UC Davis wins National Guard FLW College Fishing event on Clear Lake

Duo nets $10,000 in college scholarships at Western Division tourney

The top-five Western Division teams acknowledge the crowd at the National Guard FLW College Fishing event at Clear Lake. Photo by Kevin Hunt.

March 7, 2009 • MLF • Abu Garcia College Fishing

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The UC Davis team of Steve Reed and Ken Gunderson, both of Davis, Calif., won the first National Guard FLW College Fishing Western Division tournament on Clear Lake Saturday with six bass weighing 23 pounds, 9 ounces. The victory earned the team $10,000.

“This is a dream come true,” Reed said. “FLW has given college students a chance to compete in tournaments and help with the expenses so that we can do what we love. There isn’t another circuit out there like this.”

Reed said the team targeted an area on Clear Lake called Redbud that is south of the Konocti Harbor Resort and Spa. They caught their quality bass using a drop-shot.

“We picked this area because of the depth of water and the rocks on the bottom. When the sun warmed up over the course of the day it brought the fish up. The warmer it got the better the fishing. All of the teams seemed to have a great day of fishing.

“Going into today I thought that 15 pounds would win the tournament and 15 pounds didn’t even get top five,” the 21-year-old senior added.

Reed said his team plans to fish the full Western Division schedule and is looking forward to making it to the National Guard National Championship.

“This is such a great opportunity for college students,” Reed said. “I can’t wait to let other students know about it.”

Rounding out the top five teams are Sacramento State – Stephen Lesieur of Rancho Murieta, Calif., and Matthew Paul of Loomis, Calif. (six bass, 19-4, $5,000); University of Nevada, Reno – Travis Olson and Justin Landerman both of Reno, Nev. (six bass, 17-1, $4,000); University of Oregon- Marcus Johnson and Christopher Stam both of Eugene, Ore. (five bass, 15-14, $3,000) and Arizona State University – Joseph Jarrell of Phoenix, Ariz., and Mark Walker of Tempe, Ariz. (five bass, 15-7, $2,000).

FLW Outdoors announced the College Fishing trail in May 2008. The entire schedule, which is organized around the five Stren Series Divisions can be found by visiting CollegeFishing.com, along with the rules, requirements and information on how to create a bass club.

Full time students enrolled in four year colleges or universities are eligible to participate in the events. Schools in each division can send two-person teams to each of the four qualifying events in their division, with each event limited to a maximum of 40 teams. Each team will have an opportunity to win $10,000 for first and $2,000 through fifth place. The prize money will be split evenly between the winning team’s club and the school they represent. The tournaments are free to enter, boats and drivers will be provided and all collegiate teams will receive a travel allowance. The top five teams in each of the qualifying events will advance to one of five televised three-day FLW National Guard Regional Championships.

Each school represented in a televised Regional Championship will have team shirts and boats provided by Ranger. The purse for each Regional Championship will be a Ranger 177TR with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Yamaha outboard wrapped in school colors for the winning club and $25,000 for the school they represent. Awards of $6,000 will also extend through fifth place for the club and school to split evenly.

The FLW National Guard College Fishing National Championship will be a three-day televised event hosting the top five teams from each regional, 25 total teams. The teams will be provided with team shirts and wrapped Ranger boats towed by Chevy trucks for this competition. The purse for the championship will range from $25,000 cash and a Ranger 177TR with a 90-horsepower Evinrude or Yamaha outboard wrapped in school colors and $50,000 for the school they represent to $15,000 for fifth, split between the club and school.

The winning team will be declared the FLW National Guard Collegiate National Champion and will qualify for the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup presented by BP and Castrol in 2010. The winners will also receive use of a wrapped boat and Chevy truck for the Forrest Wood Cup.

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors also is taking fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports, $10 million in cash and prizes. Sign up for Player’s Advantage for only $10 to get your edge and win.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.