Louisville, KY – May 19, 2019 – Catfish anglers from nine states traveled to Tell City, IN on the Ohio River for a King Kat Tournament Trail event presented by Bass Pro Shops Cabela’s. Thirty-four teams gathered at Tell City to test their catfishing skills against other anglers and Mother Nature.
Competitors were vying for $ 8,855 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.
The competitors faced a hot fishing day with air temperatures in high 90’s. The wind was blowing from the SSE at 10-20 mph. Rains had the water conditions high and muddy with the 65-degree water running at about 2 mph. Several anglers commented that the current was helpful to the bite.
Results for the Top Catfish Teams
The top spot at Tell City went to Greg Edwards and Dale Kerns from Norris City, IL. They had a total weight of 117.88 pounds to earn a check for $3,600. They added the Driftmaster Bonus $300 for using Driftmaster Rod Holders on their boat.
Edwards and Kerns fished at Derby, IN all day. They starting off by anchoring in the morning on log piles and structure. After not producing their intended results the team moved to the river channel in 35-40 feet of water.
“Since we were fishing the full moon and high pressure, we decided to stick with fishing heavy cove.” Reported Edwards. “We began by anchor fishing a log covered bank. After our bite went away around 10 am we started bumping covered ledges.”
The Indiana team stated that they thought the current helped them land about a dozen fish on the day. They caught fish from the morning hours until about lunchtime before the bite stopped after 1:00. All their fish came on skipjack.
The runner up spot went to Wayne and Travis Bodine from Bardstown, KY. Team Bodine brought 106.82 pounds to the scales to earn a check for $1,800.
The team fished up around the McAlpine Dam where they were targeting fish on the river channel. They bumped all day long using skipjack for bait in 25-30 feet of water. They targeted the current seams to land 10 fish for the day.
The 2018 Classic champs, Justin Cook and Gary Ryan drove their Excel StormCat 230 to third place. Cook, from New Franklin, MO, and Ryan from Columbia, MO had a total weight of 103. 2 pounds and earned a check for $1,300.
They fished below Cannelton Dam targeting fish in 35 feet of water. They were bumping with skipjack to land 10 fish for the day.
They started tournament day with the thought of the fish they caught the day before lingering in their mind. They caught a 95-pound blue during practice on Friday in the same area they fished on tournament day.
Fourth place went to Tom Petrowski and Henry Neafus. The Brooks, Ky anglers weighed 91.6 pounds to earn their place and a check for $700.
Petrowski and Neafus fished upriver toward the McAlpine Dam. They were targeting water of 25 feet or less. They caught 10 fish on the day bumping with skipjack.
Fifth place and Big Kat went to Wayne and Conner King from Mt. Vernon, IN. They brought 73.54 pounds to the scales and 58 of those pounds was in the Big Kat of the tournament. They earned a check for $475 for 5th place and added $680 for Big Kat.
Wayne and Conner only had 4 fish for the day but their 58 pounder lifted them to the 5th place spot. They bumped in the Derby, IN area using skipjack for bait.
The Remaining Top Catfish Teams
6th Place – Willie Smith and Nick Anderson – 69.52
7th Place – Rodney Hall and Justin Hodges – 61.64
8th Place – Denver Burden and Joe Garrett – 57.28
9th Place – Steven Fancher and Henry Price – 57.24
10 Place – Jon Reedy and Tyler Bennett – 47.94
Epilogue
Tournament director, Jeremy Coe thanked Betty Cash and her staff at the Perry County CVB for making this event possible. He also thanked all the local businesses and people for their hospitality toward the anglers.
“We really look forward to this stop on the schedule,” said Coe. “We saw some great fish this weekend in the high waters. Tell City is a beautiful area to travel to. It has some great fishing and we 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.
