Lambert does it again on Pickwick
Hopper wins co-angler title
IUKA, Miss. – Jason Lambert of Pickwick Dam, Tenn., weighed a two-day total of 10 bass for 30 pounds even to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League Mississippi Division Super Tournament on Pickwick Lake in Iuka, Miss., on Sunday. For his victory, Lambert earned $6,761.
“It feels good to win this tournament again,” said Lambert, who won the 2011 Walmart BFL Mississippi Division Super Tournament on Pickwick Lake as well. “You don’t get this special feeling too often, so I would love to keep on winning.
“I was fishing ledges in the mid-lake area,” Lambert continued. “I was fishing about 15-to 20-feet deep, throwing two main baits – a green pumpkin-colored Yank’Em Football jig trailered with a Strike King Rage Craw and a Strike King 6XD crankbait. I covered a lot of water and hit a lot of locations. The fish schools on Pickwick are very small right now.”
Lambert credits his Lowrance HDS with Structure Scan as the key to locating the fish and knowing exactly where to cast.
“I live on this lake and fish it 200 days a year,” Lambert said. “The Lowrance Structure Scan was such a huge factor for me this weekend. I would not have been able to win this tournament without it.
“Coming back to the scales, I didn’t think my 30 pounds was going to be enough to win,” Lambert went on to say. “Coming in to this tournament I would have guessed that it would take in the mid- to upper- 30-pound range. The lake is fishing tough right now though, so it was a pleasant surprise when I had enough.”
Rounding out the top 10 pros:
2nd: Charles Watts, Corinth, Miss., 10 bass, 28-2, $2,880
3rd: Joseph Webster, Fulton, Miss., 10 bass, 27-8, $1,921
4th: Michael Wooley, Collierville, Tenn., 10 bass, 27-6, $1,344
5th: David Hammarstrom, Brandon, Miss., 10 bass, 26-12, $1,152
6th: Jeremy Utley, Florence, Ala., 10 bass, 26-11, $1,056
7th: Jerry Gilliam, Ethelsville, Ala., 10 bass, 26-10, $960
8th: Heath Gilmore, Meridian, Miss., 10 bass, 25-4, $864
9th: Chris Smalley, Middleton, Tenn., seven bass, 25-2, $768
10th: Gene Bishop, Ridgeland, Miss., 10 bass, 24-3, $672
Complete results can be found here.
Hopper takes co-angler crown
John Hopper of Falkner, Miss., weighed in 10 bass totaling 24 pounds, 8 ounces Sunday to win $2,759 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers:
2nd: Corey Craggs, Horn Lake, Miss., 10 bass, 21-6, $1,379
3rd: Ricky Dudley, Greenville, Miss., 10 bass, 18-14, $919
4th: Josh Cameron, Starkville, Miss., 10 bass, 18-14, $644
5th: Bill Smith, Ocean Springs, Miss., eight bass, 18-2, $552
6th: John Tutor, Saltillo, Miss., nine bass, 17-10, $506
7th: Jason Mitchell, Aberdeen, Miss., 10 bass, 17-6, $460
8th: Craig Mayo, Meridian, Miss., eight bass, 16-5, $414
9th: Tim Cummings, Waynesboro, Tenn., 10 bass, 15-9, $368
10th: Lynn Watts, Pelahatchie, Miss., 10 bass, 15-5, $322
Complete co-angler results can be found here.
The top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 18-20 Regional Championship on the Red River in Natchitoches, La. Boaters will compete for a top award of a Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard and a Chevy Silverado, while co-anglers will fish for a new Ranger Z518 with a 200-horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard.
The BFL is a 24-division circuit devoted to weekend anglers, with 120 tournaments throughout the season, five in each division. The top 40 boaters and co-anglers from each division qualify for a regional tournament and compete to finish in the top six, which then qualifies them for one of the longest-running championships in all of competitive bass fishing – the Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy. Top winners in the BFL can move up to the EverStart Series or even the Walmart FLW Tour.
About FLW
FLW is the industry’s premier tournament-fishing organization, providing unparalleled fishing resources and entertainment to our sponsors, fans and host communities. FLW is offering anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money nationwide in 2012 over the course of 191 tournaments across five tournament circuits, each providing an avenue to the sport’s richest payday and most coveted championship trophy – the Forrest Wood Cup. FLW is committed to providing a lifestyle experience that is the “Best in Fishing, On and Off the Water,” through a variety of platforms including tournaments, outdoor expos and the world’s richest fantasy sports game – FLW Fantasy Fishing. For more information about FLW and FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FLWOutdoors.com or FantasyFishing.com and look for FLW on Twitter and Facebook.