Grimm Targets Shallow Bars for Win

Ball nets co-angler title on Cherokee Lake

Brant Grimm of Church Hill, Tennessee, weighed a five-bass limit totaling 17 pounds, 15 ounces, Saturday to win the fourth FLW Bass Fishing League (BFL) Volunteer Division tournament of 2016 on Cherokee Lake. For his victory, Grimm took home $6,159.

“I spent my day on the Holston River fishing shallow bars and flats where the bass were pulling up to feed on shad,” says Grimm, who earned his first career win in FLW competition. “I only had six bites all day, but I caught a 6-pounder within my first 20 casts. That fish really anchored my limit.”

Grimm says he needed only one 50-yard stretch to catch his winning bass.

“After the 6-pounder, all of my bites were about an hour apart,” says Grimm. “On my final cast I was able to make a small cull, which helped, but it was really that early big bass that sealed the deal for me.”

Grimm used one bait during the tournament – a shad-colored swimbait from Foolin’ Bass Custom Baits.

“They poured it to my exact size and color specifications and it really made a difference,” says Grimm. “It was a pretty straightforward day out there. Everything came together and it worked out.”

The top 10 boaters:

1^st:          Brant Grimm, Church Hill, Tenn., five bass, 17-15, $4,159 + $2,000 Ranger Cup Bonus

2^nd:         Michael Cantrell, Philadelphia, Tenn., five bass, 15-9, $1,840

3^rd:          Jimmy Taylor, Clinton, Tenn., five bass, 15-0, $1,225

4^th:          Bill Humbard, New Market, Tenn., five bass, 14-11, $859

5^th:          Archie Wilson Jr., Corryton, Tenn., five bass, 14-10, $736

6^th:          Hermilo Salgado, Artemus, Ky., five bass, 14-2, $675

7^th:          Ken Vicchio, Bluff City, Tenn., four bass, 13-10, $913

8^th:          Burton Bryan, Sevierville, Tenn., five bass, 13-5, $552

9^th:          Derrick Snavely, Rogersville, Tenn., five bass, 13-2, $491

10^th:        Tim Smiley, White Pine, Tenn., five bass, 12-15, $407

10^th:        Shawn Strader, Rockwood, Tenn., five bass, 12-15, $407

Complete results can be found here.

Grimm also caught a 6-pound, 3-ounce bass – the biggest of the tournament in the pro division – and earned the day’s Boater Big Bass award of $480.

Ball wins co-angler title

Ty Ball of Rogersville, Tennessee, weighed in five bass totaling 11 pounds, 2 ounces, Saturday to win the co-angler division and earn $1,757.

The top 10 co-anglers:

1^st:          Ty Ball, Rogersville, Tenn., five bass, 11-2, $1,757

2^nd:         Henry Bryan, Sevierville, Tenn., four bass, 10-3, $879

3^rd:          Kibbee McCoy, Morristown, Tenn., three bass, 9-12, $585

4^th:          Matt Brown, Harriman, Tenn., five bass, 9-8, $410

5^th:          Wes Ratcliff, Knoxville, Tenn., five bass, 9-5, $351

6^th:          Jimmy Crum, Afton, Tenn., four bass, 8-5, $322

7^th:          Kenneth Lodwick, Dandridge, Tenn., four bass, 8-4, $293

8^th:          Bill Freshour, Strawplains, Tenn., four bass, 7-14, $264

9^th:          Gary Johns, Sharps Chapel, Tenn., three bass, 7-12, $234

10^th:        James Morrow, Murphy, N.C., three bass, 7-9, $205

Jeff Boone of Mount Washington, Kentucky, caught the biggest bass of the tournament in the co-angler division, a fish weighing 4 pounds, 6 ounces and earned the day’s Co-angler Big Bass award of $225.

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.