June 17, 2019 by FLW Communications
BUCHANAN, Tenn. – Boater Matt Robertson of Kuttawa, Kentucky, swept the T-H Marine FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) LBL Division this weekend after winning back-to-back tournaments on Kentucky and Barkley lakes presented by Navionics, the first on Saturday and then again on Sunday. For his wins, Robertson earned a total of $7,842.
“I was fishing the mid-section of Kentucky Lake – from the Blood River to the Highway 68 Bridge,” said Robertson, who earned his first two wins in FLW competition. “I didn’t catch a whole lot of fish Saturday – probably seven keepers. The high water had the schools busted up.”
Robertson said his key baits Saturday were a Blue and Chartreuse-colored Strike King 5XD crankbait and an Ole Smokey- or Natural Light-colored Scottsboro Tackle swimbait. His rod setup included a Lew’s 7-foot, 6-inch Custom Pro Mark Rose Ledge Casting rod with a Lew’s Wide Spool Super Duty Casting reel.
“I was just fishing points at the mouths of the bays, where the fish would come to after they spawned,” said Robertson. “I think the lake is about a month behind, and a lot of them are just now getting done.”
On Sunday, Robertson said he returned to a couple of spots he’d fished Saturday, but they didn’t produce. He went searching and found a couple of small schools around the mouth of Jonathan Creek. He again fished the Scottsboro Tackle swimbaits, but said he caught the majority of his fish on a Texas-rigged, green-pumpkin-colored Strike King KVD Perfect Plastic Bullworm. Robertson said he caught around 10 keepers Sunday.
“My fish were all largemouth this weekend,” said Robertson. “I just had to keep an open mind and not get too stuck on where I’d been catching them. The fish are moving a lot with the rising water.”
The top 5 boaters Saturday finished the tournament in:
1st: Matt Robertson, Kuttawa, Ky., five bass, 21-12, $4,046
2nd: Drew Boggs, Lebanon, Tenn., five bass, 20-11, $2,098
3rd: Bill Schroeder III, Paducah, Ky., five bass, 19-6, $949
4th: Michael Wasden, Paris, Tenn., five bass, 17-14, $664
5th: Daniel Langton, Haubstadt, Ind., five bass, 17-7, $569
Andrew Matuszak of Washington, Indiana, won the Co-angler Division and $1,523 Saturday after catching five bass weighing 15 pounds, 7 ounces.
The top 5 co-anglers Saturday finished the tournament in:
1st: Andrew Matuszak , Washington, Ind., five bass, 15-7, $1,523
2nd: Shane Cansler, Crofton, Ky., three bass, 14-0, $923
3rd: Bobby Wade, Mayfield, Ky., two bass, 9-8, $475
4th: Jerry Ivy, Dawson Springs, Ky., three bass, 9-3, $332
5th: Charles Richardson III, Dyersburg, Tenn., two bass, 9-0, $285
Complete results and Big Bass award winners from Saturday’s BFL event can be found at FLWFishing.com.
The top 5 boaters Sunday finished the tournament:
1st: Matt Robertson, Kuttawa, Ky., five bass, 21-8, $3,796
2nd: Hunter Louden, Springville, Tenn., five bass, 20-6, $1,668
3rd: Kevin Caskey, Madisonville, Ky., five bass, 16-12, $864
4th: Brad Baldwin, Waynesville, Ohio, five bass, 16-6, $606
5th: Bob Drake, Noblesville, Ind., five bass, 15-4, $769
Bobby Wade of Mayfield, Kentucky, won the Co-angler Division and $1,298 Sunday after catching three bass weighing 10 pounds, 4 ounces.
The top 5 co-anglers Sunday finished the tournament:
1st: Bobby Wade, Mayfield, Ky., three bass, 10-4, $1,298
2nd: Ricky Boehringer, Troy, Ohio, two bass, 9-13, $984
3rd: Tim Burke, Petersburg, Ky., three bass, 8-12, $432
4th: Joseph Gulash, Edwardsville, Ill., two bass, 8-10, $353
5th: Paul McBride, Vienna, Ill., four bass, 8-4, $260
Complete results and Big Bass award winners from Sunday’s tournament can be found at FLWFishing.com.
The two tournaments were hosted by the Henry County Alliance.
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. 17-19 BFL Regional Championship on Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Alabama, presented by Mercury. 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 2020 BFL All-American will be held April 30-May 2 at Lake Hartwell in Anderson, South Carolina, and is hosted by Visit Anderson. 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.
