic, how could it get any better than this?”

The fishing was as good as expected on Lake Fork with 63 five-bass limits of 20 pounds or more caught in four days. Of those 63, five topped the 30-pound mark.

South Carolina rookie Patrick Walters remained in the lead in both the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year and the DICK`S Sporting Goods Rookie of Year race, after five events, earning $1,000 for AOY and $500 for ROY.

Categories
MLF BIG-5

JOHN COX WINS FLW TOUR AT LAKE CHICKAMAUGA PRESENTED BY EVINRUDE

May 5, 2019  by FLW Communications – Photo courtesy of FLW

DAYTON, Tenn. – Berkley pro John Cox of DeBary, Florida, won $100,000 at the FLW Tour at Lake Chickamauga presented by Evinrude Sunday with a four-day total of 83 pounds, 9 ounces. The victory was the fourth FLW Tour win of Cox’s career – moving him to a tie at No. 7 for the most Tour wins all-time.

Cox brought a five-bass limit to the scale weighing 21 pounds even to clinch the victory by a 1-pound, 11-ounce margin over local favorite Buddy Gross of Chickamauga, Georgia, who brought 20 bass weighing 81-14 to the scale and earned $30,100. Tour rookie Ron Nelson of Berrien Springs, Michigan, who led the tournament coming into the final day, caught a four-day total of 80-5 to finish third and win $25,000.

“I can’t believe that I won,” said Cox, who also took over the points lead in the ultra-competitive Angler of the Year (AOY) race with just one event left in the regular season. “It was so tough today. I ran all over this place and had a decent limit, but not what I needed. I was bouncing around, then right before I had to check in I remembered a stretch of trees that I hadn’t checked.

“It was the last minute, and I really don’t know why it just popped in my head, but it did – go to the trees,” Cox continued. “It was weird because I had forgotten all about this area. When I pulled up and Power-Poled down, I knew before I even threw in there.”

With less than 10 minutes before he had to check-in, Cox boated a pair of 4-pounders from the trees and raced back to the Dayton Boat Dock.

“When I caught the two in the last 10 minutes, I got all worked up,” Cox said. “I was running back, and I just felt something. Tears were coming down. It was overwhelming – I don’t know. I’ve won tournaments before, but I’ve never felt anything like it before. I’m getting chills right now just talking about it. This one was different.”

Cox said he used two main baits throughout the week. He threw a Texas-rigged 6-inch Baby Bass-colored Berkley PowerBait MaxScent The General while sight fishing and a white ½-ounce Dirty Jigs jig with a white Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Meaty Chunk Trailer to cover water.

“The jig setup really came into play when the rain came in,” Cox said. “It was something that I could cover a lot of water with. I really thought the jig was going to be deal today, but I had to completely change gears at the end of the day and go back to the worm.”

With just one tournament remaining in the regular season, Cox now shifts his focus to Lake Champlain in upstate New York. He holds just a slim 1-point lead in the AOY race over Polaris pro David Dudley – a three-time AOY winner who already has an FLW Tour win on Lake Champlain on his resume.

“My two favorite lakes are Lake Chickamauga and Lake Champlain, and to finish the season on those two fisheries is great,” Cox went on to say. “I’ve been going to Lake Champlain since I was 20, and I really want to win there. But, I really, really want to win the AOY title. That would be awesome.”

The top 10 pros on Lake Chickamauga finished: 

1st: Berkley pro John Cox, DeBary, Fla., 20 bass, 83-9, $102,700
2nd: Buddy Gross, Chickamauga, Ga., 20 bass, 81-14, $30,100
3rd: Ron Nelson, Berrien Springs, Mich., 20 bass, 80-5, $25,000
4th: Yamamoto Baits pro Matt Greenblatt, Port St. Lucie, Fla., 20 bass, 80-0, $20,000
5th: Polaris pro David Dudley, Lynchburg, Va., 20 bass, 78-9, $19,000
6th: Ramie Colson Jr., Cadiz, Ky., 20 bass, 76-7, $18,000
7th: Alex Davis, Albertville, Ala., 20 bass, 74-12, $17,000
8th: Strike King pro Jared McMillan, Belle Glade, Fla., 20 bass, 74-12, $16,000
9th: David Williams, Maiden, N.C., 20 bass, 69-9, $15,000
10th: Lowrance pro Austin Felix, Eden Prairie, Minn., 20 bass, 66-10, $14,000

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

Overall there were 50 bass weighing 172 pounds, 10 ounces caught by pros Sunday. All 10 of the final-day pros brought a five-bass limit to the scale.

Television coverage of the FLW Tour at Lake Chickamauga presented by Evinrude will premiere in 2019. The Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show airs each Saturday night at 7 p.m. EST and is broadcast to more than 63 million cable, satellite and telecommunications households in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean on the World Fishing Network (WFN), the leading entertainment destination and digital resource for anglers throughout North America. FLW television is also distributed internationally to FLW partner countries, including Canada, China, Italy, Korea, Mexico, Portugal, Spain and South Africa.

The total purse for the FLW Tour at Lake Chickamauga presented by Evinrude was more than $860,000. The tournament was hosted by Fish Dayton and the Rhea Economic Tourism Council. The next event for FLW Tour anglers will be the FLW Tour at Lake Champlain presented by T-H Marine in Plattsburgh, New York, June 27-30. The tournament will be hosted by the City of Plattsburgh and the Adirondack Coast Visitors Bureau.

In FLW Tour competition, the full field of 165 pro anglers competed in the two-day opening round Thursday and Friday. The top 30 pros based on their two-day accumulated weight advanced to fish on 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 2019 FLW Cup, the world championship of professional bass fishing. The 2019 FLW Cup will be on Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs, Arkansas, Aug. 9-11 and is hosted by the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism and Visit Hot Springs.

Categories
BASSMASTER Elite Series/Opens

COBB’S GIANT DAY GIVES HIM THE LEAD AT TOYOTA BASSMASTER TEXAS FEST ON LAKE FORK

LAKE FORK, Texas — Photo courtesy of BASS

After catching two bass in the 8-pound range by 10 a.m., Brandon Cobb was already having one of the best days of fishing he’s ever had.

Then the bite of a lifetime at 2 p.m. moved the day to the very top of his list.

The giant afternoon bass, which weighed 11 pounds, 1 ounce and ranked as his biggest ever, lifted Cobb’s five-bass limit for the day to 37-15.

Now, with a three-day total of 84-1, he will enter the final day of Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest benefiting Texas Parks and Wildlife Department on Lake Fork with margin of 7-5 over his closest competition.

“I’ve never had a day like this before — not even close,” said Cobb, who recorded his first Bassmaster Elite Series victory in April on Lake Hartwell. “A 29-pound limit was my best ever until the other day (Thursday), when I caught 31-11. Now this is without a doubt the most amazing day I’ve ever had on the lake.”

Cobb went into the day with two-part game plan.

He expected to spend much of his time fishing shallow shellbeds away from the shoreline where bass have been feasting all week on spawning shad. Then he planned to fish shoreline cover where he’s been catching good numbers of solid bass, but nothing huge.

The shad-spawn bite paid off big time, as he caught an 8-8, an 8-13 and a 4-4 — all before noon. Then when he moved to the shoreline, he found something he wasn’t expecting.

“When I went to fish the bank, honestly, I expected to catch 3-pounders,” Cobb said. “That was my goal for the day — to catch big ones off the shad spawn and then fill a limit fishing the bank.

“But then, when I went to the bank, I caught an 11 and a 5.”

The 11-1 monster not only helped Cobb jump into the overall lead, it put him in first place for Toyota Tundra Big Bass of the Week. The prize for that award is a new Toyota Tundra truck.

Cobb was fishing a frog down a shoreline when he noticed the big bass sitting on a bed. He dropped his Power-Poles, believing the bass weighed 7 or 8 pounds.

Then he proceeded to pester the fish until it bit.

“It was one of those fish that looked like it was gonna bite every cast,” Cobb said. “Every cast I would make, it would kind of nose down and look at it. It took about 20 minutes to finally get it to eat. But with the way she was acting, I knew I could catch her.”

Cobb’s meteoric rise was aided in part by the struggles of Michigan pro Chad Pipkens. After catching 30-plus pounds the first two days and entering Day 3 with more than an 11-pound lead, Pipkens caught just four fish Sunday that weighed 5-8.

That allowed Cobb, Garrett Paquette (76-12), Brandon Card (73-4), Micah Frazier (70-13), Drew Cook (70-5) and Keith Combs (69-10) to all move past him in the standings. Pipkens will start Championship Monday in seventh place with 68-6.

After catching 28-12 Sunday, Paquette, a first-year Elite Series pro from Michigan, said he believes he’ll need at least 30 pounds — and maybe a little luck — to catch Cobb and win the $100,000 first-place prize.

“Brandon caught an 11-pounder and two 8-pounders today, and you can’t bank on doing that every day,” Paquette said. “So if I can catch 30 pounds, I’ll feel like I did everything I could have done.”

Unlike Cobb, who is spending much of his time shallow, Paquette is fishing offshore areas in about 10 feet of water — and with the way the bite has been working, he could create some last-hour drama Monday.

“It’s been really slow out there in the mornings,” he said. “It seems like the longer I can wait to get on my best stuff, the better it works out for me. About 2 o’clock (an hour before quitting time) seems like the best time.”

Card caught 25-11 Sunday, but he has even more ground — almost 11 pounds — to make up during the final round.

“I have a few key areas, and if you pull up on them at the right time, you can catch a lot of weight in a hurry,” Card said. “I’ll probably stay with the offshore stuff all day tomorrow and just see what happens.”

The tournament will conclude Monday with the Top 10 remaining anglers taking off at 7 a.m. CT from Sabine River Authority in Quitman. The weigh-in will be at the same site at 3 p.m.

All fish are being weighed on the water and immediately released, but each angler is allowed to bring to the “weigh-in” one bass that measures more than 24 inches.

Categories
King Kat

MITCHELL, MITCHELL, AND SEXTON WIN CABELAS’S KING KAT TOURNAMENT ON WATTS BAR

Louisville, KY – May 5, 2019 – Catfish anglers from eleven states traveled to Loudon, TN on the Tennessee River (Watts Bar Lake) for a King Kat Tournament Trail Super Event presented by Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s. Fifty-four teams gathered to test their catfishing skills against other anglers and Mother Nature.

Competitors were vying for $16,000 in cash and prizes, and an opportunity to qualify for the $120,000 Classic Championship to be held November 1 and 2, 2019, on the Tennessee River (Wheeler Lake) at Decatur, Alabama.

Weather on day one rainy in the morning changing to sunny and 85 degrees. Good current in the river made for a good bite. The day-one weigh-in had 51 out of 54 teams weighing fish. Day two was characterized by light wind with thunderstorms developing in the afternoon. Air temps were a little cooler at 75 degrees.

The good bite on day one resulted in some good fish coming to the scales. The top four teams had more than 100 pounds as Chris and David Roberson took a commanding lead with 146.56 pounds. They also held the Big Kat lead with a 64.64-pound Tennessee River beast. The next closest team was Michael Jordan and Charlie Parsons with 117.70 pounds.

Results for the Top Catfish Teams

It was a big fish and a come from behind win that produced back to back champs on Watts Bar. Mike Mitchell, Jackson Mitchell and Rick Sexton came from 5th place on day one to become repeat champions on Watts Bar Lake in Loudon, TN.

Last year’s winners brought a two-day total of 228.82 pounds to the scales to claim the win. Their day-two weight was aided by the second big fish of the tournament at 63.58 pounds, just a pound away from the Big Kat of the tournament.  

Mike and Jackson from Rogersville, AL, and  Rick from Helenwood, TN earned $6,000.00 for first place.

They found their fish close to structure in the downtown Loudon area. They were fishing on the rope in 15-25 feet of water using skipjack for bait.

“This was a very different year than last year,” reported Mike. “We covered about 30 miles of water trying to get the right bites. We anchored fished and moved around a lot trying to find some bigger fish. We caught a bunch of fish on day one—probably at least 20. Only 4 of those were overs and nothing bigger than 30 pounds. The flathead bite was definitely better for us on day one.”

Mike said the fish were relating to rock and wood structure where they tempted them with cut skipjack. They weighed in 5 flatheads and 5 blues for their 10 fish limit during the two-day tournament.

“Day two was definitely slower,” continued Mike. “We caught 10 fish and 3 were over 34 inches. The big fish was caught with only 15 minutes to spare on our last anchor in a spot we have never fished.

“Always I would like to thank my sponsors, G3 Boats, Team Catfish, Big Cat Fever, Slime Line, Monster Rod Holders, Foley Spoons, Blacksheep Catfish Leaders, River Rats Reel Repair, and TTI Blakemore.

The runner-up spot went to Jared Coker from Corryton, TN and Terohn Heinrich from Knoxville, TN. They moved up from 4th place on day one with a two-day weight of 217.98 pounds to earn a check for $2,600.00.

Coker stated that fishing had been tough throughout the week but the rain and front had improved the fishing greatly. The team targeted fish mid-lake looking for 25-foot water and structure. They anchored all day using skipjack to catch around a 40 fish for the tournament.                                                                                            

David and Darlene Hill claimed the third-place spot with 195.16 pounds. The Louisville, TN team earned a check for $2,000.00.

They targeted deep water and structure near the Watts Bar Dam to catch their fish. Davie and Darlene used skipjack for bait and landed 30 fish for the weekend.

Fourth place went to Chris Robinson from Locus Grove, Ga and David Robinson from McDonough, GA. They had a two-day total of 194.02 pounds that included the Big Kat of the tournament. The Big Kat was a flathead that weighed 64.64 pounds and gave Chris his new personal best. The team earned $1,100 for placing 4th, $1,100 for Big Kat, and $1,000 for the hotel bonus for staying at a Loudon County hotel. Ironically, they won both $500 hotel bonuses. One for the Big Kat and one by random drawing.

Team Robinson found fish in the downtown Loudon area and led the tournament after day one with a whopping 146.56 pounds. They also caught the Big Kat of the tournament on day one with just 10 minutes of fishing time remaining before the 3:00 stop time.

They caught more than 20 fish on day one with most of them coming before noon. Day two was tougher and the team had to move several times to find fish. They also used skipjack for bait.

Rounding out the top five and pulling out the comeback of the day was Carl Morris Jr. from Johnstown, OH and Rob Parsons from Mt. Vernon, OH. They came back from 25th place on day one with a weight of 65.22 to a two-day total weight of 180.48 pounds to earn fifth place and a check for $800.00.

Morris and Parsons fished downriver from Loudon using various techniques to catch their fish. They anchored, drifted, and dragged baits. They were targeting structure on flats in 15 feet of water to land over 30 fish for the weekend. They also used skipjack for bait.

The Remaining Top Ten Catfish Teams

6th Place – Michael Jordan and Charlie Parsons – 179.56

7th Place – Chris Ward and Travis Dyer – 168.60

8th Place – Anthony Murphy and Michael Snyder – 168.52

9th Place – Collin O’Marro and Todd Semenik – 164.84

10 Place – Casey Tutorow and Andrew Han – 163.32

Epilogue

Tournament director, Jeremy Coe thanked the Loudon County Visitors Bureau and the City of Loudon for making the event a huge success for the 5th year. He also thanked the Lions Club for feeding the anglers on Thursday night.

“Thanks to Butch Thompson at G-Daddy’s Bait and Tackle for lending us a UTV,” added Coe. “It really made the weigh-in and transporting fish a whole lot smoother. Also, a thank you to the Parks and Recreation workers for assisting the King Kat crew in directing traffic and transporting fish.”

“We look forward as always to returning,” concluded Coe. “We love to visit beautiful Loudon, TN on the banks of the Tennessee River on Watts Bar Lake. The teams caught a lot of fish and really enjoy coming here to compete.”

National Sponsors

Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s King Kat Tournament Trail sponsors include: Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s, Excel Boats, Mercury Marine, Mustad Hooks, Humminbird, Minn Kota, B’n’M Poles, Gamma Line, Driftmaster Rod Holders, Ego Nets, Xtreme Bait Systems, Clear Boards, EFX Graphics, Catfish Now, Fin n’ Frames, and Crown Trophy

For more information on the championship and other King Kat activities visit their website at www.kingkatusa.com. Anglers can also follow the trail on the King Kat Facebook Page.

Categories
Major League Fishing - Bass Pro Tour/Cup Events

CHRISTIE CONTINUES HOT STREAK TO ADVANCE TO CHAMPIONSHIP ROUN DON ALABAMA’S SMITH LAKE

CULLMAN, Ala. (May 4, 2019) – It goes without saying that post-spawn spotted bass are unpredictable, finicky and sometimes hard to locate. Throw in capricious weather and you have the makings of a highly unpredictable day of fishing. Fortunately for Major League Fishing® (MLF) pro Jason Christie, the location and pattern he identified 24 hours earlier in the second period of Thursday’s Elimination Round at the Bass Pro Tour Phoenix Boats Stage Five Presented by Mercury was anything but unpredictable.   Fishing a shaky head on the same offshore break where he caught the majority of his fish the day before, Christie racked up 48 pounds, 3 ounces of Smith Lake spotted bass during a weather-abbreviated Knockout Round to finish atop the Top 10 anglers advancing to Sunday’s Championship Round. Christie’s two-day total in the Elimination and Knockout Rounds was 99-3, almost all of it caught out of the small area in 15 to 20 feet of water. “I started in the same spot this morning that I did good on yesterday, and there was a herring spawn that I think it caused some more fish to come in – it was pretty steady there for awhile in the morning,” Christie said. The heavy thunderstorm that kept the field on the bank at Smith Lake Park for an extra 90 minutes this morning didn’t seem to affect Christie’s spot at all. While early round hammers Jesse Wiggins and Jacob Wheeler struggled to find fish, Christie put 12 fish on SCORETRACKER® in the first hour and finished the first period with 31-5. “I got a little frustrated because I lost a few and missed a couple in the morning, but one thing I’ve learned, you can’t count on these fish day-to-day,” Christie said. “They’re moving, the bait’s moving, it’s that transition time of year so they can be hard to predict. I’m just going to start in the best spot I think tomorrow and play it by ear.” 

Chapman’s Last-Second Heroics The Bass Pro Tour has seen some last-minute drama in its four previous events, but none have been as dramatic as the SCORETRACKER® rearrangement caused by the 3-13 largemouth that Brent Chapman swung aboard his boat as time expired at the end of the day. Chapman entered the final minutes of competition in 11th place, but hooked a fish on a creature bait with just seconds remaining, and got the fish over the gunwale of his boat just in time for it to qualify as a scoreable fish.


MLF Pro Brent Chapman swung aboard a scoreable bass with just seconds remaining in time for it to count and put him in the Championship Round on Sunday.

That fish pushed Chapman past Jeff Sprague and Bradley Roy into ninth place with 31-0.Brent Ehrler caught a 1-14 with six seconds remaining to claim the 10th and final spot in the final round.   “That’s about as exciting a catch as I’ve ever had in my career,” Chapman admitted. “I don’t know exactly how much weight I needed to make it into the Top 10, but to hook a fish that size and then have to get it in in just a few seconds is a little stressful. But that sums up this whole format. It’s exciting.”  

Championship Round First-Timers Christie will fish his first Championship Round of the 2019 Bass Pro Tour, as will Mark Rose (third with 39-3), Fred Roumbanis (fourth with 36-1), Dean Rojas (eighth with 32-10) and Chapman. They’ll join previous final-round competitors Dustin Connell (second with 40-9), Michael Neal (34-13), Mike Iaconelli (sixth with 34-11) and Todd Faircloth (seventh with 33-7).

One Last Shot at Smith Lake As Saturday’s competition proved, there’s no such thing as a sure thing this week on Smith Lake. Local pros Jesse Wiggins, Jordan Lee and Matt Lee failed to make the Top 10, and anglers who weighed heavy weights in previous rounds (Timmy Horton, James Watson, Wheeler and Andy Morgan, to name a few) were unable to find dependable patterns or schools of fish during the Knockout Round.   “What Smith Lake has shown us time and time again this week is that we can expect the unexpected,” said MLF NOW! live stream analyst Marty Stone. “Going into tomorrow we think that everybody is fishing for second place because Jason Christie has found the best place – I’ve always said that on a lake, a place will be a pattern every time – and on the outside looking in, Christie definitely has the best place. But we have a weather change coming in, and we’re dealing with spotted bass. I really don’t have a clue what’s going to happen tomorrow, other than it’s going to be exciting.” 

When, Where & How to Watch Competition begins on Championship Sunday at 6:30 a.m. CT, with live, official scoring available via SCORETRACKER® on MajorLeagueFishing.com and on the MLF app. The MLF NOW! live stream starts at 9 a.m. CT, with live, on-the-water coverage and analysis provided by Chad McKee, JT Kenney, Marty Stone and Natalie Dillon until lines out at 2:30 p.m. The Berkley Postgame Show – hosted by Steven “Lurch” Scott – will start at 4 p.m.


The Day’s Results

PlaceAnglerTotal WeightTotal # FishLargest Fish
1stJason Christie48 – 03272 – 13
2ndDustin Connell40 – 09253 – 06
3rdMark Rose39 – 03262 – 08
4thFred Roumbanis36 – 01253 – 15
5thMichael Neal34 – 13233 – 02
6thMike Iaconelli34 – 11222 – 12
7thTodd Faircloth33 – 07202 – 08
8thDean Rojas32 – 10212 – 02
9thBrent Chapman31 – 00193 – 13
10thBrent Ehrler30 – 07172 – 15
11thJeff Sprague29 – 00222 – 02
12thBradley Roy27 – 01162 – 13
13thMatt Lee26 – 11153 – 12
14thZack Birge26 – 04172 – 10
15thAndy Morgan26 – 00202 – 00
16thEdwin Evers25 – 13163 – 07
17thMarty Robinson23 – 05153 – 12
18thTimmy Horton22 – 13153 – 01
19thLuke Clausen22 – 11132 – 15
20thJeff Kriet22 – 04152 – 05
21stJustin Lucas21 – 13142 – 09
22ndShin Fukae20 – 09123 – 08
23rdBoyd Duckett20 – 05132 – 03
24thOtt DeFoe18 – 15151 – 12
25thJosh Bertrand17 – 14112 – 13
26thBrandon Palaniuk17 – 10141 – 14
27thMark Davis16 – 14131 – 11
28thCasey Ashley16 – 02102 – 12
29thGerald Swindle16 – 02102 – 05
30thJames Watson16 – 00112 – 09
31stCody Meyer16 – 0092 – 14
32ndStephen Browning15 – 11112 – 05
33rdDave Lefebre13 – 0692 – 10
34thWesley Strader12 – 1582 – 03
35thAlton Jones12 – 1093 – 00
36thSkeet Reese11 – 1391 – 12
37thJordan Lee10 – 1271 – 15
38thJesse Wiggins9 – 0971 – 11
39thShaw Grigsby8 – 1571 – 12
40thJacob Wheeler6 – 1042 – 10