Blackerby wins Bama Divison event on Martin
Morris lands co-angler title
ALEXANDER CITY, Ala. – Bob Blackerby of Chelsea, Ala., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 22 pounds, 9 ounces Saturday to win the Walmart Bass Fishing League Bama Division event on Lake Martin. For his victory, Blackerby earned $5,804.
“If you told me today that I had to go somewhere and catch 22 pounds to win an FLW tournament, Lake Martin would have been the last place I would have thought it could happen for me,” said Blackerby. “When I drew my co-angler on Friday night I didn’t have anything figured out. I told him not to expect much, and he probably wouldn’t be disappointed. This is Lake Martin, and it’s unusual to catch a really good sack. Fifteen to 16 pounds is usually what it takes to win here.
“I told my co-angler that we weren’t going to run very far,” Blackerby continued. “It was cold, it was windy and I knew that I didn’t want to run far. I thought I knew of a few places where we could catch a limit of spots but we ended up not getting a bite. Then I made the decision to move to the back of a cove where I knew I have caught some good fish shallow in years past.
“I immediately hooked into a 3 1/2-pounder, but ended up losing the fish right before it got to the net,” Blackerby went on to say. “It made me sick. A 3 1/2-pounder down here is monumental. It shook me up pretty bad. After leaving that area and checking a few other spots without a bite, we returned to the same spot where I had lost that fish earlier in the morning. It was there where I caught my biggest fish. From then on I made the decision to fish shallow the rest of the day.”
Blackerby said finding the key to his winning pattern was due to his visit to Lake Martin a few weeks prior. During his pre-fishing he was able to get into the backs of the pockets and visually see stumps and brush. He noted that the water level was about 2 1/2 feet higher on the tournament day and all the wood and cover was now submerged. Blackerby could not see it, but knew it was there. His entire limit came on a red-colored Rat-L-Trap.
Rounding out the top 10 pros:
2nd: Yancy Windham, Reform, Ala., five bass, 19-12, $1,902
3rd: Michael Jones, Tallassee, Ala., five bass, 15-8, $1,267
4th: Tullis Lanier, Rockford, Ala., five bass, 15-0, $888
5th: Tim Hurst, Oxford, Ala., five bass, 14-13, $761
6th: Joshua Herren, Pinson, Ala., five bass, 14-12, $697
7th: John Pollard, Eclectic, Ala., five bass, 14-9, $634
8th: Marty Giddens, Alpine, Ala., five bass, 14-6, $571
9th: Dalton Bobo, Northport, Ala., five bass, 13-12, $507
10th: Felton Langley, Lafayette, Ala., five bass, 13-2, $444
Complete results can be found here.
Morris tops co-angler division
Ken Morris of Harpersville, Ala., weighed a five-bass limit totaling 12 pounds, 10 ounces Saturday to win $1,902 in the co-angler division.
Rounding out the top 10 co-anglers:
2nd: Michael Corbett, Oxford, Ala., five bass, 12-10, $951
3rd: Michael Roush, Mobile, Ala., five bass, 11-6, $634
4th: Michael Wright, Covington, Ga., five bass, 10-8, $444
5th: Rodney Graham, Childersburg, Ala., five bass, 10-3, $380
6th: Mark Cameron, Phenix City, Ala., five bass, 9-12, $349
7th: Alan Morgan, Alex City, Ala., five bass, 9-9, $317
8th: Brandon Skinner, De Armanville, Ala., five bass, 9-6, $285
9th: Chris Quaintance, Muscle Shoals, Ala., five bass, 8-14, $254
10th: David Reid, Roswell, Ga., five bass, 8-13, $222
Complete co-angler results can be found here.
The next BFL Bama Division tournament is scheduled for April 6 on Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Ala. After the last divisional tournament is complete, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers based on point standings will qualify for the Oct. 17-19 Regional Championship on Lake Hartwell in Lavonia, Ga. 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. The 2013 BFL All-American is being held June 27-29 on the Nickajack Lake in Chattanooga, Tenn. 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 anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money nationwide in 2013 over the course of 220 tournaments across five tournament circuits, four of which provide an avenue to the sport’s richest payday and most coveted championship trophy – the Forrest Wood Cup. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show and is broadcast to more than 559 million households worldwide, making it the most widely distributed weekly outdoors-sports television show in the world. FLW is committed to providing a lifestyle experience that is the “Best in Fishing, On and Off the Water.” For more information about FLW visit FLWOutdoors.com and look for FLW on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube.