Tarr takes BFL Northeast Division tournament

Robert Tarr of Canonsburg, Pa., won the BFL Northeast Division’s second regular-season stop, held July 12 on Lake Champlain near Plattsburgh, N.Y. Tarr led the field of 200 boaters with a five-bass catch weighing 16 pounds, 14 ounces. Angler: Robert Tarr.

July 12, 2003 • MLF • Archives

PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Robert Tarr of Canonsburg, Pa., claimed $5,000 as the winner of the Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League Northeast Division’s second regular-season stop, held Saturday on Lake Champlain near Plattsburgh. Tarr led the field of 200 boaters with a five-bass catch weighing 16 pounds, 14 ounces. Tarr caught his bass Saturday using an Outlaw tube.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Michael Trickler of Waterloo (five bass, 15 pounds, 13 ounces, $2,500); Gary Andrew Lavage of Elizabethtown, Pa. (five bass, 14 pounds, 14 ounces, $1,700); Brian Gates of Mendon, Vt. (five bass, 14 pounds, 11 ounces, $1,300); and Robert Polishan of Scranton, Pa. (five bass, 14 pounds, 9 ounces, $1,100).

Polishan also claimed a $500 bonus from Ranger Boats as the highest-finishing participant in the Ranger Cup incentive program.

Andy Miller of Burlington, N.J., topped 198 Co-angler Division competitors with a five-bass catch weighing 15 pounds, 7 ounces that he caught using an Outlaw tube. Miller earned $2,493 for the win.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are David Barker of Frederick, Md. (five bass, 15 pounds, 6 ounces, $1,247); Dennis Hill of Vinton, Va. (five bass, 13 pounds, 15 ounces, $848); Paul Whitehead of Albrightsville, Pa. (five bass, 12 pounds, 10 ounces, $648); and Chad Shutty of Barnesboro, Pa. (five bass, 12 pounds, 6 ounces, $548).

Trickler earned boater big-bass honors and $1,000 with a 6-pound bass, and Dennis Smith of Smithville Flats, N.Y., earned co-angler big-bass honors and $495 in his division with a 5-pound, 9-ounce bass.

The Northeast Division will make its third regular-season stop Aug. 2 on Cayuga Lake in Seneca Falls followed by an event on Thousand Islands in Clayton Sept 6. The final regular-season event, a two-day Super Tournament, will be held Sept. 20-21 on Cayuga Lake in Seneca Falls. Following the regular season, the boater with the most points will be declared the Yamaha “Be the Best” points leader and awarded $1,000. The co-angler with the most points following the regular season will earn $500.

The top 30 Northeast Division boaters and co-anglers will advance to regional competition Oct. 7-11 on Lake Chautauqua near Jamestown, N.Y., where they will go up against top competitors from the Buckeye, Michigan and Shenandoah divisions for a shot at qualifying for the Wal-Mart BFL All-American – one of the most lucrative postseason tournaments in competitive angling.

As much as $6 million will be awarded in the 2003 Wal-Mart BFL.

Editor’s Note: Ranger Cup award winners are pending verification by Ranger Boats and thus are unofficial at this time.