Steven Coleman of Madison Heights, Virginia, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 20 pounds, 4 ounces, Saturday to win the first FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Shenandoah Division tournament of 2016 on Smith Mountain Lake. For his victory, Coleman took home $5,565.
“I’m still in shock,” says Coleman, who was fishing in his first event ever as a professional in BFL competition. “I went to the Blackwater River arm and ran pockets, looking for stained water. I knew that with as many boats that there were in this event that a lot of people would be looking for clear water. I figured that if I fished the stained water then I wouldn’t have to try to fight the crowds to get a good spot.
“I lost a 5-pounder right away, and I really thought that I had just lost the tournament when that one came off,” Coleman continues. “If you want to win you cannot have any mistakes, so when I lost that first fish it was pretty disheartening. I just put my head down and kept fishing, running pockets and skipping boat docks.”
Coleman only had six bites all day – the 5-pounder that he lost along with the five fish that he weighed in. Four of his five fish came on an unnamed 3/8-ounce black and blue jig with a black and blue Zoom Super Chunk trailer. One came via a white and purple-colored War Eagle spinnerbait.
“The key for me was my decision making,” Coleman went on to say. “I didn’t panic when I lost that big one and I knew what I had to do – keep my head down and grind it out.”
The top 10 boaters:
1st: Steven Coleman, Madison Heights, Va., five bass, 20-4, $5,565
2nd: Bradley Staley, Pleasant Garden, N.C., five bass, 19-11, $2,783
3rd: Brian Calloway, Danville, Va., five bass, 19-1, $1,853
4th: Kevin Pfautz, Raleigh, N.C., five bass, 19-0, $1,299
5th: Marvin Reese, Gwynn Oak, Md., five bass, 18-11, $1,113
6th: Joey Dawson, Rustburg, Va., five bass, 18-4, $1,020
7th: Danny Moss Jr., Norlina, N.C., five bass, 18-0, $881
7th: Brian Peak, Wytheville, Va., five bass, 18-0, $881
9th: Wally Szuba, Cary, N.C., five bass, 17-12, $742
10th: Brandon Reynolds, Callands, Va., five bass, 17-11, $649
Complete results can be found here.
Dustin Maccumbee of Bunker Hill, West Virginia, caught a 6-pound, 1-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $900.
McRoy wins co-angler title
Ian McRoy of Boones Mill, Virginia, weighed in five bass totaling 20 pounds, 9 ounces Saturday to earn $2,783 and win the co-angler division.
The top 10 co-anglers:
1st: Ian McRoy, Boones Mill, Va., five bass, 20-9, $2,783
2nd: David Lanaville, Goldsboro, N.C., five bass, 17-6, $1,391
3rd: Travis Garrett, Charlottesville, Va., five bass, 16-6, $1,376
4th: Matt Stoupa, Colonial Heights, Va., five bass, 15-7, $649
5th: Jonathan Sayers, Wytheville, Va., five bass, 15-2, $557
6th: Dewey Knight, Collinsville, Va., five bass, 14-12, $510
7th: Ben Hudson, Lynchburg, Va., five bass, 14-1, $464
8th: David Stone, Midlothian, Va., four bass, 12-15, $417
9th: Jeff Lederman, Powhatan, Va., five bass, 12-9, $371
10th: Cody Griffey, Newport News, Va., three bass, 12-8, $325
Garrett caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, weighing 7 pounds, 9 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $450.
The top 50 boaters and 50 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 6-8 Regional Championship on Kerr Lake in Henderson, North Carolina. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and $20,000, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518C with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.